caitlinsmom Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 I am working on getting our family tree info together for a TOG yr2 project this week. I have been reading through a lot of family geneology tonight and I came across a line of interest to me (and oh so fitting for our lessons!). On my paternal grandmothers side it looks like our ancestors were royalty in England and other countries. The name that I stumbled across first was Joan Beaufort, Countess of Westmorland, granddaughter of Edward III of England! From there the line just keeps on going back with kings and queens, princes and princesses. This particular line continues back to 775! I think these little tidbits will make this lesson stick in the kids mind! Anyway, anyone else have historical figures of interest in their ancestory? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
secular_mom Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 (edited) My ancestors kidnapped (or were responsible for having him kidnapped) Saint Patrick, ROFLOL. King Niall is in my family tree. Edited January 3, 2011 by secular_mom clarification Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joker Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 (edited) I don't really know my own but my FIL traced back their side to John Rolfe and Pochahontas. My dds think its really cool.:001_smile: Edited January 3, 2011 by Horton Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 I'm distantly related to Martha Washington apparently. Dh (and therefore my dc) is related to Ty Cobb (a.k.a. the biggest @$#hole baseball ever knew). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mama2Many4 Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 I'm related to King Henry the VIII. Also Charles Martel the Hammer and other kings and such. Pretty interesting to know. Oh yeah, two saints too! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caitlinsmom Posted January 3, 2011 Author Share Posted January 3, 2011 (edited) Reading more I just found the line of of Charlemagne! This works out great since that is who we are studying and the whole point to this project. How convienent is that! :) ETA: An off shoot of this line goes to 6 a.d. Edited January 3, 2011 by caitlinsmom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scuff Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Wow 775! My mom's side can be traced back to 1600s. We're related to Sybil Luddington. She rode to gather the minutemen during the Revolutionary War. (and Col. Luddington, her father) she outrode Paul Revere, though not as well known. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Onceuponatime Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 I am working on getting our family tree info together for a TOG yr2 project this week. I have been reading through a lot of family geneology tonight and I came across a line of interest to me (and oh so fitting for our lessons!). On my paternal grandmothers side it looks like our ancestors were royalty in England and other countries. The name that I stumbled across first was Joan Beaufort, Countess of Westmorland, granddaughter of Edward III of England! From there the line just keeps on going back with kings and queens, princes and princesses. This particular line continues back to 775! I think these little tidbits will make this lesson stick in the kids mind! Anyway, anyone else have historical figures of interest in their ancestory? My family tree is a mess on my mother's side: divorce, remarriage, children born in questionable circumstances. My own mother doesn't know who her father is for sure. It's not any better the further back you go. On my father's side, my aunt has traced one branch of our family back to that notorious Prince John of England, if there are no secrets. Leroy - Le Roy (the king) is a family name and my father's middle name. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tricia Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Priscilla Mullins is an aunt many times over on my husband's side. She is married to John Alden. Also, from what I understand John Pack is in our line too but not sure how. My mother in law is really into genealogy and she has gone back quite far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xuzi Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 On my mother's side I'm related to John Allen, who was at Sutter's Mill when gold was discovered. His name is on the monument there. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mabelen Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 We know about my father's side of the family because a first cousin of his had to unearth some family nobility titles in order to marry a Marquess and had his family tree done by a professional. It turns out his family came from France to Spain, conquered a castle that belonged to the moors and took their name. There is a very famous saint in the family line and a black sheep that lost everything. We know nothing about my mother's side of the family except they came from old Castille and as far as we know were peasants. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommaduck Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 (edited) DH is part of the Campbell family and is directly descended from Gen Thomas Sumter. Other than having cousins that are both political and notorious, I have relatives that were part of the Hell Hole Gang (SC), French Huguenots, family that fought alongside Francis Marion, Charlemagne is a direct ancestor on the French line, and Eric Axelsen Tott (Thott)-overlord of Finland in the 15th century down my Swedish-Finnish line. Edited January 3, 2011 by mommaduck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
