General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsFor those of you who are able to trace their ancestry back to another country...
...have any of you been lucky enough to visit the exact place your ancestors once lived?
I'm thinking about this in light of President Biden's recent visit to Ireland and specifically the town of Ballina, where his mother's family came from.
I actually have been lucky enough to do the same, and it's a pretty neat experience.
I visited the town in Ukraine where my grandmother and grandfather lived before they were forced to flee due to the combination of World War II and Soviet political oppression. The tour group I was with stopped in the town to have lunch at a restaurant where we were served varenyky (pierogis), which were--of course--delicious, and reminded me of the ones my grandmother would sometimes serve us for lunch when we visited her. The restaurant was on a town square, and in the middle of the square there was a distinctive water fountain that looked just like the water fountain in the middle of the mall in Baltimore where my grandmother liked to shop. So I instantly felt a personal connection between the town where my grandmother grew up and my own memories of my grandmother here in the United States.
I also had the chance to visit the small village where my grandfather (who died before I was born) lived as a child and young man. My Ukrainian family drove us out to a 16th century church that my grandfather had helped restore. The church sat on a scenic hillside with a beautiful view of the Ukrainian country side beneath it. Next to the church was a museum, with my grandfather's picture included amongst those who had helped with the restoration.
My great-grandparents were buried in the church cemetery; unfortunately, most of the gravesites were heavily overgrown and you couldn't read the names of who was buried there. So I didn't have much hope of actually finding where my great-grandparents were, until I suddenly saw my cousin starting to furiously pull away weeds and brush from one of the graves. Lo and behold, it was actually my great-grandparents' graves and I had a chance to silently commune with them and say a brief prayer at the site. It was a very poignant moment and I had to wonder that if their spirits could somehow see their great-grandson coming from thousands of miles away, what they might think.
Anyways, given how diverse DU is, I was wondering if anyone else has had the chance to do something similar and how it affected them personally and emotionally.
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sinkingfeeling
(57,835 posts)arrived in America in the early 1700s. I know their names and my DNA is 94% English and 6% Welsh.
Aristus
(72,187 posts)He sailed from Ireland, but we're pretty sure he was born in Wales. I've visited both countries. Spectacularly beautiful, both of them.
Walleye
(44,805 posts)On my father’s side. They looked up some third cousins who have our same last name (Wall, very English). They were living very similar middle-class lives to our own. My mother’s ancestors came to Virginia in colonial times. I can’t even imagine all the history there. One of my great great great grandfathers was from the English court and given a job governing the Eastern Shore of Virginia. He was a real son of a bitch. Slaveholder, Indian killer. It’s great you got to go visit and see where your ancestors are buried. And I can understand your spiritual experience. Some graves on our family property have birthdates in the 1600’s
cksmithy
(494 posts)researched as much as she could. Her father's ancestry was Scotland to Ireland to the US. Her mother, my Grandmother, was born in Lille, France, which became, in my mother's, mind Paris, because she had a picture of her at the Eiffel Tower. She said she couldn't find anything about my fathers history back further than the early 1800's, with stories of German and English heritage. My maternal ggg+grandfather born in Scotland 1683, married went to Ireland, had one child in Ireland, 1716, then seven more in Perthway and Readington, New Jersey until 1731. Her name is only recorded as Jean, born 1694, means she had her first child at 22, had 8 more in New Jersey.
The earliest ancestor on my maternal mother's side is a French stone mason born in 1783.
So yes, I've been to Scotland, England and Paris. It was wonderful to breathe the Paris and Scottish air. My grandmother talked About Notre Dame and how beautiful it was. Thank goodness we got there before the fire. It was great to see with my eyes what my beloved Grandmother saw (the Eiffel Tower still standing) she after survived WWI.
Walleye
(44,805 posts)Looks like your mom really did a lot of good research
Hugh_Lebowski
(33,643 posts)Which comes from my paternal grandfather, who I know migrated from Croatia in the 1920's or 30's.
Turns out there's approx 152 of us in the entire world, and only 11 of us in the USA. My brothers and I are 3 of them (5 if you count my brother's kids, but I doubt they're in the stats as they're minors).
Interestingly there's 32 of us in Chile (I'm FB friends with 1 of them) even though it's definitely a Croatian name/word. If there's only 152 of us in the world, I suspect we're all related at least to some degree.
I'd love to visit Croatia generally but my grandfather died before I was born and my dad hated him, so he never really talked about his dad. No idea what his hometown was, nor do I specifically care to go there.
My mom's side are French Canadian and Swedish. I'd be keen to visit their hometowns there but not sure which they are. My mom might have some idea but I've not asked.
mopinko
(73,726 posts)almost as many in oz as ireland, and yeah, only a few hundred in the us. kinda surprising in that the fam was big shit in the day.
Hugh_Lebowski
(33,643 posts)
Momopinko
(73,726 posts)lol. mom’s name was dwyer.
Hugh_Lebowski
(33,643 posts)and only Mo was real 
Company I worked at in Silicon Valley during dot-com boom's (2000-2001) heady days, one of the two owner's names was Bill Dwyer.
