Saturday Night Genealogy Fun -- Describe One of Your Own, or an Ancestor's, Life Turning Point

 Calling all Genea-Musings Fans: 

 It's Saturday Night again - 

time for some more Genealogy Fun!!

Here is your assignment if you choose to play along (cue the Mission Impossible music, please!):

1)  Every historical person has major events, milestones and "turning points" in their life, from birth through death and even beyond.  These events, milestones and turning points can be the basis for family stories of the historical person.

2)  Please share one of those events in your own life, or the life of one of your ancestors. 

2)  Share your information about your major event, milestone or turning point in your own blog post, writing a comment on this blog post, or put it in a Substack post, Facebook Note, or some other social media system.  Please leave a comment on this post so others can find it.

Here's mine:

I usually ask my AI assistant to help me define milestones and turning points in an ancestor's life because the LLM is always more perceptive than I am.  For instance, I asked ChatGPT5 about the major events and milestones in Isaac Seaver's life today in Major Events and Milestones In the Life of Isaac Seaver (1823-1901) of Massachusetts. I asked for turning points in Devier J. Smith's life in Using Artificial Intelligence Tools To Find Possible Family Stories. 

I'm going to resist asking Claude for my own milestones and turning points and share about my own turning point in my genealogy and family history work in the recent past.

After 36 years of doing genealogy research, collecting hundreds of tens of thousands of records (who's counting?), adding over 75,000 historical persons to my family tree, and writing over 17,000 blog posts and over 500 genealogical sketches for my ancestors, I decided to start writing family stories about my own life and about the lives of my closest ancestors (well, from 3rd great-grandparents forward in time).  But, and it's a BIG but, I don't have stories about the day-to-day lives of my ancestors -- I have only records of events about their lives and a few family stories about my parents and grandparents, plus my own life experiences.  How best can I tell their stories so that my descendants and relatives can understand and appreciate them?

One of my turning points over 82 years happened in early 2024: As I was experimenting with artificial intelligence LLMs, I found that they could write a much better genealogical sketch, biography, memoir, family story, poem, song lyrics, and dialogue from rough notes, timelines, and the genealogical sketches.  Then I found in 2025 the infographics to illustrate my blog posts, the audio overviews to describe the ancestor, the video overviews to describe them with images, and slide show presentations to summarize their lives.  

I've often said that my AI writings is like having a ghostwriter and asking it to "take my genealogical sketch and write an engaging biography or family story."  And it does so without fail, subject to my review and editing, I can combine the biography with the infographic, poem/song, stories, audio and video overviews, etc. into an ABC Biography (my term, described in Using Artificial Intelligence In the Ancestor Biography Creation (ABC) Process - Updated.

As a result, I have written, with the help of the LLMs, over 800 blog posts using AI about my own life and the lives of those closest ancestors (plus my wife's closest ancestors and my Revolutionary War ancestors - about 100 historical persons) in the past two-plus years, all based on my ancestor genealogical sketches and my own memories.  All of my own writings with AI are on my Randy's AI and Genealogy page. It's been a lot of fun, and I've learned a lot about the times and places that they might have experienced.  

I've also written a book about my own life experiences using StoryWorth in 2024 to tell about 40 of my own stories in my technical writing style (just the facts, no emotion, boring).  I published that book in late 2024 and provided copies of the book as a Christmas gift to my two daughters and their children. I'm not sure anybody read them!   I used the same text, edited the stories a bit, and published them in a MyHeritage MyStories book in early 2025.  I have a second MyStories book in work using my "The Watchful House" series of stories (see my Randy's AI and Genealogy page). 

So what's next for me in this adventure in using a ghostwriter to write biographies and family stories? The obvious answer is to "write a book" about an ancestral family or a string of families (e.g., "My Seaver Family Story From 1608 to the Present").  Or several, or many, books.  The challenge for me is to find the time to put the book(s) together.  And then determine how to distribute them. 

I'm leaning toward a PDF for a person or family, with photographs if I have them, including the genelaogical sketch, biography, memoir, stories, etc., and links to the videos and slide presentations on my YouTube channel. I can print a copy of the PDF for my own library, send a link to it to my descendants and relatives (and anyone else who is interested), post it to an online website (Scribd, or similar), and donate copies to the FamilySearch Digital Library, the Internet Archive, and any other repository that wants it.

So that's my personal turning point -- I'm in the middle of it right now and I hope that I can finish the work before the inevitable mortality turning point happens. 

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The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2026/08/saturday-night-genealogy-fun-describe_0198895903.html

Copyright (c) 2026, Randall J. Seaver

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Major Events and Milestones In the Life of Isaac Seaver (1823-1901) of Massachusetts

 One of my favorite ancestors is my 2nd great-grandfather, Isaac Seaver (1823-1901) of Massachusetts, a Civil War soldier. His biography is in ABC Biography of #16 Isaac Seaver (1823-1901) of Massachusetts, basede on my genealogical research.

