Tag: coastguard

I have taken the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge by Amy Johnson Crow. Amy is a certified genealogist that I follow and have learned a lot from her via her podcasts, webpage, and social media accounts. I started the challenge last year, but life got in the way and I never really got a good start. I am trying again, albeit a bit late. 

This week’s challenge is “Long Line.” That could be interpreted in many different ways, but what popped into my head was, “I come from a long line of water-loving ancestors.” After all, the Wescott’s, Chadwick’s, Midgett’s, and Tillet’s were all in the LifeSaving Service (now called the US Coast Guard).  

The Logan’s, Bean’s, Royce’s, and Root’s also grew up on the coast with a mix of Scotland to New Hampshire and England to Massachusetts. So did the Kunkle’s, Younkin’s, Hawk’s, Rittenhouse, Nice, and Morrison’s coming from Germany and the Netherlands to Pennsylvania.  

Then we have the Wescott’s, Chaddick’s, Midgett’s, Chadwick’s, Pugh’s, Woodhouse’s, and Jennett’s from up and down the East Coast coming from England and France. The Cofer’s, Moody’s, Ward’s, Barham’s, Argall’s, Davis’, Harrison’s, and many more came from England to Virginia.  

Even my trans-Appalachian pioneer trailblazed from Virginia to Tennessee only to find himself on Boone’s Creek and the Watauga River. My German, Slovenia, Croatian, and Polish ancestors also grew up on the coast. Even my connection to Jamestown is on the coast!   

The Logan’s of today are still in Michigan and Pennsylvania, the Wescott’s and Chadwick’s are in North Carolina, Jacksonville Beach, and the Gulf.  

I live in Florida. I love the water, the ocean, rivers, and lakes. Now I know why. Could we all have the gene for seafaringness? Researchers at Mystic University in Connecticut have identified a gene associated with the love of the sea, according to an article published in the journal Genetic Determinism Today.

My “Long Line” is the long line of the coast, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.