SNGF - Genealogy Database Statistics Compared to 2011

This week’s Saturday Night Genealogy Fun is aimed at taking a look at your genealogy database stats as follows:

1. If you have your family tree research in a Genealogy Management Program (GMP), whether a computer software program or an online family tree, figure out how to find how many persons, places, sources, etc. are in your database (hint:  the Help button is your friend!).
2. Tell us which GMP you use, and how many persons, places, sources, etc. are in your database(s) today in a blog post of your own, in a comment to this blog post, or in a Facebook status or Google+ stream comment.

We did a similar challenge in 2011, so I though I’d take this challenge a step further and compare my stats now to what they were then.

In Legacy, I went to the Help menu and chose General Information.  Here are my results as of today:

• 10,506 individuals
• 2,425 surnames
• 3,935 families
• 598 master sources

Back in March 2011, my results were as follows:

• 9,493 individuals
• 2,203 surnames
• 3,570 families
• 422 master sources

So let’s compare them:

Type	Current	2011	Difference
Individuals	10,506	9,493	+1,013
Surnames	2,425	2,203	+222
Families	3,935	3,570	+365
Master Sources	598	422	+176

Although I’ve added over 1,000 people to my database, the number of new surnames seems relatively low.  It makes sense, though, as I have been focusing on a few specific families in the last two years, which is evident when I run my list of surnames and compare it to the 2011 list.

Schwartz had the biggest jump of the surnames that were in the top 22 in 2011.  Kremer wasn’t even in the top 22 in 2011.  These are the two main lines I have been working on for the last two years.  The addition of individuals, families, and surnames are probably most directly related to this area of my research. 

Sadly, about half of the surnames on this list are very distant collateral lines that I got swept into during my “name collecting” phase early on.  Hopefully in another few years, once I’ve continued with researching more of my not-so-distant collateral families along with my main line families, those names will fall lower on the list.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

In honor of Valentine’s Day, I thought I share a card that my maternal grandmother gave my grandfather, many, many, years ago.

Surname Saturday Theme & Other Changes for GenBlog

I have been wanting to start up the Surname Saturday theme for quite some time, but never seemed to get around to it.  After reading the post Cousin Bait Strategy Needed, by Diane at Nuts From the Family Tree, I got motivated. 

And out of all the Surname Saturday posts I’ve seen, I’m drawing on inspiration from Barbara Poole over at Life From the Roots, who has beautiful SS posts (see From Delaware to New York, Came the Pollocks -- Surname Saturday).

I’m trying to pay more attention to my blog this year.  I’ll be implementing the Surname Saturday theme (hopefully later today), I started the Genealogy By the States theme yesterday, and hope to begin the Family History Through the Alphabet challenge within the next week or so.  Even though the alphabet challenge ran last year and is now over, I’m still going to do it. 

By taking part in some of these themes and challenges, it forces me to write blog posts that I might not otherwise get around to writing.  I feel that these three in particular will allow me to write about what I want to write about, but there’s that sense of urgency and purpose that will make me actually write.

Here’s to a new year, new ideas, new priorities, and breathing new life into this blog!

I’m Participating in the 2013 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge

I just learned about the 2013 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge from Julie over at Anglers Rest.  I have a few historical fiction books in my Goodreads inventory that I’d like to read, so I figured why not sign up for the challenge, which basically entails reading historical fiction books, writing up a review, and sharing it at the challenge host’s blog. 

I’m planning to read at least two books.  Piece of cake since I have 11 months and 20 days to complete the challenge.  Maybe I’ll read five books and get the the next level.

I also am looking forward to reading the reviews that the other participants will write.  I’m always on the lookout for a good book, so this aspect of the challenge is a nice bonus.

What about you?  Are you up for the challenge?

Accentuate the Positive 2012 GeneaMeme

Last weekend, Australian genealogist, Jill Ball, of the blog Geniaus, created a meme related to things we as genealogists accomplished throughout 2012.  The intent is to focus on the POSITIVE…what we did accomplish…and not the things we may have fallen short on.  It’s all about perspective.  In fact, that’s about how I approached my 2012 Achievements post; while I didn’t exactly accomplish what I initially set out to do, I highlighted many of the things I did accomplish, even though they weren’t my original 2012 goals.  In that post I listed several things, but it did not include many of the things on Jill’s meme list.  That being said, this is why I am writing this post.  I encourage you to participate too, just so you can see how much you actually did accomplish in 2012.

Message from Jill:

On a whim this morning I decided to throw together a Geneameme in which you can share the positive results of your Genea Activities in 2012.

I invite you to take part in this activity by responding to the following statements/questions in a blog post. Write as much or as little as you want. Once you have done so please share your post's link in a comment on this post or to me via social media. I will, in due course post a list of links to your contributions on this blog.

1.  An elusive ancestor I found was Mary (Nevens) O’Brien.  Mary isn’t exactly an ancestor, but she’s likely family.  Let me explain.  According to family lore, my second great-grandmother, Margaret Millet, had left Ireland, lived in New York for a short time, and then went to live with “family” in Bristol, Illinois.  Next to that note in parentheses was the surname O’Brien.  For the last two+ years, I’ve had no idea who this O’Brien family was or how they were related, but that changed a few months ago.

