What is the mission of this web site ?
The mission of this web site is to be a resource for any Reedy researcher and to genealogists in general. And to recieve and desiminate all credible Reedy genealogy research. Our long term mission is to be the place that parents will send their children when they finally ask " Where did our Reedy ancestors come from" . We hope and pray that this web site will always be here and that future generations will remember all of those who have contributed to it, as they learn of their ancestors.

The genealogy file that Dave and I started with in April, 1997 had about 7,000 names in it. It (the file) was in Dave's computer and only he had access to it. Dave had worked on gathering these 7,000 names for over 20 years and much of what you find here directly came from his hard work. We who use this file owe him a great deal of gratitude. Dave had phone and mail contact with numerous other Reedy researchers over the years and they traded info with each other, including Frank Reedy of Louisiana and Martin Reedy of Pennsylvania. 

In the spring of 1996 I started a web site dedicated to my Reedy genealogy. On it I had a couple hundred names at the most. While doing some internet research on Reedy Civil War Veterans, I contacted Jeff Weaver by e-mail. Jeff is a Civil War expert and he had previously been in contact with Dave on different subjects of research.

All of us are grateful for people like Mr. Weaver who share with the rest of us. Jeff Weaver suggested that I get in touch with Dave Reedy of Nevada , as he said " Dave Reedy is the Reedy expert". And indeed he was right. I contacted Dave and showed him my small effort at putting my ancestors on the internet. I only had them back to George Peter Reedy s/o Hans Otto Riedi/Riedy at that time. I was shocked and amazed when Dave told me he had 7,000 names all the way back to the mid 1600's in Switzerland . I proposed to Dave that we work together to post his file on the internet and share it with other Reedy researchers. Dave, to his honor and my excitement, did not hesitate to accept my proposal. That was in April 1997 and now we have 44,200 names. And the credit for the success of this web site must go to all the researchers who have dug for their roots and then shared it with us. It is our intent to give credit where credit is due. If we fail to mention someone as a source, please let us know, so that we can correct it ASAP. As a side note and a reminder just how small this world is, I will tell you the following.

Dave (Ralph David Reedy) and I share a common ancestor in Michael Reedy (b. 15 March, 1785) s/o George Peter Riedy/Reedy. Dave and I are fourth cousins. Our first contact with each other was in April, 1997 via an e-mail message from me. Before that, we did not know of each others existence. Dave moved from Virginia to Arkansas and graduated from Ozark Academy in Gentry, Arkansas in 1971. And for a time, he lived in Little Rock , Arkansas . I moved from Ohio to Little Rock , Arkansas in Sept. 1971 and worked at the Timex Corp. for 13 years. At some point while Dave lived in Little Rock he applied for a job at Timex, while I was working there. Though, we did not meet then, little did either of us know that our paths would cross again over 25 years later. And now this web site is the fruit of our paths crossing. I hope you enjoy the results of that event as much as Dave and I do.

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Can I get a GEDCOM file from you ?
Speaking of our complete GEDCOM file, the answer is a polite and respectful no. Our files change so much and so fast that it is hard to keep a good updated copy just between Dave and myself. Once we start passing out the GEDCOM file, it would be outdated quickly. And the possibilty of having bad info in any given file would increase with each file we gave out . However, for those that will register has a "Reedy Researcher" as outlined in question #9 and provide us with a biographical sketch as outlined in question #9 and #10, we will provide them with a GEDCOM file of their direct ancestors. Contact me for more info. Larry Reedy, larry@reedy.org

How can you prove that George Peter Riedy/Reedy of Virginia is the same as the one in Pennsyslvania ?
George Peter Riedy/Reedy of Pennsylvania had 3 sons named Peter, Michael and Christian in that order. And George Peter Riedy/Reedy of Virginia had 3 sons named Peter, Michael and Christian in that same order. Also, these same 3 sons in Virginia (as adults) list their birthplace as Pennsylvania on a census. For a much more detailed answer, read a explanation written by Dave Reedy.

How much does it cost to keep this web site maintained ?
This web site is one of the largest single person descendency files on the internet. We have to this date over 14,300 names on this site. And we also have a number of pictures and other files on it. All of this takes up about 15 megabytes (15,000,000 bytes) of memory on the Geocities computer. I have purchased 25 megabytes of space for $4.95 each month. In addtion to that, I have purchased the rights to our virtual URL (http://Reedy.org) for $35 a year. Geocites charges me an additional $ 5.00 each month to have the virtual URL point to our web site here. So, the total is $9.95 each month plus $35.00 each year. Really a good bargain I think, don't you ?

How much time does it take to keep this web site maintained ?
The initial development took nearly a year of all my free time outside of working for a living. Now only several hours a week are devoted to updates, e-mails and new projects. This page being one of the new projects. It was a great relief to Dave and I when we said that we had the main job done and now only had to concentrate on updates and new projects. The updates are like icing on the cake to us !

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How do I send a update to my lineage and when will it be posted ?
The best way to send updates depends on what you have. Dave and I can accept most any type of offering. We have recieved e-mail update files in several formats. And tho it is becoming quite primative, we even still accept US mail and UPS packages. The best thing to do is contact one of us, then together we will decide the best way to get your update. The time frame that we work under is ASAP (as soon as possible) and how soon my wife gets off the computer. Just kidding Dear!

How do I send old photos to you for posting on our web site ?
The format that I use for all of our old Reedy photos is JPG files. If you have a scanner and wish to send a photo via e-mail, please scan it at 100 DPI (Dots Per Inch) and then send away. If you don't have access to a scanner, and want a photo posted, send me a copy of the photo that I can keep and I will scan it for you. If you don't have a copy to send, please don't send the original through the US mail. If you do send something you want back, I will gladly make a copy and send yours back to you. Just let me know.

How do I get listed on the Reedy Researcher page ?
ust ask me. I will ask you tho to give some facts about yourself. Nothing too private, but I do need to know what you had for breakfast. Really, I just need to know your name,e-mail, lineage, state, and your last ancestor that we have in our files. I will also ask you to send us a personal biographical sketch of yourself. We are trying to get all of our "Reedy Researchers" to do this. That way, we can come to know each other a little better. This bio sketch can be as little or as much as you like. It can include pictures that are suitable for our web site. Any personal bio sketch you send can and will be changed or deleted as you wish. I reserve the right to edit, but you have the right to refuse to have it on the internet. In other words, you are the boss when it comes to your personal bio sketch. The personal bio sketches that we have thus far are accessed from our Reedy Researcher page. If a researcher's name is in color and underlined, then just click on the name to view that person's bio sketch. Please e-mail me with any questions on this subject.

How do I get a personal biographical sketch of myself and/or my family to you for posting ?
The easiest way is to e-mail it and any pictures you have that you want posted. Otherwise, let me know if you need to send it another way.

What is the next goal that this web site would like to reach ?
The official goal is to find the parents of Hanzet L. Riedi. Can you help ? Would you contribute some amount of money to hire a professional genealogist in Switzerland to reach this goal ? If you will contribute, let me know. Then, we will start a fund for that purpose. If and when the fund is started, I will post a special page to show it's funding level. The normal everyday goal is to make our web site better in every way possible. What goal would you like for us to strive for ?

Can I get these files and pictures on my own computer so that I don't have to be on the internet to access and study them?
The answer is yes. you can e-mail me if you want detailed instructions on how to do it. Just click on my email address. larry@reedy.org

Where and how did the Riedi/Riedy/Reedy surname come about ?
This is being researched at this time.

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