You are your own cousin!!!!!

Yes, you read that right. Believe it or not, you are your own cousin.

Anyone who does genealogy knows that statement to be fact, rather than fiction. But, if you are a believer of The Bible, then you allready know that, as we are all descendants of Adam and Eve. It is just that most people don't want to accept that. They would rather keep that little bit of information under wraps. Or, they just don't want to see it on paper.

But, the fact remains that if you go far enough back on your family tree, then you will definitely see that there are alot of inter-marriages within your family. For example, my daughter is her own 12th cousin! How does that happen? Well, generations ago, two sisters began a long line of descendants. And two of those descendants, married each other. When all is said and done, my daughter is her own 12th cousin. Now, I am positive that Cierra has more than just that one relationship to herself, I just don't have all the information in the genealogy program at this time.

From what I have researched so far, I have at least 4 different family lines that go back through the middle ages and the time of the first Holy Roman Emperor, Charlemagne. Those family lines are my Grandmother Eckert, Michelle's Harris family line, her father's Neff family line and her stepfather's Tatman family line. All these families have the common grandfather of Charlemagne, which means that they are related to one another. Me, my wife, her father and stepfather are related to one another by blood. It's wierd how small this world actually is.

The closest inter-marriage that I have run across is on the Sicilian side of my family. My Grandfather Cardona had a cousin by the name of Joe who lived in Truckee, California most of his life. Joe's mother Anna Salvadora Incardona married her Uncle Giuseppe Incardona. So, as you can see, it has happened in the recent past, as well as distant.

Other than the Biblical reasons why we are all related to one another, the is the common fact that most families migrated together through-out the years. The Cardona's migrated with the D'anna's, Tomasello's and so on. The Van Keuren's migrated with the Steenbergh's, Crispell's, Deyo's and so on and so forth. It happens with almost all families. That is why through the generations you will see multiple marriages between the same families.

Also, with the families linked to Charlemane, you will also find some very famous cousins, such as most of the Presidents of the United States, actor Marlon Brando, actress Joan Crawford, Daniel Boone, singer Robert Goulet, Playboy founder Hugh Hefner, actress Lucille Ball, Elvis Presley, Clint Eastwood, Marilyn Monroe, Princess Diana, California's Governator, Kirk and Michael Douglas, and Johnny Carson to name a few.

So, as you can see, working on your family's genealogy can be quite interesting at times.

About the following report

What follows is a small part of a genealogy report from my family tree program. If you have a genealogy program on which to put your family tree, there are alot of reports and charts that you can print out depending on what your preferences are and what you want your reports to look like.

For me, the easiest way to view the descendants of any particular individual is to run a report called "outline descendant report". This particular report will usually list all descendants of a particular individual, as well as dates and places and so on and so forth. Once you understand how the report works, it is very simple to read. For the purposes of this blog, I have decided to leave out the dates and places as it is ahrd to read with the space allowed on this page. If I were to print it out, it would come out looking perfect.

Now, as far as the report goes, it starts with the furthest person back in time. For this report, that would be Wolfaert Van Ceulen. Wolfaert was born between 1500 and 1525 and is a grand-father of mine many generations ago. He and his descendants are related to my father's mother. I will do my best to explain what you are seeing. The report follows his descendats down 11 generations towards the present time. If each generation is about 25 years, then it is safe to assume that this report spans 275 years from about 1500 to 1775.

1) The numbers you see to the left of names are generational numbers. Wolfaert (being the furthest back) has a "1)" next to his name. The second name on the report (Jacob Wolfaertse Van Ceulen) has a "2)" next to his name. Jacob is Wolfaert's son. After Jacob, you will notice another symbol with a name following it. It looks like this " + Selken Jannsens". That means that Jacob married Selken Jannsens. If they had children that I knew about, there would be a "3)" on the next line with the child's name.

A couple lines down from Jacob Wolfaertse Van Ceulen, you will notice another #2. That would be his brother, Mathij Wolfaertse Van Ceulen. After Mathij's name, you will find all his descendants, until you come across another #2. If and when you do run across another #2 in the report, the would be a sibling of Mathij and his brother Jacob.

Simple enough. I hope I explained that easily.

This type of report can be run for any family, and it shows where you are missing people in an easy to read format. The report posted below, is a very small fraction of how large that family actually is. With all the people I have in the program so far, there are 10 more pages just like what you see here. And there are about 50 more pages, I still have to input into the program.

