The first prompt of 2019 for Amy Johnson Crow’s 52 Ancestors Challenge – first – seemed like it was ordered by my dad. He had the the first birthday of the year in my family, and since he passed away several years ago, January 6 has become a day of reflection and remembrance.
Dad was the family historian (we always figured it was in his DNA from Uncle Morris). His curiosity meant that family vacations were often spent at Civil War battlefields and obscure small towns where he might find information on ancestors. Family history fascinated me, and from the age of twelve, I found myself bitten by that same genealogy bug that had gotten dad and Uncle Morris.
Today, (more than) a few years later, genealogy has become my passion and my calling.
I am honoring dad’s memory by making January 6 the first day for my family history website, http://jacquelineage.com. Dad loved the movie The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, and he often quoted the famous line that guides my research and writing: “When the legend becomes fact, print the legend.”
Happy birthday, dad. Miss you every single day.
Baugh, Bass, and Beyond 