In the other thread Ebbie asked:

Kat, the part we don't have, and that I would like to find, is the *human* element. How does one look up that kind of thing? I don't know if anyone in my family married someone of another race, (I do know about out-of-wedlock babies) or if there are any horse thieves, or any other kind of thief, any drunkards, any activists, any rebels... My ancestors (and contemporaries, for that matter) have been mostly farmers, carpenters and preachers. They tend to be pacifistic, so they don't go to war, they don't have phones, they don't own cars, they don't votem and they don't take part in community issues.

The best source, of course, are the elders who can be persuaded to tell their stories. Barring that, one usually has to go digging, sometimes deeply, looking for newspaper articles, published events such as marriages, births, etc. and, also, obituaries. All of those have the potential of having some human element hidden in them. Other branches of the family may have stories written down or know of someone who knows them. Of course, this is assuming some of your family *branched out* beyond the living style choices you listed.

I would ask at family forum sites such as GenForum. You have to create an account in order to post, now, but it is free and only takes a few minutes. I have constantly been amazed at the stories and info people have unearthed there and shared so willingly with others.

For an almost inexhaustible list of links for everything to do with genealogy, including newspapers, etc. check out Cyndi's List dot com. In all of my surfing, I've never found any other resource for links like this one.

Also, check for state genealogy sites. Generally each state has one with volunteers who do "lookups" of info. The stories are out there, Ebbie, they are just buried a little more deeply, sometimes.:-)

kat