The life of every historical person has a number of  major events and milestones that might change the arc of their life.  There are stories that could be written about each one of those events and milestones with the historical person in the center of the story.

(Google Gemini Notebook Infographic - Major Events and Milestones in Isaac Seaver's Life)

To help me identify the milestonmes in Isaac Seaver's life, I requested OpenAI ChatGPT5 to list the major events and milestones in Isaac Seaver's life, and to describe how it affected his life, based on my biography. Here is the resulting article:

Major Events and Milestones In the Life of Isaac Seaver (1823-1901) of Massachusetts

The biography presents Isaac Seaver’s life as a series of significant personal, family, occupational, military, and financial turning points. I would identify the following as the major milestones:

1. Birth and early family life — 1823

Isaac Seaver was born on October 16, 1823, in Westminster, Massachusetts, the third child and first son of Benjamin and Abigail (Gates) Seaver. His father died when Isaac was only about two years old, leaving his mother to raise the family without her husband. This early loss meant that Isaac grew up without his biological father and under circumstances that required family and community support.

2. Choosing his own guardian — 1838

At age 14, Isaac exercised an unusual degree of legal independence for a boy his age when he formally chose his maternal uncle, Jeremiah Knowlton Gates, as his guardian. The event marked his transition from childhood toward adulthood and suggests that he was beginning to take responsibility for his own affairs. It also provided him with an adult male relative who could guide and represent him during the remainder of his youth.

3. Becoming a skilled blacksmith — by 1846

By age 22, Isaac had completed an apprenticeship and established himself as a blacksmith. This was an important foundation for his adult life: blacksmithing was a skilled and essential trade, and Isaac would continue to earn his living through metalworking for decades. His later occupations as a hay fork maker and mechanic demonstrate how he adapted his skills as manufacturing changed during the nineteenth century.

4. First marriage and devastating loss — 1846–1847

Isaac married 20-year-old Juliet Glazier on September 17, 1846. Their marriage was tragically short-lived. Juliet died in 1847, apparently from complications associated with childbirth, leaving Isaac a young widower with an infant daughter, Juliette. The death profoundly altered the young family's circumstances, and the infant daughter went to live with her maternal grandparents while Isaac continued working.

5. Purchasing his first property — 1847

Only months after Juliet's death, Isaac purchased 50 acres in Gardner, Massachusetts, for $900. This was his first documented real-estate purchase and represented an important step toward economic independence and establishing himself as a property owner. His later property transactions suggest that acquiring and managing real estate became an important part of his financial life.

6. Marriage to Lucretia Townsend Smith — 1851

Four years after becoming a widower, Isaac married Lucretia Townsend Smith in Walpole, Massachusetts. This marriage became the central family relationship of his adult life, lasting nearly 33 years. Together they raised four children, while Isaac's daughter from his first marriage remained part of the extended family. Lucretia's death in 1884 ended the longest marriage of Isaac's life.

7. Establishing himself economically in Westminster — 1858–1861

By 1860, Isaac had returned to Westminster with his growing family and was working as a blacksmith. His property was valued at $1,800 and his personal property at $600, indicating that he had achieved a comfortable degree of financial security. His land transactions in 1858 and 1861 show him actively managing and investing in property. This period appears to have been the high point of his economic establishment before the disruption of the Civil War.

8. Civil War draft registration and military service — 1863–1865

At age 39, Isaac registered for the military draft in 1863 and, despite being older than many soldiers, enlisted as a Private in Company H of the 4th Massachusetts Heavy Artillery on August 10, 1864. He served in the defenses of Washington, D.C., where his regiment helped protect the Union capital. His service lasted until June 17, 1865, after the Confederate surrender. Military service was undoubtedly a major interruption in his family and working life, taking him away from Lucretia and their children during the final year of the war.

9. Transition from craftsman to industrial worker — about 1870

After the Civil War, Isaac and his family moved to Leominster. By 1870 he was working in a "fork shop," rather than simply operating as an independent blacksmith. This reflects the larger industrial transformation occurring in New England, as manufacturing increasingly shifted from individual craftsmen to factories and specialized shops. Isaac's ability to continue earning a living by adapting his traditional metalworking skills illustrates his occupational resilience.

10. Return to blacksmithing — 1880

By 1880, Isaac was again identified as a blacksmith. After adapting to employment in a manufacturing environment, he apparently returned to the trade in which he had spent most of his working life. This suggests either a preference for his traditional occupation or an opportunity to use his considerable experience as a craftsman. In either case, his working life demonstrates his ability to adjust to changing economic circumstances.

