Relating Ancestor Stories
I love to relate ancestor stories in 'catchy' ways – here are some examples and take-aways to prompt your ideas!
My relatives like brief, visual, real-life stories about our ancestors. Here, I share some experiences telling ancestor stories in short formats such as letters, profiles, and family history booklets.
One of my main reasons for this website is to share ways to tell family history in short formats. Here are some of the ways I’ve found to engage people of various ages in my family history.
Ancestor’s Life Story
My Uncle Bruce knew nothing of his ancestors, yet was curious to find out. When I began to research family history, I started on the maternal side of my family tree so I could share findings with him. At 88 years old, he was the last of his generation in our family.
Bruce was almost blind at this stage, and we lived thousands of miles apart. It was fun to phone him with my latest findings, and he was eager to hear!
His middle name McKendrick came from his grandmother. All his life, he felt a bit of shame because any talk of his grandmother was hushed by the family.
It turns out her father was a well-known and much-loved university professor who wrote one of the first textbooks on physiology. Bruce chuckled to say perhaps he should have done more to live up to this family name!
I first learned about Dr. McKendrick via the regular sources – genealogy sites, census records, obituaries and such. One evening, I just googled his name and up came a Wikipedia page! I scrolled through a long list of medical books he wrote.
Then, at the bottom of the list – in the tiny font on my screen – was ‘The Story of My Life’.
What?!
I blinked my eyes, to make sure I read that right. My heart skipped a beat. Would I love to hear the story of his life, as he told it!
Several libraries and archives in the UK each held an original printed book, but the pages were too fragile to copy, scan, or photograph. Yet I wasn’t ready for a trip to Scotland. In time, I was able to order a digital copy from a library.
He wrote about his childhood, schooling, marriage, career, and retirement. He ended with a chapter on his dogs, which endeared him to me. He included specific details on the family history of both his and his wife’s side of the family.
I was thrilled to read details and stories from his life, in his own words. But the book is too long to interest my relatives. I thought of various formats, and decided to make a two-page profile of his life. I’ll be happy to share more if and when my relatives ask!
Ancestor Profiles
I love to find who my ancestors were, then learn more about each one. I love the details. But my goal is to share the right amount – not too much – for my relatives to enjoy our family history.
Two-Page Summary
One format I use is a two-page summary, which can stand on its own (two sides of one page if printed), or be viewed as a two-page spread in a book.
I made a profile about Dr. McKendrick, who left his memoir as I described above. He led a remarkable life of both struggle and success, love and loss. The factual records I located matched what he wrote in the story of his life.
Ancestor profile of my second great-grandfather in Scotland, as part of a collection in a family history book.
My favourite parts were the stories and anecdotes he told in his memoir. These details didn’t fit in the two-pager, but will feed into a story about him.
I’m so grateful that he detailed our family history, for me to further and confirm my research. I will include some of what he wrote when I research and write a family history that dates back that far.
It was great to tell my uncle about Dr. McKendrick, his great-grandfather. I printed the pages in super-large-print (the size of small posters!) and mailed them to my uncle for him to see.
My relatives were glad to read about this ancestor of ours – alongside others – when I compiled the profiles into a family history book (which I describe below). I sent my cousins and siblings each a copy for Christmas.
The following year, I opened a gift from my sister. I couldn’t believe what I held in my hands: an original copy of Dr. McKendrick’s physiology book “Life in Motion”, from 125 years ago! Inside is an original newspaper clipping about one of the talks he gave on the subject at that time.
Original copy of book my ancestor wrote, with newspaper clipping about his lectures on the subject (1890s!).
After my mother died, my sister kept the book because it looked old, and so be of some meaning or value. It just sat on her shelf, until she read the ancestor profile I shared!
C.V. or Résumé
Out of the blue, my eldest sister saw a piece of news and forwarded it to me. The town of Russell in Ontario was looking for a new namesake. They learned that the man for whom the town was named had some negative aspects to his past. Instead of a new name for the town, they sought a better role model.
“How about Great Uncle Tommy?”
Good idea! Our grandmother’s brother, Tommy Russell, invented and manufactured the first Canadian car. The more I looked into his background, the better it got. He had been President of CCM (skates, bicycles and sports gear), and Massey Ferguson (farming machinery).
The Russell township website showcased their annual car show, farm fair, and hockey rink! Who better than Tommy Russell for their town’s new namesake? One of his cars (an actual one he owned, donated by his granddaughter in her older years) is even in a museum in nearby Ottawa!
I made a one-page C.V. profile with thumbnail images of the companies he presided over – as well as the Canadian National Exhibition with its agricultural fair.
Excerpt from a one-page résumé of my great-uncle's life achievements. He was eldest sibling and only son – my grandmother adored her older brother!
When I went to submit, it turned out only residents of Russell could propose someone. We had ancestors from there, but that wouldn’t do. Opportunity lost, but now our family has a nice one-page ‘visual C.V.’ of Uncle Tommy’s achievements.
After I shared the page with my eldest cousin, he mailed me a book about our great uncle and his development of the Russell car – plus a commemorative coin. I didn’t know these existed, and was so happy to receive both!
I sure appreciate the author's care to write this book about car-maker Tommy Russell, who sits behind the steering wheel on the far left.
