by Lisa Cooke | Oct 16, 2013 | 01 What's New, Who Do You Think You Are?
Genealogy Roadshow logo
Genealogy Roadshow is now casting for its next season. Are you a contender?
In case you missed the first season, Genealogy Roadshow is a PBS series much like Antiques Roadshow–only your ancestors are the antiques. Instead of everyday people bringing their old collectibles and antiques in to be appraised by experts, everyday people bring their family stories and pedigree charts. Genealogists research their stories and reveal new details to them and their relatives.
Filling out the preliminary application may feel a bit like auditioning for a part along with your entire family. There are questions like “What is your story and why is it important to you to find out now?” “Have you or any member of your family or outside group looked into any branches of your family’s history? If so, please describe who and explain what roadblocks or limitations they encountered.” “What would uncovering this information about your family mean to you and your family?” Applicants are asked to submit GEDCOMs, if they have them, and whether they have DNA samples.
Interested? Check out the online application yourself! Then, in case you missed them or want to catch them again, catch episodes from the first season on PBS Video.
by Lisa Cooke | Oct 15, 2013 | Ancestry, Records & databases
Ancestry.com has acquired FindAGrave.com, home of 106 million grave records. At this free “virtual cemetery,” users can create memorials for 
deceased individuals. Anyone may contribute photos, leave “virtual flowers” and submit data to these memorials. Genealogists use Find a Grave to locate gravemarkers, find hints about relatives’ lives and even connect with others who share an interest in their buy trichomoniasis medication relatives.
Find A Grave’s FAQ page about the Ancestry acquisition addresses what’s on everyone’s mind: how will things change for Find A Grave users and content? Owner Jim Tipton says things will pretty much stay the same: free, protected, and accessible. Read the details on Find A Grave.
by Lisa Cooke | Oct 14, 2013 | 01 What's New, Canadian, FamilySearch, Immigration
Mixed group immigrants, Quebec
Over a million indexed records and images for Canadian passenger lists (1881-1922) are among newly-announced records now searchable at FamilySearch.org.
The database includes records for Canadian ports–Quebec City, Halifax, St. John, North Sydney, Vancouver and Victoria–as well as U.S. ports for passengers who reported Canada as their final destination.
Before this time period, travel between the U.S. and Canada was common. But it was not always officially recorded because there were no border crossing stations on land. During the time period covered by these records, nations on both sides of the border became concerned about the impact of this invisible migration. Official border crossing record-keeping began in 1895. (See a database at Ancestry.com).
Here’s a tip: If you have immigrant ancestors who landed in the United States during this era but you haven’t found their passenger records, consider the possibility that they arrived via Canada. They would have avoided the increasingly strict monitors at the port gates of entry to the U.S. “golden door.”
Here’s a full list of recent updates to FamilySearch.org:
|
Collection
|
Indexed Records
|
Digital Images
|
Comments
|
| Argentina, Buenos Aires, Catholic Church Records, 1635-1981 |
539,210 |
0 |
Added indexed records to an existing collection. |
| Argentina, Capital Federal, Catholic Church Records, 1737-1977 |
682,002 |
0 |
Added indexed records to an existing collection. |
| BillionGraves Index |
407,422 |
407,422 |
Added indexed records and images to an existing collection. |
| Canada Passenger Lists, 1881-1922 |
1,673,051 |
61,099 |
Added indexed records and images to an existing collection. |
| Denmark, Church Records, 1484-1941 |
0 |
2,399,826 |
New browsable image collection. |
| Germany, Prussia, Brandenburg, Landkreis Ostprignitz-Ruppin, Miscellaneous Records, 1559-1945 |
0 |
9,569 |
New browsable image collection. |
| Italy, Campobasso, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1809-1918 |
0 |
2,171,641 |
New browsable image collection. |
| Italy, Napoli, Fontana, Parrocchia di Santa Maria della Mercede – La Sacra, Catholic Church Records, 1659-1929 |
0 |
54 |
Added images to an existing collection. |
| U.S., Illinois, Northern District (Eastern Division), Naturalization Index, 1926-1979 |
0 |
214,094 |
Added images to an existing collection. |
| U.S., Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-1994 |
980,427 |
951 |
Added indexed records and images to an existing collection. |
by Lisa Cooke | Oct 11, 2013 | 01 What's New, History, Inspiration
Want to meet a real gem? She’s Margaret, a centenarian who’s still at the wheel of her 1930 “straight-8” 740 Packard automobile!
In the video below she talks about the joy of revving the engine. She loves the “sense of horsepower,” a distinct sound signature she doesn’t get from new cars. She can change the oil and the spark plugs and polishes the fenders with real love. Check her out!
by Lisa Cooke | Oct 10, 2013 | 01 What's New, History, Inspiration, Military
A letter written to his infant daughter by an American soldier during World War II finally reached her–69 years later. She never knew him. He died in Italy in 1944.
A television station in Charleston, SC recently reported a woman’s reunion with this letter along with 16 other letters written to her mother, her father’s Purple Heart and Bronze Star medal and other personal effects. They’d been found years before in someone else’s attic, but it took this long for that person to locate his daughter, Peggy.
As a genealogist hearing this story, it reminds me to NEVER give up! You never know what evidence may be just around the corner (or in an attic), waiting to connect you with your relatives. It also makes me grateful for those genealogical good Samaritans–those who find important family artifacts and then work to reunite them with their long-lost families. Check out the video here:
