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We Dig These Gems! New Genealogy Records Online

by Lisa Cooke | Mar 18, 2016

Here’s our weekly roundup of interesting and new genealogy records online for Brazil, Denmark, England, Ireland and the U.S.

BRAZIL CIVIL REGISTRATIONS. Over 200,000 indexed records have been added to a free collection of Pernambuco, Brazil civil registrations (1804-2014) at FamilySearch.org.

DENMARK DEEDS AND MORTGAGES. FamilySearch.org has added nearly 3 million digitized images to its collection of browsable deeds and mortgages for South Jutland, Denmark (1572-1928).

ENGLAND COURT. Ancestry subscribers now have access to a new collection of Yorkshire, England, Quarter Session Records, 1637-1914(1637-1914). According to the database description, these courts “had both a civil and a criminal jurisdiction, and before 1888 they also had an administrative function. Civil cases usually appear in the court’s order books and criminal cases in the indictment books.”

ENGLAND PROBATE. New Yorkshire, England, Probate Records, 1521-1858 are now available to Ancestry subscribers. These include wills, letters of administration and inventories.

ENGLAND TAX. About a quarter million land records are now included in FindMyPast’s database of Devon, Plymouth & West Devon Land Tax and Valuation Records 1897-1949. Use these to learn about an ancestor’s residence, property ownership and wealth.

IRELAND PARISH RECORDS. Ancestry has posted an Ireland, Catholic Parish Registers, 1655-1915 from the National Library of Ireland. Access to this index is already free on Findmypast.

U.S. – AFRICAN-AMERICAN. About 35,000 indexed records and associated images have been added to a free collection of Freedmen’s Bureau marriages (1861-1872) at FamilySearch.org.

U.S. – ILLINOIS MARRIAGE. Nearly 200,00 total indexed marriage records for Illinois have been added to FamilySearch.org across three collections: church marriages, 1805-1985; civil marriages, 1833-1889 and county marriages, 1810-1934.

U.S. – MARYLAND CHURCH. A new collection of nearly 140,000 free, indexed records from a variety of Maryland churches (1668-1995) has been added to FamilySearch.org.

U.S. WAR OF 1812. 1.3 million indexed records have been added to a free United States War of 1812 Index to Service Records at FamilySearch.org.

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Lisa Louise Cooke coming to Topeka Genealogical Society

by Lisa Cooke | Mar 17, 2016

The Topeka Genealogical Society welcomes Lisa Louise Cooke to its annual conference on Sat, April 16, 2016. Early-bird registration ends soon, so register now!

Lisa Louise Cooke will give a full day of lectures at the 44th annual conference of the Topeka Genealogical Society (April 15-16, 2016). The conference theme is “New Techniques for the Family History Detective” and Lisa will definitely cover that theme in these four Saturday presentations:

Google Tools & Procedures for Solving Family History Mysteries
Get the Scoop on Your Ancestors with Newspapers
How to Re-Open a Cold Case
The Google Earth Game Show

WHAT: Topeka Genealogical Society Annual Conference
WHEN: April 15-16, 2016
WHERE: Kansas Historical Society, 6425 SW 6th St, Topeka, KS
REGISTER: Click here for info and/or to register online

There will also be access to vendors, exhibits, and representatives from historical and lineage organizations. Early-bird registration ends March 24, 2016. Mailed registrations must be received by April 1, 2016.

Can’t make it to the conference? Genealogy Gems Premium members have a full-year’s access to about 30 full-length on-demand video classes by Lisa Louise, including Google search methodologies, newspaper research, solving cold-case family history mysteries and Google Earth. Click here to see the full list of video classes. Click here to learn more about Premium membership.

WDYTYA 2016: TLC Premiere is April 3

by Lisa Cooke | Mar 16, 2016

Time for 2016! The two-time Emmy nominated series Who Do You Think You Are? returns to TLC on April 3. Six new stars, and six new ancestral stories.

A male witch hunt. Amish ancestors. Desperate emigration. Bloody battles. Travel to Portugal, Sweden and Ellis Island. WDYTYA is back! A new season of this popular series premieres on TLC on Sunday, April 3 at 9/8c.

According to a company press release, celebs you’ll see in WDYTYA 2016 include:

Scott Foley, who finds a relative who risked his life for one of America’s founding fathers, and an ancestor who suffered unspeakably during one of this nation’s darkest times.
Lea Michele, who nails down where her mysterious paternal ancestors came from, and learns of the dire economic circumstances they endured while trying to emigrate to the U.S.
Chris Noth, who learns his ancestors suffered during one of the greatest catastrophes in American history, and a relative who fought in one of the bloodiest battles of all time.
Molly Ringwald, who explores family lore of Swedish royalty which uncovers her ancestors’ harrowing lives and a brave woman who forever changed her family’s fate.
Katey Sagal, who is shocked to learn of her family’s Amish roots, and digs deeper as she realizes the level of dedication to their faith.
Aisha Tyler, who tracks down her 2x great-grandfather, whose story had been lost over generations, and uncovers an astonishing tale of a prominent ancestor whose struggle to keep his illegitimate son a secret made headlines.