Reunion notices can be a great way to track down missing relatives when other records make them difficult to locate. Bear in mind that the description of the reunion may be more restrictive than attendance actually is. This 1940 reunion writeup is for the “Dirks” family appears to be for the descendants of Bernard and Heipke (Müeller) Dirks. And most of the individuals listed in attendance were descended from the couple. But there were a few attendees who were descended from Heipke’s sister and one attendee who was the widow of Heipke’s cousin. The attendees may be from a broader set of relatives than you think. Which makes these notices sometimes even more helpful. Add Genealogy Tip of the Day–the book–to your bookshelf!
Not everyone in a family may have used the same spelling of a last name. In this immigrant family, the mother used the spelling of Müller and the son used Miller. The difference in this case is small, but for names that were more difficult to spell or pronounce, the change could have been more significant, making it difficult for the researcher to immediately see the possible connection between the two names. Non-immigrant families occasionally change their names as well–often due to family squabbles, the desire to mask family origins, etc.
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