All I Want For Christmas
Dear Santa:
Don't bring me new dishes;
I don't need a new kind of game.
Genealogists have peculiar wishes;
For Christmas I just want a surname.
A new washing machine would be great,
But it isn't the desire of my life.
I've just found an ancestor's birth date,
Now I need the name of his wife.
My heart doesn't yearn for a ring
that would put a real diamond to shame.
What I want is a much cheaper thing:
Please give me Martha's last name.
To see my heart singing with joy,
Don't bring me a red leather suitcase.
Bring me a genealogist's toy:
A surname, with dates and a place.
Monday, December 22, 2008
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Genealogists night before christmas
T'WAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS GENEALOGIST VERSION
"T'was the night before Christmas when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even my spouse.
The dining room table with clutter was spread
With pedigree charts and with letters which said...
"Too bad about the data for which you had written I
t was lost in the stacks at Visitations of Britian."
Piles of old copies of wills, deeds, and such
Were proof that my work had become much to much.
Our children were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of sugarplums danced in their heads.
As I sat my computer, I was ready to drop
From entering data on cousins, whose lines never stop.
Christmas was here, and such was my lot
That presents and goodies and toys I forgot.
Had I not been so busy with my grandparent's wills,
I'd not have forgotten to shop for such thrills.
While others bought gifts that would bring Christmas cheers;
I'd spent time researching marriages and birth years.
While I was thus musing about my sad plight,
A strange noise on the lawn gave me such a great fright.
Away to the window I flew in a flash,
Tore open the drapes and I yanked up the sash.
When what to my wondering eyes should appear?
But an overstuffed sleigh and eight small reindeer.
Up to the housetop the reindeer they flew,
With a sleigh full of toys, and Saint Nicholaus too.
And then in a twinkle, I heard on the roof
The prancing and pawing of thirty-two hoof.
The TV antenna was no match for their horns,
As I looked at our roof with hoof-prints adorned.
As I drew in my head, and bumped it on the sash,
Down the cold chimney fell Santa - KER-RASH! "
Dear" Santa had come from the roof in a wreck,
And tracked soot on the carpet, (I could wring his short neck!)
Spotting my face, good old Santa could see
I had no Christmas spirit as you'll have to agree.
He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work
And filled all the stockings, (I felt like a jerk).
Here was Santa, who'd brought such gladness and joy;
When I'd been too busy for even one toy.
He spied my research on the table all spread
"A genealogist!" He cried! (My face was all red!)
"Tonight I've met many like you", Santa grinned.
And he pulled from his sack a large book he had penned.
I gazed with amazement - at the cover which said
"Your Genealogy Lines - Ne'er Before Read"
"I know what it's like to have the genealogy bug,"
He said, as he gave me a a great Santa Hug.
"While the elves make the sleighful of toys I now carry,
I do lots of research in the North Pole Library!
A special treat I am thus able to bring,
To genealogy folks who can't find a thing.
Now off you go to your bed for a rest,
I'll clean up the house with this genealogy mess."
As I climbed up the stairs full of gladness and glee,
I looked back at Santa who'd brought much to me.
While settling in bed, I heard Santa's clear whistle,
To his team, which then rose like the down of a thistle
And I heard him exclaim as he flew out of sight,
"Family History is Fun! Merry Christmas! Goodnight!"
With kind permission from:
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~parrottreilly/poems.html
"T'was the night before Christmas when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even my spouse.
The dining room table with clutter was spread
With pedigree charts and with letters which said...
"Too bad about the data for which you had written I
t was lost in the stacks at Visitations of Britian."
Piles of old copies of wills, deeds, and such
Were proof that my work had become much to much.
Our children were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of sugarplums danced in their heads.
As I sat my computer, I was ready to drop
From entering data on cousins, whose lines never stop.
Christmas was here, and such was my lot
That presents and goodies and toys I forgot.
Had I not been so busy with my grandparent's wills,
I'd not have forgotten to shop for such thrills.
While others bought gifts that would bring Christmas cheers;
I'd spent time researching marriages and birth years.
While I was thus musing about my sad plight,
A strange noise on the lawn gave me such a great fright.
Away to the window I flew in a flash,
Tore open the drapes and I yanked up the sash.
When what to my wondering eyes should appear?
But an overstuffed sleigh and eight small reindeer.
Up to the housetop the reindeer they flew,
With a sleigh full of toys, and Saint Nicholaus too.
And then in a twinkle, I heard on the roof
The prancing and pawing of thirty-two hoof.
The TV antenna was no match for their horns,
As I looked at our roof with hoof-prints adorned.
As I drew in my head, and bumped it on the sash,
Down the cold chimney fell Santa - KER-RASH! "
Dear" Santa had come from the roof in a wreck,
And tracked soot on the carpet, (I could wring his short neck!)
Spotting my face, good old Santa could see
I had no Christmas spirit as you'll have to agree.
He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work
And filled all the stockings, (I felt like a jerk).
Here was Santa, who'd brought such gladness and joy;
When I'd been too busy for even one toy.
He spied my research on the table all spread
"A genealogist!" He cried! (My face was all red!)
"Tonight I've met many like you", Santa grinned.
And he pulled from his sack a large book he had penned.
I gazed with amazement - at the cover which said
"Your Genealogy Lines - Ne'er Before Read"
"I know what it's like to have the genealogy bug,"
He said, as he gave me a a great Santa Hug.
"While the elves make the sleighful of toys I now carry,
I do lots of research in the North Pole Library!
A special treat I am thus able to bring,
To genealogy folks who can't find a thing.
Now off you go to your bed for a rest,
I'll clean up the house with this genealogy mess."
As I climbed up the stairs full of gladness and glee,
I looked back at Santa who'd brought much to me.
While settling in bed, I heard Santa's clear whistle,
To his team, which then rose like the down of a thistle
And I heard him exclaim as he flew out of sight,
"Family History is Fun! Merry Christmas! Goodnight!"
With kind permission from:
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~parrottreilly/poems.html
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
How to start you family tree in 5 minutes
Your family tree in 5 minutes
Do you have a spare five minutes? Yes? Then - let's do genealogy!
Well, you will need quite a few spare five minutes, but the idea is to have a system whereby you can take advantage of clumps of time. Do you have an hour or two to spare from time to time? A day here or there? A weekend? Five minutes? Whatever "spare" time you have, compiling your family tree is an absorbing and fun way to spend it.
Genealogy (names, dates, places - the who, where and when) and Family History (social and local history) is a journey; a journey through memories, through records, through the Internet; through time. And knowing your destination is half the journey - I think organisation is the other half! Because, with organisation comes discipline, planning, adeptness - a readiness. Planned, disciplined, skilled behaviour, is very handy for a genealogist!
When you only have small clumps of time, it is a good idea to be methodical. So, what do you need? To begin, you should have some idea of where you need to travel - so download and print a pedigree sheet or two (perhaps one for each of your parents, or your spouse or partner may like to do genealogy too) at www.geniecreations.com/free4gen.htm or www.kbyu.org/ancestors/charts or http://www.kbyu.org/ or www.ancestry.com/save/charts/ancchart.htm Or make your own with a piece of A4 paper folded in half four times (credit card size) and then opened and folded longways in half and half again. You have the places to write name and birth, marriage, death dates and places for four generations across the page and eight great-grandparents down the page.
Once you have a Pedigree/Ancestry sheet you will be able to write down your birth date and place, and those of your parents, grandparents and great- grandparents et al; also marriage and death dates and places. The names and the places are your destinations. You will hope to find others researching your surnames and/or families. You will hope to find information about your places - perhaps even lists of names from parish registers or cemeteries, but certainly information about what is available for your places (maps, photo of the church, what is in the local repositories and what original records are accessible for research, etc). Later the gaps on your Pedigree Sheet will be your destinations as you try to find the missing information.
That's your first five minutes!! In your first clump of time you have obtained and started to fill in a Pedigree Sheet. Over the next few hours, days, weeks or months, depending on your supply of clumps of time, fill in the information for the names, dates and places of births, marriages and deaths.
Where to start? No matter where you are researching, follow the "CR" plan - Check Resources. The first resource to check is close relatives. Ask around your family - look for certificates, birthday books, address books, photo albums, scrap books, newspaper cuttings - anything that may place a person in a place or a time.
It will be a good idea to purchase an A5 hard covered note book (eventually you will need two of these and also an indexed A5 notebook - A-Z). Leave 12 pages in case you need to create an index. Count the number of pages left and divide by four (for the four families in the grandparent section of the pedigree sheet - or your choice of four families). Then use coloured "tabs" to mark the four families (you can buy these tabs from stationery shops). You can divide these sections again if you wish to have sections for any great-grandparents. You now have a Check Resources note-book. (You could use a ring binder and loose leaves instead if you wish). You could create an electronic file too - directions to in Part 2 next month.
In the appropriate section, make a note of everything and anything you find as you check the resource of close relatives - which cousin has a photo of which great-grandmother; who has her birth certificate; her birthday book; her school report, etc. Find long-lost cousins ( http://www.whitepages.co.nz/, http://www.teldir.com/ - worldwide phone books). Have an expanding 12-pocket file for any papers you collect. Twelve pockets means three pockets for each of the four families - one for certificates, one for information about places, names, etc and one for letters (or emails) you receive and copies of any you send. You should check resources for community repositories too, as you may find information about your families there. Community repositories are your local museum, libraries and archives. Here you may find your family in directories (usually trade geographical directories, but with a nationwide alpha-betical index - great to find where in the country siblings might live! A good example is found at sil.otago.ac.nz/oni/default. html), also in electoral rolls, newspapers, scrap books, photo collections, etc. The following sites are just a small selection of what is available, and just for three countries, but enough to use quite a few clumps of time! If you need to write to any repository, do enclose an SAE (stamped address envelope - at least DEL size or A5) and copy your question onto a new page, so the reply can be quickly written there and posted back.
New Zealand Museums On-Line will help you find museums throughout the country (http://www.nzmuseums.co.nz/). Choosing "History" gives a full list of museums. The Australian National Maritime Museum Research Library also has 17 interesting Pathfinder books (www.anmm.gov.au/libhome.htm). Australian Mus-eums & Galleries Online (amol.org.au/guide/guide_index.asp) has similar information to NZ Museums On-Line.
Museums Around the UK on the Web a huge directory is at vlmp.museophile.com/uk.html
The Auckland City Library has a very well organised site with some searchable data bases including cemeteries (http://www.akcity.govt.20nz/library/family/family.html). For links to Libraries in New Zealand, see tepuna.natlib.govt.nz/web_directory/NZ/libraries.htm
For libraries in Australia, see www.nla.gov.au/apps/libraries
Familia is the UK and Ireland's guide to genealogical resources in public libraries (www.familia.org.uk/main.html). I hesitate to mention Britain's 24-Hour Museum (http://www.24hourmuseum.org.uk/), as it may take more than your clump of time! But have a look sometime. Archive New Zealand's regional offices are listed at www.archives.govt.nz/archivesnz/offices/offices_frame.html, the National Archives of Australia at www.naa.gov.au/the_collection/family_history.html and the Public Record Office for England - national archives for England, Wales and the United Kingdom - at http://www.pro.gov.uk/
Finding information in community repositories is good because you can often go back to the original source - the newspaper, the directory, etc. Always check the original, if possible. Note any interesting Web sites, and your comments about them, in your Check Resources notebook. As you find more information, you may like to download and print Family Group sheets (www.byu.org/ancestors/charts). Here you can record the information you find about cousins, aunts and uncles even third cousins twice removed (www.janyce.com/gene/cousins.html)! Always look for a clue as to the when and where of events, so that you can check resources in those places for your families too.
A note of caution: The Check Resources notebook and the expanding file are just fine as you begin this hobby, but you may find you will need a more flexible and comprehensive filing system as your journey progresses. Use the A-Z notebook to create your index to the Web sites you found worthwhile, so you can find them again quickly. For example, you could enter Auckland City Library under Auckland and Libraries, Australian National Maritime Museum under Australia and Museums (you could Bookmark them too). Grab some clumps of time and do your genealogy - and see what you can find to write in your Check Resources book!
To "do" your genealogy in five minutes (or a clump of time) you need to be organised, and have discipline and planning, especially if you plan to use computer resources. You need to be able to pick up your Internet Diary (which could be called your Computer Resources book), your Check Resources book and your A-Z of Web Sites book and see just where you stopped last time, what you would like to do this time, and make the most of those clumps of time!
In your Check Resources book you will have made notes of anything of interest you have found for your 4/8 families. You will have filled in all you know on the Pedigree sheets. You will have noted Web sites of interest in the A-Z book.
Use your Internet Diary in a similar manner, as you check the resources on the Internet. Count the number of pages in an A5 hardbacked notebook. Leave 12-14 for an alpha index. Write the day's date on the next page, and write what you do and where you go - as per instructions to follow. When your "five minutes" is finished, write the surname searched in the alpha index with the day's date. Next time you want to search that surname, you can start searching again, productively, straight away, instead of wasting time wondering where you went last time.
You can then spend "five minutes" surfing the Net. Decide where you want to go - to choose someone on your Pedigree sheet who was born middle 1800s or earlier is a good start. We are looking for people, persons, places (people researching your names, the person you are looking for, the place where this person lived). The farther back you can start, the wider the net you cast. There is a much better chance that you can find descendants of siblings of great-grandparents or great, great-grand parents who may have gone to live in other parts of the world. Note: Responsible genealogists do not publish personal details of living people, so may not include the names of family born after 1900.
