This blog is about lessons we can learn from history, in hopes that maybe, just maybe, we’ll actually heed them.
In my book, Fortune’s Frenzy: A California Gold Rush Odyssey (due from TwoDot in July 2023), farmers from Indiana go to California in 1851, hoping to find a pile of gold — despite going deeply into debt and ignoring numerous reports from the mines that getting rich was rare. They just had to find out for themselves, much to their detriment. (Pre-order)
Because I am a biologist, as well as a genealogist and amateur historian, I’ll draw lessons from historical events, people, nature, the land, and literature. The lessons won’t always be deep, pithy words of wisdom. Sometimes they’ll just be little tips for a better life (or better research). Occasionally I will draw on stories from my own past. After all, once I passed the mid-century mark, I officially became an “antique.”
Please feel free to leave comments on any post, even if – especially if – you disagree with me. I believe civil discourse is critical to understanding and tolerance.
If you’d like to learn a bit more about my family history and blogging work, you can hear me on Coach Carole’s podcast.
Enjoy,
Eilene Lyon
Myricopia 