DNA Discovery -- Revolutionary War Soldier Identified

A Revolutionary War Soldier Finally Gets His Name Back

Every family historian knows the feeling of chasing down a name--hoping to uncover the story behind it, hoping to breathe life back into someone history forgot. Most of the time, we're busy solving mysteries within our own family lines. But every now and then, genealogy helps answer a question that has lingered for centuries.

That's exactly what happened with John Pumphrey, a teenage soldier from Maryland who died at the Battle of Camden in South Carolina in 1780. For almost 250 years, he rested in an unmarked grave, known only as an "unknown soldier." No name. No story. Just a life cut short in the fight for American independence.And now, after all this time, he finally has his name back.

The journey to identify him began with an archaeological dig. Researchers carefully excavated remains from the battlefield, logging each discovery with reverence. Then, anthropologists studied the bones to estimate age, examine injuries, and piece together the physical story of a young man who never made it home. 

Then, scientists extracted genetic material and compared it to living descendants of families who had ancestors in the region during the Revolutionary War. That's where genealogy stepped in. Genetic genealogists took DNA matches and blended them with traditional research: military records, historical documents, and family trees. Piece by piece, they put together the puzzle of the soldier's family until the evidence pointed on one young man--John Pumphrey.

As genealogists, we talk about preserving stories for future generations. This discovery is a powerful reminder of why that work matters. Every name on a family tree belonged to someone who lived, hoped, struggled, and mattered. Sometimes, just sometimes, our collective efforts help restore a story that was lost long before any of us were born.

Thanks to the group effort of archaeologists, scientists, and genealogists, a young soldier who gave his life for American independence is no longer unknown. It feels especially meaningful that this young patriot finally found his way home as we celebrate our 250th year of Independence.

Thank you for your service, John Pumphrey!

Information for this story comes from reporting by CBS News and reserachers involved in the identification of Revolutionary War soldier John Pumphrey.

Happy 4th of July!

As our country celebrates its 250th year, genealogists are busy researching to see who are the Revolutionary War patriots in their family!

Understanding Ancestors in Historical Context

Have you ever questioned why an ancestor made a particular choice, only to realize you were viewing their life through a modern lens? Understanding the culture and traditions of a particular time and place is essential when researching your family tree. While researching my mother's Lukas line in Straubing, Bavaria, I learned that my grandparents had two children before they were married. I wondered why, especially since they were a devout Catholic couple whose children received their communions in the Basilica of St. Jakob. 

Image by PixelLabs from Pixabay

My curiosity led me to dig deeper into the history of the region. A particularly helpful resource was the FamilySearch Wiki article Bavarian Marriage Customs, Laws, and Trends of Illegitimacy, which explains how for centuries, marriages were often forbidden for the poor to prevent overpopulation and keep the lower classes from needing public welfare. Proof of a steady income and property were required to ensure a couple could support a family. If a man couldn't provide the proof, then he was not permitted to wed.

Unfortunately, the impact was that working-class couples delayed marriage until they saved enough "wealth." This often took years. Instead of waiting, couples lived together and had children out of wedlock.

Understanding the law of the land helped me make sense of the many "illegitimate" births recorded in the church baptismal records. This law was abolished about 1918, but its influence lingered well into my grandparents' generation.

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(Not So) Wordless Wednesday - Basilica of St. Jakob

This is the Basilica of St. Jakob in Straubing, Bavaria, Germany—the church my mother and her family attended. According to its website, this late Gothic masterpiece maintains a remarkably unified architectural style despite being built over the course of two centuries (c. 1400–1600).

A fun linguistic detail about the German name Jakob: it can translate into English as either James or Jacob. Both names come from the same biblical Hebrew root, Yaʿaqob, but evolved differently through Latin and various European languages. In German-speaking countries, Jakob is the direct equivalent of Jacob and also serves as the German form of the apostle James.

I hope you found this post interesting. Share your thoughts in the comments—I’d love to hear from you.

Thanks,

The Genealogy Grandma

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National Breast Cancer Awareness Month

October is the month we set aside for remembering loved ones who have battled breast cancer.

Lisa and her husband John, summer 2016

My sister, Lisa Petersen, is a breast cancer survivor! She has been cancer free for 6 years. She received her diagnosis in April 2010, about the same time our dad received a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer. 

Lisa and Dad, summer 2010

Lisa is a fighter. Battling her own cancer, she underwent surgeries, and treatments, and as soon as she could, she went to stay with dad during his last few weeks on this earth. She is a nurse and she wanted to give him the best care possible. She loved him and treated him with such dignity and respect in his final days. It was so hard on her to care for him while she was in such physical pain and to endure the emotional agony of watching Dad slip away, but she wouldn't leave him. Although Dad lost his battle, I will forever be grateful for my sister's love and devotion to him. 

Although Lisa is my younger sister, she acts like my big sister. She always checks up on her siblings (all 6 of us) to see how we are and what she can do to help. She has the most loving, generous heart and caring soul of anyone I have ever met. I thank God every day that He has allowed her more time on this earth. We are all very fortunate to have her in our lives and I love her dearly!

I hope one day, we will see cancer eradicated from this world. Do you know someone who is battling breast cancer or is a survivor? 

Thanks,

The Genealogy Grandma

This Day in History - Special birthdays

Today holds birthdays for two of my favorite family members - my dad and my sister.

My dad and my sister had a special bond. Dad turned 28 on the day she was born. Sharing the same birthday cemented that bond between them until his death in 2010. While I was more my grandmother's girl, Velda was always Daddy's girl. They spent time together, had long talks, and were always there for each other. Later, after Velda was grown, they would try to beat the other in calling to wish each other a happy birthday. One year, Dad called her just seconds after midnight to be the first and they laughed together as they shared their special moment. 

Velda and Dad ca. 1978

Now that Dad is gone, I know it is hard on my sister to not have him to talk to on her birthday. Dad would have been 82 years old today if he had lived. I miss him so much and I would give anything to have him around for just a while longer. 

Dad and Velda shortly before his death in 2010.

Happy birthday sis! I love you and may your day be filled with love and laughter!

The Genealogy Grandma

Asking the Right Questions

Recently, I was able to do some research for a very good friend of mine. Her mother abandoned her when she was very young and although she had limited contact with her over the years, she didn't know that much about her mother's family. She was no longer able to get more information since her mother passed away a few years ago. She had also lost touch with her mother's siblings and longed to reconnect.

Her mother had been adopted when she was a young girl, and I had done previous research on the adopted family, but she was eager to find information on the biological family. This summer I made it my priority to help her find out where she came from.

I would talk to her and gather information, do some research and call her back. Each time I talked to her, I was able to obtain new information. The key was asking very specific questions. Even though she thought she had given me all of the information she had, I discovered that she neglected to tell me certain stories because she didn't think they were important. There were also times when I would tell her what I had found, and that would trigger a vague memory, which in turn brought about new discoveries.

I'm happy to say that she now has information on two new grandparents and four new great-grandparents on her mother's side. I was also able to locate records on her aunt and uncle and used that information to track them down using social media. She was so excited to get this information and she has since talked to both of them by phone several times and has even reconnected with cousins she hasn't seen since she was very young.

Just goes to show that even when a person thinks they don't have much information, they usually have more than they believe they do. We just need to learn to ask the right questions.

I hope you enjoy this post. Please let me know what you think. I would love to hear from you.

Thanks,
The Genealogy Grandma