Long Distance
Genealogy may hold a clue for
you
Most of us, who search for our family
histories, don’t have access to unlimited funds nor are
able to travel the world in search of the information we
need.
The very good news is that neither is needed!
There are books available that will make it
possible to work from your home…and still get the
information vital to your family research. Betterway
Books is just one of the publishers who cater to
genealogists. (After all, genealogy is a multi-bazillion
dollar industry!)
Christine Crawford-Oppenheimer, MLS, is one of
the names genealogists soon become familiar with. Ms.
Crawford-Oppenheimer has been doing genealogical research
for more than twenty years. Her training as a librarian
and archivist is useful to her not only in her “day job”,
but also in her second profession, genealogy.
Ms. Crawford-Oppenheimer has
spoken frequently at national conferences and seminars;
she has addressed topics as varied as basic genealogy,
networking, family health history and the published
Pennsylvania Archives.
Articles she has written have
appeared in the National Genealogical Society
Quarterly, The Pennsylvania Genealogical Magazine, The
Western Pennsylvania Genealogical Society Quarterly,
and other magazines. She writes a column for the
Armstrong County (PA) Genealogy Club
Quarterly.
Just because the information you need is far away doesn’t
mean it is out of reach!
Whether the distance between
them is two hundred miles or two thousand, every
genealogist faces the challenge of gathering information
from sources that they can’t visit in person. This book
is designed to specifically help “armchair researchers”
access records and publications from afar, while providing
techniques for overcoming problems associated with the
process.
Author Christine
Crawford-Oppenheimer shares her insights and expertise,
ensuring that your search starts off on the right foot.
You’ll begin by learning basic genealogy techniques for
locating and obtaining documents through correspondence,
inter-library loans, Family History Centers, archival
repositories, microfilm and the Internet.
You’ll learn how to get birth,
marriage and death records and obtain federal and state
census records, estate files, land records, military
records and more.
There are chapters on how to
acquire copies of original documents, and how to locate
others who are researching your family lines, and get
maximum results from a research trip.
This book will help you locate
where your ancestors might be buried and how to conduct
interviews.
Perhaps, most importantly,
you’ll learn when you should consider hiring a
professional genealogist.
This book, Long Distance
Genealogy, will show you how to make the world just a
little bit smaller – one in which the information you need
waits no further than the post office, library or computer
keystroke away.
Order Long Distance
Genealogy from Betterway Books, 1507 Dana Avenue,
Cincinnati, OH 45207. Call 1-800-289-0963. The book is
$19.99. ISBN 1-55870-535-X.
“It is the soldier
who salutes the flag, who serves beneath the flag, and
whose coffin is draped by the flag, who allows the
protester to burn the flag.”
World War II veterans
are honored
In conjunction with the building of the
National World War II Memorial, the American Battle
Monuments Commission has established an online registry to
honor the millions of American citizens who served in
WWII.
This registry is not just for veterans.
According to its website, “Any U.S. citizen who helped win
the war, whether a veteran or someone on the home front,
is eligible for the Registry. Names in the Registry will
be forever linked to the memorial’s bronze and granite
representations of their sacrifice and achievement.”
Names can be submitted directly on the
website. The Memorial was dedicated May 29, 2004. The
website also shows a fine gallery of photos of the
construction process at
www.WWIImemorial.com.
Thanks for this article go to
Appleland Bulletin, Wenatchee Area Genealogical
Society, PO Box 5280, Wenatchee, WA 98807-5280.
You can hear beautiful
music from Castlebay
The music of Castlebay blends Scottish
heritage with inspiration from the rugged coast of Maine.
Julia Lane is a self-taught harper whose
unique style has twice won the New England Regional
Scottish Harp Championship at the Loon Mountain Highland
Games. Fred Gosbee plays twelve string guitar, viola,
fiddle and whistles. They have toured both the Eastern
United States and the British Isles, visiting Scotland
annually since 1993.
Julia Lane and Fred Gosbee have a deep
appreciation for the Celtic lands and a commitment to
cultural education. They maintain an ongoing exchange
with musicians and folklorists worldwide and present
educational programs integrating music, culture and
history at schools, museums, and elderhostels.
Castlebay has recorded 17 albums of
both traditional and original music. The Tapestry
Collection is a series of six instrumental recordings
each with a unique theme – Ladies, In a Garden Green,
Gentlemen, Cottage & Castle, Banks & Braes, and
Sea & Skye.
