By LaRae Free Kerr
In a perfect genealogical world, every single person would be represented on a family group record with at least three vital records: birth, marriage, and death certificates. Each certificate would give a name, an event, a date, a place, one or more persons, and a connector which, when combined,

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by Lin V. Floyd
As you think about a meaningful present for your family members this Christmas, consider the gift of family history––something special created for the purpose of strengthening your family ties. The last part of that definition is important because it’s something more than a

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By LaRae Free Kerr

A cousin wrote, “Ephraim Perkins, born 1795 in NC, son of Joshua Perkins and Rebecca Sherrill has 5 wives listed for him—Mary Stubblefield md 9 Aug 1817, Lucinda Rushing md 1817, Lucinda E. Livingston md 4 Sep 1845, Milly J. Holmes md 7 Nov 1854, Mary Wylie Moses md abt 1865. Some of the children of Ephraim are connected to more than one of these wives. Can you clear this up?”

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By LaRae Free Kerr

Genetic genealogy is “the use of DNA to explore ancestral origins and relationships between individuals…another tool for the genealogist’s toolbox,” wrote Blaine T. Bettinger, Ph. D. at http://www.thegeneticgenealogist.com/wp-content/uploads/InterpretingTheResultsofGeneticGenealogyTests.PDF. Following is an example, based on a true situation but with the names changed, showing what YDNA can do and undo for researchers.

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by LaRae Free Kerr

Young Dollie Wadsworth walked to the polling booth with her husband, where she proudly cast her ballot, knowing she was making history, even in her isolated Nevada community. It was 1920. Warren Harding was elected with 76% of the votes. But in hindsight, that wasn’t the big news. The big news was that women voted in national elections for the first time.

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