... Genealogists start to have two ways of looking at everything. There is the normal way that other people see things, and there is another kind of sight as well. I call it ancestral vision. Here's an example: Spring cleaning time arrives, and the ancestor finder goes up to the attic to look for rubbish, trash, unused items, and other debris that needs to be put out for the trash collector. He begins filling a big green lawn-and-leaf bag. All of a sudden, his ancestral vision kicks in. What was garbage is now a ... them. This can come in handy when you come across photos with people you can't identify. Military uniforms are of special value, especially the emblems of rank, units or other insignia, ribbons, or medals. These are the types of clues that can lead to the military records of your ancestor. Items that truly require ancestral vision are items of furniture. Sometimes you will find that they appear to have been handmade. Remove every drawer, and look it over, front to back and top to bottom. You may uncover old papers, or the name of the person who made it and ...
Tags: ancestral vision | ancestor finder | genealogy |