Category: Genealogy

Reeder Family Home

Published on by Ann Marie Bryant10 Comments

Today, while sorting family photos, I came across this picture. All I know about it is that my grandfather, Wilson Reeder, gave it my father, Harold Reeder. On the back of the photo, all that was written was my dad’s name. I know the picture was taken in Michigan, and I do know my family lived in Plymouth, but I am not sure where the photo was taken. Continue reading “Reeder Family Home” →

February Themes

Published on by Ann Marie Bryant5 Comments

Join in on the fun and start writing your family stories.  Share with your family and friends and preserve those family memories.  Do no forget to upload your stories in the comment section.  Be the conveyor of your family tales. Continue reading “February Themes” →

Singing with Mama

Published on by Ann Marie Bryant11 Comments

“I’m a lonely little petunia in an onion patch….

When I was a little girl, my room was off the kitchen, so I often heard my mom bustling around the kitchen in the early hours before she would wake us up for school. While making the morning coffee and preparing for the day, she often sang her favorite childhood songs.  Her humming and her singing were such a great start to my day.  It was like burrowing under a favorite comforter while knowing some time remained to enjoy its soothing warmth.  It was comforting and cozy. Continue reading “Singing with Mama” →

The Ghost on Lincoln Avenue

Published on by Ann Marie Bryant12 Comments

Laughter behind closed doors sent shivers, and when explored, opened doors would not always close, no matter how hard we pushed on them.

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While living on the small island nestled in the San Francisco Bay, I often overheard bizarre tales of supernatural events that took place in some of the Victorian homes around Alameda.  As a skeptical teenager, I would listen politely but believed such events only transpired in the overactive imagination of the “storyteller,” that is until strange things began happening in my own home. Continue reading “The Ghost on Lincoln Avenue” →

The Haunting of Salem

Published on by Ann Marie Bryant6 Comments
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Photo by Malgorzata Frej on Unsplash

In the cold of winter, a darkness spread through the town of Salem, Massachusetts. The people of this village were haunted by the fears of the unknown. Whispered worries about a force of evil from the realms of hell created a mass hysteria that flowed through the town and caused panic, discord, and even murder, for a civilized people truly believed that witches walked among them, and they believed these spirits came to cause them harm. Continue reading “The Haunting of Salem” →

Rest in Peace Grandma Rebecca: When Research Goes Awry

Published on by Ann Marie Bryant10 Comments

My misguided research had me “barking up the wrong tree.”   

Well, it was true; I must admit that I have made mistakes when it comes to my family tree.  In the beginning, when I first started on Ancestry.com, I would just click away, swinging from one family branch to the next.  As my family tree grew, I became zealous and excited.  Stories and histories swirled around in my head as I tried to piece and organize all the family details that I had discovered.  Finally, I knew I had to start writing these stories down, so they would not become lost, and so I would not confuse all the data that my research revealed. Continue reading “Rest in Peace Grandma Rebecca: When Research Goes Awry” →

Anything But Math!

Published on by Ann Marie Bryant8 Comments

I was thrilled to have my degree, but I do remember happily declaring, “No more math!”

Let me just say that math has never truly been my thing. When I was attending a community college, I saved my math courses for last. Since I started college as a late bloomer, I knew I would eventually have to take my math classes if I wanted to transfer to the university with my associate’s degree in hand. Still, I put it off. In my mind, I just figured if I passed everything else, I would just have to put my fears aside and just dive in. That last semester I took algebra and statistics, and I was in math hell. I never worked so hard in all my life! Continue reading “Anything But Math!” →