In your Internet Diary, write the name in quotation marks and as proper nouns, ie: "Edward Bridges" rather than edward bridges. A search for the latter returned around 169,000 hits (number of Web sites found to match my search query!) but "Edward Bridges" returned 529 hits (we lost all the references to bridges around the world!). Make a note of which search engines and the search query you used. See box for suggestions.
Remember, less is best. Do the widest search first to see just what is available. Two of my favourite search engines (http://www.alltheweb.com/ and http://www.google.com/) offer Advanced Search facilities. This saves you using "Search Engine Maths" - the "plus" and "minus" signs - in your search query. Instead use "Must have", "Should have", "Must not have". Look for the choice "Exact phrase" too, as this ensures that the words "Edward" and "Bridges" are side by side.
After your first wide search, add must have born or +born. Some "minus" choices would also reduce the number. In my example, my final Alltheweb search query ("Edward Bridges" +born +england -University -Austen) resulted in 11 Web sites to look at.
Remember, as soon as you open a suggested Web site, hit the CTRL+ F keys, to bring up the Find Function window, so that you can type the name or place you have searched for and so find just where on the page these words appear. Make sure you "find" on each of the pages. When you find something that looks good, make sure there is an email address and phone number too, so that you may make contact with the compiler and verify the accuracy of the data.
Some searches are just not successful, particularly if you have a common name. Try searching with the surname in capitals; try forename SURNAME; surname, forename; SURNAME, forename. Just keep checking resources in the hopes of finding a sibling with a less common name, or an uncommon occupation or place name. And keep trying again with the search engines; millions of new pages are added to the WWW every week.
You should also search Genealogy Gateways - search engines searching only genealogy pages. Try http://www.gendoor.com/, http://www.rootsweb.com/, http://www.ancestry.com/, http://www.genealogy.com/, http://www.gengateway.com/ (will take you to other specific Gateways), http://www.coraweb.com.au/ (Australian Gateway), http://www.cyndislist.com/, http://www.genuki.org.uk/
If you wish to track your progress electronically, you could use a program such as TreePad (www.treepad.com). The free version is TreePad Freeware, so this is the one to download. TreePad looks like Windows Explorer, but you create the folders, sub-folders and "files". You create nodes (folders) and child nodes (sub-folders) and articles (which can be text, links etc). Create Internet Diary as a node and the date as a child node. In the article, paste your search engine, search query, Web sites found and add your comments, etc. Search will quickly take you back to where you last searched for a particular family. Go to www.genealogy.net.nz to download a node listing the Web sites mentioned - it will save lots of typing!
These are just a few of the ways to look for People, Persons and Places. And you must find a spare "five minutes" for http://www.familysearch.org/ , The Mormon Church Web site. To look for your Persons (ancestors) go to "Search for your Ancestors in our vast record collections". It is best to begin by using the International Genealogical Index database to look for your ancestors. For hints on ways to make the best use of www.familysearch.org go to Genealogy on the Internet Web site - http://www.genealogy.net.nz/. For your Places, see "Search the Family History Library Catalogue" - go to Places and see just what original records the library holds for your places. Films and fiche may be ordered into your local Family History Centre - under "Find a Family History Centre near you".
If you have very few names on your Pedigree sheet, you will need to access contemporary records to find the missing information - records that were created at the time of the event. These include civil registration (the legal requirement to register births, deaths and marriages), church registers (vital records - christenings, marriages, burials as noted in parish registers), cemetery records and census returns (mostly every 10 years since 1841 in England, Wales, Scotland). There are others - newspapers are one.
Filling the gaps will require visits to libraries, repositories, Family History Centres etc. However, you can make a start! If you have NSW events, go to http://www.bdm.nsw.gov.au/ This index of births to 1905 and deaths and marriages to 1945 is online and free to access. In Victoria, there is a charge to look at the index (births to 1924, deaths to 1985, marriages to 1939) - 99c per screen of around 10 records (www.justice.vic.gov.au/bdm). Click on Births, Deaths & Marriages, then Family History, then VicHeritage Family History. Then you must go to the section headed Search Births, Deaths & Marriages on the Internet and click Maxi, then Continue. These indexes have parents' names on birth entries, spouse's name on marriages and parents' name or age on death entries. Certificates are available - cost $17-$26. These indexes and those for other Australian states are available on fiche and CDs too. Look at http://www.rootsweb.com/blahausbdm - the Australasia Births, Deaths and Marriages Exchange. This is a free resource to share information about details contained on civil and parish records registered in Australia and civil records registered in New Zealand.
A growing resource, as volunteers around the world create the database, is freebmd.rootsweb.com , the index to births, marriages and deaths in England and Wales from mid 1837 to eventually 1901. The indexes on fiche or film held in libraries and Family History Centres can be up to the 1990s. A brief index giving person's name, registration district and reference number - though age at death (since 1866), spouse's name (since 1912) and mother's maiden name (since Sep 1911) are a great help. Go to www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/civreg for information. To order a certificate (and so find more information) go to http://www.research-uk.co.uk/ - scroll down to page end and click on "Direct to BDM Order page". For Scotland, a pay-to-view site, but with a free surname search - http://www.origins.net/GRO
Use the search sites already listed to search for your church or parish registers, cemetery records and census records. Always search on the Internet, just in case. To see what can be available, look at http://www.wirksworth.org.uk/
What do you do with all the information you have collected? You do need a genealogy program.
Three popular programs are: http://www.legacyfamilytree.com/, http://www.familyorigins.com/, http://www.familytreemaker.com/.
For thoughts on choosing a genealogy program, go to www.beehivebooks.co.nz/id39.htm
Do try to follow the suggestions for organisation and for keeping track of your searches, so you can have some worthwhile "five minute" clumps of time as you "do" genealogy!
Do you have a spare five minutes? Yes? Then - let's do genealogy!
Well, you will need quite a few spare five minutes, but the idea is to have a system whereby you can take advantage of clumps of time. Do you have an hour or two to spare from time to time? A day here or there? A weekend? Five minutes? Whatever "spare" time you have, compiling your family tree is an absorbing and fun way to spend it.
Genealogy (names, dates, places - the who, where and when) and Family History (social and local history) is a journey; a journey through memories, through records, through the Internet; through time. And knowing your destination is half the journey - I think organisation is the other half! Because, with organisation comes discipline, planning, adeptness - a readiness. Planned, disciplined, skilled behaviour, is very handy for a genealogist!
When you only have small clumps of time, it is a good idea to be methodical. So, what do you need? To begin, you should have some idea of where you need to travel - so download and print a pedigree sheet or two (perhaps one for each of your parents, or your spouse or partner may like to do genealogy too) at www.geniecreations.com/free4gen.htm or www.kbyu.org/ancestors/charts or http://www.kbyu.org/ or www.ancestry.com/save/charts/ancchart.htm Or make your own with a piece of A4 paper folded in half four times (credit card size) and then opened and folded longways in half and half again. You have the places to write name and birth, marriage, death dates and places for four generations across the page and eight great-grandparents down the page.
Once you have a Pedigree/Ancestry sheet you will be able to write down your birth date and place, and those of your parents, grandparents and great- grandparents et al; also marriage and death dates and places. The names and the places are your destinations. You will hope to find others researching your surnames and/or families. You will hope to find information about your places - perhaps even lists of names from parish registers or cemeteries, but certainly information about what is available for your places (maps, photo of the church, what is in the local repositories and what original records are accessible for research, etc). Later the gaps on your Pedigree Sheet will be your destinations as you try to find the missing information.
That's your first five minutes!! In your first clump of time you have obtained and started to fill in a Pedigree Sheet. Over the next few hours, days, weeks or months, depending on your supply of clumps of time, fill in the information for the names, dates and places of births, marriages and deaths.
Where to start? No matter where you are researching, follow the "CR" plan - Check Resources. The first resource to check is close relatives. Ask around your family - look for certificates, birthday books, address books, photo albums, scrap books, newspaper cuttings - anything that may place a person in a place or a time.
It will be a good idea to purchase an A5 hard covered note book (eventually you will need two of these and also an indexed A5 notebook - A-Z). Leave 12 pages in case you need to create an index. Count the number of pages left and divide by four (for the four families in the grandparent section of the pedigree sheet - or your choice of four families). Then use coloured "tabs" to mark the four families (you can buy these tabs from stationery shops). You can divide these sections again if you wish to have sections for any great-grandparents. You now have a Check Resources note-book. (You could use a ring binder and loose leaves instead if you wish). You could create an electronic file too - directions to in Part 2 next month.
In the appropriate section, make a note of everything and anything you find as you check the resource of close relatives - which cousin has a photo of which great-grandmother; who has her birth certificate; her birthday book; her school report, etc. Find long-lost cousins ( http://www.whitepages.co.nz/, http://www.teldir.com/ - worldwide phone books). Have an expanding 12-pocket file for any papers you collect. Twelve pockets means three pockets for each of the four families - one for certificates, one for information about places, names, etc and one for letters (or emails) you receive and copies of any you send. You should check resources for community repositories too, as you may find information about your families there. Community repositories are your local museum, libraries and archives. Here you may find your family in directories (usually trade geographical directories, but with a nationwide alpha-betical index - great to find where in the country siblings might live! A good example is found at sil.otago.ac.nz/oni/default. html), also in electoral rolls, newspapers, scrap books, photo collections, etc. The following sites are just a small selection of what is available, and just for three countries, but enough to use quite a few clumps of time! If you need to write to any repository, do enclose an SAE (stamped address envelope - at least DEL size or A5) and copy your question onto a new page, so the reply can be quickly written there and posted back.
New Zealand Museums On-Line will help you find museums throughout the country (http://www.nzmuseums.co.nz/). Choosing "History" gives a full list of museums. The Australian National Maritime Museum Research Library also has 17 interesting Pathfinder books (www.anmm.gov.au/libhome.htm). Australian Mus-eums & Galleries Online (amol.org.au/guide/guide_index.asp) has similar information to NZ Museums On-Line.
Museums Around the UK on the Web a huge directory is at vlmp.museophile.com/uk.html
The Auckland City Library has a very well organised site with some searchable data bases including cemeteries (http://www.akcity.govt.20nz/library/family/family.html). For links to Libraries in New Zealand, see tepuna.natlib.govt.nz/web_directory/NZ/libraries.htm
For libraries in Australia, see www.nla.gov.au/apps/libraries
Familia is the UK and Ireland's guide to genealogical resources in public libraries (www.familia.org.uk/main.html). I hesitate to mention Britain's 24-Hour Museum (http://www.24hourmuseum.org.uk/), as it may take more than your clump of time! But have a look sometime. Archive New Zealand's regional offices are listed at www.archives.govt.nz/archivesnz/offices/offices_frame.html, the National Archives of Australia at www.naa.gov.au/the_collection/family_history.html and the Public Record Office for England - national archives for England, Wales and the United Kingdom - at http://www.pro.gov.uk/
Finding information in community repositories is good because you can often go back to the original source - the newspaper, the directory, etc. Always check the original, if possible. Note any interesting Web sites, and your comments about them, in your Check Resources notebook. As you find more information, you may like to download and print Family Group sheets (www.byu.org/ancestors/charts). Here you can record the information you find about cousins, aunts and uncles even third cousins twice removed (www.janyce.com/gene/cousins.html)! Always look for a clue as to the when and where of events, so that you can check resources in those places for your families too.
A note of caution: The Check Resources notebook and the expanding file are just fine as you begin this hobby, but you may find you will need a more flexible and comprehensive filing system as your journey progresses. Use the A-Z notebook to create your index to the Web sites you found worthwhile, so you can find them again quickly. For example, you could enter Auckland City Library under Auckland and Libraries, Australian National Maritime Museum under Australia and Museums (you could Bookmark them too). Grab some clumps of time and do your genealogy - and see what you can find to write in your Check Resources book!
To "do" your genealogy in five minutes (or a clump of time) you need to be organised, and have discipline and planning, especially if you plan to use computer resources. You need to be able to pick up your Internet Diary (which could be called your Computer Resources book), your Check Resources book and your A-Z of Web Sites book and see just where you stopped last time, what you would like to do this time, and make the most of those clumps of time!
In your Check Resources book you will have made notes of anything of interest you have found for your 4/8 families. You will have filled in all you know on the Pedigree sheets. You will have noted Web sites of interest in the A-Z book.
Use your Internet Diary in a similar manner, as you check the resources on the Internet. Count the number of pages in an A5 hardbacked notebook. Leave 12-14 for an alpha index. Write the day's date on the next page, and write what you do and where you go - as per instructions to follow. When your "five minutes" is finished, write the surname searched in the alpha index with the day's date. Next time you want to search that surname, you can start searching again, productively, straight away, instead of wasting time wondering where you went last time.
You can then spend "five minutes" surfing the Net. Decide where you want to go - to choose someone on your Pedigree sheet who was born middle 1800s or earlier is a good start. We are looking for people, persons, places (people researching your names, the person you are looking for, the place where this person lived). The farther back you can start, the wider the net you cast. There is a much better chance that you can find descendants of siblings of great-grandparents or great, great-grand parents who may have gone to live in other parts of the world. Note: Responsible genealogists do not publish personal details of living people, so may not include the names of family born after 1900.
In your Internet Diary, write the name in quotation marks and as proper nouns, ie: "Edward Bridges" rather than edward bridges. A search for the latter returned around 169,000 hits (number of Web sites found to match my search query!) but "Edward Bridges" returned 529 hits (we lost all the references to bridges around the world!). Make a note of which search engines and the search query you used. See box for suggestions.
