gardening – Loganalogy- The Family Historian

It’s been seven months since I’ve blogged. On this day of the celebration of our freedom, I’m thankful I have the freedoms to do the things I want to do. For the past several months, I’ve been working on, what I call, my “yarden” (@marleesyardening on Instagram).

It has been truly “plant therapy” for me. When I am gardening, I am truly free of the stresses in my head. It has truly helped me heal my mental and physical health. Did you know that researchers found that bacteria found in the soil actually helped activate brain cells that could produce serotonin?

Have I missed researching my ancestry? Absolutely. But, I am not good at balancing two hobbies at once. When I give myself to something, I give it all.

But, it is now too steamy, too hot, and too humid to work outside. In between the feel-like temperatures in the 3-digits and the breezy evenings, I am still able to maintain the garden. This was my goal. To get the garden to a point where it took only a little bit of maintenance. After several projects and a lot of planting, I can sit back and enjoy it.

However, now I am ready to dig into my family tree again. I hope you continue to follow along. And, if you want to follow me on my “yardening”, follow me at https://www.instagram.com/marleesyardening/

Happy 4th my American cousins!

Digging in…

Hello Followers. I wanted to check in with you since I have not written a blog in quite some time. The last real blog was March 19, so almost a month now. Like you, my family has been self-isolating. Not only from the virus but the crazier people who do not think it is a serious threat.

My son and I are both essential works so we have been working except for my Easter vacation. I am working four hours in the office and four hours at home. My son works all day in the warehouse. Neither of our companies allows outside visitors. We are both very careful as my mother, who is in her late 70s, lives with us.

Since I am working from home I have not had a lot of the extra family history time I see a lot of people talking about. But, I have tried to take advantage of the free sites and free records that have become available. It’s funny, some of the records I have run across have names that I could have used a couple of years ago. But, now I at least know I am on the right track.

I did have success with my 80 year old uncle’s tree. Back on Thanksgiving he was telling me about his brick wall with his grandparents on his mother’s side. Her father seems to have disappeared after deserting her and her brothers. The name he always went by with this family seems to actually be a nickname. In tracing the date of birth and his birthplace, we tracked down what we think is his real name.

With the help of the West Virginia Archives and History Library, we followed these coincidences and found all kinds of information on his family. But, until we find a document where he uses his nickname along with his real name, we cannot be 100% sure it is him. Or, until we can find some DNA matches. Once we entered his real name into our database, a whole slew of information and family members popped up. Including others on their public trees who seemed to have come to the same conclusion. And, here’s the kicker, it seems there is another family who this man deserted…under his real name. We hope to connect to this family to find some answers.

West Virginia Archives and History Photo Gallery

I’ve also been doing a lot of gardening, my other great passion. We had some umbrella palms start to take over so we had them pulled out, by the root balls. Little did I know a few years after I planted them, they would become evasive! They loved the wet clay soil, too much! I’ve since been filling the spaces in with some organic matter from my compost pile. I’ve also added a few pieces of cardboard and will mulch and soil over that. It’s like having a blank canvas to start planting in.

And, my flowers are blooming. Always a welcome sight and lifts the spirits. My garden is defintely a great boost for my mental health.

I cannot seem to concentrate enough to pull an ancestor story together for a blog, but I did want to check-in. I hope that you and your family are safe and well. As our ancestors did from their pandemics, this too shall pass.