Genealogy

Gifts for Genealogists and their Families

By Hazel Thornton | November 22, 2021 |

Someone asked me for a list of gifts for family historians. They had in mind gadgets and other tangible things you could wrap up with a bow. But I thought, “Most of the things I want don’t cost money and can’t be wrapped.”

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Trouble in Ancestry Paradise

By Hazel Thornton | August 5, 2021 |

Uh-oh. Ancestry.com just updated their Terms and Conditions in a way that has people up in arms. >>> SCROLL TO BOTTOM FOR UPDATES. <<< I’m not saying I like it, but I do tend to stay calm in situations like this and wait and see what happens next. Meanwhile, though, I want you to know…

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RootsTech is for Everyone: Getting Started

By Hazel Thornton | March 1, 2021 |

Wow! This event was a game-changer. Even if you’re not the family historian, please keep reading. Because, in case you feel you’ve missed out, you haven’t!

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Parallels between the 2020 and 1918 pandemics

By Hazel Thornton | October 18, 2020 |

In April I wrote a blog post called Our Ancestors and the 1918 Spanish Flu, not realizing there would be more. But…of course, there’s more! This is a marathon, not a sprint, and COVID-19 is not going away anytime soon. Note: The 1918-1919 flu pandemic was often referred to as the “Spanish Flu” because of…

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Genealogy Resource Roundup (Blog Post)

By Hazel Thornton | October 12, 2020 |

Are you ready to explore your family history? Here are some genealogy resources to help you get started! This list is by no means exhaustive! It’s mostly a list of websites and tools I use myself. If you want exhaustive, check out Cyndi’s List below. I have used  Cyndi’s List since its inception in 1996,…

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Are we all descended from royalty?

By Hazel Thornton | August 2, 2020 |

Are we all descended from royalty? Short answer: Probably! Long answer: Most of us are distantly related to rulers such as Charlemagne, Genghis Kahn, and other historical figures with an abundance of descendants. But can we prove it? And is it important?

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What’s a photo without the story?

By Hazel Thornton | July 19, 2020 |

UPDATE #1: Mystery solved! (scroll down) UPDATE #2: I was so taken by my grandmother’s “bathing beauty” photograph that I used it on the cover of my 2021 book — What’s a Photo Without the Story? How to Create Your Family Legacy (click to learn more). The book is not about my family, per se,…

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Black Lives Matter in Genealogy Too

By Hazel Thornton | June 27, 2020 |

  I recently saw this example of white privilege: Ugh! That one really hit home.

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Playing Detective: Grandma’s Birth Certificate

By Hazel Thornton | July 11, 2019 |

AHA! I was RIGHT! Right about what, you ask? Right about where my Grandma Hankins was born (Villa Mae Lawrence Hankins 1904-1986).

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Hit a brick wall? 20 reasons why you can’t find your ancestor

By Hazel Thornton | June 25, 2019 |

Can’t find your ancestor? Getting frustrated? We all hit a brick wall in our genealogy research now and then. Or, as we call them here in New Mexico, adobe walls, lol!

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Hazel's Books

Book cover: What's a Photo Without the Story? How to Create Your Family Legacy

What’s a Photo Without the Story? How to Create Your Family Legacy

Cover of "Go With the Flow! (The Clutter Flow Chart Workbook)"

Go With the Flow! (The Clutter Flow Chart Workbook)

Cover of "Hung Jury: The Diary of a Menendez Juror"

Hung Jury: The Diary of a Menendez Juror

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