KinFolk Connections

06/19/2025

One of the greatest things about researching my family history is that I have discovered we have very deep roots here. Through both sides of my family, I have found connections to Jamestown (1619), to the passengers of the Mayflower and Plymouth, and to the New Netherland Colony, now New York (1629), to the American Revolution, and to the Civil War. My mother has two ancestors who died in Civil War POW camps, each from different sides.

Our nation is celebrating the 250th anniversary of the ratification of the Declaration of Independence next year. The more I dig, the deeper the roots. Recently, I have begun to search my tree for supporters and patriots of the Revolution. I think my last count was at least 15.

I know I have not been very good about posting. My new goal is to post about one relative every 1-2 weeks. If there is someone you would like to know more about, let me know. Below are a few of the contenders from the American Revolution.

Capt. James Poteet
Nathaniel Harlow (paternal)
Daniel Gilbert (also Mayflower descendent)
John Sexton
Frederick Cutshall
George Smithers
Ferdinand Gulick (paternal)

Have a safe summer.

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01/02/2025

Hope everyone had a blessed Christmas and a Happy New Year.

This year my focus will be on finding American Revolution patriots and descendants of the Mayflower. It should make for some interesting research.

- Benjamin Wilson Clark, Jr. of Virginia (Revolution): he was cousin to General George Rogers Clark and Captain William Clark of the Lewis and Clark Expedition.
- William Harlow, Jr. and Lydia Cushman (Mayflower): her grandfather was Isaac Allerton.
- Nathaniel Harlow (Revolution?) of Virginia
- Frederick (Gottshalk) Cutshall of Pennsylvania and Tennessee (Revolution)
- Edward Fuller (Mayflower)
- Ferdinand Gulick of Ohio (Revolution)
- John Sexton of Virginia and Tennessee (Revolution)

I am happy to share the information that I find and would appreciate any assistance anyone can provide.

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11/21/2024

I travel alone and always lock my doors down this way at night so no one can open the doors.
It’s an old trucker trick I was taught and hope it helps someone else who didn’t know about it. 🧏

11/03/2024

Many of you may know me as Ashley. My parents were Jim and Ann (Smith) Higginbotham. I am the unofficial genealogist and family historian with my help from my aunt, Zeta. One of my goals this holiday season is to post frequently on this blog. I haven't posted in a long time and now feels like a good time to restart.

I would also like to open this page for any family connected to us. Should I make this page private and invitation only? It might be best to protect information. Let me know in the comments.

Here are five Family History Activities you can do in November: (Source: Family Tree Magazine - online). If you choose to do any of these, please share with us.

1) Create a family history photo book.
2) Write an ancestor's biography.
3) Stary a family history blog. (Check!)
4) Create a family history display.
5) Write your own life story.

There are so many others. Every November, we donate Christmas wreaths to Wreaths Across America. I do ours through my DAR chapter. I also order the year's White House Christmas ornaments for our family. My parents started this tradition in 1995 and I am proud to continue this tradition. Every year they focus on a different president and period. This year's ornament is the first (It thingk) to focus on a living president, President Jimmy Carter. Go to whitehousehistory.org to order or view past ornaments.

Other thoughts:

Veteran's Day, 2024: Please honor not only veterans in your family, but veterans everywhere.

Hurricane Relief: Gather supplies for those affected by Hurricane Helene for daily needs and for Thanksgiving, If you know of a reputable organization that receives donations, please let us know.

Until the next post!

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11/07/2020

I haven't had much time to research and post over the last two years. Recently I had the opportunity to do a lot of research and made some interesting discoveries. On my mother's side, I learned that William Clark of Lewis and Clark is my first cousin six times removed. My family has always loved history and traveling to historical places. Soon after this discovery, I became a member of the Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution. New research into a distant relative of my father's, Samuel Hinckley, led to the discovery that he is also an ancestor of President George W. Bush and President Barak Obama.

What is both interesting and fun in genealogy research is that we do not know where the research will take us. Mine has taken me from Europe and the Mediterranean to the early settlers of this country. All of the history I have learned has new meaning as I continue to see it through the lives of the people who came before us.

11/27/2018

For the 3rd time in 3 years, I am dealing with the death of a parent. This time it is my mother-in-law. And for the 3rd time, I am wishing I took more photos of the loved one lost. I could find very few photos of her and that makes me sad. I had promised myself when my parents died that I would take more photos, Life got in the way and I have barely taken any photos this last year.

Again, I make myself the promise that each holiday and each celebration will include photos of myself, my husband, and our loved ones. It is hard lesson to learn.

09/18/2018

I just received an email from AncestryDNA stating there was an update for my DNA results. When I checked, each person I had tested had updates. Gone are the "low confidence" regions. The new regions and updated results more closely connect to my research. I have mixed feelings about the updates, but they do seem more true to what I had expected when I first tested.

If you are related to any of the following families, please consider posting how your DNA results changed. It would be interesting to see how our DNAs compare. Also, if you are willing to complete Family Record Sheets to help complete my family tree, please contact me at [email protected]. I can forward a PDF copy of the sheet or mail them to you.

Families: Clark, Fox, Gulick, Higginbotham, Holmberg, Jungquist, Pless, Russell, Teague, Smith, Willett, and related families.

07/11/2017

I have been contacted by several relatives through AncestryDNA. One recent individual is my father's cousin. It is always wonderful to connect to new relatives and fill in more branches on our family tree.

DNA connections can also help us correct entries on our trees. If you are on AncestryDNA or 23andMe, please let me know. Many of my connections do not have family trees attached. You can contact me at [email protected] or through Ancestry.com. I would be happy to share information or help you find connections if you do not have a full membership.

As a family historian, I am interested in our family stories. Please share your favorite stories here or email them to me so that we can preserve them. I can attach them to the family tree AND keep them private if requested. My goal is to publish books on the Higginbothams and Smiths and their families.

05/27/2017

Who are you remembering this Memorial Day?

Military service runs deep in my family. My father served almost 30 years in the Navy and Air Force. My parents are buried at Arlington National Cemetery. My grandfather served with the 30th Infantry Division (Old Hickory) in World War II. My husband's father served in Korea. We are grateful they each returned home from duty.

I thank each service member who served and especially those who "gave the last full measure of devotion."

04/11/2017

I have been noticing several views recently. Life - and grad school - has gotten in the way.

04/05/2016

I found these photos among my parents' slides. I think the Christmas photos were taken in 1971. The last photo is of my maternal great-grandmothers, Clyde Clark and Vicie Smith.

02/01/2016

What are the most important lessons you learned from your parents? My parents taught me and my brother many, but I think the most important was service. Through their faith, they taught us service to God. Through their lifelong devotion to each other, they provided a model of what marriage should be and the importance of family. Through their service to others, they taught us compassion and to serve a greater purpose.

Our family heritage - whether positive or negative - contributes to who we are. In our family tree, we have many people who fought for our country and some gave "their last full measure of devotion." There are those who were strong in their faith and ministered to others. Of course, we have our scoundrels and scallywags. However, the lessons they passed on to those who followed are important. Often, the most important is that the sins or mistakes of others do not have to control us.

Those who are separated from us by many generations contributed to who we are, not just through our biological DNA, but our spiritual DNA. One of my ancestors abandoned his faith and adopted a different one in order to survive. Another was supposedly beheaded for his religious and political beliefs. Often, I may not have agreed with their beliefs or choices. However, I can honor their conviction by standing strong in my beliefs and not breaking when I am tested.

We are meant to be people of courage, conviction, and faith. It is in our DNA. Sometimes we need to be reminded of that.