W.I.S.E. Wend./ The Newsletter of W.I.S.E. Family History Society

Volume 8, No.1 Denver, Colorado January, February, March 2007

Genes of the Isles

Two British authors tell us where we came from, in far different styles

By: Zoe von Ende Lappin

Nothing these days is as captivating as genetic genealogy — tracing your ancestors via your DNA. Sometimes you can get back to your actual ancestor, but until databases grow much larger than they are these days, you'll do well to dwell upon your tribe, the group or groups that spawned you. That's no less exciting than seeking and finding an individual.

WISE will get into the DNA swing at the January 27 program meeting with a talk on genetic research by forensic biologist Vicki Trammel

(Continued on page 4)

Fourth Quarter 2006 — W.I.S.E. Program Schedule

27 January — DNA-what is it and what can it tell us? Presented by Vicki Trammel. She will discuss what can DNA analysis tell us and what it can't tell us. Ms. Trammel will go over the basics of DNA biology, and using the story of Anna Anderson (Was she Anastasia?) to explain how it might be used in genealogy. During her 30 years at Arapahoe Community College she taught biology, botany, zoology, and human anatomy and was Chair of the Biology Department. Presently she volunteers with the NecroSearch International, a forensic research group.

24 February — History and Traditions of the Bag Pipe. Presented by Susan Thornton. Ms. Thornton will discuss the development of the bag pipes and their place in the Scotch-Irish culture. She is a former Mayor of Littleton and is currently a frequent columnist with the Denver Post. She is also active in the St. Andrews Society and is an accomplished bagpiper.

24 March — Irish Research. Presented by Marilyn Lyle and Marylee Hagen. They are going to talk about doing research in Ireland - Marilyn in the North ands Marylee in south. Also what they found they should have done differently - mistakes - what worked. Ms. Lyle, a retired school teacher, is a member of the Mayflower Society, DAR and Sons of Norway. She has visited Ireland where she found her roots as well as a cousin. Ms. Hagen has been doing Irish and Norwegian genealogy for 12 years. She belongs to several Historical Societies in So. Dakota as well as a coordinator for Norwegian Genealogy sponsored by Sons of Norway, Fjelldalen Lodge. She has traveled and researched in Ireland and Norway. Both presenters are members of W.I.S.E.

The normal starting time for the above programs is 1 p.m. at the Denver Public Library, 5th floor, Gates Conference Room.

Volume 8, No.1

W.I.S.E. Wend./ The Newsletter of W.I.S.E. Family History Society

Denver, Colorado January, February, March 2007

Genes of the Isles

Two British authors tell us where we came from, in far different styles

By: Zoe von Ende Lappin

Nothing these days is as captivating as genetic genealogy — tracing your ancestors via your DNA. Sometimes you can get back to your actual ancestor, but until databases grow much larger than they are these days, you'll do well to dwell upon your tribe, the group or groups that spawned you. That's no less exciting than seeking and finding an individual.

WISE will get into the DNA swing at the January 27 program meeting with a talk on genetic research by forensic biologist Vicki Trammel

(Continued on page 4)

Fourth Quarter 2006 — W.I.S.E. Program Schedule

27 January — DNA-what is it and what can it tell us? Presented by Vicki Trammel. She will discuss what can DNA analysis tell us and what it can't tell us. Ms. Trammel will go over the basics of DNA biology, and using the story of Anna Anderson (Was she Anastasia?) to explain how it might be used in genealogy. During her 30 years at Arapahoe Community College she taught biology, botany, zoology, and human anatomy and was Chair of the Biology Department. Presently she volunteers with the NecroSearch International, a forensic research group.

24 February — History and Traditions of the Bag Pipe. Presented by Susan Thornton. Ms. Thornton will discuss the development of the bag pipes and their place in the Scotch-Irish culture. She is a former Mayor of Littleton and is currently a frequent columnist with the Denver Post. She is also active in the St. Andrews Society and is an accomplished bagpiper.

24 March — Irish Research. Presented by Marilyn Lyle and Marylee Hagen. They are going to talk about doing research in Ireland - Marilyn in the North ands Marylee in south. Also what they found they should have done differently - mistakes - what worked. Ms. Lyle, a retired school teacher, is a member of the Mayflower Society, DAR and Sons of Norway. She has visited Ireland where she found her roots as well as a cousin. Ms. Hagen has been doing Irish and Norwegian genealogy for 12 years. She belongs to several Historical Societies in So. Dakota as well as a coordinator for Norwegian Genealogy sponsored by Sons of Norway, Fjelldalen Lodge. She has traveled and researched in Ireland and Norway. Both presenters are members of W.I.S.E.