Artful expressions of love abound in the
Scottish tradition on their CD titled Ae Fond Kiss –
Romantic Scottish Songs. Castlebay presents
twelve musical kisses of friendship, passion and
flirtation, including seven songs of Burns. Stunning
vocals by Julia Lane and Fred Gosbee are accompanied by
award-winning Celtic harp, guitar, fiddle and cello.
I’m sure you’ll agree
with this Scottish proverb
I hae had better kail in my cog, and ne’er
gae them a keytch.
An
answer given by a girl teased about a suitor she
dislikes. The phrase refers to the old farming practice
of busy reapers throwing their broth up in the air to cool
it, which they could do without spilling a drop.
Scottish Proverbs
Why write your With
Love recollections
down when
there are so many other ways
to make
permanent records?
Most families have photo albums. The word
“photography” was coined in 1839 by Sir John Hershel, so
we can say photos have been with us for about 160 years.
In that relatively brief time, photo archiving has become
a specialist art, while the robust permanent photographic
image has yet to be made Far fresher looking than any
100-year-old photograph are the 1100-year-old ink on
vellum illuminations of The Book
of Kells.
Nevertheless, of the readily available
“modern” media, photocopying excluded, black and white
negatives a re probably the most durable.
Photographic color prints, on the other hand,
are among the least durable.
To give your photographs relative permanence,
it is probably best to have a computer scan made, and take
black and white photocopies of these as required.
Otherwise, store black and white negative strips singly in
acid-free paper pockets at reasonably stable levels of
temperature and humidity.
Some people dictate their recollections, or
collect oral histories onto audio and videotapes. But, as
well as being vulnerable to heat, dust, fungal and
chemical damage, tapes will be damaged by magnetic fields,
which give you a good excuse not to use the vacuum cleaner
too often. Because the rewind and fast forward functions
often put too much tension on tapes for long-term storage,
video and audiotapes should be stored after a play through
at normal speed.
However, the thin base of most audiocassette
tapes allows eventual “print through” and some tapes break
easily. Reel-to-reel tapes will survive longer. A
problem is that they will soon be as unplayable on readily
obtainable equipment as wax cylinders are today.
A solution there is to devise a way whereby
they will be regularly copied onto new systems, but there
is likely to be a slight quality loss at each copying.
Video tape recordings, more than audio tape recordings,
lose quality with each playing. Ever since I was advised
that significant quality losses can be expected within 20
years, those “forever” wedding videos have seemed a bit of
a con to me. Obsolescence is in store anyway, as digital
video discs (DVDs) gain ground.
Similarly, the greatest problem about storing
computer discs is likely to be the availability in several
decades of hardware and software systems to read them.
They are likely to need transferring onto new systems
relatively frequently. They are also vulnerable to the
things affecting video and audiotapes.
CD-ROM storage probably has some archival
advantages over magnetic tape and
floppy disc
storage methods, but again is heavily dependent on
technology.
All of these are reasons why I would urge you
to hand on your stories in the form of photocopies on acid
free paper which are then professionally bound using,
again, acid free materials.
It is the cheapest reliable way to create a
document that will readily survive everything but total
cataclysm until the midpoint of the new millennium, and
will probably last considerably longer than that.
Moreover, while it may see old fashioned at the moment,
come even 100 years and the written word will be a lot
more accessible than any alternative that is open to you
or me today.
I love doing the With Love
workshops and would like to be in touch with you at any
point. Write to Mike Paterson, The Wesley Manse,
Shieldhill Road, Reddingmuirhead, Falkirk, Scotland, FK2
ODT, or you might wish to email
Mike.Paterson@btinternet.com.
“It is the soldier,
not the campus organizer, who gives us the freedom to
demonstrate.”
Upcoming genealogy seminars
sponsored
by Jefferson County Chapter, Ohio Genealogical Society
The
Jefferson County Chapter of the Ohio Genealogical
Society will be sponsoring A Day of Genealogy Seminars
on Saturday, October 9, 2004. The location of the
seminars will be at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter
Day Saints on Powells Lane
in Wintersville, Ohio.
The day
will begin with a breakfast buffet at 8:00 a.m., and the
seminars will begin at 9:00 a.m. and run through until
4:00 p.m. There will be two morning seminar time slots,
a lunch break and two afternoon time slots. Each of
these four time slots will have a selection of three
different seminars to choose from. The cost of these
seminars will be $15.00 if paid before September 9th,
and $20.00 if paid before September 30th.
