The United States is often described as a nation of immigrants.
Except for Native Americans, everybody’s ancestors came here from elsewhere. In your own family narrative, do you pass on any immigration stories to family members? In my own case, my Knott ancestors were in the Jamestown colony of Virginia. My French Huguenot ancestors came to South Carolina around 1700. Other ancestors were of German and Scottish descent and made their way to those places, as well as Pennsylvania and North Carolina. For the others, I just assume they came from the United Kingdom (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland).
The last to join our family is my brother-in-law, whose ancestors immigrated from Poland, then in the Russian Empire, in 1912.
Think about how to present your immigration history to your kin.
Reopening updates
The Kenan Research Center at the Atlanta History Center is reopening for research, but you’ll need to make an appointment 24 hours in advance. The center no longer closes from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m., and patrons can now browse the shelves for books and microfilm. You no longer have to tell the staff ahead of time what you want to look at. Masking is required only for those who have not been vaccinated. For more information, go to atlantahistorycenter.com then to “Learning & Research,” or call 404-814-4040. The Georgia Archives is just about back to normal. You can now pull your own books to research and use the copy machines and the computers. It closes from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., and you must leave the building during that time.
Family History Centers reopening
The Family History Centers of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are slowly reopening. Check with the one you use to verify its plans.
Contact Kenneth H. Thomas Jr., P.O. Box 901, Decatur, Ga., 30031 or www.kenthomasongenealogy.com.
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