Personal Family Research

I’ve been obsessed with family history for as long as I can remember. In 2017, I decided to take the plunge and become a professional genealogist—not just to level up my own research skills, but to help others uncover and tell the stories of their ancestors, too.

My personal research goal? To create a detailed genealogical summary for each of my great-grandparents:

George Dearing Peart & Biantha Blanche Barton

Harlan Eldon Adams & Lovina Christine Usadel

Carlo Gaetano Angelo Pastori & Maria Carolina Mereghetti

Gilbert Charles Janssen & Alvina Gertrude Franke

Once those summaries are complete, I’ll work my way back another generation—like peeling back layers of a very stubborn onion. Along the way, I’ll post narratives, deep dives into probate records, and the occasional rabbit-hole report. Clients come first though, so reports will be posted when I find time between clients.

Pearts – My paternal line, the Pearts, hail from Alston, Cumberland, England. They immigrated to Ontario, Canada, in 1857 before eventually settling in Henry County, Illinois. Apparently, wanderlust runs in the family.

Adams – Thanks to the Adams line, I have a few Revolutionary War veterans in the mix—and yes, I can trace this branch all the way back to the Mayflower. (No guarantees of Pilgrim behavior, though.)

Pastori— The Pastoris came from Ossona, near Milan, Italy, around the turn of the 20th century and landed in St. Louis, Missouri. Like many immigrant families, they focused on fitting into their new American life and didn’t talk much about their roots. I’ve got a collection of mysterious photos of likely relatives… now to figure out who’s who.

Janssen – One side of my maternal grandmother’s family farmed for generations in St. Libory, Illinois, and carried a strong German heritage. The other side lived a close-knit life in St. Louis. I did a deep dive on them before I turned pro, and let’s just say—those early reports are in desperate need of a rewrite.