There will be NO registration or payment received at the
door on the day of the seminars. The registration fee
includes all of the following costs – breakfast bar, all
handouts, and sack lunch and drinks. The included lunch
will consist of your choice from two different sack
selections, a snack and a soft drink.
Among
those who will be teaching seminars will be featured
speaker John Humphrey, as well as Sandy Day, Peggy
Clemens Lauritzen, Marilyn Holt, Cindy Macsuibhne, Jeff
Evans, Joseph VerStraten, and Flora VerStraten. Be sure
to check out the web site listed below for a listing of
all of the seminars. Non-members are invited and
welcome to attend.
For more
information, you can go to the web site at
www.jeffcochapter.com and find detailed bios for
those teaching the seminars, lodging information,
directions to the seminars, a printable seminar
application form, and other important information. You
can also send an email to either Flora VerStraten
(president of the Jefferson County Chapter) at
verstraten@prodigy.net or to Gail Komar (vice
president of the Jefferson County Chapter) at
gkomar@eohio.net. You can also write to Jefferson
County Chapter, OGS, PO Box 2367, Wintersville, Ohio
43953. Once again, please remember that there will be
NO registration or payment received at the door on the
day of the seminars. So, be sure to get your
registration form and send it in with your registration
fee before the deadlines listed above.
Source: Trail Blazer,
publication of the Cumberland Trail Genealogical
Society, PO Box 576, Clairsville, OH 43950.
A Scottish Quotation
I was
not long, however, in making the grand discovery,
that in order
to enjoy leisure,
it is
absolutely necessary it should be preceded by occupation.
Sir Walter Scott, Introductory Epistle to
The Monastery
Source: Scottish Quotations,
compiled and edited by David Ross
2004 Federation of Genealogical
Societies convention will be in Austin, Texas September
8 – 11, 2004
The
Federation of Genealogical Societies will be holding
their 2004 annual conference on September 8-11, 2004 at
the Hilton Austin, 500 East 4th Street,
Austin, Texas. The theme for the conference is
Legends Live Forever: Researching the Past for Future
Generations. The local co-hosts are the Texas State
Genealogical Society and the Austin Genealogical
Society. The conference is located near many
genealogical research facilities for state and local
information. Detailed information on the FGS 2004
Conference is available on the FGS web site at
http://www.fgs.org/ or can be requested by mail at
Federation of Genealogical Societies, PO Box 200940,
Austin, TX 78720-0940 or by phone at 888-FGS-1500.
Thanks for this information to Trail
Blazer, publication of the Cumberland Trail
Genealogical Society, PO Box 576, Clairsville, Ohio
43950.
Books, books and more books
to
enjoy from our favorite authors!
Organizing Your Family History
Search
by Sharon DeBartolo Carmack
Sharon
DeBartolo Carmack, a Certified Genealogist, has written
more than 75 genealogical columns, articles and book
reviews. She is also the author of five books,
including A Genealogist’s Guide to Discovering Your
Female Ancestors and The Genealogy Sourcebook.
Carmack was the keynote speaker at the 2998 National
Genealogical Society conference and currently lectures
to several thousand people annually on family history
research and organization.
Here, at
last, is a book to help you organize your genealogical
research. In this practical guide, professional
genealogist Sharon Carmack shows you how to reduce the
ever-mountain piles of papers, books and other
materials, so you can spend more time researching and
less time hunting for information lost somewhere on your
desk or your computer.
Following Carmack’s advice, you’ll save time, money and
space as you learn to organize everything from filing
cabinets to research trips. Whether you have a whole
room dedicated to your family history search or just a
few storage boxes, you’ll find a system that puts
information right at your fingertips. Easy-to-copy
charts, forms and checklists take you through every
step.
You’ll
create filing systems that not only keep your research
straight, but also grow with your records. You’ll get a
handle on correspondence, so that you can eliminate
duplicate requests and locate your findings quickly and
easily.
With
this book, you’ll plan productive research trips using
special journals that help you record essential
information while you’re on site. You’ll define your
research goals and establish projects around those
goals.
You’ll
develop a storage system for CD-ROMs, discs, books,
conference materials, microforms and other miscellaneous
research materials.
You’ll
learn how to prepare a “bag of essentials” for special
trips to gravesites, interviews, repositories and more.
