FAMILY TREE's & PUBLICATION SALES
FAMILY TREE's and PUBLICATION SALES :
How I Got Here:
In May of 1979, I began to gain an interest in my families history through discussions with my Mother and Father on where they were born, where they resided, and how they had met. I became a little puzzled about how my Mother had roots in Western Maryland, was born in Zion, Illinois, met my Father in New York, and ended up in Baltimore, Maryland. It seemed to me like she had made a big circle from and to Maryland, and like a three year old I wanted to know "why?".
I am not exactly sure why this interest came about, perhaps at the age of twenty-nine I came to the realization that my parents were a tremendous source of knowledge. Until that time I had not wanted to, or felt that I did not need to, tap into this source. Obviously, nowadays, this perspective is held widely by those striving to free themselves from the "bonds" of their parents, and to move into their perceived roles as independent adults, or maybe I had previously just thought "I knew it all". I thank God that I finally came to my senses and realized that "I did not know it all", and that a child, no matter what their age, can always learn from their parents. I also thank God that my parents are loving and caring individuals who are willing to spend the time to search their memories for me, and share all that they had knowledge of.
In any case, it seemed that the knowledge they had about life, family, and experiences would be lost to me, my children, and future generations if not captured in some format.
It was my decision, at that time, that a good way to start would be to collect all the old photographs in the house, label them with names and dates taken, if known. This then led to "how is this person related to you", and therefore me. One thing led to another, and I started to gather information on my Grandparents, and other relatives based on these photographs and discussions with my parents in a chart format, which then led to my interest in genealogy.
Around this same time, I learned of my relatives in Garrett County, Maryland, and of an Annual Enlow Family Reunion, held each June. I convinced my Mother, then 60 years of age, to accompany me to the Reunion. It was the first time in 30 or so years my Mother had been to Accident, Maryland in Garrett County, but with a minimum of misdirections, she guided me to her Cousins home. To say the least, I was impressed with her "tour guide" abilities. After all, the last time she had been here, the now well paved roads were little more than "cow paths".
I was also in a semi state of shock, that these people, and many more throughout the County were my relatives. I can not fully express my heartfelt gratitude enough for my Cousins kindness and hospitality during this first short visit, nor can I thank my most favorite Cousin, Helen Louise Enlow enough for all of the kindnesses she has shown me in the years since. My Cousins, Helen Louise and her brother Rudy, spent the greater part of that day "showing" us around, the old Homestead and farm, the burial locations of my ancestors, and the general community in which my roots had begun. Later we were joined by Helen's other brothers, Bob and Dave. The next day, we attended the Enlow Family Reunion, and again, I came to know many more of my relatives, or should I say family, since that was the way my Mother and I were treated. Since then, I find that I frequently find myself thinking of Garrett County, my family members there, the crisp clean air, the wooded hills, the stock filled pastures, and fields of corn, wheat, and hay. I continue to attend the Reunions, and enjoy the company of family and friends, and the realization that the younger generations attending will always know of their heritage and roots.
Most of my initial work centered on updating a publication, privately printed by my Cousin Ephraim Ellsworth Enlow, benefactor to the Ruth Enlow Library established in Oakland, Maryland, the County Seat for Garrett County. In 1979, at the Enlow Family Reunion, I learned of this publication, obtained a photocopy of it, and began my update research. At the same time, I learned of another individual who was involved in a similar act, Lois Lorraine (Knight) Cooley, who had also begun to update this publication. She shared with me all the data she had developed over the previous 3 years, and this is also incorporated therein with mine. Additionally, I eventually incorporated information from a November 30, 1947 booklet, privately printed by a Capt. Thomas A. Enloe. In addition to the above, I have searched a myriad of other sources for the information contained within the family trees I develop.
Through the years, I have found that a majority of individuals currently residing within Garrett County are related to me. My current family tree consists of over 50,000 names. I have been able to link the Enlow family with nearly every family who first settled in Garrett County, Maryland in addition to many of the more current residents.
I should point out that I have been using The Family Tree Maker, by Banner Blue Division of Borderbund Software for many years. Although there are several other programs on the market at this time, I continue with this one due to ease of use through experience. It does have a few short comings, and I have had to develop ways to make information more immediatly observable upon viewing of any single family page, and these specific types of notations will be found in the trees I develop.
In closing, although I have made every effort to verify all material
facts contained within the family trees, many of which were derived through
multiple sources, as with any material of this sort, the reader may find
a rare mistake. The Author apologizes, and requests that any errors
be brought to their attention for correction.