Friday in the mail I received the current issue of the Missouri State Genealogical Association Journal complete with the first half of my article, “Father of Fair Grove: The Descendants of Philip Snider.” While none of you is likely to care, Philip Snider was the first of one branch of my mother’s family to come to Missouri, migrating from North Carolina to the area of Greene County northeast of Springfield in 1843.
What’s remarkable about Snider? He moved about a thousand miles in his forties, when moving meant, at best, hopping a steamboat. Along with another family, Philip and his children came to this part of Greene County when virtually no one else lived there. The Native Americans–Osage mostly–had already been “encouraged” to move southwest to Oklahoma.
Only a handful of people care about this man and his descendants, but actually that number isn’t as small as one might think. The three generations following Philip took his offspring up over 120. My mother, ninety-eight years old, is in the fourth generation. Yesterday, at my house, I saw three members of the seventh generation. Although I’m not going to do the census, I’d surmise that there are presently at least a thousand people who trace their origins back to this guy. Of course, not all of them are aware or interested, but that’s okay.
My audience for this article is relatively small, but those who find it interesting will probably find it very interesting, very valuable. What more can a writer strive for?