Back in September, I was working on Margaret’s Irish clan and a chance encounter of the name Anna Millett in the Illinois death index on Ancestry made me curious.  I looked at the indexed record, which was pretty detailed (I now also have the actual certificate) and Anna Millett, born in County Kilkenny, Ireland, was listed as the mother of Mary (Nevens) O’Brien.  Mary was listed as being born in Bristol, Illinois and she died in the next county over.  Along with some additional research, I’m now working with the assumption that Mary O’Brien is the “O’Brien family” that Margaret went to live with.  I also think Mary’s mother Anna is the sister of Margaret’s father John, but I need to do some more digging to prove that.  Even if they are not siblings, it’s reasonable to assume they’re related somehow.

2.  A precious family photo I found was among a batch of photos my Godmother sent me a few weeks ago.  There were handful of photos, all of which I already had, except for three.  The three photos are from the same event and I had never seen them.  I believe they are from my Godmother’s niece's birthday party.  The caption on the back, probably written by my Godmother, was:  Marie, Jean, Joe, Julie, Rachel and Grandpa.  I would be the baby in the blue party hat, held by my dad, next to my mom.

3.  An ancestor’s grave I found was completely by chance.  About a month ago, I received a change request for a Find A Grave memorial I had for my fifth great-grandmother, Sarah (Norton) Webster.  The request asked me to add her father Solomon Norton to the record so they could be linked.  What?!?  There was a memorial for Solomon Norton?  As it turns out, yes there is, but I hadn’t looked for one since 2010 and the memorial was created in 2011.  Not only was there a memorial, but there was a photo of the gravestone, which had an exact death date and included a second wife…this was completely unknown to me (and probably everyone else because no one has this second wife in their tree).  You can read more about my Solomon Norton research in a recent post entitled Dear GeneaSanta, How About Some Research Help.

4.  An important vital record I found was clearly the one I discussed in #1.  But, in addition to that, I have spent some time working in the civil registration records for my Luxembourg family.  Fortunately the images are all on FamilySearch (although not indexed) so I can take my time and collect all the records for the surnames of interest.  All of the records go into a spreadsheet so I can keep track of the locations searched, what was found, and eventually determine who is family and who is not.

5.  A newly found family member who shared their direct line to our common ancestor, Governor John Webster, was Jana Last.  Jana authors the blog Jana’s Genealogy and Family History Blog.  I’ve also enjoyed reading her Webster posts on her blog.

6.  A geneasurprise I received was being able to visit my mom for the holidays.  I haven’t been to visit her since 2008, so my husband decided to use his bonus to pay for the trip.  It was nice to hang out with my mom for a few days and realize how much I miss her and her cooking!

7.  My 2012 blog post that I was particularly proud of was What’s Your Number? (…and an Epiphany).  While trying to answer the question of how many direct ancestors I have positively identified so far, I came to an important realization.  You’ll just have to read it to find out =)

8.  My 2012 blog post that received a large the most number of hits or comments was Using the Kindle Fire for Genealogy – Ancestry.  I have plans to revamp this post to bring it up to date since a lot has changed since I wrote the post back in April.

9.  A new piece of software I mastered started to experiment with was RootsMagic.  Don’t get me wrong, I love Legacy Family Tree and have been using it forever, but there are some features in RM that I really like…if only I could blend the two….

10.  A social media tool I enjoyed using for genealogy was Facebook.  I’ve been on Facebook since 2008, and while I keep up with my friends and family, probably 75% of my friends are genealogists.  I’ve even made some new friends this year and when I ran into an issue on how to handle an adoption case, I knew exactly who to contact.  Without Facebook, I wouldn’t have known who to turn to for advice.

11.  A genealogy conference from which I learned something new was the Tazewell County Genealogical Society’s fall conference.  Carol Whitton was the speaker for the all-day event and she presented two lectures related to German genealogy: Using and Understanding the German Gazetteer, in which she discussed how to use the Meyers Orts- und Verkehrs-Lexikon des Deutschen Reichs and Reading German Church Records.  Both were extremely helpful and the minute I got home, I got to work.  I wrote two blog posts related to what I learned and I’m sure I’ll have more in the future:  My Adventure With Meyers Gazetteer and When In Doubt, Map It.

12.  I am proud of the presentation I gave at presentations I arranged for both the 2012 and 2013 Illinois State Genealogical Society’s webinar series.  This program is very dear to me and I am fortunate to have met some wonderful genealogists who were thrilled to provide presentations for us.  It’s a huge benefit to ISGS members and the genealogy community as a whole.  Be sure to read my posts A Look Back at the 2012 ISGS Webinar Series and Illinois State Genealogical Society Announces Its 2013 Webinar Lineup.

13.  A journal/magazine article I had published was “Newspapers: Going Beyond Obituaries,” which was published in the Winter 2012 issue of the Illinois State Genealogical Society Quarterly.  It actually happened to be the cover story =)

14.  I taught a friend how to get started in her family history research.  Literally the day before I left for my holiday vacation, a friend emailed me asking how to get started…cheaply.  As we all know, that’s quite a complicated question to answer.  I gave her some simple advice on collecting all of the family-held documents and talking to her mom and other relatives to pull together some basic information.  She’s a computer geek like me, so I suggested two genealogy databases to try out so she could start entering information to help her stay organized.  I then suggested a few books for her to read so she can figure out what approach she wants to take based on what it is that she wants to know/do.  And of course I’m always here for her if she has questions.

15.  A genealogy book that taught me something new was Luxembourgers in the New World by Nicholas Gonner.  There is a lot of great information in the first volume of the book, which I desperately want a copy of (I didn’t get to spend too much time with it at the Family History Library when I was there last February).  Volume II contains an index of names found in the Luxemburger Gazette, which was published in Iowa from 1871-1918.  Did I mention that I really want a copy of this two-volume set?