The normal starting time for the above programs is 1 p.m. at the Denver Public Library, 5th floor, Gates Conference Room.

Volume 8, No. 1

FROM THE PRESIDENT . . . .

W.I.S.E. WORDS

President's Prattle I am thinking of bleak midwinter as I

write this. The temperature hovers near zero while snow piles up on the garden beds just "put to sleep" a few weeks earlier. Winter is an excellent time to look back over the labors of the past as to assess where we are in our family history quests. What new challenges will present themselves in the New Year? What fresh challenges can we set for ourselves?

I had a most enjoyable fall. I had the pleasure of traveling to West Virginia to attend a conference sponsored by the Virginia Genealogical Society. It was held on the campus of the old Lewisburg Female Academy in Carnegie Hall, a lovely lecture hall built at the turn of the 20th century. Researchers from seven states converge on historic Lewisburg in the heart of the Scots-Irish settlements on the old Virginia Appalachian frontier. Yes, that was the focus of the conference. I ran into old friends and made new ones. What was exciting for me was meeting people I had visited with by telephone or correspondence. It was soon discovered that Jacob and Katherine Doran, an Irish emigrant couple from the 1750's had three descendants in attendance. Yes, that included me. The weather was perfect and the trees still held some of their autumn leaves as I ventured into Monroe County and visited the graves of my British Isles emigrant ancestors and met "cousins" who are descendants of Patrick Dixon who emigrated with his wife Mary from Ulster about 1745. This was a marvelous trip for any genealogist.

On of the many chores I have set for myself is updating my address book. I

Page 2

keep an address book by surname. Those to whom I write are listed not under their name but under the surname we share in common. It is a lovely testament to the countless years of research others have spared me as none of us can research all of our ancestral lines in isolation. It is also a memorial as I have discovered to my horror that there are now as many dead relatives in my address- -book as— tliete—arc living researchers. So, I am starting a fresh address book and hope it will last me until I cross over to the other side.

Our fall schedule of programs has been a great success and the winter quarter looks just as inviting. I look forward to seeing you all in the new year being eager to gain new skills and adding to your knowledge banks as regards genealogy. Just as our gardens give us hope of fresh growth in the spring, our winter time activities and learning should ensure a most productive time for seeking out our ancestors and distaff family members in the coming months.

See you in the New Year and may you all have an excellent first-footing!

fiasses Z le /14e* Preadeat

IN THIS ISSUE:

Genes of the Isles W.I.S.E. Program Schedule From the President Annual Meeting Officers & Board Members W.I.S.E. To Salt Lake City Trip Thank You, King Philip Book Reviews My Ancestor's Grave W.I.S.E. Activity Pictures Coffee and Conversation Come Join Us

Front Front

2 3 3 8 8 9 10 7/11 12 12

Volume 8, No. 1 W.J.S.E. WORDS Page 3

ANNUAL MEETING January 27, 2007 is our annual meeting where we vote on new board members and approve the budget. Your participation is valued.

Nomination for 2007 Officers The nominating committee for 2006 presents

the slate of officers nominated for election at the January 27, 2007 Annual Meeting.

President James K. Jeffrey Treasurer Tommie B. Kadotani

James K. Jeffrey James K. Jeffrey is the Collection Special-

ist in Genealogy at the Denver Public Library. He is the 2004 ifeCifrent of the P. William Filby Award for Excellence in Genealogical Librari-anship from the National Genealogical Society. James is past president of the Colorado Council of Genealogical Societies and of The Society of Rocky Mountain Archivists. He is a trustee of the International Society for British Geneal-ogy and Family History. He is Historian, Ar-chivist of Wales, Ireland, Scotland, England Family History Society and Program Chair for the Colorado Genealogical Society. He is a member of the National Genealogical Society, Colorado Genealogical Society, Virginia Genealogical Society, Sons of the American Revolution, General Society of Colonial Wars, Order of Descendants of Ancient Planters, and the Descendants of Washington's Army at Val-ley Forge.

Tommie Brett Kadotani Tommie B. Kadotani, has been the Treas-

urer for the W.I.S.E. Family History Society for the past four (4) years.

