Apr 26, 20191 minDom Vitale's WarLast year, while going through boxes of old photos at my dad’s house, we came across a plastic bag containing hundreds of photos taken by...
Feb 22, 20191 minGenealogical GoldMy great-great-great-great-grandfather, James Luke, emigrated from Birmingham, England in 1816 at the age of 20. I’ve been lucky enough t...
Apr 26, 20181 minAncestral HomesI recently drove from Maryland to New England for a week of genealogical research with the NEHGS Research Tour in Hartford. I went up a d...
Dec 14, 20171 minFinding the AmadonsBack in April I attended the biennial conference of the New England Regional Genealogical Consortium (NERGC) in Springfield, Massachusett...
Mar 2, 20171 minIdentifying a Family BibleGrowing up, I remember having two huge old family bibles in the house. They were in terrible condition with detached covers, loose pages,...
Dec 19, 20161 minPiece WorkI have developed a soft spot for two of my great-great-grandparents, Domenico Caldarelli and Maria Tavano. They were born in Italy, Domen...
Aug 16, 20161 minHonoring a Civil War VeteranMy great-great-great-grandfather, Elijah Dickinson, enlisted in Union Army in 1862. He was joined by both of his brothers, Atwood and Jam...
Nov 19, 20151 minSolving a family mysteryMy mother was born with an unusual last name – Cottuli – which has been both a blessing and a curse for my research. The blessing is that...
Sep 24, 20151 minFinding a better lifeIt is said time and time again that our immigrant ancestors came to America for a better life. What I often find in my research is that o...
Sep 8, 20151 minMaking progress by breaking with traditionAs an avid genealogical researcher, I am keenly aware of the role that tradition plays in history. In all cultures, each new generation l...
Jun 2, 20152 minHidden Between the Pages of a 130-year-old BibleIn the fall, I blogged about the restoration of a family bible which was published in the late 1800s. Because no births, marriages or dea...
Mar 8, 20152 minCousin Emily Dickinson and My Dickinson AncestorsMy maternal grandmother’s maiden name was Dorothea Brooks Dickinson. When I started researching that branch of the family tree, I eventua...
Mar 1, 20154 minJames Luke, 1796-1885James Luke was my 4th-great-grandfather, and for quite a while I had a very hard time finding any info on him. I knew that he was born in...
Mar 1, 20152 minPorter Cross, 1807-1894Two of my favorite ancestors, for no particular reason, are Porter & Sophia Cross, both born in 1807. They are my 4th-great-grandparents...
Dec 28, 20142 minThe Court File of Domenico CaldarelliI finally received the court file in the mail! It primarily contained witness statements and the charging document. The first item of not...
Nov 24, 20142 minRounding Out the Story of Domenico CaldarelliAfter my last blog post, I turned to the members of the Italian Genealogy group on Facebook to help me decipher the last name of the man ...
Nov 22, 20143 minThe People vs. Domenico CaldarelliThis week Eli is in New York City on business, so I came up to visit the NYC Municipal Archives. Dad took a train in from Massachusetts a...
Nov 1, 20142 minWe Are The ChosenI found this piece, written by Della M. Cumming in 1943, and it really expresses the motivation behind genealogy research. We Are The Cho...
Nov 1, 20141 minThe Second Family Bible RestorationHaving had the Dickinson Family Bible restored earlier this year (see earlier blog post here), I was eager to see what Leonard’s Book Res...