Ancestral Breezes: Wyoming

Showing posts with label Wyoming. Show all posts

27 February 2013

Proudly Presenting...

If you do any genealogy research in the Rocky Mountains, you know one thing: there is a genuine lack of printed research guides for this area.

There are general guides, and those are helpful, but there are very few texts of any kind written specifically for the geographical area of Montana, Wyoming, Colorado and New Mexico. I know, I’ve looked.

And looked.

And looked.

Knowing that, the pieces that have been written are all very good. Truly.

So when the opportunity came knocking on my door to write such a guide, I snagged it. Immediately.

The best part for me is that these are my favorite types of guides to use. Simple, concise, no frills. Just four pages of resources on the topic, with good information and very easy to use. I prefer the laminated version, and have several on a variety of other topics; everything from citing sources to world history. I buy them for my family, too; my niece received two for Christmas this past year on algebra. Partly because she’s really enjoying her math class this year, and party because I’m a good aunt who likes to encourage the educational efforts of the next generation.

The first two to be published are Colorado Genealogy and Wyoming Genealogy. I’ll admit: I was venturing into new territory here and wanted to stick with topics I was well versed in. I am happy to report they came out incredibly well. They are currently available for purchase from the Legacy Family Tree store, as a PDF download, at a mere $2.95.

Here is the description of the Colorado guide from Legacy Family Tree store:

"Colorado has experienced more than one gold rush in its history. The original sent masses to Pike’s Peak in 1859; additional mineral booms throughout the late 1800s continued population growth, and now the “white gold” covering the mountains bring winter sports enthusiast from around the world.Looking to find those elusive Centennial State ancestors?

The Colorado Genealogy Legacy QuickGuide™ contains useful information including a timeline of Colorado history events, tips on Colorado research strategy, outline of major immigrant groups, and more. Also included are links to websites and resources covering vital records, church records, census records, as well as general Colorado resources. Utilize this handy 4-page PDF guide on your computer or mobile device for anytime access to create your own genealogy gold rush!"

"Genealogy gold rush!" I love it! I'm going to be using that one quite a bit, I think.

Next on the list? More states! In the next month, I’ll be working on Montana, New Mexico and Washington. Watch my Facebook and Twitter accounts; I’ll definitely be posting when those are available.

That’s not all! I’ll be branching out of geography in the near future, with “Using Fraternal Society Records,” “Researching Germans from Russia,” and “Moravian Genealogy.” Three topics that come straight from my own personal research. (You can read some of my posts about the Moravian religion here.)

Above all, I hope that other researcher’s find these guides useful. They were certainly useful to write, and truly opened my eyes to the variety of sources one can use in genealogical research. I often write – and think – about creative research, but in this manner I have written it all down and truly tried to go beyond the traditional borders.

Let me know if you love it or hate it. This is my first major "pitch" of a blog post, but I am just too excited about this to not write it.

21 September 2012

Back... And Ready to Roll!

My family and I just got back from an eight day excursion to two of our great National Parks: Yellowstone and Grand Tetons. We had an amazing trip, saw many wonderful things, and I did not spend much time thinking about genealogy.

With one exception. Of course.

Looking at the map before we left, planning our route, I realized that along Wyoming State Highway 287, in the middle of the Wind River Indian Reservation, in those small pink letters that indicate a historic site, it states "Grave of Sacajawea". Because of my husband's general interest in history, certainly not out of a love for stopping at cemeteries with me, I was able to convince him it was a good idea to check it out. It also helped that it was generally along the route we were going to take anyway.

Knowing literally nothing of Native American burial practices, we drove into the cemetery - which we barely found - blind. There was no one else there, but it was clear we were in the right place. The statue and memorial site for her can be seen from the road, and once you get close enough, you see that the cemetery, which is still obviously being used as a burial site, is named, "Sacajewa Cemetery."

Her memorial is beautifully done, with a larger than life statue, and a plaque explaining her role in the exploration of the American West. It also includes a transcription of state records, and an brief sentence or two as to why this spot has been designated as her official burial location.

The rest of the cemetery was also fascinating, but since I am unfamiliar with the customs of this nation, whose land we were standing on, we chose not to stay long. We certainly wanted to tread lightly, so as not to offend or misstep. Almost all of the burial sites were mounded, and nearly all of them included a wooden cross, many of them very colorfully decorated, in addition to a "traditional" headstone. The cemetery was vibrant with flowers, rocks, memento's from life; all placed on or near the mounds.

Upon arriving home, I decided I needed a little education in this area. I found several interesting websites that discuss both the traditional and current customs of the Shoshone tribe, who currently populates this reservation. One in particular is quoted here:

"Mourning, consisting of from three to-five days of loud lamentation, was a part of the funeral rites. Of late years they have buried their dead, and an interesting part of the ceremony is a procession around the open box or coffin, when all who wish well to the departed take his hand in a last friendly clasp.² It is the custom to put on the grave the tepee, bedstead or stretcher in which the Indian died, and the Indian graveyard looks not unlike the backyard of a junk shop."

- Shoshone Indians of Uinta County, Wyoming, a page on the Uinta County, Wyoming Genealogy site. (http://www.wyominggenealogy.com/uinta/shoshone_indians.htm)

Although I will not agree with the "junk shop" terminology used on the site, the rest was intriguing.

One thing I learned on vacation: I still have a lot to learn about genealogy.