Why This Blog Exists

Recently it has come to my attention that new readers may be unfamiliar with the reasons this blog was created and its purpose. I am republishing our very first blog post of Sunday, March 29, 2015, in hopes it will encourage family members to submit information for publication and dispersal.

This Bunnell-Bonnell Family Blog was created to share information on the many branches of the Bunnell/Bonnell family tree. It is the child of the Bunnell/Bonnell Newsletter, which was in continuous publication from January 1987 until November 2014–28 continuous years!

Mr. William Austin of Lacyville, PA started the Newsletter in order to share some of the material he had collected during 25 years of research and correspondence. That first issue was 8 pages long. Over the years Bill grew the Newsletter both in content and in subscribers, and he became one of the foremost experts on the Bunnell/Bonnell genealogy.

After 10 years of publishing the newsletter, Bill turned it over to Carole Bonnell and her sister-in-law Teri Bonnell. Their first publication was in January 1997. Like Bill, they published an outstanding Newsletter and provided a much needed forum for Bunnell and Bonnell researchers to share information and ask questions.

Finally, in January 2003, in answer to Carole's and Teri's calls for new editors, Charlie and Pat Bunnell decided to give it a try. Charlie had just retired and was looking for something new to "obsess" over. 

The newsletter ceased publication with the November 2014 issue because no one volunteered to take over for Charlie after he decided to take a well-deserved break.

Every issue of the newsletter is available on Charlie's website at 

 Past Issues Bunnell/Bonnell Family Newsletters.

The creators of this blog and all Bunnell/Bonnell family researchers owe enormous debts of gratitude to these editors and all who contributed to the newsletter. Thank you for all the information you preserved and shared.

The newsletter had always been an informal, information sharing publication with all of the subscribers recognizing and treating each other as family. We hope this blog will be the same.