Since getting involved in Genealogy - searching for surnames and families - I have grown fondly of these people, I have never met. They were born, they lived and they died and their lives mattered. It amazes me all the time when I think how I came to be...because they survived.
They survived from whatever persecution they were coming to America to get away from. Many did not.
They survived crossing the Atlantic Ocean, in wooden ships. Many packed like sardines - Many died during these voyages.
Depending, when they came they survived American Wars - The Revolutionary War, The War of 1812, The Civil War, Spanish-American War, WW1, WW2, and Vietnam. Many did not.
They survived the influenza pandemic of 1918-1919 which killed more people than the Great War, known today as World War I (WWI), at somewhere between 20 and 40 million people.
They survived the Depression. They survived drought and famine on their farms. They survived the many Indian Wars, in the early settling of our country. Many did not.
Placing your ancestors during certain key points in history shows how resolute they were, and for whatever reasons, they survived.
For all of what they went through, I owe them respect. If it weren't for their survival my grandparents wouldn't have made it; which means my parents wouldn't of and I certainly wouldn't be around to express my devotion to these people I call "family."
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