So many times when we locate an ancestor they have migrated from
where they were born or married or built a home, to another area
possibly a great distance away. What prompts these moves? What
was it they were searching for or hoping to gain by moving?
There are many web sites dealing in reasons including:
California Gold Rush, Oregon Trail, the Dustbowl of the 1930s,
the Homestead Act of 1862, immigrating from another country in
search of a better life, religious persecution, and more. Today
many people move from one locale to another due to a change in
occupaton or a relocation, stationed at different spots due to
military service, to get out of small towns or big cities, to go
to school, and more. I thought I would detail some of my
ancestors’ migration patterns. I don’t have enough proof to
document the reasons why they moved – just that they did.
Frederick Goul (5th great-grandfather) Frederick took his wife,
son, and daughter by ship (possibly the “Rawley”) from
Frankfort, Germany to America in the mid-