Just last week I likened my microfilm reader to a slot machine minus the quarters. You turn the wheel and hope the next image is a winner. Most of the time you come up empty-handed. But I hit the jackpot big time yesterday. And I mean BIG TIME. Genealogical gold. It happened like this: I decided to take a break… More →

Another day, another brick wall. Neoma, the wife of Spencer Pearce, was my 4th great grandmother. She’s the latest edition to my family tree. I’ve known the name “Neoma” for some time. The inventory of her estate appears in a book of probate records from Lawrence County, Tennessee. It’s been collecting dust on my bookshelf. No other information about Neoma… More →

Another brick wall came tumbling down yesterday and I am ELATED. Buried in the deeds of Lawrence County, Tennessee from 1831 was a transaction between the “Heirs of Spencer Pearce” and Barnabas Gabel. Listed among the heirs was Harriet Pearce, my 3rd great grandmother. Ironically, I had been toying with the idea that Spencer might have been the father of… More →