Family History Thrills

I am a Family History fan.

I mean, I LOVE IT!!!

The other night, I was doing a little research and I came across this gem (above) on http://www.familysearch.org/.

Go there and EXPLORE your family!!! It can be SO FUN!

This particular item is of interest to me because it is Charles' great,

great, grandpa, John F. Boes, who lived in Salt Lake City, Utah back in the early 1900's. As far as we know none of Charles ancestors were Mormon, but after some research we know they lived closely amongst them!

Just check out the address on this death certificate --he lived just a few blocks from Temple Square in downtown Salt Lake. John F. Boes was a Jewlery maker and his store (which is something I have been trying to locate and this certificate had the answer!) was located on 311 South Main in downtown SLC! I can only imagine he sold many wedding rings to those getting married in the temple. Perhaps those rings are on the fingers of lots of Latter-day Saints and passed down through the ages . . . who knows? His jewlery could be anywhere! I wish I could find out somehow . . .

And who knew he, "dropped dead hunting rabbits"?? I mean, this kind of information is so priceless. Love it.

We now know where he is buried -- in the City Cemetary in Salt lake. Knowing this we can pay our respects next time we go there! We had no idea he had family buried there. We have driven by the cemetary many times. We thought most of Charles' family were buried on the East Coast -- not UTAH! I am excited to go and find the grave. He also has another grandfather we found that is buried in the Mt. Olivet cemetary in SLC. My ancestors are buried there as well. They are grave-neighbors. :-)

This census has both his great, great, grandpa's families on it, they lived in the same building in downtown Salt Lake City -- 1st avenue. That is where Charles' Grandma and Grandpa must have met -- they were neighbors!

And MOM -- I noticed the Census worker's name is Harry Cram?? Any relation? Wouldn't that be weird??

Anyhow, remember when you are doing family history, don't just see the names and dates -- SEE THE PEOPLE. They are YOUR people and they lived facinating, full lives. They deserve our attention! We are here because of them and their sacrifices. It is fun to find them. I have discovered census information, missing people on our pedigree, ship passengar info, priceless pictures, and unknown information that has made us feel connected to our past. It is fantastic.

If at first you don't succeed, try, try, again. It takes patience, and time. But if you like to spend time on the computer doing pointless things, maybe you can transfer that energy into doing very, very, lasting and meaningful things. FAMILY HISTORY!

If you ever need help, I am your girl. Just let me know. I don't know everything, but I know some things. :-)

Remember it is more than just gathering names, it is about gathering stories and information and the internet has amazing tools at our fingertips. I have just google-searched and found missing people in our lineage.

Find some family names and dates and then search out their stories -- you might be surprised what you find!