You’ll
protect delicate family artifacts, including documents,
photographs, diaries and other materials.
And, you
will organize and preserve your research for future
generations by publishing your genealogy, making
provisions in your will or donating your work to a
library or archive.
There’s
even information for professional genealogists,
including how to set up client files with contracts,
reports and invoices. Easy-to-reference icons make it
fast and simple to find what you’re looking for.
Whether
genealogy is your part-time hobby or full-time
obsession, you can get organized and stay that way.
This one-of-a-kind guide will have your family history
research neat and accessible in no time.
Order
Organizing Your Family History Search from Betterway
Books, 1507 Dana Avenue, Cincinnati, OH 45207. Call
1-800-289-0963. The book is $17.99. ISBN
1-55870-511-2.
A Genealogist’s Guide to
Discovering Your English Ancestors: How to Find and
Record Your Unique Heritage
by Paul Milner & Linda Jonas
Paul
Milner and Linda Jonas have put their heads together to
produce a book valuable to most American genealogical
researchers.
Paul
Milner is a native of northern England. He is a
professional genealogical researcher who has specialized
in British Isles research for the past twenty years.
For the last six years he has been president of the
British Interest Group of Wisconsin and Illinois
(BIGWILL). During the same time, he has written and
edited the society’s newsletter. He writes book reviews
for the Federation of Genealogical Societies quarterly
journal, Forum.
He is a
nationally known and popular speaker at genealogical
conferences and seminars. His specialty is the British
Isles and his lectures typically draw audiences of
several hundred genealogists.
Linda
Jonas, a United States native, is the president of the
British Interest Group of Wisconsin and Illinois.
During her presidency, the society has become a
well-respected international organization. The society
hosts a prestigious annual three-day seminar on British
Isles research; it is consistently sold out. Linda has
acted as seminar chair for the past three years and
under her guidance the event has offered up-to-date
information by the most respected and experienced
speakers from around the world. She has also designed
the high acclaimed society web site and writes the
BIFHS-USA Guide to British Isles Research
found there.
Linda
Jonas has been a full-time professional family historian
for the past twenty years and has focused on helping
Americans find their British Isles ancestry. She is
also a popular lecturer and writes on all aspects of US
and British Isles research. She has been a supervisor,
staff trainer and instructor at the Los Angeles Family
History Center, which holds the largest British Isles
resource collection outside of Salt Lake City. She now
lives in McLean, Virginia.
With
today’s technology, you can trace generations of your
English family history without ever leaving the United
States. Even better, this step-by-step guide will help
you get started – with confidence.
Unlike
other books on English ancestry, this guide provides a
well-rounded perspective on your research. Not only
does it show what records you’ll need and where to find
them, it explains why those records were created
and how they can reveal more about your
ancestors’ lives. You’ll find clear and basic
instructions to help you learn how to: focus your
research and maximize your results by setting goals and
keeping organized; find information right at home by
utilizing the Internet, public libraries and Family
History Centers; and search major indexes with speed and
efficiency.
This
book will help you locate crucial English records like
civil registration, census returns, parish registers and
probate materials by utilizing the International Index
and the FHL catalog.
You’ll
be able to conduct effective research on the Internet,
using the Family History Library on-line and other key
genealogical sites.
You’ll
be able to analyze documents and records and determine
their accuracy by following visual examples that explain
each piece of information.
And, you
will be able to overcome special challenges associated
with English research, such as geographic and political
terms, unstandardized record keeping and other social
and historical issues.
To help
you navigate your research, this book features an
in-depth case study that illustrates the research
process using several different sources. There’s also
a chapter for planning an effective research trip to
England, should you decide to trace your genealogy even
further.
You will
go beyond standard genealogy books and learn to read
between the lines of your English family pedigree
chart. With the information you’ll find using this
special guide, you’ll have more than just names and
dates, you’ll have what you need to create a compelling
family history that brings your English ancestry to
life.
Order
A Genealogist’s Guide to Discovering Your English
Ancestors from Betterway Books, 1507 Dana Avenue,
Cincinnati, OH 45207. Call 1-800-289-0963. The book is
$18.99. ISBN 1-55870-536-8.
A Genealogist’s Guide to
Discovering Your Irish Ancestors
by Dwight A. Radford and Kyle J.
