Introduction

Who are you? It might sound like an odd question, but let's give it some thought. At birth, you are a son or a daughter. After a few years you may become a sister or a brother. Some years later you could be a cousin, then maybe a father or mother. As time goes on you could become an aunt or uncle, a grandson, granddaughter, grandfather, grandmother, great aunt or great uncle, great grandfather or great grandmother and so on. During this time you have not changed who you are, but your relationships have. There are now many links to your family which spread over generations and which form a tree, a family tree. In this book, we will explore our relationships and find some interesting facts and at the same time become frustrated that some walls cannot be broken down and many doors will remain closed forever. We don't have to be professional researchers, Genealogists , to explore, we just want to be interested in our shared family history. Of course there will be many dates and places and events, but these don't need to be remembered. They are simply there to provide a history which we will travel through together. During our voyage, we will discover what life was like for our ancestors. We will share moments of joy and of course, sadness, but unlike history in general, this is OUR history. Off we go! (By the way, web links are in blue text)