11. Death of Lucretia and third marriage — 1884–1888

Lucretia died in March 1884 after nearly 33 years of marriage, leaving Isaac a widower again at age 60. Four years later, at age 64, he married Alvina Matilda (Bradley) Lewis, a 40-year-old widow. This third marriage gave Isaac companionship during the final thirteen years of his life and continued until his death.

12. Declining health and Civil War pension — 1892–1893

At age 68, Isaac's physical condition had deteriorated to the point where he could no longer support himself through manual labor. He applied for an Invalid Pension based on his Civil War service, citing several serious ailments. The government granted him an $8-per-month pension in February 1893. The pension was particularly significant because it provided financial support after decades of physically demanding work and helped him during his retirement years.

13. Retirement and final home — by 1900

By the 1900 census, Isaac was 76 and had no occupation listed, indicating that he had retired. He and Alvina were living at 7 Cedar Street in Leominster, the home that represented the culmination of his moves among several Massachusetts communities. After decades of work, property ownership, marriage, child-rearing, and military service, he was able to spend his final years at home with his third wife.

14. Writing his will and settling his legacy — February 1901

Just two weeks before his death, Isaac prepared his final will. He provided $1,200 and household furnishings for Alvina, made a nominal bequest to the children of his deceased son Benjamin, and divided the remainder of his estate among his four living children. The will reveals Isaac as a man carefully arranging his family's financial affairs at the end of his life and provides an unusually useful glimpse into his decisions concerning his children and stepfamily.

15. Death and family legacy — March 1901

Isaac died in Leominster on March 12, 1901, at age 77. His death from stomach cancer brought to an end nearly eight decades that encompassed enormous changes in American life. He had experienced the loss of his father as a child, the death of his first wife, a long second marriage, Civil War service, industrialization, economic advancement, two more marriages, retirement, and declining health. His gravestone, shared with several members of his family, became a lasting physical record of the family he created during his three marriages.

The overall life story

Taken together, I think the biography's strongest theme is resilience and adaptation. Isaac experienced major losses early and repeatedly, yet established himself in a skilled trade, accumulated property, raised a family, served his country during the Civil War at an age when many men would have remained at home, adapted his occupation to New England's industrialization, and eventually secured a modest retirement. His story is particularly interesting because his personal life and the transformation of nineteenth-century America intersected so closely: he began life as a traditional New England craftsman and ended it as a retired Civil War veteran living in an increasingly industrial community.

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I input this article into the Google Gemini Notebook model and requested a video overview.  The link to the YouTube video is here and the video is below:

All of the AI Large Language Models (LLM) are excellent at summarizing articles and reports.  This is one example.  For other ancestors, I've taken a series of rough notes about the historical person, or just a timeline of life events, with transcriptions and sources, and asked the LLMs, like ChatGPT5, to summarize the notes in a coherent and descriptive way, and they do it well every time.  Frankly, they do it better and much faster than I can do it -- like a ghostwriter -- for FREE.

From a summary like this, a family historian can create a number of historical fiction stories that places the subject in a major event and/or milestone in their life, based on the historical context and known social history in the LLM's training materials for the person, the places and the time they were living.  The stories are historical fiction, but are what might have happened.  

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Links to my blog posts about using Artificial Intelligence are on my Randy's AI and Genealogy page.  Links to AI information and articles about Artificial Intelligence in Genealogy by other genealogists are on my AI and Genealogy Compendium page.

Copyright (c) 2026, Randall J. Seaver

The URL for this post is: https://www.geneamusings.com/2026/08/msjor-ebents-and-milestones-in-life-of.html

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Added and Updated FamilySearch Record Collections - Week of 22 to 28 August 2026

Each week, I try to keep track of the number of Full-Text Search collections (indexed, searchable) and the Images collections (browsable but not searchable) -- see Sections 1) and 2) below. In addition, I list the genealogy historical record collections (often name-indexed) that are added, removed, and/or updated on FamilySearch and listed on the Historical Record Collection list  --  See Section 3.

1)  As of 28 August 2026, there are now 6,730 searchable and full-text transcribed image collections on FamilySearch Full-Text Search this week, an increase of 2 from last week. There are over 2 BILLION "results" in the collections.  It is not possible to see which collections are new, although a clue would be the Last Updated column.

 2)  As of 28 August 2026, there are now 25,995 browsable (some indexed, none transcribed) image collections on FamilySearch Images this week, an increase of 83 from last week. There are over 6.143 BILLION images in these collections.  There are 2,141 collections from the United States, 7,257 from Europe and 223 from Canada.  It is not possible to see which collections are new. Note that the listing now indicates the indexed percentage of some collections.

