Why Genealogy?

I have been doing genealogy research for about 25 years. My father's family held family reunions, and I also remember visiting graveyards with him to look for any possible relations in the areas that we drove through. I always wondered where my family originated from - on both my father's and mother's side. I always felt like a person without roots. We were not a close-nit family, and even after one generation, it is amazing how much has been lost. Additionally, my paternal grandfather died when my dad was a teenager, and my maternal grandfather was estranged from his two children, my mother and my uncle. 

My father didn't know much on his paternal side, only that they lived in or around Ariton, Alabama. I honestly don't know if he knew where or how to start actual genealogy research or how to properly document stories, histories, etc. As far as my mother's side, I do remember visiting some of her Danner relatives -- mostly great aunts and uncles, but as a small child, that seemed so boring to me and was oft left playing by myself either in the backyards or surrounding woods. 

While still in high school, I conducted family interviews with my paternal grandmother, Nellie Mae Holley Attaway, and great-grandmother, Lillian Rebecca Hartzog Danner, on what they knew about their families. Needless to say, some of the information given to me was not correct, either through being able to remember all the details or been given second-hand information orally through the years. This was also when online ancestry or genealogical websites or databases came online. At the time, I didn't know much, and the information that was given to me by family members, as I came to find out later, where not 100% correct -- and that led to me looking for incorrect names and uncertain locations.

Over the years, I would also visit court houses, libraries, local museums, etc., to sift through and start peeling back the layers. This blog is a complication of the information I have been finding over the years, so that way I can easily talk about my journey and stories, as well as, being able to provide information to others who may find it useful or to be able to connect to new cousins. 

One item that I do find of interest, that most of my family lines have crossed into both Barbour County and/or Dale County, Alabama. So, one of the focuses of this blog will be to trace lines into these areas and to see any connections that may have occurred in this location.  

Names in my family tree and locations: 

• Attaway, Simmons: Barbour/Dale Counties, Alabama; Santa Rosa County Florida
• Danner, Hartzog, Zorn: Barbour/Dale Counties, Alabama
• Holley, Qualls, Whitehead: Florida Peninsula and Covington/Coffee Counties, Alabama
• Griffith, Brown:  Florida Peninsula and Barbour/Dale Counties, Alabama
• McLendon, Massey, Rowell, Jackson: Terrell County Georgia and South Carolina (in and around Charleston)