He had a rep for hitting on the lady employees.
mopinko
(73,726 posts)lol. you’re the second person to tell me they knew dwyers that were party animals.
i think i owe it to myself to chase down an irishman.
Hugh_Lebowski
(33,643 posts)mopinko
(73,726 posts)
Wicked Blue
(8,867 posts)
mopinko
(73,726 posts)spelled like italian, but they were polish. tracked down a small village in southern poland w a bunch of them. we always knew who the telemarketers were when the tried to pronounce it, thinking it was italian.
dont know if he got there, but he’s done a lot of traveling w wife #2.
Tetrachloride
(9,624 posts)To my knowledge, I am the only one on my close family.
GPV
(73,393 posts)
Redleg
(6,922 posts)It was easy. My mother was born in Germany, my father met her there when he was in the U.S. Army, married her, and I sprang from their union. I lived much of my young life in Germany and met all my German relatives and stayed in the home in which my mother was born.
WhiteTara
(31,260 posts)but I have been looking for a certain bend in the river and as I have learned more about "my" past I believe it is on the river Wye.
My parents families were originally from places only 10 or so miles from each other. Hers was in England, his in Wales. It's interesting how we come together life after life after life to work out karma.
Hugh_Lebowski
(33,643 posts)that refers to bends in rivers.
WhiteTara
(31,260 posts) 
bucolic_frolic
(55,136 posts)Have no real plans to visit. Though as a kid I did visit where my ancestors lived on this continent, pre-1640 or so, though we didn't know it at the time. It gave me a lifelong perspective, it was a rich historical experience. I got cues on origins on one set of ancestors by the middle names given by a g-g-g grandmother. She gave her kids very unique middle names that were place on the Scottish map. Unmistakable clues that stood the test of time, and the shoddy census data of the early 1800s.
Chainfire
(17,757 posts)Arriving here in 1740. I would love to visit, but it will not happen. My daughter has visited Scotland twice and plans to go back.
FakeNoose
(41,634 posts)A lot of us have roots - however far back - to European countries. Personally I have ancestors from Ireland (Northern and Republic) as well as various parts of Germany. One great-great grandmother came from Norway.
However in my family the immigration happened so long ago, over 100 years ago and 5 generations before I was born. I never had the opportunity to actually meet those relatives because they were already long gone. Unfortunately old-country addresses and immigration docs were not kept and passed down for us, so we only have a general idea where they came from. It would be difficult to find current extended family ("long-lost cousins" because there has been no contact since before I was born in 1951.
I really envy your ability to trace your roots to specific towns, villages and parishes. In a lot of cases the Catholic or Christian parishes have retained centuries-old archives, but it only helps if you know what village and parish to start your search in.
RegulatedCapitalistD
(416 posts)But that was all the way back into the 15 and 1600's
Ocelot II
(130,533 posts)places in Norway where our mother's family came from, and was able to track down and meet some shirttail cousins. One such cousin, upon meeting him and his wife, gave them a once-over and said, "Well, you're not fat Americans." He has also visited an ancestral town in Northern Ireland, found more relatives, and discovered that one of them runs a cat hotel outside Belfast. He also found the church where an ancestor was a pastor. It's always interesting to find out where your roots are.
bpj62
(1,067 posts)My father immigrated from Ireland in 1956. I have been to Ireland many times as a child and adult. I have many cousins there. I completely understood Joe Bidens joy of being in the land of his ancestors My mother's family is also from Ireland but they are a generation or two back.
Karadeniz
(24,746 posts)mopinko
(73,726 posts)not sure how much research you have to give them, but they will plot your itinerary for you.
i’ll get to ireland sooner or later. i’ll stay in a castle b&b in the town my da’s ppl come from. pretty centrally located. i’ll spend a lot of time in tipparay, cuz my mom’s side pretty much ruled it.
have a friend up in donegal. she might come down tho, cuz she’s from tipparay.
joe’s trip has the call rly ringin in my ears, fersher. having a grand time chattin w the cousins on twitter. even tho i learned a new slur- plastic paddy, for irish americans, i also made more than a couple friends. i see the same bullshit over there, but i think the passport office is about to be deluged. it was an epic love fest. a lot of ppl tryin to draw a line btn born there and exiled got a hard pushback.
my fave- These days you can't even engineer a famine without the woke brigade throwing it back in your face.
bif
(27,000 posts)And I remember my dad telling me the name of the village his dad was from. He even took him back for a visit. Unfortunately, I never wrote it down. My Aunt know the city near where he lived, but not the small town. I'm thinking of visiting in the next year or two.
KPN
(17,377 posts)in Wroclaw in 1979. He was a very proud Communist at the time, though his daughter who was in her late 20s was not. Went with my Dad in fact while on my way home from 3 years in Peace Corps in Africa. Spent 8 days, also visiting my Dads cousins in Cziechanow and Warsaw. It was an eye opening experience. Poland was pretty much impoverished at the time. But the people were pretty vibrant nonetheless.
area51
(12,691 posts)but I wish my ancestors hadn't migrated to the US. If they hadn't, I'd be living in a country with universal healthcare.
