The Legacy News blog mentioned that the 1900 US Census is available (except for Hawaii and Alaska) at the FamilySearch Labs Record Search web site. Read his post "How good are the Family Search Indexing Indexes?" about his successful search on the site.
You have to be a registered user of this site (it is easy). Once you are signed on, you can search all of the indexed collections or select one of the collections from the list of databases.
I clicked on the 1900 United States Census and put a name in the search box - I used Leroy Thompson, born 1880 in Tennessee (because I can't find him in the 1900 census and wondered if Ancestry and HQO missed him).
The search results came back with 3,900 partial matches, all 3-stars or less (no 4 or 5 stars). It didn't find any Leroy Thompson born in 1880 in Tennessee. I clicked on one of the other 3-star Leroys near the top of the list, and the link took me to a summary page for that person.
I clicked on "View Original Image" and the census page image took a very long time to come up (like three minutes) - I'm wondering if this happens on every image, or just the first one?
There is an image zoom tool in the upper right hand corner, and a thumbnail image in the lower right hand corner that shows the visible portion of the whole page. You can move around on the image by dragging your mouse over the image.
You can navigate to the Next, Previous or any other numbered page in the enumeration district. You can navigate to the Previous or Next match on the list. I saved an image, and it saved as a JPG file (3720 x 3768, 1.240 mb). You can print the image, and you get the full page as a portrait print. Both the Save and Print operations took a long time (like 60 seconds) to work.
This is great news for online researchers. The 1900 US Census is online for FREE, but you'll have to be patient with the system until the bugs are worked out. It will be interesting to see how their servers will react when more people start using this database.
Thursday, January 24, 2008
"New York State Research" presentation on Wednesday, 30 January
The next Chula Vista Genealogical Society (CVGS) general meeting will be on Wednesday, 30 January at 12 noon in the Chula Vista Civic Center Library auditorium.
Our speaker will be Shirley Becker, on "New York State Research." Her focus will be on upstate New York research, not New York City.
Shirley calls New York "the black hole of genealogy" and has been working for 15 years on finding her elusive ancestors in New York state. She is very experienced in research methods involving traditional resources and Internet resources.
Shirley is a past President of CVGS and is currently Newsletter Editor and she leads the CVGS Computer Group each month in the Library computer lab.
Shirley hopes that her research problems and her discoveries will give insight and examples to others researching in New York state. Come, and let Shirley give you the benefit of her years of dealing with New York state genealogy.
This will be our first meeting at our new time (Wednesdays at 12 noon) and we may be late getting started. Please enter through the Conference Room in the easterly hallway to sign in, pick up handouts, buy a raffle ticket and have a snack before going into the auditorium. There will be a short society business meeting before our speaker is introduced.
CVGS welcomes guests and visitors. We hope that you will attend our meetings and join our active society.
Our speaker will be Shirley Becker, on "New York State Research." Her focus will be on upstate New York research, not New York City.
Shirley calls New York "the black hole of genealogy" and has been working for 15 years on finding her elusive ancestors in New York state. She is very experienced in research methods involving traditional resources and Internet resources.
Shirley is a past President of CVGS and is currently Newsletter Editor and she leads the CVGS Computer Group each month in the Library computer lab.
Shirley hopes that her research problems and her discoveries will give insight and examples to others researching in New York state. Come, and let Shirley give you the benefit of her years of dealing with New York state genealogy.
This will be our first meeting at our new time (Wednesdays at 12 noon) and we may be late getting started. Please enter through the Conference Room in the easterly hallway to sign in, pick up handouts, buy a raffle ticket and have a snack before going into the auditorium. There will be a short society business meeting before our speaker is introduced.
CVGS welcomes guests and visitors. We hope that you will attend our meetings and join our active society.
An Online Research Strategy
I updated my Online Research strategy list of databases and web sites recently, and am working through it to search databases with the names of Russell, David, Lyman and George Smith in specific localities - Rhode Island (unknown County) and New York (Oneida and Jefferson Counties) - in the 1740-1840 time frame.
Here is my Online Research database list -
1) Search the LDS http://www.familysearch.org/ Ancestral File and Pedigree Resource File (free) for member-contributed data.
2) Search the LDS http://www.familysearch.org/ International Genealogical Index (IGI) (free) for extracted or submitted data.
3) Search the Rootsweb WorldConnect http://wc.rootsweb.com/ user-contributed databases (free) for data on the given names in the specific counties in the 1750-1850 time frame.
4) Search the Ancestry http://www.ancestry.com/ user-contributed Family Tree databases ($$, free at some FHCs) - One World Tree and Public Member databases, but not Ancestry World Tree, since that is in the WorldConnect database.
5) Search the GenCircles http://www.gencircles.com user-contributed databases (free).
6) Search the We Relate http://WeRelate.org user-contributed databases (free).
7) Search the My Heritage http://www.MyHeritage.com user-contributed databases (free).
8) Search the Genealogy.com http://www.genealogy.com user contributed World Family Tree database ($$, many on CDs at libraries).
9) Search the Genealogy.com Family Finder at http://www.genealogy.com/ (free) (enter name in search box) for user-contributed reports.
10) Search the Rootsweb Freepages at http://freepages.rootsweb.com/directory/genealogy.html/ (free) for user-contributed reports.
11) Search the Rootsweb Web Sites at http://www.rootsweb.com/~websites/ (free) for user-contributed reports.
12) Search the Ancestry Historical Records at http://www.ancestry.com ($$, free at some FHCs and libraries), especially census, vital military, land and court records.
13) Search the Ancestry Stories and Publications collection at http://www.ancestry.com/ ($$, free at some FHCs and libraries).
14) Search using the MyHeritage Search engine at http://www.myheritage.com/FP/Company/myheritage-research.php (free, links to $$ sites).
15) Search the surname and locality book collection at HeritageQuestOnline (free at FHCs and some libraries, free at home with a participating library card).
16) Search Google Books at http://books.google.com (free).
17) Search all Rootsweb databases at http://searches.rootsweb.com/ (free).
18) Search the USGenWeb archives at http://www.rootsweb.com/~usgenweb/newsearch.htm (free).
19) Search the USGenWeb State and county web sites at http://www.USGenWeb.org (free). Review the resources available there, especially the vital records, cemetery transcriptions, Bible records, etc.
20) Search the USGenNet user-contributed databases at http://www.usgennet.org/search/ (free).
21) Search the PERSI (PERiodical Source Index) on HeritageQuestOnline (free at FHCs and some libraries, free at home with participating library card).
22) Search the Rootsweb/Ancestry surname and locality message boards at http://boards.rootsweb.com/ (free). Post messages on these boards to try to draw responses from other researchers.
23) Search the GenForum surname and locality message boards at http://genforum.genealogy.com/ (free). Post messages on these boards to try to draw responses from other researchers.
24) Search the Rootsweb mailing list archives at http://lists.rootsweb.com/ (free). Subscribe to some of the mailing lists and post messages there.
25) Search the Google Web at www.google.com (free) - especially on genealogy researcher web pages.
26) Search the University of Michigan "Making of America" database at http://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/moagrp/ (free).
27) Search the BYU "Family History Archive" book database at http://www.lib.byu.edu/fhc/ (free).
28) Search the New England Historic Genealogical Society databases ($$, free at some libraries) - especially the NEHGRegister archives, the Early American Newspapers, and the NY Will Abstracts 1787-1835.
29) Search the Footnote databases on www.Footnote.com ($$, free search, free at FHC and some libraries) especially the Revolutionary War Pension files and other military records.
30) Search the databases at www.WorldVitalRecords.com ($$, free at FHC and some libraries) especially the historical newspapers, surname and locality books and Everton databases.
31) Search the databases at www.GenealogyBank.com ($$, free at some libraries), especially the historical newspapers.
32) Submit a request to the DAR Patriot Index at http://www.dar.org/natsociety/pi_lookup.cfm and search the GRC National Index at http://grc.dar.org/dar/darnet/grc/grc.cfm?Action=New_Search (free).
33) Search the cemetery sites http://www.interment.net/ and http://www.findagrave.com/ (free)
34) Search the http://www.genealogytoday.com/ database indexes ($$, free search)
35) Search Olive Tree Genealogy at http://www.OliveTreeGenealogy.com (free, links to $$).
36) Search free online data portals, such as www.Linkpendium.com, www.AncestorHunt.com, www.AccessGenealogy.com, www.supersurnamesearch.com (free, links to $$ sites).
Note that this list does not cover the "traditional" resources found at repositories - libraries, genealogy societies, historical societies, museums, courthouses, and the like. That's another list!
I have updated this list in the past several months. If you have a suggestion for a user-contributed database or a useful web site with databases or information, especially for New York, please let me know in Comments or via email (rjseaver@cox.net).
Here is my Online Research database list -
1) Search the LDS http://www.familysearch.org/ Ancestral File and Pedigree Resource File (free) for member-contributed data.
2) Search the LDS http://www.familysearch.org/ International Genealogical Index (IGI) (free) for extracted or submitted data.
3) Search the Rootsweb WorldConnect http://wc.rootsweb.com/ user-contributed databases (free) for data on the given names in the specific counties in the 1750-1850 time frame.
4) Search the Ancestry http://www.ancestry.com/ user-contributed Family Tree databases ($$, free at some FHCs) - One World Tree and Public Member databases, but not Ancestry World Tree, since that is in the WorldConnect database.
5) Search the GenCircles http://www.gencircles.com user-contributed databases (free).
6) Search the We Relate http://WeRelate.org user-contributed databases (free).
7) Search the My Heritage http://www.MyHeritage.com user-contributed databases (free).
8) Search the Genealogy.com http://www.genealogy.com user contributed World Family Tree database ($$, many on CDs at libraries).
9) Search the Genealogy.com Family Finder at http://www.genealogy.com/ (free) (enter name in search box) for user-contributed reports.
10) Search the Rootsweb Freepages at http://freepages.rootsweb.com/directory/genealogy.html/ (free) for user-contributed reports.