She is a Trustee for British Genealogy and Family History, Registrar for the Colorado Chapter of National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution, Board member of The Society of Mayflower Descendents in the

State of Colorado, Admission Chair and Assis-tant Registrar for the National Society of Colo-nial Dames of America in the State of Colorado. She is a member of the Daughters of Founders and Patriots of America, the Derby Historical Society, Yorkshire Family History Society, Cork Genealogical Society, French-Canadian Historical Society of Michigan, Na-tional Genealogical Society, Colorado Genea-logical Society, New England Historic Genea-logical Society, Association of Professional Genealogists and Colorado Chapter of Asso-ciation of Professional Genealogists.

W.I.S.E. Family History Society Dedicated to research in Wales, Ireland, Scot-land, England, Cornwall, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. Attention also directed to the emigration and immigration of these peoples as well as heraldry and one name studies.

Officers & Board Members President James K. Jeffrey

jjeffrey@denver.lib.co.us Vice Presidents. . . Fran & Dan Parker Secretary Eileen M. Langdon Treasurer Tommie Brett Kadotani Past President Paul Kilburn Membership George Fosdick &

Bonnie Wright Publicity John Mossman

Directors Zoe von Ende Lappin Elizabeth Brown

Country Editors: Wales Elizabeth Brown Ireland Zoe von Ende Lappin Scotland John Mossman England Donna J. Porter

Newsletter Staff Editor John Mossman

jmossmanl@juno.com Proofreader Elizabeth Brown Distribution Donna Porter

Volume 8, No. 1 W.I.S.E. WORDS

Genes of the Isles Two British authors tell us where we

came from, in far different styles (Cont'd from Front page)

And, with perfect timing, come two new books on the subject: Saxons, Vikings, and Celts: The Genetic Roots of Britain and Ireland, by Bryan Sykes, and The Origins of the British, A Genetic Detective Story, by Stephen Oppenheimer.

The authors, both British geneticists at Oxford University, take slightly different angles on the subject. They come to similar conclusions, but the great difference in style makes one a delight to read, the other a chore. Both men are erudite and apparently academically sound, but only one has produced a page-turner. That is Sykes, who brilliantly and thoughtfully popularizes his subject. Oppenheimer is a scholar — maybe even a pedagogue --writing for his colleagues and other scientists, not for those of us with British roots and a genealogical bent.

Though both men are at Oxford, you'd never know it from these books. Neither even acknowledges the other. It's been said that they're rivals, and Oppenheimer seems to be on the defensive, shaking his head and wondering how anyone (Sykes) would deign to make a complicated subject —origins of a nation's people -- appeal to the popular market.

First, a look at Sykes' newest, Saxons, Vikings, and Celts: The Genetic Roots of Britain and Ireland, New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2006.

Page 4

When it comes to clarifying genetics — especially as it deals with genealogy --Sykes is the The Man. He calls himself a genetic archeologist, and it's to the good fortune of those of us intensely interested in our British Isles ancestry that the great body of his work just happens to involve the ancestry of WISE members.

This newest book, entitled Blood of the Isles in its British edition, is his third on this complex subject. This one builds on — some might say rehashes -- the material presented in the first two, The Seven Daughters of Eve, 2001, and Adam's Curse, 2003. In Eve, Sykes described how he arrived at the notion that all modern Europeans come from one of seven "clans" or mothers as traced through mitochondrial DNA. That's the mostly immutable substance that passes, physically, in only the maternal line, but to children of both sexes. In Adam 's Curse, Sykes concentrates on the Y-chromosome, which is passed, not quite so immutably, from father to son and only father to son. It's a curse, Sykes claims, because the Y-chromosome has been so aggressive and taken such a beating over the eons, that it's become fragile. It may, in fact, be heading for extinction and, in the process will cause the human race to disappear — unless another chromosome takes over its function, and nature being the ultimate pragmatic master, that could happen.

Whether you accept that view or not, it is clear that until scientists learned to decipher DNA, there was no dependable way to determine where groups of

(Continued on page 5)

Volume 8, No. 1 W.I.S.E. WORDS

Genes of the Isles Two British authors tell us where we

came from, in far different styles Cont'd frompags 4)

people originated. It was necessary to relay on myths, legends, preconceptions and observation of physical traits, and the result was mostly a guess. Understanding blood groups was a big step forward, but DNA tells the true story, and that's what Sykes is up to in Saxons, Vikings, and Celts.

