Share the story behind a family separation or reunion
Our whole lives, and the lives of all those before us, are filled with partings and joinings. Many times, these are the occasions that we can document; births, marriages, moves, deaths, usually recorded somehow for us to find.
Yet to tell the stories of our ancestors, we must write about the moments in between. The details of why, how and with whom are so much juicier than a document with a name and date. Learning how to find the answers to those questions has been one of the most challenging aspects of genealogy but also the most rewarding.
For example, recently I revisited the facts of my 3rd great grandfather, John Whitesell; a Canadian who brought his family to the United States and served in the American Civil War. After the war, John left his wife and their children and went back to Canada. Once there he remarried and started a new family. He also told their families that she was dead. After he died, both of his wives filed for his pension. In her deposition, my 3rd great grandmother stated:
“…about his disability, prior to service, is he was a well, hearty man, and after he came home, he had fits, epileptic fits. He would fall down and froth at the mouth, and I think he would become afflicted in his mind, as well.”1
Initially in 2000, when I first found the pension depositions, I missed the clues that John had been badly wounded during the war. However, when working on John again, recent understanding of TBIs along with the statement above made it easy to put John’s dramatic personality swings into a totally different light.
I encourage you to research the history of your ancestors’ times. What political or environmental problems might have affected their lives and choices? Rounding out their lives with the context of their history will help you to write stories to remember.
“Isabella Sybill Wilton (1826–1902) • Person • Family Tree • FamilySearch.” Accessed June 10, 2024. https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/memories/LZWQ-6Y4.
Fascinating! And… so sad.
Great example of why we need to intentionally look at historical context, and make frequent revisits to information we think we know. What a fabulous insight into his behavior!