Originally it looked like WDYTYA was going to be only a half hour long according to my Time Warner program guide, but fortunately the program turned out to be a full hour long. Even if it would have turned out to be only 30 minutes long, I think it would have worked because the research was basic and doable for most beginning genealogists. That was one of the biggest complaints with the former series on NBC; too complicated and most of the research had to be done by professional genealogists.
Kelly Clarkson seemed more involved with her family research. Maybe it was because her mother started the research on Ancestry.com and she had the best reason for family research. Her mom wanted to "know" her ancestors. For her genealogy was more than just names, dates, and places that results in induction to a lineage society. She wanted to find out what her ancestors were really like. And, those of us who have many hours of family research behind us know that this is the ultimate goal
The focus for the show was Kelly's 3x great grandfather who fought in the Civil War. He enlisted in Co. F, 63rd Regiment, Ohio Infantry. Ohio was one of the top three states for union troops enlistments during the war. The state was very active in the abolitionist movement and an important part of the Underground Railroad. Cincinnati, Ohio is the site of the Freedom Center, a wonderful place for African-American research, http://freedomcenter.org/
Isaiah Rose was only 19 years old when he enlisted. Kelly was amazed at how young her ancestor was when he enlisted. I can appreciate that feeling.When I was going through cemetery records for Brown County, I found that my great grandmother's brother was only 17 years old when he was killed during the Civil War.
Isaiah was captured at the battle of Decatur, Georgia in 1864 and was sent to
Andersonville prison. He eventually escaped and was wounded by friendly fire as he was trying to return to the Union Troops.
Researching your Civil War ancestor is not that difficult. If you think you have an ancestor who fought in the war, check the 1910 census. Not there? Check the 1890 Veterans and Widows Schedule. Once you determine that your ancestor fought in the Civil War there are numerous places you can research.
If you have access to ancestry.com either through a membership or through your local library, I would suggest that you start there. If your don't know very much about the Civil War, this is probably one of your best places to begin. It was for me. Of course, my father had told me all about Grandpa Perkins and his Civil War record so I was confident that I would find information about my great grandfather. At the same time I also found his two brothers who fought in the war.
One thing I like to do is Google my ancestors' names. I did this with two of my ancestors and found information that I never expected. One was a bill in the House of Representatives that reimbursed Philip Rice's descendants for the cost of his ship that was destroyed in the Revolutionary War. The other was letters written from the battle of Stones River during the Civil War. I encourage you to try this. Googling your ancestors can be surprisingly informative! When I googled my great grandfather, it took me to the national park service. http://www.nps.gov/stri/historyculture/regfohio.htm
From there I was able to follow one link after another until I found records, letters, photographs, and a new cousin. It is amazing where Civil War research will take you.
If you are researching Civil War ancestors in Ohio, I suggest that you check out the following websites:
ogs.org
ohiohistory.org
Tuesday, July 30 - TLC 9/8c Christiana Applegate,
Who Do You Think You Are.
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