Genealogy Gold by Ancestral Findings

Latest Episodes:

AF-1089: Inside the 1910 U.S. Census | Ancestral Findings Podcast May 15, 2025

Show notes

We've made it to the 1910 census, and I have to say, this one feels like a bit of a turning point. If you've been following along through each census with me, you've probably noticed how much the country has been changing—and how those changes show up in the records. The 1900 census gave us a lot, but the 1910 one steps things up in a way that's easy to miss unless you really sit with it.

What's always fascinated me about these records is how they stop being just lists of names when you start reading between the lines. You begin to see the stories. You see families grow, move, lose someone, gain someone. You start noticing how many mothers answered heartbreaking questions about how many children they had and how many were still living. Or how people changed jobs—or didn't—and what that might've meant. These records speak if you know how to listen.

So whether you're deep into your family tree or just curious about what these old government forms can reveal, the 1910 census is worth exploring. It holds more than you might expect. Let's take a look at what makes it unique, what new information you'll find, and how it can help you bring your ancestors' stories to life...

Podcast Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/inside-the-1910-census/

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AF-1088: Why I Went Back to Paper for Genealogy—and Why You Might Want to Do the Same May 14, 2025

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There's a certain charm to scrolling through digital records at midnight, coffee in hand, uncovering new ancestors with the click of a button. But once you've collected a few dozen census pages, probate files, and handwritten family notes, you might start to feel a little… buried. Tabs multiply, download folders fill up, and suddenly, you're not sure where that one 1870 census record went—or whether you ever saved it in the first place.

That's where paper steps in—not as a step backward, but as a grounding force in your research. Building a paper-based family history folder (or several) gives your work structure, clarity, and even a bit of beauty. It's not just about printing out documents. It's about creating something you can flip through, revisit, and share.

Let me show you why I returned to paper—and why it's become one of the most valuable tools in my own research...

Podcast Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/the-three-biggest-reasons-to-go-back-to-paper/

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AF-1087: The Story Behind Mother's Day: Where It Came From and What It Was Meant to Be May 10, 2025

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Mother's Day. For most of us, it's a Sunday in May marked by greeting cards, flowers, long-distance phone calls, and maybe a brunch reservation you made weeks ago to avoid the rush. It's a sweet, sentimental holiday—a time to pause and show appreciation for the women who raised us, loved us, and often kept the whole family running quietly behind the scenes.

But this day we all know and love didn't just appear out of nowhere. It's not ancient like Christmas or rooted in a religious calendar like Easter. Mother's Day, as we celebrate it in the United States, has a very specific origin story. And that story is tangled up in heartache, determination, public health reform, the Civil War, and—believe it or not—a bit of corporate frustration. So let's take a few minutes together and trace it back to where it all began...

Podcast Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/mothers-day/

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AF-1086: Frozen in Time: Last Eskimo Girl | Ancestral Findings Podcast May 09, 2025

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Few things capture the feeling of summer like a stop at Dairy Queen. Whether it's a soft-serve cone after a ballgame or a burger on the way home from church, DQ has been stitched into the fabric of American family life for generations. But like so many beloved things from the mid-20th century, the Dairy Queen we grew up with has changed—and one of the clearest signs of that change is a sign itself.

If you've ever passed through Grafton, West Virginia, you might've seen her—perched on the roof of the local Dairy Queen. A girl in a white parka, mittens on, holding up a soft-serve cone like a beacon. Her nickname? The Eskimo Girl. And she's the last of her kind, still right where she started in 1957.

Her story—and the story of Dairy Queen itself—isn't just a slice of brand history. It's about small towns, family traditions, design, and how even the quietest fixtures can become part of our lives in ways we don't always notice—until they're gone...

Podcast Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/frozen-in-time-last-eskimo-girl/

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AF-1085: The La Choza Huts | Postcards from the Past May 08, 2025

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I'm holding a postcard today that feels different from most of the others in my collection. It doesn't show a grand hotel, a busy beach, or a flashy tourist attraction. No, this one shows something quieter—two hand-built huts sitting in the dirt beneath a wide Texas sky.