11) Search the Rootsweb Web Sites at http://www.rootsweb.com/~websites/ (free) for user-contributed reports.
12) Search the Ancestry Historical Records at http://www.ancestry.com ($$, free at some FHCs and libraries), especially census, vital military, land and court records.
13) Search the Ancestry Stories and Publications collection at http://www.ancestry.com/ ($$, free at some FHCs and libraries).
14) Search using the MyHeritage Search engine at http://www.myheritage.com/FP/Company/myheritage-research.php (free, links to $$ sites).
15) Search the surname and locality book collection at HeritageQuestOnline (free at FHCs and some libraries, free at home with a participating library card).
16) Search Google Books at http://books.google.com (free).
17) Search all Rootsweb databases at http://searches.rootsweb.com/ (free).
18) Search the USGenWeb archives at http://www.rootsweb.com/~usgenweb/newsearch.htm (free).
19) Search the USGenWeb State and county web sites at http://www.USGenWeb.org (free). Review the resources available there, especially the vital records, cemetery transcriptions, Bible records, etc.
20) Search the USGenNet user-contributed databases at http://www.usgennet.org/search/ (free).
21) Search the PERSI (PERiodical Source Index) on HeritageQuestOnline (free at FHCs and some libraries, free at home with participating library card).
22) Search the Rootsweb/Ancestry surname and locality message boards at http://boards.rootsweb.com/ (free). Post messages on these boards to try to draw responses from other researchers.
23) Search the GenForum surname and locality message boards at http://genforum.genealogy.com/ (free). Post messages on these boards to try to draw responses from other researchers.
24) Search the Rootsweb mailing list archives at http://lists.rootsweb.com/ (free). Subscribe to some of the mailing lists and post messages there.
25) Search the Google Web at www.google.com (free) - especially on genealogy researcher web pages.
26) Search the University of Michigan "Making of America" database at http://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/moagrp/ (free).
27) Search the BYU "Family History Archive" book database at http://www.lib.byu.edu/fhc/ (free).
28) Search the New England Historic Genealogical Society databases ($$, free at some libraries) - especially the NEHGRegister archives, the Early American Newspapers, and the NY Will Abstracts 1787-1835.
29) Search the Footnote databases on www.Footnote.com ($$, free search, free at FHC and some libraries) especially the Revolutionary War Pension files and other military records.
30) Search the databases at www.WorldVitalRecords.com ($$, free at FHC and some libraries) especially the historical newspapers, surname and locality books and Everton databases.
31) Search the databases at www.GenealogyBank.com ($$, free at some libraries), especially the historical newspapers.
32) Submit a request to the DAR Patriot Index at http://www.dar.org/natsociety/pi_lookup.cfm and search the GRC National Index at http://grc.dar.org/dar/darnet/grc/grc.cfm?Action=New_Search (free).
33) Search the cemetery sites http://www.interment.net/ and http://www.findagrave.com/ (free)
34) Search the http://www.genealogytoday.com/ database indexes ($$, free search)
35) Search Olive Tree Genealogy at http://www.OliveTreeGenealogy.com (free, links to $$).
36) Search free online data portals, such as www.Linkpendium.com, www.AncestorHunt.com, www.AccessGenealogy.com, www.supersurnamesearch.com (free, links to $$ sites).
Note that this list does not cover the "traditional" resources found at repositories - libraries, genealogy societies, historical societies, museums, courthouses, and the like. That's another list!
I have updated this list in the past several months. If you have a suggestion for a user-contributed database or a useful web site with databases or information, especially for New York, please let me know in Comments or via email (rjseaver@cox.net).
Monday, January 14, 2008
Carlsbad (CA) Library Databases
Most San Diego area genealogy researchers know that the Carlsbad (CA) Cole Library in Carlsbad is the best genealogy repository in the county. In addition to the book and periodical sections on the shelves, they have the excellent University of Michigan, Inc. Family and Local History microfiche collection.
This library also has excellent computer resources when you visit the library - the genealogy databases available include:
* Access NewspaperARCHIVE -- Contains millions of searchable newspaper pages, dating from 1977 to 1759. Access NewspaperARCHIVE includes historical newspapers from across the United States, as well as from Canada, the United Kingdom, and other countries.
* Ancestry Library Edition (Available in the Library Only) -- With over 1.2 billion records in over 3,000 databases, Ancestry Library Edition is the most comprehensive online source of information for genealogical and local history research. Included in Ancestry Library Edition are the digitized images of the U. S. Federal Census from 1790 to 1930, the American Genealogical and Biographical Index, passenger lists, and much more.
* Biography and Genealogy Master Index -- Biography and Genealogy Master Index is a great place to begin a search for information about people. It indexes current, readily available reference sources, as well as the most important retrospective works that cover individuals, both living and deceased, from every field of activity and from all areas of the world.
* Footnote (Available in the Library Only)-- Footnote combines original historical documents with social networking to create a truly unique experience involving the stories of our past. The Footnote collections feature documents relating to the Revolutionary War, Civil War, WWI, WWII, U.S. Presidents, historical newspapers and naturalization documents.
* Heritage Quest Online - You will be asked to re-enter your library card number/barcode. Heritage Quest provides access to digital images of the U.S. Federal Census from 1790 through 1930, digital images of over 25,000 genealogies and local histories, digital images of revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Applications, and PERSI.
* New England Ancestors (Available in the Library Only) -- Search over 110 million names in over 2,200 databases from the New England Historic Genealogical Society (NEHGS). NEHGS is the oldest genealogical society in the country and has created one of the most valuable websites for searching for your New England heritage.
You can access the three databases above that have links shown, but you have to have a Carlsbad Library Card to access them from home.
Since the last time I visited the genealogy database web page, they have added Footnote and the NewspaperARCHIVE databases.
This library also has excellent computer resources when you visit the library - the genealogy databases available include:
* Access NewspaperARCHIVE -- Contains millions of searchable newspaper pages, dating from 1977 to 1759. Access NewspaperARCHIVE includes historical newspapers from across the United States, as well as from Canada, the United Kingdom, and other countries.
* Ancestry Library Edition (Available in the Library Only) -- With over 1.2 billion records in over 3,000 databases, Ancestry Library Edition is the most comprehensive online source of information for genealogical and local history research. Included in Ancestry Library Edition are the digitized images of the U. S. Federal Census from 1790 to 1930, the American Genealogical and Biographical Index, passenger lists, and much more.
* Biography and Genealogy Master Index -- Biography and Genealogy Master Index is a great place to begin a search for information about people. It indexes current, readily available reference sources, as well as the most important retrospective works that cover individuals, both living and deceased, from every field of activity and from all areas of the world.
* Footnote (Available in the Library Only)-- Footnote combines original historical documents with social networking to create a truly unique experience involving the stories of our past. The Footnote collections feature documents relating to the Revolutionary War, Civil War, WWI, WWII, U.S. Presidents, historical newspapers and naturalization documents.
* Heritage Quest Online - You will be asked to re-enter your library card number/barcode. Heritage Quest provides access to digital images of the U.S. Federal Census from 1790 through 1930, digital images of over 25,000 genealogies and local histories, digital images of revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Applications, and PERSI.
* New England Ancestors (Available in the Library Only) -- Search over 110 million names in over 2,200 databases from the New England Historic Genealogical Society (NEHGS). NEHGS is the oldest genealogical society in the country and has created one of the most valuable websites for searching for your New England heritage.
You can access the three databases above that have links shown, but you have to have a Carlsbad Library Card to access them from home.
Since the last time I visited the genealogy database web page, they have added Footnote and the NewspaperARCHIVE databases.
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
CVGS Research Group meeting - 1/9/08
The Chula Vista Genealogical Society Research Group had its first meeting at the new time (second Wednesday, 12 noon) at the Library today. We had 11 members in attendance.
Randy briefly reviewed the Genealogy News for December 2007. Then we went into research problems that people have. Randy had the only one presented - he received a manuscript about his ancestor Ranslow's Smith's house/inn in Burnett WI written for the Old World Wisconsin museum, which has the refurbished inn on its property. The manuscript gave the first clue to Ranslow's parents - Russell and Esther (--?--) Smith, which was obtained from newspaper obituaries for Ranslow's brothers, Lyman and George. It said that the three sons were born in Oneida County NY, and that Russell was born in RI and Esther in CT. Randy asked for help with resources in Oneida county NY. The group suggested researching in town and county history books, surname books, RevWar pension files, state censuses, deeds, wills, birth records, newspapers, town historians, historical or genealogy societies, museums, church records, etc.
Dave M. described his trip to see cousins in Georgia. One of them gave him part of a book on the Garrett family of VA/GA and pedigree charts. The cousin will send a FTM file with more family information.
Rita described her trip to New York City where she obtained birth and death certificates for her parents. She had written previously to the Vital Records office, with the appropriate identification information, and had been turned down previously. At the office, she was treated with respect.
Joan showed the denial letter from Social Security to her query asking for the death date of John Robinson Hall based on his SS number. She will write a letter to try to obtain a Work History from SSA.
Bob P. is trying to track a great-aunt from Wales who was emigrating to Australia with her brother. He got conflicting information from a cousin in Australia, who said she never left and was killed in a train crash in England. He will look for records at www.AncestorsOnBoard.com and the London Times for news of the train crash.
Shirley B. told a tale of woe - her computer crashed and she's been sick. She wanted help from the group about what subjects to cover in her New York State Research talk. The group gave her a list, including geographical divisions, government entities, records held at different levels, town historian functions, settlement patterns, canals and railroads, land records, etc.
This was a lively meeting with lots of comments. Several sets of papers were passed around to illustrate the results obtained.