CanonRay
(16,171 posts)Great experience to walk those streets, and meet cousins who stayed behind.
samnsara
(18,767 posts)..but thats as far back as i can go without signing up for a bazillion $ a month to do research.
I love Midsomer Murders and at first i thought how odd these people stay in the same villiage..and sometimes the same brick and stone, pointy roofed house.... for hundreds of years but then i realized i probably would too if I had that strong of a connection to one place.
It must be kind of comforting.
Wicked Blue
(8,867 posts)If you haven't read it yet, you will probably enjoy "Your Guide to not Getting Murdered in a Quaint English Village" by Maureen Johnson and Jay Cooper. Hilarious. I highly recommend it to everyone who loves British murder mysteries.
greatauntoftriplets
(179,005 posts)They never lost touch with the family back home, and sponsored several other relatives to come to the U.S. My grandfather brought over his brother and a nephew. His sisters stayed in Luxembourg. My grandmother's three brothers also emigrated.
The families never lost touch with each other. As a result, I always knew I had relatives in Luxembourg. I'd met one of my mother's first cousins when she came to visit when I was 16. She invited everyone to visit.
My first visit was shortly after I graduated from college. I flew into Frankfurt, Germany, spent the night there, and next day took a train to Luxembourg City. There was a welcoming party for me at the train station, they took me to the cousin's home where I would be staying first, opened a bottle of champagne, and then took me out to lunch. After that greeting, various cousins showed me the country and took me to meet my relatives there, and provided a base for when I traveled to other parts of Europe. I even saw the house where my grandfather was born, but it was no longer in the family. That was on my grandfather's side.
I did meet some very old cousins on my grandmother's side, and I've seen the site of the house where my grandmother was born. That house was destroyed in World War II and has since been rebuilt.
Subsequent visits have been amazing, and many of my relatives have visited the family here.
The information I have on my father's Irish relatives is far sketchier. I only found out where they came from seven years ago (and it was not where my father always claimed). But I did an Ancestry DNA test, and heard from a cousin I didn't know existed. She had done significant research and shared a lot of information with me, including the names of my second, third and fourth great-grandmothers and details of the family leaving Ireland on a coffin ship in 1853.
There are other branches of my father's family that I know nothing about, and that intrigues me. I do have many Ancestry matches with people who have French names and live in Quebec, primarily in Montreal. That makes sense in terms of what we already knew about my father's mother's ancestry.
Bucky
(55,334 posts)
UTUSN
(77,795 posts)We might subscribe to LINCOLN's, "I don't care who my grandfather was, just what his grandson will become" (paraphrase).
Bucky
(55,334 posts)I don't recognize anything of myself if I trace back my family inverted-pyramid all the way back to the east coast in the 1700s or all the way over to Europe. Those people might as well be Neanderthals as far as my sense of cultural identity goes. But when I go up to the hollers of Arkansas (which my paternal grandfather left from) or to the little rural river towns in southern Missouri where my maternal grandparents were from for several generations, I do get a sense of that cultural hearth warmth that you see when Biden (or the Kennedys) go to Ireland. I could never live there (I'm a city boy to the core), but it feels like belonging in ways I never related to when I visited Europe.
UTUSN
(77,795 posts)The sister and cousin were busy with self-involved yakking and were annoyed when I yelled, "THERE IT IS!"
Raftergirl
(1,856 posts)My father’s family lived in Fastov - a town about 30 miles from Kviv and in Kviv (my father’s mother and her grandparents who she lived with after her parents died in a buggy accident.)
My maternal ancestors lived in what is now Belarus. I have the names of the towns they lived but they have been changed. My mother’s paternal grandmother’s family has been traced back to Spain and they eventually went to France due to Spanish Inquisition. My niece found records of them in the Spanish town where they lived. That they were in Spain has also been confirmed through my mother and my DNA which showed us both having Sephardic DNA (6% and 1% respectively.) The remaining percentages were Ashkenazi.
I have not visited any of the places where they lived.
Deep State Witch
(12,716 posts)I know the village in what is now Romania where my paternal grandparents came from, and the village where my maternal grandfather's line came from in Croatia. I'm hoping to do a heritage and genealogy tour of Croatia someday to find any relatives.
macwriter
(256 posts)I traveled back to Italy and actually found cousins who continued to live in that same small village where my grandfather came from. He left and the rest of the family stayed in Italy. We went for a walk and found out that I was related to most of the people who lived in that neighborhood. We stopped at an abandoned house that was now being used for storage and it was explained to me that this was the house where my grandfather was born and pointed to a window in the house saying that this was the window to his bedroom. We all had dinner together -- the whole town showed up. It was a thrill.
Before I left I returned to the little abandoned house, scooped up dirt from the property and placed it in a bunch of old empty film containers from my camera -- remember them? When I got home, I split up the dirt into small plastic ziplock pill bags, glue gunned them to a homemade Christmas ornament and gave them to our US relatives. The message was simple:
No matter where you go, you'll always have soil from your ancestral home to take with you and remind you of your roots.
It was a big hit.