They're simple. The one on the left looks to be made of thick mud with a thick palm-thatched roof. The one on the right? A little taller and more open, woven from sticks and palm fronds. Between them, a crooked tree leans toward the camera, its branches rustling above a bench made from a rough-cut board. There's no pavement, no electricity, no cars—just silence.

The caption on the back reads:

"Palm leaves, mud, and branches of trees are about all that is necessary to build La Chozas (The Huts). These homes are now very rare and are known to withstand severe storms and rains."

That line stayed with me: "These homes are now very rare."

Podcast Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/the-la-choza-huts-postcards-from-the-past/

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AF-1084: Inside the 1900 U.S. Census | Ancestral Findings Podcast May 07, 2025

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The 1900 U.S. Census marks the beginning of a new era. It was the first census of the 20th century—and it knew it. By 1900, America had changed dramatically. Cities were growing faster than ever. Immigrants from Italy, Poland, Russia, and other parts of Eastern Europe were arriving in record numbers. The American frontier was nearly closed. Families were moving, industries were booming, and the pace of life had quickened. This census tried to capture all of that.

And for genealogists, it's one of the richest federal records available. With just one census page, you can estimate a birthdate, find an immigration year, see how many children a woman had, and even figure out how long a couple had been married. In a single glance, you get a snapshot of relationships, household structure, and a family's trajectory at the start of a new century...

Podcast Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/inside-the-1900-census/

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AF-1083: Navigating the 1890 Census Gap | Ancestral Findings Podcast May 06, 2025

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The 1890 census may be gone, but your ancestors aren't. This worksheet aims to help you rebuild the missing years—one clue at a time. Whether your ancestors were settling in a new state, welcoming children, remarrying, or passing on, they left traces in other records. This worksheet gives you a place to follow those trails, ask the right questions, and close the gap between 1880 and 1900.

Podcast Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/navigating-the-1890-census-gap/

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AF-1082: Inside the 1890 Census | Ancestral Findings Podcast May 05, 2025

Show notes

The 1890 U.S. Census is one of the most heartbreaking gaps in American records. It leaves a missing chapter for family historians—twenty years between 1880 and 1900 when so much changed. Children grew up and left home, elders passed on, families relocated, and new generations were born. But the record meant to capture it all is mostly gone. The story of how we lost the 1890 census and how we've learned to work around it still has much to teach us.

Podcast Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/inside-the-1890-census/

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AF-1081: South Seas Plantation on Captiva Island: Postcards from the Past May 02, 2025

Show notes

I really love looking at and collecting postcards—especially vintage postcards. Here at Ancestral Findings, I've collected thousands and thousands of them over the years.

People have sent me postcards from their hometowns, old pictures of places that meant something to them, and scenes from all across the country—and it's been exciting to receive each and every one of them.

So, I decided to set aside a little time to talk about some of these postcards and the stories they tell. I'm calling it Postcards from the Past.

It's not going to be a continuous project—just something I'll add to now and then whenever a postcard really catches my eye or sparks some curiosity.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I've enjoyed putting it together.

Thanks for joining me—now let's get started...

Podcast notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/postcards-from-the-past-south-seas-plantation-on-captiva-island/

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AF-1080: Mastering the 1880 Census for Family Historians | Ancestral Findings Podcast Apr 30, 2025

Show notes

The 1880 census is one of my favorite records—not just because of what it tells us, but because of what it helps us feel. This is the first census where we can see families take shape on paper. For the first time, we know how everyone in the household is related to each other. We can watch grandparents living with grown children, sons-in-law starting new farms, and widowed mothers moving in with their daughters. It's where the people we've been tracing start to become real.

When I first found my great-great-grandfather in the 1880 census, I expected just the usual names and ages. But what I saw was a household that stretched across generations—a father who had survived the war, a mother who couldn't read or write but raised a schoolteacher, and a younger sister I'd never heard of, who later married the farmer down the road. That one census page led me to three new counties, a pension file, and a whole branch of the family I didn't know existed.

This worksheet is based on that kind of experience. It's meant to help you look deeper—not just at names, but at stories. Use it to slow down, ask good questions, and notice things you might miss in a quick search...

Podcast notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/mastering-the-1880-census-for-family-historians/

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