Remember, less is best. Do the widest search first to see just what is available. Two of my favourite search engines (http://www.alltheweb.com/ and http://www.google.com/) offer Advanced Search facilities. This saves you using "Search Engine Maths" - the "plus" and "minus" signs - in your search query. Instead use "Must have", "Should have", "Must not have". Look for the choice "Exact phrase" too, as this ensures that the words "Edward" and "Bridges" are side by side.
After your first wide search, add must have born or +born. Some "minus" choices would also reduce the number. In my example, my final Alltheweb search query ("Edward Bridges" +born +england -University -Austen) resulted in 11 Web sites to look at.
Remember, as soon as you open a suggested Web site, hit the CTRL+ F keys, to bring up the Find Function window, so that you can type the name or place you have searched for and so find just where on the page these words appear. Make sure you "find" on each of the pages. When you find something that looks good, make sure there is an email address and phone number too, so that you may make contact with the compiler and verify the accuracy of the data.
Some searches are just not successful, particularly if you have a common name. Try searching with the surname in capitals; try forename SURNAME; surname, forename; SURNAME, forename. Just keep checking resources in the hopes of finding a sibling with a less common name, or an uncommon occupation or place name. And keep trying again with the search engines; millions of new pages are added to the WWW every week.
You should also search Genealogy Gateways - search engines searching only genealogy pages. Try http://www.gendoor.com/, http://www.rootsweb.com/, http://www.ancestry.com/, http://www.genealogy.com/, http://www.gengateway.com/ (will take you to other specific Gateways), http://www.coraweb.com.au/ (Australian Gateway), http://www.cyndislist.com/, http://www.genuki.org.uk/
If you wish to track your progress electronically, you could use a program such as TreePad (www.treepad.com). The free version is TreePad Freeware, so this is the one to download. TreePad looks like Windows Explorer, but you create the folders, sub-folders and "files". You create nodes (folders) and child nodes (sub-folders) and articles (which can be text, links etc). Create Internet Diary as a node and the date as a child node. In the article, paste your search engine, search query, Web sites found and add your comments, etc. Search will quickly take you back to where you last searched for a particular family. Go to www.genealogy.net.nz to download a node listing the Web sites mentioned - it will save lots of typing!
These are just a few of the ways to look for People, Persons and Places. And you must find a spare "five minutes" for http://www.familysearch.org/ , The Mormon Church Web site. To look for your Persons (ancestors) go to "Search for your Ancestors in our vast record collections". It is best to begin by using the International Genealogical Index database to look for your ancestors. For hints on ways to make the best use of www.familysearch.org go to Genealogy on the Internet Web site - http://www.genealogy.net.nz/. For your Places, see "Search the Family History Library Catalogue" - go to Places and see just what original records the library holds for your places. Films and fiche may be ordered into your local Family History Centre - under "Find a Family History Centre near you".
If you have very few names on your Pedigree sheet, you will need to access contemporary records to find the missing information - records that were created at the time of the event. These include civil registration (the legal requirement to register births, deaths and marriages), church registers (vital records - christenings, marriages, burials as noted in parish registers), cemetery records and census returns (mostly every 10 years since 1841 in England, Wales, Scotland). There are others - newspapers are one.
Filling the gaps will require visits to libraries, repositories, Family History Centres etc. However, you can make a start! If you have NSW events, go to http://www.bdm.nsw.gov.au/ This index of births to 1905 and deaths and marriages to 1945 is online and free to access. In Victoria, there is a charge to look at the index (births to 1924, deaths to 1985, marriages to 1939) - 99c per screen of around 10 records (www.justice.vic.gov.au/bdm). Click on Births, Deaths & Marriages, then Family History, then VicHeritage Family History. Then you must go to the section headed Search Births, Deaths & Marriages on the Internet and click Maxi, then Continue. These indexes have parents' names on birth entries, spouse's name on marriages and parents' name or age on death entries. Certificates are available - cost $17-$26. These indexes and those for other Australian states are available on fiche and CDs too. Look at http://www.rootsweb.com/blahausbdm - the Australasia Births, Deaths and Marriages Exchange. This is a free resource to share information about details contained on civil and parish records registered in Australia and civil records registered in New Zealand.
A growing resource, as volunteers around the world create the database, is freebmd.rootsweb.com , the index to births, marriages and deaths in England and Wales from mid 1837 to eventually 1901. The indexes on fiche or film held in libraries and Family History Centres can be up to the 1990s. A brief index giving person's name, registration district and reference number - though age at death (since 1866), spouse's name (since 1912) and mother's maiden name (since Sep 1911) are a great help. Go to www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/civreg for information. To order a certificate (and so find more information) go to http://www.research-uk.co.uk/ - scroll down to page end and click on "Direct to BDM Order page". For Scotland, a pay-to-view site, but with a free surname search - http://www.origins.net/GRO
Use the search sites already listed to search for your church or parish registers, cemetery records and census records. Always search on the Internet, just in case. To see what can be available, look at http://www.wirksworth.org.uk/
What do you do with all the information you have collected? You do need a genealogy program.
Three popular programs are: http://www.legacyfamilytree.com/, http://www.familyorigins.com/, http://www.familytreemaker.com/.
For thoughts on choosing a genealogy program, go to www.beehivebooks.co.nz/id39.htm
Do try to follow the suggestions for organisation and for keeping track of your searches, so you can have some worthwhile "five minute" clumps of time as you "do" genealogy!
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Computer Prayer
Computer Prayer
Blessings on this fine machine,
May its data all be clean.
Let the files stay where they're put,
Away from disk drives keep all soot.
From its screen shall come no whines,
Let in no spikes on power lines.
As oaks were sacred to the Druids,
Let not the keyboard suffer fluids.
Disk full shall be no more than rarity,
The memory shall not miss its parity.
From the modem shall come wonders,
Without line noise making blunders.
May it never catch a virus,
And all its software stay desirous.
Oh let the printer never jam,
And turn my output into spam.
I ask of Eris, noble queen,
Keep Murphy far from this machine.
Blessings on this fine machine,
May its data all be clean.
Let the files stay where they're put,
Away from disk drives keep all soot.
From its screen shall come no whines,
Let in no spikes on power lines.
As oaks were sacred to the Druids,
Let not the keyboard suffer fluids.
Disk full shall be no more than rarity,
The memory shall not miss its parity.
From the modem shall come wonders,
Without line noise making blunders.
May it never catch a virus,
And all its software stay desirous.
Oh let the printer never jam,
And turn my output into spam.
I ask of Eris, noble queen,
Keep Murphy far from this machine.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Genealogy Pox Poem
GENEALOGY POX
INCIDENCE: Though it can strike at any age, this dread disease rarely affects children or young adults, and rarely becomes serious until after middle age.
CONTAGION: The cause and manner of transmission of the Pox are poorly understood. It is generally only mildly contagious, requiring relatively prolonged exposure to one afflicted with it. However, some victims contract the disease after one brief exposure, while others seem to have a natural immunity, and can withstand years of close contact without ever succumbing to it.
SYMPTOMS: Insatiable craving for names, dates and places; patient often has a blank expression and seems deaf to spouse and children; has no taste for productive work of any kind, but will spend long hours feverishly looking through books at libraries and courthouses; may become addicted to the use of microfilm and microfiche readers; may become a compulsive letter- writer or phone-caller; may tend to lie in wait for the mailman, cursing him soundly if he only leaves bills or circulars; frequents strange places such as cemeteries, attics and any place where dusty old books and photographs can be found.
These have always been the classic symptoms. But recently the virus causing this Pox seems to have mutated. The newest symptom is spending hours in front of a computer screen, sending e-mail messages and looking for more and more genealogy websites on the Internet. This can lead to dire consequences, as the victim often forgets to eat or sleep and can become emaciated, disoriented and clinically speaking, totally nuts!
TREATMENT: There is no known cure, and fighting the disease only makes the victim withdraw from contact with those trying to help him. Humoring him, or joining in his obsessive activities seem to be the best ways for loved ones to deal with it. It is progressive, but has never been known to be fatal. The patient should attend genealogy workshops, subscribe to genealogy magazines, and be given a quiet place where he can be alone. If the patient is inattentive to those closest to him, his attention can be gotten, at least for short periods of time, by promising him a new website address, or a new and more powerful computer. But perhaps the surest, and certainly the least expensive way of getting his attention, is to ask a question - ANY question - about his great grandmother!
REMARKS/OBSERVATIONS: The most unusual aspect of this disease has always been that, the sicker the patient gets, the more he enjoys it!
With kind permission from:
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~parrottreilly/poems.html
INCIDENCE: Though it can strike at any age, this dread disease rarely affects children or young adults, and rarely becomes serious until after middle age.
CONTAGION: The cause and manner of transmission of the Pox are poorly understood. It is generally only mildly contagious, requiring relatively prolonged exposure to one afflicted with it. However, some victims contract the disease after one brief exposure, while others seem to have a natural immunity, and can withstand years of close contact without ever succumbing to it.
SYMPTOMS: Insatiable craving for names, dates and places; patient often has a blank expression and seems deaf to spouse and children; has no taste for productive work of any kind, but will spend long hours feverishly looking through books at libraries and courthouses; may become addicted to the use of microfilm and microfiche readers; may become a compulsive letter- writer or phone-caller; may tend to lie in wait for the mailman, cursing him soundly if he only leaves bills or circulars; frequents strange places such as cemeteries, attics and any place where dusty old books and photographs can be found.
These have always been the classic symptoms. But recently the virus causing this Pox seems to have mutated. The newest symptom is spending hours in front of a computer screen, sending e-mail messages and looking for more and more genealogy websites on the Internet. This can lead to dire consequences, as the victim often forgets to eat or sleep and can become emaciated, disoriented and clinically speaking, totally nuts!
TREATMENT: There is no known cure, and fighting the disease only makes the victim withdraw from contact with those trying to help him. Humoring him, or joining in his obsessive activities seem to be the best ways for loved ones to deal with it. It is progressive, but has never been known to be fatal. The patient should attend genealogy workshops, subscribe to genealogy magazines, and be given a quiet place where he can be alone. If the patient is inattentive to those closest to him, his attention can be gotten, at least for short periods of time, by promising him a new website address, or a new and more powerful computer. But perhaps the surest, and certainly the least expensive way of getting his attention, is to ask a question - ANY question - about his great grandmother!
REMARKS/OBSERVATIONS: The most unusual aspect of this disease has always been that, the sicker the patient gets, the more he enjoys it!
With kind permission from:
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~parrottreilly/poems.html
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Things I have and things I love about my family tree
things I hate about researching my family tree
One adulteress can spoil the batchI don't recall where I read it, but I do remember the sinking feeling I felt: the idea that somewhere, among the hundreds of people who copulated to create the branches of a family tree that ends with you, at least some percentage of the women were unfaithful. Some percentage of that percentage were impregnated by lovers, and some generous percentage of that group lied to their spouses, their family and their priests about the identity of the father. The child remained legally, and in the eyes of the church, a descendant of the husband.This situation occurs more often than you might think. An evolutionary biologist at the University of Manchester estimates that in 10 percent of British births, the mother was sleeping with a man who had "stronger" sperm than her husband. Both impregnated her, but the lover's sperm won out. According to an excellent article published in the New Yorker (26 March 2001), the rate of "false paternity" in the U.S. is estimated to be between two and five percent — "not large, but over ten generations the likelihood that a bloodline suffers from what geneticists refer to as a 'non-paternity event' could approach 50 percent." According to Why is Sex Fun?: The Evolution of Human Sexuality, some genetic testing hints that as many as 30 percent of American, British and Italian babies are secretly illegitimate — in its most recent annual survey (2003) of accredited DNA centers, the American Association of Blood Banks found that 29 percent of 340,798 men tested were not the fathers, as claimed by the mothers. The rule applies even in the animal kingdom, or at least among chimps: A 1997 study that ran DNA paternity tests on baby chimps found that 54 percent had not been fathered by the mother's mate.Once in a while a guy finds out that his kids may not be his, and he goes ballistic. Consider a story I read in This is True, a newsletter of weird-but-true news: "A man in Kinshasa, Zaire, was upset to learn that three of his four children were not his own, and that his wife of 20 years had been unfaithful to him for most of that time. Worse, the neighbors had known for a long time and laughed at him behind his back. Furious, 'Papa G.' sent the wife and three girls to the kids' father's house to live, but then decided that wasn't enough revenge. So he seduced one of the girls, got her pregnant, and married her to become his ex-wife's son-in-law."I shared this with Eddie Mitchell of Genealo-zine, and he related the story of a friend whose mother had left his father to live with her longtime lover. The lover turned out to be the biological father of the friend's brother and sister, who were in their early 20s. So you never know who you really are — just the stories people tell. The veracity of a legal or church record is only as good as someone's word. That said, you must now strike this thought from your head, or you will never find the energy to search through census records in bad light on an crippled microfilm reader.
People aren't where they're supposed to beYou trace your family back to a certain area and time. You dig up census records and search a small village for siblings. They aren't there. Church records list several by your ancestor's name born about the same time. Pitfalls in Genealogical Research (the best genealogy book you'll find for under $8) has some great examples of this, such as the tiny colonial town that was home to three unrelated guys with the same name.
Dates don't matchOne source has 17 January and another has 19 January. It doesn't matter, but if you're dedicated you have to take the time to make a notation and figure out which is right.
