A Fuel Stop Surprise
Sometimes Family History Finds You
When Amy Johnson Crow's "52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks" prompt "Surprise" was listed, I initially drew a blank. Then I remembered this story - one that perfectly captures how family history research can surprise us in the most unexpected places.
Picture this: A routine fuel stop in Kangarilla, South Australia. No café in sight, just a small service station. Who would have thought this mundane moment would unlock a treasure trove of family history about my great-great-grandfather, Adam Lymburner?
Born in London as Adam Delisser, he changed his surname at age 12 to inherit a fortune (there's surprise number one!). But the real surprise came when I mentioned his name to the owner of the fuel station. It turned out, he was a passionate local historian with detailed knowledge of my family's history in the area.
This story has all the elements of a great family history novel:
An inheritance with an unusual condition
A chance encounter that changed my research journey
A family's journey from South Australia to Queensland
And most surprisingly - how a fuel stop helped piece it all together
Want to discover how this chain of serendipitous events unfolded? What did this chance encounter uncover about the Lymburner family's time in South Australia? And what other surprises were waiting to be uncovered?
Read the full story on my Jenealogy Scrapbook blog:
This post is part of the "52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks" challenge by Amy Johnson Crow. This week's prompt was "Surprise" - and sometimes the biggest genealogical surprises come when we least expect them.
I also have this and more stories on my Family History Archive - Jenealogy Scrapbook at WeAre.xyz