littlebug42 Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Someone else that traced my father's family line traces our lineage back to members that came to England with William the Conqueror in 1066. I have no way to verify that right now but it is cool to think about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nestof3 Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 (edited) I think Elizabeth Keckley in our history. She was a seamstress for Mary Todd Lincoln. Or, perhaps we just share the same name. We are from a Jacob Keckley. Edited January 3, 2011 by nestof3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter's Moon Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 My paternal great-grandmother was royalty in her native American tribe. Im assuming princess, but not too much is known about her tribe since they were split and joined by another tribe during colonization and everything. Very confusing history I couldn't quite follow. Too many areas they relocated to find any record of her. My maternal grandmother told me we have a lot of war heroes from the French and Indian War (we're French Canadian), but those are just oral traditions, so who knows? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perry Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Reading more I just found the line of of Charlemagne! This works out great since that is who we are studying and the whole point to this project. How convienent is that! :) ETA: An off shoot of this line goes to 6 a.d. I don't know how accurate this is, but it's a very interesting article. excerpts.... But if any of your ancestors lived in Europe, especially western Europe, then it's almost certain that Charlemagne is one of your ancestors. No matter where your ancestors are from they probably share a common ancestor with everyone else from that region. What's surprising is that many of those common ancestors lived only 1200 years ago. Genealogists have mathematically demonstrated how all Americans of European descent must be related to Charlemagne. In this regard, genealogists have established the exact lines of descent from Charlemagne for 14 U.S. Presidents. Two of these are President George W. Bush and his father President George H.W. Bush. Other Presidents whose descent from Charlemagne have been traced include: George Washington, Ulysses Grant, Franklin Roosevelt, Teddy Roosevelt, and Gerald Ford. To demonstrate how we are all related, the New England Historical Society has researched the genealogy of Barack Obama and determined that on his mother's side he is related to six other previous presidents: George W. Bush, George H. W. Bush, Lyndon Johnson, Harry Truman, Gerald Ford, and James Madison. Presumably, if Barack Obama's ancestry on his mother's side could be traced far enough back, he also would be shown to be descended from Charlemagne. Meanwhile, on his father's side, we are all related to President Barack Obama since anthropologists have determined that all modern humans are descended from a common African ancestor. The history of European nobility is well known. Chances are, you have at least one ancestor who connects to the various Dukes, barons, Counts, and Knights and their spouses in medieval times . A large percentage of the nobility of the European nobility can claim descent from Charlemagne. He had 20 children. With a little effort, almost everyone of European descent can find the path to Charlemagne. If your ancestors are from England or Scotland your connection often runs through William of Normandy and a bunch of other tourists from France who visited England in 1066. Be careful, though, because there are many incorrect genealogies on the web and you'll need to do some fact checking. I found three different connections to nobility but two of them were figments of someone's overactive imagination. [see My Family and Other Emperors for my relationship to Charelmeange.] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caitlinsmom Posted January 3, 2011 Author Share Posted January 3, 2011 I have to say that I am going to pay more attention in history and start learning the little stories that go along with all these people. ;) Obviously I know the big ones but there have to be interesting tidbits regarding the comtesses and such. I also want to see where that line died (and all the other lines) and find out why. If they were anything like my family now, it will be a muddy, mucky and very entertaining mess to read about! :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ibbygirl Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 I am working on getting our family tree info together for a TOG yr2 project this week. I have been reading through a lot of family geneology tonight and I came across a line of interest to me (and oh so fitting for our lessons!). On my paternal grandmothers side it looks like our ancestors were royalty in England and other countries. The name that I stumbled across first was Joan Beaufort, Countess of Westmorland, granddaughter of Edward III of England! From there the line just keeps on going back with kings and queens, princes and princesses. This particular line continues back to 775! I think these little tidbits will make this lesson stick in the kids mind! Anyway, anyone else have historical figures of interest in their ancestory? Wow that's amazing!! How were you able to trace your lineage so far back? What documents did you use? I only know my heritage as has been passed down to me from my grandfather and great-grandfather. They used to tell us stories when we were kids about our family and where we came from. We are mostly Spanish blood with a drop of Cuban and a drop of French that came from my grandmother's side. Family legend says we are descendant from the first king of Spain. King Pelayo of Asturias. My family name is Pelaez. My family were all from Asturias and only left in the late 1800's and from there went to Cuba before coming to America. I still have some relatives in Spain, half of my family is still in Cuba and the rest are here in South Florida, but I don't know my family history any further back than the middle 1800's other than the legend of being descendant from the King. How do you go further back? I can't imagine being able to trace my history back to 775. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caitlinsmom Posted January 3, 2011 Author Share Posted January 3, 2011 I don't know how accurate this is, but it's a very interesting article. excerpts.... Very interesting! I could see how this could be possible. With the amount of children that families had and the practice of marrying family, I think it would be very likely. Thanks for the excerpt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peela Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Well, this mightnt mean much to non Aussies but Sir Joseph Banks, who was the botanist who came out to Australia with James Cook on the Endeavour, is my great great (not sure how many greats) Uncle. He had no kids. DH's infamous ancestor is I think in TWTM volume 4- Ned Kelly, the bushranger. It makes sense, if you know dh :) So the kids have notable ancestors but other than that we are just stock from England and Ireland- several convicts back there too. (That used to be something Aussies were ashamed of- you wouldnt admit to convict ancestors, but now its something people are proud of. ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hannah C. Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 One of my ancestors was Lord Mayor of London in the early 1600s, so I guess I'm partly English nobility. :001_smile: My grandmother has also told me that one of my ancestors came over on the Mayflower, but I've never seen any documentation for that. I am also a distant cousin of a famous horror movie director... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cindergretta Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 John Alden and Priscilla Mullins are my 10th great grandparents, on my father's side. :) I have history on his side traced back to around 1200 or so, I think. (I could go look, but feel lazy. I might look tomorrow though! :tongue_smilie:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 we have some insane ancestry on my Mom's side--John of Gaunt and further back. also--Martha Stewart has a family tree that you can have printed out and framed-I think you can bring it to staples Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caitlinsmom Posted January 3, 2011 Author Share Posted January 3, 2011 (edited) Wow that's amazing!! How were you able to trace your lineage so far back? What documents did you use? I only know my heritage as has been passed down to me from my grandfather and great-grandfather. They used to tell us stories when we were kids about our family and where we came from. We are mostly Spanish blood with a drop of Cuban and a drop of French that came from my grandmother's side. Family legend says we are descendant from the first king of Spain. King Pelayo of Asturias. My family name is Pelaez. My family were all from Asturias and only left in the late 1800's and from there went to Cuba before coming to America. I still have some relatives in Spain, half of my family is still in Cuba and the rest are here in South Florida, but I don't know my family history any further back than the middle 1800's other than the legend of being descendant from the King. How do you go further back? I can't imagine being able to trace my history back to 775. I am not sure how my great grandmother came to have most of this information. I know at one time it was very much a family effort that included multiple sisters, daughters and aunts. My grandmother gave me a lot of the information. A lot of the other lines in our family die out long before the 700's. We seem to have been in the right place at the right time on my grandmothers side though, as much of the information goes back to the 1300's. There are many ship logs that show passage to America clear back when. I personally haven't seen those so I can't say for sure if they are accurate and real. :) My paternal grandfather was a first born US citizen with his family all coming from Sweden. The trail on that side stops cold about mid 1800's. On my mothers side we can find information only to the late 1800's. They were Russian Jews who fled and changed their names, birthdates, etc for fear of persecuation. So that long winded answer to say, each line is different and quiet honestly I think luck of the draw on where you ancestors come from, where they were, their socioeconomic status at the time, etc. Some lines, like royalty, are tracked religiously and others are not. No matter what though I find it all facinating! Edited January 3, 2011 by caitlinsmom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ibbygirl Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 No matter what though I find it all facinating! Indeed! Everybody has a story. :) Thanks for the information. I guess I would have to go to Spain to find out anything further. My grandfather and grandmother were first generation Americans too, my great grandfather was born in Cuba of Asturian parents but he left to come to America when he was 16 and brought his family over one at a time from there, except for the ones that wanted to stay in Cuba. They are still there today. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Wow that's amazing!! How were you able to trace your lineage so far back? What documents did you use? . My mom used the Mormon archives to trace our lineage. And, as Mormonism becomes larger in other countries they develop genealogy archives there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairProspects Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 We are DAR (Daughters of the American Revolution) here. My ancestors were neighbors of John and Abigail Adams, their ancestors came over on the Mayflower and then we go all the way back to William the Conqueror! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
