Timelines Create Perspective

In my search for a starting point, I reviewed the notes I had taken from our last meeting with Cousin Hattie after the 2009 George Family Reunion. During our visit, in the midst of my interview, she began asking me questions about my life with her favorite cousin's youngest son. By the time we were ready to leave, she made me promise to write a book. . . but where should that book begin?

I started looking at family legends and soon a story began to take shape. In order to better analyze family relationships of those who are now gone, leaving no record but bits of memories entrusted to their children, I started a timeline with the census, birth, marriage and death information I had obtained through Ancestry.com, obituaries, and land documents from the County Registry of Deeds.

Each piece of information was given it's own place on the timeline. The next step was to find what historical events occurred during that period. I found an interesting and easy to use timeline generator called, OurTimeLines.com-Create Timeline.

Soon I began to see gaps that needed exploration . . . .