Like many adoptees Lyn knew very little about his origins. Found in a cabbage patch his adoptive parents joked. They told him he was chosen and loved. He knew that and yet he also needed to know his biological origins. He wanted to know his medical history.
For a fee, the California State Welfare Office was willing to share “non-identifying” information with Lyn. Tiny snippets of important information. Their letter read:
“Unfortunately, there is very little information in the case record about the background of your birthparents. Your birth mother was not interviewed by the adoption agency and the only information was taken from your birth certificate.”
“Your birth mother was born in Nebraska and was 35 years old. She worked as a housekeeper for private families. She had one other child when you were born (age and sex not specified). Your birth father was 34 years. His birthplace was unknown, and at the time of your birth his place of residence was unknown. He worked in a garage as an automobile repairman.”
“You were placed in the adoptive home when you were about 4 weeks old.”
Clues: The birthmother was born 1902 in Nebraska. If she was still alive she would be in her 80’s (at that time). The urgency intensified. Searching Census records (1910, 1920, 1930) revealed thousands of possibilities for women born in Nebraska about 1902 and living in California by 1937. (The 1940 census had not been released at that time.)
Lyn, now a grandfather in his fifties, went before a California judge “as an adopted child” to seek access to his adoption case record. We had already searched for 30 years. Now we learned that his birth mother’s name was Edna. Talk about a “small needle of information in a huge haystack.”
Undaunted, we were delighted with that major clue. But where to begin? Who were the Edna’s in Los Angeles 1937? The Los Angeles 1937 city directory, listing everyone who worked or lived in Los Angeles, is 6 inches thick.
We spent hours, days, weeks, months and years following up on every clue. We explored every logical “Edna” lead. One useful record was the voters records. Available at the California State Library on microfilm we read every precinct one by one writing down every Edna. There were 5,279 Edna-voter’s in 1936 in Los Angeles. Another useful record was the index to Omaha birth records. Those were cross referenced census records and Social Security Death Index (there were 75,681 Edna’s born in 1902 in the SSDI).
Over the years I’ve helped countless adoptees and birth parents search for each other. Fueled by my desire to find my biological paternal grandmother and inspired by my adoptive paternal grandmother who taught me the craft of genealogy when I was just a teenager I’ve visited research facilities all over the US. I’ve learned to utilize public documents, online records and I’ve found family stories, local history and solved mysteries. I confidently say I’ll study the history of anything or anyone or anyplace. Personal, local and community history is vital to the strength of anything we do.
In my dad Lyn’s case it wasn’t until 2016, at age 79, when Lyn’s DNA test revealed several second cousin matches that led us to the know he had a brother, Bob, living in California. When I called Bob he was delighted and eager to connect.
To my dad’s surprise, we learned that his birth mother had other children and that two of his half siblings were still living! They never really knew about him because he was adopted at birth. Like so many places sealed adoption papers kept them from knowing all these years. His brother and sister were so happy to know about him.
Newly found brother Bob stated he “overheard something about a baby boy being adopted out” but “it was not talked about due to secrecy.” “I had no idea how to find my baby brother.” Turns out the half-brothers are two peas in a pod. When they first met, they were both wearing blue button-down shirts with a pen in their pocket. Both love old cars and know how to fix them too. Both have vintage Model A vehicles and had named their daughters, Janice and Janet.
Lyn says “learning about the longevity of his siblings is inspiring, I’m 11 years younger and to see Brother-Bob still active in his 90’s, I’ve got a lot more living to do.”
Lyn’s wife states “It has been a blessing to watch the reunion and friendship grow between Lyn and Bob, (and the entire family) I’m only sorry it didn’t happen sooner.”
Sadly my dad’s birth mother had passed away before we found them. Bob and Lyn now travel thousands of miles to see each other every few months and enjoy their time together immensely. They threw a huge birth-family reunion party in 2017, it was a highlight in Lyn’s life. He had the pleasure of meeting his biological half sister who couldn’t believe how we had found them. Nieces and nephews and dozens of cousins came to help celebrate. “Yup,” everyone said “he looks like he fits in.”
My goal is to always learn the story of the people I search for. My PeopleStory blog is here for that reason. For many, their family trees come together easily, but I’ve seen first-hand the agony that those searching for missing parents or children endure. It should be a human right to know who your parents are, or where your child is. DNA can help and as in Lyn’s case it revealed a 79 year old secret.
I created an email account to honor my grandmother EDNA and when we finally found her my daughter said “look mom it was there all the time, the answers were right there, it was in the DNA – get it, eDNA, that combined with “electronic DNA” can help solve mysteries.
So if you know of anyone who has gotten their DNA results and they don’t know what to do with them, let me know and maybe I can help it make sense. Perhaps you will enjoy an unexpected family-reunion.
ps You can now find California Voters online
- 1866-1898 : California, Voter Registers, 1866-1898 at Ancestry.com
- 1866-1910 : California, Great Registers, 1866-1910 at MyHeritage
- 1900-1968 : California, Voter Registrations, 1900-1968 at Ancestry.com
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