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SHAKING V'V'
FAMILYSTR i
Blue Bloods, Black Sheep, and O t h e r Obsessions of an Accidental Genealogist
SHAKING THE FAMILY TREE Blue Bloods, Black Sheep, and Other Obsessions of an Accidental Genealogist
BUZZY JACKSON
A Touchstone Book Published by Simon & Schuster New York
London
Toronto
Sydney
Touchstone A Division of Simon & Schuster, Inc. 1230 Avenue of the Americas N e w York, N Y 1 0 0 2 0 C o p y r i g h t © 2 0 1 0 by Buzzy Jackson All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever. For information address Touchstone Subsidiary R i g h t s D e p a r t m e n t , 1230 Avenue of the Americas, N e w York, N Y 1 0 0 2 0 . First Touchstone trade paperback edition J u l y 2 0 1 0 T O U C H S T O N E and colophon are registered trademarks of Simon & Schuster, Inc. For information about special discounts for b u l k purchases, please contact Simon & Schuster Special Sales at 1 - 8 6 6 - 5 0 6 - 1 9 4 9 or
[email protected]. T h e Simon & Schuster Speakers Bureau can bring authors to your live event. For more information or to book an event contact the Simon & Schuster Speakers Bureau at 1 - 8 6 6 - 2 4 8 - 3 0 4 9 or visit our website at www.simonspeakers.com. Designed by A kasha Archer Manufactured in the U n i t e d States of America 10
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Jackson, Buzzy. Shaking the family tree : blue bloods, black sheep, and other obsessions of an accidental genealogist / by Buzzy Jackson, p . cm. "A Touchstone book." Includes bibliographical references and index. 1. U n i t e d States—Genealogy. 2. Genealogy—Social a s p e c t s — U n i t e d States. 3. G e n e a l o g y — U n i t e d States—Psychological aspects. 4. Jackson, Buzzy. 5. Jackson, Buzzy—Family. 6. Jackson, Buzzy—Travel—United States. I. Title. CS49J25 2010 929'.1072073—dc22 2010009670 ISBN 978-1-4391-1299-1 I S B N 9 7 8 - 1 - 4 3 9 1 - 4 9 2 6 - 3 (ebook)
This book is dedicated with love to my family— past, present, and future
Thirteen Generations of American Jacksons
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Discovered via DNA test (See chapter 6)
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Visited gravesite (See chapter 7)
Jackson Markus Kirshner (2005, CO-)
Sarah Rachel "Buzzy" Jackson (1970, MI-)
Ben Reinhart Kirshner (1971, O H - )
"A
Jon Anthony Jackson
Ruth Baum Jackson Hall
(1938, MI-)
(1944, MI-)
I Jabe Cook Jackson (1905, AL-1997,MI)
* William Daniel Jackson (1856, AL-1924, AL)
John Randle Jackson (1831, AL-1924, AL)
Grace Obera Goodwin (1908,AL-1985,MI)
Mary Jackqualine Sanders (1864,AL-1932,AL)
Rebecca Ann Wrenn (1840-1912, AL)
CONTENTS ▼ Ask Yourself Why YouVe Doing This; or, Genealogy for Beginners
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An introduction to the world of genealogy and how I got interested in it. Here I m
provide an outline of how to do genealogical research and, coincidentally, a map o the book's structure. They See Dead People But I Stick to the Living; or, Join Your Local Genealogical Society
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Seeking help from experienced genealogists, I join my local genealogical society. I begin my family research by interviewing my parents and by asking myself how much I really know about my family tree. Answer: not much. Interview Your Relatives and Go to Your High School Reunion; or, Rust Never Sleeps
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Having exhausted my parents'fund of knowledge (and my own), I travel
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to Michigan to conduct interviews with extended family, seek access (mostly denied) to family Bibles, and visit my grandparents' graves for the first time. A few weeks later I attend my twentieth high school reunion, which offers another type of family connection.
Contents CSl: Lido Deck: The Genealogy Cruise, Part I
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/ dive into genealogy's deep end, attending a conference held on a Caribbean cruise ship. Literally adrift in a sea of knowledge, I try to glean as many research clues as possible, all the while marveling at the expertise of my guides and the intensity of my fellow attendees. Did I mention I'm on a cruise ship ? Which is weird. Beaches and Burke's Peerage; or, the Genealogy Cruise, Part II
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As the lecture-intensive phase of the cruise comes to a close, I tour the islands with the dean of Irish genealogy and enjoy conversations with an assortment of other experts, from the author of a dictionary of surnames to the woman who wrote genealogy's equivalent ofTht Chicago Manual of Style—all by herself Information Wants to Be Free; or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love DNA Testing
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Fd already tested my DNA; I now try to understand my results. Here I offer an overview of what DNA testing can and cannot offer genealogists. After an initial anticlimax, Fm stunned when a total stranger contacts me and, thanks to the double helix manages to flesh out several hundred years of my family tree in less than five minutes. It could happen to you. . . really! Get Back to Where You Once Belonged; or, Hitting the Road to Alabama with Cousin Mooner
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With nearly four hundred years'worth ofJackson history now in hand, I set out for Alabama with my cousin Mooner riding shotgun as we cruise the southern byways on the lookout for relatives—some alive, some dead. From Nashville's honky-tonks to the abandoned cemeteries of Sumter County, Alabama, we rely on the kindness of strangers (some of whom share our name) to better understand our southern heritage. It's not always pretty, though sometimes it's beautiful.
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Contents The Mountain and the Cloud; or, A Pilgrimage to Salt Lake City's Family History Library
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All genealogical roads eventually lead to the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, a mind-blowing archive run by the Church of LatterDay Saints (aka, the Mormons). I speak with the chief genealogist at the FHL, the man responsible for its hundreds of billions of records, as well as with the collections director who oversees the archives in Ukraine where one half of my family's archives probably still sit. Mostly I marvel at the several thousand genealogical pilgrims (most non-Mormon) who visit the FHL every day. Ask Yourself Why You're Doing This . . . and Keep Asking
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A reflection on the unending nature of genealogical research, which is both a good and a bad thing. I assess my own progress, and wonder if any other Jackson descendant will ever visit that overgrown cemetery in Sumter County, Alabama, where a dozen of my antebellum ancestors lie. Acknowledgments Notes
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About the Author
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XI
1 Ask Yourself Why You're Doing This; or, Genealogy for Beginners
