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NEWS ITEM
(This story appeared in the Red Rock News of Sedona, Arizona, on Friday,
February 19, 1999, on page 6A. See pictures for the photos that
accompanied the article.)
Mysteries OF THE PAST
Genealogy club seeks to unlock family histories
by Jackie Young
Staff Writer
LIKE a detective determined to solve a
complex case, Wally Gray is hot on the trail of a mystery that has fascinated him since he
was 12 years old.
Yet unlike the detective who may solve a murder case, lock up the
killer and determine the case has been solved, Gray’s quest is not one that has a
definite ending or resolution.
It is more like a puzzle that has an indefinite number of pieces
and becomes more complete as each piece is added on. Gray has been researching stories and
information about his relatives since he interviewed his father’s parents at age 12.
And he still has those interview notes.
Gray, a retired high school journalism teacher, is now one of
about 40 members of the Sedona Genealogy Club.
The club meets on the fourth Monday of every month except for
December and the summer months. Its next meeting is Monday, Feb. 22, at 1:30 p.m. at the
Sedona meeting house of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Mormon Hill
Road, off Brewer Road.
The group consists of people in the Sedona are "who are
interested in our roots and want to share our enthusiasm with people throughout our
community and throughout the world," according to the group's web page, which Gray
developed and maintains as the club's publicity chairman and board member.
Boxed into the story was this: Genealogy is more
than just a collection of names. It's a collection of information about people'
--Wally Gray
COMPUTERS with Internet capacity make it much easier and
quicker for researchers like Gray to delve into their roots and even to publish and
distribute their work.
Computers word-processing programs also make it much easier for
researchers to develop their work into longer publications.
Gray wrote a book, The Life and Letters of Donald Oliver
McNabb, about his wife's father. Using word-processing software, he was able to print
50 copies to distribute to friends and relatives.
Through his involvement in the Sedona Genealogy Club, Gray said
he was inspired to learn about web page development in order to create a page for the
club.
He said he attended several computer club classes, called on
relatives for assistance and managed to teach himself how to work the web page software.
This has become the latest tool in his ongoing quest to share all
that he uncovers in his searches. He has since posted a condensed version of the McNabb
book on his web site.
The web site not only allows a much wider audience to benefit
from the work, but it saves on costs incurred in mailing out the material to those who
request it, he said.
Genealogy software programs also save time that previously was
spent typing up complicated pedigree charts, Gray said, noting the discs make great items
to pass on to his children.
One of the most popular programs and the one that Gray uses is
Personal Ancestral File 3.0, created by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
HOWEVER, Gray noted that newer versions and
many other programs are now available as genealogy research has become more popular
recently.
The Internet has been extremely helpful, Gray said, because he
can meet other researchers, whether local or overseas, and exchange information with them
via e-mail and web pages.
Gray met researchers on-line who suggested he read the book Presenting
the Publicovers, 1688-1994, a history of the Publicover family, another branch of
Gray's family.
In the past, Gray said it could take months to get an answer to
an inquiry from a relative or another researcher, but now he can get a reply within hours.
The Internet also allows him to be much more specific in his searches, he said.
A growing number of CD-ROMS are now available on the market that
contain information specific to genealogical research, Gray said.
BECAUSE his paternal relatives, the Grays,
came from England, Gray found the CD-ROM 1851 British Census helpful, along with
the Vital Records Index of North America and Family Tree Maker's Family
Archives.
For those who want to check out a CD-ROM before investing in one,
Gray recommended making trips to the Coconino County Library in Flagstaff and the Family
History Center in Cottonwood.
Of particular assistance, Gray said, was the FamilySearch
Program, a computer research database only available at the Family History Centers
operated by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. There he found Scottish
church records that were useful in researching his wife's ancestry. The ancestral file the
centers maintain, which is updated regularly, was also helpful, he said.
ONE of the reasons Gray joined the Sedona Genealogy Club in
1991 and remains active is that he enjoys learning about the latest techniques from
experienced members and sharing his own expertise with others.
"It's just a very nice, friendly group," he said.
"And genealogy is more than just a collection of names. It's
a collection of information about people," he explained.
One of the more amusing tidbits Gray has uncovered is that his
wife's ancestors dating back 32 generations were related to Lady Godiva.
According to legend, Lady Godiva's husband promised to reduce
heavy taxes on the town of Coventry, England, if she rode a horse through town clothed
only in her long hair. She asked the town's residents to stay inside, but one
"Peeping Tom" looked through his shutters and was struck blind. [See below
for link to the line tracing back to Godiva and for her biography.]
That may not be the most instructive piece of information Gray
has found, but it sure did draw a lot of laughs when the kids were told, he recalled.
Gray said he has also been inspired by the courage of his
relatives linked to his grandmother Ada Publicover Gray.
He traced her family name back to John Peter Bubickhoffer, a
farmer who emigrated from Southwest Germany to Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1752 at the age of
34.
Although 40 others died on the three-month-long trip across the
stormy Atlantic Ocean in a vessel called Sally, Bubickhoffer survived, married
and had nine children.
And now Gray has many more family stories to learn from and
relate to his children and grandchildren.
Gray said a spokesman for the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-Day Saints, Dan Rascon, aptly articulated how he feels when he explained the
importance of knowing family history:
"We've always been involved in genealogy because linking to
our family helps us to understand who we are and what we may become."
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