52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Week 7 Prompt - Unusual Source

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks

Week 7

Prompt – Unusual Source

Most family trees try to put BMD (birth-marriage-death) events in place for each of their ancestors. These basic events outline our ancestor.  We want this framework to be correct and true.  The place and date also help prove that we have the right name.  This is particularly important when naming convention hands down the same name down through the generations.  For example in my tree I have 4 generations of David Peters (with no middle name) ranging from 1835 to 1985.

Sources are the evidence that proves our events.  In an ideal world a source would be original.  An original source means that the source was made at or close to the time of the event and recorded by a witness or participant.  Examples might be birth registration or baptismal certificate, death certificate etc.  Things like family stories, other people's family trees and oral histories are considered non original.  They are called derivative sources. I use both types of sources.

Some of the original records that I can look up on the internet are time dependent.  In Canada you can only view birth records that occurred more than 100 years ago; death records if they are older than 70 years and marriages more than 75 years ago.  Another words a generation or two of ancestors have to have passed before we can access their information.  And further new privacy laws are threatening these records completely.

Lately I have been trying to update and source my living immediate family.  It was surprising to me how little I knew.  In particular of the in-laws, nieces and nephews.  I barely remember their full names much less their birth dates.  What to do?   I could write them and ask for the information, but what fun is that?

This is when I thought of a source that I have that is, in my opinion, rather unusual. The annual Christmas letters!  Since their inception and up to recent years, I have kept all the letters.  I have gathered them and put them into page protectors and organized them into a binder according to the families that sent them. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 It is a treasure trove of information.   Who knew that one day my incessant saving of seemingly trivial things would be a help for me and my genealogy. The letters are fun to read and they give a snapshot of a year in their life.  I have used them to find out dates of certain family events such as baptisms, confirmations, graduations and house moves.  Also some of the letters are from family who are no longer living which makes them very special to me

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I am not sure whether this source is original or derivative and it really doesn't matter. They are unique and a wonderful source of family information.

Wendy