Are there any family legends within your ancestry?

Question

Are there any family legends within your ancestry?

Answer 1

I am related to Sacagewea (spelling?) on my mothers-mothers side..

Answer 2

On one side, My Mother's the Benedict's we are descendants of Benedict Arnold;

on the other; My Father's, The Gilmore's; my Grandfather, T.M. Gilmore was a publisher of a pre-prohibition Industry-wide Liquor Journal; Bonfort's Wind & Spirit Circular, with offices in NYC, Louisville, KY, London,  & Paris.

He led a fight against prohibition from 1909 to 1921 as president of The National Model License League, with 35,000 members across the world.

All his proposals to reform the liquor industry were later used by that industry after prohibition was repealed; but since he lost all, he lay down and died within 2 months of the enactment of the amendment in 1921.

Answer 3

When I was growing up, I continually heard the superstition that for my mom's family raising sheep was bad luck.  I always thought this was simply because my granddad was a Texas cattle rancher.  After a little genealogical research, however, I discovered that many of my grandfather's ancestors came to the United States from Scotland in about 1800 as part of the Highland Clearances--a time when the lairds preferred the profits earned from sheep raising over the tenancy fees the peasant farmers paid for their crofts.  Thus, for those families who were forced to immigrate or starve, sheep indeed were bad luck.

Although the immigrants who would have first uttered the phrase "Sheep are bad luck for our family" died in about 1840 in rural Alabama, the superstition lingered on into the late 20th century.

Answer 4

Indeed there are!  One (which turned out to be true) was that a family member had been hung for pony pinching.  They did give him a neck-tie party...I verified it. Chap had taste...only blue-bloods did he pinch.

Answer 5

There used to be before I started family research, lots of skeletons in the cupboard though !

Answer 6

yes, my grandma always used to go on about us being members of the aristocracy and that we should have inherited a massive stately home, but didn't because my great, great, grandmother eloped with a butler, thus losing her inheritance. we didn't believe it until we found some old photos in which my long-since dead relatives were pictured, and on the back, written was written 'my mother's house' in my great-grandmother's writing.

We found the house (ironically, it is only a short drive from where i live!) and it turns out now to be a hotel. We showed the manager our pictures and he let us have a look round and we matched up the photos to the places in the hotel. It was very weird! So my grandma's stories turned out to be true!  

Answer 7

Yes and I believe every family has a legend to tell their children.In my case it was the exodus from Pakistan to India after Partition of India.It was a soul churning event with Muslims killing Hindus who were fleeing to India without any possessions and saving their lives.