16.  A great repository/archive/library I visited was the Family History Library in Salt Lake City.  I was able to get in plenty of time at the FHL while attending RootsTech 2012.  I made some great discoveries that included finding records from my second great-grandmother’s home town in Prussia.

17.  A new genealogy/history book I enjoyed was The Last Queen of England, by Steve Robinson.  It’s a fiction book where the main character is a genealogist.  This book was released a few weeks ago and is the third in a series.  They’re all fantastic books…I highly recommend them.

18.  It was exciting to finally meet Colleen McHugh, fellow genealogist and GeneaBlogger.  While visiting my mom in Arizona this time around, we were much closer to Colleen and despite a terrible fate where my body and some asphalt become one the day before, I hid the pain and kept our plans to hang out at the Sonora Desert Museum.  I’m still recovering from my fall and should probably be in bed resting instead of writing this blog post ;)

19.  A geneadventure I enjoyed was helping a friend by tracking down her birth mother, which ended in a very happy reunion.  This is the first adoption case I’ve attempted (outside of my stepfather’s case) and I am happy that everything worked out…I know this isn’t always the case.

20.  Another positive I would like to share is that I plan to keep truckin’ along and fill 2013 with many accomplishments.  Here’s to a new year, cheers!

Dear GeneaSanta, How About Some Research Help

This year I thought I’d ask GeneaSanta for some research help.  There are a few research projects I’d like to make some progress on, but I need some help.  Help could be in any form:  help with a research plan, access to records, cousins with information, or the people in question could simply fall from the sky (wait, that would be too easy and take the fun out of it).  Here are some of the cases I hope to crack in 2013.

Solomon Norton

The main question has always been if Sarah Norton, who married Aaron Webster, was in fact his daughter.  I have yet to find any solid evidence, either direct or indirect, that would answer this question, other than a mention in the History and Genealogy of the Gov. John Webster Family of Connecticut With Numerous Portraits and Illustrations that she was the daughter of Solomon (p. 401) and a few bits and pieces related to where the families settled.

To be quite frank, I have no idea who his children actually are.  So many claims from other peoples’ trees, some consistent across the board, others hit and miss.  I really need to uncover some useful resources that can help me put the family together correctly.  My current plan is to investigate Solomon further.  Learn more about him, as well as his wife and children and hopefully make some sort of connection between him and supposed daughter Sarah. 

To make things even more interesting, about a month ago I got an Find A Grave change request asking to add a link from daughter Sarah’s memorial to the memorial for Solomon. I didn’t even know this memorial existed (the last I checked for him at Find A Grave was in 2010 and the memorial was added in 2011).  When I took a look at the memorial, I was shocked to see a second wife….what?  Nowhere had I see this.  But, seeing their gravestone, I had to admit, it sure looked like he had a second wife.  And, yes, this is him.  Through various records, I traced him all the way to Villenova, New York and surmised he died after September 1844 (the last time a pension payment was issued).  The gravestone shows a death date of 8 November 1844 and he and his second wife are buried in Hamlet Cemetery, just outside of Villenova. 

So I’ve started to investigate the head of household in the 1840 census for Villenova where Solomon shows up as a pensioner in the household of G B Aldrich.  I know that the 90-100 aged male is Solomon and now I understand why there is a female, age 80-90, in the household; likely the the second wife that was previously unknown.  The remaining people in the household are George B Aldrich (name determined by a land deed), age 30-40, with his wife (also age 30-40) and children.  Could George or his wife somehow be related to Solomon’s second wife?  Could she be the mother of one of them?

Emil Miller

This is the only one of sixteen great-great-grandparents that I do not know the fate of.  I have written about this family several times, and while I finally learned the fate of his wife, Hulda Wach, I still don’t know what happened to Emil after 1902.  Did he die, move, remarry?  No clue.  I know nothing about his parents or if he has any siblings.  Recently I discovered a possible birth location for him, but I believe that it’s the “bigger city” syndrome and that he probably came from a smaller village near the big city.  But, I’m going to investigate it nonetheless because you just don’t know until you look.

Ferdinand Schwartz and Johann Kremer

Both are third great-grandfathers who were born and raised in Luxembourg.  Their children, Johann Schwartz and Margaretha Kremer came to America and settled in Aurora, Kane County, Illinois, where they raised their own family.  While I know what happened to Ferdinand’s first wife (mother of Johann Schwartz; she died in Luxembourg) I have no idea what happened to him or his second wife, Anna Maria Thiel, or Johann Kremer and his wife, Catharina Terres.  I hope to explore these families a little more in 2013. 

So GeneaSanta, if there is anything you can do to help, I’d so much appreciate it!

My Top & Favorite Posts of 2012

Last year, as part of my 2011 Achievements post, I shared a list of my most popular 2011 posts.  I thought I’d do something similar this year.  So here’s a list of my top five posts and my personal favorites.

Top 5 Posts

These were the top five most visited posts since January 1, 2012.  All were written in 2012, except the first one, which was written in 2010 and is the #1 most visited of all-time.

1. Army Dog Tags: A Story & My Discovery
2. Using the Kindle Fire for Genealogy – Ancestry
3. Using the Kindle Fire for Genealogy – Families
4. Resources for Genealogy Research in Colonial America
5. Using the Kindle Fire for Genealogy – Evernote

My Faves

These are ten of my favorite posts that I wrote in 2012 (in date order).

