Smith's Cemetery near Blooming Valley, Pennsylvania was the last among four cemetery stops this past weekend for my youngest kids and I. Since the borough of Blooming Valley was founded by Jeremiah Smith, one of my third great grandfathers, and another of my third great grandfathers, Laban Smith, is also buried here, it's a safe bet that pretty much everyone buried there was a blood relative some way or another.
And, no, this wasn't some sadistic Halloween excursion. It was ancestry research for me and lessons for my kids. Intermingled with scenic stops at Youngstown's Mill Creek Park and a very rainy Cook Forest in Western Pennsylvania were research stops to walk in the footsteps of our ancestors.
We bridged eight generations in one short weekend.
My kids (1st) and I (2nd generation) had dinner with my Aunt (3rd). We also visited gravestones for their great grandparents (4th) and great great grandparents (5th) in Youngstown as well as 3rd great grandparents in Meadville (6th), and 4th and 5th great grandparents in Blooming Valley (7th and 8th).
I think that's quite a lesson, and not for Halloween.
Sounds like fun. Some of my favorite times have searching cemeteries for ancestors.
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