It took me a while to realize the significance, but the first person I learned that bought my book is a great great granddaughter of Sylvanus and Judith Smith, who take up a big chapter in my book. And it happened because of a Zoom chat.
The day my book was published, I joined a Zoom presentation about clipper ships, sponsored by the Duxbury Rural and Historical Society. The talk, about the book Barons of the Sea, was interesting. (You can watch it; see this link: https://duxburyhistory.org/online-learning/.)
The chat feature on the side was pretty active, with lots of people asking questions, including one about Sylvanus Smith. So I had to answer it and said more information was at my website. The Smith descendant was watching, too. She sent me a private chat (is that the right word?) with her phone number, and in the meantime she went to my site and bought the book! I called her after the presentation and we had a great discussion. She is very knowledgeable about her ancestors. Now that I have done all this research about Sylvanus and Judith and their family, I almost feel like a member of the family myself.
What a happy coincidence and honor that my first known purchaser is descended from people of my book!