3)  As of 28 August 2026, there are 3,475 Historical Record Collections (many indexed, many browsable) on FamilySearch (an increase of 1 from last week):

The Deleted, Added and Updated Historical Record Collections this week include:

--- Collections Deleted ---

Japan, Genealogies, 850-2012 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1919701); Browse 87,288 Images only, no index, DELETED
Korea, Collection of Genealogies, 1200-2014 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1398522); Browse 2,519,576 Images only, no index, DELETED
Ukraine, Rivne, Confession Lists, 1799-1939 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000386); 564,349 indexed records with 9,036 record images, DELETED

--- Collections Added ---

*  Italy, Parma, Census Records, 1545-1923 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000453); 163,338 indexed records with 28,554 record images, ADDED 27-Aug-2026
*  Mauritius (Île de France), ANOM, Civil Registration, 1700-1820 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000637); 16,598 indexed records with 6,561 record images, ADDED 29-Jul-2026
*  Ukraine, Chernihiv, Confession Lists, 1620-1933 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000401); 4,326,793 indexed records with 78,282 record images, ADDED 24-Aug-2026
*  Ukraine, Donetsk, Confession Lists, 1868-1924 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000403); 33,238 indexed records with 560 record images, ADDED 17-Aug-2026

--- Collections Updated ---

England, Devon Bishop's Transcripts, 1558-1887 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2515875); 803,171 indexed records with 93,511 record images (was 802,658 records with 93,511 images), UPDATED 21-Aug-2026
England, Northumberland, Parish Registers, 1538-1950 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2353070); 2,703,315 indexed records with 280,015 record images (was 2,596,305 records with 280,015 images), UPDATED 21-Aug-2026
England, Shropshire, Parish Registers, 1538-1922 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3155854); 884,807 indexed records with 62,913 record images (was 884,806 records with 62,913 images), UPDATED 21-Aug-2026
France, Gironde, Civil Registration, 1696-1912 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3235410); 1,219,475 indexed records with 502,219 record images (was 1,218,676 records with 502,219 images), UPDATED 21-Aug-2026
Italy, Mantova, Census, 1714-1910 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000460); 1,180 indexed records with 1,427 record images (was 51,932 records with 1,427 images), UPDATED 27-Aug-2026

Italy, Oristano, Oristano, Civil Registration (Tribunale), 1866-1941 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1947719); 626,578 indexed records with 342,194 record images (was 603,543 records with 342,194 images), UPDATED 26-Aug-2026
Italy, Roma, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1863-1930 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2390532); 825,269 indexed records with 5,066,067 record images (was 825,269 records with 5,066,067 images), UPDATED 21-Aug-2026
Kansas County Marriages, 1855-1911 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1851040); 317,612 indexed records with 154,156 record images (was 272,587 records with 154,156 images), UPDATED 24-Aug-2026
Massachusetts, State Vital Records, 1638-1927 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1928860); 11,820,050 indexed records with 742,594 record images (was 2,926,409 records with 742,594 images), UPDATED 21-Aug-2026
Philippines Civil Registration (National), 1945-1996 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1852584); 7,605,536 indexed records with 20,274,621 record images (was 7,576,932 records with 20,274,621 images), UPDATED 27-Aug-2026

United States, GenealogyBank Obituaries, Births, and Marriages, 1980-2015 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2333694); 28,662,124 indexed records with 46,919,022 record images (was 28,662,127 records with 46,919,022 images), UPDATED 27-Aug-2026

--- Collections with new images ---

Argentina, Military Records, 1911-1936 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000280); 2,929,239 indexed records with 2,932,102 record images (was 2,929,239 records with 2,929,301 images), last updated 03-Apr-2026
BillionGraves Index (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2026973); 31,122,746 indexed records with 32,364,772 record images (was 31,122,746 records with 31,122,743 images), last updated 02-Jun-2026
Brazil, Maranhão, Civil Registration, 1827-2022 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4469402); 1 indexed records with 906,267 record images (was 1 records with 906,251 images), last updated 07-Jun-2024
Brazil, Sergipe, Civil Registration, 1866-2021 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4470324); 1 indexed records with 268,947 record images (was 1 records with 268,946 images), last updated 07-Jun-2024
England, Manchester, Miscellaneous Records, 1700-1916 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2075052); 10,592,399 indexed records with 15,918,581 record images (was 10,592,399 records with 15,918,118 images), last updated 26-Dec-2025

United States, Census, 1950 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4464515); 157,892,854 indexed records with 52,755,598 record images (was 157,892,854 records with 52,755,551 images), last updated 16-Jun-2024

--- Collections with images removed ---

--- Collections with new records ---

Austria, Catholic Church Records, 1565-2007 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000002); 6,394,319 indexed records with 1,055,155 record images (was 6,383,394 records with 1,055,155 images), last updated 25-Dec-2025

