Monday, July 16, 2012

Musings On A Munday Who Speaks To You

Why is it that some ancestors call to us more than others? Do you gravitate to one particular line more than another? Do you call yourself "German" or "Irish" even though you have just as many English or French ancestors?

Who speaks to you? My father's paternal line, the Baudermann's, speak the loudest to me. I never met any of the Baudermann's. I never knew I had Baudermann relatives to wonder about. After my father died, I found a court document showing a name change and that's how I found out that my maiden name should have been Baudermann.

I think that's why they speak to me the loudest. They are the true unknown. No, I didn't know all my other lines (like the SMITHS!) but I knew "of" them. I knew they were there. The Baudermann's are this mysterious group of people from Klepsau, Baden Germany that settled in Newark, New Jersey.

My hope is, that when I start finding living descendants of the Bauderman line, that they will speak to me, as our ancestors do.

6 comments:

  1. I have certain ancestors I'm drawn too! LOL One being my g-g-grandmother Susannah Van Meter. She had a son out of wedlock. She did eventually marry a much older widower with five children, two very small. My impression is that she was "tainted" and he was desperate. It also seems to me this hung over her, her entire life. To top it all off we can't find where she is buried. My g-g-grandfather is buried with his first wife. If Susannah is there she is not listed on the headstone or there isn't a separate one for her.
    She is my special project!

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    1. I totally understand special projects Cindy! I hope you find Susannah's resting place.

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  2. I totally get being drawn to the name that should have been your name. I'm not just drawn to my Lanier line but also the female lines that go with it (since they were all also previously unknown to me). I hope you find some of those living descendants. I have and it's been nothing but good stuff - from a portrait of my great-grandmother to a family reunion with a group of previously unknown 3rd cousins.

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    1. A portrait? Wow, I would settle for a photo copy of a photo! :)

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    2. We didn't actually get the portrait, just found the 2nd cousin who had it but she removed it from the frame and scanned it for us.

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  3. I find that some of my ancestor bias comes from the people who are still alive in my family. I have one grandparent who is not the sweetest apple in the tree. I have a hard time tracing her family. I have to remind myself that she is the way she is because of the circumstances in her life. The stories of her ancestors have had a direct impact on her. So instead of not wanting to research that line, I should really spend more time to get a better picture of what happened to those ancestors and how they passed it down.

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