My Family Tree

I have always had a keen interest in family genealogies.  At various points I have made attempts at constructing a family tree for both sides of my family.  I have an aunt and uncle on my mother’s side who have done some extensive work on that side of my family so that was easy work.  My dad’s side, however, has never gone back very far at all.  In fact on my paternal grandfather’s side I have never even known his parents until very recently!  This year, I decided to take another stab it with the thinking that electronic databases were getting more and more information and I had quite a bit more luck.  I used various websites, some of which have the 1940 census available.  I was actually able to find information all the way back to my five-great grandparents!  I got some educated guesses going all the way back two more generations dating back to the mid 1600s but I haven’t been able to confirm these as I have come across some conflicting information.  I am continuing the investigation though and have even considered doing the DNA tests that some web sites offer for a fee.  So far I’ve only used what is available for free, which is actually quite a bit of information.  The data from the 1940 census promises to fill in even more holes, particularly with the family of my paternal grandfather.  It has been a fun exercise and I’ve learned a little bit more about where I came from, even if it’s sometimes just a name.  The new data from the 1940 census gave me some information from my grandparents on both sides that I hadn’t known before.