Walk in your Ancestors Steps

One of the most rewarding parts of genealogy while having a young family is to show my kids what their ancestor's lives were like and who they really were. 

It has been a very fun way to combine my love of traveling, giving my kids new adventures, allowing them to see more of our country, and making  great core memories

If you would like to walk in your ancestor's steps I can help you build a list of the places they lived, where they visited, and things they would have seen. Allowing you to retrace their steps and see some of the same things they did.  If you don't have the time or energy to actually plan the trip I can help you with that too. 

Thanks to my research my kids and I were able to make a personal connection with my ancestor who came over on the Mayflower. Plymouth Ma and London, England

We visited the farm that once belonged to my ancestor when he fought during the American Revolution. Barber Pond in RI (it's still named after him, and none of the current neighbors realized that- they also had found random headstones tucked back into the woods but couldn't remember where they were.)

We visited the property owned by my relatives who were friends with George Mason and George Washington before the American Revolution (that's the photo above- wouldn't it be amazing to wake up to that view?!).  As well as the homes of George Mason and George Washington. Lorton, VA

They have helped me find hidden cemeteries, that the local police department didn't even know existed. We have visited the school and church that our ancestors built for freed slaves. Abbeville SC

We have visited the area(s) where our ancestors lived and have been formative brick walls. Hickory Ms, Saratoga Springs, NY

We have visited the haunted home of an ancestor who fled religious persecution and they with others built the town they all lived in.  Deyo House in New Paltz NY

We have undug the headstone of ancestors that don't have any living descendants and found someone buried with them that we don't know how they fit into the tree.  And drove by the places they'd lived that are now all skyscrapers in Manhattan NY

We have visited the area that my grandfather was born and raised in, Minnesota. 

We have met cousins we have met thru research and seen original copies of a family bible from the 1800's . Saratoga Springs, NY

We've also looked at places with fresh eyes.  As we have walked the woods, or by the waters edge of the areas they lived we've tried to imagine what their life must have been like. We've tried to look at the area from their eyes, taking in the hills/mountains, trees, waterways, community, and temperatures. 

An unexpected surprise has been going places and feeling comfortable like you are at home or familiar with the area.