The world of Internet, Ancestry.com and DNA have been game changers for researchers of family history. Having sites like Ancestry in which to research, collect and publish data assists in the organization of volumes of information. This information becomes accessible to anyone desiring to discover their own families’ genealogy. Probably the best part is this work will not be lost to future researchers. No longer needed is the entire room my mother used, a family tree on Ancestry will do. Being able to carry my program with me, along with camera, scanner, photos and documents all on an iPad or smartphone is amazing. It is also easier making this information available for others. Because of modern technology, researchers are not alone and some pair of eyes out there will find the connections we all seek.
A willingness to share is important. Consider the possibilities of DNA testing. Explore these web pages using the links below, or create an account (free or paid) with Ancestry in order to explore my family tree. Many more links to information can be found under “My Research.”
ANCESTRY.COM
My own Ancestry Shinabarger Family Tree (Patricia Bunyard) is over 40,000 names and growing. It includes both Shinabarger and Bunyard families. While some people may show no known relationship to me personally, names have been added in an effort to generate hints and find mystery ancestors. Use the links below but if they do not take you to the trees, then follow the instructions for creating or using an Ancestry account to do a search:
Shinabarger Family Tree (Patricia Bunyard)
OR Shinabarger Family Tree (Kipp)
You may need to CREATE AN ACCOUNT within Ancestry, either free or paid. Once that is done, from any page CLICK SEARCH and select PUBLIC MEMBER TREES. Enter a name you are researching or just search for JOHN SHINABARGER born 1764. From the Search results of all trees containing that person, at the top right click VIEW ALL. You will see many trees. Look for the specific names of our trees.
When it comes to family trees on Ancestry, over 243, many are only copies of others without any effort to confirm documentation. Many earlier trees were based upon my mother’s book and have self-perpetuated any mistake that may have originally been made decades ago. I will just say that NO Mehetable is NOT the mother of John Shinabarger’s children and I have yet to see a shred of evidence as to who she was. Just follow documentation, or LACK OF, and the DNA Research.
All efforts are made to include accurate and documented information. However, there is no doubt typos and errors were made. With my mother’s papers, correspondence and notes, it was impossible to find all the sources. With Ancestry, either I was able to confirm the data or I did not include the ancestor even though DNA may show we are likely connected in some way.
I invite you to contact me with any documented corrections, additional information or theories.
