{"id":8148,"date":"2014-09-05T15:03:59","date_gmt":"2014-09-05T15:03:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.genealogybank.com\/?p=8148"},"modified":"2014-09-05T15:03:59","modified_gmt":"2014-09-05T15:03:59","slug":"using-obituaries-to-pay-it-forward-boomerang-effect","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/using-obituaries-to-pay-it-forward-boomerang-effect.html","title":{"rendered":"Using Obituaries to Pay It Forward: Boomerang Effect"},"content":{"rendered":"

I am always looking at Kemps, wanting to know if they are related to me or not.<\/p>\n

Since Kemp is a pretty rare surname, I like to pull recent \u201cKemp\u201d obituaries and trace back their family line to see if the person is a relative of mine. If he is\u2014terrific; I\u2019ll add his line to my family tree. But if he\u2019s not I am still glad I took the time since the more \u201cKemp\u201d family trees I can plant, trace and put online, the faster I will have found and documented my family and at the same time made it easier for other Kemps to discover their family history.<\/p>\n

It will take a while, but I\u2019d like to think that I can organize and account for all Kemps\u2014and by putting the genealogical information I find online, I am making a lasting contribution for further genealogy research, sort of creating an extended Kemp family forest.<\/p>\n

Researching Further with Recent Obituaries<\/strong><\/p>\n

Here\u2019s what I do.<\/p>\n

I go to GenealogyBank\u2019s Recent Newspaper Obituaries<\/a> collection and pull a recent Kemp obituary to see which Kemp line that person belongs to.<\/p>\n

For example, here is the obituary for Fred Benny Kemp, who died one week ago.<\/p>\n

\"obituary<\/a>
Avenue News (Essex, Maryland), 29 August 2014<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I took this recent Kemp obituary and plugged the information into my online family tree. Looking at the old newspapers, the census and similar sources, I quickly pulled together his family tree.<\/p>\n

No, Fred Benny Kemp is not related to my Kemp line\u2014but the tree is planted online so future family historians can build on the family tree I started.<\/p>\n

Digging Deeper into the Kemp Story<\/strong><\/p>\n

But wait\u2014there\u2019s more.<\/p>\n

Fred Benny Kemp was in World War II\u2014a gunner on a B-24 Liberator bomber.<\/p>\n

Hey\u2014so was my Dad.<\/p>\n

Maybe there is a connection after all.<\/p>\n

Googling for more information, I found this video interview on YouTube uploaded by WBAL \u2013 Baltimore, Maryland, in 2012:<\/p>\n

http:\/\/youtu.be\/LLmG3dqBC5c<\/a><\/p>\n

Here is the key quote:<\/p>\n

In World War Two I flew a B-24 with the 450 Bomb Group, 722nd Bomb Squadron.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Hey\u2014that sounds familiar.<\/p>\n

I double checked, and my Dad was in the 450 Bomb Group\u2014but in the 723rd Squadron. Both were stationed in Manduria, Italy.<\/p>\n

Had their paths in life ever crossed?<\/p>\n

Had they met each other?<\/p>\n

Almost\u2014but they didn\u2019t meet.<\/p>\n

According to the video interview, Fred Kemp\u2019s B-24 left his air base in Manduria, Italy, on 25 February 1944, when he was shot down and remained a POW for the duration of the war. Since my Dad was transferred to Manduria four months later on 11 June 1944 they never met.<\/p>\n

Search All Your Surname Obituaries<\/strong><\/p>\n

Using GenealogyBank\u2019s obituaries to research \u201call\u201d Kemps who have lived in America is a fun way to pay it forward and help other genealogists. It was also good to see that these two Kemps\u2014though not related\u2014had similar experiences in the war. If I hadn\u2019t picked his obituary at random, I never would have learned the rest of this story.<\/p>\n

Do you ever research your extended family tree using obituaries? If so, what nuggets have you found? Please share with us in the comments.<\/p>\n

Related Obituary Research Articles & Video Tutorial:<\/strong><\/p>\n