This time, he concentrates on geography. He re-examines his data on both men and women, and he — and we -- learn a great deal about the prehistoric population of the British Isles. Just like WISE, Sykes divides these into four regions: Ireland, Scotland, Wales and England. His data come from widespread DNA sampling, and we must take for granted that his databases are large enough to give a true picture. His findings are monumental and not easy to condense for readers, but here are some of his most intriguing discoveries.

Ireland. We are talking about the entire island, not the political subdivisions. Here, the maternal lineages are very old and diverse while Y-chromosomes are unexpectedly homogeneous and appear very young --that is, the predominant males haven't been there very long, in geological terms. Through warfare, they in effect chased off the indigenous males or at least diluted their genetic strains. It's a case of science confirming a thread of mythology — the Irish were always fighting each other. The Y-chromosome differences around the island may echo

Page 5

the Anglo-Norman invasion beginning in the 12 century, and there's a strong suggestion of a major genetic link between Ireland and Spain along the Atlantic seaboard, especially among women. This means that family groups migrated, or at least that the male settlers brought their women with them from over the sea.

Scotland. There is as much Norse mitochondrial DNA in the Orkney and Shetland Islands, off the north coast, as there are Norse Y-chromosomes. This means that those Vikings, portrayed as the fiercest conquerors, also brought their women along and, in Sykes' opinion, their settlements were peaceful. Aside from those two island groups, there's a very close affinity between Scotland and Ireland, and that should surprise nobody. Descendants of the Picts — the still mysterious very early settlers -- have a strong presence and the Western Isles show a high concentration of a maternal line that came from the Mediterranean.

Wales. There is a close genetic link to Ireland — again no surprise — and to the Pictland regions of Scotland. There's practically no sign of Norse settlement. Diversity of a particular Y-chromosome, i.e. changes in male genetics, is lower in Wales than anywhere else in Great Britain, a testimony, perhaps, to the stable nature of the population.

England. England, as might be expected, has the most diverse historic picture. As Sykes says, many threads are still in the air. Most maternal clans show female immigration in the eastern part of

(Continued on page 6)

Volume 8, No.1 W.I.S.E. Words

Genes of the Isles Two British authors tell us where we

came from, in far different styles. (Cont'd from page 5 )

the country from continental Europe, which is undetectable elsewhere. The Mediterranean maternal line that appears in Ireland and Scotland came primarily by sea, but the branch in England came overland. Y-chromosome diversity (males) also is much higher in the east, indicating a longer settlement.

Much to his credit, Sykes doesn't overwhelm us with details and sometimes actually apologizes for giving us more than he thinks we can digest. He presents a picture of basically stable maternal lines, while men as warriors and conquerors continually replaced the indigenous population. It's the maternal side that is the Celtic/Pictish stock. "On our maternal side, almost all of us are Celts," he says. And the Celts of the British Isles, he says, are not related to those who originated in central Europe. Those in the Isles have far deeper roots there, and most came from Iberia. The Spanish connection is strong, indeed, which should be obvious from the map of Europe — in prehistoric times, it was fairly easy to travel north along the Atlantic sea lanes. Also, genetic evidence does not support the relic status of the Picts, he says, and in fact, he maintains that there is no fundamental genetic difference between Pict and Celt.

If your interest lies in the mysteries of primeval beginnings, you'll love Bryan Sykes. He must be commended for believing that we non-scientists are perfectly capable of understanding this

Page 6

very complicated stuff, and he delivers. What's more, if you're itching to know where you came from, Sykes invites you to check out www.oxfordancestors.com It's a commercial enterprise that will help you do just that.

Second, Oppenheimer's newest, The Origins of the British, A Genetic Detective Story, London: Constable & Robinson Ltd., 2006.

As noted, Oppenheimer takes the pedantic approach to his subject, complete with plenty of maps and diagrams, and the result isn't even close to a keen detective story that the title seems to promise. Others in his field no doubt will appreciate his efforts and may find them superior to Sykes', but for the rest of us, the going is tough. Oppenheimer is considered an expert in the use of DNA to track migrations. Earlier books include The Real Eve: Modern Man's Journey Out of Africa, 2003, and Out of Eden; The Peopling of the World, 2004.

Oppenheimer calls himself "Celto-sceptic," meaning he — like Sykes --disputes the conventional belief that the Celts originated in Iron Age Central Europe (1000 BC to 100 AD). They came much earlier, and from the south along Atlantic and Mediterranean sea routes.