Thanks for sharing your story.
spinbaby
(15,389 posts)Most of my ancestry is centered in a Polish town a stone’s throw from the Russian border. This doesn’t seem like a practical place to travel to.
chowder66
(12,242 posts)My mom asked me to look up an ancestor when I was in London. I went to the Guild Hall Library and found out he was Lord Mayor of London for a time. I walked the same streets he walked and he is buried in St. Stephen's church but it was closed due to renovations.
I recall the librarian telling me that if a plaque was not installed for him anywhere I could request one. I think it is just a historical name plate that you see on the buildings.
I never did follow up on that but may do so one day.
kimmylavin
(2,298 posts)My grandparents came from Ireland in the 1920s.
They both left big families behind to come to the USA.
Eventually a few others followed, but most of their families stayed behind.
So when I finally got to visit Ireland, it was like a homecoming - we were related to everyone!
And "the home place," as we all called it, is still in the family.
We pulled up to the house, and my grandmother's baby brother (probably in his mid-80s at the time), was standing outside waiting for us.
My sister asked who he was, and I said, "Look at him! He's obviously related to grandma!"
Same white hair, same face, same shocking blue eyes.
When we went to my grandpa's family home, it was wild.
The only picture I'd ever seen of my great-grandparents was a black and white photo of two older people standing in the doorway of a farmhouse.
And right in front of us was the same doorway!
Had my mom and dad take a picture standing there. 
We saw the barn that my grandfather had spoken of sleeping in with his brothers - they had way more fun than you'd expect!
And there was a row of trees planted by all of the men in the family, stretching back generations.
They'd left a space for my father, so he got to plant his.
We spent hours at the family pub (I think it was 5a one night when we all decided to go home): talking, laughing, drinking and singing.
It was magical. My family's history, stretching back hundreds of years.
My little sister loved it so much she lives there now.
hauckeye
(799 posts)I visited the village my great grandfather came from. Very special.
Harker
(17,784 posts)Many people in Ireland have the ability to hear a family name and link it to a place of origin.
"Oh... did you know there are lots of (Harkers) in Galway?!"
I've yet to visit the Rheinland.
mopinko
(73,726 posts)my voice teacher said 1 of his students, a woman named larkin, descended from james larkin, who walked into a pub that the man himself used to frequent. she ordered a pint, and as he was pouring the barkeep said- you’re a larkin, arent you? she said she was, he told- her welcome home and your money is no good here.
DENVERPOPS
(13,003 posts)I tried doing that, and was I shocked by not finding much in the way of the normal records.......................
It appeared that the U.S. Gov't and local Gov'ts weren't too keen on keeping track of the Native Americans..........
It seems that there was some kind of a massive genocide carried out by the U.S. Government and European Settlers for hundreds of years.
Historians put the number of Native Americans killed, was somewhere between 60-90 MILLION.......
wnylib
(26,012 posts)descended from a Seneca man who is well known in Seneca and western NY history. One of that Seneca leader's descendants became a NY State archaeologist and anthropologist who dedicated his work to preserving Seneca culture and history, along with other Haudenosaunee cultures.
My grandparents met him when he did research in northwestern PA where my grandmother's family had relocated to. She was mixed, British, Seneca, and Mohawk. He filled her in on her Seneca ancestry and her relationship to him.
I grew up in northwestern PA, but now live in western NY where my Seneca ancestors lived, and near where people of today's Seneca Nation still live on land that has been theirs for thousands of years. Greatly reduced in size, but still their homeland. They call it a territory, not a reservation. There are 3 main Seneca territories in NY.
But, due to the reasons you gave, many Native people do not even have family stories about their family ancestry. Too many slaughters and forced relocations over the generations, not to mention families broken up by the residential school system.
DENVERPOPS
(13,003 posts)I read about the "Trail of Tears, Andrew Jacksons brain storm, and actually started crying.........
I got a hold of my father's birth certificate and it showed my grandfather to be White, my grandmother was Native American.
I could find his birth certificate records, but there was absolutely nothing to research her family or parents........
When the historians talk about the Genocide Hitler accomplished with up to 6 million jews killed, I think of the lack of history regarding the Native American Indians obliteration which amounted to a far greater estimated 60-90 million.
In both situations, it was an absolute horror that occurred.................and we call ourselves "humans"............
wnylib
(26,012 posts)if she had not had a well-kbown and therefore, traceable, Seneca ancestor.
Prior to 1900, there were no birth certificates for Native Americans, and even after that for many of them. Most Native Americans lived apart from white society, in their own villages or on reservations. Some tribes kept their own records once they began using the English writing system. That varies from tribe to tribe.
Prior to writing, in some cultural traditions, they could recite their family information by clan membership and know their relationships to each other. But that got disrupted by relocations, mass killings, and boarding schools.
Even European-American records of births, marriages, and deaths were not recorded as civil records in many locations and states until the late 1800s or later. People relied on churches for those records. Newspaper articles are good sources for that info, too, in genealogy research.
If you want to trace your grandmother, you'll need to be creative, but you still might not find much since there are so few records of Native people. If you know her tribe, you can contact their tribal offices for advice or help. Some are more cooperative than others.
