It seems it would be much easier to be the first wife.  You are typically younger, you can set expectations, you don’t have to mother children that are your husbands  (i.ie. avoid the “You are not my mother!”), and you don’t have the image of an earlier wife to get in the way of your relationship.  However, in the past, being in the First Wives’ Club often meant that tragedy would strike. Members of the

  My McCracken lineage has always been something of a mystery.  My great-great grandfather Lemuel Lawrence McCracken was so hard to trace that I joked – much to my aunts’ displeasure –  that he must have been a horse thief.  And, my great-great grandmother McCracken seemingly had no records either.  Through a journey of discoveries over the past 30 years, I have discovered a bit about who they were. The Family Stories When I began this

    Churches provide a space where anyone is free to wander in and join the congregation. They also often provide space for activities – some church actives, some for the community, and some for specific families. In addition, the church records often contain a wealth of genealogical information.    History With Churches Both my husband’s family and my family have extensive relationships with churches of various denominations.  A few years ago, we had the

  Passco “Pat” R. Peelle was the last Passco in our family line, the last standing Peelle in our family line, and drove the streetcar to the end of the line.   Uncle Pat To me Uncle Pat, great-uncle actually but we never made that distinction, was always an old man.  Everything about him was old.  He looked old, smelled old, and had old things.  I remember visiting his home and feeling very uncomfortable, not

  This story starts with a Seaman’s Certificate and ends with orphans, “servants,” George Washington’s hair, and a body donated to science.    The Certificate Some time back I discovered a Seaman’s Certificate for Samuel McGinley.  It was signed by Margaret McGinley, which was odd as the certificate was clearly set up specifically for a man to sign.  It was 1814 and women didn’t often sign legal documents.  However, Samuel’s father Captain John McGinley, who