Deconstructing Family Stories: Are They Fact, Fiction, or a Little of Both?

2023 Joy Reisinger Memorial Lecture Series

We all have them—family stories—from Indian princesses and three brothers came to America to “We’re related to Benjamin Franklin.” Some are blatantly false; others wishful thinking. But, others may be true or partly true. Discarding even the most outrageous without research is a mistake. Finding the clues in family stories requires careful and thorough research, but that kernel of truth can be worth it.

This class is presented live at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City as part of the Joy Reisinger Memorial Lecture Series and is being broadcasted by Legacy Family Tree Webinars.

Presenter: Barbara Vines Little, CG, FNGS, FVGS

Barbara Vines Little, CG, FNGS, FVGS, is a professional genealogist whose primary interests are Virginia research and brick wall problems. A former president of both the National Genealogical Society (NGS) and the Virginia Genealogical Society, she coordinated the Virginia track for Samford University’s Institute for Genealogy and Historical Research from 2007–2012. She has served as editor of the Magazine of Virginia Genealogy since 1996. Winner of the National Genealogical Society Quarterly Award for excellence in 2001, she has also written for the NGS Magazine, OnBoard: Newsletter of the Board for Certification of Genealogists, and the Association of Professional Genealogists Quarterly. She currently edits NGS’s Research in the States series and authored the West Virginia volume. She has published three volumes of Virginia court records and edited others for publication. She has lectured for the past twenty-five years on research methodology, Virginia and West Virginia resources, and writing and publishing.