52 AI Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Week 49: Written

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I’ve combined Amy Johnson Crow’s 52 ancestors in 52 weeks challenge, and Steve Little’s The 2025 AI Genealogy Do-Over, to create a unique 52 AI ancestors in 52 weeks party!

52 AI Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Week 49: Written

Introduction

So many interesting tales about writing!

My oldest written family letter is the one written by my great-great grandmother Patience SPIEGEL WEST and documented here.

My grandfather A. Gordon WEST, Patience’s grandson, worked 40 years at a newspaper, and after retirement, wrote the occasional letter to the editor, according to an online newspaper site.

Discussion

But my dad Robert E. ANDERSON was the prolific writer in my family. As a child, I remember him, newly divorced, pouring his angst into writing poetry. I wrote about an audio recording of him reading a poem which moved me.

He became active in the local chapter of the group Parents Without Partners and edited their newsletter for many years.

He wrote new lyrics to existing tunes and had my sister and me sing them.

When I searched my dad’s name and location at an online newspapers site, I found dozens of letters to the editor indexed there, ranging from 2003 to 2008 (the year before he died). So after retirement, I see that he got politically vocal, and maybe if he hadn’t died unexpectedly, he would have become politically – and oratorically – active as well.

Our writing doesn’t stand still; it grows alongside us, shaped by heartbreak, hope, purpose, and even politics. My dad’s words shifted from raw, poetic reflections during a difficult chapter to witty song lyrics and, later, passionate letters to the editor. What we choose to write, and how we write it, often mirrors the seasons of our lives. Whether it’s personal, creative, or civic-minded, each stage leaves its own kind of ink on the page.

How AI Can Help

If you’ve got a family writer (or are the family writer), AI can be a thoughtful writing partner. Tools like ChatGPT can help:

  • Transcribe recordings: Remember that audio clip of my dad reading poetry? AI can turn it into text in seconds, making it easier to save, search, or share.
  • Clean up OCR text: Found a letter or newspaper clipping with poor formatting? AI can help you fix those errors without pulling your hair out. (Check the cleanup. Always double-check the results.)
  • Organize writing samples: Whether it’s letters, poems, or newsletters, AI can help categorize and summarize them so you can spot patterns or track how someone’s writing evolved over time.
  • Generate prompts: Stuck staring at a blank screen? AI can toss out memory-jogging questions or writing starters, perfect for family historians or reluctant memoirists. I, one of the least creative people I know, often use LLM models to give me ideas.

Even if your relatives weren’t published authors, AI makes it easier to find and preserve the words they left behind—and maybe rediscover the writer in yourself.

Challenge for Readers

Find a writing, any sort of writing, that a family member has created. Grab a takeaway from it and share with the family.

If desired, use AI to assist. AI can summarize, share, suggest… there are many points in the process at which AI can be a helpful partner.

Want to Learn More?

If you’re interested in exploring how AI can support your family history writing, check out these resources:

Next Week’s Topic: “Family Heirloom”

AI Disclosure

This post was created by me with the help of AI tools. While AI helps organize research, the storytelling and discoveries are my own.

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