The April 2015 ElderScholars meeting will be held at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, April 14 in the Lookout Mountain Room of the UTC University Center. The speakers will be George and Becky Smallwood. Their subject will be “The Genealogy Bug”, and first-hand information on how to obtain and store your family tree. For more information, call Diane Reed, UTC at 423-425-4303.
Mrs. Smallwood got the "Genealogy Bug" from her great grandmother who worked on their family tree for many years, getting first-hand information.
Mrs. Smallwood said she feels very blessed that her great-grandmother hand wrote and then typed it all up in the 1950's. When her grandmother developed eye problems and could no longer see old family photos, Mrs. Smallwood decided to scan the photos and enlarge them so that her grandmother could see them. Little did Mrs. Smallwood know that would spark the bug within her to find out more about these people. That was about 10 years ago and she is still plugging away at it! Her husband was also bitten by the bug and has found more than he bargained for. Mr. Smallwood is ¼ Choctaw Indian (he received a scholarship to college from the BIA) and has found a lot of information that he did not know. The BIA (Bureau of Indian Affairs) has just released a lot of information not previously seen. Mrs. Smallwood has made "Family Tree" books for many people in her family as well as Mr. Smallwood's family. They took a “Family Tree” trip to Europe in 2014 to trace her Irish/Scottish/English/Welsh roots. Marti Rutherford, a relative of Mrs. Smallwood has a castle in Wales on her father’s side.
Mr. Smallwood is a retired Vice President of Burlington-Northern Railway (formerly Sante Fe R.R.) with an MBA, and Mrs. Smallwood is a retired Pediatric R.N. During their 40 plus married years they have lived in Cal, Ariz, NM, Tex and Ks. Mr. Smallwood is originally from Flagstaff, Ariz. And Mrs. Smallwood is originally from Chattanooga. They have three children. Their two sons live in California, along with their four grandchildren. They have one daughter and two granddaughters in Kansas. Hence they travel back and forth cross country several times a year. They own a house in Kansas and a house in Chattanooga.