Coastal castle with boats in turbulent sea under dark, stormy clouds

The Complex Legacy of Roger Lyndon in 17th Century Ireland

Recently, I asked ChatGPT to help me untangle a seemingly contradictory account of one of my mother’s ancestors, Roger Lyndon of Carrickfergus. With AI’s help, I was able to sort out a contradiction about Roger Lyndon and the “Scotch party” in Northern Ireland in the late seventeenth century. I had misread a passage in a book I found on Google Books and concluded that Captain … Continue reading The Complex Legacy of Roger Lyndon in 17th Century Ireland

D. M. DeBackerMay 1, 2026May 6, 2026Leave a comment

Texas

My Texas Roots

Growing up in Texas, I experienced an identity crisis. Because I wasn’t born there, I felt disconnected from the state’s rich history and culture. Looking back, if I had the understanding then that I have now, it would have profoundly impacted my self-perception and my place in the world. While this morning’s discovery may seem trivial, I strongly believe that this knowledge would have made … Continue reading My Texas Roots

D. M. DeBackerOctober 27, 2025January 9, 2026Leave a comment

Dobbs

Politics as Usual

As the old saying goes, there is nothing new under the sun. We like to think of voter fraud and accusations of stolen elections as modern grievances, but in truth, America has a long and sometimes bizarre history with such claims. Back in the late 1860s, as the dust of the Civil War was still settling, Democrats in the former Confederate states found themselves largely … Continue reading Politics as Usual

D. M. DeBackerFebruary 18, 2025February 18, 2025Leave a comment

Knox

Ethnicity Update #9

(or at least it feels that way) A year ago, I wrote about discovering that my ethnicity estimate at ancestry.com had changed yet again. I’m a little thick-headed because I don’t fully understand why it keeps changing. I need to read more. At any rate, it’s December, and I just learned that the ethnicity estimate was updated in July. I’m beginning to understand things better, … Continue reading Ethnicity Update #9

D. M. DeBackerDecember 23, 2024December 23, 2024Leave a comment

Dobbs

International Man of Mystery Part 6

When my great grandfather James M Dobbs was appointed to a consul generalship in South America at the start of the 2nd Cleveland Administration, his name appeared in newspapers all over the United States. In the majority of those appearances, it was one item in a list of other men who had been appointed to an office that April in 1893. Most of the newspapers … Continue reading International Man of Mystery Part 6

D. M. DeBackerNovember 27, 2024November 27, 2024Leave a comment

Gathering Leaves

"And who's to say where the harvest shall stop"

Tag: politics