Author Archives: Charles Hansen

Northeast Washington Gen Society Newsflash

by Charles Hansen

The next Northeast Washington Genealogical Society meetings are on Wednesday, September 14, 2016. The morning Computer Interest Group (CIG) will meet in the basement meeting room of the LDS Church on Juniper Street in Colville at 10:30 AM. Entry is located at the back of the building. The building is located one block east of the South Main Restaurant on Hwy 395.

NeWGS LOGO cropped

 This month will be Part Two of our focus on organizing your genealogy research. This month’s meeting will focus on RootsMagic, a popular genealogy program used by many. Susan Dechant, President of NeWGS will demonstrate some of the most well-like features of this program.

Coming soon, RootsMagic will have the ability to synchronize with the Ancestry.com Tree you may have created or if you have a subscription to Ancestry.com you might be considering.

We will take a lunch break at noon and then meet again in the LDS Lower Meeting Room at 1:30 p.m.

“Genealogy Do-Over” is a scary thought but, then again, maybe it’s just what we need to consider.

Norma Yost, NeWGS Librarian and presenter extraordinaire will talk to us about this edgy idea presented in Thomas McEntee’s new book Genealogy Do-Over.

Here is the short summary by Thomas McEntee of Genealogy Do-Over: I set aside everything * related to my genealogy research including notebooks, papers, and even digitized files and my genealogy database files and START OVER. I’m hitting the reset button. I’m allowing myself to have a do-over! (* certain items such as vital records ordered and paid for or research gathered on long-distance trips can be retained).

Are you ready to open your mind to new possibilities? Come join us and learn!

All visitors are welcome. You do not need to be a member to attend the Northeast Washington Genealogical Society’s meetings

Serendipity Day

by Charles Hansen

**Save the Date !!

**The Way Things Used To Be

** “This is a V-Home!”

** Genealogy Blogs: A Good Deal

** Quotes from Shipley Munson

 

The Northwest genealogy Conference for 2016 is history and it was a stupendous conference. You’ll see the several postings on this blog spotlighting various aspects of those four days. And guess what? The Stillaguamish Valley Genealogical Society announced the dates for 2017:  August 16th-19th. And guess what too? You can register NOW at the 2016 prices for the 2017 conference. Click to www.NwGC.org. 

I’d bet at least 30% of the folks attending this conference were from out of state: Canada, Oregon, Nevada and Texas! You and I are among the other 70% who live within fairly easy driving distance (discounting traffic, ugh) and if we start dropping dollar bills into a jar today we’ll be able to attend the NWGC in 2017. Hope you will. A little bird told me that Kenyatta Berry will be one of the main speakers. Know her from Genealogy Roadshow?

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Isn’t this the way it goes? When touring an old historic mansion, and in the kitchen as we looked at all the old gadgets, it went like this:  “I remember using THAT!” To “I remember my mother using THAT!” To “I remember my grandmother using THAT!” To “I haven’t a clue what that is!” What kitchen tools do we use today that our great-grandchildren will not be able to identify???

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World War II was much more real to our parents and/or grandparents than it is to us. We find it quaint to realize some of the problems and customs that war brought to the American people. Take this from the National Office of Civil Defense, 1942:

This is a V-Home!

We in this home are fighting. We know this war will be easy to lose and hard to win. We mean to win it. Therefore, we solemnly pledge all our energies and all our resources to fight for freedom and against fascism.

We serve notice to all that we are personally carrying the fight to the enemy in these ways:

  • This home follows the instructions of its air-raid warden.
  • This home conserves food, clothing, transportation and health.
  • This home salvages essential materials.
  • This home refuses to spread rumors.
  • This home buys War Savings Stamps and Bonds regularly.

We are doing these things because we know we must to WIN THIS WAR.

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Do you read the daily newspaper? Or watch the local and/or national news daily on TV? Or listen to the news every day on public radio? Great! But where to you get your genealogy news?? There are several genealogy blogs to which you can subscribe FOR FREE to bring you regular news and updates in the exploding world of genealogy. For instance:

Ancestry.com  —  Click to the website, and you don’t have to be a member to scroll clear down to the bottom of the screen to where it says Ancestry Blog. Click that and then about mid-page on the right, under Notifications, click “receive updates from Ancestry blog by email.” Regular blog posts, or updates, will come into your email in box. Simple as that.

