Into the Past: My Road Trip to Scranton

April 29, 2026

More Memories of Sharon: Typing Class, a Bad Hair Day, and Almost Like Sisters

(Image: rawpixel.com) "A Rose for Sharon," my recent post about preserving my sister Sharon's memory, sparked some lovely, fun, and poignant reminiscences from family and friends. With their permission, I'm sharing them here. My Aunt Sharon surprised me with this fact: "I remember when we took a typing class together at night school. I could never keep up with her. God love her. " I had never heard this before! My sister attended Bowling Green State University for a time, and my aunt said they took the class together after Sharon left BGSU and moved home. Eventually, Sharon attended Bryant & Stratton and was about to graduate. Her diploma was awarded posthumously. "Sharon was such a sweet and lovely young lady who had a great smile and gorgeous hair," recalls my Aunt Marian. "I remember how excited she was going to Bowling Green when your mom drove her there and I went along. She was ready to go to college and get on with her life. A be...

I am participating in 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks, a writing challenge encouraging genealogy researchers to write about their ancestors. The challenge is hosted by genealogist, blogger and podcaster Amy Johnson Crow.

Here's my post for Amy's Week Eighteen prompt: Road Trip

By Nancy Gilbride Casey

Part preparation, part dumb luck, part generosity of others, part serendipity. These things equal success on a genealogy road trip, in my recent experience. Scranton and Wayne County, Pennsylvania were my road trip destinations in March 2019—the places my Gilbride ancestors first called home in the United States.

Facebook was the perfect medium to share my discoveries while on the road in Pennsylvania, and I reported back each night to my family and friends in a series of posts I'll share here. They create a neat road trip timeline, while capturing the thrill of the find, somber closure, and other emotions which may only come by actually walking where our ancestors trod.