Ep. 48 - The Journey of Beethoven's Hair and A Research Shocker: Prominent Californian Wasn't Always Who He Said He Was

Fisher’s Family Histoire News talks about a real life “Saving Private Ryan” family. Only they weren’t American. And it wasn’t in World War II. He’ll tell you all about it. Plus, there is one nation in the world with solid family records going back over a thousand years, minimal immigration, and a population that generally came from the same place. No research challenge there! But geneticists love this place. Fisher will tell you just what country we’re talking about. Family memorabilia can often lead us on a journey through a family’s history. Stan Lindaas of HeritageConsulting.com returns to tell us the remarkable story about the journey of a locket of hair from Ludwig von Beethoven, and the family that owned it. Stan did some of the research on this project, and you’ll want to hear it. Just about anyone who has ever started a family history research project can tell you, rarely does it go in the direction you expect. It was certainly that way for Janet Lancaster of Modesto, California who was asked to dig up just a few, simple facts on a prominent citizen of Modesto from the 19th Century. Both Janet and the town were astonished at what she learned! You’ll enjoy both the story and learning about the process. Tom Perry, our Preservation Authority from TMCPlace.com returns to talk about your best options in a digital video camera, and to answer a listener question about preserving her great grandparents’ “courting” letters.