My Favorite Substack Posts

I chose my cross posts because I thought my audience would be interested, or they had information I knew I’d want to reference again. As the years go by, and I create more posts, they are getting buried. In an attempt to be organized, I decided to list them here.

My very first cross post was by Barbara at Projectkin where she explains how to write the narratives that go with the facts we unearth during our genealogical research.

In 2020, I was making the transition from names and dates to stories. It was COVID (a historical marker that future researchers will use since it impacted the entire population), and I had time to work on that “I’ll get around to it eventually” pile. One item was writing my sister’s biography. This was my first narrative. My second that year was From Scafati to Acerra to Chicago: The Ancestors of Antonio Brasile.

By the time I joined Mission: Genealogy in August 2024, I’d written several narratives, but I felt they had no life. Story Magic was one of the many Substack posts that helped me see and write the stories. Little by little, my writing is improving.

JenealogyScrapbook recommends using QR codes on artifacts so you don’t have a situation as I did. I almost gave my grandfather’s lieutenant’s bars away because I didn’t know what they were.

JenealogyScrapbook had another great idea. Using AI to create a family history story book for children.

Barbara at Projectkin shared best practices for creating a live (and it works for recorded) video on Substack.

To date, my favorite post is Assumptions Aren’t Research: Family History Unraveled by Lynda Heines. I wish someone had warned me not to copy others’ trees on Ancestry in 2014. I made a mess of my tree before I deleted it and started over, citing the sources. I do look at other trees when I get stuck, but I’m looking to see what sources other researchers have found.

Librarians are the best! Kyla Bayang is a librarian and shares a story of the unexpected places her research takes her. But the best tip was, “Why would the family papers from a Rhode Island family be in Dearborn, Michigan? Because that is how it rolls when looking for manuscript collections. They could be anywhere.”

Jennifer Jones broke through a brick wall after reexamining a record that many years ago she found, but thought was not connected to her relative.

Kirsi Dahl explained how to use SEO to get my Substack posts found and hopefully connect with family.

David Shaw shares his favorite tools and gadgets. I need to check out Randy Majors’ free internet overlay of Google maps and David Rumsey’s map collection.

Barbara at Projectkin explains all the little tricks to getting your Substack posts found on the internet. I’m not the only one who’s been contacted by distant cousins who’ve added to the family story.

I am by no means a DNA expert. I thought Ancestry’s DNA test was good enough. Nicole Palsa explained how she needed Y-DNA to solve her research problem.

I’d tried to find a genealogy community—a local club, Facebook, the Association of Professional Genealogists, and the Nashua Historical Society. I finally found a community with Mission: Genealogy. The other members made me feel welcome, and I’ve learned and improved my writing. Don’t be shy about joining us. We’re all at different levels, and several claim not to be genealogists (don’t let them fool you—family historians count as genealogists). Mission: Genealogy is free and intends to stay free.

I cross posted Jane Chapman’s article about common law marriages, and I’m glad I did since I’ve had to refer to it again several times. English Common Law was used by the American colonies and the young United States. Common Law Marriage today is defined as a couple who live together and declare themselves husband and wife, but have not legally married. That is not the definition of Common Law Marriage that our early ancestors would have known. Jane explains the early definition and the reason why a couple would have chosen it. The marriage would have been performed by a clergyman; cohabitation was not recognized as a marriage.

When my daughter-in-law was filling out some papers, she put unemployed under occupation. I told her she wasn’t unemployed; she was a homemaker.

I’ve been a homemaker for most of my married life, but homemaker doesn’t mean a woman is tied to her stove and mop as demonstrated by Diane Burley’s grandmother.

2024 my focus was on learning social history so I could add historical context to my narratives. Denyse Allen has six suggestions to help.

What did your ancestors eat? Aryn Youngless says what our families ate tells us something about where we came from and our economic circumstances. Whenever I read about World War II, I find myself eating differently. I feel like food is scarce, and I need to be careful with what I have. Lori Olson White explains rationing and the sacrifices the population was willing to make to win the war.

I’ve had to explain about foundlings in the Naples area of Italy several times. Here’s my favorite article about them. I did not know that something similar was going on in New York. Thank you to Lauren Maguire for sharing.

I’m flattered that someone found my family or work interesting enough that they wanted to talk to me about it. Dangerous. Genealogists are like labradors—throw the ball and they never want you to stop. Get me talking about genealogy, and I have to remember to take a breath now and then.

I spoke with Lori Olson White about my family’s secret fruitcake recipe.

I volunteered to do a Tips section for Mission: Genealogy and Barbara at Projectkin and I talk about our plan.

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