Saturday Night Genealogy Fun - Thanksgiving Edition

 From Randy over at Genea-Musings:

 Hey genea-philes ... it's SATURDAY NIGHT again - time for more GENEALOGY FUN!!!

Your mission, should you decide to accept it, is to:

1)  Think about the answers to these questions:

a.  Which ancestor are you most thankful for, and why?

b.  Which author (book, periodical, website, etc.) are you most thankful for, and why?

c.  Which historical record set (paper or website) are you most thankful for, and why?

2)  Tell us about it in a blog post of your own; in a comment to this blog post; in a Facebook status line or a Google Plus stream post.

Here's mine:

1-a:   This is a tough one!  I am thankful for so many of my ancestors for different reasons!  I guess I will have to choose my maternal grandfather, Charles Morgan "Pop Pop" Tapley (1907-1973) because he was the one who sparked my interest in genealogy.  It was his steno pad full of family charts and information that I inherited after he died.  Those pages (which I still have and cherish, of course!) have grown into a database of over 3,800 individuals with additional notes on many of them. 

1-b:  I know I am going to sound like a stalker... or a kiss up... but honestly, my favorite author is Thomas MacEntee, author of the Geneabloggers blog, among others.  Not only did Thomas spark my interest in starting my own genealogy blog, but the information he has available for bloggers on Geneabloggers is invaluable!  From either Thomas or his blog, I learned how to write a Disclosure Statement, how to add a Posts by Topics roll up to my blog, and the importance of adding a research toolbox to assist my readers.  In addition, the links to thousands of other genealogy blogs and visiting them has expanded my knowledge base ten-fold!  I can e-mail Thomas anytime, and no matter how busy he is (and we all know he is extremely in demand), he takes the time to reply and answer my questions.

1-c:  The historical record I am most thankful for is the United States Census.  Even though many times it has incorrect ages and misspelled names, it has been invaluable in helping me find the location of an ancestor, or the names of children (or spouses!) I didn't know they had, or where they or their parents were born.  I have just learned to take the information "with a grain of salt" and use it as a starting point in my research.  

A lot can happen in a year!

One year ago today, I started this blog.  Last night when I realized that today is my blogoversary, I went back and read my first post.  Boy, have I come a long way!  This past year has brought so many major changes, upheavals, hurts, pleasant surprises, and joys that it is a wonder I am still coherent!

Before starting this blog, I had been doing genealogy on my own off and on for many years when I found a friend who was just as excited by looking for dead people as I was.  Last year about this time, we attended the Family History Expo in Atlanta.  There, I took a class from Thomas MacEntee on writing a blog.  That lit a fire under me.  As soon as I returned home, I started this blog.  I love telling my family's stories (Who doesn't?!).  And the best surprises have been all of the cousins and Geneablogger friends I have gained!  I purposely and freely put my name out there on the Internet in order to grab the attention of any possible relatives.  I am blessed to say it has worked.  I have gained at least 10 cousins from writing this blog!

In addition, I have learned a lot about my family.  This blog helps motivate me to do more and more research.  I mean, I need to find out more to have something to write about on my blog!  Also, joining the Geneablogger community - because what blogger who blogs about genealogy wouldn't! - has exposed me to wonderful information, webinars, stronger research techniques, better source citations, friends, acquaintances, and so much more. 

Through all that has happened over the past year, this blog has been my constant.  The familiar thing I could come back to.  Oh, I had to neglect it for awhile, but it was right here waiting for my return.  It is always patient, always happy, and always willing to listen.  Of course "it" refers to you - my readers.  Thank you for visiting and commenting.  If you are related to me, I thank you even more if you drop me a line.  I have been called a "cousin collector," and that is just fine by me!