About

Why
Names.  Names and dates and a few locations, these are the things we take time to write down, if we write them down at all.  This person was born on such-and-such date, his parents were ___ & ___, he lived in ___, married ___, had X children, and died on such-and-such date.  

But really, what do we know about this person?  Not much.  Reading through a genealogy is interesting, but it doesn't really give any information about the personalities or lives of the people listed.


Memories are short.  Details fade, and the things which were once crystal-clear in our minds are now hazy and vague.  We forget to share our remembrances with others, and as the generations go by details, stories, facts and other such information are lost at an alarmingly fast rate.

Writing things down, however, is one way to preserve these precious treasures.  Thus, this blog.


Who
Not everyone reading this blog will be interested in every person on here.  I'm seeking to discover and remember my family.  Everyone featured here will be related to Hannah Jane Graveling in some way.  If you're a Veenstra, you probably won't be all that interested in learning about the Fridsmas, and the Bruins' side of the family probably won't be looking for tons of stories about the Gravelings.  I'm trying to organize everything here in a way which makes it easy for you to find the people and stories you're interested in, but you'll still probably need to dig to some degree or another.


Where
On the top of the page you should see a list of family trees - clicking the one that you're interested in will probably be the best way for you to navigate this site.
If someone's first name has been made into a link, clicking it will bring you to blog posts which mention, feature, or somehow relate to that particular person.
If a last name has been made into a link, clicking it will bring you to that family tree.
Dates which are made into links will bring you to source information, as will verbs which are links.


When
This entire website is a work in process.  Please bear with me as I gradually organize it and add more information.  I'm trying to work at a fairly steady pace, but sometimes life gets in the way of such goals...


How
If you see any incorrect information, wish to add stories or facts of your own, or simply wish to contact me, leave a comment or email me at hannahjaneg (at) gmail (dot) com.

What
Question marks indicate missing or incomplete information.
The word "married" is abbreviated to "m.", "born" is "b.", and "died" is "d."
A group of stars (*****) indicates where I stopped working and need to continue from next time I work on that page.
Red text indicates that I am not 100% sure of something.