Betit
Maybe
you seek a grater sense of self by learning more about
your family roots. Or, maybe you simply want to explore
the special mysteries that wait to be discovered about
your family. Whatever your motivation, genealogy is a
great hobby, and now you can find your way back home to
Ireland and the origins of your family with this book.
A
Genealogist’s Guide to Discovering Your Irish Ancestors
helps you define the challenges of Irish family
research, and then provides strategies to overcome
them. You’ll learn how to investigate the various
generations of your family, the events that shaped their
lives, the details about how they lived, and the story
of their emigration.
You’ll
find answers to common questions: How far back in time
can you expect to trace your family? How does
Protestant Irish research differ from Catholic Irish
research? What’s the most efficient way to use archives
and libraries?
There’s
a wealth of information inside, including guidelines for
determining an Irish ancestor’s place of origin and also
advice for researching Irish records domestically and
overseas. There are basic strategies of Irish research
that are essential to your success.
This
book contains special advice about tracing Scots-Irish
ancestors and advice for accessing Irish cemetery, land,
church, estate, census and military records. You’ll
learn about civil registration of births, marriages, and
deaths, as well as emigration lists. There are sources
and strategies for researching Irish ancestors that
settled in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, England,
Scotland, Wales and the Caribbean.
You’ll
also find information on Internet resources and favorite
sites.
In fact,
this book contains everything you need to get started
and this book is the beginning of a journey that will
transform your family’s history from legend to fact.
Dwight
A. Radford and Kyle J. Betit, the authors, are widely
respected in the field of genealogy as Irish
researchers. For the past six years they have built
their reputations through articles in their highly
acclaimed journal, The Irish At Home and Abroad,
as well as other genealogical publications. They speak
internationally on the subject of Irish research and
live in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Order
A Genealogist’s Guide to Discovering Your Irish
Ancestors from Betterway Books, 1507 Dana Avenue,
Cincinnati, OH 45207. Call 1-800-289-0963. The book is
$19.99. ISBN 1-55870-577-5.
The Delaware People
by Allison
Lassieur
A 24
page, full color hardback book entitled The Delaware
People is another in a series of 30 books published
by Bridgestone Books about American Indian people. Each
book features a particular Indian tribe.
The book
is written by author Allison
Lassieur for school age children who are learning
for the first time about the American Indian. This book
will answer most questions a child would have about the
historical clothing, foods, homes and language of the
Delaware Tribe. It is presented in a simple topical way
and the pictures even tell the story.
A child
could read it himself or a teacher could read it out
loud to her class.
Photographs of members of the Delaware Tribe of Indians
are featured in the book. The Delaware People
provides suggested projects a child could do and
directions on how to acquire information for those who
want to further study the Delaware people.
The
Delaware People is carried in the Delaware Tribe of
Indians’ Gift Shop. It regularly sells for $13. To
order the book by credit card, call 1-800-700-9870, or
contact the Delaware Indian Gift Shop, 220 N.W. Virginia
Avenue, Bartlesville, OK 74003.
This
book review is by Annette Ketchum. Thank you to the
Delaware Indian News.
Crafting Your Own Heritage Album
With
this book from Betterway Books, you’ll immortalize your
family’s cherished photographs, documents and
memorabilia for generations to come. Crafting Your Own
Heritage Album shows you how to showcase and preserve
the special people, stories, traditions and keepsakes of
your ancestors.
Even if
you’ve never attempted a heritage album before, you’ll
create elegant, timeless pages as you learn to use
archival-safe materials to preserve your family’s
photos, records and heirlooms. You’ll learn to mount
and protect three-dimensional mementos and to organize
and restore old photographs. You’ll learn to
incorporate journal entries and anecdotes that
personalize and commemorate each layout.
You’ll
learn to weave bits of genealogy, family lore and
tradition into a cohesive family portrait, and to fill
in the missing pieces of your ancestral history. You’ll
create a unique and colorful family tree and to involve
the entire family in your special heritage album
project.
What you
will learn to make is a priceless family resource and
one of the most rewarding projects you will ever
undertake.
What a
marvelous and unique gift for a new bride! This book is
for genealogists, scrapbookers
and family historians.
Order
Crafting Your Own Heritage Album from Betterway
Books, 1507 Dana Avenue, Cincinnati, OH 45207. Call
1-800-289-0963. The book is $23.99. ISBN 1-
55870-534-1.
“It is the soldier,not
the reporter, who has given
us the freedom
of the press.”
