When I go to cemeteries, which I do more than most people, I generally notice two types of graves in particular – the graves of soldiers and single gravestones that are surrounded by seemingly unused plots.  The latter break my heart because I know that in many cases the person died and the family bought plots, but then decided later to move on.  These single graves are particularly heart-wrenching when they are the graves of

The smallest piece of information generally is the one that gets me involved in a crazy genealogy hunt.  And, sometimes they lead to the biggest discoveries.  In this case, it was a photo with a name that I found unusual that started it all.   The Photo The photo had been taken at a long defunct studio in Ft. Scott and included two boys with an older gentleman.  The boys were identified on the photo

 World War II brought the threat of attacks from the skies.  As such, the coasts began blackout practice, which entailed extinguishing or covering anything that could emit light.  The  idea was that enemy pilots would not know where to attack if there were no lights along the coast.  By the end of 1942, the practice had moved inland to the center of the U.S. mainland, where most of our relatives lived.   The Rules  

The Grand Army of The Republic (G.A.R.) was an organization for veterans of the Civil War that fought for the Union.  It existed from 1866 to 1956, when it was dissolved due to the natural course of life.  There was no requirement for veterans to join the organization, but many who had served chose to become members.   Numerous direct ancestors and other relatives were eligible for G.A.R.  This article focuses on two specific ancestors that

I never knew how close I came to not existing until I heard the family story of  Archibald Crawford Jr., who nearly died at the hands of the British when he was just a young boy.    Support For the Revolution   Young Archibald’s father Archibald Sr., who had been born on a ship while his parents crossed the Atlantic, was a strong supporter of the American Revolution.  However, he was unable to join the