The House. Iconic words. The big house we dream we'll have when we have kids. Mom will have the baby, and you'll drive her up to "The House." You'll see your kids learn to ride their bikes in the driveway, and then you'll watch your kids going out for their own first drive.
Megan Smolenyak | Posted 05.08.2012
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.
Rym Tina Ghazal | Posted 04.27.2012
Too much has been said about death and Syria, and so I wanted to focus on life and Syria, and those who have seen it all and understand it best, like my grandmother.
Megan Smolenyak | Posted 04.23.2012
At a time when we've become so cynical, it's refreshing to attend the annual Ellis Island Family Heritage Awards, which celebrate individuals who have contributed to the American experience in various realms
Megan Smolenyak | Posted 04.15.2012
The cost for nine relatives of the First Lady -- including her mother, grandparents and great-grandparents -- to rent these cozy quarters in 1940? $45 a month or roughly the equivalent of $737 today.
Nikki Luongo | Posted 04.11.2012
We all get characteristics from our parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles, Our eyes, hair color, even the shapes of our hands and the curves of our ...
Megan Smolenyak | Posted 04.04.2012
One has to wonder if nine-year-old Neil Armstrong, who once spent his days walking around St. Mary's, Ohio, ever imagined that he would eventually be the first to walk on the moon.
Megan Smolenyak | Posted 04.30.2012
Several years ago, I conducted extensive genealogical research into the heritage of Michelle Obama. A few of my discoveries -- particularly those per...
Megan Smolenyak | Posted 04.25.2012
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.
Megan Smolenyak | Posted 04.22.2012
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.
Megan Smolenyak | Posted 04.15.2012
It's providential for Michelle's sake that LaVaughn ever met Fraser C. Robinson, Jr. because he would have much preferred to never leave the South.
Megan Smolenyak | Posted 04.09.2012
Of Michelle's grandparents, LaVaughn Johnson was the most like her. A native Chicagoan, she was an early product of the mixing effect of the Great Migration with parents of radically different histories.
Megan Smolenyak | Posted 04.04.2012
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.
Megan Smolenyak | Posted 03.31.2012
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...
Megan Smolenyak | Posted 03.13.2012
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.
Megan Smolenyak | Posted 03.10.2012
For genealogy buffs and those who just can't get enough of celebrities, there's plenty of cause to celebrate in 2012 as there will be four solid months of famous roots on air.
Patricia Rust | Posted 02.28.2012
I was already on a cruise through the Mediterranean, so I thought that after the pleasure of cruising, I could enjoy the thrill of research in some libraries in a country where I knew no one. Little did I know that this former country of strangers would soon become a country of friends!
Peter Abaci, M.D. | Posted 01.29.2012
Evidence strongly dictates that a key ingredient of putting together a long-term plan for aging well is to comprise a detailed family history.
Megan Smolenyak | Posted 12.18.2011
If you were to Google your way around the Internet, you'd probably be left with the impression that Josh is half-Jewish (from Russia and Poland) and half-Norwegian, and you wouldn't be too far off. He's actually 5/8 Jewish and 1/8 Norwegian.
Peter Mandel | Posted 12.06.2011
One bird calls and calls. Then stops. It's silent when we get to a granite cottage. Ivy covers its walls and row after row of potted flowers guard its door. Marigolds. Just what my grandparents grew.
Megan Smolenyak | Posted 12.03.2011
As a genealogist, I'm on the receiving end of lots of inquiries from journalists. Usually they're wondering about the roots of this or that famous pe...
Megan Smolenyak | Posted 11.01.2011
A few weeks ago, I invited readers to send their orphan heirlooms home. By this, I mean returning family treasures to descendants of their original ow...
Megan Smolenyak | Posted 10.21.2011
This has been a peculiar week in the world of genealogy, ushering in unexpected changes in three online, family history destinations.
Megan Smolenyak | Posted 10.09.2011
About a decade ago, I accidentally launched into a sub-hobby of genealogy - one I refer to as orphan heirloom rescues. The idea is to return items to descendants of their original owners.
Megan Smolenyak | Posted 09.17.2011
Kyra Sedgwick describes the discovery that she and her husband Kevin Bacon are 10th cousins once-removed as "a little upsetting," but it shouldn't be. Here's why.
Jill Robinson | Posted 05.20.2012