Good Times and Bad Times

What big events or upheavals occurred in the life of your family or your town?
What family stories have been told about good times or hard times?
What stories are told of natural disasters like floods, tornados, blizzards, etc.?
How were illnesses treated in your family? What diseases or conditions were feared most? Did any of them ever affect your family?
What courtship or wedding stories have been passed down in your family?
What stories has your family told of great fortunes lost or made? Are they funny or sad?
What members of the family served in the military? What were their duties? Did any see active service? What war? Where?
What stories have been told about their experiences in the service?
How did military service of family members affect the lives of others in the family?
What stories are told about "heroes" or "cowards" in your family"
Who did you admire most in the family? Why? Who was your hero outside the family? Why?
When you were young, what did you hope to be when you grew up? What became of that dream?