My New Year Has Started With A Genealogical Treasure

Happy New Year!

I have not posted since Christmas Eve, busy working and family time.

We had a great Christmas, Christmas Eve was at my husband's brother

I always love trying to get a picture of my MIL with her new 

Great Grandchildren, she had 3 there this year running around.

Looking forward to celebrating her 90th birthday this year.

I find these types of pictures so important.

It ties the generations together. Someday baby Wes may want to know about his

Great Grandparents and his family history.

That leads me to my family.......

If you know me you know I love history and genealogy.

I have spent many a hour researching my Mitchell side with my cousin and author

David Bowles. Sometimes when he was writing we would discuss issues, what did we think happened, who, what, when?

Many times we guessed and then later we would find the proof.

This has happened several times...like someone was leading David and I down a path of discovery.

The links to his books are on my sidebar.

A couple of years ago I was contacted from a Professor at the University of Georgia about a document that Adam Mitchell had written to free a slave in 1825, unheard of at that time, in Tennessee. The letter gave our family great pride.

Adam is my 3rd Great Uncle.

The Professor wanted to know who the slave was, I was able to discover the story.

I have not bought anything on Ebay in several years.

Why did I decided to look at Ebay that day?

I found this

A letter written by Adam from my hometown of Charleston where he had moved

 to his hometown of Washington Co TN.

I could not believe it and was so glad there was a "buy it now" price!

Luckily they had scanned it and I could begin reading it.

I recognized the same handwriting as the letter to petition to free the slave.

It answered some questions and opened up more.

He was trying to settle the estate of his nephew James, who went back to Washington Co to visit a son who was in College. He died on the visit in 1834. I can not imagine traveling in the 1830's from IL to TN for a visit.

Davids last book wrote about the town Dr., Dr Chester. Well David was right he was our family MD. It is there in the letter.

He also mentions the recent death of my 3rd Great Grandfather John.

But also opens up some other questions my cousins and I will spend time researching.

It helps to see in writing the correct dates, the correct circumstances of events.

I think it is wonderful to hold the letter in my hand

written by my ancestor some 169 years ago.

I welcomed it back home to Charleston.