Tips and Stories
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Are They From Where You Believe?
One of the first things we are often given when beginning genealogy research is a place. “My grandfather lived in Indianapolis.” “My family was from Illinois.” “My great-grandmother lived in this county.” Sometimes that information comes from a family member. Sometimes it comes from a family tree that has been copied and recopied. Other times,…
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From Ranks to Records: How an Old Military Ledger Brought My Family History to Life
My husband is obsessed with genealogy. For years, he has researched his grandfather, Joseph Robert Howell, following him through records and piecing together the details of his life. He has also repeatedly tried to draw me into the project. I usually resisted. Names, dates, and isolated facts simply do not stick with me, and genealogy…
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Building the Airfields of Victory: The Story of the 1877th Engineer Aviation Battalion
Like many families of World War II veterans, ours was left with more questions than answers. My father, Robert Gordon Howell, rarely spoke about his wartime service, and many of the details of his military career remained unknown after he returned home. It was only years later, after I began researching his service and obtaining…
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Finding My Father’s Missing Morning Reports
One of the biggest challenges in military genealogy isn’t always finding the record—it’s figuring out where the record is located. That was exactly the situation I found myself in while researching my father, Robert Gordon Howell, and trying to document the two times he was hospitalized while serving with Company C, 1877th Engineer Aviation Battalion…
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Ordering Military Records
What My Father’s File Taught Me Robert Gordon Howell during his U.S. Army service. Many of us know a parent, grandparent, or another relative served in the military, but beyond that, we may know very little about what happened while they were in service. Family stories are a great place to start, but official military…
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Cousins
The Family My Grandmother Never Let Me Forget When I was born, I immediately became part of something much larger than just my immediate family. I had three first cousins close to my own age—Bob, Mike, and Alisha. As little children, we spent time together playing, laughing, and simply enjoying being kids. Unfortunately, those memories…
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Why RootsMagic 11 Became My Favorite Offline Family Tree Software
When customers ask me what genealogy software I use, they’re usually surprised with my answer. To be honest, there are lots of great family tree programs available and many wonderful researchers who swear by their favorite software. But as someone who has researched his family for many years and tried numerous programs, RootsMagic 11 is…
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Stories Never Shared
Some of the most meaningful family stories are never told. They remain tucked away in a box of old papers, hidden in a drawer, or carried silently in the hearts of those who lived them. This is one of those stories. I was about twelve or thirteen years old when my curiosity got the best…
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This Story Again
By Joseph Howell, Founder of Nomadic Roots Research As a youngster, I remember spending hours listening to relatives tell the same stories, again and again. The picture above features my grandmother, Alta M. (Fitts) Howell, my great-aunt, Eileen Virginia (Fitts) Lindskog, and my great-grandmother, Katherine “Kitty” Maude (Hunsaker) Fitts. Families like to gather and share stories, memories,…
Nomadic Roots Research 