Too many statisticsThe emphasis on BMD (birth, marriage, death) isn't what genealogy is about, but sometimes it's all you have. I spend a few hours at a time typing from charts to a computer database and sometimes can't sleep because of the dates swimming in my head.
People don't care about the family history and so ignore youI have cousins and cousins of cousins who I suspect have troves of antique photos and letters in their attic, waiting to be destroyed in a fire. I write asking if I can beg, borrow or steal a glimpse; if they write back, it's often to say, "I looked but couldn't find them." Well, mister, YOU DIDN'T LOOK HARD ENOUGH.
No one labels old photosIt's so sad to visit antique shops and see dozens of 100-year-old photos for sale because no one ever took a few minutes to pencil names on the back. What's sadder is the shoe box of unidentified photos in your closet. You can't throw them out, because you know they're people who belong somewhere in the tree, but it's doubtful you or anyone else will ever know how.
Con artists everywherePitfalls in Genealogical Research describes the crooks who sell people instant family trees and fake coats of arms. That sort of thing gives genealogy a bad name. Tracing your family's history takes energy and time. I had one guy send me a chart that traced his family back to Adam.
Documenting everythingI hate having to document and footnote every date and place. It's a pain but you're supposed to do it. More statistics.
Listening to other people talk about their familiesGenealogists never seem to realize that no one wants to hear about their ancestors. They might want to hear about public records and genealogical detective stories, but only if the library isn't closing in half an hour. If you're going to share stories about your family, make sure they involve crazy aunts or murders or bastard children and leave out the statistics. Also, having an ancestor who came over on the Mayflower is not such a big deal — I have five. The Pilgrims married each other, so you find one, you find a bunch. Having an Ellis Island ancestor, now that's cool.
things I love about researching my family tree
Making new friends the list keeps growing.
It gives me a sense of the people who formed meWe are the product of people who came before. You figure that your parents molded you in many ways, and that your parents were molded by their parents, etc. So there's a part of each ancestor — good and bad — in our values and personalities and genes (but also see the first gripe in the previous list). Although playwright Edward Albee, when asked about why he had never tried to find his birth parents, responded: "I don't want to go to the trouble. I know who I am. Once I figured out who I was, whatever care or interest I may have had in where I came from vanished completely."
It reminds us that we're all family, more or lessWhen you discover and meet a long-lost cousin, you realize you could have passed her on the street or flipped him off at a traffic light and not even realized they were family. Scientists studying genomes have calculated that each of the six billion members of the species could trace back his or her lineage back 7000 generations to a founding population of about 60,000 people. They also know that the DNA of any two living people is 99.9 percent identical. As one scientist explains it, "Our similarities outweigh our differences."
The MormonsWhenever someone attacks the Mormons, I have this urge to defend them. That is, as long as they keep microfilming old records.
The detective workIt can make a person obsessive when he or she has a clue to an ancestor's identity and needs only to find a few hours to check records. My great grandfather, born during the Civil War, was the son of English parents. According to one legal record, they named him Charles Luncolias Rowe. I read in Pitfalls in Genealogical Research that the English sometimes named bastard children Last Name of Actual Father/alias/Last Name of Cheating Mother. Was he actually Lunc alias Rowe? I'm chomping at the bit to figure it out.
The people you write toI attribute my early interest to genealogy — I began when I was 12 — to teenage angst. Some people I wrote to as a kid were helpful beyond words. One woman even looked up my ancestors for me while she was vacationing overseas. I still exchange cards with some distant cousins, even though we've exhausted all leads. In many ways, genealogy is like doing a fanzine: You never meet most of your correspondents face-to-face but feel you know them.
Colonial AmericansUnlike the Poles, Germans and Russians, they recorded their public records in English. I am grateful.
Old photos that have been labeledI could study them for hours. It's weird especially to see your ancestors when they were about the same age as you. You try to imagine the events immediately before and after the photo was taken. It's sad, because you want to know these people who formed you, but they are lost. Genealogy never answered the question I was after as a teen: Who am I? Like everyone else, I'm figuring it out on my own. Each generation works from scratch. Family history makes you realize how transitory life is, which helps explain the Mormon instinct to baptize the past. It's a good instinct but probably futile.
One adulteress can spoil the batchI don't recall where I read it, but I do remember the sinking feeling I felt: the idea that somewhere, among the hundreds of people who copulated to create the branches of a family tree that ends with you, at least some percentage of the women were unfaithful. Some percentage of that percentage were impregnated by lovers, and some generous percentage of that group lied to their spouses, their family and their priests about the identity of the father. The child remained legally, and in the eyes of the church, a descendant of the husband.This situation occurs more often than you might think. An evolutionary biologist at the University of Manchester estimates that in 10 percent of British births, the mother was sleeping with a man who had "stronger" sperm than her husband. Both impregnated her, but the lover's sperm won out. According to an excellent article published in the New Yorker (26 March 2001), the rate of "false paternity" in the U.S. is estimated to be between two and five percent — "not large, but over ten generations the likelihood that a bloodline suffers from what geneticists refer to as a 'non-paternity event' could approach 50 percent." According to Why is Sex Fun?: The Evolution of Human Sexuality, some genetic testing hints that as many as 30 percent of American, British and Italian babies are secretly illegitimate — in its most recent annual survey (2003) of accredited DNA centers, the American Association of Blood Banks found that 29 percent of 340,798 men tested were not the fathers, as claimed by the mothers. The rule applies even in the animal kingdom, or at least among chimps: A 1997 study that ran DNA paternity tests on baby chimps found that 54 percent had not been fathered by the mother's mate.Once in a while a guy finds out that his kids may not be his, and he goes ballistic. Consider a story I read in This is True, a newsletter of weird-but-true news: "A man in Kinshasa, Zaire, was upset to learn that three of his four children were not his own, and that his wife of 20 years had been unfaithful to him for most of that time. Worse, the neighbors had known for a long time and laughed at him behind his back. Furious, 'Papa G.' sent the wife and three girls to the kids' father's house to live, but then decided that wasn't enough revenge. So he seduced one of the girls, got her pregnant, and married her to become his ex-wife's son-in-law."I shared this with Eddie Mitchell of Genealo-zine, and he related the story of a friend whose mother had left his father to live with her longtime lover. The lover turned out to be the biological father of the friend's brother and sister, who were in their early 20s. So you never know who you really are — just the stories people tell. The veracity of a legal or church record is only as good as someone's word. That said, you must now strike this thought from your head, or you will never find the energy to search through census records in bad light on an crippled microfilm reader.
People aren't where they're supposed to beYou trace your family back to a certain area and time. You dig up census records and search a small village for siblings. They aren't there. Church records list several by your ancestor's name born about the same time. Pitfalls in Genealogical Research (the best genealogy book you'll find for under $8) has some great examples of this, such as the tiny colonial town that was home to three unrelated guys with the same name.
Dates don't matchOne source has 17 January and another has 19 January. It doesn't matter, but if you're dedicated you have to take the time to make a notation and figure out which is right.
Too many statisticsThe emphasis on BMD (birth, marriage, death) isn't what genealogy is about, but sometimes it's all you have. I spend a few hours at a time typing from charts to a computer database and sometimes can't sleep because of the dates swimming in my head.
People don't care about the family history and so ignore youI have cousins and cousins of cousins who I suspect have troves of antique photos and letters in their attic, waiting to be destroyed in a fire. I write asking if I can beg, borrow or steal a glimpse; if they write back, it's often to say, "I looked but couldn't find them." Well, mister, YOU DIDN'T LOOK HARD ENOUGH.
No one labels old photosIt's so sad to visit antique shops and see dozens of 100-year-old photos for sale because no one ever took a few minutes to pencil names on the back. What's sadder is the shoe box of unidentified photos in your closet. You can't throw them out, because you know they're people who belong somewhere in the tree, but it's doubtful you or anyone else will ever know how.
Con artists everywherePitfalls in Genealogical Research describes the crooks who sell people instant family trees and fake coats of arms. That sort of thing gives genealogy a bad name. Tracing your family's history takes energy and time. I had one guy send me a chart that traced his family back to Adam.
Documenting everythingI hate having to document and footnote every date and place. It's a pain but you're supposed to do it. More statistics.
Listening to other people talk about their familiesGenealogists never seem to realize that no one wants to hear about their ancestors. They might want to hear about public records and genealogical detective stories, but only if the library isn't closing in half an hour. If you're going to share stories about your family, make sure they involve crazy aunts or murders or bastard children and leave out the statistics. Also, having an ancestor who came over on the Mayflower is not such a big deal — I have five. The Pilgrims married each other, so you find one, you find a bunch. Having an Ellis Island ancestor, now that's cool.
things I love about researching my family tree
Making new friends the list keeps growing.
It gives me a sense of the people who formed meWe are the product of people who came before. You figure that your parents molded you in many ways, and that your parents were molded by their parents, etc. So there's a part of each ancestor — good and bad — in our values and personalities and genes (but also see the first gripe in the previous list). Although playwright Edward Albee, when asked about why he had never tried to find his birth parents, responded: "I don't want to go to the trouble. I know who I am. Once I figured out who I was, whatever care or interest I may have had in where I came from vanished completely."
It reminds us that we're all family, more or lessWhen you discover and meet a long-lost cousin, you realize you could have passed her on the street or flipped him off at a traffic light and not even realized they were family. Scientists studying genomes have calculated that each of the six billion members of the species could trace back his or her lineage back 7000 generations to a founding population of about 60,000 people. They also know that the DNA of any two living people is 99.9 percent identical. As one scientist explains it, "Our similarities outweigh our differences."
The MormonsWhenever someone attacks the Mormons, I have this urge to defend them. That is, as long as they keep microfilming old records.
The detective workIt can make a person obsessive when he or she has a clue to an ancestor's identity and needs only to find a few hours to check records. My great grandfather, born during the Civil War, was the son of English parents. According to one legal record, they named him Charles Luncolias Rowe. I read in Pitfalls in Genealogical Research that the English sometimes named bastard children Last Name of Actual Father/alias/Last Name of Cheating Mother. Was he actually Lunc alias Rowe? I'm chomping at the bit to figure it out.
The people you write toI attribute my early interest to genealogy — I began when I was 12 — to teenage angst. Some people I wrote to as a kid were helpful beyond words. One woman even looked up my ancestors for me while she was vacationing overseas. I still exchange cards with some distant cousins, even though we've exhausted all leads. In many ways, genealogy is like doing a fanzine: You never meet most of your correspondents face-to-face but feel you know them.
Colonial AmericansUnlike the Poles, Germans and Russians, they recorded their public records in English. I am grateful.
Old photos that have been labeledI could study them for hours. It's weird especially to see your ancestors when they were about the same age as you. You try to imagine the events immediately before and after the photo was taken. It's sad, because you want to know these people who formed you, but they are lost. Genealogy never answered the question I was after as a teen: Who am I? Like everyone else, I'm figuring it out on my own. Each generation works from scratch. Family history makes you realize how transitory life is, which helps explain the Mormon instinct to baptize the past. It's a good instinct but probably futile.
Friday, October 10, 2008
GENEALOGY WARNING!! Very contagious to mature adults. NO KNOWN CURE
SYMPTOMS: Mumbles to self. Makes secret calls at night. Hides phone bill from spouse. Has strange far away look in eyes. Has strong compulsions to write letters. Always includes a check in these letters. Swears at mailman when he leaves no mail. Continual complaints for names, dates, and places. Patient has blank expression, sometimes deaf to spouse and children. Has no taste for work of any kind, except feverishly looking through records at libraries and courthouses. Has compulsions to frequently visit strange places, such as cemeteries, ruins, and remote desolate country areas.
TREATMENT:
Medication is useless. Disease is not fatal, but gets progressively worse. Patient should be given a quiet corner of the house where he or she can be left alone. Patient should subscribe to as many societies, newsgroups, surname lists, and genealogical magazines as possible.
REMARKS: The unusual nature of this disease is... The sicker one gets, the more he or she enjoys it.
Author unknown
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~parrottreilly/poems.html
SYMPTOMS: Mumbles to self. Makes secret calls at night. Hides phone bill from spouse. Has strange far away look in eyes. Has strong compulsions to write letters. Always includes a check in these letters. Swears at mailman when he leaves no mail. Continual complaints for names, dates, and places. Patient has blank expression, sometimes deaf to spouse and children. Has no taste for work of any kind, except feverishly looking through records at libraries and courthouses. Has compulsions to frequently visit strange places, such as cemeteries, ruins, and remote desolate country areas.
TREATMENT:
Medication is useless. Disease is not fatal, but gets progressively worse. Patient should be given a quiet corner of the house where he or she can be left alone. Patient should subscribe to as many societies, newsgroups, surname lists, and genealogical magazines as possible.
REMARKS: The unusual nature of this disease is... The sicker one gets, the more he or she enjoys it.
Author unknown
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~parrottreilly/poems.html
Saturday, October 4, 2008
Something to make your day...
Something to make your day
Thought you'd enjoy this as much as I did. My cousin sent them to me..... Would you believe...these are copies of actual correspondence received by the Family History Department?
Our 2nd great grandfather was found dead crossing the plains in the library. He was married 3 times in the endowment house and has 21children.
For running down the Wheelers, I will send $3.00 more.
He and his daughter are listed as not being born.
I would like to find out if I have any living relatives or dead relatives or ancestors in my family.
Will you send me a list of all the Dripps in your library?
My Grandfather died at the age of 3.
We are sending you 5 children in a separate envelope.
Documentation: Family Bible in possession of Aunt Merle until the tornado hit Topeka, Kansas, now only the Good Lord know where it is . . .
