One of the first things genealogists learn is this: Never assume you’ve found every record just because you’ve searched one name—or that the record doesn’t exist because you couldn’t find it under one spelling. People change their names.Women marry.Immigrants Americanize surnames.Census takers spell names the way they hear them.Newspaper reporters make mistakes.Clerks misread handwriting. If […]
Read MoreGenealogists love a good mystery. Over the past several years, I’ve been researching Catherine Seeley, the remarkable woman at the center of my upcoming narrative nonfiction book, Countess of Cons. At first glance, Catherine seemed like the easiest historical figure a researcher could hope for. She appeared in hundreds of newspaper articles across multiple states. […]
Read MoreNOTE: I am cross-posting this across my various platforms as it may be of interest to both my genealogy and writer audiences. I am on the very last read of my forthcoming novel, Countess of Cons: The Story of a Gilded Age Grifter. Yes! The last read before I hand it off for one final […]
Read MoreNOTE: This post has also been cross-posted to my author blog: https://deborahsholman.com/ I didn’t set out to write about a con artist. I wasn’t even researching criminals. I was trying to get the facts straight about my husband’s great-grandmother, known in the family as Catherine C. Fitzallen. I was scrolling through an Ancestry message board, […]
Read MoreOn Saturday, October 4, I had the pleasure of being a vendor at Family History Day, sponsored by the Connecticut Society of Genealogists. I always enjoy chatting with people who love family history, and inevitably, someone asks how I choose which ancestor to write about. For my first novel, Nothing Really Bad Will Happen, the […]
Read MoreI’ve been chasing my husband’s great-grandmother, Catherine Kenney, since 2015. She left behind a trail of contradictions that made her one of those maddening ancestors who seemed determined to hide in plain sight. But after years of digging, thanks to Scripty (my AI pal) I’ve finally cracked the case: where she was born, who her […]
Read MoreWednesday I spent two and a half hours in the Expo Hall at the Authors’ Table. Technically, I was only assigned a one-hour slot, but I figured I’d stay until I got hungry or someone else needed the table! I met some lovely people, including Daniel Horowitz, the Gala speaker for the next evening. (Not […]
Read MoreSaturday We arrived at the Courtyard Marriott around 7 pm, and within five minutes of dropping our bags, we were seated at a table in Connor’s Restaurant. I ordered enchiladas—a very uncharacteristic choice for me—which turned out to be a mistake. (Let’s just say I began eyeing our limited supply of Tums with concern.) Conference […]
Read MoreFirst thing this morning we enjoyed a breakfast buffet courtesy of the Radisson Hotel. Cheryl and I had no idea that the hotel provides breakfast to all guests attending RootsTech. What a great perk! My first mission today was to finally meet with Maureen Taylor, the Photo Detective. Maureen Taylor, the Photo Detective. My first […]
Read MoreWe started the day by visiting the Old Town Trail in Cody, Wyoming. This tourist attraction is actually pretty cool. The owners have created an Old Western town on the actual site of the town William “Buffalo Bill” Cody founded in 1895. The buildings are authentic structures gathered from locations around Wyoming and Montana.They were […]
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Who We Are and How We Got This Way 