Uncovering Family Stories

Uncovering Family Stories

(Do you know who your grandparent’s siblings are?)

Many people who seek to build their family trees focus solely on their direct ancestors; that is, their parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, etc. They may note the names of those ancestors’ siblings, but look no further at those additional lines in the tree. I want to point out a few valuable reasons why researchers should consider looking at these related branches more closely.

 

Discover Facts About Direct Ancestors

I grew up knowing my maternal grandfather Morris Gold’s mother’s name was Jenny or Shaindel Gold and his father’s name was Harry or Hershel Drucker, and that Jenny and Harry lived in Austria.  What I never knew was that my great-grandmother Jenny emigrated to the U.S. And I may never have discovered that if I hadn’t been thorough in my research regarding Morris’s siblings. In 2012 after sorting through tons of records, I managed to find all of Morris’s siblings – Gussie, Leah, Libba, Samuel, and Nathan – and identified many of their descendants. When the 1940 U.S. census became publicly available, I looked up his sister Gussie Danches and was amazed to discover Jennie Gold listed with the Danches family in Cleveland!

 

This 1940 census record provided significant clues about my great-grandmother – her approximate date of birth and her marital status (widowed). I eventually found her (as Szejndel Drucker) in a 1922 ship’s manifest traveling with her daughter Leah Greminger and her family.

Connecting With Newly-Found Cousins

Growing up I knew all of my 11 first cousins (all on Mom’s side) but only knew a couple of my second cousins (on Dad’s side). One of the benefits of my genealogy research has been meeting “new” cousins both online and in person. Everyone I have corresponded and spoken with has been so warm and welcoming. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting my Berkowitz and Rosenbaum cousins in Baltimore and Horn cousins in NYC (descendants of Leah/Lena). During regular correspondence with Schwartz and Isaacson cousins (Dad’s first cousins) and others, I discovered many of my cousins are just as eager as me to connect and relate our stories. I’ve enjoyed getting to know my newly-found cousins and hope to meet lots more!

Sharing Photos and Stories
Meeting my relatives has involved the telling of many interesting stories about our shared ancestors. We have also shared some family photos. My second cousin Gwen even sent me the only photo I possess of our great-grandmother Jenny Gold! 

Genealogy isn’t just about names and dates; it’s learning details about the lives of the family members who make up our tree.

I continue to learn about my grandparents’ siblings and their descendants. Heartfelt thanks to my cousins from various branches of my tree who are helping me uncover so many rich stories.