So, as you can see, if you go far enough back in time (in this case to the 16th century) with your family research, you can find thousands of other cousins, Aunts and Uncles.

A descendant report

1 Wolfaert Van Ceulen (born btween 1500 and 1525)
........ 2 Jacob Wolfaertse Van Ceulen
.............. +Selken Jannsens
........ *2nd Wife of Jacob Wolfaertse Van Ceulen:
.............. +Tannaken Claudesz Van Bruiyssel
........ 2 Mathij Wolfaertse Van Ceulen
.............. +Mayken Mertens
................... 3 Hendrick Mathijs Van Keulen
......................... +Barbel Willems Van Deden
............................. 4 Mathij Henriksz Van Keulen
............................. 4 Willem Van Keulen
............................. 4 Conraet Henricsz Van Keulen
................................... +Chrisstijna Gerritse Kieft
........................................ 5 Sara Van Keulen
.............................................. +Hermanus Jansen Kooswyck
........................................ 5 Antonetta Van Keulen
.............................................. +Josua Albooras
........................................ 5 Heinrick Van Keulen
........................................ 5 Machtell Van Keulen
........................................ 5 Maria Van Keulen
........................................ 5 Gerrit Van Keulen
........................................ 5 Joannes Van Keulen
.............................................. +Hendrickje Danielsz Broom
........................................ 5 Wilhelmus Van Keulen
........................................ 5 Elisabet Van Keulen
........................................ 5 Cornelija Van Keulen
........................................ 5 Machtelt Van Keulen
.............................................. +Pieter Scholier
............................. 4 Aeltje Van Keulen
............................. 4 Cornellis Van Keulen
................... 3 Lijsbeth Mathijsz Van Keulen
......................... +Arent Dircksz
................... 3 Jan Mathijs Van Keulen
......................... +Annetje Jans
............................. 4 Mathijs Jansen Van Keulen
................................... +Margriet Hendrickse
........................................ 5 Katryn Matthyssen
.............................................. +Jan Jansen Van Amersfoort
.................................................. 6 Styntje Van Steenbergh
.................................................. 6 Thomas Jans Van Steenbergh
........................................................ +Maria Solome Metselaar
............................................................. 7 Margriet Van Steenbergh
................................................................... +Cornelius DeLameter
........................................................................ 8 Seeletjen DeLameter
.............................................................................. +Matheus Van Keuren
.................................................................................. 9 Tjerk Van Keuren
........................................................................................ +Maria Westervelt
............................................................................................. 10 Aaltje Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Albert Montfoort
....................................................................................................... 11 Maria Montfoort
....................................................................................................... 11 Tjerrick Montfoort
....................................................................................................... 11 Celetje Montfoort
....................................................................................................... 11 Johanna Montfoort
............................................................................................. 10 Matheus Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Hester Hoffman
............................................................................................. 10 Casparus Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Mary Catharina Ostrum
....................................................................................................... 11 Aaltje Van Keuren
....................................................................................................... 11 Helena Van Keuren
....................................................................................................... 11 Celetje Van Keuren
....................................................................................................... 11 Femmetje Van Keuren
............................................................................................. 10 Benjamin B. Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Jacoba Van Kleek
....................................................................................................... 11 Anne Maria Van Keuren
....................................................................................................... 11 Catharine Van Keuren
............................................................................................. 10 Celetje Van Keuren
............................................................................................. 10 Celetje Van Keuren
.................................................................................. *2nd Wife of Tjerk Van Keuren:
........................................................................................ +[1] Elisabeth Westerveld
............................................................................................. 10 Maria Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Rudolph Westervelt
....................................................................................................... 11 Susannah Westervelt
....................................................................................................... 11 Joanna Westervelt
............................................................................................. 10 Isaah Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Gette LeRoy
.................................................................................. 9 Cornelius Van Keuren
........................................................................................ +[1] Elisabeth Westerveld
............................................................................................. 10 Seletje Van Keuren
............................................................................................. 10 Aaltje Van Keuren
............................................................................................. 10 Matthew Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Maria Van Sicklen
....................................................................................................... 11 Henry Van Keuren
....................................................................................................... 11 Cornelius Van Keuren
....................................................................................................... 11 Eliza Van Keuren
............................................................................................. 10 Casparus Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Sally Weaver
....................................................................................................... 11 John Van Keuren
....................................................................................................... 11 Mary Ann Van Keuren
....................................................................................................... 11 Peter Van Keuren
....................................................................................................... 11 Anna Van Keuren
............................................................................................. 10 Benjamin Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Hannah Humps
............................................................................................. 10 Esther Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Adolphus Brewer
....................................................................................................... 11 Elizabeth Brewer
............................................................................................. 10 Jacobus Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Nancy Monfort
............................................................................................. 10 Cornelia Van Keuren
.................................................................................. 9 Abraham Van Keuren
........................................................................................ +Margriet Storm
............................................................................................. 10 Sally Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +James Yates
....................................................................................................... 11 Abraham Yates
............................................................................................. 10 Abraham Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Petronella Wiltsie
....................................................................................................... 11 Jenny Van Keuren
....................................................................................................... 11 Sarah Van Keuren
............................................................................................. 10 Matheus Van Keuren
............................................................................................. 10 Maria Van Keuren
............................................................................................. 10 Sarah Van Keuren
.................................................................................. 9 Margriet Van Keuren
........................................................................................ +Simeon W. Lawson
