August 2026

August 24, 2026

Varina Davis, Mary Bowser, and a Very Revealing Letter: Life Thoughts After the Civil War

A few years ago I came across the story of Mary Bowser, a formerly enslaved woman who became a Union spy in Richmond during the Civil War. Bowser reportedly worked inside the Confederate White House, where Jefferson Davis lived with his wife, Varina, and passed information she gathered there to the Union. Naturally, that sent… Continue reading

a little history you didn’t ask for, stories of america

civil war, slavery
August 21, 2026

The Crowd at John Brown’s Hanging

John Brown remains one of the most complicated figures in American history. A fierce abolitionist who came to believe slavery would never be destroyed peacefully, Brown was willing to use violence against those who defended it. In 1856, during the bloody conflict over whether Kansas would enter the Union as a free or slave state,… Continue reading

a little history you didn’t ask for, stories of america

civil war, ethan hawke, harpers ferry, john brown, john wilkes booth, robert e. lee, slavery
August 21, 2026

When Sandusky, Ohio Had Four Buildings: The Memories of Almon Hunt (1808-1896)

Some of my favorite genealogy discoveries are the documents that let me see beyond the basic facts of an ancestor’s life. The 1889 letter below from Almon Hunt is one of those treasures. Rather than simply telling me where the family lived or when they moved, Almon tells me what he actually remembered – the… Continue reading

memoir, paternal history, stories of america

hunt, reedtown ohio, sandusky ohio, seneca county ohio, vermont, walker, war of 1812
August 21, 2026

Between the Lines: Miriam (Dewing) Manly’s Story

When Adin Manly, my 4X great grand uncle, recorded the story of leaving Massachusetts for the wilds of upstate New York in February 1817, he described the journey in practical terms: he and his new wife, Miriam, were married on January 17 and a month later they set out with a group and three yoke… Continue reading

memoir, paternal history

manley, manly, monroe county new york, pioneer
August 20, 2026

Before Wendy’s, There Was A Bucket of Chicken

Some of the most interesting history is hiding in the most ordinary places – including the food we eat every day. While watching the History Channel’s The Food That Built America, I learned a fascinating little piece of fast-food history involving Dave Thomas, Colonel Sanders, a bucket of chicken and eventually, a Frosty. Dave Thomas,… Continue reading

a little history you didn’t ask for, stories of america
August 20, 2026

Twenty Minutes from Home: The Battle of Fallen Timbers

Sometimes the most fascinating history isn’t found hundreds of miles away – it is practically in our own backyard. Just twenty minutes from my home lies the site of the Battle of Fallen Timbers, fought on August 20, 1794, near present-day Maumee, Ohio. I have visited the battlefield several times over the years, but today,… Continue reading

go see history, stories of america

battle of fallen timbers, general anthony wayne, maumee ohio, native nations
August 20, 2026

The Pioneer’s Son: Nathan Manly’s Life In Michigan

Yesterday I shared the remarkable recollections of my 4X great grand uncle, Adin Manly, who wrote in his own words about the hardships he and his wife, Miriam, endured as early settlers of western New York. Among the details of his long life, Adin wrote proudly that he and Miriam had raised ten children, all… Continue reading

paternal history

deerfield michigan, lenawee county michigan, manley, manly, webster
August 19, 2026

Adin Manly: In His Own Words – A Pioneer’s Journey to Western New York

Every so often in genealogy, we are fortunate enough to find more than names, dates, and places. We find a voice. Adin Manly (1793-1867), the younger brother of my 4X great grandfather, Howard Manly (1791-1852) was born in Taunton, Massachusetts in 1793. Like so many young New Englanders of his generation, Adin eventually turned his… Continue reading

memoir, paternal history

manley, manly, morton union cemetery, orleans county new york, taunton massachusetts
August 17, 2026

The Children Josephine Lost

By the time Josephine (Peotter/Piotter, Dermyer) Maynard died in 1946 at the age of 52 years, four of her eight children with her second husband, Lawrence Maynard, were already gone. One died the day she was born. Another died at two from pneumonia and influenza. Eight-year-old Richard Maynard was killed in a horrifying accident at… Continue reading

paternal history

death certificate, maynard, peotter, tecumseh michigan
August 14, 2026

The Courage to Hide Eleven Lives: The True Story Behind “Irena’s Vow”

A few years ago I watched the movie “Irena’s Vow” and it’s one of the most intense Holocaust-based movies I’ve seen. “Caught in a German roundup to be used as a slave laborer, Polish nurse Irena Gut becomes a German army major’s housekeeper during World War II. Irena risks her life to conceal a dozen… Continue reading

recommendations, world history

holocaust, world war II

“The creation of a thousand forests is one acorn.” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson~

Welcome! My name is Lisa, and I’m a family historian, storyteller, and unapologetic history nerd with a deep love for discovering the ordinary people, places, and stories that came before us.

What began as curiosity about my own ancestors has grown into a passion for researching, preserving, and sharing the stories, photographs, documents, and places that connect generations across time. Along the way, I’ve discovered that some of the best stories aren’t necessarily found on my family tree. Sometimes they’re hiding in an old newspaper, a forgotten recipe, a historic place – or some random bit of history I simply can’t resist sharing.

I believe every ancestor – whether they left behind a diary or only a name on a census record – deserves to be remembered. My hope is that this site not only preserves my family’s history for future generations, but also celebrates the fascinating, surprising, and sometimes wonderfully everyday stories of the past.

Because history is everywhere. You just have to be curious enough to look.

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