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How I Write a Blog Post

Image: Rawpixel   A very kind Leaves on the Tree subscriber suggested to me earlier this year that my readers might like to know my process for writing a blog post. So, Donna, this one's for you! Where I Get Ideas Most of my blog post ideas spring from my research. I might come across a really great document, such as the letter I found in a probate file which I wrote about last week . Or I make an important discovery or just want to document some aspect of my research process, a particular methodology, or a resource that I've used, like the WWII Alien Registrations databas e I discovered on Ancestry. Here are a few examples of other post inspirations: Holidays —For the past few years, I've done four Christmas related posts in December, as I have several family stories , memories , or heirlooms that I wish to share. Courses or classes —I love to learn about new methodologies, record sets, etc., so I often take classes or courses. Writing helps me process what I've lear...
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GENEALOGY CHALLENGE 2021 - Photo of Ancestral Place


 

GENEALOGY CHALLENGE 2021

Ancestral Place - January 14th entry of a 31-day challenge to post a document, photo or artifact on social media every day in January.  

by Nancy Gilbride Casey

 

Soaring 700 feet above the surrounding valley, on a limestone cliff in northern Slovakia, is the magnificent Stará Ľubovňa Castle.1 This very sight may have captured the imaginations and stirred the souls of my great grandparents Anna Sophia Tatar (1883-1950) and John Simonik (1873-1950). 

Well, that was the way this blog post about an ancestral town photo was going to begin. Insert sound of needle scratching a phonograph record here.

Sometimes our imagining of what our ancestors may have experienced collides head on with reality. 

Both Anna and John were born the village of Forbásy, a few miles from this castle. They were baptized in the Roman Catholic church at Gňazdá (now known as Hniezdne). The map below shows the distance from these towns to the castle (starred).


I wondered: Could my great grandparents see this imposing sight from their village? Were they inspired by it every day? Never having been to Slovakia to see for myself, I posed some of these questions to the good folks on the Slovak Genealogy FaceBook page.

Turns out the answer was, "Nah!"

One knowledgeable FBer noted, "Hniezdne is about 2 miles from the castle at Starã Ľubovňa, and Forbásy is about another mile away. So if you were up on a hill and no other hill was in the way, you could barely see the castle in the distance." Womp waaaa.

On the other hand, I did come away from my FaceBook exchange with some other interesting tidbits, such as: 
  • Forbásy was a very small village, with clustered, independent houses. It had no church, only chapels. So, residents went to nearby Gňazdá to tend to Catholic sacraments like baptisms, marriages, etc. 
  • The church in Gňazdá was named Kostol sv. Bartolomeja or Church of St. Bartholomew.
  • The residents of Forbásy at the time my great grandparents lived there may have actually been Goral, a mini-ethnic group combining Polish and Slovak characteristics; I'm tasking myself with learning more about this group in the future.
So as the search continues for a good photograph of Forbásy, at least I now have a bit better mental image of the area...even if my great grandparents couldn't see the castle on a cliff.


NEXT UP: Military Picture
 
 
Thanks to the members of the Slovak Genealogy / slovenské genealógie Facebook page for insights which contributed to this post.


1 "Ľubovňa Castle," by Kateryna Baiduzha (https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php : accessed 13 January 2021), licensed under Creative Commons License - CC BY-SA 4.0.



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