............................................................................................. 10 Geertruy Lawson
............................................................................................. 10 Simeon Lawson
............................................................................................. 10 Catherine Lawson
............................................................................................. 10 Annatje Lawson
.................................................................................. 9 Benjamin Van Keuren
........................................................................................ +Nancy Butcher
............................................................................................. 10 Robert Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Antje Van Bommel
............................................................................................. 10 Matheus Van Keuren
............................................................................................. 10 Benjamin Van Keuren
............................................................................................. 10 Maria Van Keuren
............................................................................................. 10 Annatje Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +John Dearin
....................................................................................................... 11 Anne Maria Dearin
....................................................................................................... 11 John Edward Dearin
....................................................................................................... 11 Benjamin Dearin
....................................................................................................... 11 Robert Dearin
....................................................................................................... 11 Matthew Dearin
....................................................................................................... 11 Cornelius Dearin
....................................................................................................... 11 Peter Dearin
.................................................................................. 9 Matheus Van Keuren
........................................................................................ +Annatje Green
............................................................................................. 10 Geertruda Van Keuren
............................................................................................. 10 Geertruda Van Keuren
............................................................................................. 10 Matheus Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Rachel Hunt
....................................................................................................... 11 William Van Keuren
....................................................................................................... 11 John Van Keuren
....................................................................................................... 11 Matthew Van Keuren
....................................................................................................... 11 Susan Van Keuren
....................................................................................................... 11 Hannah Van Keuren
............................................................................................. 10 John S. Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Elizabeth Van Etten
....................................................................................................... 11 Susan Van Keuren
............................................................................................. 10 Willem Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Margaret Lassing
............................................................................................. 10 Seletje Van Keuren
............................................................................................. 10 Thomas Van Keuren
.................................................................................. 9 Marytje Van Keuren
........................................................................ 8 Anna Catharina DeLameter
........................................................................ 8 Mary Salmy DeLameter
........................................................................ 8 Abraham DeLameter
........................................................................ 8 Johannes DeLameter
........................................................................ 8 Abraham DeLameter
........................................................................ 8 Cornelis DeLameter
........................................................................ 8 Thomas DeLameter
........................................................................ 8 Benjamin DeLameter
............................................................. 7 Catryn Van Steenbergh
............................................................. 7 Geerthruydt Van Steenbergh
............................................................. 7 Catryn Van Steenbergh
............................................................. 7 Johannes Van Steenbergh
............................................................. 7 Aris Van Steenbergh
................................................................... +Baartje Swart
........................................................................ 8 Maria Salmy Van Steenbergh
.............................................................................. +Jacobus Whitaker
.................................................................................. 9 James Whitaker
.................................................................................. 9 Benjamin Whitaker
.................................................................................. 9 Abraham Whitaker
........................................................................ 8 Thomas Van Steenbergh
........................................................................ 8 Thomas Van Steenbergh
.............................................................................. +Annetje Osterhoudt
.................................................................................. 9 Elisabeth Van Steenbergh
........................................................................................ +Abraham Fort
............................................................................................. 10 Jacob Fort
.................................................................................. 9 Johannes Van Steenbergh
.................................................................................. 9 Benjamin Van Steenbergh
........................................................................................ +Margrit Miller
............................................................................................. 10 Elisabet Van Steenbergh
............................................................................................. 10 Susana Van Steenbergh
................................................................................................... +Henry Whitaker
.................................................................................. 9 Jan Van Steenbergh
.................................................................................. 9 Abram Van Steenbergh
.................................................................................. 9 Annatje Van Steenbergh
........................................................................................ +John York
............................................................................................. 10 Margritje York
............................................................................................. 10 John York
............................................................................................. 10 Marietje York
............................................................................................. 10 Jane Elise York
............................................................................................. 10 Catharine York
........................................................................ 8 Johannes Van Steenbergh
.............................................................................. +Helena Burhans
.................................................................................. 9 Annetje Van Steenbergh
........................................................................................ +Conrad W. Elmendorp
............................................................................................. 10 Elisabet Elmendorp
............................................................................................. 10 Wilhelmus Elmendorp
............................................................................................. 10 Janneke Elmendorp
............................................................................................. 10 Johannes Elmendorp
............................................................................................. 10 Gerret Elmendorp
............................................................................................. 10 Abraham Elmendorp
............................................................................................. 10 Blondina Elmendorp
............................................................................................. 10 Gerretje Elmendorp
............................................................................................. 10 Lucas Elmendorp
.................................................................................. 9 Elisabet Van Steenbergh
........................................................................................ +Thomas Hoogdeeling
