Will I Find My Ancestors?

Dear Lipstick Mystic,

This summer I have had my nose buried doing my genealogy research. I always knew that my mother's mother was part Indian, but I just found out about 4 years ago that my father's grandmother was full blooded Cherokee. Well, what began as mere curiosity became akin to fanaticism! I have traced my father's father's side back to England via a Revolutionary Patriot (Gee, that means I qualify for DAR - I would fit in so well!) My father's mother's side is coming up (and my father will just cringe at this one) freedmen who joined the Cherokee tribe; my mother's father is looking like he is full-blooded Choctaw or Cherokee; and I am stumped on my mother's mother, Bessie Viola. She seems to have come out of nowhere . . . which means she was probably full-blooded also. The only problem on my mother's side is that Bessie Viola died when mom was 4 years old and mom's father moved away and left mom with relatives. So there is only a word or two of verbal history. Anyway, this has had me so wrapped up, I have let time get away from me. I do believe I am starting to crawl out of the piles genealogy books, census forms, etc. Whew, it was getting kinda musty in there!

Anyway, my question would be if I will ever find any information that directs me to Bessie Viola's parentage. Thank you!

--  Moggie Manor

Hi Moggie,

(Hmm - isn't "Moggie" a British term for a stray cat? You must have been checking out my cat gallery.)

When doing tea leaf reading for someone, I find that it's important to phrase the question carefully. In your case, I decided to focus on "How will you find information that directs you to Bessie Viola's parentage." I figured that this phraseology might be lead to a more useful response from the tea leaves and your Higher Guidance.

As I tuned in and did your reading, an interesting image came up. I've never seen this before in a tea leaf reading. The image that appeared was of a cart. There weren't any horses or animals attached to it, but it had wheels and two long handles. My sense was this would have been made of wood. That was my intuitive impression as I tuned in.

To find out more about Bessie Viola, you might want to use this image as a take off point for some creative brainstorming. Several possible associations jumped to mind as I tuned in. First, you could talk with historical societies, historical museums, and artifact collectors in the area where you believe Bessie Viola may have lived. Or, if you don't have a region for her, talking with history museum curators or professional historians who specialize in that era of history may well provide you with the next clue you need. You might even focus in on the means of transportation for people of Bessie's era (or her parents' era) and track down some leads that way. Maybe by doing more research on the customs, manners, and tools of Bessie's era, you'll find another piece of the puzzle. Or you might actually find a physical cart that Bessie or another family member used, with information about the owner. That's possible, too.

I'd say do a little meditating on this image of the cart and see how a cart might connect to the genealogy research you've already done. Does it link in in some way to preliminary information that you've been able to gather on her? How would the image of a cart lead you to the next step? Did Bessie garden, walk to a local store, or engage in other activities that would involve the use of a cart? Did her parents use a cart, and if so, was it on a farm? The cart may be a symbol of Bessie's parents' generation more than a symbol of her generation, because I sense it connecting to the late 1800's era, not this century.

My prediction is that you will find this woman through the tools, clothing, and/or artifacts that she and her family used. And the cart is either a symbol for this or an actual representation of a real vehicle that might still exist in a museum or in someone's garage somewhere. The image as I saw it was a cart, not a carriage, so look for something that someone might use to transport goods somewhere while lifting the handles of the cart with her hands. It also looked a little like a wheelbarrow, which I guess is a kind of cart, anyway. Maybe this was Bessie's special cart when she was a little girl or something. Who knows? Maybe she carried her cats around in and held little kitty tea parties. (Okay, I'm getting off track here.)

I feel like Nancy Drew, trying to help fit the pieces together for you. But by focusing on the cart image or an actual cart artifact stored somewhere, you should be able to find out more. I think you will track down more information about this ancestor. I wish you the best with it. Do report back on your findings!

-- Lipstick Mystic

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