I am ready for Randy Seaver’s weekly Saturday Night Genealogy Fun challenge: Your Known Immigrant Direct Ancestor Time Span.

Most of the time, I can figure out by the title what the challenge involves, but for this one, I had to read the directions. The topic was suggested by Doug Greenhill, one of Randy’s readers:

“What is the time span between your first known immigrant direct ancestor to your last known immigrant direct ancestor?”

My earliest known direct line ancestor was George Soule, who arrived on the Mayflower in 1620.

My last to arrive immigrant ancestors were my Carpatho-Rusyn (Slovak) great grandparents, Michael Scerbak and Anna Murcko, who married at St. Michael’s Church in Passaic, New Jersey on 22 October 1892.

I have not found any records giving exact arrival dates for Michael and Anna, who likely entered through Castle Garden. However, there were very few Slovaks in the United States before 1890, which also happens to be the year that St. Michael’s (today, it is the Cathedral of St. Michael the Archangel) was established.

Assuming that Michael and Anna were only here a short time before they married – and they definitely knew each other back in Udol, Slovakia, I will assume that they came sometime earlier in 1892.

1892-1620 = 272

I have a span of 272 years between my first direct ancestor’s arrival and my last ancestors’ arrival.

Thanks, Randy! I liked this challenge.