--- Collections with records removed ---

Florida, Divorce Index, 1927-2001 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1967745); Index only (3,012,175 records), no images (was 3,012,176 records with 0 images), last updated 28-Feb-2012
Florida, Marriage Index, 1822-1875 and 1927-2001 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1949340); Index only (11,718,360 records), no images (was 11,718,361 records with 0 images), last updated 12-Jan-2012
France, Bas-Rhin, Parish and Civil Registration, 1525-1912 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4116416); 4,303,261 indexed records with 2,090,701 record images (was 4,870,559 records with 2,090,701 images), last updated 17-Jan-2026
United States, Residence Database, 1970-2024 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000290); Index only (413,857,842 records), no images (was 413,857,849 records with 0 images), last updated 22-Jun-2024

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My friend and SDGS colleague, Marshall, has come up with a way to determine which collections are ADDED, DELETED or UPDATED, and to alphabetize the entries in each category. Thanks to Marshall for helping me out here!

Marshall notes that there are:

• 3,475 Historical Record Collection entries
• 3 removed entries
• 4 added entries 
• 11 updated entries
• 6 entries with more or fewer images 
• 5 entries with more or fewer records

Marshall's list shows 3,475 Historical Record Collections this week, an increase of 1 collection. The image website image above shows 3,475 collections, so the website number is in sync with Marshall's list number.

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See previous FamilySearch-related blog posts in        https://www.geneamusings.com/search/label/FamilySearch

The URL for this post is: https://www.geneamusings.com/2026/08/added-and-updated-familysearch-record_0959355645.html

Copyright (c) 2026, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post. Share it on X, Facebook, or Pinterest using the icons below. Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.  Note that all comments are moderated, so they may not be posted immediately.

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Added and Updated Ancestry.com Record Collections - Week of 22 to 28 August 2026

The following genealogy record collections were added to the Ancestry.com Card Catalog page by "Date Updated" during the period from 22 to 28 August 2026: 

The ADDED and Updated collections include:

• Mississippi, U.S., Newspapers.com™ Stories and Events Index, 1800's-current; 289,370,990 indexed records without record images, Updated 8/26/2026. This index allows you to search for your ancestor by name in Mississippi newspapers that are available on Newspapers.com™ from the 1800s to the present.
• New Hampshire, U.S., Newspapers.com™ Stories and Events Index, 1800's-current; 46,044,389 indexed records without record images, Updated 8/26/2026. This index allows you to search for your ancestor by name in New Hampshire newspapers that are available on Newspapers.com™ from the 1800s to the present.
• Global, Geneanet Cemetery Index, 1500-current; 22,415,732 indexed records without record images, Updated  8/25/2026. This collection contains an index of cemetery information posted on Geneanet.org for over 135 countries and territories including France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain, Germany, and the United States.
• U.S., Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Region 7 (Northeastern) Church Records, 1623-1970; 3,256.599 indexed records with record images, ADDED    8/24/2026. This collection contains vital and administrative records created between 1623 and 1970 by churches affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the northeastern United States. 
• Oise, France, Births, Marriages and Deaths, 1531-1922; 22,786,279 indexed records with record images, ADDED 8/24/2026. This collection contains civil registries of births, marriages, and deaths between 1531 and 1922, from Oise, France. Most records are in French, but some records may be in German or Latin.
• Maine, U.S., Arriving and Departing Passenger and Crew Lists, 1818-1962; 17,880 indexed records with record images, Updated 8/21/2026. This collection contains records of arrivals, departures, and border crossings at various places in Maine between 1894 and 1962.
• Marion County, Indiana, U.S., Cemetery Plots, 1851-1892; 1,300 indexed records with record images, ADDED 8/20/2026. This collection contains records for people interred in several Indiana cemeteries between 1851 and 1892.
• Indiana, U.S., Funeral Books, 1890-1999; 13,448 indexed records with record images,   ADDED 8/20/2026. This collection contains records from funeral homes in Indiana dated between 1890 and 2000.
• U.S. Army Award Cards, 1917-1940; 243,776 indexed records without record images, ADDED 8/20/2026. This collection contains an index of information taken from records of military honors awarded to US Army soldiers between 1917 and 1940. 

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The complete Ancestry.com Card Catalog is at https://search.ancestry.com/search/CardCatalog.aspx.

By my count, there are 5 NEW record collections ADDED this past week, per the list above. There are now 33,987 collections available as of 28 August, an INCREASE of 5 from last week. 

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Disclosure: I pay for an All-Access subscription from Ancestry.com. In past years, Ancestry.com provided a complimentary All Access subscription, an autosomal DNA test, material considerations for travel expenses to meetings, and hosted events and meals that I attended in Salt Lake City.

The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2026/08/added-and-updated-ancestrycom-record_0133533511.html

 Copyright (c) 2026, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post. Share it on Facebook, X, or Pinterest using the icons below. Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com. Please note that all Comments are moderated so they may not appear immediately.

