{"id":18550,"date":"2024-02-13T09:10:16","date_gmt":"2024-02-13T17:10:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/?p=18550"},"modified":"2024-03-01T08:38:30","modified_gmt":"2024-03-01T16:38:30","slug":"genealogist-alumna-finds-family-history-roots","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/genealogist-alumna-finds-family-history-roots\/","title":{"rendered":"A fascination with history has this alumna digging up roots"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n    \n                                \n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--article-hero \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--article-hero\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n<div class=\"inner-wrapper\">\n          \n<div class=\"f--field f--image\">\n\n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n              \n      <img\n                            data-src=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/02\/Christina_Copland_Profile_Top-768x432.png\"\n          data-srcset=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/02\/Christina_Copland_Profile_Top-1920x1080.png 1920w,https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/02\/Christina_Copland_Profile_Top-1280x720.png 1280w,https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/02\/Christina_Copland_Profile_Top-768x432.png 768w\"          data-sizes=\"(min-width:1200px) 75vw, (min-width:768px) 83vw, 100vw\"          class=\"lazyload\"\n        \n                  role=\"none\"\n        \n        \n                                      \/>\n\n    \n    \n  \n  \n\n<\/div>\n  \n      <div class=\"image-caption\">\n          \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  Christina Copland is one of a growing number of PhD graduates putting their degrees to use in untraditional careers. (Photos: Courtesy of Copland.)\n\n\n<\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  \n  <div class=\"text-wrapper\">\n          <nav aria-label=\"Breadcrumb\" class=\"breadcrumbs\">\n        <ul>\n                      <li><a href=\"\/news\/stories\/\">News<\/a><\/li>\n                      <li><a href=\"\/news\/stories\/\/?category=alumni\">Alumni<\/a><\/li>\n                  <\/ul>\n      <\/nav>\n    \n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--page-title\">\n\n    \n  <h1>A fascination with history has this alumna digging up roots<\/h1>\n\n\n<\/div>\n    \n          <div class=\"subtitle\">\n            \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  A PhD in history from USC Dornsife \u2014 and a boost from the Trojan Family \u2014 led Christina Copland to a career as a genealogist at Ancestry.com.\n\n\n<\/div>\n      <\/div>\n    \n           <strong class=\"author-field\"><span >By<\/span><a href=\"mailto:communication@dornsife.usc.edu\">Margaret Crable<\/a><\/strong>\n    \n          <span class=\"post-date-field\">February 13, 2024<\/span>\n      <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--social-share \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--social-share\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n  <div class=\"content-wrapper\">\n    <span class=\"a2a_kit a2a_kit_size_32 addtoany_list\" style=\"line-height: 32px;\">\n      <span class=\"title\">\n        Share\n      <\/span>\n                        <a class=\"a2a_button_copy_link\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#copy_link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"Link\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_copy_link\">\n              <svg height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 19 19\" width=\"19\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"m7.43475275 9.52380952-2.17490843 2.26076008c-1.08745421 1.058837-1.68841575 2.518315-1.68841575 4.0350275 0 1.5167124.60096154 2.9475732 1.68841575 4.0350274 1.058837 1.0874543 2.51831502 1.6884158 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xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"m8.14285714 9.42857143c-.17142857 0-.34285714 0-.51428571.08571428l7.28571427 6.34285719c.3428572.2571428.6857143.2571428.9428572 0l7.2857142-6.34285719c-.0857142-.08571428-.2571428-.08571428-.4285714-.08571428zm-1.28571428 1.11428567v.1714286 8.5714286c0 .6857143.6 1.2857143 1.28571428 1.2857143h14.57142856c.6857143 0 1.2857143-.6 1.2857143-1.2857143v-8.5714286c0-.0857143 0-.0857143 0-.1714286l-7.2 6.3428572c-.7714286.6857143-1.8857143.6857143-2.6571429 0z\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\" transform=\"translate(-6 -9)\"\/><\/svg>\n            <\/span>\n            <span class=\"a2a_label visually-hidden\">Email<\/span>\n          <\/a>\n                  <\/span>\n  <\/div>\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n \n\n\n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--rich-text \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--rich-text\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n      \n<div class=\"f--field f--wysiwyg\">\n\n    \n  <p>Curious about your family\u2019s secrets? Give Christina Copland \u201918 a call.<\/p>\n<p>As a genealogist at Ancestry.com, Copland, who received her PhD in <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/hist\/\">history<\/a> from the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, helps people find their roots and track down relatives, often all the way back to the 1700s.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s a dream career for someone who grew up with an enthusiasm for archeology and history, sparked by reading about Ancient Egypt as a child. \u201cI liked the idea of this puzzle you\u2019re trying to put together of the past. That element is something that I\u2019ve always kept with me and it\u2019s a lot of what I do today,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<h2>A Brit abroad<\/h2>\n<p>Many Americans confess to a love of all things British. (There\u2019s even a term for those enamored of things like high tea and English literature: \u201cAngliophile.\u201d) Copland, who grew up in England, will cop to a fascination running in the other direction.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve always had an interest in American politics,\u201d she says. \u201cThere\u2019s an interesting contrast with the United Kingdom. The U.S and the U.K. are very similar in some respects, but there are some really sharp differences, like the influence of religion.