On this 160th anniversary of the first Juneteenth Celebration, which occurred on Galveston Island, Texas, in 1865, I would like to address the following to the descendants of people my ancestors enslaved in the colonies and the states of Massachusetts, Virginia, the Carolinas, and Georgia, and express my deepest and most heartfelt apologies for their actions. I acknowledge the immense suffering, injustice, and lasting impact … Continue reading Juneteenth, 2025
The Civil War era saw a significant but overlooked resistance against conscription, particularly among fathers determined to protect their sons from battle. This struggle, deeply rooted in love and familial bonds, played out in areas like Holmes County, Ohio, where groups protested the draft, leading to armed conflicts and legal consequences. Continue reading Resistance Runs in the Family
The capture of Fort Ticonderoga in May 1775 marked one of the earliest and most significant victories for the American colonists in the Revolutionary War. This strategic fort, located on the shores of Lake Champlain, held immense military importance, controlling vital waterways between Canada and the colonies. Strategic Importance of Fort Ticonderoga Fort Ticonderoga’s location made it a key point for controlling trade and military … Continue reading The Significance of Fort Ticonderoga in the Revolutionary War
This coming Saturday, April 19th, marks the 250th anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord. Given the current circumstances of tyranny, this anniversary holds even greater significance. I have revised my previous list of ancestors who served during the American Revolutionary War. It now contains ten individuals: six ancestors of my father’s great-grandmother, Cordelia Pickering, and four of my maternal grandfather, James M. Dobbs, … Continue reading Ten Patriots
I paid $20 for a month of ChatGPT Pro to see how it could help me with editing the rewrite of my book on Family History, Gathering Leaves. I have been working on this rewrite called Gathering More Leaves for about two years, and I am perpetually stuck in the middle of the book. Parts of the original book were generated using software specifically designed … Continue reading Imagine Me and You. I do.
The game “Are you a Mayflower descendent?” involves using genealogical software to explore one’s ancestry and discover connections to historical figures. Through various reports, the author learns they are a direct descendant of 49 individuals in 17th century Massachusetts but remains unable to confirm a link to Mayflower passengers, instead tracing roots to Puritans. Continue reading Are You a Mayflower Descendent?
Disclaimer: I am having fun exploring the exciting new world of AI. I wrote some notes and then used Google’s NotebookLM AI chat feature to help draft this blog post. Afterward, I used Revoicer, along with a clone of my voice, to create part 1 of the podcast. Finally, I used the podcast generation feature in NotebookLM to create part 2. The podcast will be … Continue reading The Evolution of Technology: What Changed Since 1901?
The other day, I stumbled upon a captivating movie titled La Révolution française. This 1989 French-Italian historical drama film directed by Robert Enrico and Richard T. Heffron is a two-part, nearly 5-hour epic film that tells the story of the French Revolution from 1789 to 1794. The film stars an ensemble cast including Jane Seymour (Marie Antoinette), Peter Ustinov (Comte de Mirabeau), and Sam Neil … Continue reading La Révolution française (1989)
My great-grandfather, Patrick O’Malley, was born in Ontario, Canada, in 1851. His family were early pioneers in Minnesota who settled in Mower County in 1856. The woman who, in early 20th century, wrote chapter twenty-three of the History of Mower County (1911) was of the same generation as Patrick. In this post I provide the complete text of the chapter that I supplied a portion … Continue reading A History of Mower County
I recently got temporary access to the archives of a number of Louisville Kentucky newspapers going back as far as the 1860s and earlier, and the first thing I did was to search for my Bannon and Kollros ancestors. One of the things that I learned was that my great-grandfather was working as a professional musician earlier than I had thought. In searching for, “Kollros” … Continue reading Louisville Silver Band
Gathering Leaves 