Day: December 16, 2010

I’m gonna jump ahead to my 7th Great Grandfather James Chagam &  the Barkhamsted Lighthouse Village in Barkhamsted Connecticut. This is where my story will begin for you – I have complete documentation for every generation starting with my Grandchild to Chagam’s in the 1637 Tribal Member’s list of Major Mason and the Pequot War but will start here for the time being~

This is where my research got crazy – After working my way back in time and several years later I come to Barkhamsted Connecticut and the “Lighthouse Native American Tribe” – I’m gonna share a little of my research with you for them in the next few blogs so you can read the beautiful story of James Chagam and Molly Barber –

We Are The Chosen
My feelings are in each family we are called to find the ancestors.To put flesh on their bones and make them live again, To tell the family story and to feel that somehow they know and approve. To me, doing genealogy is not a cold gathering of facts but, instead, Breathing life into all who have gone before. We are the story tellers of the tribe. We have been called as it were by our genes. Those who have gone before cry out to us: Tell our story. So, we do. In finding them, we somehow find ourselves. How many graves have I stood before now and cried? I have lost count. How many times have I told the ancestors you have a wonderful family, you would be proud of us? How many times have I walked up to a grave and felt somehow there was love there for me? I cannot say. It goes beyond just documenting facts. It goes to who I am and why I do the things I do? It goes to seeing a cemetery about to be lost forever to weeds and indifference and saying I can’t let this happen. The bones here are bones of my bone and flesh of my flesh. It goes to doing something about it. It goes to pride in what our ancestors were able to accomplish. How they contributed to what we are today. It goes to respecting their hardships and losses, their never giving in or giving up. Their resoluteness to go on and build a life for their family. It goes to deep pride that they fought to make and keep us a Nation. It goes to a deep and immense understanding that they were doing it for us That we might be born who we are. That we might remember them. So we do.With love and caring and scribing each fact of their existence, Because we are them and they are us. So, as a scribe called, I tell the story of my family. It is up to that one called in the next generation, To answer the call and take their place in the long line of family storytellers. That is why I do my family genealogy, And that is what calls those young and old to step up and put flesh on the bones. [Author: Della M. Cumming ca 1943.]
DEAR ANCESTOR:
~YOUR TOMBSTONE STANDS AMONG THE REST -NEGLECTED AND ALONE- THE NAME AND DATE HAVE WORN OFF THE WEATHERED MARBLE STONE IT REACHES OUT TO ALL WHO CARE. IT’S NOW TOO LATE TO MOURN  YOU DID NOT KNOW THAT I’D EXIST YOU DIED….AND I WAS BORN YET EACH OF US ARE CELLS OF YOU IN FLESH, IN BLOOD, IN BONE. OUR HEARTS CONTRACT AND BEAT A PULSE ENTIRELY NOT OUR OWN DEAR ANCESTOR, THE PLACE YOU FILLED SOME HUNDRED YEARS AGO SPREADS OUT AMONG THE ONES YOU LEFT WHO WOULD HAVE LOVED YOU SO I WONDER HOW YOU LIVED AND LOVED. I WONDER IF YOU KNEW THAT SOMEDAY I WOULD FIND THIS PLACE AND COME TO VISIT YOU~  {Author Unknown]
A Genealogist’s Prayer
Lord, help me dig into the past And sift the sands of time That I might find the roots that made This family tree of mine. Lord, help me trace the ancient roads On which my fathers trod, And led them through so many lands To find our present sod. Lord, help me find an ancient book Or dusty manuscript, That’s safely hidden now away In some forgotten crypt. Lord, let it bridge the gap that haunts My soul when I can’t find, The missing link between some name That ends the same as mine.  [Author Unknown]

Once you’ve got all your immediate family as done as you can – then you start working your way back into history.

I started with Census – Ancestry.com is a wonderful data base and wealth of information – it’s has changed over the past 18 years but for the better – I couldn’t of done all I’ve done without them ~

Ancestry.com is free to use and has a online Tree Maker you can use  but it starts charging a fee monthly subscription to look at the documents (Census, records, etc) – If you are this point then I recommend the U.S .Collection monthly subscription  it is I believe around $20.00/month but gives you full access to all United States Documents it has in it’s library – you are able to copy, save and attach them to anyone in your files unlimited~ Once you start going further back into history and foreign countries then you can subscribe to the World Deluxe Membership which is of course a lil more a month but this saves more time and money but doing it monthly thur them~

After Census I started looking for graves, obituaries and such – wealth of information. I used Find A Grave the most in my research.

One of my biggest helps was the local Historical Societies in the area’s I was researching – many will gladly help in anything you are looking up – sometimes there is a fee and sometimes they send it for free – it depends on how nice you talk to them.

Another help was local books published about the area – older books were of great help – I used Internet Archives Library – I was able to find 85% of old, old books thru them and download them and save them to my files.

Another wonderful site was thur Joyce Tice and her Tri-Counties Genealogy & History Site