"The theme of this book," he says, " is that the British Isles were colonized from two different parts of Western Europe." These would be, first, from the south in Iberia, particularly the Basque region, the south of France and Italy. These people settled in Ireland, Wales

(Continued on page 7)

Volume 8, No. I

Genes of the Isles Two British authors tell us where we came from, in far different styles.

(Cont'd from page 6 )

W.I.S.E. Words

and the west of Scotland and became what are known as "Celts." The second route was overland from Central and Northern Europe into what is now England.

Both of those migrations occurred at the end of the last Ice Age, 15,000 years ago. The ice had chased all people out of the Isles, which were repopulated once the climate moderated and, in effect, gave geneticists a clean slate of relatively recent data to work with. The continental newcomers were helped along by land bridges between the continent and what are now the British Isles.

Legends that have made their way into textbooks claim that these indigenous people — after the Romans left — became the victims of Anglo-Saxon genocide during the fifth and sixth century. Oppenheimer convincingly shows us that these late "invasions," or more accurately, migrations, contributed only about 5 percent to the English gene pool. Two-thirds of British people show an unbroken line of descent from those southern Europeans and the rest originated in Scandinavia and northwestern Europe.

It was these two prehistoric sources of gene pools had the effect of producing the genetic and cultural divisions between the English and the rest of the inhabitants of the British Isles that remain today. Like Sykes, he considers the maternal genetic lines as the oldest,

Page 7

sturdiest and most conservative — the bedrocks of genetic history in the Isles.

Oppenheimer strongly supports his conclusions with examples of archeology and language development, something Sykes stays away from. Oppenheimer is reluctant to interpret language similarities as proof of invasions or large migrations, but instead sees them as evidence of cultural spread through trade or other contact.

Unlike Sykes, Oppenheimer offers his readers no way to tap into his research. He's probably blustering about and cursing his fellow geneticist who is realizing a bit of a commercial success from similar — competing? — scientific efforts. We'll leave the two of them to duke it out in the marketplace and in academe. W. %A at d. 417,1117,V,S. ;fil.:445.100 41:4APAbreeR,Ar IP.40.40.4014f.',17:

W.I.S.E. MEMBERS HARD AT WORK AT THE ARVADA FAMILY HISTORY FAIR

on 21 October 2006

Volume 8, No. I W.I.S.E. WORDS

January 15 deadline for Salt Lake City

W.I.S.E. members and friends who plan to make the April 2007 research trip to Salt Lake City have until January 15mto make their $50 deposit for hotel accommodations. Deadline for the final payment is March 1.

A registration form is included in this issue of W.I.S.E Words and is available at the Genealogy and Western History Department of the Denver Public Library. Dates are April 15-22,

and will stay at the Carlton Hotel at 140 E. South Temple St., about three blocks east of the Family

, History Library. It offers free van service to and from the library. Participants are arranging their own transportation trip Salt Lake City.

Pend, 5. (six Ca,

The cost for the hotel will be $252.50 per person double occupancy, $437 single occupancy and $231 per person triple occupancy. Details are being handled by Sally Garcia of Atlas Travel of Golden at 303-234-1010, SallvGarcia@At lasTrav el 1 nc .com Questions may be directed to Zoe Lappin of W.I.S.E. at 303 322-2544 or ZI.appircklottnail.com

THANK YOU, KING PHILIP

By: Betty Brown

For what? For saving the life of my 7-great grandfather, James Browne. How

Page 8

did that happen? Before hostilities started in King Philip's War, James Brown, an Assistant to the Governor of Plymouth Colony and Lieutenant of the Swansea Military Company, went to see King Philip on 14 June 1665 with a friendly letter from Governor Winslow. According to Petonowett, a member of the Wapanoag tribe, James Brown would have been killed, but King Philip, remembering and respecting that his father, Massasoit, and James Brown's father, John Browne, had an enduring friendship, intervened.

Finding King Philip to be hostile, James Brown warned the Colony. When the war actually began on Sunday, 20 June 1675, It was James Brown's son, James, who took the word to Plymouth. James Brown is said to have visited King Philip twice during the war, but found him "very high and not p'swadable to peace."

Finding information like this makes history come alive for me and I have mixed emotions — horrified that he made war but grateful that King Philip allowed my ancestor to live.