1. Peculiar, With a Side of “Huh?”
2. Hulda (Wach) Müller Severing
3. Fearless Females – A Lunch Date
4. The Golden Girls in 1940
5. Take 2 – My Revolutionary War Patriots
6. What’s Your Number? (…and an Epiphany)
7. One Leaf on the Tree
8. My Adventure With Meyers Gazetteer
9. When In Doubt, Map It
10. A Family Tapestry – A Must-Read Blog!

Have you posted your own “most visited” or “favorite posts” list?  If so, drop me a comment with the link so I can check it out!

2013 Resolutions

While I didn’t quite accomplish everything I wanted to in 2012, I did manage to get some things done.  See 2012 Achievements to find out more.  Now it’s time to move on and set my 2013 genealogy goals.

BCG Certification – Same as last year.  My main goal is to “start the clock” this year for BCG certification.

Publishing Articles – Ongoing goal, but I want to publish more this year and in a variety of publications.

Dedicate More Time to My Genealogy Writing Blog – I started Writing Your Way to the Past in 2011.  The intent was to focus on the writing aspect of genealogy (the blog also serves as my “business” website, temporarily).  I’ve been neglecting this blog not intentionally, but I just haven’t had the time to dedicate as much as I would like.  I have several of posts drafted, but haven’t been able to actually finish them.  Hoping to change that in 2013.

Continue Working on American Records Certificate Through National Institute for Genealogical Studies – I started working toward the American Records certificate through National Institute for Genealogical Studies back in 2010.  I have completed the basic courses and a few electives.  My goal for this year is to complete the intermediate courses.

Continue Growing My Genealogy Business – In 2012, I put a little bit more focus into my genealogy business and worked with several new clients.  I’m hoping that 2013 is the year I can finally start putting all of my energy into growing the business and be more proactive and deliberate in finding clients and projects.

These are my major goals for 2013.  In addition, I will continue to work on my own research projects and volunteer for Illinois State Genealogical Society and my DAR chapter. 

What are your goals for 2013?  I’d love to hear them so share them in the comments or share a link to your own post in the comments.

Here’s hoping for a successful year for all of us!! 

Cheers!

2012 Achievements

It’s time to reflect on my 2012 genealogy goals.  With only two things on the list for the year, I thought I’d manage to accomplish both.  Unfortunately, that was not the case.  And while I may not have accomplished the stated goals entirely, I did have quite an interesting year.

Here were my 2012 goals:

BCG Certification – The intent for 2012 was to “start the clock” for certification.  Unfortunately, other obligations and health issues got in the way this year.  So on the 2013 list it goes.

Publishing Articles – My goal was to publish more articles in 2012 since I didn’t publish anything since 2010.  I managed to get one article published (at least it’s supposed to be sometime this month) and it was the only thing I attempted.  Publishing articles will always be a goal, so on to the 2013 it goes.

Even though I didn’t exactly do what I set out to do, there were some things that I did accomplish.

• I helped a friend by tracking down her birth mother, which ended in a very happy reunion.  This is the first adoption case I’ve attempted (outside of my stepfather;s case) and I am happy that everything worked out…I know this isn’t always the case.
• I updated a course for National Institutes for Genealogical Studies, and am working on converting a “quick” course into a “for credit” course.
• I published two guides for Legacy Family Tree:
  • Legacy QuickGuide™ Using Historical Newspapers for Genealogy Research – Printed Edition and PDF Edition
  • Legacy QuickGuide™ Lineage Societies and Genealogy – Printed Edition and PDF Edition
• I successfully launched the 2012 Webinar Series for Illinois State Genealogical Society and am all set for the 2013 series.
• I was named Outstanding Junior by my DAR chapter and am competing at the state level.
• I continued to take on client work.
• I was able to go to RootsTech 2012 in Salt Lake City and spent many hours at the Family History Library.  Lots of learning, networking, researching, and hanging out with friends!
• I was an official blogger for RootsTech 2012 and was asked to be an official blogger for RootsTech 2013.
• I attended Midwestern Roots 2012 in Indianapolis.  Learned some new things, met some new people, and hung out with great friends.
• I indexed over 40,000 names for the 1940 census through FamilySearch Indexing.
• And, despite my busy work and volunteer schedule, as well as health issues, I still managed to fit in some personal genealogy research and even made a few breakthroughs.

Although I had some setbacks, I think I had a pretty successful year.  I’m hoping that the adjustments my doctors have been making in my treatment plan, will result in more strength to achieve even more in 2013.  Stay tuned for my 2013 goals!

An Example of a Record Found in the British Army Pensioners – Royal Hospital Kilmainham Collection at Findmypast.com

A little bit ago, I posted about a new collection added to Findmypast.com.  It seemed like an interesting collection so I decided to check it out further and share with you what I found.

First, I had a hard time locating the record collection.  But after a few minutes of sleuthing, I managed to find it.  Depending on where you look, the collection is either called British Army Pensioners – Royal Hospital Kilmainham, Ireland, 1783-1822 or Kilmainham Pensioners – British Army Service Records 1783-1822.  This is the link to search the collection specifically, through the findmypast.com US version (it also contains more information about the records).

I did a search on the surname Cahill and there were 12 results.  I found one in County Kilkenny, which happens to be from where my Cahills are from.  Below is the first page (pretty much a blank page on the back), and although it is small, you can see that there is quite a bit of information.

