Two of Anguilla’s community-minded personalities, Mr. Timothy Hodge and Dr. Ronald Harrigan, are avid enthusiasts who demonstrate a passionate interest in tracing Anguillian’s roots. Together they will be hosting the launch of a genealogical project called the “Anguilla FamilyTree” under the auspices of the Anguilla Genealogical Society. The event is scheduled to take place at the Teachers’ Resource Centre on Wednesday, April 14, at 6:00 p.m.
The Anguillan conducted a sit-down interview with both Mr. Hodge and Mr. Harrigan in order to derive information about their plans for the launch and their work relative to Anguilla’s genealogical outlook. A portion of that interview follows:
The Anguillian: Mr. Hodge, please give us some background information on the Anguilla Genealogical Society.
Mr. Hodge: The Anguilla Genealogical Society was formed on June 20th 2013. The society has been largely inactive for much of the past years. While the society itself has been inactive, genealogical research has continued, and persons have come forward with the provision of information relative to their ancestry. Over the years we have been fervently working along with people who are interested in tracing their roots.
As such, there have been presentations made at churches, family gatherings, and casual meetings of Anguilla’s elderly, where ancestral and family lineages were discussed. We have been also having profitable genealogical discussions with members of the Anguilla Retired Persons’ Association during formal luncheons and dinners. During these meetings we have made inroads in getting persons to put on paper their facts regarding their family history with information that goes as far back as they are able to relate.
The Anguillan: What methods do you use to trace one’s roots?
Mr. Hodge: “Most of the time, a lot of what is needed to find one’s roots exist only in the people’s heads. And although there may be a paper trail, that trail is often difficult to navigate through. There may be a lot of reasons for that. For example, in some cases, the records just can’t be found or the person who is known as Thomas Hodge, for instance, is in realty Thomas Rogers. Or he might be Benjamin Rogers, but his middle name was Thomas, and everyone back then knew him simply as Thomas. But if you are looking for a Thomas Hodge, you might never find that Thomas Hodge, because in actuality you should be looking for a Benjamin Thomas Rogers.
So it is difficult work to ply through the paperwork. But it is very intriguing work. Genealogical research is highly time consuming work as well, which is perhaps the reason why the Society is not as active as it should be functioning. Ample time is required to trace family lines through meaningful research.
The Anguillian: Who are the members of the Anguilla Genealogical Society?
Mr. Hodge: Notwithstanding the fact that tracing family lineages is time consuming, the executive core of the Society has been meeting. That core comprises yours truly, Timothy Hodge, who is the Founder and President; Mr. Kenn Banks, who is the Vice President; Dr. Ronald Harrigan who is a committed Anguillian Genealogist; Mr. Leonard Kentish; and Ms. Lena Gumbs. We have been meeting and working with an idea of going to the public and trying to get people involved in the work of establishing the ‘Great Anguilla Family Tree.
The Anguillian: Mr. Harrigan, you were the brainchild behind the ‘Great Anguilla Family Tree’. What factors influenced your inspiration regarding this project?
Mr. Harrigan: While I do not want to really take credit for the project, I want to emphasize that my idea had to do with the fact that we have a Society here and we need to have a project that would generate interest in the community so that more Anguillians can become involved in what we are doing. I do feel that this project, The Great Anguilla Family Tree, would be one way for us to really generate interest in the schools, in the college, in the university, in the island at large, and in the Diaspora.
People need to know their roots, and it is my hope that through this project people would become more interested in learning about Anguilla’s family genealogy. I think having this worthwhile kind of project would be ideal for educating people about their family lineage.
The Anguillian: What would you say to a person who might be skeptical and expresses that he or she has little or no interest in this kind of project?
Mr. Harrigan: Well, such a one would need to realize the benefits of knowing where they have come from — who their ancestors were. Apart from being equipped with the knowledge of one’s lineage, a knowledge of one’s roots has biological implications. For example when one presents to the doctor’s office with some kind of acute illness or disease, the doctor might sometimes asks, ‘Did anyone in your family tree suffer from this condition?’ If one knows that someone in his or her ancestry was affected by that particular illness, then the doctor might be more inclined to respond correctly with the pertinent kind of treatment for that hereditary disease.
You don’t hear much about this, but those of us in genealogy know that hereditary factors are a major component of genealogy. This project will endeavour to focus on aspects of this kind.
The Anguillian: What form will the upcoming launch take on April 14th?
Mr. Harrigan: We are inviting the public to hear what we are doing in the area of genealogical education. The meeting will consist of presentations by our members. Mr. Timothy Hodge will speak with regard to the work he has been doing over the years; Mr. Kenn Banks will explain genealogical research in Anguilla, and will speak about the genealogical records that are available to Anguillians and the oral history related family lineage; and I will speak on the aspect of genealogical research outside of Anguilla.
I have travelled to the Mormon Research Centre in Salt Lake City, Utah. Up there, high in the mountains, there is a guarded vault full of worldwide genealogical records, and Anguilla’s records are there. So the launch of this project, the ‘Great Anguilla Family Tree’, promises to be quite interesting, informational and intriguing.
Mr. Hodge and Mr. Harrigan cordially invite the general public to attend the Great Anguilla Family Tree launch on April 14th, in order to glean exciting knowledge about the feasibility of discovering their ancestral roots.
– Staff Reporter, James R. Harrigan