Reference: New England Colonial Families. Volume I. Brown Families of Bristol Counties, Massachusetts and Rhode Island, From the Immigrants to the Early Nineteenth Century, compiled by Carl Boyer, 31d ... Newhall, CA: Carl Boyer, 3rd, 1981, p. 17, taken from John Brown, Gentleman of Wannamoisett, by Aimee (Huston) Eck ..... Privately re-produced, Minneapolis, MN, 1951, p. 4.

Volume 8, No. 1 W.I.S.E. WORDS

Book Reviews By: Zoe von Ende Lappin

Researching in Britain the old-fashioned way

Hey, David, The Oxford Guide to Family History. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press, 1993.

This handsome volume should tell you all you need to know about genealogical sleuthing in England, with a bit of Scotland and Wales thrown in. It is primarily for the British audience, but Americans with roots over there will find plenty to chew on. The non-Brit is quickly reminded of the pervasive class system —it's taken for granted there just as Americans take its absence as a fact of life. The author cautions against making assumptions about surnames based on modern conditions, such as locality (Marsh, for instance) or occupation (e.g. Cooper). Still, it's surprising how often family names, even given today's mobility, are still rooted in or near places where they first showed up in the Middle Ages. Despite the exquisite detail, it must be pointed out that the book's publication date — 13 years ago — predates extensive use of the Internet and CDs for genealogical research, and is way before the advent of using DNA to trace lineage. We're relying on traditional sources and strategies here, which actually never go out of style. The reader should consider the Oxford Guide a guide to sociology, history and economics for genealogists, as well as a guide to records. You'll see your ancestors in their own time and place, always an enlightening and perhaps amazing experience.

Page 9

Heavy stuff, that Scottish history

Crowl, Philip A., The Intelligent Traveller's (sic) Guide to Historic Scotland. New York: Congdon & Weed Inc., 1986.

This book is so fat and heavy — 625 pages, no pictures — that no intelligent traveler would burden himself taking it along to Caledonia. But it is an excellent source for the family historian who likes to immerse himself in ancestral haunts without leaving home or the library. It's a chronological, narrative history combined with a gazetteer — each occupies half the book and provides details about museums, visitor centers, battlegrounds and other attractions at each historic site. Read every word, and you'll be rewarded with a serious though not necessarily pedantic picture of Scotland's place in the scheme of British history. Skimming and skipping will serve you well, also. Taking my cue from W.I.S.E.'s April speaker, Catriona MacKiman, I checked Crowl's version of the Glencoe Massacre of 1692, the most gruesome chapter in the Campbell-MacDonald feud. I've visited Glencoe and I'm a Campbell, so I wondered whether the author's version squared with the story Ms. MacKirnan told. It did — it wasn't a matter of the treacherous Campbells simply murdering the MacDonalds, who had offered them shelter from the snow, but of the British government's manipulating the clans to get the chiefs to swear allegiance to King William. Typical of Crowl's approach to history as tourism, he first sets the record straight, then advises the reader that he can visit the Glencoe Visitors Center and a nearby folk museum.

(Book Reviews continued on page 10 )

Volume 8, No. 1 W.I.S.E. WORDS

Book Reviews (Cont'd from page 9)

The Irish in Ontario

Akenson, Donald Harman, The Irish in Ontario; A Study in Rural History. Kingston and Montreal: McGill-Queen's University Press, 1984.

This is an academic (make that mostly dull) treatise on the immigrating Irish in a township with two names —Leeds and Lansdowne in Leeds County, eastern Ontario. Akenson offers plenty of data about these folks, starting in 1815, which makes the book of interest to their descendants. But without that specific connection, there's little of interest to family historians, even those with Irish ancestors who came through Canada. The last paragraph may be the most revealing: The main conclusion of his study, Akenson says, is that the Irish-Catholic migrant was far better attuned to his new circumstances and less circumscribed by the cultural limits of the old country than is usually believed. "That knowledge is one direct benefit of studying the Irish in Ontario." Akenson is a remarkably prolific writer on British, Irish and other historical topics, his most recent being a two-volume tome, An Irish History of Civilization.

NOTE: The books reviewed here soon will be added to the Denver Public Library's genealogy collection.

