A Delighted Recipient of the Ancestor Approved Award - Part 1

I was absolutely delighted to go into my blog  at the weekend and read that I had been given an Ancestor Approved Award by Jennie (http://theycametomontana.blogspot.com/) and Jo (http://imagespast.wordpress.com/).

I only came to blogging in August 2010, after reading an article in "Woman and Home" magazine, though I have limited IT skills, compared to some of the impressively designed sites I have come across. I did wonder at the start if anyone was discovering  the site and more importantly finding it of interest.  Thank you to John of the Wandering Genealogist blog for pointing me in the direction of geneabloggers.com.  Its network has been great and I am now an avid follower. 

I am over the moon that,  as a beginner, other bloggers are enjoying my posts.  Thank you again to all my fellow bloggers for their  appreciation  and their inspiration.  Keep watching!

The Ancestor Approved Award was created by Leslie Ann Ballou (http://ancestorslivedhere.blogspot.com/).    Leslie Ann asks award recipients to "list ten things you have learned about any of your ancestors that has surprised, humbled, or enlightened you and pass it along to ten other bloggers who you feel are doing their ancestors proud."  

So here is my Part 1 response  to Leslie's request - top ten listing on how family history has given me pleasure, satisfaction, delight, enjoyment, understanding and humility.  A list of my favourite blog sites will follow in Part 2.

 1.  Finding that my great grandmother Maria Rawcliffe (at the core of my family history) shared her birthday with my own daughter 114 years later.

2.  Finding Maria was one of 7-8 daughters (some dubiety here) and went onto have 10 sons and finaly a daughter - plenty of scope  for blog stories.

3. Renewing contact after many years with my mother's cousins, who had  large collection of old photographs including the only one of my great grandfather James Danson - the black sheep of the family.

4.  Finding in Lancashire Record Office the wills of my great, great, great, great, grandfather John Danson who died in 1821 and my 3 times grandfather Herny Danson  who died in 1839 - and seeing their signatures. 

5.  Exploring the background to my ancestors' lives,as they faced the vicissitudes of Victorian England.  Elizabeth Danson died at the age of 57 leaving a young family;  sister Mary died in childbirth, sister Margaret was widowed childless twice by the age of 33,  and sister Ellen had an illegitimate child.

6.  Appreciating the sacrifice of my two great uncles killed in the  First World War - George Danson, a stretcher bearer on the Somme, his brother John Danson who committed suicide in 1915,  and my grandfather William Danson who survived the horrors of Passcendaele.  

7.  Realising the impact on my father  of his experience in the Second World War. He  often talked about them and  I am afraid it did provoke the reaction at times of “Not the war again, Dad”. It was only later that we came to realise what a life-defining period it was, and I persuaded him to write an account for his granddaughter, Gillian.  I was also  proud to add my father's accounts to the BBC World War Two People's Story online.

8.  Recalling  with pride the achievements of my father and the talents of my mother (recorded in my December blog "Happiness is Stitching - Talented Tuesday")

9.  Linking my family happenings with local, national and international events to put their lives in a wider context.

10. Relishing the blog experience in telling my family history stories to a wider audience, discovering a new style of writing, creating a title and content  that evoke interest - and making new social contacts who share my enthusiasm. 

Thank You.