MyHeritage.com  —  Almost the same as for Ancestry. Click to the website, scroll down to the bottom, under Community, click on Company Blog. Then on the upper right, click Sign Up. Simple as that.

FamilySearch.org  —  Click to the website, near the bottom is Blog. Then enter your email address into the “subscribe to our newsletter” box on the right. Simple as that.

Dick Eastman’s Online Genealogy Newsletter has been the reigning king of genealogy blogs for a decade or more. Click to EOGN.com, scroll down on the right and sign up/subscribe. The free edition is plenty wonderful!

Now if you do this, you will have subscribed to FOUR regular genealogy newspapers!

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Perhaps you’ve never heard of Shipley Munson. But he is the creator of RootsTech and Chief Marketing Officer and Director of Outreach for FamilySearch. What he says is worth noting.  I scribbled down these quotes from him at RootsTech 2016:

  • No living person should be researched later! We should, indeed, document the living.
  • Innovation is alive and well in family history!
  • What will the great-grandchildren of your great-grandchildren wish you had preserved for them??
  • It’s not them vs. us. It’s just us; we are all cousins.

 

 

Eastside Genealogical Society September Meeting

by Charles Hansen

EGS

 

The Eastside Genealogical Society will meet on Thursday, September 8, 2016 in the Bellevue Regional Library (Room 1), 1111 – 110th Ave NE, Bellevue, WA 98004 at 7 pm, with doors opening at 6:45 pm for networking.

Topic:  “When It’s Time to Call in the Pros”  –   A panel of three professional researchers, who are members of APG (Association of Professional Genealogist), will discuss the various aspects of hiring a professional.   They will cover such topics as:  where to find someone in the business, certified or not; how time is billed; a range of costs; types of research activities typically covered; Code of Ethics; do’s and don’ts.

 

Also see our website for FREE genealogical help and other Special Interest Group meetings. Visitors are always welcome at all meetings. www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~wakcegs/

 

Dorothy Pretare

EGS Publicity Chairperson

dpgen@comcast.net

Eastside Genealogical Society German Interest Group

by Charles Hansen

EGS

 

The German Interest Group of The Eastside Genealogical Society will meet on Friday, September 2, 2016 from 1 to 3 pm in the Relief Society Room of the LDS Church at 10675 NE 20thSt, Bellevue, WA 98004 with doors opening at 12:45 pm for networking.   Visitors are always welcome at all meetings.

 

Topic: Germanic Surname Distribution Maps can help focus on an area where family surnames most frequently appear. Surname maps are generally created using population lists, such as censuses, electoral rolls, taxation records and telephone directories. The maps “graphically display locations where surnames occurred at different periods in time.”  Where the surname concentration is at the highest, it indicates the region a given spelling of the name was first adopted. The maps are a starting point for research in the home country. If your surname is less common and from families that have remained in an area in the country over time, the better success at using the maps for hints as to where to search next. Additional resources addressed will include general surname search strategies, use of umlauts in German and American surnames and use of wildcards searches in Ancestry.com.

 

Speaker: Janet O’Conor Camarata, as a genealogist, has researched her own family history for over 25 years. She is a seminar presenter and trainer in a variety of genealogy subjects to societies and libraries across Washington; a newsletter editor of the Kittitas County Genealogy Society (KCGS); a publicity chairman and past-president of South King County Genealogical Society (SKCGS).   She is a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists and is a graduate of the University of Washington Genealogy and Family History program.

 

For more information, kindly visit our website at https://egsgermangroup.wordpress.com/ .

Dorothy Pretare

GIG Leader

GermanInterestGroupEGS@outlook.com

THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM’s Wednesday Evening E-News

by Charles Hansen

GFO1

 

THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM’s Wednesday Evening E-News 17 August 2016

For more information visit www.gfo.org, contact us at info@gfo.org, or call our library at 503-963-1932. We love hearing from you!

For a complete GFO CALENDAR go to www.gfo.org/calendar.htm.

Also, if you missed your free copy of our monthly Insider for August 2016, you’re in luck because we saved you a copy at http://www.gfo.org/insider/16-Aug.pdf.

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Seattle Genealogical Society Tip of the Week

by Charles Hansen

Seattle

Tip of the Week – DO THE LEG WORK

It’s true that the popularity of genealogy has exploded since all the on-line resources available have made it so much easier to gather information on our ancestors, but let’s not forget that some of the best things can only be found if you’re willing to do some good old fashioned leg work.

