Now that I know who my great grandfather really is, I’m curious how much the story he invented compares to his real life story. You may know that after 30 years of research I learned that my great grandfather was living in the United States under an alias. Harry Kenneth Jackson was a made up…
A Photo Of My Parents Before Marriage
My parents were married for some 40 years before calling it quits. It wasn’t their first separation, but it was their last. I don’t recall seeing many photos of my parents together before marriage. Then, a few weeks ago, going through an envelope of my mom’s teenaged photos, there it was. A beautiful photo of…
Three Houses on E. 25th Street: The Foundation of Our Oakland Migration
Three houses side by side on E. 25th Street in Oakland, California are important to my family history. These three houses were where it all began. It’s where the cousins from Hawaii first lived. It sparked a long line of relatives moving to this very street for over 60 years. The First Migration From the…
How I Knocked Down My Longest Standing Genealogy Brick Wall: DNA, Collaboration, Documents, And Luck
You may have seen me refer to what a pain in the butt my great grandfather, Harry Kenneth Jackson, has been to research in my article “Harry Jackson, I Need To Talk To You“. I’ve been trying to figure out who his parents were and where he was from for decades without any luck. Spots…
You Should Scrutinize Photo Suggestions From Ancestry Family Trees
One of the most wonderful things when working on online trees is finding that someone has a photograph of your ancestor. It’s even more special when that is the first photo you’ve ever seen of this person. What’s not wonderful is finding that people who have your relatives in their trees have photos of the…