Happy New Year! This last issue of 2021 features the era known as “Manifest Destiny” and will continue in the first issue of 2022. In this issue you will find the following feature articles:

● Mining Genealogical Gold: Finding Records of the Mexican-American War (and the stories behind them). A large part of this article covers the history of the war and events leading up to it, followed by tips for finding records. The “aftermath” of the war will be covered in the next issue, as well as more tips.
● Tales From the Trail. This article highlights the Oregon Trail and its challenges, including pioneer diary accounts and more.
● Go West Young Missionary: Doing the Lord’s Work in an Age of Manifest Destiny. This article highlights the earliest Oregon mission, under the direction of missionary Jason Lee.
● History in the Raw: The Importance of Diaries, Journals and Letters in Genealogical Research. This extensive article highlights the importance of finding the treasure trove of diaries, journals and letters our ancestors left behind.
● The Dash: Nancy Crawford Bray (1801-1902). The story of an early California pioneer.

I have thoroughly enjoyed researching and writing this issue. In particular, I learned so much about the Mexican-American War and I hope you find it informative as well.