............................................................................................. 10 Denis Hoogdeeling
............................................................................................. 10 Helena Hoogdeeling
............................................................................................. 10 Annatjie Hoogdeeling
............................................................................................. 10 Elisabet Hoogdeeling
............................................................................................. 10 Ballie Hoogdeeling
.................................................................................. 9 Abraham Van Steenbergh
........................................................................................ +Elizabeth Osterhout
............................................................................................. 10 Margritje Van Steenbergh
............................................................................................. 10 Annatje Van Steenbergh
............................................................................................. 10 Margritje Van Steenbergh
............................................................................................. 10 Thomas Van Steenbergh
............................................................................................. 10 Elisabet Van Steenbergh
.................................................................................. 9 Johannes Van Steenbergh
.................................................................................. 9 Maria Van Steenbergh
........................................................................ 8 Catrina Van Steenbergh
........................................................................ 8 Elisabeth Van Steenbergh
.............................................................................. +James Whitaker
.................................................................................. 9 Eduard Whitaker
.................................................................................. 9 Catharina Whitaker
.................................................................................. 9 Maria Whitaker
........................................................................ 8 Benjamin Van Steenbergh
.............................................................................. +Sarah Burhans
............................................................. 7 Abraam Van Steenbergh
................................................................... +Catrina Ploeg
........................................................................ 8 Thomas Van Steenbergh
.............................................................................. +Christina LaBontie
.................................................................................. 9 Heinrich Van Steenbergh
........................................................................................ +Anatje Schaefer
............................................................................................. 10 Grietie Van Steenbergh
.................................................................................. 9 Abraham Van Steenbergh
........................................................................................ +Catharina Conjes
............................................................................................. 10 Thomas Van Steenbergh
............................................................................................. 10 Christina Van Steenbergh
............................................................................................. 10 Jacob Van Steenbergh
.................................................................................. 9 Petrus Van Steenbergh
.................................................................................. 9 Margriet Van Steenbergh
........................................................................................ +Jacob Richly
............................................................................................. 10 Christina Richly
............................................................................................. 10 Rosina Richly
.................................................................................. 9 Thomas Van Steenbergh
.................................................................................. 9 John Thomas Van Steenbergh
........................................................................................ +Anatje Van Leuven
.................................................................................. 9 Catherina Van Steenbergh
.................................................................................. 9 Matthew Van Steenbergh
.................................................................................. 9 Paul Van Steenbergh
........................................................................................ +Rosina Snider
.................................................................................. *2nd Wife of Paul Van Steenbergh:
........................................................................................ +Sarah Wynkoop
.................................................................................. 9 Cornelius Van Steenbergh
........................................................................ 8 Alida Van Steenbergh
.............................................................................. +Abraham Swart
.................................................................................. 9 Catrina Swart
........................................................................................ +Tjerck Van Keuren
............................................................................................. 10 Abraham Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Julia Bruster
....................................................................................................... 11 Hiram Van Keuren
....................................................................................................... 11 Sarah Ann Van Keuren
............................................................................................. 10 Charity Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Lewis Bevier
....................................................................................................... 11 Margaret Bevier
....................................................................................................... 11 Eliza Bevier
....................................................................................................... 11 Sarah Bevier
....................................................................................................... 11 Abraham Bevier
....................................................................................................... 11 Margaret Bevier
....................................................................................................... 11 Catherine Ann Bevier
....................................................................................................... 11 Rachel Bevier
............................................................................................. 10 Alida Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +James Smith
............................................................................................. 10 Moses Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Catherine Winfield
............................................................................................. 10 Geerityie Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Jabez Munson
....................................................................................................... 11 Catharine Munson
....................................................................................................... 11 Elizabeth Forsythe Munson
....................................................................................................... 11 Julia Ann Munson
....................................................................................................... 11 Cornelis Watkins Munson
............................................................................................. 10 Levi T. Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Ann Lake
............................................................................................. 10 William Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Phebe Catherine Alsdorf
....................................................................................................... 11 Martha Van Keuren
............................................................................................................. +Zenas Rumsey
.................................................................................................................. 12 Harvey Emery Rumsey
....................................................................................................... 11 Anna Hendrick Van Keuren
....................................................................................................... 11 Rachel Van Keuren
............................................................................................................. +Henry J. Smith
............................................................................................. 10 Marytie Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Moses Schoonnaker
............................................................................................. 10 Benjamin Bogardus Van Keuren
................................................................................................... +Lana Jane Jordan
............................................................................................. 10 Elisabeth Van Keuren
.................................................................................. 9 Annatje Swart
........................................................................ 8 Margrieta Van Steenbergh

