In November of 1903, John Lynch Breslin, Jr. stood trial for attempted arson and was sentenced to six months in HM Prison Aberdeen in Scotland for his crime. Descendant Kim Taylor takes a closer look at the incident and at the broader context of arson in UK history. Read More
Upcoming Research Tours
Travel with American Ancestors
Take your research on the road with American Ancestors! This archived webinar discusses our research tours for the year ahead, as well as our plans for shorter genealogical day trips to repositories around New England. Watch Now
Share your thoughts about the survey! Please limit submissions to 150 words or fewer. Responses featured in a future newsletter may be edited for clarity and length.
Last Week's Survey:
Did Any of Your Ancestral Couples Come from Significantly Different Backgrounds?
Total: 3,656 Responses
26%, Yes, at least one of my ancestral couples came from different social classes.
30%, Yes, at least one of my ancestral couples came from families with different economic backgrounds.
48%, Yes, at least one of my ancestral couples came from families with different religious backgrounds.
32%, Yes, at least one of my ancestral couples came from households that spoke different languages.
33%, Yes, at least one of my ancestral couples came from different ethnicities.
6%, Yes, at least one of my ancestral couples came from different racial backgrounds.
30%, No, I am not aware of any significant differences between the backgrounds of any of my ancestral couples.
Readers Respond
Steve Ratigan, York, Maine: The Irish potato famine resulted in the death by malnutrition of a million people, and the emigration of a million more. According to a family story, my Galway-born ancestor, Catherine Mahan, in the depths of despair, cried out, “I will never be hungry again! I am going to marry a cook!” Her first chance came when she met a Chinese cook on a sailing ship. They ran off together and eventually jumped ship in Boston. The family myth is pure conjecture. But the couple did marry in Boston in 1857 and that record, and subsequent census and vital records, list Catherine as born in Ireland and her husband, John Lewis, as a cook or mariner born in China (or, in one case, India.) Catherine and John moved to nearby Somerville and started a family. As a result, my DNA shows that I am mostly Irish, but 6% Chinese!
Donna Di Lello, Bradford, Ontario: One of my ancestors, Catherine Kedslie, was a Scot born and raised in Poland. Her grandfather ran a textile mill there and the family was very well-off and well-educated. Catherine’s father, Francis, moved the family to Huron County, Ontario, in the 1860s. Catherine married a local farmer, John Rodger Dunlop. They had a large family, but something didn’t work, perhaps the education gap. They split up just before their last child was born. Catherine and the children first moved into town, then settled in Toronto. John remained on the farm.
Richard Morey Sherman, Chevy Chase, Maryland: My great-great-grandfather William Morey, born in Hampden, Maine, left his position as second mate on a clipper ship at Colombo, Ceylon (modern-day Sri Lanka) in 1861, and lived there for the rest of his life. He soon met a local woman, almost certainly Tamil, and they were married in 1866 and had four children. Such behavior was frowned upon by British colonial society, but he went on to serve as the American Consul in Ceylon from 1877 to 1908.
Emily Holmberg, Chesterfield, Massachusetts: My husband's paternal grandparents, Rudolph and Rose (Lawless) Holmberg, were both children of immigrants, but of different ethnic and religious backgrounds. His grandfather's parents were both from Sweden and only spoke Swedish in the home. His grandmother's parents were born in Ireland and England and were married in Derbyshire. Unfortunately, the Swedish family disapproved of the marriage of their only son to a Catholic. Before the grandfather died in 1940, there was only minimal contact with Swedish family members and none at all after he died, even though they all lived in the same city. My father-in-law was upset to discover that his Swedish relatives kept their distance despite their close proximity, and his sister was so hurt that she didn't want to know any additional information about the family.
John Winthrop's "City on a Hill," Mapped This interactive map presented by the Norman B. Leventhal Map & Education Center allows viewers to explore John Winthrop’s 1636 map of Massachusetts Bay.
“Remarkable Discovery” as Intact 1881 Shipwreck Found in Wisconsin Waters The vessel was located 270 feet deep by members of the Wisconsin Underwater Archaeology Association, Brendon Baillod and Bob Jaeck, who used sonar technology to locate the vessel, based on historical records and years of research.
Spotlight: East Bonner District County Library Newspapers, ID
by Valerie Beaudrault
Bonner County, seated in Sandpoint, is located in northern Idaho. The website of the East Bonner District County Library hosts an online newspaper collection comprising more than 292,000 pages from 20 newspapers, including Bonner County Daily Bee (1989-2013), Sandpoint Daily Bee (1969-1987), Sandpoint News Bulletin (1944-1984), Daily Bee (2002-2013), Northern Idaho News (1903-1944), and Pend Oreille Review (1905-1933). Search the database by keyword or browse individual newspapers. Search Now
We're excited to release five new volumes of marriages and deaths for Rhode Island: Vital Records, 1636-1850. This database includes volumes of vital records that James N. Arnold began publishing in 1891 for the towns of Rhode Island; volumes 17-21 are now available. Search Now
Planning for the Future?
Name Beneficiaries for Your Non-Probate Assets Today
Non-probate assets such as an IRA, 401(k), or life-insurance policy are not covered in your will or trust—you must name beneficiaries separately. Our friends at FreeWill.com have provided a free and secure online tool to guide you through naming beneficiaries for your assets in one easy place. Preserve your legacy, make sure your loved ones are provided for, and support the causes most important to you—get started today! Learn More
