Robert died when he was 22 years old. His sister, Nettie, at age 20, and brother, Leonard, at age 39. Could these deaths have been caused by genetics?

Robert William Wakenight

Born: 19 APR 1899 in Rockville, Sherman County, Nebraska

Father: James Oscar Wakenight (1863 to 1939)
Mother: Susan Regina Beier (1871 to 1934)

Spouse: None

Married: None

Children: None

Died: 1921 in South Omaha, Douglas County, Nebraska

Burial: Graceland Park Cemetery

Timeline:

1900 Rockville, Sherman County, Nebraska
1910 Omaha, Douglas County, Nebraska
1917 Death of sister, Nettie
1918 Omaha, Douglas County, Nebraska
1920 Omaha, Douglas County, Nebraska
1921 Death and burial

Occupation: truck driver (1918), mechanic (1920)

Records:

1900 to 1920 US Census Records
World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918
The U.S. City Directories, 1821-1989 (Beta)
The U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current

Variations of Surname: Wetnight

Notes:

For more information on this part of the Wakenight family, please visit Sharon Strow’s website, “Descendants of Daniel Wakenight.”

Creating Your Family Tree

Interested in building a great family tree? Remember these important steps:

Look in your photo albums. You may have old pictures that your parents or grandparents gave you. Or, ask them for copies of photos that they have in their possession. Many people will write names and dates on the backs of photographs. Letters, diaries, and family bibles are also an excellent source for births, marriages, and deaths.

Talk to your older relatives to find out about your ancestry. They may relate stories about an ancestor that you can add to your family tree. Family history is usually not found in newspapers. It is more of a verbal memory that is passed down from generation to generation.

Find the right family tree builder that suits your needs. You can choose one that has a paid subscription like Ancestry.com. There are also free sites like FamilySearch.org.

When you start building your family tree, add documentation to your ancestor’s profile. The records can include birth, marriage, death, census, military, city, and county directory listings. Any information that you can find will help create a life story about your ancestor.

If you have a unique surname, like Wakenight, you may find databases on the internet that are useful in your search. I use SurnameDB.com for my English surnames. There are many others on the internet for other countries like Ireland, Italy, and Germany.

Genealogy is the study of a person’s “line of descent.” As you create your family tree, you would typically start with one individual and go “back into time.” You would add their parents, grandparents, and so on. There are also family trees that go “forward into time.” Many of these family trees start with a famous person, such as a president or royalty, and move forward into the present time. The purpose of this type of pedigree is to establish a person’s bloodline to that famous person.

There is no limit on how big your family tree can grow. The blank canvas is there for you to use. Cherish your family history, and it will be there for generations to come!