The wife of #22 could not be found. Somebody suggested that she might have been stillborn. What do you think?
I am mailing you my aunt and uncle and 3 of their children.
Enclosed please find my Grandmother. I have worked on her for 30 years without success. Now see what you can do.
I have a hard time finding myself in London. If I were there I was very small and cannot be found.
This family had 7 nephews that I am unable to find. If you know who they are please add them to the list.
We lost our Grandmother, will you please send us a copy?
Will you please send me the name of my first wife? I have forgotten her name.
A 14-year-old boy wrote: "I do not want you to do my research for me. Will you please send me all of the material on the Welch line, in the US, England and Scotland countries? I will do the research.
Further research will be necessary to eliminate one of the parents.
Thought you'd enjoy this as much as I did. My cousin sent them to me..... Would you believe...these are copies of actual correspondence received by the Family History Department?
Our 2nd great grandfather was found dead crossing the plains in the library. He was married 3 times in the endowment house and has 21children.
For running down the Wheelers, I will send $3.00 more.
He and his daughter are listed as not being born.
I would like to find out if I have any living relatives or dead relatives or ancestors in my family.
Will you send me a list of all the Dripps in your library?
My Grandfather died at the age of 3.
We are sending you 5 children in a separate envelope.
Documentation: Family Bible in possession of Aunt Merle until the tornado hit Topeka, Kansas, now only the Good Lord know where it is . . .
The wife of #22 could not be found. Somebody suggested that she might have been stillborn. What do you think?
I am mailing you my aunt and uncle and 3 of their children.
Enclosed please find my Grandmother. I have worked on her for 30 years without success. Now see what you can do.
I have a hard time finding myself in London. If I were there I was very small and cannot be found.
This family had 7 nephews that I am unable to find. If you know who they are please add them to the list.
We lost our Grandmother, will you please send us a copy?
Will you please send me the name of my first wife? I have forgotten her name.
A 14-year-old boy wrote: "I do not want you to do my research for me. Will you please send me all of the material on the Welch line, in the US, England and Scotland countries? I will do the research.
Further research will be necessary to eliminate one of the parents.
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Dear Ancestor
Dear Ancestor
Your tombstone stands among the rest; Neglected and alone The name and date are chiseled out On polished, marbled stone. It reaches out to all who care It is too late to mourn. You did not know that I exist You died and I was born. Yet each of us are cells of you In flesh, in blood, in bone. Our blood contracts and beats a pulse Entirely not our own. Dear Ancestor, the place you filled So many years ago Spreads out among the ones you left Who would have loved you so. I wonder if you lived and loved, I wonder if you knew That someday I would find this spot, And come to visit you.
Your tombstone stands among the rest; Neglected and alone The name and date are chiseled out On polished, marbled stone. It reaches out to all who care It is too late to mourn. You did not know that I exist You died and I was born. Yet each of us are cells of you In flesh, in blood, in bone. Our blood contracts and beats a pulse Entirely not our own. Dear Ancestor, the place you filled So many years ago Spreads out among the ones you left Who would have loved you so. I wonder if you lived and loved, I wonder if you knew That someday I would find this spot, And come to visit you.
Sunday, August 10, 2008
5 Golden Rules of Genealogy
It's a fact of life. Trees can't live without light, water, air, and food. While fancy fertilizers and high-tech bug killers are nice, all trees really need to survive are the basics and a little TLC.
As with real trees, all your family tree really needs to grow and flourish is a little of your time (or a lot if you're as addicted as I am!) and some attention to the basics. Digitized census records, DNA tests, and merge-matching software are wonderful inventions, but applying these five essential rules to your family tree research will go a much longer way to achieving genealogy success.
Rule #1: Do Not Assume I know you've all heard this one, but it bears repeating. "Set in stone" is an expression that just doesn't apply to genealogy! Do not assume that the dates listed on a tombstone are the correct ones. Do not assume that your surname was always spelled the way it is today. Do not assume that household members listed in a census are actually brothers, sisters, or other relatives (unless the census actually states the relationship and, sometimes, not even then). Do not assume something as fact just because it has been published in a book or on the Internet. More: Do the Ancestors Hanging From Your Family Tree Really Belong There?
Rule #2: Do Your Own Research Following up on Rule One, secondary sources such as published family histories, indexes, and compilations are an easy way to expand your family tree quickly (the fancy fertilizer approach), but are also highly susceptible to mistakes and assumptions (as second-hand information usually is) that can quickly send your family tree growing in the wrong direction. While it is perfectly fine to use these types of sources to find clues to your family, you should always go back and take the time to verify second-hand sources with your own research in original documents. It only takes one incorrect assumption or fact to have you researching the wrong ancestors! More: Five Steps to Verifying Online Genealogy Sources
Rule #3: Treat Brothers & Sisters as Equals Many genealogists, especially beginners, are only interested in tracing their direct line -- grandparents, great-grandparents, etc. While there is nothing wrong with this approach, there is a good reason it is called a family tree, not an ancestor tree. The further back your research takes you, the more important it becomes to research your ancestor's brothers, sisters, aunts, and uncles. Commonly referred to as collateral ancestors or collateral lines, these family members may provide the clues that your direct ancestor somehow managed not to leave behind. While your great-grandmother may have been born before births were recorded in the state where she lived, her younger sister may have been born just late enough to have that birth certificate with the parents' names you've been looking for. Or when you learn that your great-great grandfather was born in America, and his parents never chose to become citizens, the naturalization record of the eldest child who was born in Poland may provide the only link to the family's ancestral town. Many choose not to follow this sibling rule because of all the extra work involved, but I can guarantee that by doing so you'll find your research stuck somewhere. More: Researching Collateral Lines
Rule #4: One Source Doesn't Equal Proof It seems pretty simple. You find a death certificate for your grandfather which lists not only his date of death and place of burial, but also his place of birth and his parents' names. Time to enter the information into your family tree and then move on to tracking down Great-grandpa, right? Nope, sorry. One source just isn't enough to constitute proof, especially when it is a secondary source -- as death certificates are for the date of birth and other information which do not relate directly to the death. I searched for my great, great-grandmother for years under the maiden name MARIN because that is what my grandmother remembered. Then, wasted some more time with the maiden name MOORE (pun intended), because that is what I found listed on the death certificate. Both wrong, of course. The actual name was close enough (MEARES), but close doesn't count in genealogy any more than it does in multiple choice.
Before arriving at a conclusion in your genealogy research, you must first conduct a reasonably exhaustive search for all pertinent information. Logically, this means trying to find several different sources for the same information, to give you the best chance at arriving at a well-researched, substantiated conclusion. More: Evidence or Proof? How to Prove Family Tree Connections
Rule #5: Share the Wealth Family trees are meant for sharing. Unfortunately, however, you'll probably find that most of your relatives could care less about the jumbled (to them) collection of facts, notes, and sources that constitute your genealogy database. If you weave all of those names and dates into a story, however, you may find they are interested despite themselves. And "interested" means you'll probably find them more receptive to sharing what they know. Take some time out from your research today to get some of your information into published form, whether it is creating a CD of collected family photos, a family cookbook of collected recipes, or a written history of the family. Even something as simple as framing a copy of Great-granddad's family in the 1930 census is a form of publishing - and makes a great conversation piece too! It's okay if your genealogy isn't "finished." Believe me - it never will be. Just include what you know, taking the time to carefully document your sources. Don't be afraid to use "weasel words" such as probably, possibly, and maybe for information you aren't sure about. As long as you're careful to explain what is fact and what is still guesswork, your family tree will grow for the sharing. More: Writing & Publishing Your Family History
As with real trees, all your family tree really needs to grow and flourish is a little of your time (or a lot if you're as addicted as I am!) and some attention to the basics. Digitized census records, DNA tests, and merge-matching software are wonderful inventions, but applying these five essential rules to your family tree research will go a much longer way to achieving genealogy success.
Rule #1: Do Not Assume I know you've all heard this one, but it bears repeating. "Set in stone" is an expression that just doesn't apply to genealogy! Do not assume that the dates listed on a tombstone are the correct ones. Do not assume that your surname was always spelled the way it is today. Do not assume that household members listed in a census are actually brothers, sisters, or other relatives (unless the census actually states the relationship and, sometimes, not even then). Do not assume something as fact just because it has been published in a book or on the Internet. More: Do the Ancestors Hanging From Your Family Tree Really Belong There?
Rule #2: Do Your Own Research Following up on Rule One, secondary sources such as published family histories, indexes, and compilations are an easy way to expand your family tree quickly (the fancy fertilizer approach), but are also highly susceptible to mistakes and assumptions (as second-hand information usually is) that can quickly send your family tree growing in the wrong direction. While it is perfectly fine to use these types of sources to find clues to your family, you should always go back and take the time to verify second-hand sources with your own research in original documents. It only takes one incorrect assumption or fact to have you researching the wrong ancestors! More: Five Steps to Verifying Online Genealogy Sources
Rule #3: Treat Brothers & Sisters as Equals Many genealogists, especially beginners, are only interested in tracing their direct line -- grandparents, great-grandparents, etc. While there is nothing wrong with this approach, there is a good reason it is called a family tree, not an ancestor tree. The further back your research takes you, the more important it becomes to research your ancestor's brothers, sisters, aunts, and uncles. Commonly referred to as collateral ancestors or collateral lines, these family members may provide the clues that your direct ancestor somehow managed not to leave behind. While your great-grandmother may have been born before births were recorded in the state where she lived, her younger sister may have been born just late enough to have that birth certificate with the parents' names you've been looking for. Or when you learn that your great-great grandfather was born in America, and his parents never chose to become citizens, the naturalization record of the eldest child who was born in Poland may provide the only link to the family's ancestral town. Many choose not to follow this sibling rule because of all the extra work involved, but I can guarantee that by doing so you'll find your research stuck somewhere. More: Researching Collateral Lines
Rule #4: One Source Doesn't Equal Proof It seems pretty simple. You find a death certificate for your grandfather which lists not only his date of death and place of burial, but also his place of birth and his parents' names. Time to enter the information into your family tree and then move on to tracking down Great-grandpa, right? Nope, sorry. One source just isn't enough to constitute proof, especially when it is a secondary source -- as death certificates are for the date of birth and other information which do not relate directly to the death. I searched for my great, great-grandmother for years under the maiden name MARIN because that is what my grandmother remembered. Then, wasted some more time with the maiden name MOORE (pun intended), because that is what I found listed on the death certificate. Both wrong, of course. The actual name was close enough (MEARES), but close doesn't count in genealogy any more than it does in multiple choice.
Before arriving at a conclusion in your genealogy research, you must first conduct a reasonably exhaustive search for all pertinent information. Logically, this means trying to find several different sources for the same information, to give you the best chance at arriving at a well-researched, substantiated conclusion. More: Evidence or Proof? How to Prove Family Tree Connections
Rule #5: Share the Wealth Family trees are meant for sharing. Unfortunately, however, you'll probably find that most of your relatives could care less about the jumbled (to them) collection of facts, notes, and sources that constitute your genealogy database. If you weave all of those names and dates into a story, however, you may find they are interested despite themselves. And "interested" means you'll probably find them more receptive to sharing what they know. Take some time out from your research today to get some of your information into published form, whether it is creating a CD of collected family photos, a family cookbook of collected recipes, or a written history of the family. Even something as simple as framing a copy of Great-granddad's family in the 1930 census is a form of publishing - and makes a great conversation piece too! It's okay if your genealogy isn't "finished." Believe me - it never will be. Just include what you know, taking the time to carefully document your sources. Don't be afraid to use "weasel words" such as probably, possibly, and maybe for information you aren't sure about. As long as you're careful to explain what is fact and what is still guesswork, your family tree will grow for the sharing. More: Writing & Publishing Your Family History
Monday, July 21, 2008
NZ Research
NEW ZEALAND
New Zealand Society of Genealogists Inc. http://www.genealogy.org.nz/
Online Catalogue and Family Research Centre.
Getting started http://www.genealogy.org.nz/resources/researchnz.htmlNewspapers
Many older newspapers were not published daily and thus it is not too difficult to search all issues for a three-month period to find a birth notice. Many will contain parent’s names or state the birth of a child (name) to the wife of Mr. (name) of (location) on date.
Many NZSG branches, local historical groups and local museums have indexed their local papers. Check you local NZSG branch for these indexes.
Public libraries often hold local newspapers on microfiche or film. Many Maori newspapers published between 1842 and 1932 can now be searched on line at the Maori Niupepa Collection.
The Alexander Turnbull Biographical Index should be checked. This is available in many public libraries.Church Records
Check the Church, School and District History section of the NZSG library that will be available to NZSG members from March 2002.
Local church registers for many parts of NZ still exist and are available from the church, its archives or libraries and local branches of NZSG. They will give you dates and parent names and perhaps in some cases names of other family members.Intentions to Marry
The intentions to marry have been indexed by the names of both bride and groom up to 1880, and later dates can be checked using the indexes at Archives NZ, Wellington. These records often hold more information than a marriage certificate.School Records
The national NZSG School Records project is currently underway. These records often provide birth dates, parent or guardian name, last day at school and destination if the student was moving to a new location. Brothers and sisters are often in the same school roll, perhaps in sequential entries if they all enrolled together. The beginning of this index, up to 1940, is now on the NZSG Index. The next issue will have significantly improved coverage, around 3500 schools. This index is available only to NZSG members and observes a 60 year closure rule on availability of records.
Check with the local NZSG branch to see if they have indexed the records for the area that is being researched.
