Who are you related to?

What do Jane Austin, Shirley Temple, John Lennon, Orville and Wilbur Wright, Agatha Christie and Helen Keller all have in common? They are all distantly related to me, at least according to FamilySearch's Famous Relatives. Well, that is if there are no errors in the Family Tree on FamilySearch. Some of the lines I am fairly sure of, and some I haven’t yet traced back far enough to know for sure if they are correct or not, but it's still fun. You do need to be aware that there might be errors in some of these trees, as not every connection has been verified to a high standard.

The huge reach of FamilySearch (and RootsTech) means that the FamilySearch Family Tree has lots of ancestors for many of us. That allows RootsTech to find relatives with whom we might be able to share family stories or photos, or even famous relatives.

Relatives at RootsTech have identified 2,471 people who registered for the conference (either in person or online) to whom I am related. The closest relative for me are two 3^rd cousins once removed, but you might have closer cousins. They might even be able to help you solve some family mysteries.

If you want a little bit of fun, why not spend some time finding out who you look like at My Look-Alikes. The person it says I look most like (well, of those who have photos uploaded to FamilySearch, is my great-grandmother, Merab Brockbank née Annesley. I have so say, looking at some of the famous people it says I look like, the only similarity I can see is that we have two eyes, a nose and a mouth.

Why not have a look? But Relatives at RootsTech ends on 31 March 2024, so you’d better hurry up.

DISCLOSURE: I am a RootsTech 2024 conference Media Rep and in return for my promotion of the conference I receive a free entry pass and some additional non-monetary perks. My transportation and accommodation are not compensated.

 

Another RootsTech Conference in the bag

Well, RootsTech 2024 is all done and dusted, and I am back home and all the washing has been done.

This year’s theme was Remember, and I have already written about it and its impact on me. But it wasn’t just me. Many people I spoke to commented on it being such a powerful theme. During the first keynote speech, Steve Rockwood, CEO of FamilySearch International, showed the Remember Video and became clearly emotional about it.

The theme Remember was also relevant to the journey RootsTech has made: from a small conference of about 3,000 people, to a worldwide audience of millions.

Photo opportunity at the Findmypast booth
during my first RootsTech conference (2013)

Keynote speaker, Nancy Borowick, was spot-on to the theme. Her talk was about her parents, and their battles with cancer, though she said that her story was not a story about cancer and dying: it was a story about living. Her photographs of her parents were her tribute to them, and her very important message was that “the people you love live on inside of you, because they are part of who you are.” You can watch her story here.

Nancy Borowick with one of her pictures of
her parents

Another powerful keynote speaker was Lynne Jackson, great-great-granddaughter of Dred and Harriet Scott. Their story was one of the catalysts of the Civil War, and out of the Dred Scott Decision came the 13^th, 14^th and 15^th amendments of the US Constitution. Her story can be watched here.

Lynne Jackson

Remember is such a powerful and encompassing theme that it meant something to everyone who attended the conference.

DISCLOSURE: I am a RootsTech 2024 conference Media Rep and in return for my promotion of the conference I receive a free entry pass and some additional non-monetary perks. My transportation and accommodation are not compensated.