Closing out our list of “Laws of Genealogy,” consider these:
11. The 5-volume, 5000-page family history was guaranteed to have a write-up on everyone in the [insert your surname] family. Too bad it didn’t include an index and the names weren’t in alphabetical order.
12. Your [insert your surname] ancestor didn’t believe in legal documents – like wills – and relied on a hearty handshake, instead.
13. Your [insert your surname] ancestor left all his worldly possessions to his wife and children. He didn’t name them – he already knew who they were!
14. The [insert your surname] cousin doing all the family research die and her husband’s new wife cleaned house, including disposing of all the “old” papers in the boxes in the garage.
15. Your [insert your surname] ancestor went out of his way to keep his name out of official records so you would have something to do later – genealogy!