Perhaps you may find your nearest archives, library or school still retains copies of school rolls and will allow you to search them.NZ probates
Most NZ probates have been indexed. The indexes are available on the NZSG Index, some portions on microfiche, and in hardcopy form in many Archives NZ regional offices. The index identifies the date of the probate of the wills in New Zealand courts and are held by Archives New Zealand. Not all probate index records contain a death date, but often the will or other supporting documentation obtainable from Archives New Zealand will reveal more about the deceased person. You will be able to identify the full name, place of death, occupation, death date (if recorded), court, the probate number (to allow the documents to be found), the filed date (usually shortly after the death date), type (whether there is a will or the person died intestate), and where the documents can be viewed.Electoral Rolls
These often show all family members of voting age at an address. Search forward and backwards to other years once you have found your family.
The 1893 electoral roll. This was the first opportunity for women to vote and a very high percentage did. Their names, residence and occupation (for example "wife") are also shown. This index is on the NZSG Index.
Become a member: http://www.genealogy.org.nz/about/join.html
Special interest Groups within NZ: http://www.genealogy.org.nz/sig/index.html
Includes Australia, Channel Islands, Cornish, East Anglia, East India, European, Greater London, Irish, Hugenot, Isle of Man, Maori, Midlands/Northwest England, North America, North East England, Pacific islands, Scottish, Southern England, Welsh
Brides and Grooms Index: http://www.genealogy.org.nz/services/match.html
NZSG has a matching brides and grooms index. Once you know the Folio (reference) number and year for the marriage you will be able to find the marriage partner's name without needing to search hundreds of microfiche frames. Knowing both partners' names also makes other records easier to search eg, probates, burials, and electoral rolls. This, in turn, will identify more family information,
New Zealand Society of Genealogists Inc. http://www.genealogy.org.nz/
Online Catalogue and Family Research Centre.
Getting started http://www.genealogy.org.nz/resources/researchnz.htmlNewspapers
Many older newspapers were not published daily and thus it is not too difficult to search all issues for a three-month period to find a birth notice. Many will contain parent’s names or state the birth of a child (name) to the wife of Mr. (name) of (location) on date.
Many NZSG branches, local historical groups and local museums have indexed their local papers. Check you local NZSG branch for these indexes.
Public libraries often hold local newspapers on microfiche or film. Many Maori newspapers published between 1842 and 1932 can now be searched on line at the Maori Niupepa Collection.
The Alexander Turnbull Biographical Index should be checked. This is available in many public libraries.Church Records
Check the Church, School and District History section of the NZSG library that will be available to NZSG members from March 2002.
Local church registers for many parts of NZ still exist and are available from the church, its archives or libraries and local branches of NZSG. They will give you dates and parent names and perhaps in some cases names of other family members.Intentions to Marry
The intentions to marry have been indexed by the names of both bride and groom up to 1880, and later dates can be checked using the indexes at Archives NZ, Wellington. These records often hold more information than a marriage certificate.School Records
The national NZSG School Records project is currently underway. These records often provide birth dates, parent or guardian name, last day at school and destination if the student was moving to a new location. Brothers and sisters are often in the same school roll, perhaps in sequential entries if they all enrolled together. The beginning of this index, up to 1940, is now on the NZSG Index. The next issue will have significantly improved coverage, around 3500 schools. This index is available only to NZSG members and observes a 60 year closure rule on availability of records.
Check with the local NZSG branch to see if they have indexed the records for the area that is being researched.
Perhaps you may find your nearest archives, library or school still retains copies of school rolls and will allow you to search them.NZ probates
Most NZ probates have been indexed. The indexes are available on the NZSG Index, some portions on microfiche, and in hardcopy form in many Archives NZ regional offices. The index identifies the date of the probate of the wills in New Zealand courts and are held by Archives New Zealand. Not all probate index records contain a death date, but often the will or other supporting documentation obtainable from Archives New Zealand will reveal more about the deceased person. You will be able to identify the full name, place of death, occupation, death date (if recorded), court, the probate number (to allow the documents to be found), the filed date (usually shortly after the death date), type (whether there is a will or the person died intestate), and where the documents can be viewed.Electoral Rolls
These often show all family members of voting age at an address. Search forward and backwards to other years once you have found your family.
The 1893 electoral roll. This was the first opportunity for women to vote and a very high percentage did. Their names, residence and occupation (for example "wife") are also shown. This index is on the NZSG Index.
Become a member: http://www.genealogy.org.nz/about/join.html
Special interest Groups within NZ: http://www.genealogy.org.nz/sig/index.html
Includes Australia, Channel Islands, Cornish, East Anglia, East India, European, Greater London, Irish, Hugenot, Isle of Man, Maori, Midlands/Northwest England, North America, North East England, Pacific islands, Scottish, Southern England, Welsh
Brides and Grooms Index: http://www.genealogy.org.nz/services/match.html
NZSG has a matching brides and grooms index. Once you know the Folio (reference) number and year for the marriage you will be able to find the marriage partner's name without needing to search hundreds of microfiche frames. Knowing both partners' names also makes other records easier to search eg, probates, burials, and electoral rolls. This, in turn, will identify more family information,
Monday, July 7, 2008
Genealogy Humour...
The Top Ten Indicators That You've Become A Gene-Aholic 10. You introduce your daughter as your descendent. 9. You've never met any of the people you send e-mail to, even though you're related. 8. You can recite your lineage back 8 generations, but can't remember your nephew's name. 7. You have more photographs of dead people than living ones. 6. You've ever taken a tape recorder and/or notebook to a family reunion. 5. You've not only read the latest GEDCOM standard, you understand it! 4. The local genealogy society borrows books from you! 3. The only film you've seen in the last year was the 1880 census index. 2. More than half of your CD collection is made up of marriage records or pedigrees. 1. Your elusive ancestor has been spotted in more different places than Elvis! "The Family Tree" I think that I shall never see, the finish of a family tree, As it forever seems to grow, from roots that started long ago. Way back in ancient history times, in foreign lands and distant climes, From them grew trunk and braching limb, that dated back to times so dim, One seldom knows exactly when, the parents met and married then; Nor when the twigs began to grow, with odd named children row on row. Though verse like this was made by me, the end's in sight as you can see. 'Tis not the same with family trees, that grow and grow through centuries. CENSUS TAKER It was the first day of census, and all through the land; The pollster was ready ... a black book in hand. He mounted his horse for a long dusty ride; His book and some quills were tucked close by his side. A long winding ride down a road barely there; Toward the smell of fresh bread wafting, up through the air. The woman was tired, with lines on her face; And wisps of brown hair she tucked back into place. She gave him some water ... as they sat at the table; And she answered his questions ... the best she was able. He asked of her children... Yes, she had quite a few; The oldest was twenty, the youngest not two. She held up a toddler with cheeks round and red; his sister, she whispered, was napping in bed. She noted each person who lived there with pride; And she felt the faint stirrings of the wee one inside. He noted the sex, the color, the age... The marks from the quill soon filled up the page. At the number of children, she nodded her head; And saw her lips quiver for the three that were dead. The places of birth she "never forgot"; Was it Kansas? or Utah? or Oregon ... or not? They came from Scotland, of that she was clear; But she wasn't quite sure just how long they'd been here. They spoke of employment, of schooling and such; They could read some .and write some .. though really not much. When the questions were answered, his job there was done; So he mounted his horse and he rode toward the sun. We can almost imagine his voice loud and clear; "May God bless you all for another ten years." Now picture a time warp ... its' now you and me; As we search for the people on our family tree. We squint at the census and scroll down so slow; As we search for that entry from long, long ago. Could they only imagine on that long ago day; That the entries they made would effect us this way? If they knew, would they wonder at the yearning we feel; And the searching that makes them so increasingly real. We can hear if we listen the words they impart; Through their blood in our veins and their voice in our heart.
Friday, June 6, 2008
Cooking Cleaning? I'd rather do Genealogy
Cooking? Cleaning? I'd Rather do Genealogy!
They think that I should cook and clean, and be a model wife. I tell them it's more interesting to study Grandpa's life.
They simply do not understand why I hate to go to bed . . . I'd rather do two hundred years of research work instead.
Why waste the time we have on earth just snoring and asleep? When we can learn of ancestors that sailed upon the deep?
We have priests, Rabbis, lawmen, soldiers, more than just a few. And yes, there's many scoundrels, and a bootlegger or two.
How can a person find this life an awful drudge or bore? When we can live the lives of all those folks who came before?
A hundred years from now of course, no one will ever know Whether I did laundry, but they'll see our Tree and glow . . .
'Cause their dear old granny left for them, for all posterity, not clean hankies and the like, but a finished family tree.
My home may be untidy, 'cause I've better things to do . . . I'm checking all the records to provide us with a clue.
Old great granny's pulling roots and branches out with glee, Her clothes ain't hanging out to dry, she's hung up on the Tree.
Anonymous
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~parrottreilly/poems.html
They think that I should cook and clean, and be a model wife. I tell them it's more interesting to study Grandpa's life.
They simply do not understand why I hate to go to bed . . . I'd rather do two hundred years of research work instead.
Why waste the time we have on earth just snoring and asleep? When we can learn of ancestors that sailed upon the deep?
We have priests, Rabbis, lawmen, soldiers, more than just a few. And yes, there's many scoundrels, and a bootlegger or two.
How can a person find this life an awful drudge or bore? When we can live the lives of all those folks who came before?
A hundred years from now of course, no one will ever know Whether I did laundry, but they'll see our Tree and glow . . .
'Cause their dear old granny left for them, for all posterity, not clean hankies and the like, but a finished family tree.
My home may be untidy, 'cause I've better things to do . . . I'm checking all the records to provide us with a clue.
Old great granny's pulling roots and branches out with glee, Her clothes ain't hanging out to dry, she's hung up on the Tree.
Anonymous
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~parrottreilly/poems.html
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
I am my own Grandpa
I am my own grandpa!
Many many years ago When I was twenty three, I got married to a widow Who was pretty as could be.
This widow had a grown-up daughter Who had hair of red. My father fell in love with her, And soon the two were wed.
This made my dad my son-in-law And changed my very life. My daughter was my mother, For she was my father's wife.
To complicate the matters worse, Although it brought me joy, I soon became the father Of a bouncing baby boy.
My little baby then became A brother-in-law to dad. And so became my uncle, Though it made me very sad.
For if he was my uncle, Then that also made him brother To the widow's grown-up daughter Who, of course, was my step-mother.
Father's wife then had a son, Who kept them on the run. And he became my grandson, For he was my daughter's son.
My wife is now my mother's mother And it makes me blue. Because, although she is my wife, She's my grandmother too.
If my wife is my grandmother, Then I am her grandchild. And every time I think of it, It simply drives me wild.
For now I have become The strangest case you ever saw. As the husband of my grandmother, I am my own grandpa!
Published with permission from:
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~parrottreilly/poems.html
Many many years ago When I was twenty three, I got married to a widow Who was pretty as could be.
This widow had a grown-up daughter Who had hair of red. My father fell in love with her, And soon the two were wed.
This made my dad my son-in-law And changed my very life. My daughter was my mother, For she was my father's wife.
To complicate the matters worse, Although it brought me joy, I soon became the father Of a bouncing baby boy.
My little baby then became A brother-in-law to dad. And so became my uncle, Though it made me very sad.
For if he was my uncle, Then that also made him brother To the widow's grown-up daughter Who, of course, was my step-mother.
Father's wife then had a son, Who kept them on the run. And he became my grandson, For he was my daughter's son.
My wife is now my mother's mother And it makes me blue. Because, although she is my wife, She's my grandmother too.
If my wife is my grandmother, Then I am her grandchild. And every time I think of it, It simply drives me wild.
For now I have become The strangest case you ever saw. As the husband of my grandmother, I am my own grandpa!
Published with permission from:
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~parrottreilly/poems.html
Monday, May 19, 2008
23rd Psalm for Genealogists
The 23rd Psalm for Genealogists"
Genealogy is my Pastime ... I shall not stray,
It maketh me to lie down and examine half-buried Tombstones;
It leadeth me into still Courthouses.It restoreth my Ancestral Knowledge;
It leadeth me into the Paths of Census Records and Ships Passenger Lists for my Surnames' sake;
Yes, though I wait through the Shadows of Research Libraries and Microfilm Readers,
I shall fear no Discouragment, for a Strong Urge is with me.
The curiosity and Motivation, they Comfort me;
It demandeth preparation of Storage Space for the Aquisition of Countless Documents;
It anointeth my Head with burning Midnight Oil,My Family Group Sheets runneth over.
Surely Birth,Marriage and Death dates shall follow me all the Days of my Life,
And I shall dwell in the House of a Family History Seeker Forever.
~ Author Unknown ~
Genealogy is my Pastime ... I shall not stray,
It maketh me to lie down and examine half-buried Tombstones;
It leadeth me into still Courthouses.It restoreth my Ancestral Knowledge;
It leadeth me into the Paths of Census Records and Ships Passenger Lists for my Surnames' sake;
Yes, though I wait through the Shadows of Research Libraries and Microfilm Readers,
I shall fear no Discouragment, for a Strong Urge is with me.
The curiosity and Motivation, they Comfort me;
It demandeth preparation of Storage Space for the Aquisition of Countless Documents;
It anointeth my Head with burning Midnight Oil,My Family Group Sheets runneth over.
Surely Birth,Marriage and Death dates shall follow me all the Days of my Life,
And I shall dwell in the House of a Family History Seeker Forever.