This particular record is the discharge paperwork for Sergeant William Cahill, who was “born in the Parish of Freshford in or near the Town of Freshford in the County of Kilkenny was enlisted for the aforesaid Regiment at Kilkenny in the County of Kilkenny on the 11^th Day of July at the Age of 25 years for the Kilk[enny] Militia.”  He served in the Army for 29 years and 71 days, from 11 July 1793 to 25 September 1822.  During his service, he was a Private for about six-and-a-half years, a Corporal for over a year-and-a-half, and a Sergeant for over 21 years.

After the service record, there is some more interesting information, some of which is obscured by a stamp.  I think it has to do with his discharge, and I can tell that his “character” was “very good.”  I’ve transcribed the 6th through 8th items below.

[begin transcription]

6th. Certificate of the Settlement of all Demands.	THAT he has received all just Demands of Pay, Clothing, &c. from his Entry into the Service to the date of this Discharge, as appears by his Receipt underneath.
7th. Acknowledgement of the Receipt of all Demands.	I Wm Cahill do hereby acknowledge that I have received all my Clothing Pay, Arrears of Pay, and all just Demands whatsoever, from the time of my Entry into the Service to the date of this Discharge. Witnessed by John Gordon [??]  Signature of the Soldier } Willm Cahill Serj [notice that he signs his name Willm not Wm]
8th. Certificate of Description.	TO prevent any improper use being made of this Discharge, by its falling into other Hands, the following is a Description of the said Wm Cahill He is about 54 Years, of Age, is 6 Feet 1 Inches in height, Brown Hair, Gray Eyes, Fair Complexion; and by Trade or Occupation a Laborer

Given under my Hand, and the Seal of the Regiment at Castle[??] this 24th Day of Sept^r 1822

Signature of the Commanding Officer. } [illegible] Col. Kil[kenny] Reg[iment] Militia

[end of transcription]

Certainly a neat document.  Learned quite a bit about this gentleman.  I wonder if he’s related to my Cahills of Kilkenny.  Freshford is about 19 miles from Thomastown, which is where my Cahills are from.  I have no idea about my Cahill line prior to the baptism of my third great-grandfather in 1834 (and I not even sure if the record is for him!), so who knows.  At least I had fun exploring a new-to-me record type.

---

Image:  Discharge papers for Serj. Wm Cahill, digital image obtained from findmaypast.com, Kilmainham Pensioners British Army Service Records 1771-1821 collection on 7 December 2012.

7 Genealogy-Related Things to Add to Your Holiday Wish List

Can’t decide what to put on your holiday wish list? 

Here are some suggestions!

#1 Books

There are so many books to choose from, but these are my go-to books and I recommend them for anyone working on their genealogy.

• Red Book: American State, County & Town Sources, Third Edition – While this book is available through the Ancestry.com Wiki, I prefer the book version.  I can highlight it, stick post-its all over it, write notes, and flip back and forth with ease.  Although this latest edition was published in 2004, it’s still a valuable resource.  It’s organized by state and goes through the various records types and repositories.  Handy tables for each state show each county, along with its formation date (and if it was formed from another county), and the beginning dates for vital, land, probate, and court records.  Some states, like Connecticut, do this by town instead of county.
  
• The Source: A Guidebook of American Genealogy, Third Edition – Also available through the Ancestry.com Wiki, it’s another book where I prefer the hardcopy for the same reasons mentioned above.  Still relevant even six years after this edition was released, this book is organized by topic and gives a good overview of each topic.  Particularly helpful for beginners who are transitioning to more advanced research.
  
• The Researcher’s Guide to American Genealogy, Third Edition – This book is similar to The Source and there is some overlap in topics.  However, they’re each presented differently and it’s sometimes better to have both.  Each one covers a few topics the other doesn’t.
  
• Professional Genealogy: A Manual for Researcher, Writers, Editors, Lecturers, and Librarians – NOT just for professionals, this is a wonderful resource even if you have no plans to do genealogy for a living.  It covers a variety of topics from research reports to transcriptions to writing family histories, as well as information targeted at the professional such as business management and marketing.
  
• Evidence Explained: Citing History Sources from Artifacts to Cyberspace, Second Edition – The preferred standard for citing sources in the genealogy world.  While it serves as a references for endless citation scenarios, the first chapter is dedicated to evidence analysis, which should be read and reviewed often.

#2 Guides

The last few years have seen the emergence of short informational guides focused on a particular topic. 

• Genealogical Publishing Co. – Carries two lines of guides:  Genealogy at a Glance and QuickSheet.  These guides cover a variety of topics including Italian genealogy, Revolutionary War, African American genealogy, cluster research, and problem analysis.
  
• Legacy Family Tree – Recently came out with a Legacy QuickGuide^TM series, covering many different topics from preserving family heirlooms to Canadian genealogy to land records.
  
• Genealogical Societies – A few state genealogical societies have put together guides of their own focusing on their particular state.  These include:  Insider’s Guide to Illinois Genealogy (Illinois State Genealogical Society), Insider’s Guide to Ohio Genealogy: A View of Essential Buckeye State Resources (Ohio Genealogical Society), and Insider’s Guide to California Genealogy (California Genealogical Society).

#3 Magazines

Some of my favorite genealogy magazines include:

• Family Tree Magazine – A one-year subscription includes seven issues; available in print and electronic versions.
  
• Family Chronicle – A one-year subscription includes six issues; available in print and electronic versions.
  
• Internet Genealogy – A one-year subscription includes six issues; available in print and electronic versions.
  
• American Spirit – A publication of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution, this always has some great articles.  You do NOT need to be a member of the DAR to subscribe.
  
