Sun, 06 Apr 2003

Mormons and Ancestors

Us heathen folks tend to be concerned about our ancestors - some wag once called Asatru 'Norse Shinto'. While I don't think that's quite right, many, many Asafolks are into geneology, myself included. Curiously, we share this particular passion with another (much larger and better known) religious group here in the US - Mormons.

Over the years the Latter Day Saints have amassed some pretty impressive geneology resources, some public, some private. One of the latter is a small company called Everton Publishers, Inc. They sell a great many supplies and services, including some fine guides to research.

Folks who don't "do geneology" often don't realize just how time-consuming and frustrating doing basic reasearch can be. There is often no more than scraps of information available, even about relatively recent ancestors. Most of our forebearers weren't exactly packrats - in fact, quite often even basic documents have to be obtained from public records rather than family archives. Few of us pay enough attention to the fact that tomorrows history is todays event.

Anyway, Donna Brown wrote a piece for their newsletter that is a must read. Here's the link:

Donna's Diary: The Military Mom

Bear this bit of writing in mind while you edit your blog, write in your journal or clean out your attic. Maybe it'll make the furture a little brighter when you're the ancestor being researched.

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