Have you ever been asked this question?
Where did our family come from?
For a nation of immigrants, this is likely a common question. When I was young, I asked my mother this question. She said that her parents were from Barbados, a small island in the Caribbean. However, she clarified that by saying Barbados was part of England, so we were English. She went on to say that she also thought her family was “part Greek”. On my father’s side, my aunt who was the historian of the family, told me the Johnson’s were English. The other part of my father’s family were also English.
Well, as it turned out, through research, my mother’s paternal side of the family the Leslies, arrived from Scotland to Barbados in 1653. Her mother’s side was from England. On my father’s side, his grandfather was born in Ireland, now Northern Ireland. His mother’s side was indeed English. We are pleased to say that my children and grandchildren know their family history and can correctly answer the question “Where did our family come from?’
Why Research Family History?
For many adults who are busy working and raising children, the question of where the family came from is not foremost on their minds. It is not until they get older and begin to reflect on their past that they desire to preserve family stories and photographs, and document genealogy. This explains why so many family historians and genealogists are older adults who wish to preserve a sense of history and heritage. Connecting the younger generation to the knowledge of where they come from can be quite transformative. Research shows that understanding family lineage builds resilience, confidence, and a durable sense of identity.
What’s the Plan?
If you’ve devoted time to researching your own past, you already know the family history and genealogy. The question is: How will you preserve the family stories and the family genealogies? Every family who has done the work of researching genealogies and documenting family stories needs to have a plan for the preservation of this important information. Ideally, it is not only recorded on a computer, which can be disabled by a virus, or in a box that can be destroyed by water or mistakenly sent to the trash.
You may not think it is important now, but one day someone in your family may ask:
Where did our family come from?
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