Meet our Members: Denise Hunt

Question

Hi everyone!

It's time to get to know another one of our wonderful WikiTreers. This week's member is Denise Hunt.

Denise became a Wiki Genealogist in December of 2019. She is very active in our Scotland Project and is currently the regional coordinator for Central and East Scotland.

What are some of the surnames you are researching?

Sinclair, Urquhart, Gibson, White, Malcolm, Coventry, all from Scotland; Alden, Hunt, Ferry, Nightingale & Shepherd all from England; Nielsen from Norway (although I don’t have much on this one) and Hahn from Prussia or Lithuania.

What are some of the locations you are researching?

All of Fife especially around the Leslie and Inverkeithing areas, Kilmorack, Inverness, Perthshire and Rossshire; Norwich and Isle of Wight in England.

When and how did you get interested in genealogy and family history?

I’m really not sure because I started in the 1990’s but I think my interest was peaked when I found out my father was adopted by the Hylton family from Whanganui, New Zealand and Mum had a photo of Hylton castle in England. As time has gone on, I haven’t done much on the Hyltons but discovered all the facts about Dad’s birth parents and then to discover Dad’s father was adopted as well! Then I discovered who his birth mother was and I’m away into Sinclairs in Scotland.

Who's your favorite ancestor and why?

I don’t really have a favourite – everyone’s life is interesting to some degree; the jobs they did, the poverty they experienced, the number of children that died, those that survived, the odd police report on wayward ancestors – all fascinating. No skeletons in our cupboards, I share them all! Also the bravery of those who travelled away from family and a life they knew to the world down under in New Zealand. A very resilient lot.

Tell us about a brick wall you hope to bust through.

I have a few but the one who alludes me the most is John Urquhart, born around 1792-6 in Gairloch, Rossshire who lived in Kilmorack, Inverness. After years of research, I found his death certificate and, oh the disappointment! Where his parent’s names should be, was a huge question mark. I sat and looked at it for ages. 

If you could pick one person in history to be related to, who would it be and why?

I would have loved to be related to Jesus, sit at his feet and listen to him speak, travel with him and see how he changed the world.

(interview continues in comments)

Comments

What are some of your interests outside of genealogy?

Where do I start? Now that I am retired, there are not enough hours in the day for all my interests but genealogy takes up a lot of that time. Now I work with alcohol ink on tiles and canvas that I sell at a local market, I do cardmaking and scrapbooking, mainly vintage for my old family photos, I’m involved in my local church and before art and cardmaking, I used to quilt a lot until it got too difficult to move the fabric in the sewing machine. Oh, and I love gardening but my aging body has cut down my ability to do as much. And lastly, I finish the day doing Code Cracker puzzles which I love.

How long have you been on WikiTree and what do you spend the most time doing?

I signed the Honor Code on 16 Dec 2019 and have added 11,200 profiles, most of which have detail and a source or many sources. During that time, I have joined the Scotland Trail and as my DNA showed 94% United Kingdom, that is appropriate I feel! I have recently become a Team Leader for the Central and East Scotland Region and get great satisfaction sourcing the Unsourced Profile list that I print off and chug away at when my own family research becomes difficult. So the answer is, I spend most of my time sourcing profiles for future generations.

I have participated in a Twisted Thistles and a Source-A Thon and plod away at that too – accuracy is more important to me than numbers.

I love helping others and have had some success there.

What brought you to WikiTree?

I would research on Google and WikiTree always came up first. I was intrigued and loved the idea that all information added should be accurate and sourced. The other reason was that after 40 odd years of research, I had mountains of paper that I wanted to ‘hand over’ but no one in the family was interested so I had to find the best place to ‘leave’ it and I picked WikiTree and as I entered the information, I could throw the paper trail away.

What is your favorite thing about WikiTree?

I like the Suggestion List because it shows me what I’ve done wrong – when I’m tired! And how to correct it. Also, I feel I can trust the information on WikiTree more than other sites.

If you could improve one thing about WikiTree, what would it be?

I’m not fond of some of the features of the new Draft system. I find it more time consuming than before and I would imagine new people would also be frustrated. 

What is an example of how WikiTree has helped you with your genealogy?

The biggest help was doing the Scotland Trail Level 1-3. Boy, that’s a mission in how to do profiles. I learned a lot and am still learning.

 Any tips for someone just starting out on WikiTree?

Source as you go even though it takes a lot longer. You always mean to go back and do this or that, but you never do. Also, keep a book detailing your journey with WikiTree numbers beside each name. It helps you see what you have covered – I wished I had done that from the start.

Answer 1

Congratulations, denise on being nominated as Wonderful WikiTreer of the week.

I have the name "Hahn" also in my tree. They are from the Eastern part of the Harz mountains, which belonged to the Province Saxony of Prussia. If your ancestors are from there I might be able to help you with your research.

Comments

Oh, how exciting. They came from Memel in Prussia. I will get back to you on this. Thank you so much.

Answer 2

Congratulations on being WikiTreer of the week!  The Scotland Project appreciates all you do to help improve profiles!  Thanks for your dedication!

Answer 3

Nice to "meet" you!  I so appreciated your tip to source as you go;  I have "discovered" profiles that I meant to get back to, and just hope nobody saw the condition I left them in!

Comments

Oh, me too!

Answer 4

Oh, thank you.

Answer 5

Congratulations on being Wonderful WikiTreer of the Week!

I understand the urge to get the information, stories and connections down in "writing" before the next generation has to start it all over from scratch.
I only knew of "my" Urquhart because my dad stopped to talk one day when we were walking to the family garden. I asked him where the Scot side of the family came from, and whether it was on my mom's side or his. His eyes lit up with the sparkle of a good story he had thought of, and I heard for the first time that his great grandfather Thomas Bartlett had married an Urquhart, Elizabeth he believed, and that she was born in Scotland.  Not much to go on. I did eventually find Thomas and Elizabeth's connection to Dad's family side. My dad's story was true.

Thank you for all the research and help you provide to so many!  
-Sherry

 

Comments

So exciting, isn't it Sherry? We might connect one day.