I am a bit late reading your piece, but I loved it! I definitely related to opening phone books anytime I was in hotel/motels to see if my surname was there because 'Falconer' was not a common spelling of my name. I could definitely see myself jumping into a jaunt, like you did! Wow! What an exciting adventure, so well written I could picture you along the journey & was cheering you on. I was also waiting to find out the family relationship (I knew there was one) -- OMG, how exciting to find out the relationship! I am on Ancestry discovering family trails & don't miss a TV show with those discovery stories. I also have a California connection: but it is my son - who is making big history there himself and I get to see lots of Cali & LA where he lives. I looked at your background, writing and journalism chops. Do you have other writing aspirations? You sure kept me reading in this short piece.
I loved this story! I grew up on a farm in Ida County. While attending Iowa State in 1974, I also traveled to California, but I visited LA, not San Francisco. I later sought out relatives in San Francisco and LA who had moved there between 1930 and 1941.
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I am a bit late reading your piece, but I loved it! I definitely related to opening phone books anytime I was in hotel/motels to see if my surname was there because 'Falconer' was not a common spelling of my name. I could definitely see myself jumping into a jaunt, like you did! Wow! What an exciting adventure, so well written I could picture you along the journey & was cheering you on. I was also waiting to find out the family relationship (I knew there was one) -- OMG, how exciting to find out the relationship! I am on Ancestry discovering family trails & don't miss a TV show with those discovery stories. I also have a California connection: but it is my son - who is making big history there himself and I get to see lots of Cali & LA where he lives. I looked at your background, writing and journalism chops. Do you have other writing aspirations? You sure kept me reading in this short piece.
What a wonderful adventure!!! My hope was that he had named you in his will .....
Such a fabulous adventure and connection!
I loved this story! I grew up on a farm in Ida County. While attending Iowa State in 1974, I also traveled to California, but I visited LA, not San Francisco. I later sought out relatives in San Francisco and LA who had moved there between 1930 and 1941.