In this week's Roundup: Ukrainian flower crowns (gorgeous! be sure to click through to the gallery in the photo credit), ancestry tourism, a juxtaposition of portraits and genetic ancestry from Brazil, talking statues, and more.
When it was announced that Hillary Rodham Clinton would be inducted into the Irish America Hall of Fame in 2015 for her work on the Irish peace process, it was inevitable that I would explore the branches of her family tree, but it wasn’t the first time. Having delved into her roots in years past, I was familiar with the basics, but when I took a deeper dive into the Welsh portion of her heritage, I discovered that it’s rather surprising that Hillary Rodham Clinton exists at all.
This week's Roundup brings us pictures from a unique and memorable honeymoon, a matching grant challenge to preserve WWI memorials, and an interview with Australian comedian, Nick Cody.
In this week's Roundup, read about a 90-year-old man who's digitized over a million records at FamilySearch -- what a great help to people looking to explore their family history! Also this week, explore an island with a dark past, check out the new Ellis Island artwork gracing a building in Tribeca, find out the "latest" in baby names, and more.
Easily one of the most popular and reliable box office performers today, actress, comedian, producer, and now fashion designer Melissa McCarthy has a lot to be proud of. Following a string of hits, she’s now part of the long-anticipated Ghostbusters dream team of Leslie Jones, Kate McKinnon, and Kristen Wiig. While they’re all ghostbusting, I thought I’d do a little ghost-searching – that is, for the ancestors who populate McCarthy’s family tree – and here’s what I learned.
This week we rounded up an analysis of and tribute to Lin-Manuel Miranda, incredible trompe l’oeil facades in France, an 86-year-old grandmother celebrating her birthday with her 86th great-grandchild, and much more . . .
This week's Roundup explores the Barack Obama Plaza in Moneygall, Ireland, a project which was one of the largest single investments in a decade in Ireland’s Midlands region and has become the main job provider for the village, as well as the largest employer for miles around.
In this week's Roundup, check out the story of a "quiet and self-effacing" Marine who chose to stay silent about his role in the 1945 flag raising on Iwo Jima, quirky and interesting stories about microfilm and time capsule homes, more on VP Biden's visit to Ireland, and more . . .
In climbing the branches of Lin-Manuel Miranda's family tree, I found myself following the trail of an early nineteenth century, interracial love story, peppered by war and rebellion, all interwoven with a decades-long struggle to outrun slavery that began in Virginia and ultimately unfolded under a handful of flags even though most of it occurred in one place – Nacogdoches.
Cecilia Chien was told by her father that her family was descended from a king of the 10th century. She began investigating her roots in 2002 and discovered that she is a 38th generation descendant of King Chien (852-932) who founded a prosperous kingdom in the Yangzi delta. Her goal is to write an account, “1,000 Years of a Chinese Family,” an odyssey back to the land of her parents. She will be visiting China this year to further her research. Cecilia requested and received funding to cover half of her round-trip airfare to Shanghai for her fieldwork.
