Other research projects
Dear Rawlins/Burbank/Frost, etc. family, March 2009
My family’s goal for 2009 is to print a Rawlins family history. We realize many histories have been printed. The goal of this history is to bring together in one place the inspirational, funny, and humanizing stories of our ancestors. It is not our goal to put together an exhaustive research and Genealogy (which is on the rawlins.org website) but rather to present our ancestors in a more accessible and interesting way so that future generations might be more interested in their heritage.
It is our plan to start with Alf and Cora Rawlins, as a result this history will include sections on the Burbank’s, Frost’s, Lindsay’s, and others.
In 2008, we undertook this same project for our Whitney ancestors and have been amazed and gratified by the results. In this history we did things like create a “2 ½ minute talk index of inspirational stories” to help create incentive to dive in and read. The resulting book has only been published for just over a month but the many letters and phone calls we have received from people, who are connecting with their heritage, has convinced us such a book would be valuable for our Rawlins family as well.
Advances in printing and desktop publishing technology mean that such a book can be printed for a reasonable cost. The Whitney book was 500 pages and we were able to print and sell it for less than $20. You are welcome to look at the Whitney History we created by going to this website:
Let us stress we are not asking for money, we have funds to layout and print the book. What we do need is assistance in collecting the information to create such a book. So anyone who is interested in helping is welcome, there is much to do and many hands make light work. (We are trying not to kill Judy like we almost did on the Whitney history.)
- What is needed?
- Histories, including oral histories of our ancestors that have been passed down generation to generation, such as stories of Harvey M. Rawlins and Margaret Frost as told by their children, grandchildren etc.
- Labeled Photos on photo stock is preferred, photos printed on paper do not copy well however they may provide value because it could be the only photo we have OR it could provided identification for an otherwise unidentified photo.
- Interesting documents, Some documents we have are: Original homestead deed for Rawlins Homestead in Lewiston, map of James Rawlins farm in Nauvoo, letters, recipes, original poetry, etc. Any other documents you have that might help the reader understand better the character and times of our ancestors.
We are not asking for the original documents or even print quality copies at this point. What we need right now is an index of or small digital “thumbprints” or photocopies so that we can start organizing and cataloguing.
Later we will be looking for people to help organize and edit stories of the 40-60 ancestors, we know will be part of this history. When we get to this point we will need people, who are. willing to do various kinds of tasks such as:
- Review the histories we have and edit out duplicate passages.
- Do basic research about historical events surrounding our ancestors lives
- Type up histories into Microsoft word.
- Record and/or transcribe Oral histories for your branch of the family.
- Contact family members who may have information needed for the history. (And collect information such as email/regular addresses and phone numbers)
- Spend a day (or two) at places like the church archives, DUP, Deseret News, University special collections, Genealogy Library, etc. to get background information.
- Do online searches at sites like Google, Newspaperarchive.com, etc. for information.
Right now the most important thing is to track down the following:
- What information is out there and who has it.
- Who is interested in helping, and has the time to help.
- Getting the contact information of additional people who might be interested in this project.
- How many people might be interested in this book when we print it (again, we are not asking for money or a commitment until the book is finished).
If you are interested in helping in any way please contact;