• FGS FORUM – This is a publication of the Federation of Genealogical Societies and includes articles and columns relevant to genealogists as well as society management.  Anyone can subscribe to this magazine.

#4 Society Memberships

There are plenty of genealogical and historical societies out there at all levels: national, regional, state, and local.  Two of the more popular national/regional societies are the National Genealogical Society and the New England Historic Genealogical Society.  Professional-related societies include the Association of Professional Genealogists and the American Historical Association.  To find other societies, start with the listing provided at Cyndi’s List.

#5 Software

These are the three major players for genealogy database software (sorry Mac users, I’m no help here, although I think FTM is available for the Mac):

• Legacy Family Tree
• RootsMagic
• Family Tree Maker

In addition, there are plenty of other genealogy-related software tools that might be of interest to you:

• Personal Historian
• Family Atlas
• Genelines
• Legacy Charting Companion

And don’t forget about photo-editing software to help you preserve your photo collection and documents.  I personally use Photoshop because I also use several other Adobe products in the Creative Suite.  I’ve heard that Photoshop Elements is a cheaper alternative to Photoshop and still provides a wide range of capabilities suitable to the needs of genealogists.

#6 Subscription Websites

• Ancestry – Lots of stuff!  Records and indexes, variety of types covering many places.  Make sure you specify if you want a US or World subscription.
  
• Fold3 – Formerly Footnote, their focus is on military-related records.  However, they also have a big collection of non-military records including city directories, newspapers, and censuses.
  
• GenealogyBank – Oodles of newspapers at your fingertips.  This is my personal favorite website for newspaper research.  They also have a Historical Documents collection, which has some rather interesting resources.
  
• Find My Past – Major focus is on the UK and Ireland, however they are adding US record collections. 

#7 Other Technology

There are many tools out there that come in handy for the genealogist.  Here are a few of my favorites:

Flip-Pal^TM Mobile Scanner – Scan just about anything with this nifty mobile scanner.  Yes, it’s small, but their stitching software is fantastic—it puts multiple scans together to reproduce the original in a digital format.  If you plan to use it a lot, I’d also recommend asking for at least two sets of four AA rechargeable batteries.

Brother DS-600 Mobile Scanner – I’ve had this scanner for about four years now and I love it, although I don’t use it as much as the Flip-Pal.  The great thing about this feed scanner is that you can scan legal pages in one scan.  It’s also a great backup for when the Flip-Pal batteries are dead.
Although I don’t have one, I hear a lot of people talk about hand-held “wand” scanners as another mobile scanner option.

In addition to scanners, another great tool is a tablet or tablet-like device (like the Kindle Fire or iPad).  I got a Kindle Fire for Christmas last year and had no idea how much I would use it for genealogy.  I went an entire week at the Family History Library with only the Fire, while my laptop stayed in the hotel room.  It’s also great to have my genealogy database at my fingertips for those times when I’m at a family gathering and people start asking questions…quick, easy access, and they have their answer.  You can read more about how I use my Kindle Fire for genealogy here.

Well, there’s my list of holiday gift suggestions.  There are certainly plenty of other things I could have included, but we could be here all day and we’ve got our lists to make!  I’d love to hear what you’re hoping to get this holiday season…drop me a comment!

And I thought my English handwriting was bad…

Turns out, my German handwriting is even worse!

On Saturday, I attended the Tazewell County (IL) Genealogical Society fall workshop, where Carol Whitton presented four great lectures.  Truth be told, I was strictly in it for the two lectures on German research:  Using and Understanding the German Gazetteer and Reading German Church Records.

Both of the German lectures were excellent and gave me some motivation to dive further into my German roots (more on that in another post).  In the church record presentation, Carol introduced us to the old German Sütterlin script, which has not been taught since World War II.  Then, after handing out penmanship paper, she had us try our hand at writing in the script. 

I felt like a first-grader trying to write for the first time!  English or German, it doesn’t matter, my penmanship is still terrible…but for my first stab at writing in an obsolete script that is completely foreign (no pun intended) to me, I don’t think I did too bad.  Can you read these surnames?

The surnames are:  Schwartz, Müller, Kramer, Leppin, and Wach.

What’s Your Number? (…and an Epiphany)

Crista Cowan had an interesting post on the Ancestry.com blog yesterday, entitled Family History All Done?  What’s Your Number?  This gist of the post is that we are never really done with our family tree.  If you were to go back ten generations on both your maternal and paternal lines, you would have 1,023 people, which would bring you back to your 7th great-grandparents...and that’s just your direct-line ancestors!

Some of us may never get beyond the first few generations for a variety of reasons, some of which include limited funds, lack of available records, not enough time, or simply not knowing where to look.  There may be a time when all the stars are aligned and we can push back a little farther, but until then, it’s important to remember that there is more to family history research than just those direct-line ancestors.  And, in many cases, researching an entire family group can help you push back to those obscure generations.

Below is my chart outlining the number of direct-line ancestors that make up a generation, how many I have positively identified, and the percentage of those identified.

 

In putting this together, I realized that I have five generations of direct ancestors fully identified, and am about halfway through the sixth generation.  This doesn’t mean I am DONE with these people, it just means that I have positively identified who they are.  There is still so much work to be done on them if I want to be able to tell the story of each individual’s life.

I’m certainly no where near Crista’s 36% overall, and I’m okay with that.  I have only been doing this since 2007, so just about five years, and I think I’m off to a great start! 

