2018 – Year in Review

Don Taylor Genealogy – 2018 Year in Review

I hope you are enjoying my Blog.  I find it really helpful in my understanding of genealogy. It, like diaries and journals of yesteryear, help me to focus on what I know and not become distracted by things I think I know. It also helps me focus on one thing at a time. I would like to remind readers that I do accept guest submissions. If you would like to write something that will be of interest to readers of my six primary topics (Brown, Darling, Howell, and Roberts lines as well DNA discoveries or understanding and Donna Montran’s Vaudeville Career), I’ll be happy to consider your submission as a guest post.

2018 Statistics.

I wrote 122 posts during the year, down slightly from 2017.  My goal is to post, at a minimum, once every three days. So, I met my goal by posting an average of once every 2.99 days.

The number of page views went up nearly 70% in 2018 over 2017 and the average views per day rose from 21 views per day to 36.

I currently have 409 blog subscribers – up from 324 at the beginning of the year. Besides direct subscribers, there are other individuals that follow my blog via Facebook, Twitter, and Google. If you do not subscribe to dontaylorgenealogy.com, please do so.

Referrals to my site are as I would expect, Google by far the greatest referrer, with Facebook a distant 2^nd.  Fourth was my old blogspot site, so I guess I still can’t delete it.

Top 10 Postings for 2018

1. My number one post during 2018 was the same as my #1 post in 2016 and #1 post in 2017, “Why I’ll never do business with MyHeritage Again.” I guess people love reading rants.
2. My number 2 article for 2018 was the 2017 “OMG – Another Half-Sibling,” which spoke about learning of a half-sibling here-to-fore unknown for my mother. Quite the surprise for my mother and her other half-sister, Barbara.
3. Was my review of DNA Painter. That surprised me along with my Number 4 (next).
4. A 2016 Review of the website “Lost Cousins”. I guess reviews are high on the types of posts that are read.
5. Number 5, a “We’re Related,” posting was a 2017 look at three possible relatives, Johnny Cash, Jimi Hendrix, and Blake Lively.
6. Number 6 was a 2014 Ancestor Biography about Lewis Bryan (1755-1839), who was Mary-Alice’s 4^th great-grandfather on her Howell line.
7. Number 7 was my greatest surprise. I had 134 reads of my 2013 post about using City Directories as a substitute for the 1890 Census. It dealt with the Directories available in Smyrna, GA (where I lived in 2013).  I think it was a good article. I should rewrite the article focusing on Scarborough, ME and possibly South Portland and Portland.
8. Number 8 was “Follow the ‘X’” about how the “zig-zag” pattern of the X chromosome can provide insight into ancestors that the autosomal along cant. (2018)
9. Number 9 was another 2017 review, this time for Family Tree Maker for Mac 3.1.
10. Number 10 was another 2017 DNA Article, “It’s Another First Cousin.” There is no doubt in my mind that Debra is a first cousin on my Roberts line. Sadly, her potential half-siblings want nothing to do with proving (or disproving) the relationship. My father had two brothers, one is fairly unlikely, one is much more likely to be this cousin’s father. That said, his father, Bert Allen Roberts, Sr., could easily have fathered a here-to-fore unknown child which could be the father of Debra. Testing of the children of Bert junior’s children could prove or disprove the relationship.

Conclusion

So, of the top ten posts in 2018, four of them dealt with reviews, My Heritage, Lost Cousins, DNA Painter, and Family Tree Maker.  Three dealt with DNA, A half-sibling for my mom, Follow the “X” and Another First Cousin.  We’re Related, Howell Research, and General Genealogical Information all had one article each in the top 10. (Although “Follow the “X” could be identified as General Genealogical Info also.)

I understand that articles posted in 2017 were available for reading throughout 2018, so I’m not surprised that 2017 postings comprised 4 out of the top 10. I was very surprised that 2013 and 2014 articles were also in the top 10.

Next Year

I have found that I overextended myself during 2018.  As such, I have decided to reduce my activities in several areas and focus more on family and Scarborough activities. I have quit doing any kind of (paid) genealogical consulting activities during 2019.  I will also greatly reduce my genealogical society volunteerism and will drop memberships in at least six societies and organizations. I plan to work more diligently on my five research areas, Brown, Darling, Howell, Roberts, and Donna’s Vaudeville and less on my other 22 other genealogical projects. I will continue efforts with the Scarborough Historical Society.