Considering Audience When You Tell Your Family History

I came across something recently where the person argued that you should not think about your audience when you write your family history because it might change what you write.

I agree and disagree. When you write a first draft you should just let the creative juices flow and write — that draft is for you. Write without revision. Writing that initial draft helps you process the information, shape your theme, and uncover gaps in your research. 

I would argue that it is useful to have some notion of your final product and audience in mind before you start so you have a goal in mind. Thinking about your audience and having a story board for your final product does not change what you write but helps you focus on the end goal.

However, once that first draft is done, then you need to think about your audience and how best to package the family story and deliver it to your audience.

Who your intended audience is does not change the story you tell, but it can change how you deliver that story. 

If your intended audience are people of the same age range as yourself then you likely have a shared history and knowledge. For example, your intended audience will likely understand life before Google and YouTube. However, if your target audience is younger then you will need to provide some historical context. Is the story age appropriate? Does everyone know the language of their ancestors? Will they know what you mean if you write about a party line, a soc-hop, or reference a particular song? Do they only read online? Will they agree with your politics, ethics, message?

Who your target audience is will also determine how your package your family story. Would it be best delivered as a video rather than a book? Should it be delivered as a series of Instagram posts?

Considering your audience should absolutely have an impact on how the family story you tell is revised and delivered.

Is your family story locked in your accumulated documents and trees? Does your family ask for the stories? Then it’s time to pull it all together and publish that story! 

Participants engage in 14 hours of workshops and discussion facilitated by Brenda L Smith and Andrea Lister starting Saturday, April 22, 2023 and ending with a weekend of workshops, and presentations in Wells, British Columbia from Friday, May 19, 2023, 7:00 PM to Sunday, May 21, 2023. Online workshops lead into the May long weekend in-person event (hybrid options available).

Topics include: identifying the audience; choosing the right format; reviewing research, putting words on the page; editing; legal necessities, and assignments to get started. Working with their own materials, and supporting each other, participants discover how to move from gathering information to creating a publishable product. Participants will set goals for their research, organize and evaluate their data, and practice packaging their family story.

Learn more about Unlock Your Family Story: Sharing Your Family's History (Online and In-Person Learning) through Island Mountain Arts.

Unexpected Benefits of an Online Tree

 By Andrea Lister

Originally published in the January 2022 Maple Ridge Historical Society Family History Newsletter

In the genealogy world we often talk about online trees as "cousin bait"—a way to attract cousins who are willing to share and collaborate. Online trees can have other unexpected benefits. On October 17, 2021 I received the following message through Ancestry:

Hello! I recently purchased a cabinet card photo of Fred Rounsefell. From what I can see I think he is the nephew of your great great grandfather. My hobby is returning these old photos to family members doing research. You seem to be the closest relative who is active on ancestry. He was a confirmed bachelor who died at 40-something in Boston. The photo is incredibly striking. I hate to see it lost to family histories. Let me know if you are interested and I can mail it to you (for free). If I don't hear back within a few weeks I may look for someone else but will try to post a picture of it on Ancestry. Best—Michael

Michael has the Instagram account Lost Photos Found. He buys photos and works to unite lost family photos with folks doing genealogical research.

Of course, I replied with my PO Box information and immediately started researching Fred Rounsefell while I waited for the mail. Frederick Rounsefell was born on August 25, 1875 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada to David Henry Rounsefell and Anna Bell Preston. He was their third child. Frederick, his parents, and his four siblings moved to Boston in 1879.

Frederick was a first cousin to my great-grandmother Margaret DeWolf (Rounsefell) Richardson. 

Fred Rounsefell, 1900 
ANDREA LISTER COLLECTION
PHOTOGRAPHER JAMES EDWARD PURDY

The photograph arrived and it is indeed striking. It captured Frederick in 1900 at age 22. According to the 1900 US census he lived at 24 Forest Rox and was employed as a clerk. The Boston Directory for 1898 shows that Frederick worked for insurance and real estate agency, Carroll & Peers.

The photograph was taken by James E. Purdy, the leading photographer for the Boston-area high schools for much of the 20th century. Purdy died in 1933 (which means the photo is in the public domain).

In 1902 Frederick petitioned to become a citizen of the United States. In 1907 Frederick was initiated into the Washington Lodge of the Freemasons. In 1908 he was noted in the Boston Directory as a Justice of the Peace. 

In September 1918, Frederick filled out a draft registration card. He was forty-three and employed as a bookkeeper at the Exchange Trust Co. bank. The physical description on Frederick's registration noted he was of medium height with a slender build, blue eyes, and brown hair. The First World War ended on November 11, 1918 so it is unlikely that Frederick went overseas.

The Boston Directory of 1932 noted that Frederick was a clerk for the Exchange Trust Company.

In April 1932 the Exchange Trust Company was one of the over 1,400 banks that suspended operations in 1932 and one of over 9,000 banks that failed during the Great Depression in the United States.

25 Apr 1932, Mon Fitchburg Sentinel (Fitchburg, Massachusetts) Newspapers.com

The Exchange Trust Company was taken over by the state in April 1932. The June 4, 1932 issue of the Fitchburg Sentinel noted that the assets of the Exchange Trust had been placed in the hands of a liquidator.

Frederick Rounsefell died July 1, 1932 at age fifty-six. His cause of death still to be researched.

I am grateful to Michael for his generosity in purchasing and returning the photo to me. His gift spurred me to research a member of my tree whom I had neglected. 

Everybody has a story.