[crich70]

My dad did some when I was young and I have dabbled a little bit. My Great-great-great-grandfather was born in Germany in 1800-1803 (depending on sources), came to the U.S. as a stowaway in 1814, went out to California to search for gold (in the 1840's I assume), used the gold he found to buy land from the government (he had a business partner as well) and sold parcels of land to people who were masons. And that's how Mason City Iowa got its name. One of his sons (my g-g-grandfather) married an aunt of Sitting Bull as well so I have a connection to the Little Big Horn. Another one was in the Civil War.