This summer I traveled back to the Midwest and interspersed my visits with the living with side trips seeking answers about the dead. In two states, I visited five cemeteries, two genealogy societies, the Cuyahoga County Archives, and a small town library.  From each place I walked away with a treasure, often not the information I was seeking, but something totally unexpected. Something not available on the Internet.

I found headstones for children that never lived long enough to show up in the census, I learned my great-great-grandfather, listed as a musician in the 1885 Boston directory and 1900 Ohio census, was a professor of music that played cornet as well as violin,  and my favorite find was in a filing cabinet in the basement of a small town library. This cabinet was full of folders much like the Surname Vertical Files we have at SGS. In there I found transcriptions of Civil War Letters between a brother and his sister, my son-in-law’s ancestors.

The brother was a young Union soldier. His personality really shined in these letters. It was fun to “get to know him”.  He always closed with a “Give my love to the family and any inquiring friends and save a good portion for yourself. Your affectionate brother, John F Brown”. It was sad when I found that 6 months after the letters stopped he died in Georgia as a POW in Andersonville Prison.

You are encouraged to come into the SGS Library and check the Surname Vertical files as well as the Family History Collections. Try visiting the small cemeteries,  libraries, and historical societies near where your ancestors lived. Maybe there are some unexpected treasures waiting there for

Seattle Genealogical Society News

by Charles Hansen

Seattle

70th Annual Pacific Northwest
 Scottish Highland Games and Clan Gathering

Did you catch the Scottish Highland Games the last weekend in July?  About 20 to 30 thousand people attend the games each summer.  It’s a long standing Community Outreach Activity for SGS and a great opportunity for us to connect with people already interested in their heritage. SGS proudly carried the SGS banner in the daily “Parade of the Clans” ceremonies before a grandstand crowd.

Our SGS volunteers helped attendees with their questions.   We had Scottish, Scots-Irish and Irish books from our library available for people to reference.  We even got the children involved collecting smiley face stickers for their “Children’s Passport” and for their parents we had a genealogy for children handout with a lineage chart. Jean Roth gave a talk on Scottish and Scots-Irish Genealogical Society Research in the Heritage Tent.

Jean Roth and Pat Younie organized our volunteers.  A special “Thank you” to Jim Ryan & Richard Ambur for setting up our double booth and displays. And of course “thank you”  to all the volunteers including Tom & Kathi Hamilton, Steven & Gloria Morrison, Bill & Annette Dwyer, Joan Kelday, Nancy Martin, Elizabeth Howie, Carol Boyer, Karen Portzer, Linda Luedke, and David Rimmer. Also joining us was Nancy Spieker of the Irish Heritage Club.

Are you often missing updates from your favorite genealogy bloggers, societies, and educators because you’ve only subscribed to them via Facebook? Facebook filters and presents content based on a nontransparent algorithm. This can omit updates which you want to receive.

Subscribe to your favorite content producer’s RSS feeds using Feedly.com, and see everything sequentially. Feedly’s motto is, “More signal, less noise”. And it’s true! It’s available for mobile devices and via the web, and comes in feature-rich free and pro versions. You can creating collections, set keyword alerts, and even have the ability to subscribe to YouTube channels. Feedly keeps track of what you’ve read, saves your favorite feed items, and helps you to share them with friends by connecting to social networks like Facebook and Twitter.

If you try Feedly from the web, once logged in, press the “Discover and Follow” button and enter genealogy in the search. You’ll see options to follow Ancestry Blog, Dear MYRTLE, Genealogy Insider, Geneabloggers, The Legal Genealogist and much more!

But don’t abandon Facebook just yet. Facebook’s power lies in its ability to help people communicate with one another. Subscribing to Facebook Groups, as opposed to just liking Pages, allows you to join into communities that share your interests and that contain active people who wish to collaborate. For example, are you interested in delving deep into DNA? Check out the group DNA Detectives moderated by CeCe Moore. And if you’re seeking help with using Family Tree Maker, there’s an active group where users mentor one another.

BACK FROM SUMMER BREAK

After a summer break the Scandinavian, Irish, and German Special Interest Groups will return to their regular time slots in September.  The Scandinavian group meets on the 2nd Sunday of the month and the Irish and German groups meet on the 3rd Saturday of the month.

