Travel Tuesday

As Dorothy Gale once proclaimed, "There's no place like home."

That statement is especially true when it comes to researching my family tree. It is not necessary to venture far from my childhood home to find an abundance of research material for both my maternal and paternal lines as my ancestors didn't venture far from home. They stayed put for generations. With the exception, of course, of my immigrant ancestors who bravely crossed the Atlantic Ocean.

My British and German immigrants arrived in New York, made their way west and settled in a small rural area northwest of Chicago and just south of O'Hare International Airport. At the time of their arrival O'Hare was a vast prairie.

The Des Plaines History Center has been my "Go To" repository for ancestors dating back from the 1850s to present time. I only need to travel about twenty minutes to research a repository filled with information about MY family. I have been blessed with the convenience. I can't speak out enough of the importance of historical societies and centers to family research.

That doesn't mean I haven't traveled distances for research for I have. In fact, I am itching to hit the road and research other repositories and history museums. Until that time arrives, I am one lucky researcher to have such quality resources so close to home.

Happy researching....

Linda