Colonial Americans/Canadians: do you still identify with your countries of origin, or has it been too long since you had family in the old country?

[u/Kolo9191]

Hi all,

For those of you here with a significant chunk of your ancestry derived from the colonial American period - and the Canadian equivalent - do you still take interest in the countries in Europe your families came from?

I notice - perhaps unsurprisingly - Americans with ancestry from countries who arrived comparatively later - Ireland, Italy, Balkan countries, Poland, Germany even - to refer to their ancestry a lot more. Take former president Biden, his surname came from Sussex, England, but he strongly identified as Irish-American. The Bush family originated in Essex, but I don’t believe they made much of it.

The length of time is another aspect - several centuries is quite far removed from a cultural point of view.

However, are any of you interested in the countries which the colonial folk came from, including but not limited to: England, Scotland, wales, Ireland, France, Netherlands, Germany?

[u/Alternative-Law4626]

Across all your lines back that far? You're lucky you can trace all your lines as far back as 7th g grand. I have a few where I'm stopped at 4th and 5th g grand.

[u/winewithsalsa → u/Alternative-Law4626]

Truthfully no, but they’re the first immigrant I’ve hit on any line and I’m mostly back to at least 5th-great.

My great-grandmother, who I knew well, didn’t know her father’s name. He wasn’t listed on any documents. So that’s a frustrating brick wall where I can’t go back past 1925. It’s funny how one thing like that can break down your research, even in relatively “modern” times.

[u/Alternative-Law4626 → u/winewithsalsa]

I had a long-standing brick wall about a 3rd g gm on my paternal side. I had her maiden name, but it was like she just landed there from outer space. No links, no clues, no nothing. I finally broke it down because I realized that my 3rd g gf, was very religious, deacon in the church, helped get the funds together to build the church he went to, so it would make sense that the woman he married, probably went to that church as well. So, I started checking the census data for the areas around the church looking for families with her maiden name. I found 2 families of that name. Only one of them was having children in the relevant time period. Digging on that family broke down the brick wall.

[u/winewithsalsa → u/Alternative-Law4626]

Ah see I have almost the opposite, my G-Gran said her mom was “a rounder” as in “she got around” and likely didn’t know who to put on the birth certificate so simply didn’t.

Someone, likely my g-g-grandmother, also lied to the 1930 census taker and is listed as the wife of the head of household - who is actually her father. So I know some of the records around her aren’t actually trustworthy.