Since it has been almost a whole eight months since I finished my Masters, it must be time to start another class! Yes, its true, I have taken up the books again and started a Genealogy & Family History class at University College Dublin. It meets once a week for 10 weeks and covers all aspects of techniques, resources, and theory. While I have been doing our own family history in small bursts of research, I hope this helps me develop a more methodical approach and helps me to utilize the Irish sources while we are here in Ireland.
I do have to admit I am not holding my breath, however, on finding much in the archives here as the 5 branches of Reeves's Irish family we have been able to trace back to Ireland (basically from the point they arrived in America) all left the island between 1730 through 1790. This far back and the records become irregular at best, either being destroyed or dispersed or never collected. I also still have my research cut out for me in the states to confirm what has been passed down in family records is what exists in official records. I have found a fair amount on www.ancestry.com already as they have the biggest, and I do have to say, impressive, amount of access to digitized records. We have even been able to find some of the listings of Reeves's ancestors who fought in the Civil War and the American Revolution.
Family history is a fascinating pursuit - what is it about human nature which causes us to seek out the past? Why do we need to feel connected to something greater than ourselves?
Do we seek out answers from the past to discover who we are today? Or is it that we need the reassurance we too will be remembered by someone else in the future to give meaning to our own lives?
Hmmmm, too many heavy thoughts... "Math, is hard. Let's go shopping"*! :)
*Source: Barbie Folklore