> I am looking for a group or list where members can post questions or > share info about marital rites (...what made a marriage given a > particular time and place, laws pertaining to marriage and family > given the region and time period), rites of passage and general > questions/info about customs. I looked at rootsweb. Didn't see a > list dedicated to this. Anyone know of a list/group I should try or > does anyone have a site to recommend? > > Brenda "bransflakes" <bransflakes@earthlink.net> Although it has not yet solved my same-name dilemma, I have been exploring some other customs as well... do the families celebrate Christmas (for example) in a similar fashion? How about religious traditions in general? Do they have similar goals in terms of how much to educate their children? etc. Any of these might be a clue to how the family branched out in early America; if you find a good site, please share it with us. It has long been known that families really moved with "groups of families" to a location.... and within that larger group one will find lots of similar traditions, culture and language. I would add the observation, too, that often one sees a "pioneer" leave the group and move to a new location... farm (the usual occupation) for a while, go back home for a year or two, and then move with a larger group into the area. (I also would acknowledge that in America, from a Native American point of view, this would be an invasion... but that is another story....) Good stuff. Let us know what you find... I wanna' know.... --Charles <lmno@mindspring.com>