Why Family History Is So Important
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Why Family History I
s Important.
How much do you know about your family history? Think about the family members who have already passed on. How much of their stories did they tell? How much has been lost to time? Family history is something to be preserved and cherished; not just for yourself, but for your children, grandchildren, and all generations of the family to come.
Family photos as well as family films are all excellent ways to preserve and share family history; but regular family movies aren’t all you can do in order to help keep family history alive for the next generations. Let’s take a closer look at why preserving family history is important and how you can uniquely preserve it for the next generation.
Why Family History Is Important
First, let’s take a closer look at why preserving family history is so important. If you have been unfortunate enough to lose family members who didn’t share much about their past or who didn’t take the time to record their history, then you already know the sadness that comes with finding boxes of photos or film reels filled with people whose names and stories are now lost forever. In many cases, the names, ages, birthplaces and stories of these family members is simply gone forever; especially if they didn’t leave behind letters or any other traces of their story that might give a clue as to their name or personality or life as a whole.
That is why preserving family history is such a vital part of life. When you preserve the history of your ancestors, you are preserving and cherishing their lives; you are also enriching the lives of your current family members, all of whom can benefit from knowing about the people who came before them. When people take the time to preserve that history in a meaningful way, the stories of those family members can be shared with the next generations, and then the next generations, and so on.
How to Preserve Family History: Going Beyond Albums and Handheld Cameras
Naturally, family photo albums and backed-up digital files of home movies are all great ways to preserve history. You should have your family photos scanned and backed up (please see our article on how to back up old photos here) in addition to ensuring that family videos are backed up digitally as well. There is, however, another unique way that you can keep family history alive; this method goes beyond standard family films and photos.
You can truly preserve your family’s stories in a unique and meaningful way by encouraging family members to tell their stories while being filmed—as well as the stories of any family members who have passed away and are no longer with us. For instance, your mother might sit with a photo of her great-aunt, and explain the history of the woman in the photograph. Who was she? When was she born? What was she like? What did she do?
This way, the story of the great aunt (which otherwise would be lost to time) is passed on for the next generation. Check out our article on How to Film a Family Interview with your Smartphone here.
To learn which is the best software for doing a family tree click here.
To learn how to film your grandparent with a smart phone click here.
To learn how to trace holocaust survivors and victims in your family history click here.
To learn whether we should record the lives of our pets click here.