Life intervenes

Sorry folks about not updating here, but my lovely, precious, darling little girl is raising my stress level and blood pressure. Two days ago, she stuck fuzzy bits of cotton in her ears and jammed them further in, which required a doctors visit to get it all out. The doctor told her the importance of not putting stuff in her ears and had my daughter promise to not do it again.

So, Cierra smiled and said "I promise to not put fuzzies in me ears again"

Lesson learned, right?

I often under-estimate the deviousness of a 5 year old.

Today at 5 p.m., I get a call from Michelle saying that she is taking Cierra back to the hospital because she stuffed things in her ear again. I get the the hospital and find out that she did not stuff fuzzies in her ear. Promise kept, I guess.

Instead, Cierra stuffed the little pellets you would find in a stuffed "bean bag" animal in there. Nice. She managed to get 4 or 5 of them in there at once. Needless to say, after the doctors tried prying them out and then had to resort to washing them out, Cierra will not stuff anything into her ears again. The rinse they had to shoot in there hurt too much. I never knew a 5 year old could be so strong.......

But, she is fine now.

I will get to updating the family information this weekend.

About this blog

I wanted to mention a thing or two about this blog before I get further into it with family information. My hope is that with it, I can connect with other family that I might not know about at this moment in time while at the same time, share with those I do know what I have learned in my searches.

While there is no guest book on here, there is a comment field at the bottom of each post, so if you feel like leaving a comment for whatever reason, please feel free to do so. After all, this is not just my family tree, but yours as well.

Also, on the left hand side of the screen you will find a "links" section. It is here you will find some of the best family sites that I have run across over the last 5 years of research. The majority of them have to do with the family genealogy. Others, are some of my family's personal sites for you to enjoy.

Here is a quick breakdown of what they are as of this post.

1) The family association websites (Bevier, Crispell, Deyo, Dubois, Freer, Hasbrouck, Terwilliger, and the Huguenot Historical Society) all deal with my grand-mother Eckert's (Dad's) side of the genealogy.

2) Cousin D.G. Van Curen's site as well as Lorraine Luke's also deal with the same family.

3) Cousins Pete Bellanti and Joe Buscaglia have parts of my mother's side of the family covered.

4) Michelle's Native American Roots can be found on the Chickasaw, Cherokee and Choctaw sites as well as Kerry Armstrong's genealogical research of the Colbert family.

5) There are some personal family sites on here such as Cousin Tommy Cardona's band Ghostown, or Michelle's Aunt Sue Crawford's book website.