~ Author Unknown ~
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Top 10 Genealogy Mistakes to Avoid
Top 10 Genealogy Mistakes to Avoid
1. Don't Forget Your Living Relatives
2. Don't Trust Everything You See in Print
3. We're Related To... Someone Famous
4. Genealogy is More Than Just Names & Dates
5. Beware Generic Family Histories
6. Don't Accept Family Legends As Fact
7. Don't Limit Yourself to Just One Spelling
8. Don't Neglect to Document Your Sources
9. Don't Jump Straight to the Country of Origin
10. Don't Misspell the Word Genealogy
1. Don't Forget Your Living Relatives
2. Don't Trust Everything You See in Print
3. We're Related To... Someone Famous
4. Genealogy is More Than Just Names & Dates
5. Beware Generic Family Histories
6. Don't Accept Family Legends As Fact
7. Don't Limit Yourself to Just One Spelling
8. Don't Neglect to Document Your Sources
9. Don't Jump Straight to the Country of Origin
10. Don't Misspell the Word Genealogy
Friday, April 11, 2008
Organising your research
There are many ways and methods, this is just one but it works for me.
Here's a brief rundown of my method to organize all of your genealogy information:
Many genealogy organization methods are too confusing, complicated, time consuming, or you have to do a complete overhaul of everything. Instead, try this great way to organize and keep track of your mounds of paperwork, notebooks, photos, piles, files, and shoe boxes that are filled with your genealogy and family history stuff. Here's how it works:
Supplies you will need:
ONE 1 or 1-1/2 inch notebook for your "Key Index Notebook."
Page dividers that you can label in your "Key Index Notebook."
NUMBERED page dividers for any genealogy notebooks that you have.
BLANK labels to put "numbered references" on any existing genealogy notebooks, hanging file folders, regular files folders, crates, shoe boxes, etc.
Here is how easy it can be...
Leave all of your genealogy stuff where it is right now.
Don't change a thing. If you keep your genealogy things in notebooks and filing cabinets, that is fine. If you like to store your stuff in crates and shoe boxes, that is okay too. If it is all jumbled together and needs to be sorted out, please DON'T do it. Just leave it alone.
Instead, go to wherever you store your genealogy stuff and NUMBER the storage containers. If it is in notebooks, stick a label on a notebook and write "Notebook 1" on it. Then take the next one, stick a label on it, and write "Notebook 2" on it, and so on.
NOTE: Take out any existing page dividers that are in your notebooks and replace them with numbered page dividers. Examples: Dividers 1 through 12, or 1 through 25, or whatever your preference.
The same applies to your filing cabinets. Stick a label on each drawer and call them "Drawer 1" and "Drawer 2," etc. It also applies to any boxes you have ("Box 1" and "Box 2").
NOTE: Numbering your hanging file folders 1 through 25 or 1 through 50 PER drawer works well. This means that both the drawer itself and the hanging folders inside the drawer are numbered. If you use regular file folders instead of hanging file folders, that is okay as well. Start sticking numbered labels on them.
If you want to put regular file folders INSIDE of the hanging folders, it can be done, but it starts to get confusing with this method. This was an option in the guide that people had trouble with. It will be easier to choose EITHER all regular file folders and number them (you can easily go up to 50 or 75 per drawer), or choose all hanging file folders and number them.
Decide now. Do you want to use the hanging folders or the regular folders? If you already have all hanging file folders, go with them.
If all your stuff is in shoe boxes, label them "Shoe Box 1" and "Shoe Box 2." You get the idea. Everything stays where it is even if it is unorganized, but it is critical that EVERY storage container (file cabinet drawer, file folders, notebooks, boxes, etc.) gets numbered.
Your Key Index Notebook: You label the page dividers (or "tabs") in this special notebook with WORDS, not numbers. This depends on the surnames (last names) you are researching and the places that they came from.
For example, I am focusing on my RAGAN line in my personal research. My ancestors come from Florida, Georgia, and nearby states, and the line goes back to Ireland.
Here are 8 tabs in my Key Index Notebook:
RAGAN, FL - This is for my RAGAN line in Florida.
RAGAN, GA - I also have lots of information from Georgia.
RAGAN - This is for RAGANs in all other areas (like Ireland).
WAINWRIGHT - This is another surname line.
HILLHOUSE - Another one of my lines.
JONES - Here is a common-named line I am researching.
MISC - This is for miscellaneous surnames.
INFO - This is for general genealogy information (how to, charts, reference material, etc.).
Remember, these are MY tabs. You will set yours up differently. However, I do suggest that you have a MISC and INFO tab of your own. You can have 12 tabs or more if you'd like, but try to keep it under 12.
So consider all of YOUR stuff. What is in those notebooks and file cabinets anyway? Do you have a lot of information on a certain surname? It will probably get a tab in your Key Index Notebook. You may, or may not, decide to have more than one tab for the same surname that specifies a place (like I did with FL and GA).
I have enough materials about the RAGAN line in Florida to justify having the RAGAN FL tab. Do you have enough genealogy materials about one of your lines from a certain area to do this? If so, you might consider this "Surname/Place" approach for some of your tabs. Or maybe you will wind up with only 4 or 5 tabs in your Key Index Notebook if you do not have much stuff. That is fine too.
When you have everything that your genealogy materials are stored in (notebooks, file cabinets, boxes, etc.) numbered and have decided on the names of the page dividers (or tabs) in your Key Index Notebook, it is time for the magic of this method to work for you...
The organization of all of your genealogy stuff happens on paper, in the pages of your Key Index Notebook. You can type these pages on your computer or write them out by hand. Either way will work fine. The KEY is: Everything happens in your Key Index Notebook.
All of the storage containers that your material is inare just a "numbered reference" to point to.
For example, you don't have to categorize and sort out all of that paperwork in that file cabinet drawer (which is now labeled "Drawer 1" and has numbered labels that you stuck on the file folders that were already in it). You are going to do all of the organizing on paper in your Key Index Notebook. Here is how that would work:
You open your "Drawer 1." This is the same old file cabinet that you had last week, with the same old stuff in it. The only difference is that there are now labels with numbers on them stuck on the same old file folder.
You take folder number 1 out of Drawer 1. You go over and sit down with your Key Index Notebook and start to INDEX THE CONTENTS of folder 1. It doesn't matter what is in there, but let's say that these items are in folder 1.
Copies from an old family Bible on your--for the sake of example--GREER line. It was owned by Mary Greer. This is one of the main lines you are researching and you have a GREER tab in your Key Index Notebook. So you write down "Bible records: Mary D1,F1 (Drawer 1, Folder 1). Then you stick those copies back in the folder and pull out...
Some old photographs from that same GREER line. It is a photo of Joseph and Lila Greer. Again you go to your Key Index Notebook and look under the GREER tab and write down "Photos: Joseph and Lila D1, F1." This is in the same folder as the first record was, so it gets the same reference. Then you look again in folder 1 and find...
A print out of the Treasure Maps e-mail newsletter from 1996. There was a good article on photo preservation that you liked, and for whatever reason, stuck in the folder that has been changed to "Folder 1." Hmm... you go to the INFO (or you may want it under MISC) tab in your Key Index Notebook. You write down "Treasure Maps, Photo preservation D1, F1."
Do you see how this works? All the indexing and organizing is on paper in the various sections of your Key Index Notebook. In this example, there was a copy of an old Bible record and photographs on the GREER line in folder 1 that got indexed under the GREER tab. Also in folder 1, there was an article which got indexed under the INFO (or MISC) tab.
The SAME stuff goes back into the SAME folder. Then you move on to folder 2 and index the contents of it just like you did with the first folder. Then you will move on to folder 3. What will be the reference numbers for anything in folder 3? It will be "Type of item, D1, F3." The type of item (records, photos, notes, charts, print outs from the Internet, or whatever), D1 for Drawer 1, and F3 for folder 3.
Are you catching on to the way this works? The beauty of this method is that you can find what you have indexed very fast. All you have to do is open your Key Index Notebook and it will send you directly to the File drawer and folder number, or genealogy notebook and section number.
Here are two suggestions:
1. For the surname tabs in your Key Index Notebook: You can write the topic heading as you go. In our GREER example, the topic headings were "Photos" and "Bible Records." Or you can type up some generic topic headings on a few sheets of paper and put them under each surname tag in your Key Index Notebook.
Here are some that you might use:
Bible records: Biographies, Birth, Cemetery, Census, Church, Correspondence, Court, Death, E-mail, Emigration or Immigration. Family History Center, Internet print outs, Land/Property, Letters, Diaries and Journal, Marriage, Naturalization and Citizenship, Newspaper, Notes, Periodicals, Photographs and Negatives, OTHER records. You can make or use any topic headings that you want, but these are common to genealogy research.
2. For crates and boxes of stuff: Let's say you have not just a shoe box--but a LARGE box full of photographs. To put only "Box 1" with no other numbered reference would still require a lot of digging if you want to find a certain photograph. I suggest getting some large envelopes and start putting the photos in the envelopes. Then you would number the envelopes and put them all back into the large box.
Note: You do not have to sort through all of those photos; just stuff them in the numbered envelopes and put them back in the box. You will index those envelopes, one at a time at your own leisure. So in the future, when you are looking for that photo that you need to find in a hurry, you will be able to find it fast. It will be listed in your Key Index Notebook.
You can keep anything, anywhere, as long as it has a numbered reference and it is indexed and listed in your Key Index Notebook. This is how everything is organized on paper and the actual records can just stay where they are--even unorganized. You will do your indexing a little at a time, when you feel like it. Can you imagine reorganizing a four drawer filing cabinet loaded with papers? How long will that project take (hint, twice as long as you thought it would)?
With this numbered reference method, you can do it bit by bit when you feel like it, so in reality, it is more likely to get done.
This works best for paper records and things that you print. You can number your 3-1/2 inch computer disks and index things in your Key Index Notebook. But the new PAJAMA Genealogy System has an even better way to organize and retrieve your computer and electronic data (information off the Internet and e-mail) with what I call electronic genealogy "storage files".
So start numbering your file cabinets, folders, and boxes; and set up your Key Index Notebook. This is a wonderful way to manage your existing records.
My Very Best to You and Yours,
Here's a brief rundown of my method to organize all of your genealogy information:
Many genealogy organization methods are too confusing, complicated, time consuming, or you have to do a complete overhaul of everything. Instead, try this great way to organize and keep track of your mounds of paperwork, notebooks, photos, piles, files, and shoe boxes that are filled with your genealogy and family history stuff. Here's how it works:
Supplies you will need:
ONE 1 or 1-1/2 inch notebook for your "Key Index Notebook."
Page dividers that you can label in your "Key Index Notebook."
NUMBERED page dividers for any genealogy notebooks that you have.
BLANK labels to put "numbered references" on any existing genealogy notebooks, hanging file folders, regular files folders, crates, shoe boxes, etc.
Here is how easy it can be...
Leave all of your genealogy stuff where it is right now.
Don't change a thing. If you keep your genealogy things in notebooks and filing cabinets, that is fine. If you like to store your stuff in crates and shoe boxes, that is okay too. If it is all jumbled together and needs to be sorted out, please DON'T do it. Just leave it alone.
Instead, go to wherever you store your genealogy stuff and NUMBER the storage containers. If it is in notebooks, stick a label on a notebook and write "Notebook 1" on it. Then take the next one, stick a label on it, and write "Notebook 2" on it, and so on.
NOTE: Take out any existing page dividers that are in your notebooks and replace them with numbered page dividers. Examples: Dividers 1 through 12, or 1 through 25, or whatever your preference.
The same applies to your filing cabinets. Stick a label on each drawer and call them "Drawer 1" and "Drawer 2," etc. It also applies to any boxes you have ("Box 1" and "Box 2").
NOTE: Numbering your hanging file folders 1 through 25 or 1 through 50 PER drawer works well. This means that both the drawer itself and the hanging folders inside the drawer are numbered. If you use regular file folders instead of hanging file folders, that is okay as well. Start sticking numbered labels on them.
If you want to put regular file folders INSIDE of the hanging folders, it can be done, but it starts to get confusing with this method. This was an option in the guide that people had trouble with. It will be easier to choose EITHER all regular file folders and number them (you can easily go up to 50 or 75 per drawer), or choose all hanging file folders and number them.
Decide now. Do you want to use the hanging folders or the regular folders? If you already have all hanging file folders, go with them.
If all your stuff is in shoe boxes, label them "Shoe Box 1" and "Shoe Box 2." You get the idea. Everything stays where it is even if it is unorganized, but it is critical that EVERY storage container (file cabinet drawer, file folders, notebooks, boxes, etc.) gets numbered.
Your Key Index Notebook: You label the page dividers (or "tabs") in this special notebook with WORDS, not numbers. This depends on the surnames (last names) you are researching and the places that they came from.
For example, I am focusing on my RAGAN line in my personal research. My ancestors come from Florida, Georgia, and nearby states, and the line goes back to Ireland.
Here are 8 tabs in my Key Index Notebook:
RAGAN, FL - This is for my RAGAN line in Florida.
RAGAN, GA - I also have lots of information from Georgia.
RAGAN - This is for RAGANs in all other areas (like Ireland).
WAINWRIGHT - This is another surname line.
HILLHOUSE - Another one of my lines.
JONES - Here is a common-named line I am researching.
MISC - This is for miscellaneous surnames.
INFO - This is for general genealogy information (how to, charts, reference material, etc.).
Remember, these are MY tabs. You will set yours up differently. However, I do suggest that you have a MISC and INFO tab of your own. You can have 12 tabs or more if you'd like, but try to keep it under 12.
