-
From Leluchów With Love: Andreas Knysz and Paraskevia Kowalski
•
Andreas Knysz and Paraskevia Kowalski were born in the same small mountain village in what is now southern Poland, married there in 1868, and raised three daughters there. As far as the records show, they never left. Andreas died in 1873 at just twenty-eight years old, leaving Paraskevia a widow…
-
They Were Standing on the Edge… and Never Knew It
•
Ola Andersson and Hanna Persdotter were standing on the edge of a major shift in their family, but had no idea it was coming. When Ola died in 1915 in Wånga, Sweden, all his grandchildren lived nearby. When Hanna died in 1926, she believed only two had left for America.…
-
One Address, Eight Census Records, 45 Years of Family Survival
•
Tracking a family through census records from 1905-1950 reveals survival strategies. Eight NY censuses show how one Brooklyn family adapted across generations.
-
Season of Change: How Basilius and Maria Lost Their World
•
History follows the travelers, the ones who pack trunks and board ships. But for Basilius Marcisak and Maria Gladis of Litmanova, the most profound season of change involved staying exactly where they were while their world migrated away from them. Between 1872 and 1895, they buried five children in the…
-
My Favorite Family Photograph (For Now)
•
How do you choose a favorite family photograph from a collection of 130 images? I picked the one whose story I know best. This is my grandmother Eva Marcisak on June 18, 1945, at the Exchange Tavern in New York City. She had just said goodbye to George Dubinsky at…
-
What Did Two Irish Immigrants Endure to Build a Better Life in America?
•
This Irish immigrant story follows William and Ellen Dowling from Listowel, County Kerry to Brooklyn, New York in 1857. As teenagers traveling in steerage, they carried something that set them apart: literacy. By mid-century, Irish literacy rates had climbed to seventy-five percent, and this education shaped their American future. They…
-
Why My Genealogy Research Breakthrough Hasn’t Happened Yet
•
This week’s #52Ancestors theme is “A Breakthrough Moment,” but here’s my confession: I haven’t had a major genealogy research breakthrough in months. Despite attending genealogy conferences last year, enrolling in multiple courses, and maintaining a weekly genealogy blog, I’m starting to understand why those breakthroughs aren’t happening. Somewhere along the…
-
The World Around Them: My 2x Great Grandparents from Litmanova
•
Between 1883 and 1900, the world around Constantinus Hurkala and Anastasia Hlinka transformed completely. Born in Litmanova, Slovakia in 1860, they knew only mountain meadows, subsistence farming, and the brutal reality of rural poverty under Hungarian nobility. Each July, families migrated to mountain chalets to prepare hay—the difference between survival…
Our Growing Family Tree
Adding family, one branch at a time.
Beautiful autumn landscape in Litmanova, Slovakia. ID 78946638 © Sitriel | Dreamstime.com
Popular Posts
More Genealogy Blogs
- Know Who Wears the Genes in Your Family
- Leaves & Branches: Genealogy, Research & Family History
- Ancestral Discoveries
- Leaves On The Tree
- My Trails Into The Past
- Genealogy Tip of the Day
Tags
52Ancestors Ancestor Stories Ancestry research Brooklyn Carpatho-Rusyn David Sten DNA research Dowling Drew Smith Dubinsky Eva Marcisak family-history family connections family history family history research genealogical proof standard Genealogy genealogy blog Genealogy Blogger genealogy education genealogy stories George Dubinsky Hurkala Immigrant Stories Irish genealogy Judy G. Russell Knysz Kristianstad Litmanova Marcisak National Genealogical Society NGS Conference OGS2025 OGS Conference 2025 Ohio Genealogical Society Plunkett research-planning research-techniques Slovak genealogy Sten Storyteller Tuesday Svensson Sweden Swedish Genealogy Your Sixteens
Blog Archive
- February 2026
- January 2026
- December 2025
- November 2025
- October 2025
- September 2025
- August 2025
- July 2025
- June 2025
- May 2025
- April 2025
- March 2025
- February 2025
- January 2025