I am Rusyn

This is a repeat of a post from another blog I write dedicated solely to my Rusyn heritage.  If you are interested in learning more please check out my blog by following this link I am Rusyn or check out my I am Rusyn Facebook page dedicated to my family and Rusyn history.

About 10 years ago, as I was looking at information I had compiled as a kid, it struck me that the quarter of me that was an Adams was just that, a quarter of me. What about the other three-quarters of me? I didn't know much more than that I was Slovak and Ukrainian (and possibly Polish). I knew the stories of AFTER these families came to the United States, but what about before?

At this point I began to search, obviously the first place I turned was the Internet and Ancestry.com. I kept seeing the same words pop up over and over again on various pages: Rusyn, Ruthenian, Lemko. These names were associated all six names that I was researching (Oschip, Turenchalk, Ledney, Bitlyan, Taczak and Kovalyak). "What is Rusyn?" I asked. Finally it began to sink in. That other three-quarters of my blood wasn't from Slovakia, Ukraine or Poland; it was all from one common heritage, the Rusyn Heritage.

I have continued to expand my knowledge of my Rusyn family and my Rusyn heritage and connect with new family members or others that share this common heritage.  Here are a few links that go further in the Rusyn culture than I am able to on this brief summary page. 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rusyns
http://www.slovakia.org/society-rusyn.htm
http://www.rusyn.com/
http://www.rusyn.org/
http://www.carpathorusynsociety.org/
http://www.rusynmedia.org/Links/C-RRC/

~Christine

Family Myths

My maiden name is Adams.  My family descends from John Adams that came to the United States on "The Fortune" which was the supply ship for "The Mayflower."  Pretty neat, right?  My family has been here since before the American Revolution---by over 150 years!  I grew up "knowing" that I was related to President John Adams and President John Quincy Adams.  This "fact" is actually what inspired my drive to learn about my ancestors.  At the ripe age of 10, I wrote a letter to the Adams National Historic Site asking about genealogical research and how I might be related to the two presidents.
 
Guess what?  They didn't have any reference to how my Adams family was related.  So at 10 years old, I set out to prove them wrong.  I did a major family history project in school.  Couldn't figure it out.  Nothing ever made sense.  But, I had the family tree from a genealogist that had been commissioned by someone in my family that said, "You are related to these two presidents."  It had to be true, right?
 
Wrong again.  As I got older and computer research developed, I learned that there was a book that had been written that possibly had misinformation.  In the "Memorial of Captain Thomas Abbey" (pg. 49) there is a passage about my ancestor John Adams that says:

"John Adams, who came to Plymouth on the Fortune in 1621, was the first of the name to set foot on these shores, but the descendants of his brother Henry, who settled in Braintree in 1640, have outstripped those of the first arrival and included more illustrious men in a single direct line that any other family in America."

Henry Adams of Braintree was the ancestor of  United States Presidents John Adams and John Quincy Adams.  However, now that documentation and records and DNA testing have all become more readily available, it appears that John Adams was not the brother of Henry, it was more likely an assumption made than a statement based on fact.  In fact the exact origin of John Adams of Plymouth, Massachusetts remains unknown.

What? That means I am not related to the Presidents?  But I was told that I was and I will prove it.  Well, I can't prove it through the Adams line, but I found another way to prove it!  Turns out the names we should have been focusing on were female lines of passengers of "The Mayflower."  Yes!  I proved it, with much better documentation and, yes, I am in fact related to not only President John Adams and President John Quincy Adams, but also to Presidents Theodore and Franklin Roosevelt and Presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush along with many other famous Americans. 

I guess the point of this story is, don't believe everything you have been told about your ancestry, but don't disbelieve the family myths either, the truth can be revealed, it just might take some digging!

~Christine

Sharing Their Story

Genealogy research is like breathing air to me; it isn't a desire but a need.  I have always been interested in my ancestral roots.  It is as if I hear my ancestors whispering my name asking me to share their story; it is my calling.

I first became interested in my dad's family, the Adams family.  How cool is it that we are likely related to TWO Presidents of the United States?  How could anyone NOT be interested in that?  How about the fact that my ancestors crossed the Atlantic on the Mayflower and the Fortune and participated in that first "Thanksgiving?"  Super neat!  To me, these roots helped me understand the history involved on a personal level.

 

I began my trek upon a genealogical journey when I was just a kid and continue down that path today.  I have made many discoveries about so many people in my personal family history and look forward to learning more.  I have also expanded my research into my husband's family and done private research for others.  Sharing the story of those that have gone before me is an incredible feeling to me.

 

The purpose of this blog is to share information I have found with those interested.  Join me on my journey, help me learn more and maybe learn a little about yourself...

~Christine
 

Are you Rusyn?  Check out my blog dedicated directly to my Rusyn heritage.

 

http://iamrusyn.blogspot.com/ 

 

On my blog, "I am Rusyn", I share what being Rusyn means and explore the roots of my family.  It has allowed me to expand the knowledge of my family and connect with new family members and others that share this common heritage.  I also utilize the blog to help keep the Rusyn heritage alive.