Randy briefly reviewed the Genealogy News for December 2007. Then we went into research problems that people have. Randy had the only one presented - he received a manuscript about his ancestor Ranslow's Smith's house/inn in Burnett WI written for the Old World Wisconsin museum, which has the refurbished inn on its property. The manuscript gave the first clue to Ranslow's parents - Russell and Esther (--?--) Smith, which was obtained from newspaper obituaries for Ranslow's brothers, Lyman and George. It said that the three sons were born in Oneida County NY, and that Russell was born in RI and Esther in CT. Randy asked for help with resources in Oneida county NY. The group suggested researching in town and county history books, surname books, RevWar pension files, state censuses, deeds, wills, birth records, newspapers, town historians, historical or genealogy societies, museums, church records, etc.
Dave M. described his trip to see cousins in Georgia. One of them gave him part of a book on the Garrett family of VA/GA and pedigree charts. The cousin will send a FTM file with more family information.
Rita described her trip to New York City where she obtained birth and death certificates for her parents. She had written previously to the Vital Records office, with the appropriate identification information, and had been turned down previously. At the office, she was treated with respect.
Joan showed the denial letter from Social Security to her query asking for the death date of John Robinson Hall based on his SS number. She will write a letter to try to obtain a Work History from SSA.
Bob P. is trying to track a great-aunt from Wales who was emigrating to Australia with her brother. He got conflicting information from a cousin in Australia, who said she never left and was killed in a train crash in England. He will look for records at www.AncestorsOnBoard.com and the London Times for news of the train crash.
Shirley B. told a tale of woe - her computer crashed and she's been sick. She wanted help from the group about what subjects to cover in her New York State Research talk. The group gave her a list, including geographical divisions, government entities, records held at different levels, town historian functions, settlement patterns, canals and railroads, land records, etc.
This was a lively meeting with lots of comments. Several sets of papers were passed around to illustrate the results obtained.
Monday, January 7, 2008
Genealogy Days in Chula Vista for January 2008
The Chula Vista Genealogical Society events for January 2008 include:
** Wednesday, January 9, 12 noon, Chula Vista Civic Center Library -- CVGS Research Group meets in the Library Conference Room. We will review the genealogy news for August, share success stories and information, and discuss members research problems, and potential solutions, based on the collective knowledge and wisdom of the group.
** Wednesday, January 15, 12 noon, Chula Vista Civic Center Library -- CVGS Computer Group meets in the Library Computer Lab. We will visit some new genealogy web sites and/or Ancestry Library Edition (ALE) databases. This is an opportunity for those members who haven't used computers for genealogy research to practice with a mentor to guide them. It is also an opportunity for members who don't have an Ancestry subscription to dig into the ALE databases.
** Wednesday, January 30, 12 noon, Chula Vista Civic Center Library -- the monthly Society Meeting is held in the Auditorium. This meeting has a short business meeting with announcements of meetings and activities, followed by a presentation on a topic of genealogy and family history interest. At this meeting, Shirley Becker, the CVGS Newsletter Editor, will present "New York State Research." Shirley has a lot of New York ancestry and research experience.
** Saturday, February 2, 9:30 AM, Research Trip to the San Diego Family History Center. We will carpool from the Chula Vista parking garage, on the 2nd floor midway between the Fuddruckers (3rd Avenue) and Marie Callender (F Street) entrances by 9:30. The SD FHC now has access to the World Deluxe edition of Ancestry.com, WorldVitalRecords.com, Footnote.com, and several more databases on their computers.
On Monday afternoons (12 noon to 2 PM) - January 7, 14, 21 and 28 - that Dearl Glenn and probably John Finch will be at the table by the Family Research section of the Chula Vista Civic Center Library ready to help people with their research, discuss a problem or success, or just tell stories.
We welcome guests and visitors to our CVGS programs and events - if you are in the Chula Vista area and want to attend our events - please come and introduce yourselves. If you have questions, please email Randy at rjseaver(at)cox.net or phone 619-422-3397.
** Wednesday, January 9, 12 noon, Chula Vista Civic Center Library -- CVGS Research Group meets in the Library Conference Room. We will review the genealogy news for August, share success stories and information, and discuss members research problems, and potential solutions, based on the collective knowledge and wisdom of the group.
** Wednesday, January 15, 12 noon, Chula Vista Civic Center Library -- CVGS Computer Group meets in the Library Computer Lab. We will visit some new genealogy web sites and/or Ancestry Library Edition (ALE) databases. This is an opportunity for those members who haven't used computers for genealogy research to practice with a mentor to guide them. It is also an opportunity for members who don't have an Ancestry subscription to dig into the ALE databases.
** Wednesday, January 30, 12 noon, Chula Vista Civic Center Library -- the monthly Society Meeting is held in the Auditorium. This meeting has a short business meeting with announcements of meetings and activities, followed by a presentation on a topic of genealogy and family history interest. At this meeting, Shirley Becker, the CVGS Newsletter Editor, will present "New York State Research." Shirley has a lot of New York ancestry and research experience.
** Saturday, February 2, 9:30 AM, Research Trip to the San Diego Family History Center. We will carpool from the Chula Vista parking garage, on the 2nd floor midway between the Fuddruckers (3rd Avenue) and Marie Callender (F Street) entrances by 9:30. The SD FHC now has access to the World Deluxe edition of Ancestry.com, WorldVitalRecords.com, Footnote.com, and several more databases on their computers.
On Monday afternoons (12 noon to 2 PM) - January 7, 14, 21 and 28 - that Dearl Glenn and probably John Finch will be at the table by the Family Research section of the Chula Vista Civic Center Library ready to help people with their research, discuss a problem or success, or just tell stories.
We welcome guests and visitors to our CVGS programs and events - if you are in the Chula Vista area and want to attend our events - please come and introduce yourselves. If you have questions, please email Randy at rjseaver(at)cox.net or phone 619-422-3397.
Genealogy Days in Chula Vista
Due to the modified hours of the Chula Vista Civic Center Library effective 7 January 2008 (on Monday and Wednesday, 12 noon to 8 PM), the Chula Vista Genealogical Society (CVGS) program days and times have had to change.
The CVGS Board took a survey, and over 40 members participated. The Board chose Wednesday as Genealogy Day in Chula Vista. For the near future, CVGS meetings will be:
1) First Wednesday, 12 noon, CVGS Board meeting in Conference Room.
2) Second Wednesday, 12 noon, CVGS Research Group meeting in Conference Room.
3) Third Wednesday, 12 noon, CVGS Computer Group meeting in Computer Lab.
4) Last Wednesday, 12 noon, CVGS Society Meeting with program speaker, in Auditorium.
We will evaluate this schedule after several months.
In addition, CVGS will have volunteers in the Family Research area of the library on Mondays, 12 noon to 2 PM to assist library patrons and members with their research on a walk-in basis.
The Family History area has been revamped a bit by the Library staff - there are more places to sit and a research carrel that is somewhat private for consultations on research. The microfilm cabinets for the San Diego Union-Tribune, New York Times and Los Angeles Times have been moved to be closer to the microfilm reader and printer.
The CVGS Board took a survey, and over 40 members participated. The Board chose Wednesday as Genealogy Day in Chula Vista. For the near future, CVGS meetings will be:
1) First Wednesday, 12 noon, CVGS Board meeting in Conference Room.
2) Second Wednesday, 12 noon, CVGS Research Group meeting in Conference Room.
3) Third Wednesday, 12 noon, CVGS Computer Group meeting in Computer Lab.
4) Last Wednesday, 12 noon, CVGS Society Meeting with program speaker, in Auditorium.
We will evaluate this schedule after several months.
In addition, CVGS will have volunteers in the Family Research area of the library on Mondays, 12 noon to 2 PM to assist library patrons and members with their research on a walk-in basis.
The Family History area has been revamped a bit by the Library staff - there are more places to sit and a research carrel that is somewhat private for consultations on research. The microfilm cabinets for the San Diego Union-Tribune, New York Times and Los Angeles Times have been moved to be closer to the microfilm reader and printer.
Pennsylvania Death Records Access
Like many researchers, I have run up against the extremely difficult process of obtaining Pennsylvania death records. They are available only to direct descendants and you have to prove the relationship. If you don't know the death year and death location, the process becomes quite expensive ($34 for a 10-year search).
The People for Better Pennsylvania Historical Records Access (PaHR-Access) web site provides an excellent discussion about the present access problems and makes reasonable recommendations (essentially, open death records 50 years or older) to the state. There are sample letters for constituents to write to their state legislators and the governor. The PaHR-Access web site describes the organization:
"PaHR-Access (People for Better Pennsylvania Historical Records Access) is strictly a grassroots organization started in the Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania in August of 2007. It was first known as People for Better Access to Pennsylvania Historical Records (PBAPHR). The name change took place in early November 2007 to allow for a more pronounceable acronym (i.e. par-access).
"We are merely people who want to literally have better access to Pennsylvania's historical records. Our main concern is the restricted state death certificates. There are no membership dues merely the willingness to help in this effort. PaHR-Access is not affiliated with any political, institutional or religious organization."
Some have argued that having a death index and access to death certificates will cause an increase in identity theft. The PaHR-Access folks refute that argument in the discussion, and say that:
"The Social Security Death Master File (with names, dates, places and numbers, and better known as the Social Security Death Index), which is updated quarterly, is an online identity verification database used to thwart identity theft and fraud. We understand government agencies, banks, insurance and credit card companies use it all the time to verify deaths and to stop the misuse of a deceased person's Social Security number. Expanding our proposed database to include all of Pennsylvania's death records (but with the same limited public access as outlined above) could be used in a similar manner by law enforcement and government agencies. The Division of Vital Records would itself be able to fill requests using the expanded database.
"Having a database of Pennsylvania's death certificates would actually be in accordance with Federal Law 108-458, the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, which requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in coordination with the Social Security Administration and others, to award grants to States to assist them in computerizing their birth and death records, to develop the capability to match birth and death records within and among States, and to note the fact of death on birth certificates of deceased persons. This is done to stop a person from misusing the birth certificate of a deceased person."
If you are a Pennsylvania resident or researcher, please consider writing one or more letters to support this rational proposal to open Pennsylvania death records.