secular_mom Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 My aunt did the research for my ancestors (on my mom's side, I don't know nearly as much about my dad's side, though they are of Irish descent too, and I have a four volume set of the history of some of his family tree). I'm only aware of her reaching as far back as King Niall of Ireland- 4th century. There is at least one book I could buy (and plan to in the future) about that branch of the family tree. My aunt is documenting all of her research and I hope she'll be able to share it with me someday. It's very fun and interesting, I do feel a bit guilty that I didn't do the work though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alyce Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 We're not close relatives but we are cousins non the less. My husbands ancestor came over from England. He inherited a large amount of land in southern NC and northern SC. Some of his family tried to have him killed so they could inherit it. Obviously the plan didn't work and it split the family so some of them changed their names (hence our relationship with Obama). Later some of the family later changed their names back but Obama's line is still there. His great, great, great grandmother was the daughter of one of my husbands family. My SIL was the one who figured it out. She has done an exhaustive and extensive investigation into my husband family tree and it's side branches, to the point of visiting family cemeteries and census reports etc. (lots of leg work). She saw him on TV and noticed his ears and jokingly said they looked like my Dh family ears (one of their most distinguishing features). So she started looking in the family tree for a relation to his mom and sure enough there it was. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairProspects Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Someone else that traced my father's family line traces our lineage back to members that came to England with William the Conqueror in 1066. I have no way to verify that right now but it is cool to think about. Our ancestors must have been buddies! :lol: I'm descended from William the Conqueror. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sugarfoot Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 I've never officially traced our family, though I tried a bit. The more "famous" relatives are Edgar Allan Poe and Billy the Kid. My DH is related to Jesse James.:D Hopefully, our kids won't grow up to be notorious outlaws...:lol: (or disturbed poets...) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ibbygirl Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 My mom used the Mormon archives to trace our lineage. And, as Mormonism becomes larger in other countries they develop genealogy archives there. I wonder if the Catholic church keeps records like that. All of the records would be in Spain though. But I know exactly where they were from in Spain. So it would be easy in that regard, but getting there to do the leg work is another matter. The oldest document that I've seen is a letter sent to my great grandfather's mother in Cuba from her mother in Spain talking about my great grandfather's Saint day. That was dated in the late 1800's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ibbygirl Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 I've never officially traced our family, though I tried a bit. The more "famous" relatives are Edgar Allan Poe and Billy the Kid. My DH is related to Jesse James.:D Hopefully, our kids won't grow up to be notorious outlaws...:lol: (or disturbed poets...) LOL That's awesome though. I love Edgar Allen Poe. His stories were so scary and creepy. :) I always loved Tell Tale Heart. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnTheBrink Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 I think Elizabeth Keckley in our history. She was a seamstress for Mary Todd Lincoln. Or, perhaps we just share the same name. We are from a Jacob Keckley. Many of MTL's gowns are displayed here in the Lincoln Presidential Museum. :001_smile: Anse Hatfield is my first cousin, 9x removed. Any time I tell someone I'm related to the Hatfields, they all express a "Ohhhh" as if that somehow explains something. :glare: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
funschooler5 Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 My great-grandparents on my father's side came to America from Norway, and my great-grandparents on my mother's side came from Finland and Norway. Apparently, on my dad's side we are supposed to be related to a Viking king of some sort, but I don't know if that is true or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommaduck Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Many of MTL's gowns are displayed here in the Lincoln Presidential Museum. :001_smile: Anse Hatfield is my first cousin, 9x removed. Any time I tell someone I'm related to the Hatfields, they all express a "Ohhhh" as if that somehow explains something. :glare: :lol: My stepdad is descended from the McCoys. There is a Hatfield and McCoy joint family reunion every year ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ibbygirl Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Any time I tell someone I'm related to the Hatfields, they all express a "Ohhhh" as if that somehow explains something. :glare: :lol::lol::lol: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sugarfoot Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 LOL That's awesome though. I love Edgar Allen Poe. His stories were so scary and creepy. :) I always loved Tell Tale Heart. Me, too. And here's a funny story about the outlaws... Last year, I went to a meeting with my DH in Las Vegas. We both had terrible colds, so we took some NyQuil, went to bed, and turned on the Discovery Channel. There, on a split screen, were Jesse James on the left and Billy the Kid on the right. It was some sort of documentary exploring the possibility that they were somehow related.?. My DH said, "Aren't you distantly related to Billy the Kid?" I said, "Yeah, and isn't Jesse James your 4th cousin?" Then we both just sat there in NyQuil-induced confusion... It was such a surreal moment! And the conclusion was that they were not related. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ibbygirl Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Me, too. And here's a funny story about the outlaws... Last year, I went to a meeting with my DH in Las Vegas. We both had terrible colds, so we took some NyQuil, went to bed, and turned on the Discovery Channel. There, on a split screen, were Jesse James on the left and Billy the Kid on the right. It was some sort of documentary exploring the possibility that they were somehow related.?. My DH said, "Aren't you distantly related to Billy the Kid?" I said, "Yeah, and isn't Jesse James your 4th cousin?" Then we both just sat there in NyQuil-induced confusion... It was such a surreal moment! And the conclusion was that they were not related. LOL But can you imagine if they had been? You and your dh would be distant relatives. That would have been amazing. :) Great story. Thanks for sharing it. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CLHCO Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 If you like the ferris wheel, you can thank my great-great (one more great?) uncle George Washington Gale Ferris, Jr. That's about the most exciting thing I've been able to get from my paternal grandmother's side. She would never share other information with me because she said it was nosy. :glare: Someday I'll look into it myself. My material side supposedly traced their geneology back to a Spanish crest, but I don't even know which one. I need to contact the person who did the study. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sugarfoot Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 LOL But can you imagine if they had been? You and your dh would be distant relatives. That would have been amazing. :) Great story. Thanks for sharing it. :) LOL, I was so relieved to find out I wasn't related to my in-laws!:lol: My DH would have never let me live it down! If you like the ferris wheel, you can thank my great-great (one more great?) uncle George Washington Gale Ferris, Jr. Wow, an inventor! How exciting! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ibbygirl Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 LOL, I was so relieved to find out I wasn't related to my in-laws!:lol: My DH would have never let me live it down! :lol::lol::lol: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anabelneri Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Both of my parents can trace their families back to one of the men on the Mayflower... each through a different one of the fellow's daughters. I can never remember his name, though. Which means that my family was around during the Revolution, but I have no idea who they were. But it's always fun to run into other Mayflower folk and think of probable distant relations. My mother's side has several non-specific interesting people... a Native American princess (presumably pre-colonial) and a Spanish pirate. And then there's John Locke... my grandmother's maiden name was Locke, so it's easy to point to. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosie_0801 Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 (edited) DH's infamous ancestor is I think in TWTM volume 4- Ned Kelly, the bushranger. It makes sense, if you know dh :) :lol: My grandmother's maiden name was Littlejohn and yeah, her brother traced the line back to Little John of Robin Hood fame and then it stops. It's so weird being descended from a cartoon character. :lol: Dh's ancestors were Normans and he shares a name with "The Kingmaker" Richard Neville. Oh yeah, John of Gaunt too. Not sure of all the twists and turns so we don't know who we're supposed to be barracking for in the War of Roses. Rosie Edited January 3, 2011 by Rosie_0801 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaffodilDreams Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Benjamin Franklin - on my paternal grandfather's side Native American (Kiowa) on my mother's side Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LunaLee Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 On my dad's side we were Knights back in England and can trace our name to the Normans. On my mom's side we can only go back to Hessian soldiers in the American Revolution. My dh can trace his family to Matilida, you know the one that married William the Conquerer, Fernidad and Isabella, and Alphonso the Slobberer. Actually, that whole line gets really interesting because of all of the Royal marraiges. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Audrey Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 (edited) These are more recent figures, but on my mother's side, I'm related to a famous anarchist activist of the early 20th century. On my father's side, I'm related to a film director from the early 20th century. I have a cousin who is a fairly well-known performance artist. My husband's great-grandfather's brother was recently made a saint, too. I think that one is particularly funny. :lol: Edited January 3, 2011 by Audrey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa in Australia Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Supposedly related to King Henry Vlll through his chambermaid ! My Dh's family has a record book that goes back to 300 AD. They were barons or something in Germany. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 On my paternal grandmothers side it looks like our ancestors were royalty in England and other countries. The name that I stumbled across first was Joan Beaufort, Countess of Westmorland, granddaughter of Edward III of England! From there the line just keeps on going back with kings and queens, princes and princesses. This particular line continues back to 775! Almost everyone who can trace their lines back deep into Europe will find royalty of some kind: it's the nature of increasing population over the centuries. It's fun, isn't it! Laura Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisa in Jax Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 There are a ton of interesting everyday people, though, including one man who was a felon and identity thief in 1860, another who left Switzerland to make his fortune and later wrote a daily diary of his travels from Louisiana to Texas in 1905 (it took over a month!), another who started a stone cutting business after emigrating from Germany, etc. I find them fascinating despite their lack of fame or titles or land. :) Lisa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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