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The Letter From Della (Smith) Carringer Arrives in Nebraska in August 1889

 I wondered if my AI Assistant Anthropic Claude could provide me with information about a specific event in an ancestor's daily life in 1889 in McCook, Nebraska.  My 2nd great-grandparents Devier J. and Abigail A. (Vaux) Smith had married in 1861, and had four living children in 1889.  I posted ABC Biographies for them in ABC Biography of #26 Devier James Lamphier Smith (1839-1894) of New York, Wisconsin, Iowa, Missouri, Kansas and Nebraska and ABC Biography of #27 Abigail A. (Vaux) Smith (1844-1931) of New York, Wisconsin, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska and California.

I asked the AI tool Anthropic Claude to "Create a story about the letter from their daughter Della in early August 1889 requesting Abbey to come to California based on the attached biographies." 

(AI NotebookLM infographic -- Della's Letter  in August 1889)

Here is the Anthropic Claude Sonnet 5 Medium response: 

The Letter from Della

Early August 1889 — McCook, Nebraska

The letter arrived on a Tuesday, carried up from the McCook depot by young Tommy Reid, who delivered mail along Main Street for two bits a week. Abigail “Abbey” Smith recognized Della's careful hand on the envelope even before she'd wiped the flour from her fingers to take it from him.

She sat down at the kitchen table to read it, and by the second paragraph her hand had gone to her chest. Her first child, Della (Smith) Carringer, had written from National City, near San Diego, where she and Austin resided after their honeymoon trip in 1887.

Dear Mother, Dr. Wentworth says everything progresses as it should, but I confess I am frightened, being so far from you and knowing no one here well enough to ask the things a woman ought to be able to ask her own mother. Austin is kind but he is at the mill from morning till dark, and I have not one soul to sit with me. The baby is expected near the end of August. I would not ask if I did not need you so.

Abbey read it twice, then folded it along its creases and sat looking out the window at the dry Nebraska hills for a long while before she went to find Davey.

The Conversation with Davey

She found her son at the livery stable, forking hay down from the loft for a customer's team. David Devier “Davey” Smith had his father's build and his mother's steadiness, and at twenty-six he ran the McCook livery about as well as any man in Red Willow County.

"Davey, I need to speak with you about something."

He set the fork against the loft ladder and climbed down, wiping his hands on his trousers. Something in her voice had already told him this wasn't about supper.

"Della's written," Abbey said, and handed him the letter.

Davey read it slowly, the way he did most things, and when he finished he handed it back to her without a word for a moment.

"You mean to go to her."

"I do."

"Mother, that's near two thousand miles. You'd be gone months, likely, if you're to see her through the confinement and after."

"I know the distance, Davey. I have crossed a good deal more than that in my life, one state at a time." She said it gently, not unkindly, but there was a firmness underneath it that Davey recognized from childhood — the same tone she'd used the time he wanted to quit school at twelve to work full days at the stable.

"What about Papa? He's out at the ranch most weeks now. Who tends the house?"

"The house will keep. Your father manages well enough when he's here, and Matie is right here with you if anything wants doing. It is Della who needs tending now, not this house or you two."

Davey rubbed the back of his neck, the way his father did when he was working through a thing he didn't like but knew he couldn't argue against. "You'll go alone? On the cars, all that way?"

"Women travel alone every day, Davey. I am forty-five years old, not an invalid. I will manage a railway ticket."

He almost smiled at that, in spite of himself. "I'll take you down to the depot myself and see about the connections. There's no sense you standing in some junction in Colorado not knowing which platform to find."

"Thank you, Davey." She touched his arm. "I knew you would see the sense of it, even if you don't care for the distance."

"I don't care for the distance," he admitted. "But I care less for the thought of Della alone out there with no one but her husband."

The Conversation with Matie

That afternoon Abbey came home to find her daughter Mary Ann — Matie, the family called her, though she was near twenty-three now and engaged to be married — at home shelling peas on the front step in the last of the daylight.

"Mama! Sit, there's another basket just there." Matie stayed on the step, but Abbey stayed standing, the letter still in her apron pocket where it had stayed all afternoon.

"Della's written. She's asked me to come to her, before the baby comes."

Matie's hands went still over the pea basket. "Is something wrong with her?"

"No — no, nothing of that kind. She's only frightened, being so far off with no family near her. Austin is a good husband but he cannot be a mother to her in this."

"Of course he can't." Matie set the basket aside and stood. "When would you go?"

"Soon as I can manage the arrangements. The baby's due end of August, and I'll want time to get there and settled before that, in case it comes early, the way Davey did."

Matie was quiet a moment, and Abbey could see her doing the same arithmetic David had done — the miles, the months, the empty chair at the table.

