Family History: Digging Deeper into Intriguing Ancestors

Who fascinates you?

Perhaps it’s an ancestor you’ve learned you have something in common with.

Maybe it’s someone who didn’t fit the mold of the time and society in which they lived.

It might be someone you still know well in your own life today. It could even be you.

My current fascination is with my great-great-aunt Mabel, who was born with a serious heart condition and wasn’t expected to live beyond her teenage years. I have a few details about her life, primarily from births, deaths and marriage records as well as census records. I was also lucky enough to have an oral history recorded with my grandmother who spoke about her. So far, though, I have very few other resources.

Taking Stock of What You Do and Don’t Know

Choose one individual you wish to focus on (rather than jumping from person to person, or trying to include too many people in one story).

What do you know about this person already?

If you could interview that person, what would you ask them? What might they ask you?

Spend some time brainstorming these questions.

Which ones can you answer?

For which questions can you only speculate as to the response?

What gaps in information are revealed?

If you have asked open, honest questions, you are likely to have lots of gaps! Part of the frustration of family and biographical research, especially if that person is long dead, is that we can’t ask them directly. Of course, if they are alive – or you are your own subject – then oral history and/or deeper reflection becomes an available tool.

Searching for the Details of a Life

There are several ways to fill in the gaps and silences about someone’s life:

1. Make them up and write the story as a fictional account based on the life of someone who really existed. (There are plenty of “based on a true story” books and films adopt this approach.)

2. Blend what you do know with speculation, making it clear when you are speculating (and there are lots of ways of indicating this within a largely factual account of someone’s life.

3. Stick to the verifiable “facts” of your subject’s life while drawing on research that is broader than the individual’s experience.

As far as I’m concerned, any of the above options are legitimate strategies for conveying a life, and the following research suggestions will support any and all of them.

Where to find information

Whether or not you can locate your subject by name in the following resources, you can still glean an insight into what life was like for them by placing them in their broader historical, social and political context as well as the specifics of day-to-day life in a particular place, such as transport, leisure, books, radio shows, movies, food, clothing and jobs.

newspapers and magazines of the time

In some cases, you will actually find mention of your subject. For example, in Australia, the digital archive Trove Newspapers is a great source of birth, death and marriage notices. In my case, I also found the details of my great grandparents divorce proceedings in court.

But even if you can’t locate your person of interest specifically, the newspapers will give a sense of what else was happening at that time, both locally and across the world. This includes not only what is making headlines, but also things such as what’s showing at the picture theatre, what brides are wearing and advertisements for fashion, food and and haberdashery.

archival photos of the people, places and era in which your subject lived

Many of these can be found online – through a google search and Pinterest as well as Facebook groups and pages that are dedicated to sharing images, information and memories about a particular location.

Also check local libraries, state libraries and historical societies in the area.

history books

Existing history books can help you place your subject into the broader historical, political and social context to build a picture of life at a particular time.

existing oral histories

The local history centre at my local library has an incredible collection of oral histories from people who have lived in the area. These oral histories are unlikely to mention your subject by name, but they can provide some of the best details of a place as well as the descriptive detail of day-to-day life at that time.

local libraries and local historical societies

I’ve already mentioned the value of the history centre within my local library in terms of oral histories. But they also have other archival material including relevant newspaper clippings and school records as well as history books and a collection of autobiographical and biographical material.

Again, you may not discover your ancestor mentioned by name, but the details of others who lived in the same area at the same time will offer valuable insight into what life was like for them. Similarly, local historical societies contain wonderful resources, including books, photos and other ephemera.

And of course, there is usually a librarian or local history enthusiast who is only too happy to help you!

talk to others

Is there anyone else who either knew your subject or lived where they lived?

If so, you could ask them if they would be willing to be interviewed by you.

Over to You

Who are you researching? Which resources will you dig into first in order to understand more about the life of your subject?

I’m going to put my own suggestions into practice as I keeping searching for clues about the life and times of my great-great-aunt Mabel!

Happy searching!