Vital Records are the lifeblood of genealogical research – the births, marriages and deaths of our ancestors.
Family history is more than vital records though – it is the bits in between. Family history uses vital records as a skeleton, and then puts flesh on those bones.
So, are you a "genealogist", focused on the lines of decent and the dates and places of vital events? Or are you a "family historian", who likes to use those vital records as a skeleton to start the story, and then write in and around them, sharing the stories of your ancestors (not just their vital records)?
I’m a bit of both – I love data entry and “perfect” statistics – so I love having all of the vital records in place before I start on fleshing out an ancestor’s story. But then, I love finding out about what my ancestors got up to in between being born, getting married, and dying.
This is a post for the April A-Z Challenge. This Challenge will cover
each letter of the alphabet, one per day (except Sundays) for the month
of April. I didn't register my blog with the organisers, but I'm going
to follow along anyway. You can too! See www.a-zchallenge.com for more information. Labels: A-Z Challenge