This blog started when a speaker noted that one key to effective family history was sharing what you learn. How do you share what you learn in your role as family historian?

I have written and shared with family the history of my mother’s family and my father’s as I knew them at the time. I don’t recall a great deal of enthusiasm as I did. Oh, they were happy to hear what I learned but now let’s move on.

I was thinking about our speaker on railroad ancestors. She shared several stories about her findings. I was also thinking about the programs like “Storied.com” that help you write your family stories and share them in short bursts. It made me wonder. Short stories not novels? Here is my go at it.

I went to Mid-Continent Public Library and then to Quick Looks where I was able to put my grandfather’s information into a search. After finding the correct person based on birth and death information, I contacted their researchers with the ID information and 2 days later received the pension for my grandfather.

It confirmed some of what I knew, such as his employment with the CB & Q RR and added that it was from January 1925 to April 1943 in Fleming, Logan Co., Colorado. He was a track section laborer. Later it had information about his employment as a “janitor” at Linfield including his wages.

The files also gave his birth information confirming dates and locations, his parent’s names including the maiden name of his mother. It also provided his marriage information and that included my grandmother’s maiden name. Although I had all of that, it was nice to confirm it. Confirming information is always good. I wish I had started with this.

Another piece that it provided was my grandmother’s work history while in Portland from 1943 to 1946. She worked with children at Guilds Lake Nursery which I didn’t know. This was a development designed on a waterfront park to provide housing for the shipyards in Portland. This is all important to my history because it defines when they came to Portland. I knew they came after 1940 because they were in the 1940 census in Fleming, CO. I knew that by 1950 they were in McMinnville, OR because of the 1950 census. My mother graduated from Lincoln HS in Portland in 1946. This tied all those dates together including the story that they had lived at Guilds Lake which had just been a story.

But, this really isn’t about my family. It is about the process and the information to be found. Last week we said being a family history detective was a slow process. You take bits of ideas, hints from one place and research some more, analyze, ask more questions and find another bit of information. “Rinse and Repeat.”

I also think this short story might be better received (adding names and small details of course) by my family rather than a novel. Share a piece of your story with your family and see how it goes. For now it is time to prepare for those New England ancestors in next month's classes.

Heidi Geise, education@hqrl.com