Karen Knudson has returned from her trip to Norway and Sweden and can’t wait to share her stories with the Scandinavian group. She plans that for the first hour of the next meeting with the second hour reserved for discussion and Q&A.

And don’t forget about the new Family Tree Maker Help Sessions scheduled to begin on August 27th; there was a write up on it in the last issue of the eNews! Considering all the users of FTM, this should be a popular addition to the educational opportunities available to you at SGS.

SGS CALENDAR OF EVENTS
 

Unless otherwise indicated all programs will be at the SGS Library, 6200 Sand Point Way NE.  Please check the SGS Web Site for additions, changes, and corrections.  Programs may be canceled or postponed due to inclement weather.  The SGS Library will be closed Labor Day Weekend, September 3rd and 4th.

AUGUST

Tuesday, August 16, 12:30 pm – 3:00 pm, Technology Tuesday, Hosted by Lisa Chan, SGS Director of Technology, Bring your laptop or mobile device, visit with other members and learn from each other while working on your family history. Discuss current projects, hardware, software, organizing data, and technology trends in genealogy.

Saturday, August 20,   10:00 am – 12:30 pm, SGS DNA Special Interest Group, meets at Wedgwood Presbyterian Church, 8008 35th Ave NE, Seattle, WA, downstairs in the Fellowship Hall at the corner of 35th Ave NE & NE 80th St.  Join us to learn about new discoveries in DNA testing.  To be added to their email list, contact sgsdnasig@gmail.com

Tuesday, August 23, 12:30 pm – 3:00 pm, Technology Tuesday, Hosted by Lisa Chan, SGS Director of Technology

Saturday, August 27,   10:15 am – 12:15 pm,   Family Tree Maker Help Session, Reiley Kidd and Betty Ravenholt, leaders.  See last issue of eNews! for detailed specifics.  What would you like to learn about FTM?

Tuesday, August 30, 12:30 pm – 3:00 pm, Technology Tuesday, Hosted by Lisa Chan, SGS Director of Technology

SEPTEMBER

Tuesday, September 6, 12:30 pm – 3:00 pm, Technology Tuesday, Hosted by Lisa Chan, SGS Director of Technology, Bring your laptop or mobile device, visit with other members and learn from each other while working on your family history. Discuss current projects, hardware, software, organizing data, and technology trends in genealogy.

Sunday, September 11,  1:30 pm – 3:30pm, Scandinavian SIG, this meeting leader, Karen Knudson, will talk about her trip to Norway & Sweden followed by discussion and Q&A.

Tuesday, September 13, 12:30 pm – 3:00 pm, Technology Tuesday, Hosted by Lisa Chan, SGS Director of Technology

Saturday, September 17, 10:15 am – 12:15 pm, Irish Interest Group, Leader: Jean A. Roth

Saturday, September 17,  1:00 pm – 3:00 pm,  German Interest Group, Leader: Jean A. Roth

SAVE THE DATES

August 17th-20th
Stillaquamish Valley Genealogical Society 2016 Northwest Genealogy Conference
Byrnes Performing Arts Center, Arlington, WA
August 17th is The Beginner Genealogy Free Day with classes geared for those new to genealogy.  For more details on this conference and registration go to:
http://stillygen.org/cpage.php?pt=50
SGS members Janice Lovelace and Mary Kircher Roddy are presenting at this conference.

September 23rd-25th
The Kelowna & District Genealogical Society’s  (KDGS)
“Harvest Your Family Tree”  Conference 2016
Kelowna, BC, Canada
More info and registration at: www.kdgsconference2016.blogspot.ca
SGS member Mary Kircher Roddy is also speaking at this conference.

September 23rd-24th, 2016
Ancestry Days in Washington State
Greater Tacoma Convention Center
1500 Broadway
Tacoma, WA 98402

The Office of the Secretary of State and the Washington State Historical Society are partnering with Ancestry to bring a very special genealogical event to the Pacific Northwest. Ancestry Day in Washington will be held in Tacoma on Saturday, September 24, and is expected to attract more than 1,000 family historians. Whether you are a new subscriber to Ancestry, an experienced genealogist, or just interested in finding out what genealogy is all about, this is the event for you!  Activities on September 23 will be held at the Washington State History Museum in Tacoma and will include access to the museum and special presentations on outstanding genealogical resources in Washington.  On Saturday, September 24, Ancestry will take center stage at the Greater Tacoma Convention & Trade Center. They will be bringing their expertise, engaging speakers, door prizes, and Ancestry DNA kits to purchase. There also will be vendors from around the state sharing their products and ideas.
Registration opens in late July.  Stay tuned for more information.  For more details, see:

Ancestry Day Coming Soon!

October 15, 2016
SGS Fall Seminar, featuring author Emily Aulicino, well-known expert on DNA and genealogy. More details to follow soon.

Heritage Quest Research Library Upcoming Classes

by Charles Hansen

hqrl_logo

Upcoming Classes at HQRL

August, 2016

Like us on Facebook!

Mark your calendars! It’s a busy month at HQRL!

As a courtesy, please do not wear perfume or strong cologne.

 

August 16th, Tuesday 6:00 – 8:00 P.M., $15.00

Getting Started with Legacy Family Tree with Jim Johnson Jim will explain how to set up your family file and how to input your information properly. If you have Legacy installed on a laptop, you are invited to bring it and follow along with the lesson.

August 22nd, Monday 1:00 -3:00 P.M., $15.00

Researching Land Records with Carolyn Harkness

“…beginning at the old oak tree, on the banks of the Salix Creek, thence southwest 45 degrees, 30 chains to the big rock……” Carolyn will describe various land records and where to find them, including the Metes and Bounds System of the original colonies. She will provide protractors whereby students will plat a land description. She will also discuss the Rectangular Survey system, which is the primary survey method in the United States. Join us for this learning experience!

August 30th, Tuesday 6:00 – 8:00 P.M., $15.00

Roots Magic (A repeat) with Dee Haviland Fournier Join Dee for a Beginner’s Class in Roots Magic. If you are thinking about buying Roots Magic or have the software and don’t know where to begin this class will help you get started. It is focused on the Main Menu and the Tool Bar. We will cover as much as time allows. If you have the program loaded on your laptop, you might want to bring it with you.

*3 ways to sign-up:*

1. In person at HQRL, 1007 S. Main St., Sumner, WA. The sign-up notebook is at the

Front Desk.

2. E-mail *HQRLinfo@gmail.com <HQRLinfo@gmail.com>* – provide name, telephone

number and your HQRL membership number, if you are a member.

3. Telephone HQRL at 253-863-1806 between 10:00 am – 4 pm, Monday through

Saturday. Provide your name, telephone number and HQRL membership number, if

you are a member.

Puget Sound Genealogical Society Conferences and Seminars

by Charles Hansen

PugetSound

Puget Sound Genealogical Society is having their bi-annual seminar “A Day of Discovery” on Saturday, September 24, at the Poulsbo Community Church on Saturday, September 24th from 8:30am to 3:30pm.  The featured presenter is Thomas MacEntee, a well-known and popular speaker from Chicago, Illinois.  He will be presenting four topics: Internet Archive: A Gold Mine for Genealogists; Managing the Genealogy Data Monster; Mapping Your Genealogy: From A to Z and In-Between; and Successful Collateral and Cluster Searching. The registration fee is $40.00 for PSGS members and $45.00 for non-members.  The late registration fee after September 15th is an additional $5.00.  Registration fee includes a light lunch, morning and afternoon snacks and a chance to win one of more than 20 genealogy-related door prizes. There will also be a raffle of more than $500 of technology-related items. Tickets are only $1.00 each or 6 for $5.00.  Jim Johnson will also bring lots of research goodies from the Heritage Quest Research Library’s Bookstore. More information, or to download the brochure and registration form, go to the PSGS website:  www.pusogensoc.org/psgs/seminar2016.

THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM’s Wednesday Evening E-News

by Charles Hansen

GFO1

THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM’s Wednesday Evening E-News 10 August 2016

For more information visit www.gfo.org, contact us at info@gfo.org, or call our library at 503-963-1932. We love hearing from you!

For a complete GFO CALENDAR go to www.gfo.org/calendar.htm.

Also, if you missed your free copy of our monthly Insider for August 2016, you’re in luck because we saved you a copy at http://www.gfo.org/insider/16-Aug.pdf.

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It Only TAKES ONE to Make a WHALE of a Difference!

Whale

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