Chaucer (originally posted in Feb 2015)

My 18th great grandmother, Kathryn de Roet Swynford, was the wife of John I Plantagenet and sister in law of Geoffrey Chaucer, the "father of English Literature."  There have been other English ancestors that have gotten me excited, but this one blew me away.  My passion has been English Literature since high school because of an inspiring teacher, Mrs. Comstock.  She was the reason I became an English major in college. I loved studying Chaucer so much in college that I took every single course taught by Chaucer scholar, Dr. Rosemary Sprague.  I even learned Middle English so I could read Chaucer's works in the original language. I had a strong drive to know everything about that time period.  I know the line of descent is not direct, but still... any connection at all is amazing.

Kathryn Swynford is an ancestor through my paternal great grandmother, Georgia Powell.

Postscript: Tragically, the beloved Dr. Sprague died in her bed during a fire at her old Victorian home in Farmville, Va. I own one of her books, and still remember her fondly.

Taking it to the next level

I've reached the point where I am ready to expand my research into new methods and sources.  There are still many options I have not explored online.  I aim to exhaust every source online before resorting to visiting actual places in person.   This is probably the beginning of my investment of financial resources into the project, and also where my research will become quite a bit more tedious.

Today I began watching a video series on Ancestry.com's youtube channel about Genealogical Proof Standards.  So much yet to learn!  I ordered a book published by the Board of Certification of Genealogists. I may look into getting certified as a genealogist myself.  I started a research log.  I looked into the Family Tree Maker software - not sure if I need that yet.  I submitted a post for review on the Ancestry Facebook page.  I had already submitted questions to Genealogy Roadshow and to ask@ancestry.com.  To date, my only expense has been the annual membership in Ancestry and the book I just ordered today.  It will cost more to join the International version of Ancestry, and even more to subscribe to valuable resources, such as Newspaper.com.  I feel like I need to confirm and validate every single name I have already added to my tree before I can add anybody else or spend any more money.

There are many reasons for genealogy research:  publishing, curiosity, legacy... my sole reason for doing this is for my children and their children.  Knowing one's family history is an important part of one's identity.