Background Image

“Everything is relative except relatives,
and they are absolute.”

-Alfred Steiglitz

Family history is a way to bring our ancestors to life.

This blog details my journey as a genealogist and is a means to record my notes, recent discoveries, and the stories of my ancestors. The goal of Relatively is to inspire other family historians to preserve and share their own family stories.

RECENT POSTS

It’s About Time

It’s About Time

Trade card of Edward Goldsworthy, c. 1820 | © The Trustees of the British Museum Daylight savings time got me thinking about my ancestors who…

Mom and Dad in the 1950 U.S. Census

Mom and Dad in the 1950 U.S. Census

Every ten years, the U.S. Census Bureau conducts a federal census to gather the names and other details of every person living in the country.…

FOUND: My Great-Grandmother’s Sister, Anne Flood

FOUND: My Great-Grandmother’s Sister, Anne Flood

Last month, the New York City Municipal Archives released 9.3 million historical vital records on a free online platform. For me, this was like hitting…

Great-Grandpa’s Big Invention

Great-Grandpa’s Big Invention

My great-grandfather, Clarkson Valentine Hendrickson Jr. (1890–1964) was a mechanical engineer or draftsman as I remember my father describing his occupation. But I never had…

Trying to Preserve Your Family Artifacts? Don’t Do What I Did.

Trying to Preserve Your Family Artifacts? Don’t Do What I Did.

During World War II, my maternal grandmother Hazel was a glassblower for scientific glassmakers E. Matchlett & Son in New York City. When my mother…

Why Write this Blog?

Why Write this Blog?

My thoughts about starting a blog started last summer. I took a course “Mastering the Art of Genealogical Documentation” at the Genealogical Research Institute of…

Subscribe

Stay up to date. Receive an email when a new blog post is published.