Ancestry

In my post surgery down time, I've delved into my family's genealogy.  My niece, Annie, did a bunch of research that I've used to create my family tree.  One of the many amazing things she discovered was that my 11th great grandfather was Francis Eaton.  He came to America on the Mayflower.  He was a carpenter and signed the Mayflower Compact.

Francis Eaton (1596 - 1633)

is my 11th great grandfather

Rachel Eaton (1625 - )
Daughter of Francis

Daniel Ramsden (Ramsdell) (1649 - 1722)
Son of Rachel

Thomas Ramsden (Ramsdell) (1680 - 1727)
Son of Daniel

Gidean Ramsden (Ramsdell)(1712 - 1795)
Son of Thomas

Content Ramsden (Ramsdell) (1741 - )
Daughter of Gidean

Content Hovey (1772 - 1841)
Daughter of Content

Solomon Joy (1799 - 1872)
Son of Content

Eliza Angeline Joy (1833 - 1909)
(Her husband died fighting in the Civil War so she came west on the Oregon Trail as a widow with 4 children and settled in Benton County, OR where she married a man 18 years younger than her!)
Daughter of Solomon

Evannah Eliza Smith (1860 - 1902)
Daughter of Eliza Angeline

Joseph Edwin Tyler (1881 - 1930)
Son of Evannah Eliza

Ray Burt Tyler (1906 - 1991)
Son of Joseph Edwin

Joseph Edward Tyler (1931 - )
Son of Ray Burt

Melanie Susan Tyler
You are the daughter of Joseph Edward
 
 

Pre-kids, Sisu Bill and I took a trip back New England to visit his family in Massachusetts.  He was born in a small town called Fitchburg.  We were able to spend a wonderful week at his family's cottage on Cape Cod.  During that trip we stopped in Plymouth and went to the Plymouth plantation.  I wish I knew then what I know now.  It makes me more excited to take the kids back there for a visit, as there is now a whole new perspective of that place.  This past summer, Cooper and I were really into reading G. Clifton Wisler's historical fiction novels about young boys growing up in the early days of our country.  We read stories about the Revolutionary War, The Civil War, The Underground Railroad and one about a young boy's journey to America on the Mayflower (This New Land).  It was fun to tell Cooper about his relation to Francis Eaton as he really understood what a hardship that journey was after reading the book. 

Visiting Czech cousins in Provodov, CZ

I'm curious about looking into my Czech ancestry as we met relatives from Provodov in the SE part of the Czech Republic called Moravia.  I think there are some strong roots to tile making from that part of the world.  It will be interesting to see what I discover.  Someday, I'd like to travel to Doylestown, Pennsylvania and take a class at the Moravian Pottery and Tile Works.  A girl can dream, right? 

The Catholic Church that my great great
grandfather Heriza (Hriza) family attended. 
We had heard stories about the
100 steps that lead up to the church. 
Turns out there weren't quite 100. 

My dad with his cousin Jan and Jan's granddaughter.
They are standing in front of the blacksmith shop
that gg grandfather Heriza (Hriza) worked in at his home. 
Jan's granddaughter did all the interpreting for us.   

Visiting the Heriza house in Provodov, CZ

My great uncle Tom Gregerson (Grandpa Rudolph's brother) was a passionate genealogist.  He did a bunch of research into his family roots back to their days in Norway.  He would be blown away by all the information that is now at our fingertips via the Internet.  How times have changed - but the fundamental curiosity about who we are and where our ancestors came from remains the same.