Ancestry

10 Things You Didn't Know About Martha Stewart's Family Tree

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 05.08.2012

Read More: Communism, Slavic, Martha Stewart, Jersey City, Heritage, Poland, Ancestry, Family Tree, Immigration, Genealogy, Family History, Ellis Island, Martha Stewart Family, Martha Stewart Living, Martha Stewart Daughter, Celebrity News
Megan Smolenyak

Martha's grandfather, Frank Kostyra, owned a tavern in Jersey City. On the 4th of July 1929, two boys stuck a piece of dynamite in the foundation of the tavern, causing an explosion. It's somewhat remarkable that the building is still a tavern today.

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Mystery Of Horse's Origins Solved With Help Of Hair Samples, Math

AP | RAPHAEL SATTER | Posted 05.08.2012

Read More: Dna, Video, Domesticated Animals, New Research, Ancestry, Horses, Genetics, Genetics Study, Animals, Tame Animals, Science News

LONDON -- A genetic study of horses across Eastern Europe and Central Asia has traced the domestication of one of man's most powerful animal allies to...

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Michelle Obama's Ancestors: The First Lady's Multicultural, Great Migration Past (VIDEO)

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 04.30.2012

Read More: White House, Flotus, Michelle Obama, The South, Heritage, Multicultural, Family Tree, Black History Month, History, Video, Melvinia Shields, Ancestors, First Lady, Ancestry, Chicago, Slavery, Roots, Genealogy, Family History, Great Migration, African Americans, Celebrity News
Megan Smolenyak

Several years ago, I conducted extensive genealogical research into the heritage of Michelle Obama. A few of my discoveries -- particularly those per...

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Michelle Obama's Ancestors: Purnell Shields

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 04.25.2012

Read More: Birmingham, White House, Purnell Shields, Dolphus Shields, Flotus, Michelle Obama, Heritage, Alabama, Marian Robinson, Georgia, Obama, Melvina Magruder, Black History Month, History, Ancestors, David Patterson, South Carolina, Slavery, Chicago, Ancestry, Roots, Desegregation, Genealogy, Melvina Shields, Marian Shields, Family History, Spartanburg, African Americans, Great Migration, Chicago News
Megan Smolenyak

D.T. lived in hopeful expectation, but even today, it's stunning to think that the life of this one-time slave overlapped with that of his great-granddaughter, Marian, who now resides in the White House.

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Michelle Obama's Ancestors: Rebecca Jumper (aka Coleman)

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 04.22.2012

Read More: Purnell Shields, White House, Flotus, Michelle Obama, Native American, Rebecca Coleman, Chicago, Heritage, Indian, Multicultural, Marian Robinson, Obama, Virginia, Emancipation, Ancestors, First Lady, Freedom, Ancestry, Slavery, Roots, Rebecca Jumper, Genealogy, Family History, Great Migration, African Americans, Tuscarora, North Carolina, Celebrity News
Megan Smolenyak

Michelle's maternal grandmother, Rebecca Jumper, did an admirable job of keeping her past a secret, but that's probably because she didn't know much about it herself. That's unfortunate, because hers is an intriguing history.

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Michelle Obama's Ancestors: The Great Mixing

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 04.04.2012

Read More: Dna, Michelle Obama, Family Tree, Ancestors, First Lady, Ancestry, Chicago, Celebrity, Family History, Michelle Obama Genealogy, Celebrity News
Megan Smolenyak

Among the half million African Americans who moved to Chicago during the Great Migration were a number of Michelle's relatives, and they hailed from Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, Louisiana, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Missouri and the southern part of Illinois.

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Michelle Obama's Ancestors: The Great Migration

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 04.02.2012

Read More: Civil Rights Movement, Flotus, Michelle Obama, Heritage, Underground Railroad, Civil Rights, History, Jim Crow, Chicago Defender, Ancestors, Chicago, Ancestry, Roots, Genealogy, African Americans, Great Migration, Celebrity News
Megan Smolenyak

This is the second in a series about the ancestry of the First Lady. The introduction can be found here: Michelle Obama's Ancestors: Chicago Beginni...

