Saturday, November 24, 2018
- Over the past year I have created and published 50 blog posts. This was one of my goals and I accomplished this despite working full time. YEA!!
- All time History Page Views- 79, 284 (about 25,000 more than last year)
- Subscribed Followers – 17
- most viewed blog post this past year was DNA Chromosome Mapping with 2531 page views! Wow!
- second most viewed post was entitled Riverhead, New York Soldiers in the War of 1812 with 920 page views.
- third most viewed was a post entitled A Lot More Questions Than Answers-The Life of Ann Meenan Rowan with 760 page views.
- One of my goals for last year was to publish a book of my blog posts and I was able to accomplish that. How exciting to see all the research for a year published in to one place in a book format I think my greatest research find this year was a series of posts I did about my paternal 2x great-grandfather John W. Rowan and locating his Civil War Records. I started with a family story in Who Was the Civil War Veteran? then Is It the Right John W. Rowan, Civil War Veteran? and concluded with Civil War Records of John W. Rowan. To be able to start with a handed down story and find the truth in it was amazing! More to come on this subject.
- A major accomplishment for me this year was to be able to find the information and prove to the Society of Mayflower Descendants that I am indeed a descendant of John & Priscilla Alden of the Mayflower. My perseverance and research skills were validated! I received word this week, a few days before Thanksgiving. The official certificate hasn’t arrived yet. This was one of my goals for the past year.
Honors:
- After attending the Celtic Connections Conference 2018 in Boston I wrote a blog post entitled Celtic Connections Conference-Pathways to Our Past. A link to my post was published on the Celtic Connections Conference website.
- I presented, for the first time outside of San Diego County, Carrie’s Letters: Brining Ancestral letters to Life at the Sacramento German Genealogy Society and made some wonderful new friends I hope to see at the International German Genealogy Conference in June. Be sure to register. I have.
- I wrote my first piece, a speaker review on Kitty Munson Cooper who presented in October, for the San Diego Genealogical Society Quarterly newsletter.
- Develop a research plan when you have a specific question you want an answer to.
- Citing my sources definitely helps me remember how and where I learned information about an ancestor.
- Look for county or town ‘Centennial Books’. I keep finding interesting tidbits on my ancestors since many of my lines go back to the 1600 & 1700s in America.
- To publish at least 50 posts while continuing to work full time.
- Obtain a military headstone for my paternal 2x great-grandfather John W. Rowan.
- Make the stories of my ancestors’ lives be more than just dry facts. Being able to research the time period or location where an ancestor lived helps me understand their lives.
- My Dad continues to give me ideas for researching. He is challenging me to see how far back I can go and determine the previous land owners for our family duck farm. I think this research might make for an interesting presentation one day.
A VERY SPECIAL THANK-YOU TO ALL MY READERS! I enjoy the comments you make and/or questions you ask. I’m always looking for new directions to search or information that is questionable and needs verification.
My updated Surname word cloud:
Another great year for me as a blogger. Looking back shows me I have accomplished more than I thought I did. On to new discoveries and new cousin connections while also enjoying the great ones I have already made :)
If you have any corrections, additions or stories to share I look forward to hearing them.
Enjoy the journey,
Debby
Way to go Debby! Great posts. I love reading them.
ReplyDeleteThank-you Diane! I so appreciate all your guidance and support.
DeleteCongratulations on all your achievements--very impressive!
ReplyDeleteThank-you!
ReplyDelete