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North vs. South in Records Request: Southern Hospitality Wins


My grandfather had been quiet about who his father was for many, many years, finally revealing his name to me only a few years ago.  I had deduced the family due to his name and birth location, but as far as which Keirs was the father, that I was not able to determine.  As it turns out he was an “illegitimate birth” and I have not been able to discover a birth record, so I turned to the next best source, newspapers.

I found an article in the 1 Dec 1925 Decatur Herald that says: Continue reading “North vs. South in Records Request: Southern Hospitality Wins”

The Dark Side of History – A Response to The Legal Genealogist

 

In her blog article entitled “The Dark Side[i],” the Judy Russell shows examples from the Mississippi Department of Education List of Educable Children of not only apparent, but blatant racism in the 1927 lists.

She starts out showing an entry in the list where race is listed as “Coloured[ii].” This is followed by a few others that show the children’s race as “Darkies[iii],” “Dark Blotches[iv],” and finally “Black Niggers[v].”

She expressed that these records made her “skin crawl.”  Similar reactions were expressed by others leaving comments on the page. Continue reading “The Dark Side of History – A Response to The Legal Genealogist”

When Official Records are Wrong

An integral part of genealogical research is the use of historical documents and records developed by governmental agencies.  Actually, they are probably one of the most important parts as the government is seen as a third party, uninvolved observer and documentor of our ancestor’s lives.

But what if they are wrong? Continue reading “When Official Records are Wrong”

The Unknown Commander of the Alamo

On 6 March 1836 around 200 brave men stood their ground against over 1,500 enemies for the freedom they believed in.  While almost all of them were killed, they took out around 600 of their enemies in the process.  Most Texans know this to be the fall of the Alamo.

But this is not about them.

This is about the commander of the Alamo, the forgotten commander. Continue reading “The Unknown Commander of the Alamo”