Without Doubt, the World’s Greatest Hart & Canavan Genealogist
Editor’s Note: My mother, Mary Gwinn Bowe, may have done pioneering work on the Canavan family tree 50 years ago in her book The Families, but Joseph Christopher Hart is today without doubt The World’s Greatest Canavan and Hart Genealogist on the planet. It was in this role that I interviewed him about his own family’s move from Iowa to the West Coast, his growing interest in gathering information about his ancestors, his move to Ireland in 2003 to pursue this interest, and the impact of DNA in recent years on the traditional field of genealogy. Joe concludes his interview with a few tips on how others might approach looking into their own ancestry.
Transcript
Speakers: WJB — William J. Bowe; JH — Joseph Hart. Transcribed from the recording; punctuation added and obvious mis-hearings corrected.
WJB: Process, Joe.
JH: I like that.
WJB: Well, thank you, first of all, for making time on this.
JH: Sure.
WJB: In covering the subject, I thought you had a great idea — to talk about process, and your journey through figuring out family histories. So that’s a great place to get going. But also, just from my perspective, I want to lay some groundwork as to this curious relationship with cousins that you and I have found ourselves in, face to face. Although physically, where are you?
JH: I’m in White Salmon, Washington.
WJB: Okay. Washington State — and here I am in Northbrook, Illinois. As I was thinking about your work, which is pioneering in the Canavan family history, I was thinking that at one time my mother must have been the world’s greatest expert in Canavan family history.
JH: I think that’s certainly the case.
WJB: Oh, you agree with that?
JH: Oh, yes.
WJB: So it’s not just filial pride here. Of course, each generation has its own. She was pre-internet — the 1960s, she was doing her work. She had the advantage of living most of her married life in close proximity to the third-to-last child of Anthony Canavan and Ann Hughes, who was her mother-in-law. Both families were living in the same building, so she was close to a fountain of direct knowledge —
JH: Right.
WJB: — in addition to my father.
JH: Very fortunate.
WJB: But nonetheless, as I began to get into this subject, I saw the torch had been passed. You’re the new generation. You’re the world’s greatest current expert on Canavan family history.
