In the first six months of 2011, I read all seven books in Diana Gabaldon’s excellent Outlander series. The series starts in 1760s Scotland (primarily) and as the books progress, the protagonists migrate to the New World. The description of the boat trip from Scotland to the West Indies is harrowing indeed and it made me think about the brave (or is it desperate?) people who made that trip to the unknown New World by boat.

I was exploring one line of my family (the Adams family) on Ancestry.com today and came across families who migrated in the 1600s to Massachusetts from England. I can only imagine what that trip was like and what life for them upon arrival must have been like.

I know that American children learn about Pilgrims in grade school (I know I did), but when I think of these people as ancestors, it brings new meaning and wonderment to me. The first Thanksgiving was in 1621 and I’m looking at people who migrated in the late 1620s.

I find myself wanting to take a trip to Massachusetts to comb through records there and visit graveyards.

But first, I have to get organized. (And, really, I should verify that I actually am related to these folks.) A trip like that will be maximized by knowing just what I’m looking for and how to find it.

The excitement mounts!