Cousin Milly has indicated she had one "complaint" about the suggestion that the Campbell County list become a repository for personal family stories. That was probably me. I suggested to her (in her capacity as the list administrator) that she might point those interested in such exchanges to other places besides this list. Most of us subscribe to Rootsweb lists in the hope that we might connect with other searchers who share a branch on our family tree. I have personally found half a dozen cousins via these lists, including a couple of second cousins. The information we've shared has been a blessing. And the obituary postings by Missy, Suzie and Neal were always much appreciated. There are other options for the posting of family stories, even on Rootsweb. First, of course, would be surname lists, so those of like names might tap into someone related to them. Another choice would be one of the Folklore, Legend & Family Stories message boards listed at http://boards.rootsweb.com/topics.folklore/mb.ashx. It is also an option to start a Yahoo group (http://groups.yahoo.com/) or Google group (http://groups.google.com) devoted just to story exchange. Perhaps the Campbell County sites on ALHN or GenWeb could host a story corner. I hope we don't dilute the original direction of the list without hearing both sides. Perhaps it is time to do a roll call and get some input from the silent majority. Bunnie in MN

It is often through the sharing of a story that we find other relations or that we hold the key to another families mysteries. An example, my roots like mainly here in Campbell County, TN and from Scott & Russell Counties in VA. My Chapman and Fraley lines married into many other family lines. During the Civil War a Chapman soldier wrote home to his Dad, siblings, cousins, other family and friends. There's a huge collection of these letters in the archives out there in TN. But the letters do not pertain solely to the Chapman line. They talk about the local elections going on back home in Campbell County, the well wishes from neighbors (who are mentioned by name). Who was sick, who was having a good crop, and so much more. To not be able to share these stories with other researchers seeking to learn more about life in Campbell County or seeking a particular family line would be to lose a vital part of why the list exists. For folks just starting out, joining a county list vs. a specific family list is their hopes of learning more from others who my share the family line in a secondary manner. Leads come from many avenues... I've been a member on this list for many years and considering the relatively low volume we have right now, I can't see these stories being a huge inconvenience. There is no reason that the stories cannot be posted on more than one list - where ever they happen to be applicable. The county site is most certainly in that category of acceptable postings. *This is my silent voice speaking out.... Thank you! Maria