Correspondence as History

The following was also taken from a Rootbound in the Hills column from twenty years ago. It was good advice then, and it remains so today:

More Ramblings: Last week I discussed the importance of preserving the history of your immediate family, and suggested keeping a daily journal as one way of meeting this important obligation to the future. I neglected to mention that a lot of family history is written down and then thrown out. Personal letters, those from relatives and friends, offer a wealth of information about the day-to-day ordinary experiences that make up life. Most good family historians supplement their journal-writing with a correspondence file. Gramma's letters may not mean much today, but they will after she's been gone for a few years! Some people even go so far as to copy the letters that they send to others, and place the copies in their files.

If you don't preserve your own history, some day your trail through life may fade to little more than what's chiseled on your tombstone. Think about! And don't even get me started on the importance of labelling photographs and snapshots!

Journaling in the 21st Century

As mentioned in this blog on prior occasions, I am busy placing my old genealogy column, Rootbound in the Hills, into another blog. Today, while carefully typing column #35 out of 242, I came across something that I wrote 20 years ago about the importance of preserving family history. It is shared below:

Rootbound Ramblings: Genealogy involves far more than just tracking down ancestors. A significant aspect of the work is the preservation of your immediate family history. Most genealogical "how to" books stress the importance of keeping a journal, a daily account of your journey through life. Imagine how excited you would be to discover a journal or diary that was kept by an ancestor 200 years ago. Wouldn't it be fascinating to hear that ancestor's story, in his or her own words! That's the same type of impact that your story might have on your descendants a century or two from now. But they won't have it to read unless you take the time to write - everyday! Get started - I have!

Today, I no longer journal like I did somewhat obsessively for over ten years, but I do blog. Pa Rock's Ramble is the dusty old diary that I am setting aside for my descendants. I hope that they find it. I hope that they enjoy it!