Vita Brevis

My 2^nd-great-grandfather Ephraim Chamberlain had an interesting career as a photographer. Traditional genealogical research showed that he was born in Sweden, Oxford County, Maine, on 11 August 1843 and died in Wakefield, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, on 22 October..

In the course of their research, genealogists often need to identify an ancestor’s origins before they arrived in the United States. There are many types of records that can be used for this research, with varying degrees of usefulness. Naturalization records are an..

If you grew up in New England, there’s a good chance you know a Kimball, have met a Kimball, or have at least heard the name Kimball. It’s a common surname in these parts. It has also been said that any given Kimball could potentially be related to the same two..

1897 map of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, Matthews-Northrup Company (via Wikimedia Commons)

One “employment perk” at American Ancestors is a complementary consultation with one of our genealogists, and every now and then I get paired with a colleague for such..

Editor's Note: For Black History Month, we are sharing some of the ancestor stories that our researchers have uncovered as part of our 10 Million Names project. Learn more about 10 Million Names here. 

21 Chestnut Avenue, Boston, in 2024

Our neighbors affect us in direct and indirect ways. Whether you’ve only ever lived in single-family homes or you have experience residing in multi-family dwellings, you can likely remember your neighbors and the ways you impacted..

Postcard of the S.S. Romanic, created between 1903 and 1911

If you’re old enough to remember the popular ABC TV series The Love Boat which aired during the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, you will no doubt still be able to hear in your mind its melodic opening theme song (“..

Cover of Bible photographed by Carol Kimball Stahl