Background Image

“Everything is relative except relatives,
and they are absolute.”

-Alfred Steiglitz

Family history is a way to bring our ancestors to life.

This blog details my journey as a genealogist and is a means to record my notes, recent discoveries, and the stories of my ancestors. The goal of Relatively is to inspire other family historians to preserve and share their own family stories.

RECENT POSTS

Clarkson and Olive (Anderson) Hendrickson and sons Carlton and Robert

Questions from Uncle Paul

My uncle and I were recently talking about his grandparents, Clarkson and Olive (Anderson) Hendrickson. He had questions about why he never really saw them…

family heirlooms

Behind the Scenes: Preserving Family Heirlooms

A few years ago, my mother entrusted me with our family heirlooms. It included documents, photos, and various artifacts such as my grandfather’s military medals, his…

collage of Viola and her vital records

Viola’s Vital Records Vitally Misleading

Vital records are often the first documents researchers turn to when investigating family history. These records are crucial to genealogical research because they document significant…

Elizabeth (Madden) McKnight and twin boys John and Frank. |

Photogenetic: My Earliest Known McKnight Ancestors

My father’s cousin, Ann Dalton provided me with photos of my earliest known McKnight Ancestors – Elizabeth (Madden) McKnight and twin boys, John and Frank.

Brooklyn Navy Yard, 1911

Clarkson V. Hendrickson vs. the United States

My great-great-grandfather Clarkson V. Hendrickson, Sr., and Jasper Chisholm, a coworker, filed a claim against the United States in 1912 for payment of overtime work…

1950 Census Enumeration Map

Mom and Dad in the 1950 U.S. Census

Every ten years, the U.S. Census Bureau conducts a federal census to gather the names and other details of every person living in the country.…

Subscribe

Stay up to date. Receive an email when a new blog post is published.