The People for Better Pennsylvania Historical Records Access (PaHR-Access) web site provides an excellent discussion about the present access problems and makes reasonable recommendations (essentially, open death records 50 years or older) to the state. There are sample letters for constituents to write to their state legislators and the governor. The PaHR-Access web site describes the organization:
"PaHR-Access (People for Better Pennsylvania Historical Records Access) is strictly a grassroots organization started in the Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania in August of 2007. It was first known as People for Better Access to Pennsylvania Historical Records (PBAPHR). The name change took place in early November 2007 to allow for a more pronounceable acronym (i.e. par-access).
"We are merely people who want to literally have better access to Pennsylvania's historical records. Our main concern is the restricted state death certificates. There are no membership dues merely the willingness to help in this effort. PaHR-Access is not affiliated with any political, institutional or religious organization."
Some have argued that having a death index and access to death certificates will cause an increase in identity theft. The PaHR-Access folks refute that argument in the discussion, and say that:
"The Social Security Death Master File (with names, dates, places and numbers, and better known as the Social Security Death Index), which is updated quarterly, is an online identity verification database used to thwart identity theft and fraud. We understand government agencies, banks, insurance and credit card companies use it all the time to verify deaths and to stop the misuse of a deceased person's Social Security number. Expanding our proposed database to include all of Pennsylvania's death records (but with the same limited public access as outlined above) could be used in a similar manner by law enforcement and government agencies. The Division of Vital Records would itself be able to fill requests using the expanded database.
"Having a database of Pennsylvania's death certificates would actually be in accordance with Federal Law 108-458, the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, which requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in coordination with the Social Security Administration and others, to award grants to States to assist them in computerizing their birth and death records, to develop the capability to match birth and death records within and among States, and to note the fact of death on birth certificates of deceased persons. This is done to stop a person from misusing the birth certificate of a deceased person."
If you are a Pennsylvania resident or researcher, please consider writing one or more letters to support this rational proposal to open Pennsylvania death records.
Sunday, January 6, 2008
Worldwide Ancestry.com Back at the San Diego FHC
Ancestry and the LDS Family History Library announced two weeks ago that they had agreed to provide the full suite of Ancestry databases at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City and at 13 large Family History Centers around the country (including San Diego).
I went to the San Diego FHC on Saturday and tried it out. From all of my testing, it appears that Ancestry Family History Library Edition is the World Deluxe database collection. I was able to access the Canadian and United Kingdom records in addition to all of the USA records. I tried to access Australia, Germany and Italy but it gave me the "we're busy - check back soon" message.
So that is wonderful news. Having the Canada and UK records is a step up for those of us with a US-only subscription. My society colleagues and other San Diego area researchers will be thrilled to have it back after 9 months.
I asked one of the center managers about New FamilySearch and when it might be available to non-LDS members; he said by the end of the year. I also asked him why Ancestry and the FHL agreed to put Ancestry in the FHL and 13 FHCs - he said that it helps both organizations, and that the FamilySearch Indexing projects created both competition and cooperation. I don't know how plugged in he is to the FamilySearch folks, but it was an intriguing comment.
I went to the San Diego FHC on Saturday and tried it out. From all of my testing, it appears that Ancestry Family History Library Edition is the World Deluxe database collection. I was able to access the Canadian and United Kingdom records in addition to all of the USA records. I tried to access Australia, Germany and Italy but it gave me the "we're busy - check back soon" message.
So that is wonderful news. Having the Canada and UK records is a step up for those of us with a US-only subscription. My society colleagues and other San Diego area researchers will be thrilled to have it back after 9 months.
I asked one of the center managers about New FamilySearch and when it might be available to non-LDS members; he said by the end of the year. I also asked him why Ancestry and the FHL agreed to put Ancestry in the FHL and 13 FHCs - he said that it helps both organizations, and that the FamilySearch Indexing projects created both competition and cooperation. I don't know how plugged in he is to the FamilySearch folks, but it was an intriguing comment.
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
Genealogy News for December 2007
Here is the genealogy news of interest to me since late November. I've separated them into categories below.
1. GENEALOGY WEB SITES
* MyHeritage Research, the genealogy search engine on www.MyHeritage.com, has been significantly upgraded. This genealogy tool specializes in finding ancestors and advancing your family research. There is nothing else quite like it on the Internet. It is free and you're invited to use it on this link: http://www.myheritage.com/FP/Company/myheritage-research.php. You can search over 1,000 databases (some commercial) with this search engine.
2. NEW GENEALOGY DATABASES
a) at www.Ancestry.com - now available for FREE at San Diego FHC.
* New Jersey Will/Inventory Indexes, Volumes I - III
* Many historical newspapers - Bennington VT, Florence SC, El Paso TX, Yuma AZ, Flagstaff AZ, Ruston LA, San Antonio TX, Newport RI, Honolulu HI, Pinedale WY, Kingsport TN, Oil City PA, Albuquerque NM, Uniontown PA, Winnipeg Manitoba, Brandon Manitoba, Lethbridge Alberta.
* Early Boston MA births, Marriages, Deaths
* Books on Atlantic Canada provincial history
* Early New York state vital record books
b) Www.WorldVitalRecords.com - now available for FREE at the San Diego FHC. New items FREE at WVR for 10 days.
* Many (hundreds) of out-of-copyright books - W to Z surnames in December.
c) www.Footnote.com - now available for FREE at San Diego FHC. Information added:
* Thousands of US Air Force photos in the digital World War II collection. This release coincides with the anniversary of the Pearl Harbor bombing, and contains tens of thousands of original World War II photos and documents from the National Archives. Among this collection are missing air crew reports, documents from allied military conferences and photos of Japanese air targets.
d) LDS FamilySearch Record Search site has more databases at http://search.labs.familysearch.org/recordsearch/
* Freedman's Bureau, Virginia Marriages, ca 1815-1866 -- images and index for 5 Virginia counties
* Georgia Deaths, 1914-1927 -- images and every-name index complete
* Ohio Deaths, 1908-1953 -- images and every-name index complete
* Ontario Deaths, 1869-1947 -- every-name index and database, no images.
* Texas Death Index, 1964-1998 -- every-name index and database, no images
* US Social Security Death Index -- every-name index and database, no images * Utah Death Certificates, 1904-1956 -- every name index and images complete.
3. GENEALOGY SOFTWARE
* FamilyTreeMaker 2008 Service Pack 2 is now available - see the announcement at http://blogs.ancestry.com/ancestry/2007/11/28/service-pack-2-rev-2/. This service pack adds many reports, including Genealogy Register Report, Genealogy Ahnentafel Report, Hourglass Chart, Vertical Ancestor Chart, Updates to all reports to better display facts and notes, Updates to exporting of reports to RTF and HTML. It also added many fixes to reported problems.
4. GENEALOGY EDUCATION
* The New England Historic Genealogical Society in Boston has a number of relatively short online seminars for members to benefit at a distance from the expertise of the NEHGS staff. The seminars currently offered at http://www.newenglandancestors.org/education/main/online_lectures.asp. These seminars are FREE to all.
5. ANNOUNCEMENTS
* The Generations Network and www.ancestry.com announced that they will convert their "Online Family Tree system" to Ancestry Member Tree format. This apparently is the Ancestry World Tree GEDCOMs. Submitters are urged to convert their trees to Ancestry Member Trees before March 2008. See http://blogs.ancestry.com/ancestry/2007/12/19/online-family-tree-announcement/ for more information.
* www.Ancestry.com will be available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City and at 13 large Family History Centers, including San Diego. The story is at http://tgn.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=43&item=116. There is no indication which version of Ancestry will be available.
1. GENEALOGY WEB SITES
* MyHeritage Research, the genealogy search engine on www.MyHeritage.com, has been significantly upgraded. This genealogy tool specializes in finding ancestors and advancing your family research. There is nothing else quite like it on the Internet. It is free and you're invited to use it on this link: http://www.myheritage.com/FP/Company/myheritage-research.php. You can search over 1,000 databases (some commercial) with this search engine.
2. NEW GENEALOGY DATABASES
a) at www.Ancestry.com - now available for FREE at San Diego FHC.
* New Jersey Will/Inventory Indexes, Volumes I - III
* Many historical newspapers - Bennington VT, Florence SC, El Paso TX, Yuma AZ, Flagstaff AZ, Ruston LA, San Antonio TX, Newport RI, Honolulu HI, Pinedale WY, Kingsport TN, Oil City PA, Albuquerque NM, Uniontown PA, Winnipeg Manitoba, Brandon Manitoba, Lethbridge Alberta.
* Early Boston MA births, Marriages, Deaths
* Books on Atlantic Canada provincial history
* Early New York state vital record books
b) Www.WorldVitalRecords.com - now available for FREE at the San Diego FHC. New items FREE at WVR for 10 days.
* Many (hundreds) of out-of-copyright books - W to Z surnames in December.
c) www.Footnote.com - now available for FREE at San Diego FHC. Information added:
* Thousands of US Air Force photos in the digital World War II collection. This release coincides with the anniversary of the Pearl Harbor bombing, and contains tens of thousands of original World War II photos and documents from the National Archives. Among this collection are missing air crew reports, documents from allied military conferences and photos of Japanese air targets.
d) LDS FamilySearch Record Search site has more databases at http://search.labs.familysearch.org/recordsearch/
* Freedman's Bureau, Virginia Marriages, ca 1815-1866 -- images and index for 5 Virginia counties
* Georgia Deaths, 1914-1927 -- images and every-name index complete
* Ohio Deaths, 1908-1953 -- images and every-name index complete
* Ontario Deaths, 1869-1947 -- every-name index and database, no images.
* Texas Death Index, 1964-1998 -- every-name index and database, no images
* US Social Security Death Index -- every-name index and database, no images * Utah Death Certificates, 1904-1956 -- every name index and images complete.
