The family trees presented on this website contain information on the ancestors of Mary Catherine "Kate" Smith Ripple (1884-1974) of Maryland USA. As information resources improve we will add what we learn. The original research predates computers, but was upgraded when computer research became possible. It was updated again when ancestry websites became readily available and continue to be updated as these sites provide more data points. The wide availability of DNA tests has provided another avenue for making connections with relatives near and far, a search that is currently underway.
This website is for all, but especially those families that spent Sundays at "Grandma Ripple's" in Cheltenham, Maryland, and celebrated Independence Day with more relatives than we knew existed at the family reunion. Although we're now scattered, there are still many familial ties that keep us bound together. Hopefully, this website will help us maintain those connections and generate new ones among OUR descendants.
Annual Independence Day family reunion under the sycamores with the broom factory in the background.