Edwin Beck Funeral

Edwin Beck Funeral

Twenty years ago, family history research was different. I wrote a letters to libraries, placed phone calls to strangers, and read Sunday obituaries to find cousins.   On Sunday, March 21, 2004 I read an obituary and decided to seize an opportunity.   My father-in-law’s … read more

Letter from Home or Propaganda?

Letter from Home or Propaganda?

One of the fascinating tools of modern genealogical research is digitized newspapers. When seeking clues about Katherine Miller, I scanned newspapers to fill in the genealogical gaps. An important tip for newspaper research: always look for alternate spellings as well as members of the FAN … read more

Katherine Miller in America

Katherine Miller in America

Catharina Müller was baptized in the city of her ancestors: Temmels (German Empire). In 1921 she married Albert Blees in Mankato, Minnesota (U.S.A.). What do we know about her years between Germany and her marriage?   Coming to America Catharina may have felt the push … read more

Catharina Müller

Catharina Müller

One of the first rules of family history research is to start with what you know and work back in time. What do I know about Katherine Miller who married Albert Blees? When I looked in my genealogy database yesterday, I was shocked to discover … read more

Wedding Anniversary

Wedding Anniversary

The idea for today’s blog post comes from a second great granddaughter of this couple. She is doing a family tree for a school project and asked her grandmother, who then asked me, for this photo.   Her timing was absolutely, very, astoundingly perfect!   … read more