Written by Karen Zach
Do you make genealogical goals? As advanced as I am at this point in my research, I would say overall, I do not. Truly, after 50 plus years of doing genealogy, there are few goals left to accomplish (I mean I have multiple kings and queens and go back to Adam & Eve what more could you want), but I did think I’d tell you about my first ones.
I began doing family history when we had a small home that took me a couple of hours to clean (top to bottom) and I didn’t work (pregnant and bored), Hubs suggested I find something to do. I have always been interested in history and my Italian grandma telling me about growing up in the old country, yet I’d never really thought of actively finding those who had gone before me. That is until we visited the Burketts, a couple like second parents to my husband having grown-up with their only child, Bill. One evening when we went to see them, she had us mesmerized telling stories of her own family. By the time we left, she sent home various forms for me to get started and I was pumped! They were finished quickly and then I proceeded to fill in the holes. Been non-stop since that day and hubs probably wishes he’d kept his mouth shut!
Now, the Hubs is a big goal setter and helped me set those first ones. We chose five to work on, including one my Italian grandmother swore I would never accomplish – to find my 5-generations – to fill in that first chart completely. She knew my grandpa’s parents only (my grandpa’ had passed) and said because they were itinerant farmers and so many records in Italy destroyed in the wars, that I’d never find them. Oddly, several months later it was the first accomplished goal as I ordered films for the little northern Italian village (from our local LDS church) where they lived and found my grandfather’s father’s death record – Giuseppi Bazzani died 14 Oct 1922 in Fanano, Italy – that beautiful record said he was born Giuseppi Emelio Gaetno Bazzani – parents, Luigi Gaento and Maria (Gherardini). My grandpa’ always said somewhere there was a Gherardini – it was his grandma’, my 5th generation. Now, you’d think he’d have remembered that but he had been gone from Italy for 46 years and dead for about eight when I began this quest. Rounding off the other side was Luigi Freschi died 14 Dec 1928 – parents Giovanni Freschi and Rosa Ferrarini. Bingo – goal one accomplished!
The second goal was to find a Revolutionary War soldier. My grandmother had a book on the Sowers family which went back to our immigrant ancestor, “Phillip” Sowers born 1734 in the Palatinate area of Germany and died in Davidson County, NC. This just kind of presented a side goal which went along with this – to find all the immigrants of my family into the country and Phillip became not only my first soldier but my first immigrant, as well, hailing from Katzenbach near Heidelberg, Germany. Later, discovered his name was Johann Philipus. I have found several Revolutionary soldiers and most all of my immigrants coming into the country at this point. I still have my Smiths and Langs to go.
The next goal was pretty difficult and took me probably 25 years but I finally did it. To discover how the hubs, Jim, and I were a relation. Well, we are actually cousins three ways – 21st cousins, twice removed through Richard DeGrey; 21st cousins three times removed via Eleanor Plantagenet and 26th cousins through Henry, who became our first king – which was our goal #5.
Never forget that first night I found Henry, King of England which produced me I don’t know about 30 or so Kings and Queens. Didn’t expect to find a Saint in there, too but one of them Margaret, Queen of Scotland was also a saint and I have another couple besides.
Lastly, I wanted to go back to Adam and Eve. Done; however, our son Jay (who helps me a lot with the genealogy) and I decided not to count it. After about 800 AD the genealogies read like the bible – Mary begat Jonathan who begat Simon who begat Rebecca… no places, no surnames just first names begetting first names. It made no sense and it had no documentation so even though we had that 5th goal accomplished, we didn’t believe it and ignore it to this day.
Currently, my goals are fairly centered around my GenWeb or genealogical Facebook pages. For instance, the year before I centered on adding 100 obituaries; 25 photographs and other things to the three GenWeb pages I coordinate. I had 2,000 as a goal for the Indiana FB page this year and have extended that it seems to close to 3,000.
I just now made spending one hour on our own genealogy per day a goal, because I am constantly helping others (I could tour Europe for a month if I had $5 per each hour I’ve spent helping others) as at age 70, now I realize if I don’t get busy at it, I’m not going to be here to do it.
Thus, I come to the end of Karen’s Goal Setting Advice Column (oh, I love that name) and will say, set those goals then stick to ‘em. Funny, I always way overdo ‘em! I like that!