"I'll miss you something terrible," Matie said finally. "But you must go. I'd want you if it were me out there alone." She managed a small smile. "Though I'd rather have you a good deal closer than California, if I'm honest about it."

"You have your fiance and friends here, and Davey still here in the house. Della has no one."

"I know it." Matie picked the basket back up, mostly to have something to do with her hands. "Will you write to me? Tell me everything — what it's like out there, and the baby, and whether Della's truly all right?"

"Every week, I promise you that."

"And Papa? Does he know yet?"

Abbey's mouth tightened just slightly. "Not yet. I wanted to speak with you and Davey first. I'll write him at the ranch tonight, though I expect he won't be pleased."

The Letter to Devier

Devier J. “D.J.” Smith was out at the Kansas ranch (near Wano in Cheyenne County) that week, as he was most weeks now, and had been for some time — the horses and cattle wanted more looking after than a man could manage riding back and forth to town, and McCook and the ranch had settled into an arrangement that suited neither of them much but that neither had found a better answer to. Abbey wrote to him that night by lamplight, choosing her words with more care than she generally bothered to.

Dear D.J.,

Della has written asking me to come to her in San Diego before her confinement, as she has no family near and is badly frightened. I mean to go. Davey will see me to the depot and I expect to be settled with her within the fortnight, God willing the connections run smooth.

I do not know how long I will be needed there — through her lying-in certainly, and some weeks after, until she is strong enough to manage the child and the house both. I have asked Matie to take care of things here, and Davey is at the house should anything want a man's hand to it.

I know you will say it is a long way to send a woman alone, and perhaps you are right, but there is no one else to send, and I would not forgive myself if I stayed here comfortable while my daughter labored alone two thousand miles off. You have managed a good many things alone yourself these past years out at that ranch, and I expect you can manage a good many more while I am gone.

I will write you from Colorado and again when I have arrived, so you will not fret over the traveling of it.

Your wife, Abbey

D.J.'s reply came five days later, forwarded on from Wano, short in the way his letters generally were:

Abbey —

Go to her. A girl having her first ought to have her mother by her, whatever the distance. Don't fret about things here, they'll keep same as they always do. Wire when you're safe arrived so I know you didn't fall off the train someplace in the mountains.

D.J.

Abbey read it standing at the kitchen table, and something in her shoulders loosened that she hadn't quite known was tight. It was not a letter of great tenderness, but she had been married to the man for twenty-eight years and knew well enough that this was, in its way, exactly that.

She wrote a letter to Della that day, and posted it to National City.

Departure

She left McCook on a Thursday morning in the middle of August, Davey driving her to the depot in the buggy with her single trunk roped in behind. Matie had come too with a small parcel of dried apples and biscuits for the journey, pressed into Abbey's hands at the last moment as though she couldn't quite let her mother board without giving her something.

"Three days, maybe four, on the cars," Davey said, checking his pocket watch against the depot clock. "You've got your connections written down?"

"I have them, Davey. I am not likely to forget where Denver is."

He almost smiled, the same way he had in the stable. "Wire us from Denver anyhow."

"I will wire you from every town with a telegraph office between here and the Pacific Ocean if it will ease your minds," Abbey said, and kissed them both — Matie first, holding her a moment longer than was strictly necessary, and then Davey, who bore it with the slightly embarrassed patience of a grown son being kissed on a public platform.

The whistle sounded down the track. Abbey climbed the steps with her carpetbag, found her seat, and looked back once through the window at her son and daughter standing together on the McCook platform, growing smaller as the train pulled west and then south, carrying her toward a daughter she had not seen in two years and a grandchild she had not yet met, four days and two thousand miles away.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Author's Note: This is a work of historical fiction based on real people, documented family facts and locations. The conversations and specific details are imagined, as no firsthand accounts of these discussions survive.

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The AI Google NotebookLM Video Overview of this story is in (and on my YouTube channel):  

This is historical fiction based on known events in the lives of my ancestors -- it might have been this way. Devier J. and Abigail (Vaux) Smith are my 2nd great-grandparents through their daughter Della (Smith) Carringer (1862-1944), and I have significant information about this family from the available records, but I know nothing about their day-to-day lives.

As always, I am amazed at what life was like in any place over 130 years ago. This description of their family life in 1889 Nebraska is interesting and so different from our current daily activities.

After I read these types of social history summaries, I wish that I could be a time traveler for one day to visit this Smith family in 1889 Nebraska and witness their daily lives.  I'm glad that the general lifestyles and occupations are known from historical records and witness accounts.

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Links to my blog posts about using Artificial Intelligence are on my Randy's AI and Genealogy page.  Links to AI information and articles about Artificial Intelligence in Genealogy by other genealogists are on my AI and Genealogy Compendium page.

