Blog 18: Answer 2

1.  What is your EQ?

• My EQ is How can family history be ascertained when written records are difficult to find?

2.  What is your first answer? (In complete thesis statement format)

• My answer to my EQ is to look beyond sources that are "obvious" and to look beyond birth certificates and look at smaller sources such as directories and newspapers.

3.  What is your second answer? (In complete thesis statement format)

• My second answer to my EQ is to look at the historical events of the time era I am researching.

4.  List three reasons your answer is true with a real-world application for each.

• My answer is true because events in other countries led to families from other places to come to the United States. For example, WWII Europe was not safe for Jews, so for safety, they came here to the States where they would be safe.
• My answer goes into customs, and it is true because there are naming traditions in countries like Italy. For example, if a family has a son and if the child dies before they turn 2, the next baby will be given the same name.
• It is also important to understand the impact religion has on people. Take the mormon church, the saints moved across the plains for something they believed in, no matter how long it took. It would make sense as to why they are off the grid for a few years, because they were traveling from New York to Utah within the span of about ten years.

5.  What printed source best supports your answer?

• My third interview provided me with this source.

6.  What other source supports your answer?

• A video on Ancestry that discusses the importance of understanding the importance of migration, time it happened, and how long they were traveling.

7.  Tie this together with a concluding thought.

• My EQ answers are not always self explanatory in the sense that if someone is new to family history, they may not understand that history is a major factor when impacting family history.