Why Share Family History via Story
Bring your ancestors 'to life' by telling true tales about them! / Photo by Mikhail Nilov via Pexels
Help your relatives connect with their past through stories of your ancestors as real people – not statistics. Leave a legacy of family history for next generations.
Whether you have lots or little information about your family background, it’s worth the effort to learn more.
What to do with what you’ve found? You never know who might take interest – it could be someone in your direct family or their descendants. It might be a distant relative who has ancestors in common, or someone in a genealogy group. It’s a gift to share the results of your family history research, in ways that others can relate to.
“There are just so many stories that are buried on family trees.”
This is where family narratives or stories come in. The stories of ancestors and their families draw attention. What did they do during their lives? People take interest in the struggles someone went through and the triumphs they had – and these are things they tend to remember most. Also, it makes them curious to learn more.
Young family, penniless, hitchhike on Highway 99 California 1936. The father, twenty-four, and the mother, seventeen, came from Winston-Salem North Carolina early in 1935. Their baby was born in the Imperial Valley, where they worked as field laborers. / Photo by Dorothea Lange via New York Public Library
Sense of Foundation
When you learn your family history, and know where you come from, you get a sense of foundation. It’s interesting to find out about the people that came before you, who set a path for possibilities in your life. The narratives – the stories we tell – help us make sense of many factual details. These are some of the key reasons to tell life stories.
It’s a tradition for some families and cultures to pass down oral history through the generations. A fortunate few receive the gift of a full family tree or proven genealogy. Yet now it’s much more accessible to research your family background through online and other sources.
What you uncover might surprise you at first, but help your view to be more realistic and solid over time. We see the effects on communities and individuals who are denied their past traditions, cultural practices, names and language. To reclaim this is empowering.
ABC Life Literacy Canada provides a blogpost on five benefits of learning about your heritage.
When you discover and share your family history, you can provide this sense of foundation for others with a common background.
Belonging and Connectedness
When we learn about the culture(s) and place(s) we’re from, and the people in our family past, it can provide a sense of belonging to a community.
I feel this belongingness. And the further back I trace my relations, the more I see we’re all connected. I try to avoid ‘tribalism’, as if one group is different or better than another. They’re all part of the mix.
Rewards of Discovery
It’s rewarding to take the journey to discover your family history. You might find who your ancestors were, where they were from, and what role they played in their everyday world. This in itself is worth the search.
If you are adopted or come from a minority culture with few records, your path of discovery may be longer. Yet even bits of stories and memories you’ve heard can help you trace the clues.
Transform your genealogy research into stories people can relate to! / Photo by Kampus Production via Pexels
Why let the results of your work sit on a shelf, or be lost?
It helps other researchers, and feels satisfying for you to share your findings. Family history narratives are a great way to do that. You can tell your own stories of discovery, what you learned about your ancestors, and narratives that weave your family stories together over time. There are various formats to share your family history.
Lives not Statistics
We need records, facts, and sometimes DNA, to determine our family lineage. Yet this information alone doesn’t tell stories of our family background.
It’s hard for anyone to follow a thread when faced with lots of data. People may lose interest, and not remember how all the pieces fit.
When you share your family history, it helps to provide visuals such as photographs and a family tree. It’s even better to use a story or narrative to describe an event in the life of your ancestor, tell the tale of their life over the years, or the saga of a family over generations.
I'd sure like to hear stories about the people in this family photo – wouldn't you? / Photo by Suzy Hazelwood via Pexels
Use the information you uncover and weave the threads together to tell ancestor stories from facts. Then you and others can see your ancestors as real people versus just statistics.
More of the Whole Story
The more you uncover your family history, the more you see a full picture emerge. You never know all of it: what went on, what motivated someone to do what they did, what happened to people you’re unable to trace. But if you fill some gaps in your knowledge, you can tell more of the whole story.
Some of what you find may be impressive. Other aspects may be disturbing, such as what went on during a war, or given cultural norms at the time. You may be able to interpret some events and actions when you learn more about the historical context – and why people behaved as they did. You can develop a more realistic picture of your ancestors’ lives in relation to others.
Any mention of my great-grandmother was hushed in our family. Her legacy seemed shrouded in shame, given she was placed in an institution for mental illness. Yet my research revealed she was a vibrant woman within her family and society, whose life took a sudden downturn when she fell ill.
‘It behooves us’ to tell more of the whole story, to add our voice to our shared history.
The more we tell the whole story, and allow others their voice, the more we can all come to terms with our shared history. Instead of continuing the bias by leaving parts out, take your chance to set the record straight.
Connect Past with Present
As you discover your family history, you notice how things change and shift over time.
