Tuesday night Maureen Edwards took on the subject of genealogy and the law and made it interesting and accessible. She began with reasons to investigate legal issues and provided resources that would help to understand the law in general. We learned a bit about how and where to locate information that would assist in our understanding of our ancestors. Most important are the laws of the time and place where ancestors lived.
Maureen had many examples from her own family research to show us how those court records could provide additional information about past generations. She suggested using state archives, public law libraries, Google and Archives.org.
Thanks, Maureen, for an enlightening evening!
Thursday, February 23, 2017
Wednesday, February 15, 2017
Workshops
We have had our two workshops for February. Last week Eunice Taylor joined us to answer questions about the Family Tree section of FamilySearch. Many members have been adding or correcting information on their part of the tree. Questions involved the process of merging when there are two (or more) duplicate names in the tree. We were also curious about adding photos or documents. Eunice felt that the "Help" function on the website is a valuable tool and everyone should take advantage of it.
This week (to celebrate Valentine's Day) we had a short talk on marriage records: what they contain, the various types of records, and where to locate them. It was also suggested that when a marriage record cannot be located, there should be a search for a nearby "Gretna Green," a city in a neighboring state where it might have been easier to marry. Besides our usual sources of FamilySearch and Ancestry, researchers should also consider using USGenWeb and Linkpendium. There are links to all four of these websites to the right.
This week (to celebrate Valentine's Day) we had a short talk on marriage records: what they contain, the various types of records, and where to locate them. It was also suggested that when a marriage record cannot be located, there should be a search for a nearby "Gretna Green," a city in a neighboring state where it might have been easier to marry. Besides our usual sources of FamilySearch and Ancestry, researchers should also consider using USGenWeb and Linkpendium. There are links to all four of these websites to the right.
Tuesday, February 7, 2017
Legacy's February Webinars
As always, visit www.familytreewebinars.com to read more about these presentations and/or register to watch in real time.
Wednesday, February 8: The "WHO" of Genetic Genealogy
For intermediate level researchers, Blaine Bettinger will be talking about which of your family members to test.
Friday, February 10: Deciphering German Script
Learn how to train yourself to read and interpret enough of the records to make substantial progress on your genealogy from Gail Blankenau. This is a beginner level presentation.
Wednesday, February 15: Be Your Own Digital Archivist: Preserve Your Research
Cindi Ingle will talk about safeguarding your genealogical research--another program for beginners.
Tuesday, February 21: Weaving DNA Test Results into a Proof Argument
For intermediate and experienced researchers, Karen Stanbary's lecture illustrates how to integrate each element of the Genealogical Proof Standard in a proof argument that relies heavily on autosomal DNA test results.
Wednesday, February 22: Finding Missing Persons With DNA Testing
Diahan Southard provides more DNA information for beginners. The topic description follows: "Do you have an adoption in your line, or are you adopted yourself? Do you have an ancestor who just refuses to be found? DNA testing can be a very powerful tool to help fill in the blanks in your family tree. But how helpful can it really be when you know absolutely nothing about the person you are trying to find? As it turns out, with the right techniques and a careful search, your DNA might be able to tell you more than you think."
Wednesday, February 8: The "WHO" of Genetic Genealogy
For intermediate level researchers, Blaine Bettinger will be talking about which of your family members to test.
Friday, February 10: Deciphering German Script
Learn how to train yourself to read and interpret enough of the records to make substantial progress on your genealogy from Gail Blankenau. This is a beginner level presentation.
Wednesday, February 15: Be Your Own Digital Archivist: Preserve Your Research
Cindi Ingle will talk about safeguarding your genealogical research--another program for beginners.
Tuesday, February 21: Weaving DNA Test Results into a Proof Argument
For intermediate and experienced researchers, Karen Stanbary's lecture illustrates how to integrate each element of the Genealogical Proof Standard in a proof argument that relies heavily on autosomal DNA test results.
Wednesday, February 22: Finding Missing Persons With DNA Testing
Diahan Southard provides more DNA information for beginners. The topic description follows: "Do you have an adoption in your line, or are you adopted yourself? Do you have an ancestor who just refuses to be found? DNA testing can be a very powerful tool to help fill in the blanks in your family tree. But how helpful can it really be when you know absolutely nothing about the person you are trying to find? As it turns out, with the right techniques and a careful search, your DNA might be able to tell you more than you think."
Friday, February 3, 2017
British Home Children
This past Tuesday Maureen Salter gave us a very enlightening presentation about British Home Children, who were sent from the British Isles to Canada during the late 1800s through 1948. An estimated 4 million Canadians are descendants of these "Home Children."
Most Canadians believed the children were orphans, but generally this was not the case. They were used as servants in households and farms throughout Canada.
Most distressing was the fact that siblings were separated and no effort was made for those children to know their heritage. Some were placed with families who eventually adopted them, but many spent their childhoods in such poor conditions that they never talked about it as adults.
Maureen has a special interest in these children, and she showed how she was able to discover the background of her husband's grandmother.
Thanks, Maureen, for educating us about this particular part of Canadian history.
Most Canadians believed the children were orphans, but generally this was not the case. They were used as servants in households and farms throughout Canada.