If you don't know her tribe, look for a record of your grandfather's marriage. Where they lived might help identify the tribe. Census record searches can help to locate where they lived. They might say where she was born. Keep in mind, though, that census takers wrote what they thought they heard and sometimes spelled names wrong. My aunt told me what she found when she was looking up an ancestor named Gottlieb Herd who was German Swiss, born in Bern, Switzerland. Due to his accent, the census taker wrote what it sounded like to him - Cutlip Herd from Bear, Germany.
Also, the person who spoke to the census taker might have had some information wrong.
Many libraries have subscriptions to Ancestry.com and other genealogy sites that are free to their patrons. You can check census and other records there. Beware of trusting family trees posted there, though. A lot of them are not accurate and need to be verified.
If she was from one of the 5 tribes that were relocated on the Trail of Tears, there are records of the individuals by name and tribe. The largest is the Dawes Roll, but there are others. Some escaped relocation by hiding out in the mountains of Tennessee and North Carolina. Today their descendants are the Eastern Band of Cherokee.
Those tribes were relocated to Oklahoma, but so were many other tribal members There are even some Seneca and Oneida people in Oklahoma.
DNA might help to find relatives if they have done DNA testing, too. Quite a few Native Americans do Dna testing because a lot of Native people have some European ancestry in their families and want to know who they are.
Good luck.
.
BMW2020RT
(146 posts)The village from which the name probably originates has a church with a list of all the pastors who have served there. A 13th century man with her last name is on the list. Another probable ancestor is credited with building part of Canterbury cathedral. He is buried beneath the stone floor. When I visited part of the cathedral was roped off from visitors so I was unable to precisely locate his burial location although my research indicates it is close to the Compass Rose. There was once an inscribed marker, but it was either removed or I simply could not see it from where I stood.
There are more such places on Dad's side of my family I would like to visit although I am not sure I will ever establish definitive relationships. Probable cousins is the best I hope to find. Then again, there is research yet to complete. Perhaps a name several generations removed from my own that will yield that sort of result.
Scottie Mom
(5,838 posts)I will make the trip someday.
LymphocyteLover
(9,847 posts)-- my great-grandparents. I really want to go there!
I have a grandparent from Canada and have visited where he grew up.
My other relatives came here a long time back, English stock.
yellerpup
(12,263 posts)I researched my genealogy and discovered my lineage through my great-grandmother. My father was a racist and used to say that the stories she told were "old wive's tales" and delusional. It took a number of years to find everything I needed to join the tribe, but I was accepted and verified when I was 60. I retired to OK when I was sixty-eight and the Tribe gave me a down payment on a small house in Claremore, OK, which is also part of the Cherokee nation. I hate living in a red state, but the tribe makes my life sweeter just by belonging.
peppertree
(23,343 posts)My mom's ancestral city, Asti - in NW Italy.
It was gray but beautiful. Tons of Renaissance/19th-century European charm.
It also happens to be where Pope Francis' paternal side of the family was from.
(and I've been told I bear a resemblance...)
Wicked Blue
(8,867 posts)Do you speak Ukrainian?
My parents were immigrants from Estonia. They raised me to speak the language fluently. We had almost no relatives in the U.S. but my father kept in touch with his sister in Estonia. In my late teens, I became pen pals with my cousin there. Back then they still lived in the house my grandfather built.
Finally, after the Iron Curtain fell, I saved enough money to visit them. I stayed at the new house of my cousin and her husband, where my aunt also lived. It felt so amazing to actually have family, and to hear stories about my father's youth. (My parents were long dead).
They took me everywhere, introduced me to second cousins that I'd never heard of, and brought me to the cemetery where my grandparents and great-uncles were buried. We visited the old family home, which had been sold, and my aunt pointed out a white lilac tree under what once was my father's bedroom window.
We also visited Tartu, the city where my parents attended university, but never graduated because of the war. My mother's grandfather was an Orthodox arch-priest who was born in a tiny village (Nizhnyaya Olkhovaya) in Luhansk oblast, and educated in Kyiv. He had been chairman of the theology department at the University of Tartu and served as the university's acting record for a short time before retiring. My mother was born and raised in Tartu; her father was born in Kyiv.
In 2010 I managed to save money for a second trip there and pay for my brother's airfare as well. This time we flew to Helsinki, Finland and took the ferry to Tallinn, the Estonian capital. We once again stayed at my cousin's home and were taken to meet relatives. My cousin's husband drove us to the old family home town, Valga, which is on the Latvian border. We got to see an 80-plus-year old relative singing a solo at a community festival. My brother and I stepped over the border into Latvia for a few minutes, just so we could say we'd been there.
We again visited the cemetery. And in Tartu, my brother and I got accidentally locked in the university's Aula, the ceremonial hall where my great-grandfather had presumably presided, where my mother's father and uncles graduated, and where my parents probably attended convocations as students. A tour group that left a bit earlier locked us in by mistake. We escaped by yelling out a window to people on the street, who notified the reception desk. What a pair of dunces we were, probably mortifying the spirits of our distinguished ancestors.
Both visits were in mid-June, when days are so long in that latitude that it's never fully dark, just a sort of silvery twilight.