Your ancestors’ religious views and practices may change over the generations, to reach the traditions of your grandparents, and any current practices within your family today.
Modes of transportation have sure changed: from sailing vessels to airplanes to cross the ocean, from horse and buggy to cars for travel on land.
How about communication, from the quill pen to the smart phone?!
When you know their context, you can imagine your ancestors managing with what they had in that time and place – in terms of housing, farm implements, and ways of exchanging information.
Big events impacted our ancestors, just as they do to us today. There were: hurricanes and fires, disease and pandemics, wars and shifts in power – as well as medical breakthroughs. It’s remarkable to see what happened in our ancestors’ history and how this is similar, different, or may contribute to our situation today.
Boy rides retro tractor in Guatraché, La Pampa, Argentina. / Photo by Elisa Giaccaglia via Pexels
Linking the past to your family members’ lives today is a great way to interest relatives in your family history.
How does what happened back then relate to members of your family now?
Are there certain things they have in common, such as: traits (e.g. a musical family), or geography (did they live in the same area you do now?).
Did your ancestors’ hard work lead to the opportunities you enjoy today?
How did things differ for previous generations?
When I began to study my family history, I discovered that a number of our ancestors were buried near each other in one cemetery. They were from several generations in one branch of our family, with dates spanning two centuries. When I stood there with my sister and cousin to pay respects, I was struck by all the connections. Their tombstones were like a family tree laid out on the ground (but not in order!). Occupations had changed over time, such as from a barrel-maker to a book-keeper. I sketched a diagram to help our relatives see the inter-relationships at a glance. It feels good to connect past with present in a way my family members will enjoy.
Gain Perspective
Learning about your ancestor(s) in order to tell more of their story helps you view their lives in perspective. Individual facts start to form a narrative.
Where does their life begin?
Did they lose siblings or a parent while young?
If the family relocated, was there a historical reason such as famine or the chance to own land of their own?
Can you find their occupation, and whether it changed or stayed the same?
There was less information about women in the past, but more is available as time goes on.
You and your relatives may see obstacles your ancestors overcame, which enabled you to be here now. It helps expand your perspective, and how you fit into a bigger picture.
Interest Your Relatives
Stories appeal to people! Short stories can grab and hold their attention. Catchy bits of information draw people in to the bigger story.
In contrast, too many details lead to information overload.
A great way to engage family members in your shared heritage is through stories of your ancestors – as individuals with their own challenges, successes or failures – versus bland statistics which are not memorable.
It’s also fun and rewarding to invite family members of all ages to contribute to – or comment on – the stories you unearth.
One relative may have some early photos.
Another may know who appears in a photo, or where it was taken.
Some may have questions, or help you with clues.
Share ancestor stories with relatives and ask for their input toward your family history. / Photo by Anna Shvets via Pexels
Your relatives may be inspired to share stories from their lives. This connects people and brings family history to life.
Connect with Found-Family
You may find distant (or not so distant!) relatives through your research, who are keen to find, learn and share information about common ancestors. One benefit of tracing your heritage is to grow your extended family. You may find relatives with similar interests – including genealogy – and perhaps common experience (such as immigrant stories).
Some findings, such as through DNA tests, may be unsettling. They may cause turmoil, yet there’s a chance to form new bonds. These are key things to consider before you go that route.
Chosen Family and Friends
You may wish to focus beyond blood relatives, and families by adoption or marriage.
You can shed light on any individuals and groups who are important in your life. Your shared interests and identity may give you the sense of foundation and belongingness that others find in their biological family. Tell the story of why they’re meaningful to you, celebrate their qualities, and how they inspire and support you in life.
Honour Your Ancestors
When you learn about your ancestors and shed light on their lives, it honours their existence. Some of what you find may make you feel proud; other aspects might make you cringe. But if you acknowledge them as real people and portray what you can about their lives, you attest to their human struggles and achievements.
To tell your ancestors’ stories connects them to people of yesterday and today. It provides their moment in the spotlight. It lends meaning and significance to their lives, and their role in yours.
Leave a Legacy
When you research your family history and find ways to share so people will see it and pass it on, you leave a legacy for future generations.
Through my family history research, I’ve been fortunate to find that two of my great-grandfathers each wrote their life story. I was able to obtain copies from the archives where the originals are housed. The best parts for me are when they share personal stories, which I would never hear of otherwise. These allow me to glimpse their personality. I also appreciate the traces of family history they provided for me to follow. My family members don’t wish to read the long manuscripts, yet they like to hear pieces that I share.
You never know which descendant may like to know about your lineage. Imagine if they come across a treasure trove of info and stories you create and leave for them to find! They can continue the work, with the technology of their day.
written by Barbara L Campbell, 2024