I've used FREE Artificial Intelligence tools to create biographies, poems, songs and podcasts about my ancestors lives, plus my genealogy research and family history in the recent past. Every ancestor lives a unique life with unique relationships and life stories.
Today, I want to share a poem, song, podcast and video about my third great-grandmother, Elizabeth (Putman) Sovereen (1820-1895) of Ontario, #63 on my Ahnentafel list.
I requested ChatGPT, Grok, Perplexity, and Claude (all FREE AI tools) to create poems and song lyrics, and Google NotebookLM to create an Audio Overview (a podcast) and a Video Overview (a presentation), to describe and celebrate the life of Elizabeth (Putman) Sovereen (1820-1895). I uploaded a PDF of my genealogical sketch which has all of the information I have about the life of Elizabeth (Putman) Sovereen in 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Week 56: #63, Elizabeth (Putman) Sovereen (1818-1895).
(AI Gemini image of Sovereen family in Ontario in 1860)
1) The prompt I used for the poem and song lyrics was: "Please create a poem and song lyrics to describe and celebrate the life and legacy of Elizabeth (Putman) Sovereen (1820-1895) using the attached document."
2) I chose the poem created by Anthropic Claude Sonnet 4.5 today:
ELIZABETH'S SONG
Born with the century's turning year,
First day of eighteen-twenty clear,
In Wayne, New York, where winter lay,
Elizabeth began her way.
Fourth child of eight, but first-born daughter,
Raised by Putman hands that taught her
The strength to face what life would bring—
Faith and courage, everything.
Northward then, the family rode,
Crossed the border, found their road,
In Norfolk County made their stand,
Canadian soil, promised land.
At twenty years, on March's third day,
Young Alexander came her way,
Sovereen was the name she took,
Started writing in life's book.
Fourteen times her body bore
Children at the cabin door,
Fourteen times she held new breath,
Fourteen times she faced near death.
Mary Jane, the firstborn light,
Frederick, who took his flight,
Rosella's brief and tender stay,
Amart Ann, then Rachel's way.
Six small graves before the rest,
Babies laid upon her breast,
Then returned to earth too soon—
Morning stars that set at noon.
But Gertrude lived, and Sarah too,
Nancy Amelia made it through,
The twins arrived one December morn,
One stayed, one left the day she's born.
Hattie came with January snow,
Frederick, Alexander, both would grow,
Addison and Wilbert last—
Half survived the years that passed.
Her hands knew butter churn and bread,
The spinning wheel, the garden bed,
The endless wash, the preservation jars,
The counting children by the stars.
She kept the inn with Alexander's trade,
Fed the travelers, beds were made,
While tending farm and dairy too,
Each day brought more than she could do.
Through census years we glimpse her there:
At thirty, young with auburn hair,
At forty, worn but standing tall,
At sixty, having given all.
At seventy-two, still working on,
Her Wilbert wed, new life begun,
The wheel kept turning, seasons passed,
She'd built a family meant to last.
Baptist faith through joy and pain,
Sunshine breaking after rain,
In Windham Township all her days,
Walking God's mysterious ways.
Seventy-five years upon the earth,
She knew both death and life and birth,
March seventeen, eighteen ninety-five,
The measure of a pioneer's life.
In Delhi's cemetery she rests at last,
Her struggles finished, trials past,
But in her children's children's line,
Her strength and faith continue on through time.
Elizabeth, your name we raise,
Woman worthy of our praise,
Not for glory, wealth, or fame,
But for honoring your name.
You churned the butter, dried the tears,
Survived the losses through the years,
Built a home with calloused hands,
Left us more than house and lands—
You left us courage, left us faith,
The knowledge that through grief and wraith,
A woman's heart can still stay true,
And from such roots, we all grew.
So here's to you, Elizabeth Putman Sovereen,
The strongest woman we've ever seen,
Not in pages of history's book,
But in the life you undertook.
From New York's snow to Canada's shore,
From maiden girl to mother worn,
Your legacy is written plain:
In every child who bears your name,
In every heart that learns to cope,
You live on as our strength and hope.
3) Here are the AI song lyrics created by X Grok 3:
ELIZABETH'S SONG
(Verse 1)
Born in the dawn of eighteen-twenty’s light,
In Steuben’s fields, under stars so bright,
Elizabeth Putman, with courage untold,
Fourth child of a family, brave and bold.
Through New York’s valleys, her young heart grew,
In a bustling home where love shone through.
The 1830s called, a journey to roam,
To Norfolk’s wilds, she’d build a home.
(Verse 2)
At twenty she wed her Alexander dear,
In forty’s spring, with dreams so clear.
A Baptist bond in Windham’s embrace,
They carved a life in that rugged place.
Farmer and innkeeper, hand in hand,
Together they tilled the northern land.
With every sunrise, their hopes would rise,
Her strength reflected in her children’s eyes.
(Chorus)
Oh, Elizabeth, with a heart so strong,
Carried faith and love through a life so long.
Through joy and sorrow, you stood like a flame,
A pioneer woman, we sing your name.
(Verse 3)
Fourteen children, her heart’s great call,
Some rose to thrive, some destined to fall.
Mary Jane bloomed, then faded away,
Six tender souls lost to yesterday.
Yet through the grief, her spirit held fast,
With faith as her anchor, her pain surpassed.
Gertrude and Sarah, her legacy grew,
Wilbert, her last, when her years were few.
(Chorus)
Oh, Elizabeth, with a heart so strong,
Carried faith and love through a life so long.
Through joy and sorrow, you stood like a flame,
A pioneer woman, we sing your name.
(Verse 4)
Census pages trace her steadfast years,
Through farming days and silent tears.
Brother Peter joined their humble door,
Kinship’s warmth in a world so poor.
At seventy-five, in Delhi’s embrace,
She found her rest in a sacred place.
Her grandchildren spread, her story they’d tell,
Of a woman who loved through heaven and hell.
(Bridge)
From Monroe’s time to Victoria’s reign,
She faced the wilderness, the joy, the pain.
A life of courage, through decades sown,
Her legacy lives where her heart was known.
Chorus
Oh, Elizabeth, with a heart so strong,
Carried faith and love through a life so long.
Through joy and sorrow, you stood like a flame,
A pioneer woman, we sing your name.
(Outro)
In Norfolk’s fields, your spirit remains,
In the whisper of winds, in the soft spring rains.
Elizabeth Sovereen, your light won’t fade,
A pioneer’s heart, in eternity laid.
"Elizabeth's Song" (based on the song lyrics using Suno.com, with a melodic pop style in an upbeat tempo) can be played below:
The Google NotebookLM Video discussing Elizabeth (Putman) Sovereen's life is below:
5) The AI tools do this so much better and faster than I can, and weaves the poem and song along a story theme that is true and heartfelt. Each tool provides a different poem and song from the same prompt --I love fishing in all of the AI streams!! Frankly, doing the poems and song are the most genealogy fun I have every week!
6) These stories, told in verse, song, voice and video are part of my genealogy and family research. My hope is that they will be passed down to my grandchildren and their descendants to highlight the importance of sharing stories, memories, admiration, and love of our ancestors. I will add them to my Google Drive and to my YouTube channel and my FOREVER account.
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Copyright (c) 2025, Randall J. Seaver
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