ocean – Loganalogy- Your Family Historian

A few years ago, I took the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge created by Amy Johnson Crow. Amy is a certified genealogist whose podcasts, webpage, and social media accounts have taught me a lot.

The challenge was “Long Line.” This phrase can be interpreted in many ways, but what came to my mind was, “I come from a long line of water-loving ancestors.” The Wescotts, Chadwicks, Midgetts, and Tilletts all served in the Life-Saving Service (now called the U.S. Coast Guard).

The Logans, Beans, Royces, and Roots grew up along the coast, with family ties ranging from Scotland to New Hampshire and England to Massachusetts. Additionally, the Kunkles, Younkins, Hawks, Rittenhouses, Nices, and Morrisons hail from Germany and the Netherlands, settling in Pennsylvania.

We also have the Wescotts, Chaddicks, Midgetts, Chadwicks, Pughs, Woodhouses, and Jennetts from various places along the East Coast, with roots in England and France. The Cofers, Moodys, Wards, Barhams, Argalls, Davises, Harrisons, and many more emigrated from England to Virginia.

Even my trans-Appalachian pioneer ancestor journeyed from Virginia to Tennessee, eventually settling on Boone’s Creek and the Watauga River. My German, Slovenian, Croatian, and Polish ancestors also lived by the coast, and my connection to Jamestown is coastal as well!

Today, the Logans still reside in Michigan and Pennsylvania, while the Wescotts and Chadwicks are in North Carolina, Jacksonville Beach, and along the Gulf Coast.

I live in Florida and have a deep love for the water—be it the ocean, rivers, or lakes. Now, I understand why. Could we all have a gene for seafaring? According to an article published in the journal, Genetic Determinism Today, researchers at Mystic University in Connecticut have identified a gene linked to a love of the sea.¹

My “Long Line” is the enduring connection to the coast, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.