Copyright (c) 2026, Randall J. Seaver

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Findmypast Friday: Uncover the Milestones In Your Ancestors' Lives

  I received this information from Findmypast today:

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Discover essential English additions this week.

We've added a new set of Southwark marriage records this week, and updated three existing will and burial collections.

Spanning 414 years, these important new additions will help you to trace key moments within your family tree.

Surrey, Southwark Marriages and Banns

This brand-new collection consists of 15,554 marriage records from Southwark, covering 1810 to 1942.

London, Archdeaconry Court of London Wills Index, 1549-1807

We've updated our Archdeaconry Court of London Wills Index with 1,608 new additions this week.

Greater London Burial Index

We also updated our Greater London Burial Index, with 78,546 new records to explore spanning almost 300 years.

Cumberland Burials

We also bolstered our collection of Cumberland burial records, with 2,6645 new additions covering 1528 to 1921.

New pages from Weston-super-Mare to Wellington

261,444 pages joined our newspaper archive this week, with six brand new titles and updates to 25 of our existing publications.

New titles:

• Comet (Dublin), 1831–1833
• Daily Sketch, 1919
• Eastern Bengal and Assam Era, 1907–1908, 1910–1914
• Labour Union Journal, 1892
• Middlesbrough Weekly News and Cleveland Advertiser, 1877
• Monmouthshire Chronicle, 1875–1877
• Wellington Weekly News, 1876, 1879

Updated titles:

• Banbury Beacon, 1870–1879, 1890
• Bishop's Castle Advertiser and Clun News, 1919
• Carlisle Express and Examiner, 1877, 1880, 1889
• Chelmsford Chronicle, 2005
• Crystal Palace District Times & Advertiser, 1951
• Daylight, 1890, 1892
• Downpatrick Recorder, 1865, 1875–1877
• Eastbourne Herald, 2005
• Falmouth News Slip, 1883, 1885–1887
• Grimsby News, 1950
• Hampstead & Highgate Express, 1912–1913, 1919
• Harrogate Advertiser and Weekly List of the Visitors, 2005
• Holborn and Finsbury Guardian, 1951
• Kilburn Times, 1919
• London Evening Standard, 1919
• Nenagh Guardian, 1838–1845, 1880
• North Middlesex Chronicle, 1870
• Rushcliffe Advertiser, 1890–1895
• South Wales Echo, 2003
• Southend Standard and Essex Weekly Advertiser, 1919
• St. Pancras Guardian and Camden and Kentish Towns Reporter, 1899
• Staffordshire Sentinel, 1997–1999, 2001, 2005
• Times of India, 1910–1911, 1938
• Western Daily Press, 2001
• Weston Mercury, 1897

A Family History Of... Peterloo: Britain's Forgotten Massacre

Memories carved in wood and painted on china. Objects tell us a story of violence remembered and contested. For this bonus episode, Jen Baldwin is joined by Jenny Mabbott from Manchester’s People’s History Museum to explore how items left behind carry the meaning of the Peterloo Massacre forward.

Watch the video on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rLV1hHHqIeg

More on this topic:     english records                   

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See all of my posts about Findmypast at   https://www.geneamusings.com/search/label/FindMyPast

Disclosure: I have a complimentary subscription to Findmypast, and have accepted meals and services from Findmypast, as a Findmypast Ambassador. This has not affected my objectivity relative to Findmypast and its products.

The URL for this post is: https://www.geneamusings.com/2026/08/findmypast-friday-uncover-milestones-in.html

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post. Share it on X, Facebook, Instagram, Threads or Pinterest using the icons below. Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com. Note that all comments are moderated, and may not appear immediately.

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Famous Cousins: Dolly Rebecca Parton (1946-2026)

 You never know who you're related to.  When a famous person dies, I check the FamilySearch Family Tree and WikiTree to see ifd I might be related to them.

So it was on Tuesday when Dolly Rebecca Parton (1946-2026) died. I easily found her FamilySearch Family Tree profile with a newly added death date in  https://www.familysearch.org/en/tree/person/details/GG46-8B6.

According to the FamilySearch Relationship Finder she is my 9th cousin 1x removed with common ancestors of Francis and Rebecca (Towne) Nurse of Massachusetts. Who knew? It's a small world, isn't it?

Here is the Relationship chart:

Are you related to Dolly Parton also? A number of my Facebook friends are!!

Are you related to Francis and Rebecca (Towne) Nurse?  If so, you are probably a cousin of mine and Dolly Parton's!!!

Genealogy is fun -- wait till my grandchildren here they are related to Dolly Parton.

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The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2026/08/famous-cousins-dolly-rebecca-parton.html

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post. Share it on X, Facebook, Instagram, Threads or Pinterest using the icons below. Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com. Note that all comments are moderated, and may not appear immediately.

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