I wish I could go back again, but doubt that it's possible.
Tommy Carcetti
(44,498 posts)And I learned a few more in advance of my trip. I remember ordering coffee in Ukrainian and it somehow felt like the biggest thrill in the world to me.
One thing though about my visits. My Ukrainian family dropped us back off at the hotel we were staying at, and we all exchanged hugs and kisses as well as "Pa-pa!", which is Ukrainian for "Bye-bye!"
And that instantly brought me back to my youth when we'd always say Pa-pa!" to my grandmother after one of our visits, and it was such a heartwarming feeling of nostalgia in that one little simple thing.
Wicked Blue
(8,867 posts)My mom spoke fluent Russian (and Estonian, English and German) but I could never get the hang of it, especially the alphabet.
For me, the biggest amazement was being in a place where everybody else spoke Estonian. Being able to understand what people were saying on the street, in stores, buying train tickets and so on. I've been to Estonian Saturday school, camp, scout camp, parties and gatherings, but never surrounded 24 hours a day for 10 days in a place where everyone spoke our obscure little language. And being thrilled to find out that I'd been taught enough of it to get by without the need for English. My vocabulary is a bit old-fashioned and more of a kids' vocabulary, but adequate. It helps that I didn't start learning English until I started kindergarten.
Pa-pa!
AllaN01Bear
(29,490 posts)
TXPaganBanker
(210 posts)But we've got all the lineage history. Several generations up my father's mother's line, we had a wealthy German merchant and a... less than wealthy French family that was titled. He wanted a noble title, and they needed the money, so the marriage was set. I can't remember what city they lived in off the top of my head, but my great great uncle used to display the family crest over his mantle. They wound up moving to Quebec when the French started lopping heads off of people with titles, and the family eventually made it down to New Orleans.
wnylib
(26,012 posts)I wonder of they were part of the relocation that the Brits carried out when they defeated the French and took over Canada. They shipped a huge number of French to New Orleans.
Ever read the epic narrative poem, Evangeline, by Longfellow? We read it in my 8th grade English class. It tells the story of the relocation through the perspective of a young couple who got separated on the voyage.
TXPaganBanker
(210 posts)However, they were wealthy enough that they chose to relocate before they were chased out. They saw the writing on the wall and decided it was time to be anywhere else. It also meant that they were able to keep most of their fortune. Enough of it passed down that my great-great grandmother's generation was able to buy a 12 room BnB / hotel in the French Quarter, as well as four or five houses around the city for her kids. My grandmother sold the hotel when her father passed (he had been running it, my grandmother had married right before WW2 and was pregnant when my grandfather went to serve). Some of my earliest memories were of visiting my great grandmother, who lived in the hotel. It's funny, I can't remember my great grandfather, though. She was very formal (to a 5 year old).
Things she taught us:
If you don't speak French, you don't eat. All of us grew up speaking English and French, with a side of Latin for St. Louis cathedral.
How to read in French. We were required to read her French romance poetry. HUGE gap in-between speaking French for a kid's needs and practical, conversational French.
A man always follows a woman upstairs and proceeds her down, in case she turns an ankle.
A man should ensure a woman always has flowers, so she may teach them how to be beautiful.
How to set a formal table.
To make a proper impression on someone: remember to stand straight, have your shoulders back, and have either a book or a proper drink within reach.
Don't run by her wheelchair. She's quicker than she looks with her cane, and it smarts when you get whacked in the legs.
wnylib
(26,012 posts)AFAIK, they were the ones who were wealthy in French Canada.
Or, very successful fur traders.
H2O Man
(79,051 posts)My grandfather came to the US in 1879, as a small child. His father brought the family as the last wave of siblings that settled in upstate New York. Until 1952, a number of the extended family visited back and forth. Contacts then stopped for decades, then started back up. A number of cousins began visiting the hamlet from which the family had come from in County Limerick. Through records I had, one was able to find where my great grandfather's small farm once stood. (I have a few stones from it in my garden.)
My brother went. For reasons far beyond my understanding, his goal was to play golf. He got into a debate with a gentleman there about which government was more corrupt -- the US or Ireland. Although the other guy had the hometown advantage, obviously my brother won. Finally they introduced themselves, and found they were relatives from across the Atlantic & a few generations.
All four of my children have visited at least once. My daughter attended Cork University, not far from where my family lived. Both daughters looked for a cottage for me to move to. I haven't been, though I've had the opportunity. (As mopinko could attest to, I am a stick in the mud of rural, upstate New York.)
ZenDem
(442 posts)...a sort of funny story.
My mom's side is from Ireland and ancestors settled in Gentry County, MO (late 1800s to early 1900s). It was a township back then and is still not a "real" town. I checked a social media site for the area and although the population was very low (under 7000) the surname of my family was EVERYWHERE including roads and cemeteries. I have a plethora of redheaded relatives in a very (very) rural area of Missouri, so apparently they didn't get out much.
No, I will not be going to meet any of them. I do have a trip planned to visit the cemetery where several of my ancestors are buried.
homegirl
(1,965 posts)many years ago i stayed in Scotland with my uncle and his family for six months. Wonderful experience. Have also visited on short visits twice. Best experience was a few years ago with my two daughters, a week long barge trip on the Caledonian Canal and Loch Ness.
