May 2025

Memorials Managed 100

I first began doing some family history research with my father in the 1990's. We didn't know anything of our family history, but we soon learned that our ancestor Henry Matthias served in the 54th Pennsylvania Volunteers during the Civil War. After getting his records from the National Archives, and after reading his records, as well as many long talks with my father, I learned that our Civil War ancestor was not just a name and a date. He was no longer an "ancestor" but a person with the same loves and wants that anyone has. Although we never met, I can say that I love this man as though I have always known him. I know from his records that his last thought on this earth was of his children, and I like to think that extends to me as well. And today, I call him my grandpa.

"Who Will Tell The Story Now The Boys In Blue Are Gone?" Ulysses S. Grant