A misconception, call it misinformation:
When you absolutely know your ancestor came from a specific area and time of history, why would you (or in this case, “ME”) look anywhere else even when confronted with conflicting information?
Yep. I was completely wrong! Sadly, I was many miles from my hometown when many of the elders related to my family were talking to strangers researching their book about the Rock Fences of the Bluegrass area of Kentucky. Their reminiscing’s were documented as the absolute truth about where my ancestors came from in Ireland and the stories behind those journeys.
Then you take a death certificate where the informant (child of the deceased) declared the paternal ancestor of the deceased was from County Cork, Ireland.
I was absolutely certain that my ancestry would be found in Co. Cork.
Today my husband works for a company that has both a presence in the US as well as in Co. Cork, Ireland. It was like a “sign”. That has to be where I need to go to find my 2X grandfather’s family. I have bought a lot of clothing from companies based in Co. Cork: Jimmy Hourihan – 2 capes; Lee Valley Ireland (grandfather shirts – dozens of those shirts as well as vest, jackets, a couple of Irish Tweed flat caps); I could go on and on. My wardrobe looks like an advertisement for Co. Cork, Ireland. 🙂
I decided last fall to pick back up on researching my paternal ancestry. I needed a new program to house my database since Family Tree Maker was outdated. I loaded it up on my current computer but it was not adequate for the job. So the first research I had to do was find a program to upload my GEDCOM.
I found what I feel is the best program I have run into to date. Even better than Family Tree Maker was in its heyday. Family Historian 7. I took my time researching before spending money. One of my better investments! I uploaded the GEDCOM I had downloaded from Family Tree Makers back in 2003. It was seamless! What a relief as I had a lot of documents and pictures and data in that file. Literally thousands of people!
Through reading the forums of that program site as well as some other genealogy forums, I read about “The Green Room”. A quick search and I was there. They have an amazing support group setup for people researching their ancestry, as well as if focused on a specific region.
Now I am planning a trip to Northern Ireland in the fall to explore the possibilities I can break down the brick wall that has blood running freely as I bang my head against it to find my James.
If you have a similar situation, make a comment below about how you are breaking down your brick walls in your genealogical research – what sites you have found and how the process is going!