Gaelic Motto: "Fionnail Ardua petit ardea" (The heron seeks high places)

Gaelic Motto: "Cearúill In fide et in bello" (Firm in faith and in war)

In 1999, Grandma and Grandpa Fennell surprised their children (Susan, Craig and myself) with a wonderful gift; the first of two genealogy books on our family history. The first book, nearly 200 pages in length (and coincidentally goes back about 200 years in time), was on the Fennell side which they began researching in 1989. The second book, on the Carroll side of the family, is also about 200 pages long (and traces back one branch of the family to 1555) was presented to us two years later, in 2001. But these were not the first attempts at tracing family roots. A book on the Nichols family (Grandpa's mother's ancestry) was completed in 1992 and goes back to 1650.

Starting with just a list of names given to them by Grandpa's father, they waded through census records, national archives, libraries, historical publications, newspapers and even information from cemetary headstones. Of course, relatives' stories, pictures and newspaper clippings were invaluable sources of information, as well as help from my cousin Jim Johnson, who also is heavily involved with genealogy.

Here is an exerpt from thier book on the Fennell family:

"When we are young, we have a different attitude about our extended family - it's just there and we don't fully understand the relationships that bind us together. It is only with time that we reflect on this and begin to wonder - there must be a lot of information out there about our distant or departed relatives that would be interesting. Everyone has their own unique story to tell. Maybe it's not too late to find some answers."