Sunday, November 18, 2012

What now after busting through the brick wall?

Over the years, I have been hunting and gathering PORTAS families in hopes of finding a connection with my family. I've mentioned that before in other posts. I've put together a goodly number of PORTAS families from Lincolnshire, England and I have compiled a somewhat large database. That was the easy part even though it has taken close to 10 years along with seven trips to the family history library in Salt Lake City, Utah. But looking for 5x great grandfather Joseph's baptism has been an ever-frustrating adventure.  

This year's trip to the FHL yielded the big find. I finally broke through the brick wall. With finding his baptism this last trip in October you would think the game was over. Even though I have a feeling of accomplishment, I also have the feeling of more work ahead. It's not over.

Sure I've connected my family with Margaret's family. With her many more years of research on the books, my family now can be traced back to the mid 1600s. Thank you Margaret! Finding one baptism enabling the joining two researches is quite an accomplishment. 

What do I do with all those other PORTAS families I've collected? What happens to them?  How do they fit into my tree? Do they? There are a lot of loose ends to tie up. There are many speculations to prove; many questions to answer. So? 

I have to begin the process of some major data entry, sorting, cataloging all the Parish Register images I have accumulated over the years. My direct line needs to have some blanks filled in. There are a lot of images I know are from Margaret's family. I hadn't spent that much time on recording her family simply because, well, she had done it.


Research won't end. It never does. It just goes on and on. The more information one gathers, the more questions pop up. That is the fun of being so involved in genealogy and family history. There is always more to be done and learned.



SO...JOSEPH AND FAMILY HAVE BEEN ADDED TO WILLIAM AND ISABEL'S TREE
Joseph was baptized 19 Feb 1716, married 6 May 1740, but when and where was he buried? What are the baptism and burial dates of his wife Elizabeth? His father is William PORTAS but what is his mother Isabel's maiden name? 


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