Tag Archives: Theme: 52 Ancestors

I made it through my first 52 Ancestors challenge! Here’s a listing of all the posts. #1: The First Marriage of George Rottman #2: Those Elusive Germans #3: German Surnames #4: I’d Love to Meet… #5: Tracking Down the Germans #6: Luxembourg Roots #7: A Valentine’s Day Marriage #8: Family Photo #9: A Courthouse Marriage #10: Tragedy Strikes Bachelor Uncle

Week 51 Prompt: Future Week 52 Prompt: You This week’s 52 Ancestors theme is “Future” and next week’s theme is “You.” I’m going to cheat a little and direct you to my annual achievements/goals post , as this pretty much covers both themes. And, hey, it’s the holidays, and I’ve been doing the 52 Ancestors challenge all year, so I’m cutting myself a break 😉 Happy Holidays!

Week 50 Prompt: Tradition This week’s 52 Ancestors theme is “Tradition.” Since it’s almost Christmas, holiday traditions popped into my head. Memories of Christmas at grandma and grandpa’s house, with my parents, aunt, uncle, and cousins. I remember that I always got to open my presents first because we went in order from youngest to oldest. I would drive my cousins crazy, taking my sweet time unwrapping my gifts (as I got older, this was mostly deliberate!).

Week 49 Prompt: Craft This week’s 52 Ancestors theme is “Craft.” My maternal grandfather was considered a craftsman. He was primarily a tool and die maker, a type of machinist. Eventually, he decided to work for himself and had his own private workshop in the basement of his home.

Week 47 Prompt: Soldier This week’s 52 Ancestors theme is”Soldier.” I have many soldiers in my family tree. I thought I’d use this opportunity to create a list of them by war. Not only is this a way to honor each of them, it also allows me to see whose service needs to be researcher further.

Week 46 Prompt: Poor Man This week’s 52 Ancestors theme is ”Poor Man.” I decided not to go the monetary route. Instead, I’m going the emotional route; a sad story about my second great-grandfather—poor Philip. As I’ve stated in this blog before, Philip Rottman is one of my biggest brick walls. I have managed to unravel some of his story and it’s a sad one. Here’s what I know. Philip and his wife Mary Eva had eight children, two of whom died as infants. After the family finally settled in […]

Week 45 Prompt: Rich Man This week’s 52 Ancestors theme is”Rich Man.” My fifth great-grandfather, Captain Robert Parks was rich with kids, and had some money to boot. Of his total fourteen children, only two died as infants. So when he set out for Michigan in 1823, he was traveling with eleven children and his pregnant wife—the oldest about 22 and the youngest a little over a year old. That’s a lot of people making the trek! According to his son’s biography:

Week 44 Prompt: Trick or Treat This week’s 52 Ancestors theme is”Trick or Treat.” Thinking along the lines of Halloween, I remembered one of my favorite cards. It’s a cute, yet simple Halloween card, that my dad gave me, probably a year or two before he died; I was probably about ten years old. He always used to call me pumpkin, so this card was very fitting.