3. GENEALOGY SOFTWARE
* FamilyTreeMaker 2008 Service Pack 2 is now available - see the announcement at http://blogs.ancestry.com/ancestry/2007/11/28/service-pack-2-rev-2/. This service pack adds many reports, including Genealogy Register Report, Genealogy Ahnentafel Report, Hourglass Chart, Vertical Ancestor Chart, Updates to all reports to better display facts and notes, Updates to exporting of reports to RTF and HTML. It also added many fixes to reported problems.
4. GENEALOGY EDUCATION
* The New England Historic Genealogical Society in Boston has a number of relatively short online seminars for members to benefit at a distance from the expertise of the NEHGS staff. The seminars currently offered at http://www.newenglandancestors.org/education/main/online_lectures.asp. These seminars are FREE to all.
5. ANNOUNCEMENTS
* The Generations Network and www.ancestry.com announced that they will convert their "Online Family Tree system" to Ancestry Member Tree format. This apparently is the Ancestry World Tree GEDCOMs. Submitters are urged to convert their trees to Ancestry Member Trees before March 2008. See http://blogs.ancestry.com/ancestry/2007/12/19/online-family-tree-announcement/ for more information.
* www.Ancestry.com will be available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City and at 13 large Family History Centers, including San Diego. The story is at http://tgn.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=43&item=116. There is no indication which version of Ancestry will be available.
Sunday, December 23, 2007
Dear Genea-Man: What is "proof?"
Dear Genea-Man,
For "proof," must I have a birth, death or marriage certificate or is something else considered "proof", i.e. Census info? Are birth, death or marriage certificates the only way to resolve conflicting information?
Dear Colleague,
Your question about "proof" is the hardest one to answer definitively in all of genealogy research - "how much and what kind of evidence is enough?" And then you asked the next hardest question - "how do I resolve conflicts in information?"
For some organizations such as lineage societies, you must submit "proof" in the form of birth, marriage and death certificates, wills, deeds, Bible records, naturalization records, military records, etc. If you cannot adequately document the relationships to their standards, then you haven't proved your claimed line.
For all of your research problems (especially when there are sparse or no vital records available), you need to collect every scrap of evidence that you can from every place that holds them, and then you weigh that evidence and draw conclusions. If there are vital records available, you should still try to gather all evidence you can, because one or more items in a record may be wrong (e.g., a birth, death or marriage certificate is only as good as the knowledge and communication skills of the person providing the information, and the ability of the clerk to accurately record the information - the clerk is not an omniscient person).
The Genealogical Proof Standard (GPS) is described in some detail on the Board of Certified Genealogists (BCG) web site at http://www.bcgcertification.org/resources/standard.html and in lots of detail in the book BCG Genealogical Standards Manual (see http://www.bcgcertification.org/catalog/stdmanual.html.)
There are examples of sample work products from successful certification portfolios and published articles at http://www.bcgcertification.org/skillbuilders/worksamples.html. Look at the Proof Argument articles and the Research Report examples.
Original source records are better than derivative source records, Primary information is better than secondary information, direct evidence is better than indirect evidence. However, many relationships have been proved by indirect evidence obtained from secondary information in derivative sources, as long as the Genealogical Proof Standard has been applied to the evaluation. The key is the exhaustive search for records and then resolving any conflicts in evidence.
You can learn a lot by reading what other researchers have done. There are case studies in each issue of the National Genealogical Society Quarterly (NGSQ) (http://www.ngsgenealogy.org/) and New England Historical and Genealogical Register (NEHGR) (http://www.newenglandancestors.org/) journals (among others). Many libraries, including Chula Vista's, has many years of these on the shelf, but they cannot be borrowed. There are also many articles on these subjects online at Ancestry - go to http://www.ancestry.com/learn/ (it's free) and input search words like "proof evidence sources" and you will get many hits. I input "conflicting" into the search box and found these articles (out of 423 matches):
* "Evaluating Evidence" by Patricia Law Hatcher at http://www.ancestry.com/learn/library/article.aspx?article=5889
* "Corroborating or Conflicting Evidence" by Patricia Law Hatcher at http://www.ancestry.com/learn/library/article.aspx?article=7454
* "Corroborating or Conflicting Evidence - Part 2" by Patricia Law Hatcher at http://www.ancestry.com/learn/library/article.aspx?article=7506
* "When It Just Doesn't Add Up" by Juliana Smith at http://www.ancestry.com/learn/library/article.aspx?article=2279
* "Using Clues: The Pros and Cons of Secondary Information" by Juliana Smith at http://www.ancestry.com/learn/library/article.aspx?article=7066
* "Weighing the Evidence" by George G. Morgan at http://www.ancestry.com/learn/library/article.aspx?article=911
* "Building a Case When No Record 'Proves' A Point" by Elizabeth Shown Mills at http://www.ancestry.com/learn/library/article.aspx?article=803
There are many other articles by respected and professional genealogists in this Ancestry article archive.
There are also general and specific books about Records, Information, Sources, Evidence, Proof, etc. - you can buy them at the Ancestry Store (http://store.ancestry.com/), Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/) or the specific book publisher web sites.Stephen Danko had an excellent series of articles in August 2006 discussing these issues, with examples of his critical evaluation of the evidence, on his blog - see
* A Preponderance of Evidence
* The Genealogical Proof Standard
* Complete, Accurate Citations
* Original Sources, Derivative Sources, Exact Images, and Original Records
* New Definitions of Original Source and Derivative Source (A Proposal)
* Primary and Secondary Information
* Evaluating the Quality of Aunt Mary's Records
I am convinced that many genealogy research problems can be solved by applying the GPS - doing the exhaustive record search, critically evaluating all evidence, resolving conflicts and arriving at a reasoned conclusion. The challenge for each of us is doing it with limited knowledge, time and resources.
For "proof," must I have a birth, death or marriage certificate or is something else considered "proof", i.e. Census info? Are birth, death or marriage certificates the only way to resolve conflicting information?
Dear Colleague,
Your question about "proof" is the hardest one to answer definitively in all of genealogy research - "how much and what kind of evidence is enough?" And then you asked the next hardest question - "how do I resolve conflicts in information?"
For some organizations such as lineage societies, you must submit "proof" in the form of birth, marriage and death certificates, wills, deeds, Bible records, naturalization records, military records, etc. If you cannot adequately document the relationships to their standards, then you haven't proved your claimed line.
For all of your research problems (especially when there are sparse or no vital records available), you need to collect every scrap of evidence that you can from every place that holds them, and then you weigh that evidence and draw conclusions. If there are vital records available, you should still try to gather all evidence you can, because one or more items in a record may be wrong (e.g., a birth, death or marriage certificate is only as good as the knowledge and communication skills of the person providing the information, and the ability of the clerk to accurately record the information - the clerk is not an omniscient person).
The Genealogical Proof Standard (GPS) is described in some detail on the Board of Certified Genealogists (BCG) web site at http://www.bcgcertification.org/resources/standard.html and in lots of detail in the book BCG Genealogical Standards Manual (see http://www.bcgcertification.org/catalog/stdmanual.html.)
There are examples of sample work products from successful certification portfolios and published articles at http://www.bcgcertification.org/skillbuilders/worksamples.html. Look at the Proof Argument articles and the Research Report examples.
Original source records are better than derivative source records, Primary information is better than secondary information, direct evidence is better than indirect evidence. However, many relationships have been proved by indirect evidence obtained from secondary information in derivative sources, as long as the Genealogical Proof Standard has been applied to the evaluation. The key is the exhaustive search for records and then resolving any conflicts in evidence.
You can learn a lot by reading what other researchers have done. There are case studies in each issue of the National Genealogical Society Quarterly (NGSQ) (http://www.ngsgenealogy.org/) and New England Historical and Genealogical Register (NEHGR) (http://www.newenglandancestors.org/) journals (among others). Many libraries, including Chula Vista's, has many years of these on the shelf, but they cannot be borrowed. There are also many articles on these subjects online at Ancestry - go to http://www.ancestry.com/learn/ (it's free) and input search words like "proof evidence sources" and you will get many hits. I input "conflicting" into the search box and found these articles (out of 423 matches):
* "Evaluating Evidence" by Patricia Law Hatcher at http://www.ancestry.com/learn/library/article.aspx?article=5889
* "Corroborating or Conflicting Evidence" by Patricia Law Hatcher at http://www.ancestry.com/learn/library/article.aspx?article=7454
* "Corroborating or Conflicting Evidence - Part 2" by Patricia Law Hatcher at http://www.ancestry.com/learn/library/article.aspx?article=7506
* "When It Just Doesn't Add Up" by Juliana Smith at http://www.ancestry.com/learn/library/article.aspx?article=2279
* "Using Clues: The Pros and Cons of Secondary Information" by Juliana Smith at http://www.ancestry.com/learn/library/article.aspx?article=7066
* "Weighing the Evidence" by George G. Morgan at http://www.ancestry.com/learn/library/article.aspx?article=911
* "Building a Case When No Record 'Proves' A Point" by Elizabeth Shown Mills at http://www.ancestry.com/learn/library/article.aspx?article=803
There are many other articles by respected and professional genealogists in this Ancestry article archive.
There are also general and specific books about Records, Information, Sources, Evidence, Proof, etc. - you can buy them at the Ancestry Store (http://store.ancestry.com/), Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/) or the specific book publisher web sites.Stephen Danko had an excellent series of articles in August 2006 discussing these issues, with examples of his critical evaluation of the evidence, on his blog - see
* A Preponderance of Evidence
* The Genealogical Proof Standard
* Complete, Accurate Citations
* Original Sources, Derivative Sources, Exact Images, and Original Records
* New Definitions of Original Source and Derivative Source (A Proposal)
* Primary and Secondary Information
* Evaluating the Quality of Aunt Mary's Records
I am convinced that many genealogy research problems can be solved by applying the GPS - doing the exhaustive record search, critically evaluating all evidence, resolving conflicts and arriving at a reasoned conclusion. The challenge for each of us is doing it with limited knowledge, time and resources.
Thursday, December 13, 2007
NEHGS Online Seminars are free
The New England Historic Genealogical Society in Boston has a number of relatively short online seminars for members to benefit at a distance from the expertise of the NEHGS staff.
