As I mentioned last month, I sent a handwriting sample (a 30+ page letter) to certified handwriting analyst Nancy Douglas of Write Meaning. I’d seen her booth at RootsTech and was fascinated by the service she offered.

The letter was from my paternal grandfather, Dave Adams, to his fiancee (my grandmother), Beatrix Rasco. It was a sort of confessional: Dave wanted to give Bea full disclosure about his personal family history prior to their marrying. It was sent just a month before their wedding date.

Well, Nancy didn’t disappointed. She provided me with a six-page (singled-spaced) report detailing the personality traits revealed by my grandfather’s handwriting. She took into account the content of the letter and applied it to what she saw in the handwriting.

I read information like, “Dave’s capital letters are often embellished with large loops. Your grandfather was a showman who liked to attract attention and recognition.” And “His personal pronoun ‘I’ shows his mother and father were both very influential in his upbringing.”

She included photos of individual letters and words to illustrate what she meant. It was such a fun report to read!

I was in my twenties when my grandfather passed away. We lived in different towns and while I spent time with him, I don’t feel I knew his personality well. And growing up I certainly never thought about what he was like as a young man.

I think this handwriting analysis is going to be a wonderful springboard for conversation with my 84-year-old father. I have a hard time pulling stories out of him about his family and childhood. I think by bringing up what Nancy gleaned from my grandfather’s handwriting and asking him about it, I’ll hear some great stories about my grandfather.  I’ll also discuss the analysis with my mother and get her perspective on my grandfather’s personality.

Reading Nancy’s report made me want to have my own handwriting analyzed. I think I’ll treat myself to that this summer!

I paid $100 for my grandfather’s handwriting analysis, which feels like a huge bargain for what I received. If you some letters hanging around and curiosity about their writer, I encourage you to give it a try!

Edited to add: I did have Nancy analyze my own handwriting. Unfortunately, she’s no longer in the handwriting analysis business, though.

 

When I was at the RootsTech conference, one of the exhibitors in the Expo hall was Nancy Douglas of Write Meaning, a certified handwriting analyst. I’ve always been fascinated by graphology and didn’t understand immediately what it had to do with genealogy.

I picked up her postcard and, after I got home from the conference, I checked out her website.  I was intrigued when I learned that she can take handwriting samples from an ancestor and provide an analysis, giving you insights into your ancestor’s personality.

I have a long, handwritten letter that my grandfather wrote my grandmother a month before they wed. It’s a treasure, because it outlines his father’s work history, his own work and education history, as well as touches on his parents’ unconventional marriage. And, at 36 pages, it provides a wonderful opportunity to try out this handwriting analysis.

Using my Fujitsu ScanSnap SV600 scanner, I scanned the entire delicate letter and sent it via Dropbox to Nancy, along with payment of $100. I eagerly anticipate the analysis, which I hope to receive in a month or so. You can bet that I’ll be reporting the results here!

Edited to add: Nancy is no longer doing handwriting analysis, so I took the links out of this post.