Page 141 - Family History
P. 141
Family Stories
A Very Special Thanksgiving – Part Two
About a year ago I wrote to you regarding a genealogy
discovery I had made … the possibility that some of us,
through a Stanley connection, could be Mayflower
descendants! It is estimated that about 35 million
Americans can trace roots back to those 102
passengers. In our case, a remarkable six persons: John
Alden married Priscilla Mullins, Priscilla’s father
William, her stepmother Alice, her brother Joseph and
George Soule. Three of those six survived the first
winter to make it to the first Thanksgiving.
I was convinced it was true - but did I make a
mistake? I checked and re-checked. I spent a great deal of time at online
research. I went up and down my line of descendants over and over. This was too
important not to be 100% sure and so, I began a process to prove it …
The Local Genealogy Club
I had first contacted my local genealogy club more than a year ago to ask for
advice. I waited for one of their monthly meetings and showed up with my
notes. There were only two men at the meeting that day. They were dismantling
library shelves and packing up to move to a new building. There was hardly
anything left. They took a break from their work and I told them my story.
Their advice: send out the letter (the one you got last year) and keep working to
prove it. And so …I did. I also decided to formally join their club. Two months
later I attended an open house at the new clubhouse. I paid a fee and became a
member of the Clark County Genealogy Society. I soon learned that at least two
other members of my new club were Mayflower descendants – though no one I
talked with had tried to prove it formally. Someone suggested that I prove my
lineage first and then give a lecture-presentation on how I did it! The new
clubhouse with its large meeting room and genealogy library complete with
what are known as Mayflower (lineage) “Silver Books”, was only open for two
months before it closed due to the pandemic. It has yet to reopen.
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