Where to begin

I was lucky enough to get a jump start from a family member.  You can too.  Talk to your oldest relatives.  They'll have albums and photos.  Ask them to go through them with you.  If you can, record the information on video or tape recorder.  At a minimum write everything down.  Don't rely on your own memory.  Some of the stories will weave into other stories, and good luck keeping that all straight without documenting it!

These flashbacks will flesh out the information that you will dig out on your own.  With today's access to records, you can find out lots, but not that your great-grandmother was a fabulous pie baker, or that your uncle was a stone mason who helped to build the US Treasury.  Nothing will make your family history seem more special than the human element. 

While there is a ton of information on the internet, not all of it is accurate.  This gets compounded by people copying and pasting this misinformation into their own family tree which they then share and before you know it there is a lot of incorrect information out there.  Be sure that you document and reference all your sources. 

After you have talked with family be sure to organize the data.  I use Family Tree Maker, but there are other programs out there.  In the beginning you might think that you can manage the information on your own, but should this become a passion, you will need to have the help of some software. 

Visit your public library.  Our library has HeritageQuest (which searches U.S. federal census, banking and military records, genealogies, local histories, primary source materials, and genealogical and local history serials) and Ancestry Library Edition available for free and well has other reference sources.  You may even be able to access some of these from home if you are a registered user.  You might even be lucky to have a library nearby that as a comprehensive genealogy section that your library can borrow from.

FamilySearch.org is a free site and service provided by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Again, be sure to double check any information, and that you have the right family member.   Just think of all the Mary Smith's that were born in 1952!

CyndisList.com has a tremedous number of genealogical sources, some of which are unique and very helpful.  Once you start looking, you'll find that a lot of pieces will fall together.  There are so many organizations, clubs, family sites and boards that you can join...some free, some fee-based. 

It may sound silly, but just try putting the names into search.  They may have done something remarkable that is our there on the web that may give you a new avenue to search out.

It all began with Abraham Van Deursen

It only seems logical to start with Abraham Van Deursen since he begins much of the history of our family name.  There is a direct male line through my husband of 11 generations.  Much has been written about Abraham.  He even has a Wikipedia entry http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abraham_Pietersen_van_Deusen .  Over time, the name evolved from Van Deursen to a variety of spellings...some quite different from the original.  Anyone who has been researching their family tree for any amount of time will notice the changes in almost any name.  Sometimes the census taker made a mistake, people misread someone's handwriting, or illiteracy...so many reasons.

Here's our line from Abraham ~

Abraham Van Deursen                 1607 - 1678
Teuwis Van Deursen                    1631 - 1700
Abraham Van Deursen                 1676 - 1746
Robert Van Deusen                      1724 - 1807
Abraham Van Dusen                    1755 - 1836
Robert Van Dusen                        1783 - 1868
Daniel Van Dusen                        1808 - 1894
A. Eli Van Dusen                         1830 - 1917
Francis Marion Van Dusen          1858 - 1945
Marion Van Dusen                       1887 - 1967
William Harvey Van Dusen, Sr    1922 - 2005
David Charles Van Dusen            1957 -
Kathryn Van Dusen                       2002 -

More on these generations next time....

Let's get started

My father-in-law had always been interested in genealogy, even buying one of those vanity press books on the Van Dusens.  A cousin's wife started doing some serious digging and traveling to find out more on the family (before the easy access of the internet) and gave him a copy of her findings.  Some were a little off, but most of them gave me the inspiration to find out more. 

Anyone who has done any digging in their families' past will discover that one solid hit can open many doors.  My plan for this blog is to connect with others searching through the family tree and I will be happy to share information and hope you will be willing to do the same.  It is so exciting that so many of the older census are available online that can confirm what had only been stories at older family members knees. 

Many of these names are people who were original settlers of the United States and they have been researched and documented by many prominent historians and genealogists which makes putting my little family tree together so much easier!

Here is a starter listing of some of the family names in the tree ~

Van Dusen


Van Deursen

Van Duersen

Bennett                McClure

Bennitt                McNiel

Bentley               Melchoirs

Bickell               Powers

Carpenter           Prior

Carr                   Robbins

Cock                  Roberts

Crosby              Rutgers

Day                   Schoohoven

Decker              Van Etten

Doran               Van Heusden

Feake               Vrendenburgh

Fones               Weeks

Fowler            Wetherell

Fuller              Winthrop

Harness           Witbeck

The Van Dusen Family....and more

This journey began with some information my father-in-law gave me about 8 years ago. It's be fun, frustrating but always interesting.