Family History Myths Dispelled

We've all got them -- family myths that just won't die. Maybe your great-grandmother was an Indian princess or grandpa had his name changed at Ellis Island. Maybe you're a descendant of someone who sailed on the Mayflower or a cousin to a famous politician. Whatever your family story, join Crista Cowan as she dispels the ones that can't possibly be true and helps you know how to prove (or disprove) the rest.

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[CharleneCTX]

You can search a particular coat of arms, but it takes a bit of work. You would need to look through books called "rolls of arms." Some are organized by name, some are organized by the main elements of the arms (ie, the lions together, the birds together, etc.).

[mattachine]

Yeah, I figured as much. I understand that the Coat of Arms are for individuals, and not for a surname, but there is one for my family name that has been circulated as THE "coat of arms" for many decades, at least. My grandmother even had a framed version of it. I wonder how I could figure out the individual to whom this actually belongs?

[Nancy Protzman]

The House of Names has been known as spam for a long time.

[CharleneCTX]

There are registers of coats of arms going back many centuries. The "buy your family coat of arms" places usually just pick one that belonged to someone with a particular surname, but it doesn't belong to everyone with that surname.

[mattachine]

Great video as always. I was very interested in the Coat of Arms part. Where do places like House of Names .com come up with their Coat of Arms/Family Crests?

[Robert Pulse]

Thank You