Take-Away: People will read ancestor profiles and other short formats for family history – and you never know what more may be uncovered as a result.
Letters to Ancestors
In my ancestry research, I was surprised to find we had a colonial past in the United States. My siblings and I thought that all of our ancestors came from Scotland to Canada – as our grandmother did with her family when she was a child.
I checked to make sure I was not mistaken, but the lineage is well-traced and American Ancestors has much info on the colonial settlers. Later, I found a newspaper article about a large family reunion – attended by my great-grandparents where they lived near Ottawa – of folks from the US and Canada who descended from the same ancestor in Connecticut.
I had so many findings I wished to share with my relatives. My American cousins grew up in Boston, where our ancestors arrived with the first wave of immigrants almost 400 years ago.
I felt good to know that our ancestors were part of early democracy in America. At the same time, it’s been hard to face that they were among the first settlers who set the stage for impacts on indigenous peoples that continue to this day.
Plus, I had unanswered questions.
So, I wrote a letter to our first immigrant ancestor on my father’s side of the family. I wrote as if to update him on some of his descendants – and a bit of history – since his time.
Excerpt of a letter about an ancestor's life in the context of next generations. As current political history continues to unfold, I shall write an update!
I introduced myself as his tenth-generation descendant. I asked why he came to America, even though I know I’ll get no answer. I told him of some big events in his home town after he passed away.
Mostly, I wove a thread for my current relatives to follow, as to how this line of our family started in the US and made their way to Canada. How previous generations led to ours.
The letter was well received! My siblings, and particularly my American cousins, really liked it. It told them so much in so little. Now they have a basis to go on, when I add any ‘news’ or anecdotes I find in my further research. And they can ask questions anytime if they’re more interested.
Take-Away: A letter to an ancestor can cover a lot of bases and connect the past to present generations.
Short Stories
As I looked into my ‘newfound’ American ancestors, I wished to learn more about the one who first came to Canada – where our family has lived for generations since.
He was a loyalist who faced many troubles at a young age, yet survived and persevered.
My creative writing group suggested I write a fictional story, to imagine myself in his shoes and weave a possible tale. I did write a piece to try to sense what it may have been like during a particularly tough spot in his life (as prisoner-of-war in an underground mine shaft!). Although based on official documents and on reports from him and his peers, I don’t wish to share it as if it’s part of my actual family history.
When I write about ancestors’ lives, I keep as accurate as possible – or quote what someone said. I don’t wish to add to the possibility that future readers – including descendants of common ancestors – might take fiction as fact and pass that on as family history. You may like to read some of my thoughts and suggestions on fact versus fiction in life stories.
Take-Away: You can tell a factual story about an ancestor that is compelling to hear.
Family History Book(let)s
I compiled individual ancestor profiles (as described above) into a family history book about my mother’s side of our family. It’s about the size and length of a magazine, with photos included on each page. (By the way, the tartan on the cover is from a photo I took of my Scottish Granny’s wool blanket that is now in my home.)
A 'magazine' sized family history book about our maternal side. The companion paternal ancestry book is in development, while I firm up my research!
The book starts with a family tree and a cemetery diagram at the beginning, so the reader can follow who’s-who. It covers three generations: my mother’s parents, grandparents and great-grandparents.
I pieced together their lives from what I uncovered on genealogy sites, digital newspaper archives, cemetery records and such. For some ancestors, I had little info until I dug deeper. For a few ancestors, I had plenty of details. I needed to choose what to include and how to sum it up!
If I lacked the person’s photo – especially further back in time – I worked with what I found. I included a photo of their house, obituary, or gravestone. Even a historic photo or map of their town helps show the backdrop to their lives. On occasion, I could include a photo of a family heirloom passed down.
Although it was harder to find out about the women, I could focus on their children and any interests, education or work – including volunteer work.
I enlarged my summaries when they were at the draft stage, and mailed them to my uncle (so he could read with a special lamp to help with his loss of eyesight). I’m so glad I shared this family history with him even before it was complete, as he died a few months later.
When I self-published the book of profiles, my other relatives liked to leaf through to learn about our family history in a nutshell. My siblings and cousins like their printed family history keepsake, while nieces and nephews appreciate the PDF version.
Take-Away: A short family history book of individual profiles is a format that works well for me and my readers.
Family History Maps
I find it fun to make interactive maps to share my family history.
Once I had traced our ancestry to its origins in the UK, I wished to show my relatives where our ancestors came from and when they arrived at various locations in North America.
I made an ancestral migration map with GoogleMyMaps. It shows the four main lines of our family, when our ancestors emigrated, and where they lived. So the map wouldn’t get too crowded, I just showed ancestors from selected generations who moved to a new place.
This map helps the history of generations of our family come to life, with actual places, pictures and stories to go with!
When you click on a spot, it shows an image or map of what it looked like back then, and the Google Street View of what it looks like now. I put a brief description of which ancestors lived there and what they did – with a little story if I had one.
My relatives can explore the routes in chronological order, and discover our family history as they go!
Take-Away: I find I can best engage relatives in family history with short and visual formats to explore at their own pace.
written by Barbara L Campbell, 2024