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Date:         Tue, 5 Jan 1993 14:29:56 -0800
Reply-To:     Richard Casault <casault@U.WASHINGTON.EDU>
Comments:     Warning -- original Sender: tag was
              casault@CARSON.U.WASHINGTON.EDU
From:         Richard Casault <casault@U.WASHINGTON.EDU>
Subject:      Re: Am I Doing This Right? (was: Re: Roy
Comments: To: KitchenRN@SSD0.LAAFB.AF.MIL
Comments: cc: Multiple recipients of list ROOTS-L <ROOTS-L@VM1.NoDak.EDU>

I would add to KitchenRN's comments, that family history is an important
and satisfying part of genealogy for many of us.  (Especially for those of
us from a long line of rolling stones with little tradition of oral
history.  My line of CASAULT's has never been in one area more than three
or four generations, clear back to 15th Century France.) Much of that
family history is best captured (or only available) while it exists in
living memory.

It seems that in terms of prioritizing genealogy-related activities,
capturing the recollections of *living* relatives should be high on the
list.  Once those living relatives are gone, many of the memories that
flesh out the bare bones of genealogy, are also gone, forever.  Our
descendants will miss out on what we don't preserve for them.

On the other hand, with the improvement of technology making ever more
genealogical data available at more sites, research into the past may
actually become easier with time.  In any case, archived documents tend to
be less volatile than living memories.  Barring calamities like courthouse
fires, the archives can be accessed at our leisure.

Our living ancestors and other relatives are ephemeral treasures, more or
less crusty ;-), but nonetheless irreplaceable.  If family history is
important to you, Ed, then your priorities seem appropriate.

=======================================================================
||  Rick Casault         || ABERNATHY  (Id, Mt), AUBE'  (Que'bec, Mi)||
||  2705 22nd Avenue S.  || CASAULT  (FR Normandy, CA Que'bec, Mi)   ||
||  Seattle WA 98144,    || GUINDON  (Mi), HARRIS  (Mi),  HOGAN (Mi) ||
||  USA                  || KING/KOENIG  (Mt),  MUIR  (Me, Id, Mt)   ||
||                       ==============================================
||  internet: casault@u.washington.edu                        __o    ||
||  voice:  206-543-7370,     fax:  206-543-3959             -\<,    ||
||  Engineering & Construction, University of Washington   (+)/ (+)  ||
=======================================================================


On Tue, 5 Jan 1993 KitchenRN@SSD0.LAAFB.AF.MIL wrote:

> clayton EDward LEIHY iii <cel@NSSCMAIL.ATT.COM> writes:
> >Finally, the POINT:  Am I way off base in trying to build a collection of
> >names connected to myself (and my wife), as opposed to devoting more of
> >my/our energy to ascertaining my DIRECT ancestors in as much detail as
> >possible??  I really have derived a lot of enjoyment and satisfaction in
> >just visiting with relatives that I've never seen before (and will probably
> >never see again), hearing their stories, and recording what I can -- FTJ
> >does have a neat narrative section where each person's activities can
> >be documented.
>
> Any way you want to go about it is *right*.  Genealogy isn't an exact
> science.  This is a hobby for most of us, so we derive the enjoyment out of
> whatever parts of it work for us.  Some prefer going into as much depth as
> possible -- laying out *long* lines back twenty or so generations.  Others
> prefer the breadth approach -- trying to get as much info as possible about
> brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles, etc.  It's all in what you want to
> do.  If you reach a point where you've gone as far as you can in visiting the
> relatives and hearing their stories, *then* you can go into digging back into
> the past through the musty records and available books, etc.  Do it for
> yourself and your wife, so that your children can see their heritage.
>
> In short, just do what you enjoy doing.
Comments: Gated by NETNEWS@AUVM.AMERICAN.EDU