The experience has pushed me to do more research into family history, very exciting to learn that my family surname first appears in a recorded document, birth, death, marriage or legal document in 1245!
Yes, it is a moving experience when learning the trades or professions of ones ancestors to wonder about DNA characteristics. Among the many revelations was a great grandmother who was a lady auctioneer.
róisín_dubh
(12,336 posts)known better as Ballinasloe, where my great-grandma and her family lived. They left Ireland in 1916. She became a naturalised citizen after her kids were born. I wish my grandma and my dad had been registered with the Irish government, but alas...
ms.pamela
(88 posts)Tommy we may be related, my mother's father was from Ukraine too. I have an excellent recipe for pierogis, just made some for Easter for my daughter and good friends, everyone loves them except my husband, who is Czech and Hungarian, and for the life of me, I can not understand it. He loves my nut rolls but unfortunately, he was told by his doctor to cut out all gluten. So instead of making my nut and poppy seed rolls my youngest daughter found an Armenian bakery in LA that makes small nut rolls and mini nuts rolls so I ordered those for all my family members for Easter and had them shipped all across America. My mother and oldest daughter, who actually is a Scientist and works for 23 and Me went to Ukraine and Russia, twice for my daughter and four times for my mother. We even had 2 young Ukrainian girls as exchange students when she was in 8th grade. I did the DNA test last year and with 23 and Me, you can sign up for medical information concerning your DNA too. I found out on my father's side that I was a direct descendant of King Edward the lst and King Phillip the 3rd of France and more than likely a descendant of the Irish king Mac Donald. Some of my ancestors arrived in America in the 1600s. One of my ancestors had a plantation next to George Washington's father's property and another had a plantation in Culpepper Virginia but I also have a .07 percent of African American heritage, which in all honestly I am much prouder of. There is Cherokee Indian in my ancestry also but 23 and Me does not pick up Indian tribes per se according to my daughter as the tribes hold on to that information pretty tightly probably to prevent too many folks from claiming tribal benefits. I found out that one of my ancestors was a revolutionary war hero and another great-great uncle died at Anthiem at the age of 22. My father's father died from lung problems due to mustard gas in World War I when my dad was just 3 and his mother died when he was just 4. He ended up at a military orphanage in Chambersburg PA. My father joined the Air Force and served in the Korean and Viet Nam wars. He eventually moved back to Chambersburg where he died of Lung cancer from Agent Orange at the age of 70. Recently I discovered a second cousin had died in the Korean War. This is one reason why I despised those jerks who ransacked our nation's capital on January 6th, so many of my ancestors fought for the freedom and liberties of this nation and to see those confederate flags at the Capital made me sick. I will give you my recipe for perogies.
Cheese Perogies
4 cups of unbleached flour
3 large egg yolks
1/4 cup of water
1 1/2 teaspoons of salt
1/2 cup of melted butter
1 to 1 1/2 cups of sour cream
Put the flour and salt into a Kitchen Aid Mixer, beat the egg yolks with water in a small bowl, and add in the cooled melted butter. Pour this mixture into the Kitchen Aid mixer. Stir it in by hand, then add the sour cream and put the dough hook on the mixer. Mix for about 3 minutes. The dough should be soft, if it looks dry add some more water, or half-half, a Tablespoon at a time until it is moist. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and set aside. You will roll this out to about a 1/4 inch and I take a round plastic 4-inch cover from any container that I get from Costco and cut around it with a shape-paring knife. You put your filling ( recipe down further) about a Tablespoon of it on one side and fold it over and crimp the sides. I get 2 cookie sheets out and line them with parchment paper. Dust the cookie sheets with flour so the perogies won't stick. This recipe makes about 45 perogies I cook them in a large pot of salted boiling water and add a little oil in too. When the perogies rise to the top remove them with a slotted spoon on another cookie sheet that has been well-oiled. You can freeze these. I put them into the freezer on a cookie sheet and remove them once frozen and put them into freezer bags. You can fry them up in butter or simply add PAM spray to them and microwave them for 60 seconds or when they are warm but not overdone.
Cheese Filling
Peel about 4 pounds of red or yellow potatoes
Boil and mash them up, add about 1 stick of butter,
some milk and about 2 cups of shredded sharp cheddar,
and 1 cup of good quality American Cheese, (Boar's Head)
and beat with a mixer. Add salt and pepper. You can add onions
or chives if you wish. Some people add other filling such as
Farmer's cheese, mushrooms, or meats.
Pierogies are time-consuming but absolutely delicious. I only make them at Christmas and Easter. You can experiment with various kinds of cheese but I always use cheddar as my base cheese.
Back to my heritage. Since doing my DNA test I have made new friends with several of my distant cousins. I used the My Heritage site to investigate my ancestors and what stories I discovered. My cousin said I could write a novel about it all. In fact, I am writing a book and utilizing many of the surnames of my ancestors in it. The study of ancestry is human history and all of us have our own story. I can trace some distant relatives back to 990 in England and 1080 so far in Germany-Swisserland.I have no Russian in my Eastern European heritage only, Czech, Ukrainian, Hungarian, and Polish. Good Luck with further investigations into your heritage and Tommy, I can also cook up some good Italian homemade pasta too.