The seminars currently offered at http://www.newenglandancestors.org/education/main/online_lectures.asp include:
* Finding Your Ancestors Online by D. Joshua Taylor
* Methods of Finding a Wife's Maiden Name by David Curtis Dearborn, FASG
* NEHGS Resources OnLine by Marie E. Daly
* Civil War Pension Research: Union Soldiers by David Allen Lambert
* Who Was Your Mother's Mother's Mother's Mother? by Julie Helen Otto
* Getting Started in Irish Genealogy Part 1 by Marie E. Daly
* Applying to Lineage Societies by Christopher Challender Child
* Genealogical Tips: Transcribing Gravestones by David Allen Lambert
* Getting Started in Genealogy - Part 1 by Marie E. Daly
* Getting Started in Genealogy - Part 2 by Marie E. Daly
* Getting Started in Genealogy - Part 3 by Marie E. Daly.
The presentations are done in FlashPlayer - you see the slide and hear the speaker - you can click on the next slide any time you want, or go back a slide or two to hear something again. These presentations are excellent, and are a great opportunity to learn about the topics presented by expert genealogists.
The seminars currently offered at http://www.newenglandancestors.org/education/main/online_lectures.asp include:
* Finding Your Ancestors Online by D. Joshua Taylor
* Methods of Finding a Wife's Maiden Name by David Curtis Dearborn, FASG
* NEHGS Resources OnLine by Marie E. Daly
* Civil War Pension Research: Union Soldiers by David Allen Lambert
* Who Was Your Mother's Mother's Mother's Mother? by Julie Helen Otto
* Getting Started in Irish Genealogy Part 1 by Marie E. Daly
* Applying to Lineage Societies by Christopher Challender Child
* Genealogical Tips: Transcribing Gravestones by David Allen Lambert
* Getting Started in Genealogy - Part 1 by Marie E. Daly
* Getting Started in Genealogy - Part 2 by Marie E. Daly
* Getting Started in Genealogy - Part 3 by Marie E. Daly.
The presentations are done in FlashPlayer - you see the slide and hear the speaker - you can click on the next slide any time you want, or go back a slide or two to hear something again. These presentations are excellent, and are a great opportunity to learn about the topics presented by expert genealogists.
LDS Record Search has more content
On the way home from the FHC yesterday, I thought to myself "I really need to check and see what the LDS FamilySearch Record Search has added recently."
So - here are the databases that I found at http://search.labs.familysearch.org/recordsearch/ :
1) Census Records
* 1850 US Census Population Schedules - partial set of images for 33 states/territories, no index yet.
* 1850 US Census Mortality Schedules - partial set of images for 16 states/territories, no index yet.
* 1850 US Census Slave Schedules - partial set of images for 18 states/territories, no index yet.
* 1880 US Population Schedules - every-name index, but no images available, no family groups either.
* 1895 Argentina Census - every-name index, with images
* 1930 Mexico Census - partial set of images from 31 states, no index yet.
2) Migration
* New York Passenger Arrival Lists (New York), 1892-1924 -- every-name index, links to www.EllisIsland.org images.
3) Military
* World War II Draft Registration Cards (fourth draft, men born 1877-1897) -- partial set of images from 6 states, no index yet.
4) Land and Property
* Vermont Land Records, Early to 1900 -- partial set of images, by county and town, no index yet.
5) Court and Legal Records
* England, Cheshire, Register of Electors (1842-1900) -- every-name index and images complete.
* Freedman's Bank Records, 1866-1874 -- every-name index and images complete.
* Maryland, Cecil County Probate Estate Files, 1851-1940 -- every-name index and images complete.
6) Vital Records
* England, Diocese of Durham Bishops Transcripts, ca 1700-1900 -- images only, no index yet.
* Freedman's Bureau, Virginia Marriages, ca 1815-1866 -- images and index for 5 Virginia counties
* Georgia Deaths, 1914-1927 -- images and every-name index complete
* Ohio Deaths, 1908-1953 -- images and every-name index complete
* Ontario Deaths, 1869-1947 -- every-name index and database, no images.
* Texas Death Index, 1964-1998 -- every-name index and database, no images
* US Social Security Death Index -- every-name index and database, no images
* Utah Death Certificates, 1904-1956 -- every name index and images complete.
You will have to register, for free, to use the FamilySearch Record Search site, but it is well worth the effort.
The image viewer (when there are images) takes a little time to figure out - there is a "Zoom Bar" in the upper right hand corner, and you move around the image by using the "Magic Hand" to move the image up, down, right, left.
There are several new databases on that list that I haven't looked at yet - how about you?
So - here are the databases that I found at http://search.labs.familysearch.org/recordsearch/ :
1) Census Records
* 1850 US Census Population Schedules - partial set of images for 33 states/territories, no index yet.
* 1850 US Census Mortality Schedules - partial set of images for 16 states/territories, no index yet.
* 1850 US Census Slave Schedules - partial set of images for 18 states/territories, no index yet.
* 1880 US Population Schedules - every-name index, but no images available, no family groups either.
* 1895 Argentina Census - every-name index, with images
* 1930 Mexico Census - partial set of images from 31 states, no index yet.
2) Migration
* New York Passenger Arrival Lists (New York), 1892-1924 -- every-name index, links to www.EllisIsland.org images.
3) Military
* World War II Draft Registration Cards (fourth draft, men born 1877-1897) -- partial set of images from 6 states, no index yet.
4) Land and Property
* Vermont Land Records, Early to 1900 -- partial set of images, by county and town, no index yet.
5) Court and Legal Records
* England, Cheshire, Register of Electors (1842-1900) -- every-name index and images complete.
* Freedman's Bank Records, 1866-1874 -- every-name index and images complete.
* Maryland, Cecil County Probate Estate Files, 1851-1940 -- every-name index and images complete.
6) Vital Records
* England, Diocese of Durham Bishops Transcripts, ca 1700-1900 -- images only, no index yet.
* Freedman's Bureau, Virginia Marriages, ca 1815-1866 -- images and index for 5 Virginia counties
* Georgia Deaths, 1914-1927 -- images and every-name index complete
* Ohio Deaths, 1908-1953 -- images and every-name index complete
* Ontario Deaths, 1869-1947 -- every-name index and database, no images.
* Texas Death Index, 1964-1998 -- every-name index and database, no images
* US Social Security Death Index -- every-name index and database, no images
* Utah Death Certificates, 1904-1956 -- every name index and images complete.
You will have to register, for free, to use the FamilySearch Record Search site, but it is well worth the effort.
The image viewer (when there are images) takes a little time to figure out - there is a "Zoom Bar" in the upper right hand corner, and you move around the image by using the "Magic Hand" to move the image up, down, right, left.
There are several new databases on that list that I haven't looked at yet - how about you?
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
CVGS Holiday Luncheon highlights
We had our annual Holiday Luncheon on Monday, 10 December at 11 AM at the Chula Vista South Branch Library. There were 31 in attendance. As they entered the room, they put the gifts on the table, put the Salvation Army donations on the floor, took their food items to the kitchen, were given a door prize ticket and bought opportunity drawing tickets for the gift exchange.
Randy Seaver started the meeting at 11:20, with a brief welcome, and he made sure everybody had tickets. He passed out the "Days and Times" survey (because the library killed all of our meeting days and times) to everybody and they filled them out.
Then it was time to eat, and everybody loaded up their plates with salad, ham, turkey, cranberry, potatoes, vegetables, rolls and everything else. There was more than enough food, and excellent variety.
At about 12:15, Randy resumed the meeting with a thank you to the kitchen staff and the cooks, then thanked everybody who has served on the Board this year.
The door prize drawings (a large St. Nicholas doll, a large stand-up angel, a reindeer basket of goodies, and three poinsettia plants) were held, and then it was time for the gift drawings - and that took quite some time even with no "stealing."
It was dessert time, and the choices were plentiful and excellent - pie, cake, cheesecake, cookies, fruit, etc.
Finally, we had the member sharing of their best finds, trips and stories for 2007. Ten people shared their stories - the spirit of genealogy research is alive and well in our society!
We then auctioned off the ham bone and the remaining turkey roll, and then adjourned just after 2 PM with many shouts of "Merry Christmas" and "Ho Ho Ho."
Thank you to Susi, Shirley, Virginia, and May for their hard work making the food service run smoothly, to Susi, Shirley, Nancy and Bernice for the door prize items, and to Nancy for managing the Salvation Army donations.
Randy Seaver started the meeting at 11:20, with a brief welcome, and he made sure everybody had tickets. He passed out the "Days and Times" survey (because the library killed all of our meeting days and times) to everybody and they filled them out.
Then it was time to eat, and everybody loaded up their plates with salad, ham, turkey, cranberry, potatoes, vegetables, rolls and everything else. There was more than enough food, and excellent variety.
At about 12:15, Randy resumed the meeting with a thank you to the kitchen staff and the cooks, then thanked everybody who has served on the Board this year.
The door prize drawings (a large St. Nicholas doll, a large stand-up angel, a reindeer basket of goodies, and three poinsettia plants) were held, and then it was time for the gift drawings - and that took quite some time even with no "stealing."
It was dessert time, and the choices were plentiful and excellent - pie, cake, cheesecake, cookies, fruit, etc.
Finally, we had the member sharing of their best finds, trips and stories for 2007. Ten people shared their stories - the spirit of genealogy research is alive and well in our society!
We then auctioned off the ham bone and the remaining turkey roll, and then adjourned just after 2 PM with many shouts of "Merry Christmas" and "Ho Ho Ho."
Thank you to Susi, Shirley, Virginia, and May for their hard work making the food service run smoothly, to Susi, Shirley, Nancy and Bernice for the door prize items, and to Nancy for managing the Salvation Army donations.
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Were your Ancestors in the Poorhouse?
Each of us searching for "elusive ancestors" has to think "outside the box" in order to find the dates, places, siblings and parents of these "brick wall" ancestors. Resorting to "cluster genealogy" techniques, often found in books and the published journals and periodicals, may find some of them with their families in a variety of records.
