Finding out what it means to be Boricua through a genetic & genealogical journey through my family history
There’s a pair of 4rd great grandparents that have been the topic of a few of these posts and the point of some of my frustrations with searching for their information. They are Juan Carlos Gustavo and Julia/Balbina Lotten (and all their many alternations/alter-egos included) who according to documents immigrated from either Guadeloupe or Martinique […]
So this post was inspired by my grandfather’s results from 23andme and my conversation with him while I had him taking the test. During Spring Break, I visited my grandfather in Puerto Rico who I rarely see and built up the courage to ask him to take the DNA test. I had to semi-explain (and I
ReConstructing/DeConstructing Race Read More »
Puerto Rico’s history is very interesting because a lot of the inhabitants that have been on the island for a long time (like my ancestors) probably have ancestors that were slaves, and/or ancestors that owned slaves. So far I haven’t found any slaves in my family but I do have ancestors that are written down
Slave Owning Ancestor? Read More »
Early I posted about how my dad’s cousin found me online through this blog (technology is awesome!). She was able to provide me with pictures, stories and more information about my dad’s side which I had no previous knowledge about. It’s so crazy to think that just 2 years I had no idea about my
Paying my Respects Read More »
Okay, so at first I wasn’t too happy about the 1940 Census. It wasn’t really available on ancestry.com because they’re downloading it now instead of it being available right away since they only got the records at midnight, which is totally understandable. I just want it to see now that next to Puerto Rico it
Success with the 1940 Census Read More »
So a couple of months ago there was a sale at GeneTree and so I decided to test my Y-DNA to see if I could get closer matches to try and figure out where my Rivera line comes from. Also, I wanted to see where they would place me being that with 23andme my paternal
Testing with GeneTree Read More »
So I originally wanted to post about this census a long time ago, but with school I never have the time to do it. Since there is only 1 day left before the 1940 Census is released, I think it’s about time I dedicate a post to it! Tomorrow at midnight the 1940 Census will
1940 Census!! ONE MORE DAY!! Read More »
Being a part of 23andme I have been able to read wonderful stories about adoptees finding their families and long lost relatives and distant family members finding one another and sharing their stories and photos. A year ago, scratch that- a day before it happened, I wouldn’t have imagined what joy I would be receiving
Like most of us know, genealogy is both a blessing and a curse. It can be a nice side hobby, or it can eat up your holiday time like it is doing to me now. So this post I’ll dedicate to the tough part of genealogy, because we all know it exists! Mainly I want
So sometime last week I reached over 2,000 ancestors on my family tree. (That does include branches such as aunts, cousins etc. as well as married in branches). None the less it is very exciting to reach these numbers! I remember when all I knew was my immediate family and only about two sets of
Happy 2,000 Ancestors!! Read More »