July 2026 | Commemorating Your Stories250
Our American Revolution series has resonated family historians across the Anglophone world. Now we'll conclude the Series with a special event on July 9th and a commemorative “Stories 250 Magazine.”
Nearly 250 years ago, a group of rebels gathered to propose a country founded on an enlightened idea expressed in our Declaration of Independence, that…
“All men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
Stories250: Your Family, 250 Years Ago
At the time of the American Revolution
This simple idea was transformational not only to colonists in America but also to individuals around the world. As genealogists, family historians, and storytellers, your family stories have helped capture the turbulent times of the American Revolution, nearly 250 years ago, in a very personal way. I’m now planning for the July 2026 conclusion of this year-long series.
Learn more at Projectkin.org/stories250 where you can read the stories and explore an interactive timeline and map that captured…
Nearly 50 Stories about ancestors’ lives, loves, and battles posted by…
More than 15 Storytellers sharing tales of their ancestors’ struggle for every side in tales that included…
American patriots, British loyalists, Spaniards, Indigenous tribes, spies, men, women, children, pacifists, and all sorts of non-combatants in the middle. Your stories have been contributed from writers in…
New Zealand, Australia, Canada, and the United States.
In addition to the compiled stories, Projectkin has hosted Stories250 conversations each month since August 2025 with an incredible range of Livestream storytellers including: Jane Chapman, Kyla Bayang, Bill Moore, Lori Olson White, Tad Callin of Mightier Acorns, Diane Burley, and Dr. Mary M. Marshall.
These are the ordinary stories passed down in our families by fathers and mothers, sisters and brothers, aunts, uncles, and cousins, and then captured in your research. While some celebrate extraordinary feats of heroism, many illustrate how the conflict changed lives and interrupted dreams for generations.
Here’s what’s next
Our March program this weekend is a perfect example. It features Linda Stufflebean sharing the story of one of her ancestors, John Adams. This was not President Adams, nor one of his famous relatives. Instead, Linda’s John Adams was a Loyalist whose convictions took him from a comfortable life in Connecticut to a lonely exile in New Brunswick. In “John Adams & the American Revolution: The Other Side of the Story,” Linda explains how, despite many opportunities to switch allegiances, John stood by his beliefs.
After Linda’s program, we have just three months left until the big anniversary event, and all speaking slots are booked:
In April, Dai Davies of GenealCymru joins us to share a story about the enlightened education of the poor and small lending libraries in the so-called Cilgwyn Circuit in Wales.
In May, Anne Wendel of Grandma’s Granny’s Family Album will share the complicated story of divided loyalties in her tale about Captain Joseph Durfee (1725 - 1801) of Rhode Island.
And finally, in June, Helene | Letters from LaBelle will wrap the series with tales about her 5x great-grandfather and notable frontiersman, Militia Captain John Hinkson (1729-1789).
Concluding the Series: July 9 Special Event
This 250th anniversary reminds us of our personal connection with the history of our country, and the role it played in the 18th-century Enlightenment. While the monthly series will end with Helene Labelle’s story in June, I’ve planned a special event in July to bring everyone together for a Zoom celebration of the series. Since it’s a fair bet that some of you will have commitments on the Fourth of July, I’ve planned a special event on the Thursday of the following week, July 9th.
All of you who have submitted stories for the timeline, map, or live programs will be invited to share your stories in a live Zoom program, tentatively in our Pacific-friendly timeslot. If we have enough interest, I might split it into two sessions. If you’ve already submitted a post (or posts), watch for an email with details.
⮕ If you haven’t submitted a post but are considering it, don’t wait. Do it now. There’s still time.
All posts must have been published and submitted by June 30th. Submit your story using the simple form at Projectkin.org/stories250-form.
Topping it Off: A Commemorative Magazine
Your joy of discovery has inspired me to consider extending the idea. I want to combine all our posts into a “commemorative” magazine that celebrates everyone’s contributions.
The idea is simply to create something that all of you as writers and storytellers can share with your loved ones. The magazine-style reprint of our combined stories can help your family and descendants appreciate how your ancestors’ experiences fit into the broader narrative of the period.
Soft-cover, short-run “magazines” are now cost-effective, and there are dozens of tools out there that should make it (relatively) easy to format and publish post collections into magazine formats.
Candidly, I’m hoping that the potential to be included in such a publication might nudge you into getting your own stories done. I’ve planned to use this project to gain experience I can apply to future projects, both for myself and our shared community.
So there’s no misunderstanding, here’s what I have in mind:
A private print run: I’m not looking to sell these on Amazon, eBay, or anywhere else.
A digital version of the magazine, offered as a PDF (or possibly an ebook) to everyone who contributed an article. I will solicit contributors' opinions about whether to make this capstone available to everyone.
Opt-in: I won’t publish anything without approval from authors. Purchasing one or more copies of the magazine is not a requirement to be included.
A QR code to link author publications or websites to published articles. I’d like to include multiple posts per author, but I can’t commit to that yet.
The price per printed copy should be modest: I anticipate adding a small amount of overhead to cover my costs, and I will be transparent about these costs with all authors. My target is around US$20 per copy or less using a print-on-demand service like Blurb.
No one will be asked to pay or purchase a copy to have their post (or posts) included.
Securing digital rights for images will be the responsibility of contributors.
The magazine will be finalized and available for purchase AFTER the July program. Delivery will be weeks after that.
Have suggestions or feedback for me? Please drop me a note. There’s still time to talk me out of it. 🤭
Such an ambitious capstone to an amazing project! Barbara you have outdone yourself!
Thank you for all of this important curation — and if you need any help please let us know.