GENEALOGY – LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT

In the 1970s my cousin introduced me to the world of genealogy. Jud’s mother Della and my father Ben were sister and brother. Our fathers were also partners, for many years, in a small engine business in Salem, Missouri where I am from. As we were both only children, our relationship was more like big brother and little sister.
While I was busy having children and moving around the world with my military husband, Jud was visiting cemeteries in southeastern Missouri, recording Copeland births and deaths, and entering these relatives into genealogy charts he kept in a large 3-ring binder. His wife Judy once told me she didn’t know any other family vacation than visiting cemeteries and courthouses.

On one of our annual visits home, Jud shared what he had found about our Copeland family. He had all handwritten notes and charts back to our great – and even a few great-great-grandparents with their children and cousins by the hundreds.

It was love at first sight for me – seeing our family spread out on pedigree charts and family group sheets – from locations both local and distant. There were so many family members I did not know existed. They had given names that were familiar because they were handed down from generations past. Most had not moved far in the southeastern part of the state while others had migrated as far west as California. One cousin died in the San Francisco earthquake of 1906.

Little did I know at the time, but Jud was reeling me in, and I fell for it “hook, line, and sinker”! Yes, I was definitely “hooked” on these family connections. My mind was reeling with the possibility of finding new family discoveries. Then Jud explained that he was hoping I would take an interest. He wanted to hand over all further research of the Copelands to me while he continued researching his paternal family line. I eagerly agreed and he handed over notebooks of work on our Missouri ancestors.

That was the summer our family moved to my husband’s new duty station in Omaha, Nebraska. I don’t think I had unpacked the precious 3-ring binder yet when I took the kids to the base library for story hour. There, on the door, was an invitation to attend genealogy classes. How fortuitous!!
Alice Clopton and Sylvia Nimmo alternated between teaching beginning, intermediate and advanced genealogy at the library. Both were military wives with a vast amount of knowledge in the field. I took every course they offered – filling notebooks full of everything they had to teach. I learned everything from reading census returns to migratory trails throughout the eastern U.S. I never expected the vast amount of American history I would glean from these courses and have since become an avid historian, taking many history classes in colleges where my husband happened to be stationed at the time.

By the 1990s, I was working in the genealogy room at the Cheyenne, Wyoming library and for the LDS that was housed in the same location. For the 3 years we were stationed in Cheyenne, I enjoyed working and helping others with their research while expanding my own family history.
Then it was off to Germany to our next posting where I landed a job at the Ramstein AFB library. In addition to my regular library duties, I took on genealogy duties as well. By this time, I had many of my own family lines back to Europe. I was even able to visit the village where one of my mother’s descendants was from. It was only a few miles from where we lived in Kaiserslautern.

This was my first experience visiting the European origins of a part of our family. What an emotional feeling, getting to view the church where he was baptized over 200 years ago. I hope everyone interested in their family’s origins gets to experience this particular “Holy Grail” adventure.
I became interested in the study of DNA when it was introduced into the field of genealogy shortly after 2000. Ever since that time I have applied that science to my genealogy studies, matching family members and proving relationships through Ancestry DNA, Family Tree DNA, 23andme, and other online sites.
I eventually earned my certificate in genealogy studies from Boston University and became a Professional Genealogist. I ultimately retired my services so I could write a book on the Copeland family of Missouri and points beyond. I am now in my 3rd year of writing and my goal is to be finished by the end of this year.
In the meantime, I want to make available to a broader audience, stories, and genealogies of the Copeland family of Missouri, Tennessee, North Carolina, Virginia, and England. I also want to introduce you to their fascinating DNA origins.

Though my cousin Jud is no longer with us I will be forever grateful for his introducing me to something that has enriched my life in such a profound way. “Well, Jud, I kept my promise. I built on the knowledge you shared with me, and I succeeded beyond my expectations. I only wish you were here to share it with.”