So consider all of YOUR stuff. What is in those notebooks and file cabinets anyway? Do you have a lot of information on a certain surname? It will probably get a tab in your Key Index Notebook. You may, or may not, decide to have more than one tab for the same surname that specifies a place (like I did with FL and GA).
I have enough materials about the RAGAN line in Florida to justify having the RAGAN FL tab. Do you have enough genealogy materials about one of your lines from a certain area to do this? If so, you might consider this "Surname/Place" approach for some of your tabs. Or maybe you will wind up with only 4 or 5 tabs in your Key Index Notebook if you do not have much stuff. That is fine too.
When you have everything that your genealogy materials are stored in (notebooks, file cabinets, boxes, etc.) numbered and have decided on the names of the page dividers (or tabs) in your Key Index Notebook, it is time for the magic of this method to work for you...
The organization of all of your genealogy stuff happens on paper, in the pages of your Key Index Notebook. You can type these pages on your computer or write them out by hand. Either way will work fine. The KEY is: Everything happens in your Key Index Notebook.
All of the storage containers that your material is inare just a "numbered reference" to point to.
For example, you don't have to categorize and sort out all of that paperwork in that file cabinet drawer (which is now labeled "Drawer 1" and has numbered labels that you stuck on the file folders that were already in it). You are going to do all of the organizing on paper in your Key Index Notebook. Here is how that would work:
You open your "Drawer 1." This is the same old file cabinet that you had last week, with the same old stuff in it. The only difference is that there are now labels with numbers on them stuck on the same old file folder.
You take folder number 1 out of Drawer 1. You go over and sit down with your Key Index Notebook and start to INDEX THE CONTENTS of folder 1. It doesn't matter what is in there, but let's say that these items are in folder 1.
Copies from an old family Bible on your--for the sake of example--GREER line. It was owned by Mary Greer. This is one of the main lines you are researching and you have a GREER tab in your Key Index Notebook. So you write down "Bible records: Mary D1,F1 (Drawer 1, Folder 1). Then you stick those copies back in the folder and pull out...
Some old photographs from that same GREER line. It is a photo of Joseph and Lila Greer. Again you go to your Key Index Notebook and look under the GREER tab and write down "Photos: Joseph and Lila D1, F1." This is in the same folder as the first record was, so it gets the same reference. Then you look again in folder 1 and find...
A print out of the Treasure Maps e-mail newsletter from 1996. There was a good article on photo preservation that you liked, and for whatever reason, stuck in the folder that has been changed to "Folder 1." Hmm... you go to the INFO (or you may want it under MISC) tab in your Key Index Notebook. You write down "Treasure Maps, Photo preservation D1, F1."
Do you see how this works? All the indexing and organizing is on paper in the various sections of your Key Index Notebook. In this example, there was a copy of an old Bible record and photographs on the GREER line in folder 1 that got indexed under the GREER tab. Also in folder 1, there was an article which got indexed under the INFO (or MISC) tab.
The SAME stuff goes back into the SAME folder. Then you move on to folder 2 and index the contents of it just like you did with the first folder. Then you will move on to folder 3. What will be the reference numbers for anything in folder 3? It will be "Type of item, D1, F3." The type of item (records, photos, notes, charts, print outs from the Internet, or whatever), D1 for Drawer 1, and F3 for folder 3.
Are you catching on to the way this works? The beauty of this method is that you can find what you have indexed very fast. All you have to do is open your Key Index Notebook and it will send you directly to the File drawer and folder number, or genealogy notebook and section number.
Here are two suggestions:
1. For the surname tabs in your Key Index Notebook: You can write the topic heading as you go. In our GREER example, the topic headings were "Photos" and "Bible Records." Or you can type up some generic topic headings on a few sheets of paper and put them under each surname tag in your Key Index Notebook.
Here are some that you might use:
Bible records: Biographies, Birth, Cemetery, Census, Church, Correspondence, Court, Death, E-mail, Emigration or Immigration. Family History Center, Internet print outs, Land/Property, Letters, Diaries and Journal, Marriage, Naturalization and Citizenship, Newspaper, Notes, Periodicals, Photographs and Negatives, OTHER records. You can make or use any topic headings that you want, but these are common to genealogy research.
2. For crates and boxes of stuff: Let's say you have not just a shoe box--but a LARGE box full of photographs. To put only "Box 1" with no other numbered reference would still require a lot of digging if you want to find a certain photograph. I suggest getting some large envelopes and start putting the photos in the envelopes. Then you would number the envelopes and put them all back into the large box.
Note: You do not have to sort through all of those photos; just stuff them in the numbered envelopes and put them back in the box. You will index those envelopes, one at a time at your own leisure. So in the future, when you are looking for that photo that you need to find in a hurry, you will be able to find it fast. It will be listed in your Key Index Notebook.
You can keep anything, anywhere, as long as it has a numbered reference and it is indexed and listed in your Key Index Notebook. This is how everything is organized on paper and the actual records can just stay where they are--even unorganized. You will do your indexing a little at a time, when you feel like it. Can you imagine reorganizing a four drawer filing cabinet loaded with papers? How long will that project take (hint, twice as long as you thought it would)?
With this numbered reference method, you can do it bit by bit when you feel like it, so in reality, it is more likely to get done.
This works best for paper records and things that you print. You can number your 3-1/2 inch computer disks and index things in your Key Index Notebook. But the new PAJAMA Genealogy System has an even better way to organize and retrieve your computer and electronic data (information off the Internet and e-mail) with what I call electronic genealogy "storage files".
So start numbering your file cabinets, folders, and boxes; and set up your Key Index Notebook. This is a wonderful way to manage your existing records.
My Very Best to You and Yours,
Friday, March 21, 2008
NZ Genealogy Quick Start
Here are the 5 steps:
Step 1. Identify what you know about your family: Write what you already know about your ancestors on a "Pedigree Chart."
Write the "surname" in all caps: This lets the eye scan genealogical records easier. (RAGAN, Jonathan Daniel)
list the dates in this fashion: (03 Mar 1895) Instead of 3/22/1866. This keeps the numbers from getting jumbled.
Write the "places" in this order: City/Township, County, State, Country. (Jacksonville, St. Johns, Florida, USA)
Also, fill out "Family Groups Records" for at least yourself and your parents.
Note: If you are a parent, you will put yourself on a Family Group Record twice. Once as a child, along with your parents, brothers and sisters. And, once as a parent with your spouse and children. If there is more than one marriage (yes, fill out another sheet).
These are the MAIN tools used in genealogy research. Filling in the blanks on these two "charts" are your main objective in researching your genealogy.
Step 2. Decide what you want to learn: Pedigree charts ask these questions about each ancestor:
Born: ???
Place: ???
Married: ???
Place: ???
Died: ???
Place: ???
Pick one of your ancestors from the pedigree chart and identify which questions you want to answers to about that person, such as, "when and where was he born?"
Step 3. Select records to search: There are two main types of genealogical records:
Compiled Records: These are records that have already been researched by others, such as biographies, family histories, or genealogies that may be on microfilm, microfiche, in books or on the FamilySearch Web site.
Original Records: Are records that were created at or near the time of an event, such as birth, marriage, death, or census records.
Look for compiled records first, THEN search for original records. This could save you lots of time and effort. Finding compiled records doesn't mean that there won't be mistakes or wrong information. But, you might be surprised at what research may already be done on your family lines.
Step 4. Obtain and search the record: Many local libraries have very good genealogical materials. Especially for the surrounding areas of that library's location. Again, Family History Centers are an excellent place to obtain records.
What ever the source, search the records. Look at broad time periods, check for spelling variations, and write down your results even if you come up empty-handed.
Step 5. Use the information: Evaluate what you've found. Did you find the information that you were looking for? Is that information complete? Does it conflict with other information?
Copy the information to pedigree charts and family group sheets. These two forms are the staples of family history.
Organize the information. Use a filing system that works for you.
Share the information with interested family members.
What Next? Select a new objective and start the process over again based on what you now know about your family. Before you know it, you're family history will unfold and you will be encouraged and excited.
Step 1. Identify what you know about your family: Write what you already know about your ancestors on a "Pedigree Chart."
Write the "surname" in all caps: This lets the eye scan genealogical records easier. (RAGAN, Jonathan Daniel)
list the dates in this fashion: (03 Mar 1895) Instead of 3/22/1866. This keeps the numbers from getting jumbled.
Write the "places" in this order: City/Township, County, State, Country. (Jacksonville, St. Johns, Florida, USA)
Also, fill out "Family Groups Records" for at least yourself and your parents.
Note: If you are a parent, you will put yourself on a Family Group Record twice. Once as a child, along with your parents, brothers and sisters. And, once as a parent with your spouse and children. If there is more than one marriage (yes, fill out another sheet).
These are the MAIN tools used in genealogy research. Filling in the blanks on these two "charts" are your main objective in researching your genealogy.
Step 2. Decide what you want to learn: Pedigree charts ask these questions about each ancestor:
Born: ???
Place: ???
Married: ???
Place: ???
Died: ???
Place: ???
Pick one of your ancestors from the pedigree chart and identify which questions you want to answers to about that person, such as, "when and where was he born?"
Step 3. Select records to search: There are two main types of genealogical records:
Compiled Records: These are records that have already been researched by others, such as biographies, family histories, or genealogies that may be on microfilm, microfiche, in books or on the FamilySearch Web site.
Original Records: Are records that were created at or near the time of an event, such as birth, marriage, death, or census records.
Look for compiled records first, THEN search for original records. This could save you lots of time and effort. Finding compiled records doesn't mean that there won't be mistakes or wrong information. But, you might be surprised at what research may already be done on your family lines.
Step 4. Obtain and search the record: Many local libraries have very good genealogical materials. Especially for the surrounding areas of that library's location. Again, Family History Centers are an excellent place to obtain records.
What ever the source, search the records. Look at broad time periods, check for spelling variations, and write down your results even if you come up empty-handed.
Step 5. Use the information: Evaluate what you've found. Did you find the information that you were looking for? Is that information complete? Does it conflict with other information?
Copy the information to pedigree charts and family group sheets. These two forms are the staples of family history.
Organize the information. Use a filing system that works for you.
Share the information with interested family members.
What Next? Select a new objective and start the process over again based on what you now know about your family. Before you know it, you're family history will unfold and you will be encouraged and excited.
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Genealogy - Getting Started
Genealogy - Getting Started
It's a fascinating subject and process to trace our ancestry. Here are a few helpful links and downloads which we hope will be of interest top get you started. Click here to download a PDF Ancestry Chart which you can use to map your family tree.
If you have other links and comments of interest, then please do contact us.
It's a fascinating subject and process to trace our ancestry. Here are a few helpful links and downloads which we hope will be of interest top get you started. Click here to download a PDF Ancestry Chart which you can use to map your family tree.
If you have other links and comments of interest, then please do contact us.
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Genealogy Standards : Rules to live by
Genealogy Standards Rules to Live By
Anyone who has delved into Internet genealogy has probably found themselves wondering if there are any guidelines or standards applied to genealogy research and its publication by family historians. The proliferation of misinformation, sloppy work, errors in judgment, and downright mistakes has left many of us shaking our heads in disbelief.
Much of the problem can be attributed to a lack of education, rather than callousness on the part of any guilty individual. Fortunately, the National Genealogical Society has come to the rescue with a set of standards for genealogy research. There are at present five short lists of guidelines to keep in mind while in pursuit of your roots.
Standards for Sound Genealogical Research Covers the basics of seeking, using and documenting genealogical record sources, as well as common courtesies when communicating, sharing, or publishing genealogical findings.
Standards for Using Records Repositories and Libraries Rules for proper conduct in libraries and archives, stressing respect for fragile records and courtesy toward research staff.
Standards for Use of Technology in Genealogical Research A reminder that computer technology should be considered as a tool to facilitate genealogy, and not as a substitute for proper research and documentation.
Standards for Sharing Information With OthersCovers the responsibilities of family historians when sharing information or data with others, an essential part of family history research.
Guidelines for Publishing Web Pages on the InternetStresses that publishing information through Internet Web sites and Web pages shares many similarities with print publishing, and should follow the same rules and considerations. Excellent examples of what should and should not be included.
Anyone who has delved into Internet genealogy has probably found themselves wondering if there are any guidelines or standards applied to genealogy research and its publication by family historians. The proliferation of misinformation, sloppy work, errors in judgment, and downright mistakes has left many of us shaking our heads in disbelief.
Much of the problem can be attributed to a lack of education, rather than callousness on the part of any guilty individual. Fortunately, the National Genealogical Society has come to the rescue with a set of standards for genealogy research. There are at present five short lists of guidelines to keep in mind while in pursuit of your roots.
Standards for Sound Genealogical Research Covers the basics of seeking, using and documenting genealogical record sources, as well as common courtesies when communicating, sharing, or publishing genealogical findings.
Standards for Using Records Repositories and Libraries Rules for proper conduct in libraries and archives, stressing respect for fragile records and courtesy toward research staff.
Standards for Use of Technology in Genealogical Research A reminder that computer technology should be considered as a tool to facilitate genealogy, and not as a substitute for proper research and documentation.
Standards for Sharing Information With OthersCovers the responsibilities of family historians when sharing information or data with others, an essential part of family history research.
Guidelines for Publishing Web Pages on the InternetStresses that publishing information through Internet Web sites and Web pages shares many similarities with print publishing, and should follow the same rules and considerations. Excellent examples of what should and should not be included.
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