John James Audubon, American Elk, 1845 (Public domain)
We live by stories. Stories heal us, give guidance, offer hope. They may entertain, but this is not their sole purpose, at least not to me. I like to be edified. I also like to be moved.
In this sense, I have gone looking, for some four years now, for r the stories of my ancestors. I do not want to merely know what they did, however; I prefer to know who they were.
It amazes me that at least some of my ancestors’ experiences are written down in a book. Philip Tome’s 1854 book, Pioneer Life; or, Thirty Years a Hunter, actually details the exploits of my sixth great-grandfather, Jacob Tome (Philip’s father) and my fifth great-grandfather, Jacob Jr. But one must take these stories, I should think, with a grain of salt. Then I have to ask the question, too: are these even stories at all?