It's a Small World Afterall

My parents always taught me the value of history. They always impressed upon me how important it is to know your roots. I am blessed to know a lot about my Dad's side of the family, the Tufts. We attend a reunion, the Tufts-Skinner Family Picnic, every summer to keep in touch. In recent years I've learned more about my Mom's family, the Stroud's, too. In fact, my aunt has worked diligently on that side of the family since the 1980's. My Mom made me a beautiful scrapbook with photos and inscriptions about both sides of our family which I have browsed through with my own children. What a treasure!

Some families, however, have little interest in geneology, finding the whole topic boring and irrelevant. If you ask, for instance, Mr. Littlejohn if he is related to the 10 other Littlejohn's in town, he will likely say "no", eventhough he likely has never investigated his family tree.

That being said, maybe studying your family tree is coming back into style. With the premier of the show "Who do you think you are?" last year, a TV which shows Hollywood stars tracing their roots, the word geneology has come back into the mainstream. Furthermore, websites like ancestry.com have made geneology popular once again.

Littlejohn is not a very common name, but Adams is a prevalent English surname. Herb Adams, a professional geneologist, studied my Dad's family tree for years. However, before the Tufts, Herb investigated the Adams family. For years, people would ask Herb if he was related to the second president of the United States, John Adams,and he would reply "no". However, one day he decided to do some digging. Eventually, he was amazed to discover that yes indeed he was a direct descendant of both John Adams and John Quincy Adams (the 6th American president).

So the next time someone asks you if you are related to Mr. Brown, check it out. You could be surprised at what you find out. Family history is only boring until you make it come alive.



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