I’ve written before about my love of all things British and describe myself as an Anglophile [read article], but there’s another side to my origin story. Yep, it’s true. I’m half Irish! My mother’s family – the Haleys and the Tates – came to the U.S. from Ireland. I’m pretty sure I’m in good company because according to Wikipedia, I’m one of 32 million U.S. citizens who have an Irish ancestor. That’s almost 10% of our population.

When you start putting together a collection of your family’s stories and photos, I want to challenge you to look back – waaaay back – as far back as you can. My personal inspiration for digging into my family’s ancestry comes from the PBS show, “Finding Your Roots.” Each episode features Harvard professor Dr. Henry Louis Gates and a guest – a celebrity or other well-known person. Dr. Gates and his team of genealogy experts dig deep into the ancestry of their guests, providing stories and insights into their family history that most of us can only dream of. The stories are wonderful and I’m inspired by every episode to dig deeper into my family’s history.

Who Are YOU?

I found out years ago that I was almost 100% British/Irish. My sister’s family used the DNA testing available from 23andMe when it was first available at least 10 years ago. I remember excitedly asking my sister where our ancestors came from and at first I was a little disappointed. I mean, a lot of the people I know claim ancestry from either Ireland or England. U.S. citizens with British ancestry are fewer than those whose families are Irish, but England still ranks in the top 5 countries that Americans have descended from.

A couple of years ago I signed up for an account with Ancestry.com and started my family genealogy journey. I believe that most families have at least one member who finds joy in being the family “historian.” After my dad retired, he took on that role for our family. Even though he died in 1998, my fellow “family historian” cousins have shared with me that they are using my dad’s own genealogy research and records to help with their ancestry work. Knowing that would have made him so happy. 

When Ancestry.com made DNA testing available I was all in! I’m not sure whether I thought that I could possibly have different results than my sister or what, but I could not wait for those results. I was not disappointed! Well, obviously, I am still mostly British/Irish because at the end of the day my sister and I have the same parents, etc. But with this advanced testing, I was able to see the more expansive view of my ancestry – my paternal grandmother’s German ancestry, our little bit of Scottish heritage, and even some ancestors from France.

A Challenge

So here’s a challenge from this descendant of the British Isles to you.

Go dig deeply into your ancestry and find those family stories that will add so much more to your collection of family stories and photos.

Once you have found those gems, start sharing with your siblings and cousins who share those ancestors. I promise you that they will be happy that you did.

Resources & Inspiration

WATCH  “Finding Your Roots” on PBS or purchase an episode from Amazon Prime 

READ* Finding Your Roots Official Companion“
“Research Like a Pro A Genealogist’s Guide“

EXPLORE Local libraries, family cemeteries, and those boxes in the back of the closet that nobody ever looks in.