6) And for those of you who might want to try and do a little research on your own, you can also check out the websites of Ancestry.com, Rootsweb.com, Ellisisland.org, or the Latter Day Saint's genealogy site.

Take your time and look up these sites as they are well worth your time, and by all means, if you know of another site that I could add, feel free to let me know.

Enjoy,

Origins

Little did I know in the fall of 2000 what I would be getting myself into when I began this journey into my (as well as my wife's) genealogy. We had just found out that we were going to be having a child in the spring of 2001, and I wanted to start a family tree so that our daughter could look back on it years later and know where she came from.

So, with my lack of insight on how to go about it and a newly purchased genealogy computer program, I added the few names, dates and places that I knew of on my own. At that time, I think the tree consisted of about 100 names, and I thought I was getting somewhere. I also remember thinking at the time that this whole genealogy thing was a snap. That there was nothing to it. Then I realized that I wanted to know more. I wanted to see how far back I could actually go with it. I sat down with my mom one afternoon when we went up to visit her in her new house in Stockton, California and started asking her all about her side of the family. When I sat down in front of her with my notepad and pen and asked for information, she just looked at me in stunned silence and then asked "Why the hell do you want to know all of that? Why can't you just stop with your grand-parents? No one cares about people that far back!!!!"

O.k., so now I hit a major road block, and it went by the title of "mom". After a while, she finally started spilling the information I wanted to know. And as she gave me the names of people, I realized that everyone I grew up around was actually related to me. You see, my mom's side of the family was large. My mom has a sister. Their father was one of 4 boys. And their grand-father Cardona was one of 8 children. I spent alot of my childhood being around all these people and their kids and didn't know that they were actually relatives! Sure, I called them Aunt or Uncle, but we even did that with people who were close to my grandparents who weren't related. Back then, everyone was an Aunt or Uncle. After I grilled my mom for an hour or two, I had her let me raid her phone book for the relatives I hadn't talked to in a while. In the process, I got more names and family stories as well as a chance to visit with some family I hadn't seen in more than 10 years.

Now, I was on my way.

I put the tree together and submitted it to a website called Rootsweb.com (my tree is no longer there, however) which is a place for people to post their family information and to share and connect with people they might not know about. I had been looking on that site as well as Ancestry.com for a few months and my family never seemed to be linked with anyone elses. A few months went by and I was stuck. No leads. Nothing. Then a gentleman by the name of Lee Eckert saw my family tree online and contacted me with alot of information on my father's side of the family. I was stunned. Someone out there knew who my family was!!! It turns out that Lee is a cousin (my grandmother Eckert's 1st cousin) and he shared his information which helped me go further back. After that was another gentleman by the name of Paul Incardona, who helped me get the Cardona side of my ancestry back to the early 1700's.

After that, we looked into my wife's side of the family, thanks to information that her Great Aunt Johnnie supplied us about the Harris (Michelle's mom's maiden name) family and found that they were leaders within the Chickasaw Nation. One of Michelle's grandfather's a few generations back was named Cyrus Harris. He turned out to be the first Governor of the Chickasaw Nation.

Today, the ancestors on the tree span every country in Europe and 6,000 years. Yes, we have gotten several branches of the tree back to Adam and Eve! Those branches include my grand-mother Eckert's side, Michelle's Harris family and her step-father Bill's side. So yes, Michelle and I are distant cousins!!!!! But, when it comes right down to it, we are all related to each other in one way or another.

My hope with this blog is to share with you out there some of what we have found as I put it back into the computer program from all of the printouts and notes we have. Along the way, you might learn about parts of your family that you weren't aware of. Further down the road, I plan to create a website for it, where it can remain for years to come and others to enjoy. If you have a question, feel free to ask, or just leave a comment below these posts.

I wanted to take a moment and thank those who have helped me get to where I am now with the family tree. So, special thank you's go out to Lee Eckert, Paul Incardona, Nick Giordano, Dennis Simpson, Sue Crawford, Sharon Houser, and Aunt Johnnie Cochran. Without your help, I would probably have given up on it years ago.

I wanted to also thank my beautiful daughter Cierra for providing me with the inspiration to get this started.

Last but not least, I wanted to thank my mom for telling me years ago to forget about going further back. As always, I seemed to have a hard time paying attention to the things she said.

I love you, mom!

God Bless,