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Michelle Obama's Ancestors: Chicago Beginnings

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 03.31.2012

Read More: White House, Michelle Obama, Heritage, Multicultural, Marian Robinson, Grandparents, LaVaughn Johnson, Ancestors, First Lady, Ancestry, Chicago, Roots, Fraser Robinson, Genealogy, Family History, Great Migration, Celebrity News
Megan Smolenyak

Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama's presence in the White House is historic. A hundred years from now, scholars and school children will still be stud...

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A Peek into Blue Ivy Carter's Past

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 03.13.2012

Read More: French, Louisiana, Beyonce, Creole, Celebrity Kids, Barack Obama, Katy Perry, Cajun, Ancestry, Genealogy, Jay-Z, Barry Manilow, Ireland, Blue Ivy Carter, Family History, Acadian, Celebrity News
Megan Smolenyak

She's not even a week old, so the newborn daughter of Beyoncé and Jay-Z doesn't have a past yet -- except in the genealogical sense.

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Honoring Fearless Ancestors At The Holidays

Deborah Swiss | Posted 02.24.2012

Read More: Friendship, Women, Australia, Family Traditions, Survivor, Ancestry, Holidays, Christmas, Roots, Fifty News
Deborah Swiss

The holidays offer a special time to share the cherished traditions that our children will remember and pass on to the next generation. Gathering our families together for dinners and celebrations, it's easy to forget what a long road it's been for some of our ancestors and the lucky chain of circumstances that brought us all to our holiday feasts.

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An Ancestral Revolution

Cheryl Wills | Posted 10.17.2011

Read More: ancestry.com, History, African-Atlantic Genealogical Society, Genealogy, Heritage, Ancestry, Black Voices News
Cheryl Wills

Genealogy may seem like an innocuous hobby, but in this age of smartphones and e-Readers, more and more families are anxious to download two very basic and sometimes profound answers: Who am I and where did I come from?

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The Cure For Disease: Is It In Your Genes?

Posted 08.16.2011

Read More: Public Health, Genetics, Disease, Health, Ancestry, Healthy Living News

If you've been waiting to jump on the personalized nutrition bandwagon, now may be the time. A new study conducted by the Wake Forest Baptist Medical ...

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What Kind of Name Is Boreanaz?

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 07.16.2011

Read More: Slovakia, Bones, Emily Deschanel, Heritage, Books, Fbi, Italy, Slovenia, New York, Colorado, Television, David Boreanaz, Pennsylvania, Ancestry, Forensics, Mysteries, Genealogy, Sicily, Fox, Family History, Kathy Reichs, Celebrities, Entertainment News
Megan Smolenyak

What of Boreanaz? Well, you'd be hard-pressed to find anyone of Italian heritage who tracks to more extreme edges of the country.

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Sneak Peek: Obama to Visit His Irish Ancestral Hometown of Moneygall

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Video, Ancestors, Heritage, Enda Kenny, Ancestry, Moneygall, Smolenyak, Genealogy, Ireland, Music, Barack Obama, Irish, Travel News
Megan Smolenyak

It was just last week on St. Patrick's Day while hosting Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Enda Kenny at the White House that President Obama announced his u...

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WWI Soldier Representative of Connection Between Ireland and America

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Arlington National Cemetery, Annie Moore, St. Patrick's Day, World War 1, Ireland, United States, Wwi, Barack Obama, Funeral, Census, Soldiers, Army, Military, Ancestry, Genealogy, Barry Manilow, Irish, Family History, Ellis Island, Ww1 Surviror, Wwi Survivor, World War 1 Survivor, Thomas Costello, World News
Megan Smolenyak

With St. Patrick's Day looming, then, I hope you'll understand that I have no choice but to surrender to my genetic urges and write of yet another link between our two countries: Private Thomas D. Costello.

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The Real Black History

Robin Quivers | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Black History, Robin Quivers, African Americans, Ancestry, Black History Month, Healthy Living News
Robin Quivers

Next time you're enjoying that discussion with friends about where you come from, just remember that most African Americans have no answer to that question.