Usually, however, there are unusual sources that may contain one or more clues to solve the puzzle. They are almost always located in the places where the "elusive ancestor" lived, and it can be a challenge to find them. They may be in genealogy society files, historical society files, a local library, a local business or church, a school or university, or in someone's private collection.
One excellent example of an online source that might unlock some secrets is a Poorhouse register. Linda Crannell has gathered a wealth of information on her web site - The Poorhouse Story - at http://www.poorhousestory.com/. Read her own story about looking for and finding her great-great-grandmother, Emma Warner Thorn Pinchin here. Linda has a Letter to Genealogists also, detailing what types of records might be in these records, including:
* Homeless Families (who may have been burned out or flooded out of their homes)
* Destitute Families (who, for a time, could not afford to buy food, clothing or fuel)
* Victims of Domestic Abuse
* Unwed Mothers
* Orphans
* Elderly People (who were frail or ill and had nobody to care for them)
* Seasonally Unemployed Workers (who often were single men needing housing for the winter)
* Occupationally Injured Workers (who often worked in factories or on the canals or roads, or as lumbermen, etc.)
* Handicapped People (mentally ill, mentally retarded, blind, physically handicapped)
* Sick People (who had no money for treatment and may have suffered temporarily from the frequent epidemics of contagious diseases or from chronic diseases)
While we all hope that none of our ancestors lived in a Poorhouse, it is very likely that some of them did at some time in their lives, and Poorhouse records might unlock your own "brick wall" puzzle. Linda has a link for the History of Poorhouses, and a page of links for Poorhouses by State. She also has a page of Tips for searching for these records. You might want to explore her web site and see if there are resources on her list that might help you in your research.
Of course, this is not the only place to look. A search of PERSI (online at HeritageQuestOnline, available at FHCs or through a library online database) for poorhouse records in your state or county of interest might be fruitful, and USGenWeb county sites might have a list of Poorhouse records. Historical and genealogy society web sites or catalogs might also have them noted.
A search of the LDS Family History Library Catalog (FHLC) using the keyword = "poorhouse" resulted in 5,454 titles available in book or microform at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City (microform are available for loan at a local Family History Center for a fee). You could narrow the search by adding your county of interest to the keyword search.
Ancestry's Learning Center has 24 titles with information about researching Poorhouse records. These articles are free. A search of the Ancestry Database Card Catalog found no use of the word "poorhouse*" in a database title.
In our pursuit of "elusive ancestors," we need to leave no record unopened - and Poorhouse records may be just the resource you need to crash through your brick wall. My thanks to our CVGS colleague Penny for sending me the link to Linda's Poorhouse Story web site, and my compliments to Linda Crannell for doing such a wonderful job of sharing her story and compiling all of the great information.
Usually, however, there are unusual sources that may contain one or more clues to solve the puzzle. They are almost always located in the places where the "elusive ancestor" lived, and it can be a challenge to find them. They may be in genealogy society files, historical society files, a local library, a local business or church, a school or university, or in someone's private collection.
One excellent example of an online source that might unlock some secrets is a Poorhouse register. Linda Crannell has gathered a wealth of information on her web site - The Poorhouse Story - at http://www.poorhousestory.com/. Read her own story about looking for and finding her great-great-grandmother, Emma Warner Thorn Pinchin here. Linda has a Letter to Genealogists also, detailing what types of records might be in these records, including:
* Homeless Families (who may have been burned out or flooded out of their homes)
* Destitute Families (who, for a time, could not afford to buy food, clothing or fuel)
* Victims of Domestic Abuse
* Unwed Mothers
* Orphans
* Elderly People (who were frail or ill and had nobody to care for them)
* Seasonally Unemployed Workers (who often were single men needing housing for the winter)
* Occupationally Injured Workers (who often worked in factories or on the canals or roads, or as lumbermen, etc.)
* Handicapped People (mentally ill, mentally retarded, blind, physically handicapped)
* Sick People (who had no money for treatment and may have suffered temporarily from the frequent epidemics of contagious diseases or from chronic diseases)
While we all hope that none of our ancestors lived in a Poorhouse, it is very likely that some of them did at some time in their lives, and Poorhouse records might unlock your own "brick wall" puzzle. Linda has a link for the History of Poorhouses, and a page of links for Poorhouses by State. She also has a page of Tips for searching for these records. You might want to explore her web site and see if there are resources on her list that might help you in your research.
Of course, this is not the only place to look. A search of PERSI (online at HeritageQuestOnline, available at FHCs or through a library online database) for poorhouse records in your state or county of interest might be fruitful, and USGenWeb county sites might have a list of Poorhouse records. Historical and genealogy society web sites or catalogs might also have them noted.
A search of the LDS Family History Library Catalog (FHLC) using the keyword = "poorhouse" resulted in 5,454 titles available in book or microform at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City (microform are available for loan at a local Family History Center for a fee). You could narrow the search by adding your county of interest to the keyword search.
Ancestry's Learning Center has 24 titles with information about researching Poorhouse records. These articles are free. A search of the Ancestry Database Card Catalog found no use of the word "poorhouse*" in a database title.
In our pursuit of "elusive ancestors," we need to leave no record unopened - and Poorhouse records may be just the resource you need to crash through your brick wall. My thanks to our CVGS colleague Penny for sending me the link to Linda's Poorhouse Story web site, and my compliments to Linda Crannell for doing such a wonderful job of sharing her story and compiling all of the great information.
Dear Genea-Man: How do I access this book?
Dear Genea-Man,
I understand the SLC FHL will not lend books. I don't think the Chula Vista Library would have the following book. How do I obtain an interlibrary loan (or find out if it is available re interlibrary loan)? John Mallet, the Huguenot, and Descendants. Author: Anna S. Mallett. Publication: Harrisburg Publishing Company, 1895.
Dear Colleague,
Just ten years ago, Inter-library loan was about your only option, it seemed. Now, there are more options, including:
1) Chula Vista Public Library has an Inter-library loan (ILL) service. You can find out which libraries hold a certain book by using http://worldcat.org/. Scroll down to the Search Box. You can input "john mallett" or "anna s mallett" and find matches for the book you want. Click on one of the matches, and you will get a list of libraries that have the book you want. You could print this off and take it to the CVPL and get an inter-library loan. I don't know what the ILL fee is now, but it's reasonable.
2) Another option is to check the LDS Family History Library Catalog (FHLC) at http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/Library/FHLC/frameset_fhlc.asp. I chose an author search, and input "mallett" for the surname and "anna" for the given name in the search box. A page with a list of her single book - the one you want - came up. I clicked on the book title, and got a "Title Detail" page about the book, which is on the shelf at the FHL in Salt Lake City. They also have the book available for loan on a microfilm - click on the "View Film Notes" in the upper right hand corner. The film number for this book is FHL US/CAN Film 0,982,137 Item 3. You can print that page off (use the printable version link), and take it to the FHC down in Mission Valley and order the microfilm for $6.25 rental fee.
3) Some books in the FHLC are now available online. For the John Mallett book, there is a link on the "Title Detail" page that says "To view a digital version of this book, click here." If you click on this, it takes you to a book in the BYU Family History Archive at http://patriot.lib.byu.edu/cdm4/document.php?CISOROOT=/FH16&CISOPTR=41480. This is a digitized version of this book, page by page. You can print the pages on your home printer, or save them to your computer, or just read them online.
4) If you want some pages from a database, book or microform at the LDS Family History Library, you can print out the form here and submit it by mail to the Family History Library. You will need specific pages, book call numbers, microform number and item, but it can be done for a price. Obviously, you can get many microforms at the FHC on rental and copy pages yourself, but for those resources not on microform, this service beats a trip to Salt Lake City. Thanks DearMYRTLE for the suggestion.
5) Google Books (http://books.google.com/ ) has only a "snippet" view of pages from this book. www.Ancestry.com has the complete book on their subscription side. There are other web sites with digitized out-of-copyright books on the Internet.
As we can see, there are several good choices that genealogy researchers can make to find published works, especially those published before 1923.
I understand the SLC FHL will not lend books. I don't think the Chula Vista Library would have the following book. How do I obtain an interlibrary loan (or find out if it is available re interlibrary loan)? John Mallet, the Huguenot, and Descendants. Author: Anna S. Mallett. Publication: Harrisburg Publishing Company, 1895.
Dear Colleague,
Just ten years ago, Inter-library loan was about your only option, it seemed. Now, there are more options, including:
1) Chula Vista Public Library has an Inter-library loan (ILL) service. You can find out which libraries hold a certain book by using http://worldcat.org/. Scroll down to the Search Box. You can input "john mallett" or "anna s mallett" and find matches for the book you want. Click on one of the matches, and you will get a list of libraries that have the book you want. You could print this off and take it to the CVPL and get an inter-library loan. I don't know what the ILL fee is now, but it's reasonable.
2) Another option is to check the LDS Family History Library Catalog (FHLC) at http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/Library/FHLC/frameset_fhlc.asp. I chose an author search, and input "mallett" for the surname and "anna" for the given name in the search box. A page with a list of her single book - the one you want - came up. I clicked on the book title, and got a "Title Detail" page about the book, which is on the shelf at the FHL in Salt Lake City. They also have the book available for loan on a microfilm - click on the "View Film Notes" in the upper right hand corner. The film number for this book is FHL US/CAN Film 0,982,137 Item 3. You can print that page off (use the printable version link), and take it to the FHC down in Mission Valley and order the microfilm for $6.25 rental fee.
3) Some books in the FHLC are now available online. For the John Mallett book, there is a link on the "Title Detail" page that says "To view a digital version of this book, click here." If you click on this, it takes you to a book in the BYU Family History Archive at http://patriot.lib.byu.edu/cdm4/document.php?CISOROOT=/FH16&CISOPTR=41480. This is a digitized version of this book, page by page. You can print the pages on your home printer, or save them to your computer, or just read them online.
