A silly phrase really but one which fancinated me for many years and now, to a great extent, I know where I came from, and I dont mean where I was born but where my ancestors came from.
Its a funny thing doing your family history as few people really know, they just dont give it much thought, but with todays online records, its very easy and ive found rewarding, to find out.
I have a fair idea now of 400 years of family history and while it doesnt mean much in terms of my life, theres a long list of people who came together which culminated in my birth and THAT does matter because without them there aint no me.
I found out that Im far from english and not alltogether white english either.
My fathers family were in the main poor fishermen/ag labs but not all the family were from Kent where my fathers family genereally can be found, infact some were Londoners and a large part were Irish.
My mothers side threw up some far wilder stuff though that we could never have guessed.
My nans great-great grandmother was mixed race, the result of a free black woman and a Jewish merchant. She was also very wealthy as were many of her relatives and children and owned a house in a street in London where houses are changing hands for £4 million today.
My grandmothers father decended from scottish ministers of which quite a bit was written about.
A relative on that side of the family was responsible for Paramatta Drive in Sydney, himself decending from a very old Scottish family which we were lucky enough to find a book written about.
It doesnt change anything knowing these things, but each one of these people, be it a man in rags or one in riches, contributed directly to my existance which does make them matter, infact they are vital.
Anyone else here done their family history? Anyone found out things they didnt know?
I recommend it to anyone, its amazing what you find out. I dont think theres any such thing as a normal family.
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