After WWII a distant Edson relative had time on his hands so he decided to do a complete Edson genealogy. I'm talking 2 volumes, each one 2 inches thick. That tome showed that we all date back to an emigrant to Massachusetts in 1638. Massachusetts is a small place so it was probably inevitable that somewhere along the line we would marry someone with roots on the Mayflower. His name was James Chilton, an indentured servant.
My grandparents saw the value in this history despite their frugal ways remember, this is the family that lived without indoor plumbing until after the Great War. But my grandfather was absolutely livid when he saw that page with his name on it. For, that distant relative had committed an unforgivable blunder by stating that my grandmother was married to his brother. Not just any brother, for he had several. This brother had once been his farming partner but some unknown transgression had turned brotherly love into a lifetime of resentment. So my grandfather did the only thing he could, he ripped that page out of the book and tossed it in the fire. It wasn't until 1991 that any of my extended family even knew the name of the other brother. That's the year of the family reunion to beat all.
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