What I’ve also realized is that when I first started, I was more like a planter; I planted the seeds and made the darn tree grow.  Over the last three years, I’ve been taking more of a “landscaping” approach and have been working on shaping the tree and its surroundings.  Naturally the tree continues to grow, but  I am very careful about what goes in the tree, making sure that every branch and every leaf is in its proper place.

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In case you are curious about how I came up with my numbers, I ran an Ancestry Chart report in Legacy (making sure to include the generation numbers), printed it out, and then counted up every individual in a particular generation.  This was the easiest thing I could think of.

The Golden Girls in 1940

A few weeks ago, I decided I needed a break from life and did something random.  I had just watched a rerun of The Golden Girls and began to wonder where each of the actresses were in 1940. 

I’ve always been a fan of the show, each character, and each actresses.  The characters of Blanche, Rose, Dorothy, and Sophia are uniquely individual and I see some of their qualities in me. 

I spent a few hours digging around using hints from Wikipedia and other records and eventually found each actress in the 1940 census.  While it was great to locate them, it was more interesting learning about their personal lives, which were just as special as the characters they portrayed.

Rue McClanahan – Born Eddi-Rue McClanahan in Healdton, Oklahoma, to William and Dreda (Medaris) McClanahan in 1934.¹   She is found in the 1940 census, at age six, in the household of her parents, living on H Street in Healdton, Oklahoma.² 

Betty White – Born Betty Marion White in 1922 in Oak Park, Illinois.³  She is found in the 1940 census, age 18,  with her parents, Horace and Tess (Cachikis) White, living on Ayrshire Road in Los Angeles, California.⁴

Bea Arthur – Born Bernice Frankel in 1922 in New York City, to Philip and Rebecca Frankel.⁵  In 1940, at age 17, she is living with her parents and sister on Mill Street in Cambridge, Maryland.⁶

Estelle Getty – Born Estelle Scher in New York City to Charles and Sarah Scher, in 1923.  She is found in the 1940 census living with her parents and siblings on 2nd Street in Manhattan.⁸

 

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Sources

1.  “Rue McClanahan,” Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rue_McClanahan : accessed 28 May 2012).

2.  1940 U.S. census, population schedule, Healdton, Carter County, Oklahoma, enumeration district (ED) 60-221A, sheet 21A, family 425, Horace L White; digital images, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 28 May 2012); citing National Archives and Records Administration microfilm T627, 4,643 rolls.

3. “Betty White,” Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betty_White : accessed 28 May 2012).

4. Ibid.; also1940 U.S. census, population schedule, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California, enumeration district (ED) 10-24, sheet 13B, family 307, William E McClanahan; digital images, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 28 May 2012); citing National Archives and Records Administration microfilm T627, 4,643 rolls.

5. “Bea Arthur,” Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bea_Arthur : accessed 28 May 2012).

6. 1940 U.S. census, population schedule, Cambridge, Dorchester County, Maryland, enumeration district (ED) 10-11, sheet 19B, family 116, Philip Frankel; digital images, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 28 May 2012); citing National Archives and Records Administration microfilm T627, 4,643 rolls.

7. “Estelle Getty,” Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estelle_Getty : accessed 28 May 2012).

8. 1940 U.S. census, population schedule, Manhattan, New York County, New York, enumeration district (ED) 31-517, sheet 61A, family 203, Charles Scher; digital images, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 28 May 2012); citing National Archives and Records Administration microfilm T627, 4,643 rolls.

German Engagement Customs

While doing research in a local newspaper for my ancestors in Harvard, Illinois, I found this interesting tidbit published in a 1904.

Transcription:

German Betrothal Customs.

When a maiden is betrothed in Germany she is called “bride” by her sweetheart, who addresses her thus until it becomes time to call her “wife.”  Immediately upon betrothal the lovers exchange rings, which, if the course of true love runs smooth, are to be worn ever afterward until death parts them.  The woman wears her betrothal ring on the third finger of her left hand until she is married, and then it is transferred to the third finger of her right hand.  The husband continues to wear the ring just as the wife wore hers when she was a “bride,” so that one can easily tell at a glance if a man be or be not mortgaged as to his affections.

Source:  "German Betrothal Customs," (Harvard) Herald, 6 October 1904, p. 8, col. 4.

RootsTech & FHL Checklist

Preparing for my trip to RootsTech 2012:

	Review syllabi of session to make a final decision on which to attend
	Add selected session syllabi to Kindle Fire
	RootsTech app on Android phone (also Apple App Store)
	Expo Hall map saved to cell phone and Kindle Fire
	Families app on Kindle Fire (synched with Legacy and ready to go)
	FHL research list
	Important research documents saved to the cloud
	Research toolkit (including laptop, Flip-Pal scanner, notebook, pencils, camera
	GeneaBlogger beads (geesh, I almost forgot!!)

A Family History Gift

Although the holiday season is over, there are plenty of special occasions throughout the year.  I thought I’d share a family history related gift that I mad for my husband.

It’s a family tree that links both of our families, going back to our great-great-grandparents.  Using Microsoft Visio, I designed it to fit a 20” x 16” standard frame.  I had it printed at Staples, framed it, and gave it to my husband for Christmas.

I wanted to keep it simple and clean.  The idea here was to illustrate the bond between Jim and I, and that because of that bond, our families became one.  I wasn’t concerned with dates and places…just who our ancestors are.  This same idea would make a great wedding anniversary gift. 

If you’re looking for someone to create a custom chart for you, check out Family ChartMasters.

