Mightier Acorns

A valentine for my surname

A couple of weeks ago, I had some unexpected time off (thanks, persistent pandemic!) and since my brain was still functional, I decided to use that time to launch a One-Name Study for my surname on WikiTree. (This post is short because I want you to follow that link.)

I did this because I’m selfish. My research into the life of my 5th-great grandfather, James Callin (c. 1750-c. 1816) suggests that he and his brother moved from Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, to somewhere in Kentucky. As I cast about for evidence of James living in Kentucky, I keep finding Callin families who are clearly not James – in the general area around Mason, Campbell, Kenton, and Pendleton counties. Unfortunately, online records from before 1810 are sketchy.

Keeping track of these unrelated families is difficult in Ancestry, and many of them may not end up being biologically connected to my family – so the logical choice is to put the research on a collaborative platform where others can contribute to or benefit from the work I’m trying to do.

Now the trick is to figure out how to let the diaspora of Callan descendants know that the project is there.

If you have any advice for managing something like this, I’d love to hear from you!

And if you’ve found your way to this blog from WikiTree, be sure to subscribe so you can keep tabs on my progress!