Genealogy, Family History and Books

During the course of personal research in your genealogy and family history, have you ever stumbled across a book specifically on your family, or even on a specific ancestor?

So far in my research over the years I have stumbled across two separate biographies of great great great grandfathers down different lines of the family tree, just ordinary men, but whose lives left records of historical interest in periods of history that consequently others have researched and written about:

John Muston: Draper, Squatter, Speculator in Colonial Australia
John Croaker: Convict Embezzler

What about you?

I don't know of any that exist from my own family, but I have come across some other families' self-published family history books, which I buy anyway if they're relevant to my local area and inexpensive enough. It's nice when I occasionally look at some random book on the shelf while doing secondhand shopping, and it turns out to be a local book I'd never seen before.

Other than books written by other family historians researching entire families, I can't say that I have--with one "sort of" exception. The "sort of" is because I came across information stating Nathaniel Hawthorne's inspiration for The Scarlet Letter was the wife of an ancestor. It was not the wife from which I descended, but I guess that makes Dimmesdale my ancestor although Hester Prynne was not. My ancestor was a clergyman.

I have yet to discover an entire book dedicated to their lives, but I have ran across incidences where their names are mentioned within several published materials. This does not include family booklets located in local libraries and genealogical societies.

My people were early arrivers. Though they don’t have stand alone biographies, I have several that rate a mention in the history of larger events. I had two colonial governors and others who participated in Bacon’s Rebellion snd Coode’s Rebellion or were victimized by the Salem witch trials. If you can’t be famous be infamous I guess.

>6 varielle: I have early arrivals within my family tree as well. Links travel to the Mayflower with three family ties. However; I think, on a personal level only, that family biographies are only as good as the sources they reveal and "prove". Many books have stated this and that while over the years, I've proven otherwise. Whenever such works come into view, I use them as clues and hints only and still rely on the documented paper trail to prove their footsteps.

My wife's great-grandfather, Sam Higginbottom, was a Presbyterian missionary who established an agricultural school at Allahabad, India to develop scientific farming methods for improving crop yields. I recently bought a used copy of his autobiography: Sam Higginbottom: Farmer, which is a fascinating account of his life, and of course has much interesting genealogical information regarding his parents, siblings, and early life in England and Wales. He wrote at least one other book.

>8 DCBlack: Sounds fascinating. I'm not sure if there is an equivalent of the Presbyterian Historical Society (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) for the UK or not, but I know in researching American missionaries to other countries, the society holds much information on them.

I have several books on multiple lines (Culver, Hayden, Cook, Day, Hole in the Day-Americanized to Hollinday)

I enjoy seeing the research others have done, especially if they have listed their sources.

>9 thornton37814: Thanks, I will have to search online to see what records the PHS may have for Sam Higginbottom's missionary work. He did marry an American wife, and made periodic fundraising tours to America to support the missionary work, so the site in Philadelphia may have some records.

I recently learned that there is a sizeable archive of his papers in a special collection at the University of Virginia Library. I will have to look into whether a member of the general public can access that collection, as UVA is just a few hour's drive from my home.

>11 DCBlack: You should definitely check there. Most universities allow others during non-COVID times. You might contact the archivist to learn what their current protocols are. Usually if you give them a heads-up, they'll pull the materials ahead of time.

I stumbled across a 2-day sale that ends today at University Press of Kansas. They are celebrating Kansas' birthday. Most books are $18.61, but they didn't raise prices on the ones priced under that amount. I even spotted some $65 books for $18.61. It's a good deal if you are interested in the books in their catalog. On the main page is a code you can use to get free shipping to go with the sale.

I stumbled across it because I'd read an article in a higher education publication about the future of the press being in question.