2012 Resolutions

In my last post, I reviewed my resolutions for 2011.  Now it’s time to get down to business and set some goals for 2012.  Here we go…

1.  BCG Certification – My main goal is to “start the clock” this year for BCG certification.  Almost a year ago, I began to figure out what I was going to do for each part of my portfolio.  With all the craziness in 2011, it was not possible for me to conduct the remaining research needed to complete those projects.  These last few weeks have been spent getting some of that research done to put me closer to this goal.  While I may not be certified by the end of 2012, I should be on my way toward building and submitting my portfolio for evaluation.

2.  Publishing Articles – In general, I’d like to publish more articles this year (especially since I don’t think I had any published last year).  Also, this year, I’d like to submit articles to different publications than where I normally submit.

That’s it!  Just two goals…piece of cake, right?

2011 Achievements

Another year has almost passed, and like any good genealogist, it’s time to review my achievements for the year and set my goals for the upcoming year.

I resolved to do several things during 2011, and I must say, I’ve accomplished a lot, although not everything I set out to do.  Let’s review.

Submit an entry for the 2011 ISFHWE Excellence in Writing Competition

Well this was an interesting one.  Initially, the goal was do enter the 2011 competition, regardless of whether I decided to enter the 2010 competition (at the very last minute).  While I haven’t entered the 2011 competition yet (I still have a few months), I did end up submitting an entry just days before the deadline—and I place third!  You can read more about that here.

Submit a research-related article to the Illinois State Genealogical Society quarterly journal

All of the articles I’ve written for this publication have been more technical in nature and not focused on my personal research.  My goal for this year was to submit at least one article that is about my own genealogy research regarding my Illinois ancestors.  This is one goal I did not accomplish, simply because life got in the way.  A similar goal is on the list for 2012.

Attend the 2011 FGS Conference

The 2011 FGS Conference was held in Springfield, Illinois and by golly, I attended.  I also had several responsibilities to attend to since I was part of the local conference committee dealing with publicity and signage.  This was my first national genealogy conference and I was very glad I attended.  I learned a lot, made some new friends, and hung out with many of my genealogy buddies I’d met through blogging and Facebook.  You can read more about my experience here.

Help someone else with their own genealogy

While I didn’t necessarily do any research for others, I did assist as a second set of eyes in a few cases, which helped further the person’s own research.

Finish ProGen Study Group

My group finished in April 2011.  It was a good experience and I’m glad I pursued it.  I learned a lot and it helped me focus on what I want to do in terms of a genealogy profession in the future.

Stop slacking on this blog

The first part of the year, I really tried to post more, but with all of the conference work and other obligations, I just didn’t do as much as I wanted.  As soon as the conference was over, I picked up momentum, although an out-of-area move put everything on the back burner yet again.  Hopefully things will pick up here after the holiday season.  I posted 100 posts this year (not including this one or any between now and the end of the year).  Here are some of my more popular posts from the 2011 year:

• TV Shows Broaden Historical Horizons
• Wow!  I Actually Won?
• Researching Solomon Norton – Part 1
• Researching Solomon Norton – Part 2
• 10 Tips for Attending a Genealogy Conference
• Using Luxembourg Civil Registrations on FamilySearch
• Why It Pays to Read the Record Collection Description
• And All the Stars Aligned
• Flip-Pal™ Simple Gifts Blog Hop – Using the Stitching Software
• And There She Is…Hulda’s No Longer MIA

Not a bad year, considering all of the craziness that’s gone on in my life in the last 12 months.  In my next post, I’ll outline my goals for 2012.

Newspaper Search Helps Identify Family Photo

A few weeks ago, I discovered digitized copies of newspapers for Cedar Rapids, Iowa at the Digital Archives of the Cedar Rapids Public Library website.  I made several discoveries for my Rottman family that lived near Cedar Rapids.

One of those finds has to do with the identification of a car that my mother was photographed in when she was a child.  I know that sounds strange, but it’s true.

Below are two photos of my mom, her brother, and their cousin in an antique (by today’s standards) car.  I had no idea where the photo was taken, nor what the year, make, or model was of the car.

While I was doing my newspaper searches, I came across an article in the 14 August 1955 issue of The Cedar Rapids Gazette entitled, “Antique and Classic Autos at Fair.”  In part, the article states:

“A 1904 Cadillac owned by Donald and Robert Rottman of Lisbon.  This car was purchased new by the Rottmans’ grandfather and is in its third generation in the family.”

When I saw the year of the car, I had a déjà vu moment and thought about the photos above of my mom and the old car.  Since there was no photo in the article, I put my thoughts aside, and continued my newspaper search.

Later, I came across another reference to the car in a photo caption, which was in the 11 July 1966 issue of The Cedar Rapids Gazette. 

The caption reads:

“AN AFTERNOON PARADE was one of the Legion day features in Mt. Vernon Saturday.  In this photo, from left, Roland Rottman, 9, David Rottman, 8, both of Mt. Vernon, and Cindy Levien, 14, of Solon ride in a 1904 Cadillac, which was one of the units in the parade.”

Although it’s hard to tell from the newspaper photo if it’s the same car that my mom was photographed in, I was of the opinion that it was certainly possible.  I now had two references to this car and the family, so I emailed my mom both newspaper clippings and asked her if it was the same car.  Her response was “Yes—think it’s Bob Rottman’s.”  And according to the first article, indeed it was connected to Bob.

The first article indicated that Robert and Donald’s grandfather purchased the car new.  That grandfather could have been either John Rottman or James Coster…another mystery for another day.