Welcome Home
This project is dedicated to discovering the ancestral lines of the James F. Kelly and Teresa A. Marshall family. As a project rooted in both Irish and German ancestry, its unique title draws inspiration from a favorite moment in the film Best in Show. In the scene, two hotel guests trying to guess a clerk’s heritage learn he is Irish-German, prompting the witty exclamation: “Bratwurst and shillelaghs paging Dr. Freud!” Finding the humor hysterical and incredibly fitting for my own roots, it became the perfect name for this digital home.
🧭 To Get Started: Explore Our Family Branches
To begin exploring our family history, simply click on one of the main ancestral pathways below to view its dedicated children’s books, records, and deep history charts:
- ⚓The Anchor Branch — Where all of our family’s deep roots come together.
- 🌿The Family Branches Hub – Find all our current Irish and German heritage lines, see what new information has been added, and what is coming soon!
- 🎈The Kids’ Table – A collection of the completed children’s books and coloring pages plus a hidden pictures mural!
Or…Look up at the top right-hand corner of your screen for the three lines menu icon 🍔—tap it anytime to open up our full library of extra history information.
What You Will Find Here
This project is dedicated to documenting, exploring, and preserving our shared history through thorough genealogical research and narrative storytelling. My work blends official public resources—like census data and military records—with our most treasured personal materials, including family stories, old letters, and historical photographs.
To make our ancestral journey easy to explore, each dedicated family branch is organized into four distinct parts:
- At a Glance: A quick, high-level overview of who they were and where they lived.
- The Kids’ Table: A fun space built just for the youngest branches of our family tree, featuring a dedicated storybook and custom coloring pages.
- The Narrative: A deep-dive history weaving in the cultural, political, and everyday details of their lives, as well as the notable milestones that shaped them.
- Descendant Group Summaries: A look at the generations that followed.
An Ongoing Journey
Please keep in mind that this website is a living, breathing archive! This is an ongoing project, and I will be regularly updating pages and publishing new findings as the research unfolds. Be sure to check back often as we continue to bring the vibrant stories of our ancestors to light.