4) If you want some pages from a database, book or microform at the LDS Family History Library, you can print out the form here and submit it by mail to the Family History Library. You will need specific pages, book call numbers, microform number and item, but it can be done for a price. Obviously, you can get many microforms at the FHC on rental and copy pages yourself, but for those resources not on microform, this service beats a trip to Salt Lake City. Thanks DearMYRTLE for the suggestion.
5) Google Books (http://books.google.com/ ) has only a "snippet" view of pages from this book. www.Ancestry.com has the complete book on their subscription side. There are other web sites with digitized out-of-copyright books on the Internet.
As we can see, there are several good choices that genealogy researchers can make to find published works, especially those published before 1923.
Thursday, December 6, 2007
CVGS Holiday Luncheon on Monday 12/10
The Holiday Luncheon of the Chula Vista Genealogical Society is next Monday at the Chula Vista South Library. Here are the details:
Date: Monday, 10 December, 11 AM to 2 PM,
Location: Chula Vista South Branch Library (389 Orange Avenue, in Conference Room B):
Food: Turkey and ham entrees, and beverages, will be provided by the Society.
Potluck items should be brought according to last name:
* A to H: Entree accompaniments
* I to P: Salads
* Q to Z: Desserts
Please contact Susi (619-690-1188) to coordinate potluck items.
Gift Exchange: We will have a Christmas gift exchange by opportunity drawing. Bring wrapped gifts (up to $10 value) for the drawing.
Door Prize: There will be a door prize drawing.
Donations: Please bring groceries or unwrapped toys (infant to teenager) for donations to the Salvation Army.
Program: There will be member sharing about "Best Genealogy Stories, Trips & Finds of the Year"
We look forward to seeing all of our members at this gala event.
Date: Monday, 10 December, 11 AM to 2 PM,
Location: Chula Vista South Branch Library (389 Orange Avenue, in Conference Room B):
Food: Turkey and ham entrees, and beverages, will be provided by the Society.
Potluck items should be brought according to last name:
* A to H: Entree accompaniments
* I to P: Salads
* Q to Z: Desserts
Please contact Susi (619-690-1188) to coordinate potluck items.
Gift Exchange: We will have a Christmas gift exchange by opportunity drawing. Bring wrapped gifts (up to $10 value) for the drawing.
Door Prize: There will be a door prize drawing.
Donations: Please bring groceries or unwrapped toys (infant to teenager) for donations to the Salvation Army.
Program: There will be member sharing about "Best Genealogy Stories, Trips & Finds of the Year"
We look forward to seeing all of our members at this gala event.
Dear Genea-Man: What do those markings mean?
Dear Genea-Man, What do the handwritten markings mean on this passenger list? I'm interested in Alfred Wm. Wilson, line #16 on this list. There is a number 7-185009 and a date 10/24/41 marked on his line.
ANSWER: Genea-Man is not very experienced with passenger lists and naturalization records, but he has a very informative book on the subject.
Looking at the book "They Became Americans: Finding Naturalization Records and Ethnic Origins" there is a section on page 161 about Certificates of Arrival. It says:
Looking at the book "They Became Americans: Finding Naturalization Records and Ethnic Origins" there is a section on page 161 about Certificates of Arrival. It says:
"Probably the most common reentry annotations are related to an immigrant's first step toward naturalization. Verifying that all petitioners for naturalization were legally admitted immigrants was one of the reforms instituted by the Basic Naturalization Act of 1906. Smith further notes that
" 'under the 1906 statute, the naturalization procedure required a step whereby the Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization checked ship manifests to verify the legal admission of every applicant for citizenship who had Declarations of Intention or Petitions to a naturalization court. On these forms, the immigrant named the port, date and ship of his or her arrival. Copies of the form were forwarded to the appropriate ports of entry to be checked by verification clerks who located the immigrants arrival record among their immigration manifests. If the record was found, INS issued a Certificate of Arrival and sent it back to the naturalization court.'
"Between 1906 and 1924, the certificate of arrival was a critical identifying factor connecting the immigrant to the port of arrival. Beginning 1 July 1924, the INS began collecting immigrant visas, which subsequently became the official arrival records. One could not be admitted without an immigrant visa, and only a permanent admission could be used to issue a Certificate of Arrival, which would support a naturalization. According to INS historian Smith, an immigrant visa leads to permanent admission, which leads to a certificate of arrival, which leads to naturalization. The alien's immigrant visa file then became the first place to search for proof of legal entry into the United States."
The above was obtained from
Loretta Dennis Szucs, "They Became Americans: Finding Naturalization Records and Ethnic Origins," Ancestry Inc., 1998, page 161.
Loretta Dennis Szucs, "They Became Americans: Finding Naturalization Records and Ethnic Origins," Ancestry Inc., 1998, page 161.
The passenger list image was obtained from
Manifest, S.S. Majestic, 25 November 1908, page 11, line 16, for Alfred Wm. Wilson (age 2), digital image, New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2006. Original data: Year: 1908; Microfilm serial: T715; Microfilm roll: T715_1174; Image 11, Line: 16 (http://www.ancestry.com/, accessed 5 December 2007).
Manifest, S.S. Majestic, 25 November 1908, page 11, line 16, for Alfred Wm. Wilson (age 2), digital image, New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2006. Original data: Year: 1908; Microfilm serial: T715; Microfilm roll: T715_1174; Image 11, Line: 16 (http://www.ancestry.com/, accessed 5 December 2007).
Consequently, I think that there is an excellent chance that Alfred Wm. Wilson's Certificate of Arrival was number 7-185009, and that it was signed on 24 October 1941. There is probably a naturalization record for him (and his parents) in a court house someplace near where he lived in the 1940's.
This is a good lesson for all of us who haven't done much immigration and naturalization research. I learned something! I'm going to use this as a show and tell at the next CVGS Research Group meeting.
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
What Genealogy books should you own?
George G. Morgan answered that question in his column on the 24/7 Family History Circle blog. It is an excellent list. I have some of them, and have read the others at the library.
However, I would add a number of books to this list:
* Ancestry's Concise Genealogical Dictionary, compiled by Maurine & Glen Harris.
* Genealogical Proof Standard: Building a Solid Case, by Christine Rose.
* Producing a Quality Family History by Patricia Law Hatcher.
Of course, everybody's tastes vary, but these are indispensable to me.
Many of these books are on the shelf in the Family History Collection at the Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library.
However, I would add a number of books to this list:
* Ancestry's Concise Genealogical Dictionary, compiled by Maurine & Glen Harris.
* Genealogical Proof Standard: Building a Solid Case, by Christine Rose.
* Producing a Quality Family History by Patricia Law Hatcher.
Of course, everybody's tastes vary, but these are indispensable to me.
Many of these books are on the shelf in the Family History Collection at the Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library.
Sunday, December 2, 2007
CVGS Events for December 2007
The Chula Vista Genealogical Society events for December 2007 include:
** Monday, December 10, 11 AM to 2 PM, at the Chula Vista South Branch Library (389 Orange Avenue, in Conference Room B):
* This will be our annual Holiday Luncheon (food service starts at 11:30 AM). Turkey and ham entrees, and beverages, will be provided by the Society. Potluck items should be brought according to last name:
A to H: Entree accompaniments
I to P: Salads
Q to Z: Desserts
Please contact Susi (619-690-1188) to coordinate potluck items.
* We will have a Christmas gift exchange by opportunity drawing. Bring wrapped gifts (up to $10 value) for the drawing.
* There will be a door prize drawing.
* Please bring groceries or unwrapped toys (infant to teenager) for donations ot the Salvation Army.
* There will be member sharing about "Best Genealogy Stories, Trips & Finds of the Year"
We look forward to seeing all of our members at this gala event.
** There will be no CVGS Computer Group in December.
** There will be no CVGS Research Group in December.
On Monday morning (10 AM to noon) - December 3 at the Civic Center Branch library - Dearl Glenn and probably John Finch will be at the table by the Family Research section of the Chula Vista Civic Center Library ready to help people with their research, discuss a problem or success, or just tell stories.
The Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library will be closed from Monday, December 10 to Sunday, January 6 for refurbishment. The library hours may change and might affect CVGS Program and meeting days and times in January. We will post dates and times in early January.
We welcome guests and visitors to our CVGS programs and events - if you are in the Chula Vista area and want to attend our events - please come and introduce yourselves. If you have questions, please email Randy at rjseaver(at)cox.net or phone 619-422-3397.
** Monday, December 10, 11 AM to 2 PM, at the Chula Vista South Branch Library (389 Orange Avenue, in Conference Room B):
* This will be our annual Holiday Luncheon (food service starts at 11:30 AM). Turkey and ham entrees, and beverages, will be provided by the Society. Potluck items should be brought according to last name:
A to H: Entree accompaniments
I to P: Salads
Q to Z: Desserts
Please contact Susi (619-690-1188) to coordinate potluck items.
* We will have a Christmas gift exchange by opportunity drawing. Bring wrapped gifts (up to $10 value) for the drawing.
* There will be a door prize drawing.
* Please bring groceries or unwrapped toys (infant to teenager) for donations ot the Salvation Army.
* There will be member sharing about "Best Genealogy Stories, Trips & Finds of the Year"
We look forward to seeing all of our members at this gala event.
** There will be no CVGS Computer Group in December.
** There will be no CVGS Research Group in December.
On Monday morning (10 AM to noon) - December 3 at the Civic Center Branch library - Dearl Glenn and probably John Finch will be at the table by the Family Research section of the Chula Vista Civic Center Library ready to help people with their research, discuss a problem or success, or just tell stories.
The Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library will be closed from Monday, December 10 to Sunday, January 6 for refurbishment. The library hours may change and might affect CVGS Program and meeting days and times in January. We will post dates and times in early January.
We welcome guests and visitors to our CVGS programs and events - if you are in the Chula Vista area and want to attend our events - please come and introduce yourselves. If you have questions, please email Randy at rjseaver(at)cox.net or phone 619-422-3397.
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