Accentuate the positive: a reflection on my 2019 genealogy year

Jill Ball, GeniAus, has thrown out this challenge  (thanks for sharing Judy Webster) and I thought I’d give it a go.

The goal is to reflect on genealogical ventures over the past year, with the tag line ‘Accentuate the Positive’. I’m pretty sure this is a line from a song, and the next line is ‘eliminate the negative’ (I’ve googled, it’s Bing Crosby).   But, of course, when I read Jill’s challenge my thoughts were immediately along the lines of ‘I didn’t do anything last year’, ‘I achieved nothing’, ‘I wasted time’. It’s human nature to focus on what we didn’t achieve and berate ourselves for the undone things still on our list, rather than the things that we did cross off. Or the things that we did that weren’t even on a list but that were equally or more important or rewarding. So thanks Jill and Judy for making me really stop and reflect on what genealogy adventures I did have last year (even if it was a year that was a bit research-lite).

1. An elusive ancestor I found was… Well, I can’t take credit for the finding but I connected with a previously un-met cousin who, via a blog post of mine, connected with a French researcher who helped unravel the mystery of the origins of our mutual ancestor Mathurin Charles Leon DeLaine and met up with a distant cousin in France who took her to the village from which our ancestor originated (See post from 8 February 2018).

2. A great newspaper article I found was…an obituary of James Buckley that was sufficiently interesting to inspire me to do more research into this gentleman. He’s not family but lies in the grave beside my gr-gr-grandparents in Maryborough – always good to know your neighbours 😊

3. A geneajourney I took was… to Maryborough, several times. I go there regularly, it’s only two hours up the road and so filled with both Queensland history and my family’s history, it never fails to delight. This year was special because I spent time with my cousin George and his wife Denise, both passionate family historians, who inspired me to revisit research and collaborate with them on our common ancestry.

4. I located an important record. Maybe not located, but accessed. The store accounts of my gr-gr-grandmother Catherine Elizabeth Dow at Brennan & Gerraghty’s store in Maryborough. Mundane, perhaps, but how fascinating to find out what your ancestors bought on what day and for how much over 100 years ago. Not just a contextual idea based on trends at a point in time, but the exact details.

5. A newly found family member shared the story of her trip to France during which she met up with a distant cousin on our shared French line who took her to the villages from which that line of our family originated.

6. A geneasurprise I received was… finding six month old comments on a blog post that included links to original vital records in France and the email address of an unmet cousin. Extra bonus I found these comments just a few weeks before a planned trip to Adelaide, where the cousin lives. Serendipity for sure. (Note to self: always make sure the ‘receive alerts’ setting is active on your blog.)

7. My 2019 social media post that I was particularly proud of was … my blog post on James Buckley (see #2 above). It didn’t necessarily get great views or hits, but I was proud to have stuck with the research into this unrelated man and complete a story on him. 

8. I made a new genimate who is also a distant cousin who had made significant inroads on a stubborn branch of the family. 

9. A new piece of technology or skill I mastered was how to tinker with (some might call it ‘customizing’) my blog to improve its look and feel, make it something I felt more proud of, and re-inspire me to post more actively (thanks Carmel). Although perhaps the ‘post more regularly part’ didn’t quite come to fruition.

10. I joined more family history groups on Facebook for a constant flow of new ideas, interesting stories, and handy hints.

11. A genealogy education session or event from which I learnt something new was…each one that I attended but standouts were Blaine Bettinger (DNA) and Eric Kopittke (German research).

12. A blog post that taught me something new was…I think it was a journal article not a blog post, but tips for uploading personal/family photos to Flickr so that they feed to Trove.

13. A DNA discovery I made was… that I have a LOT to learn in area of using DNA for family history research.

14. I taught a genimate how to… I host a program of family history workshops at work each year – hopefully at least some of the attendees were inspired to start or pursue their research.

15. A brick wall I demolished was … see #1. Not demolished and I didn’t do it but a stubborn branch unravelled through teamwork.

16. A great site I visited was.. Brennan & Gerraghty’s Store. (I’m sure this question meant website, but visiting physical sites is a key part of family history research).

17. A new genealogy/history book I enjoyed was…A letter from Paris: a true story of hidden art, lost romance, and family reclaimed by Louisa Deasey

18. It was exciting fascinating to finally meet… Jack Charles, Australian actor, musician, potter, and Aboriginal elder. He wasn’t on a list of ‘people I’d like to meet’ but the opportunity arose and it was quite an experience.

19. I am excited for 2020 because every day of every year is an opportunity to research and discover who knows what. And maybe, just maybe, this is the year when work stays on an even keel and I can research regularly.

20. Another positive I would like to share is ... the absolute joy and satisfaction I felt at following through on my longheld plan of restoring the grave of my gr-gr-granpdarents (that houses a few other family members as well) in Maryborough Cemetery and holding a small rededication ceremony which was attended not only by family members but representatives from Maryborough (Qld) District Family History Society and Mayor George Seymour, complete with a piper to honour our Scottish heritage.