Even if you think your ancestors never lived anywhere else, consider the possibility they were somewhere else, even if for a short time. A young married couple may have left “home” for a few years, only to return and stay for the rest of their lives. A couple with young children may have homesteaded for two or three years, only to decide it “wasn’t for them.”

Keep in mind these stories of being “gone” for a short time don’t always get passed down and sometimes even get forgotten by the time someone’s asking questions about family history.

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  1. This really resonates. For years I couldn't understand how my upstate New York ancestor could possibly have children born in Illinois when she had been in Oneida County her whole life. Short of it is the family moved west, the husband died, and the wife brought the children “home.” Thanks for posting!

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