Tommy Carcetti
(44,498 posts)Or as my countrymen might say, Дякую!
ShazzieB
(22,590 posts)I know my mother's family has been in the US for many generations, except for one great grandfather, who came from Germany (don’t know the exact location) in the 19th century, settled in Georgia, and got drafted to serve in the Civil War, on the Confederate side.
My father's parents came over from the UK - Blackpool, England, to be exact - in 1911. They were of Irish descent, but were both born in England and identified as British. I don't know what part (s) of Ireland their ancestors were from or how long ago any of them emigrated to England. I very much want to visit England, especially Blackpool, my father's birthplace, but I feel less of an attachment to Ireland and wouldn't know where to visit there specifically.
Obviously I need to do lot more genealogical work on my family history, but it is what it is.
meadowlander
(5,133 posts)but when I was in high school I did a student exchange with a family that lived in Germany right on the border with Switzerland. Their cousins had a cherry orchard and one of my best memories was climbing cherry trees and picking them all day and then having Schwartzwalderkirschtorte for dinner.
Years later when I got interested in genealogy, I found out that my family had been traced back to the 15th century living in and around the cluster of villages where I'd gone as an exchange student and had been cherry farmers for almost every generation until they came to the US to a famous cherry growing region where they carried on being cherry farmers up until my grandmother.
So it certainly explains why I love cherries and cherry trees so much. I'm definitely planning to go back there now that I know more about the significance. And I planted a cherry tree in my garden just so I always have that connection.
wnylib
(26,012 posts)ancestral countries and probably never will go, due to health issues now. But I have found a lot of information about them and the names of cities and villages that they came from.
Tracking down where my maternal grandfather's family came from was quite a challenge. My grandfather was born in Buffalo two weeks after his parents arrived in 1888 from the German Empire.
My grandfather told me the names of the two villages that his parents came from, right next to each other, in West Prussia, the ruling nation of the German Empire. He said that they were on the Polish border. I did not know what the German and Polish maps looked like then so I looked in all the wrong places. The region that is now northern Poland is where East and West Prussia were in the 1800s. So the border that my grandfather meant was the southern border of Prussia with Poland. That area is now west central Poland.
A German born librarian at my college's library found a historical map of Prussia and located the two villages for me. They have Polish names now.
I would probably not be very welcome looking for a German ancestral site in modern Poland. The Poles despise the Germans who once ruled there and who occupied their country in WWII. My g-grandfather was landed gentry, similar to an English manor lord.
When Poland was liberated at the end of WWII, all people of German descent fled. My grandfather's relatives fled to what became East Germany and changed their name. They sent a letter to their American relatives to update them, but due to communist rule, did not dare maintain contact. My grandfather knew what name they took and where they went, but would not tell me. It was the 1960s, height of the Cold War. He feared that I'd someday try to contact them.
My grandfather's surname was Polish, but his wife's and his mother's surnames were German. All first names for generations were German. But I wonder if the surname came from Polish/German intermarriage. There's a Polish village not far from where they lived that has the same name, so I also wonder if the surname came about as a location name, e.g. "Johann of (village name)." I'll never know.
My mother's mother came to the US from the German Empire, too, in 1890 when she was 3 years old. I found immigration papers that listed their village as Dargun, Mecklenburg-Schwerin, near the Danish border.
My paternal ancestors were Seneca, Mohawk, and British on one side. The Brits were mostly English, but there were some Scots and Welsh, too. They were colonial Puritans. I have a LOT on them and the villages that they came from
The other side of my paternal ancestry is Native American (unknown tribe), German from Hamburg, and German Swiss from Bern. I know very little about them except that they settled first in Missouri in the mid 1800s, then went to southern Ohio, and finally to northwestern PA. While the rest of the country was moving westward, they moved eastward. :
As a resident of western NY, I already live in the homeland of my Seneca ancestors.
Model35mech
(2,047 posts)Leighton-Buzzard, in Bedfordshire England.
That's my maternal grandfather's side. Her mother came as an infant from Sweden, where the family were rural Skaners.
My father's side is complicated as My Grtgrandfather, born 1836, seems to have been running from something and altered his name multiple times and ways. His son's (my grandfather wedding license in Illinois claims his birth in Lubbenau in Brandenburg (old east germany) in Nov 1863, but on the 23 of Dec of 1863 he has a christening record in a small village church on the Dutch border (extreme western Germany. Strange.
sakabatou
(46,148 posts)Through my dad's side, I've never been in Lithuania, and the Russian Empire no longer exists. If I want to go back over 2,000 years, then yes. In that particular year, you'd end up in Judea (now Israel).
phylny
(8,818 posts)immigrated from. I have to say, it was profoundly moving. I felt like I belonged there. I also realized that for my great grandparents to leave and come to the United States, their poverty had to be crippling because it was so beautiful there you’d never really want to leave.
If we didn’t have our kids here, I’d move there.