On the first day of Summer, 2015, Cyndi Howells set about writing a blog about “how it all began” – Cyndi’s List that is. The popular genealogy link site evolved into what Cyndi has made it today over a period of 20 years. If you’re looking for genealogy-related information, it’s still the go-to website. Cyndi has been my friend for most of those 20 years, and lives only a few miles from me here in Pierce County, Washington. She got her start with the Tacoma-Pierce County Genealogical Society – the same group of people who nurtured my early attempts at building my family tree. Following is a short teaser from Cyndi’s article. I recommend you take ad few minutes and read the full thing. It’s quite a story. Congratulations on 20 years, Cyndi.
I do not have the exact date, but twenty years ago this summer I bought a new desktop computer. It came with a screaming fast 9600-baud modem and free America Online software already installed. I went online for the first time.
I was delighted to find that America Online had a genealogy forum. I started participating in the groups and chats there and exploring the file libraries. I recall being intrigued by this thing that existed outside of AOL. It was called the Internet. I bought a book that explained exactly what that was, how it worked, and about the history behind it. I like to know how things work and what makes them tick. This helps me to understand how to make the best use of them. I started exploring the Internet and figuring out how and where to find information that helped my genealogical research.
