ONLY THE MEN HAD BABIES

 

My ancestor William had children

All named,  with birth dates and places.

But his wife is not even mentioned;

Of her there are not even traces.

 

Surely she must have existed,

Was born, was a child, & had dreams.

Grew up and learned how to keep house,

Was a person---but nameless, it seems

 

She had parents, and someplace, a home.

Her brothers are listed no doubt.

But she was only a girl

So not really worth telling about.

 

She was half my ancestor's heritage;

Without her he wouldn't have life.

His genes are half hers,

but I find She was only his father's wife.

 

Once a girl was first "dau", then was "wife."

She belonged to her father, till married,

And then she belonged to her husband,

And beside him, unnamed, she was buried.

 

How awful to think MY descendants

Might search for a name for me,

Be unable to find my identity,

And wonder just who I might be.

 

Dr. Dorothy Branson

(Thanks to Orange County California Genealogical Society Quarterly)

This page is dedicated to the women you will never know in the vast works and research I've done. For generations, they were barely made mention of in legal documents. Some weren't referenced with anything more than a first name. But their contribution to history was no less great than their counterparts --- in American history, their respective country of origins, their cultures, and their families. They were as brave as anyone else parting their homeland to challenge the unknown for the freedom and promise that America offered. Their possibilities inhibited by gender, all the same, they came. 

They didn't become generals, lieutenants and majors. They didn't become landowners or voters.   They settled and built homes, raised generations upon generations - farmed the lands.  It is for these invisible people who contributed to our heritage that I cannot document, that I dedicate this page to. For they were no less proud or brave than anyone else and while we may never fully know their impact and contribution, they are not forgotten and I am proud to be a descendant to them all.