Living in a country from where many people emigrated over the centuries (the Netherlands), we get a lot of tourists looking for their roots. I have several clients for whom I have prepared visits, doing research beforehand to find out exactly where their ancestors lived. In some cases, they went there themselves and in other cases I doubled as their tour guide.
I always learn a lot from these trips, especially about my own preconceptions about what is 'normal' :-) Like the time I said "your ancestor lived in the third house" and the client responded "what do you mean, I only see one house?" She had never seen houses that don't have yards between them and did not realize that those houses shared a wall. She saw one house, where I saw twelve!
 |
| Roberta Estes and Cheryl Ferverda looking for their ancestors' graves in Baard, Friesland |
Promoting roots tourism is pretty new in the Netherlands, but I think it has great potential. I know there are similar projects going on in Scotland and Ireland (the Homecoming, the Gathering). In Ireland, local historical societies were asked to reach out to the descendants of the people who left that area and to invite them to come back for a visit. It was a tremendous success. I think such a 'grassroots' approach would work very well in other countries of origin too.
Do you know of any other projects where people visited their places of origin? Do you know of any successful business models or marketing efforts? I would love to exchange ideas so please leave a comment or contact me via my website.
I live in New England, and I've helped many other Americans (also Canadians and Australians) find their roots here in New England. Many had ancestors who were passengers on the Mayflower (1620 to Plymouth, Massachusetts) or with the Winthrop Fleet (1634-1635 to Massachusetts), but their families went west across the continent a few generations later. We aren't a separate country in most cases, but Californians and Texans find New England to be a whole different culture!
ReplyDeleteFascinating. I live near Leiden, from where the Mayflower left, so I may have seen those same tourists during another part of their trip :-)
DeleteYour post is right up my street as I have been involved in Ancestral Tourism projects in the Scottish Borders, through my work in tourist information centres and later the Heritage Hub (Scottish Borders Archive Centre), - training staff on how best to respond to FH queries and compiling Fact Sheets e.g. on key family names (Scott, Elliot, Turnbull, Armstrong, Kerr) and also Source Lists. As you say it is a fascinating topic and a very satisfying one to work on - to enhance a visitor's experience of your country as they trace their roots and follow in the footsteps of their ancestors. There are so many simple ways to do this - identify on a detailed map the cottage their ancestors lived in, plan an itinerary, suggest town and village histories, books of old photographs, the postcard collection, records beyond the internet (kirk session records, valuation rolls, school records, poor law records, police records even), send them to a mill to purchase a family tartan scarf etc. etc. Plus the tactful response to someone who thinks because their name is Scott, they must be related to writer Sir Walter Scott or the ducal Scotts of Buccleuch! I could go on and on..... Thank you for raising the topic.
ReplyDeleteExactly! And sometimes the simplest things can be so meaningful. I remember one American tourist tear up when he saw me roll my pancake (we do that here) because his grandfather used to do that. It's so wonderful if you can share the big history as well as the small stories.
DeleteYour lesson here is clear. We must do ur homework before we set off in search off in search of ancestors in foreign lands
ReplyDeleteYour lesson here is clear. We must do ur homework before we set off in search off in search of ancestors in foreign lands
ReplyDelete... and there are people willing to help you! Not just professional genealogists, but lots of local volunteers as well.
DeleteI was blessed back in 1999 to have my own personal guide when I visited Devon England. He took my husband and I around to the land of the ancestors. Another form of your suggestion. Guides are a gift. A great reminder, tourist genealogy guides.
ReplyDeleteMy family derived its name from a farm that still exists today although my family hasn't lived there since 1675. I visited that farm a couple of years ago and that was so wonderful. I'm lucky enough to live just 90 minutes from all the places where my ancestors lived but the experience was just as powerful, I am sure.
Delete