Most distressing was the fact that siblings were separated and no effort was made for those children to know their heritage. Some were placed with families who eventually adopted them, but many spent their childhoods in such poor conditions that they never talked about it as adults.
Maureen has a special interest in these children, and she showed how she was able to discover the background of her husband's grandmother.
Thanks, Maureen, for educating us about this particular part of Canadian history.
Tuesday, January 31, 2017
Genealogy News
Pinal County Workshop Report: There were nearly 200 in attendance, and it seemed as if all classes were well received. The committee meets today to discuss evaluations and begin planning next year's event!
Germanic Genealogy Journal: Did you visit the "freebies" room at the workshop? I picked up a stack of these journals produced by the Germanic Genealogy Society based in Minneapolis. These publications are very well done with articles on all facets of German research. As soon as I finish reading them, I'll be sharing them at our workshops.
Legacy Weekly Webinar: Nicka Smith will be presenting "Photography for Genealogy" on Wednesday, February 1. This is a beginner class where you will "learn the basics of photography and ways you can creatively incorporate it into your existing genealogy or family history project." Visit www.familytreewebinars to register to watch in real time. Remember that these webinars are free to view for about a week following the original presentation.
Germanic Genealogy Journal: Did you visit the "freebies" room at the workshop? I picked up a stack of these journals produced by the Germanic Genealogy Society based in Minneapolis. These publications are very well done with articles on all facets of German research. As soon as I finish reading them, I'll be sharing them at our workshops.
Legacy Weekly Webinar: Nicka Smith will be presenting "Photography for Genealogy" on Wednesday, February 1. This is a beginner class where you will "learn the basics of photography and ways you can creatively incorporate it into your existing genealogy or family history project." Visit www.familytreewebinars to register to watch in real time. Remember that these webinars are free to view for about a week following the original presentation.
Monday, January 30, 2017
RootsTech 2017
RootsTech is an annual genealogy conference that used to concentrate on the technical aspects of genealogical research. This year the conference is scheduled for February 8-11 in Salt Lake City. There are more than 200 sessions dealing with different genealogy topics.
If you choose not to travel to Salt Lake City (in the middle of the winter) for the annual RootsTech 2017 Conference, there is good news. You can stream many of the sessions FREE on their website.You can find the entire live streaming schedule at: https://www.rootstech.org/live-stream-schedule.
Learn more about the conference itself at www.rootstech.org. Live streaming will appear on their main website.
Thanks to Rick for the blog suggestion.
Friday, January 27, 2017
Wiki, Wiki, Wiki!
The above was the title of the video we watched at Tuesday's workshop. The Wiki is part of the FamilySearch website and there is much more content than when it was begun several years ago. Find the Wiki in the drop down "Search" menu. The Wiki is used for location and topic lookups, not surnames.
The presentation first provided a look at what was available for Germany, showing maps, language translations, and handwriting helps. There are separate pages for every province, many with links to online record sources.
Moving on to Indiana, the presenter gave examples of how he found biographies of ancestors because there were links directly from the Wiki to county histories.
In the final demonstration the name of a ship was used in the search box and the entire story of a voyage from New York to San Francisco by a group of Mormons was there to be read.
Note that there is a direct link to Family Search in our menu to the right.
The presentation first provided a look at what was available for Germany, showing maps, language translations, and handwriting helps. There are separate pages for every province, many with links to online record sources.
Moving on to Indiana, the presenter gave examples of how he found biographies of ancestors because there were links directly from the Wiki to county histories.
In the final demonstration the name of a ship was used in the search box and the entire story of a voyage from New York to San Francisco by a group of Mormons was there to be read.
Note that there is a direct link to Family Search in our menu to the right.
Tuesday, January 24, 2017
Tuesday Thoughts
Steve Packer, last week's speaker, was unable to join us due to illness. We hope to reschedule at some future date. Instead we viewed "Visiting an Ancestral Village," Annie's report on a 2008 visit to Germany and Switzerland.
Since the Welcome Home event was postponed because of weather concerns, we had to cancel our planned genealogy table for Saturday. Too many of our members will be attending the annual Pinal County Genealogy Workshop.
Tonight's workshop will feature the FamilySearch Wiki, where one can find information on locations and topics of genealogical interest.
This week's Legacy webinar is called "Playing Nice in the Genealogy Sandbox." Thomas MacEntee is always an entertaining speaker. His topic is on a beginner level and he will be talking about "the best ways to connect with other family historians and share resources including research, documents and research strategies." He will also mention various methods of locating other researchers. Visit www.familytreewebinars.com to register for the January 25 webinar or to learn more about it.
Since the Welcome Home event was postponed because of weather concerns, we had to cancel our planned genealogy table for Saturday. Too many of our members will be attending the annual Pinal County Genealogy Workshop.
Tonight's workshop will feature the FamilySearch Wiki, where one can find information on locations and topics of genealogical interest.
This week's Legacy webinar is called "Playing Nice in the Genealogy Sandbox." Thomas MacEntee is always an entertaining speaker. His topic is on a beginner level and he will be talking about "the best ways to connect with other family historians and share resources including research, documents and research strategies." He will also mention various methods of locating other researchers. Visit www.familytreewebinars.com to register for the January 25 webinar or to learn more about it.
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