I think I found out about FreeRepublic back when I was on Delphi, GEnie, Compuserve, or AOL. Yep, tried them all.
Note: This is my second account. My first account, long since lost, is a few years older than this one.
I think it was Delphi/GEnie. Long, long time ago.
So funny, GoCards is my second sign in because I couldnt find my password for my first (new email too) I was newconhere!! lol
Could the name of your first account be the One Ring? (inside LOTR humor since you say your first account has long been lost )