\u201d Unlike in the U.K., evangelical Christianity has had an outsized impact in the U.S. on everything from politics to cultural institutions to the law.<\/p>\n<p>While completing her master\u2019s degree in modern history at the University of York, Copland discovered Lyman Stewart, an oil and citrus tycoon who used his wealth to help make Los Angeles an epicenter of fundamentalist Christianity in the early 1900s. In 1908, Stewart started the Bible Institute of Los Angeles (Biola), which has since trained tens of thousands of students in Christian theology.<\/p>\n<p>To dig more into his story, Copland made a trip to Los Angeles to explore archives that held materials relevant to his enterprises and personal life. It was on this excursion that she met <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/profile\/william-deverell\/\">William Deverell<\/a>, professor of history, spatial sciences and environmental studies and founding director of the <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/icw\/\">Huntington-USC Institute on California and the West<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI just randomly emailed him, said I was going to be in Los Angeles and that I was interested in this topic. He graciously made time for me at the Huntington Library and encouraged me to apply to USC,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<p>She was accepted and, overall, found Los Angeles and USC the perfect place to complete her dissertation. There was just one downside for a woman who hailed from a region known for its rain and fog: \u201cThe constant sunshine. It was too much for me!\u201d she confesses.<\/p>\n<h2>All in the family<\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_18552\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-18552\" style=\"width: 391px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-18552\" src=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/02\/Christina_Copland_Profile_InstoryA-391x550.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"391\" height=\"550\" srcset=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/02\/Christina_Copland_Profile_InstoryA-391x550.png 391w, https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/02\/Christina_Copland_Profile_InstoryA-728x1024.png 728w, https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/02\/Christina_Copland_Profile_InstoryA-768x1080.png 768w, https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/02\/Christina_Copland_Profile_InstoryA.png 980w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 391px) 100vw, 391px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-18552\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Christina Copland received her PhD in history from USC Dornsife in 2018.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Nearing graduation, Copland decided to treat herself to a trial subscription at Ancestry.com to dig into her own family history, an activity she\u2019d been curious about for a while. She was immediately hooked. \u201cI started doing it, and it was like a light bulb went off in my head. It was addictive,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<p>She soon found herself wondering, could she do this for a living? Copland had already planned on leaving academia after finishing her PhD studies. Working on genealogical projects, which required extensive knowledge of both history and the ability to analyze records, felt like a great fit given her background.<\/p>\n<p>Copland hopped onto LinkedIn and began looking for anyone working at Ancestry.com that might have a connection to USC. The Trojan family pulled through. Copland found a USC graduate who agreed to an informational interview, and then offered to forward Copland\u2019s resume along for consideration.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAt the interview, I sold myself as a candidate who was trained as a historian who could very quickly learn the specific skills I needed for that role. I think it was a good sales pitch,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<h2>Ordinary people<\/h2>\n<p>Now, Copland spends her days working with private clients who have either hit an obstacle in their genealogical research or who don\u2019t have the time or skills to build up their own family trees. She\u2019s also worked on a number of celebrity genealogical projects for TV shows like NBC\u2019s <em>Who Do You Think You Are?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Ordinary people also can have interesting cases. Copland helped out a friend who had been adopted and who, towards the end of her life, decided she wanted to know a bit more about her biological family. Copland made use of her friend\u2019s DNA test to track down her father\u2019s side of the family. The woman\u2019s paternal relatives were delighted at the new-found connection, sending her messages and photos.<\/p>\n<p>For students hoping to follow in Copland\u2019s footsteps, she recommends practicing with your own family first. A degree in history would also be an excellent choice.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou really need have the contextual knowledge of how people lived in the past and also the skills to be able to read a primary (original) document, understand what it\u2019s telling you and what it\u2019s not, and know where you might go next to answer your question,\u201d she explains.<\/p>\n<p>And, based off Copland\u2019s own experience, an in with the Trojan Family can\u2019t hurt either.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n  \n        \n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--article-related-stories \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--article-related-stories\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n  <div class=\"inner-wrapper\">\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--section-title\">\n\n    \n  <h2>\n          Related Articles\n      <\/h2>\n\n\n<\/div>\n    \n                  <article>\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--cta-title\">\n\n    \n  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