Essie Maude Edwards
Meet my paternal grandmother. I would guess this photo was made in her late teens. Wasn't she pretty?
I credit my grandmother with germinating my genealogy bug. When I was eight years old she gifted me a pretty white leather bound Bible with a zipper cover. And, of course, it had my name stamped on the cover in beautiful gold letters.
I was so excited and proud, and I immediately began marking some of my favorite Bible verses - just like my grandmother did in her Bible.
Then I came to the fold out family tree in the center of the Bible. First I lettered in my name, and then the names of my parents and grandparents. There was space for my great-grandparents, and I made certain to ask so that I would enter them correctly.
Yes, that was when the genealogy bug got me. I was only eight years old, and now that I am sixty-two years old I am still carrying that bug around with me. I have been working on our family genealogy for over fifty-four years.
The family tree in my Bible was completed in no time at all, and I quickly learned that most people were more than happy to share their family knowledge. My mother took me to the drug store where I purchased a spiral paper notebook and a piece of white poster paper. The information I learned from those now long past has proved invaluable.
The genealogy bug turned into a partner hobby because my husband loves it, too. We both spend a few hours every day researching. My son said he spent hours in archives, libraries, and even cemeteries growing up as we looked for clues. His stories make us all laugh, but his research skills are excellent.
Our families have been in North Carolina since before 1700, and we currently trace our ancestors to Europe - mostly the British Isles.
Now you know what consumes quite a few hours in my days,
and I will be sharing more family pictures in the future.
Here is a photo of me at about the same age.
People used to say I favored my grandmother.
What do you think?
