A British Man Tells Me Fascinating Things About Centuries Past
2015 Jun 5, 4:26am 789 views 4 comments
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marcus
2015 Jun 5, 6:08am
You have 2 parents, 4 grandparents, 8 great grandparents etc. So when you go back say 400 years, you're talking about several thousand ancestors. Even just 250 years back would be over 500 ancestors.
Of course it's probably not nearly as many as it would seem because of people getting counted more than once (for example if you're grandparents were 4th cousins, then one of their 32 pairs of great great great great grandparents are the same and everyone above that node should only be counted once).
But still we have many many ancestors so it's not too hard to see that many of us or most of us should have some very 'special' ancestors.' But we all also have some real evil or douche bag ancestors.
I think that it's an interesting question. How many people were alive in say 1750 that are ancestors of yours ? And how wide is the range from one person to the next, in how many ancestors they had at 1750 ? Interestingly, I'm pretty sure that the people in say England who consider themselves "well bred" would want (without saying so) for that number to be lower, rather than higher. In other words a substantial degree of inbreeding is or was desirable in some circles.
I think this is where Dan says something about CIC, or vice versa.
Tenpoundbass
2015 Jun 5, 6:58am
But we all also have some real evil or douche bag ancestors.
People are products of their time. It's unfair for you to judge people out of context to their contemporaries.
You don't actually think that people will reflect kindly on the 21st century do you?
In all European countries in centuries past only the births, deaths, marriages and divorces of the aristocrats and people with money were recorded. This means that both sides of our family are people with money and substance and not poor peasants.
Not true. Looks like someone was having some fun yanking the americans chain.
In England parish records started in september 1538 when Thomas Cromwell ordered parish priests to record ALL baptisms, marriages, and burials each week. Early records were pretty sketchy since since the law wasn't enforced for the first 100 years or so. After 1733 registers were kept in english rather than latin. Parishes charged for the entries to cover the cost of labor and materials.
Churches on the continent generally started systematically keeping parish registers in the mid 1500's. Again ALL events were recorded. The first surviving German Protestant records are from 1524 at St. Sebald in Nürnberg. Lutheran churches required recording starting in 1540. There are parish registers in France that date as far back as 1334.
Divorces wouldn't have been recorded at all since divorce didn't exist until the late 19th or 20th century in most european countries. Once it was legal it obviously only applied to non catholics. I think italy didn't legalize divorce until 1970 something.
Reminds me of past life regression where no one remembers being a miserable peasant toiling away all day in the fields. Everyone was a wealthy aristocrat with an interesting life.
Dad's first wife was Dorothy Fetchenback Weyl (Obviously a German lady) and dad married her in 1942.
I have been researching all of the families going back 100's of years. Dad's side of the family seems to be from England and Germany. Mother's side of the family comes from Ireland and Scotland. Ironically Patterson is both an Irish and a Scottish name. I am amazed at how far back the birth records go.
As luck would have it this morning I was in my early morning swimming workout with a man from England named Richard Henry. We started discussing ancestry.com. He told me something amazing. In all European countries in centuries past only the births, deaths, marriages and divorces of the aristocrats and people with money were recorded. This means that both sides of our family are people with money and substance and not poor peasants.
We have a relative from the Ball Family who fought in the Revolutionary War. His name was George Ball. Based on this, you, Aunt Beverly, Balinda, and Kelly should qualify for membership in Daughters of the American Revolution. Uncle Donnell, myself and many other people from the family should qualify for membership Sons of the American Revolution.