Everyone has a connection to the past: family.
For Donna Smith, 69, of Everett, that connection leads to Scotland.
“I went to Scotland last year to search my Scottish relatives and went to the church where my forefather was baptized in 1753,” Smith said. “His parents were married there, too. I was thrilled.”
In 1770, that ancestor, Adam Curry, sailed across the Atlantic Ocean and landed in Virginia and would fight in the Revolutionary War.
Discovering a personal connection to history is what interests genealogists such as Smith, president of the Sno-Isle Genealogical Society.
Genealogy is the search for a family’s relatives and how those relatives are related to one another. Some genealogists specifically search for famous relatives, study the history surrounding their relatives or attempt to trace their family line as far back as they can, said Phylis Jorgenson, 67, a society member and Lynnwood resident.
“If you like mysteries, that is what it is about,” Jorgenson said. “You are always finding clues and following the clues. Every piece of information generates another question.”
The genealogical society, which has been helping people trace their family pedigrees since 1986, now has a better place to serve others.
The Sno-Isle Genealogical Society Library recently opened in Lynnwood’s Heritage Park and can serve anyone with a passion for pursuing genealogy or just a passing curiosity about family histories.
The library has found a home in the two-bedroom Humble House, an 86-year-old historic cottage. It houses the society’s extensive collection, which has at least 2,000 volumes, periodicals and databases, as well as computers with Internet access. Society members will be available to answer questions and teach classes.
“We are excited about it,” Smith said. “We can be a starting point for them (the public) to discover their family history.”
Jenny Lynn Zappala is editor of the Lynnwood-Mountlake Terrace Enterprise.
Family history
The Sno-Isle Genealogical Society Library is open at Humble House at Heritage Park, 19921 Poplar Way, Lynnwood. The library is open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesdays, 1 to 5 p.m. Thursdays and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays. Volunteers can answer questions. Classes will be offered in the future. Admission is free, but donations are welcome. The society welcomes new members. For more information, call 425-438-0307, 425-775-6267 or visit the Web site at www.rootsweb.com/ ~wasigs/index.htm.
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