My Ancestor's Grave By: James K. Jeffrey

Standing at the foot of his grave I

Page 10

could not believe I had finally made it. Robert Chambers was born in 1756 at St. Pancras Hospital along the Kentish Town Road, Middlesex, England. Today this is behind the St. Pancras Railroad Station in London. He emigrated to America in 1774 and served as an Orderly Sergeant during the American Revolution. In 1782 he married Hannah Doran, the daughter of Jacob Doran and his wife Catharine Shadows. So here I was having driven down from Lewisburg where the Virginia Genealogical Society was having their fall conference. I had talked with other family members who had visited the cemetery. Armed with this information and GPS coordinates from cemetery pages at Rootsweb, I was able to find the country lane wending its way through a field. The hills were ablaze in their golden hues as a late afternoon sun cast long shadows of grave markers across the cemetery. Here was where Robert stood as they buried his Hannah; here was where his children and grandchildren gathered as they prayed and sang on the day of his burial. Yes, it pays to visit your ancestors burial site. To see the lay of the land, the fields where he planted his crops, the mill where he would have had his wheat ground into flour. It was a good trip and one that informed me about the place and land of my British Isles ancestor.

Page lij Volume 8, No.1 W.I.S.E. Words

October ro resented b Derek Pal: aye, 21 October 2006.

December program presented by: Betty Brown-Wales, Eileen Langdon-Ireland, Bonnie Wri :ht-Scotland, and Dan Parker-En: and, 2 December 2006.

Refreshment time after a wonderful presentation and

discussion on the myths and traditions of the holidays in the

British Isles.

Volume 8, No.1 W.I.S.E. WORDS PAGE 12

NEWS FROM THE DENVER PUBLIC LIBRARY

Coffee and Conversation When: on the following Saturdays 27 January 10:30-11:30am 24 February 10:30-11:30am 24 March 10:30-11:30am

Where: Central Denver Public Library Western History and Genealogy 5th Level — Gates Reading Room

Enjoy a good cup of coffee as we discuss the latest finds and treasures in Genealogy. We will meet under the derrick in the Gates Western History Conference Room. We will discuss the latest books, electronic resources and of course old standards and favorites.

Make a day of it and come for Coffee and Conversation before the W.I.S.E. meeting.

W.I.S.E. Wales, Ireland, Scotland, & England Family History Society P. 0. Box 48226 Denver, Colorado 80204-8226

BAD WEATHER PROCEDURE

If you are concerned as to whether a meeting will take place, you are asked to call one of the officers of the society. They will be able to inform you of any cancellations or other changes.

COME JOIN US W.I.S.E. Family History Society is dedicated to research in Wales, Ireland, Scotland and England.

Monthly meetings are generally held the fourth Saturday of most months at the Central Denver Public Library, Gates Conference Room, fifth floor and begin at 1:00 in the afternoon.

ALL ARE WELCOLME

First Class Mail

Volume 8, No. I W.I.S.E. WORDS

New hotel, new month for WISE in Salt Lake City

Page

W.I.S.E.'s 2007 trip to Salt Lake City, by popular request, will be in the spring and at a new hotel.

The dates will be April 15-22, a Sunday to Sunday, and the Carlton Hotel, renowned for its breakfasts and friendly staff, will be our headquarters. It's at 140 E. South Temple St., about three blocks from the Family History Library. It offers free van service to and from the library or a welcome walk to those who like a little exercise.

Once again, Sally Garcia of Atlas Travel of Golden is handling hotel reservations, and members will arrange their own transport. The cost for the hotel will be $252.50 per person double occupancy, $437 single occupancy and $231 per person triple occupancy in one of its suites which actually do come with three beds. Rates include seven nights lodging, roundtrip airport transfers, breakfast and taxes. A non-refundable deposit of $50 is required by Jan. 15, 2007, with the final payment due by March 1, 2007. A registration form is included in this issue of W.I.S.E. Words and will be available at program meetings.

We will again arrange a group orientation from the library staff, concentrating on British Isles research.

Zoe Lappin, W.I.S.E. board member, is organizing the trip, but reservations and payments will go directly to Atlas Travel. Please address general questions to Zoe at ZLappi@hotmail.com or 303 322-2544. The travel agent, Sally Garcia, may be reached at 303 234-1010, SallyGarciagAtlasTravelInc.com

W.I.S.E.'s two most recent visits to the FHL have been in January — 2004 and 2006 -- and we have stayed at the Salt Lake Plaza Hotel adjacent to the library. For those who would like to savor the riches of the library and Salt Lake City in the spring when it's at its glorious best, this is the trip for you. A new hotel is bound to instill a spirit of adventure into this sleuthing we do.