I had always heard that my family arrived in this country from Ireland right at the turn of the 20th century, and that I was third generation Irish-American. All of that is true, but I recently discovered that I have distant relatives that were in the United States long before my family arrived.
One thing that I quickly discovered is when you research your family history, it can reveal some interesting things that you may have never known.
The biggest thing for me was finding out that one of my ancestors was the rather mediocre but nevertheless well-known U.S. general, Ambrose Burnside. He was a Union general during the American Civil War.
Burnside was the commander during a few successful campaigns in Tennessee and North Carolina, but was routed at the Battle of Fredricksburg by Robert E. Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia. Burnside was actually the commander of the Army of the Potomac, but still lost badly.
He eventually resigned and went on to work in the railroad industry. The thing that he is probably the most noted for was his unusual facial hair at the time, which came to be known as side burns because of him. I am proud to say that I am the proud owner of side burns, though not quite as fluffy as my great-great-great-great grandfather's.
Studying your family history can be fun for reasons just like this. To learn that I was related to a famous Civil War general was pretty amazing. Now, it would have been even better if I learned that I was descended from Robert E. Lee or Ulysses S. Grant, but you can't change your family history.
In researching your family history, you sometimes come across things that seem too remarkable to be true. For instance, I learned that a distant cousin of ours was another Civil War figure, P.G.T. Beauregard. He also served as an engineer during the Mexican-American war.
Your family history is something about which you should feel proud. I had always thought that I was exclusively of Irish ancestry and knew a lot about my culture. However, in learning about my family history, I came across a Scottish-American and French-American to whom I am related. It was fascinating to learn.
I would suggest to anyone interested in learning your family history to go online and research it, or speak to some of your older relatives who may know a little bit more about your lineage than you do. It is really amazing to see how your family came to live where it does and who you are descended from, so that you can pass it on to your children.