Last Halloween, I shared the story of George Amos Gritton, the coroner--and, eventually, treasurer--of Amador County, California. He was born on February 4, 1852 in Henderson, Illinois to George Amos Gritton, Sr., and Lucy Nation, and at the age of 18, he set out west to follow the California Gold Rush. That's where he met [...]
So, we're Catholic. Really Catholic. I grew up attending Sunday School, memorizing my Acts of Contrition and finding excuses to skip out on Reconciliation every year. It was great (heavy on the sarcasm--sorry Mom!), and when I started researching my genealogy, it came as no surprise that there were not one, not two, but dozens [...]
The one thing I often overlook when it comes to researching an ancestor's story is the weather. And it shouldn't be: climate patterns and weather phenomenon guided both our ancestors' day-to-day decisions and their long-term migration patterns, just as they guide our own. Rainstorms were essential to keeping crops alive, but snowstorms may have kept [...]
J. R. & Mary Lou