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South Dakota Winters Set Records That Still Stand

Tim Giago | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: South Dakota Snow, Snowstorms, Ancestry, South Dakota Snowstorms, South Dakota Winter, South Dakota, Winter Weather, Healthy Living News
Tim Giago

I know we have horrible winters, and there are times on these frozen mornings when I wonder what in the hell I am doing here. But then I think of my ancestors, living in tipis and surviving.

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Emmitt Smith: Who Do You Think You Are?

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Florida, Africa, Heritage, Football, Benin, History, Alabama, Virginia, Nfl, American History, Who Do You Think You Are?, Ancestry, Emmitt Smith, Slavery, Genealogy, Dancing With the Stars, Dallas Cowboys, Family History, African Americans, Nbc, Celebrity, Celebrities, Entertainment News
Megan Smolenyak

Emmitt James Smith grew up wanting to be a Dallas Cowboy, but he far exceeded that aspiration. And now, after retiring, Emmitt has welcomed the opportunity to explore his roots.

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Growing Bolder: Social Networking With Dead Relatives (VIDEO)

Marc Middleton | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Geneaology, Slidepollajax, Baby Boomers, Living News, Ancestry, Video, Family History, Genealogy Research, Family, Family Genealogy, Healthy Living News
Marc Middleton

Aided by vast digitized databases and powerful software programs, genealogy has rapidly transformed from a mind-numbing process of slow research into an exciting game of personal puzzle solving.

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Custer's First Stand: Old West Point Applications Put Online

AP | CHRIS CAROLA | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: West Point, Military History, West Point Applications, Ancestry, ancestry.com, West Point Application Archive, Military, Military Academy, Civil War, History, College News

ALBANY, N.Y. — Years before leading his vastly outnumbered troops to their doom at Little Bighorn, a young George Armstrong Custer was described...

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The Ghosts of America's Past Speak

Cheryl Wills | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: ancestry.com, Ellis Island, Ancestry, Immigration Collection, Ancestors, Immigration, Family Tree, Ellis Island Immigration, Healthy Living News
Cheryl Wills

It's called the U.S. Immigration Collection. Americans who are eager to do more than just connect the dots in their family's tree can listen online to invaluable oral histories of their ancestors.

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Finding Family, 80 Years Later

Daniel Koh | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Family Reunions, Lebanon, Family History, Ancestry, Family, Travel News
Daniel Koh

In the summer of 2010, my family decided to take a trip to Lebanon in a quest to find the family that we hadn't spoken to in more than a half century.

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Don't "Protect" Us From Our Own Genetic Information

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Hipaa, Genetic Testing, Dna, Ftc, Heritage, Genome, Ancestry, Science, Medical, Genetics, Genealogy, Fda, Genomics, Direct-to-Consumer, Nist, Human Genome, Technology News
Megan Smolenyak

Unfortunately, there is a tendency towards a paternalistic attitude by certain groups in the medical professions who seek to limit access to medical information that is not directly under their control.

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You Asked for It, Ricky Gervais!

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: History, Ricky Gervais, Madonna, Celine, Who Do You Think You Are?, Ancestry, Emmitt Smith, Hillary Clinton, Genealogy, Lisa Kudrow, Family History, Matthew Broderick, Nbc, French-Canadian, Ellen Degeneres, Home News
Megan Smolenyak

It's hard to get genealogists riled up, but Ricky Gervais has succeeded. Not that he intended to. Asked in a recent interview whether he would ever ...

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Michelle Obama: Family History Of First Lady Is Complex, Tied To Slavery

The New York Times | RACHEL L. SWARNS and JODI KANTOR | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Relatives, Dolphus Shields, Great-Great-Great-Grandparents, Melvinia Shields, First Lady, Michelle Obama, White Father, Ancestry, Slavery, Roots, Slave Mother, Family History, Michelle-Obama-Ancestry, Politics News

Melvinia Shields, the enslaved and illiterate young girl, and the unknown white man who impregnated her are the great-great-great-grandparents of Mich...

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