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Episode Overview

Hittin’ the Bricks with Kathleen is the genealogy podcast that features your questions and her answers, exploring how overlooked sources reveal deeper family stories. In this episode, host Kathleen Brandt speaks with diary collector and history writer Angie Rodesky about how journals, letters, and personal writings provide granular clues for genealogy and local history research.

Together, they explore how diaries expand your understanding of an ancestor’s world—and why preserving complete records matters for future research.

In This Episode, You’ll Learn

• How diaries and letters reveal details not found in official records
• Why different types of diaries offer different research value
• Where to find personal writings beyond common marketplaces
• How to organize names, dates, and events from narrative sources
• Why preserving original materials is critical for historical accuracy

Topics Covered

• Angie Rodesky’s path from writer’s block to diary collecting
• Types of diaries and what each can reveal
• Diaries as tools for one-place studies and community context
• Finding diaries and family “lots” beyond eBay
• The risks of dismantling originals for “junk journals”
• Digitizing options, including the Midwest Genealogy Center Memory Lab
• Organizing research with charts, timelines, and spreadsheets
• Research mindset: curiosity and following leads

Episode Discussion & Key Moments

Kathleen and Angie discuss how personal writings—often overlooked—can transform genealogy research by adding context, emotion, and daily detail to otherwise sparse records. Diaries and letters reveal relationships, routines, and events that rarely appear in official documents.

Angie shares how she began collecting diaries and the different types researchers may encounter, from daily logs to reflective journals. The conversation highlights how these materials support one-place studies, helping researchers reconstruct entire communities rather than isolated individuals.

The episode also addresses preservation concerns, including the growing trend of dismantling historical documents for craft purposes. Kathleen and Angie emphasize the importance of maintaining intact records and explore digitization options such as the Midwest Genealogy Center Memory Lab.

Key questions examined include:

• What kinds of clues do diaries provide that records do not?
• Where can researchers find personal writings outside traditional archives?
• How should genealogists balance access with preservation?

Resources & Research Tools Mentioned

• Personal diaries and letter collections
• Local archives and historical societies
• Midwest Genealogy Center Memory Lab (digitization tools)
• Charts, timelines, and spreadsheets for organizing data

Why This Episode Matters

Personal writings bring depth and humanity to genealogy. This episode shows how diaries and letters expand research beyond names and dates—revealing the lived experiences, relationships, and environments that shaped your ancestors’ lives.

About

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Be sure to bookmark linktr.ee/hittinthebricks  for your one stop access to Kathleen Brandt, the host of Hittin' the Bricks with Kathleen. And, visit us on YouTube: @HTBKRB with Kathleen John and Chewey video recorded specials. 

Hittin' the Bricks is produced through the not-for-profit, 501c3 TracingAncestors.org.