This page is a practical guide for moving through Our Stories of Becoming. It explains how the site is organized, where to begin, what each major section contains, and how family members can participate in building the archive.
Because this site will grow over time, some pages may begin with limited information and expand as new photographs, documents, memories, corrections, and discoveries are added. The purpose of this guide is to help visitors understand how to enter the archive, follow the family lines, explore stories and records, and contribute with care.
Opening Orientation
Our Stories of Becoming is organized as a living archive rather than a single linear book. You can move through the site in different ways depending on what you are looking for. Some visitors may begin with a family line. Others may begin with a person, a photograph, a document, a place, or a remembered story.
Because the archive will grow over time, not every section will be complete at once. Some pages may begin as placeholders. Others may contain only a few records, photographs, or notes until additional material is found or contributed. The best way to use the site is to think of it as an expanding collection of family memory, not a finished product.
Start with the Homepage
The Home page introduces the purpose and spirit of the archive. It explains why the site exists, how the archive is different from a traditional family tree, and how family members can help it grow.
From the Home page, you can enter the archive through several major pathways: Family Lines, People, Stories & Archives, Worlds They Lived In, Contribute, and About This Archive. These sections are designed to help visitors move from broad orientation into more specific family materials.
Explore the Family Lines
The Family Lines section is organized around the four major family lines currently featured in the archive: Green, Harrington, Zaglinski, and Vacker. Each family-line page will eventually gather related people, places, stories, photographs, records, and historical context connected to that line.
These pages are a good place to begin if you already know which branch of the family you want to explore. They provide a doorway into the larger archive by grouping materials around family identity, descent, migration, and remembered connection.
Find People, Places, and Stories
The People section is where individual lives become more visible. Over time, this area may include person profiles, persons of note, service and public life, resting places, and other pages that help preserve the lives behind the names.
The Places and Worlds They Lived In areas help connect people to the larger settings of their lives. Family history is not only about who was related to whom. It is also about where people lived, where they moved, the communities they joined, the work they did, and the historical circumstances that shaped their choices.
Use the Stories and Archives Section
The Stories & Archives section gathers the materials that give the site depth and texture. This may include family stories, photographs, documents, albums, timelines, newspaper clippings, census records, military records, cemetery records, and other items that help preserve the family’s history.
Use this section when you want to explore the evidence, memories, and visual materials that support the family story. Some items may be fully identified and documented. Others may be works in progress, waiting for a name, date, location, or family member’s memory to complete the picture.
Understanding the Worlds They Lived In
The Worlds They Lived In section provides historical and social context. It helps explain the eras, migrations, places, and daily lives that shaped family members across generations.
This section is important because people do not live in isolation. Their lives are shaped by communities, economies, wars, migrations, religious traditions, occupations, neighborhoods, and cultural expectations. By placing family members within the worlds they inhabited, the archive helps us understand not only what happened, but also the circumstances in which lives unfolded.
Contribute to the Archive
The Contribute section is where family members can help build the archive. Contributions may include photographs, documents, memories, corrections, identifications, stories, or details about people and places.
Even small contributions matter. A name written on the back of a photograph, a remembered location, a date, a story fragment, or a correction to a record can help connect pieces of the larger family history. Submissions will be reviewed before they are added to the site so that the archive remains accurate, respectful, and carefully maintained.
Request Corrections or Clarifications
Family history often includes uncertainty. Names may be spelled differently across records. Dates may conflict. Memories may vary. A photograph may be misidentified, or a relationship may need additional documentation.
If you notice something that appears incorrect, incomplete, unclear, or sensitive, you may request a correction or clarification through the Contact or Contribute area. When submitting a correction, please provide as much detail as possible, including the page involved, the information that should be reviewed, and any documents, records, or memories that may help clarify the issue.
A Note About Privacy & Access
Before the site begins adding identifiable family information, photographs, documents, person profiles, or family-tree details, appropriate privacy and access-control practices will be used. This is especially important for living persons, minors, sensitive stories, and materials that may involve copyright or permission concerns.
The archive is intended to preserve family memory with care. Some information may be limited, summarized, anonymized, withheld, or placed behind password protection when privacy or family sensitivity requires it. Visitors should also review the Rights, Policies, and Practices page for more information about how the site handles privacy, corrections, submissions, and family materials.
Where to Begin
If you are new to the site, begin with the Home page and then choose the path that best fits your interest. Use Family Lines if you want to follow a branch of the family. Use People if you are looking for individual lives. Use Stories & Archives if you want photographs, documents, records, and memories. Use Worlds They Lived In if you want historical context. Use Contribute if you have something to add.
There is no single correct path through the archive. Family history is made of many entrances: names, places, photographs, stories, questions, and memories. Begin wherever something draws your attention, and let one discovery lead to the next.