Introduction: Gender’s Influence on Genealogy Narratives

Smith, Amy M.

doi:10.3390/genealogy2030030

Cited by 1 publication

(1 citation statement)

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“…In addition to my father's versions-as is pointed out by so many authors working in the area of genealogy-I was also armed with my own memories of family stories told to me either by someone from the older generation who experienced things or repeated from their memory of stories told to them by their own ancestors (Hatton 2019;Knight 2017Knight , 2019Schroer and Hine 2017;Smith 2018). (Kretsedemas 2016(Kretsedemas , 2017 discusses these as socially constructed family narratives, which are inevitably affected both by how a family sees itself (or wishes to see itself) and by the narrative mythology of the times.…”

Section: The Search For Authenticitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Family History: Fact versus Fiction

Meyer

2020

Genealogy

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Current interest in genealogy and family history has soared, but the research journey may be fraught. Original intentions may be inhibited and inevitably altered as the actual historical details are revealed and documented through recorded evidence. While liberties may be taken with memoir and even autobiography, critical family history requires scrutiny of the lived events uncovered—some of which may be in sharp contrast to family myths passed down through generations. I traveled to three states and conducted archival research in local libraries, court houses, historical county archives, and museums in my search for original sources of authentic information about the names listed on a family tree over centuries. This article reports on how and why research on the genealogy of two families joined by marriage shifted from a straightforward recording of chronological facts to the development of a novel. The case can be made that fiction provides an effective and engaging tool for the elaboration of interconnected lives through the addition of historical context, enriching personal details, and imagined dialogue. Key accuracies needed for a critical family history can be preserved but in a genre that enables characters and their stories to come to life.

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