Ancestor Report By: Merritt Dudgeon June 4, 2010

Immigration My ancestors came from all over the world. My dad’s ancestors immigrated from England and Ireland My mom’s ancestors immigrated from Ireland (through Canada), England and Germany My parents settled in Michigan two years ago along with my maternal grandparents.

When they came My dad’s great grandparents and great great grandparents immigrated around the mid-late 1800’s to the early 1900’s My mom’s great-grandparents and great- great grandparents immigrated into the United States around the same time.

Why They Came My dad’s ancestors came because they wanted political freedom and good jobs. My great-great- grandmother’s family came from Wales because they were miners and had lost their jobs. My mom’s ancestors came to find inexpensive farmland and grazing land for their horses. These ancestors were Irish and raised a special kind of horses. They came through Canada. Some of my relatives were farmers from Germany.

Where they Immigrated from My dad’s family is mostly English. They were from both London and a special part of England named Wales. Some member of his family were really early, early settlers. I am a descendent of Daniel Boone’s family. In fact, Daniel Boone brother is a great-great-great-great x Uncle of mine. Other members of his family were from Ireland. I do not know much about the place where they were from. The name Dudgeon is Irish.

Where They Immigrated From My mom’s family is from Ireland also. Members of her family were from an area called Munster. There is a cheese named after this region, Munster cheese. My mom’s other side of her family were from Germany. She does not know where in Germany they were from, but we think that they were farmers in southern Germany (near the Austrian border).

Where They Moved To: My dad’s family settled on the Eastern seaboard. This means that they lived in areas like Maryland and New Jersey. Also, Daniel Boone’s family settled an area in Kentucky. They were pioneers who settled this land and were known as Frontiersmen. Other members later moved into the Ohio region.

Where They Moved To My mom’s family settled in Iowa. Some members came down through Canada and were early settlers in a city named Ames, Iowa. This is the city where Iowa State University is located. Other members settled upon farmlands located within the surrounding areas. These members were farmers who knew how to farm the land and grow good crops.