Serendipity Day

**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.

NW Genealogy Conference — Day 3

Aug21 by Roxanne Lowe

Blaine Bettinger explaining the latest developments in genetic genealogy.

The last day of the 2016 Northwest Genealogy Conference brought us Blaine Bettinger, intellectual property attorney by day and genetic genealogist by night. His first session was “Genetic Genealogy Year in Review.” So many changes, improvements, adjustments and announcements in the ever-changing field of genetic genealogy. No wonder I have a hard time keeping up with what to do with the results I have from all those kits I’ve paid for! It was so helpful to know what was happening — and what might be happening soon. His other sessions for the day were “Using Third-Party Tools to Analyze Your DNA” (oh…so that’s what I need to do with all that confusing data!) and “Using Autosomal DNA to Solve Family Mysteries.”

I only had time to take one workshop on Saturday (then off to a family reunion). Used the opportunity to listen to Jim Johnson from Heritage Quest Research Library share “Five Steps to Finding your Ancestors Who Passed Through Canada.” His one-hour lecture proved to me that you can always learn something (or many things) new in classes like this. Will be looking for the Murphy’s and Ryan’s in some of the new places Jim shared.

Some of the many volunteers from the Stillaguamish Valley GS.

The conference attendees also got the opportunity to thank the Stillaguamish Valley Genealogical Society for their hard work, sponsoring this conference. More than 40 members work year-round to give us a first-rate learning experience.

Patty Olson and Donna Potter Phillips welcoming visitors to the WSGS table.

In no time, it was time to close up the Washington State Genealogical Society‘s vendor booth where we talked to everyone who came by about the WSGS and signed up almost 70 new members. It was also time to say good-bye to old and new friends with promises of seeing them next year: August 16 – 19, 2017!! I’ll be there. Will you?

Eastside Genealogical Society September Meeting

Aug21 by Charles Hansen

EGS

The Eastside Genealogical Society will meet on Thursday, September 8, 2016 in the Bellevue Regional Library (Room 1), 1111 – 110^th 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

NW Genealogy Conference — Day 2

Aug19 by Roxanne Lowe

Lisa Louise Cooke zooming around the earth (with Google Earth)

More than 300 of us arrived bright and early (or maybe it was just early…) at the Byrnes Performing Arts Center in Arlington, rearing to go for Day 2 of the Northwest Genealogy Conference. But the hard-working members of the Stillaguamish Valley Genealogical Society, sponsors of this third annual conference, had been there long before us, making sure everything was ready.

It didn’t take long for us to “Blast to the Past with Google Earth” with the amazing Lisa Louise Cooke as our expert navigator. We held onto our seats as we zoomed from historical maps superimposed over today’s terrain to identifying old unidentified family photos using Google Earth (really!). The tips and “gems” just kept coming — the sky was truly the limit!

Today was “Dress Like Your Ancestor Day” — so creative!

As if the Google Earth for Genealogy program wasn’t enough, Lisa also pumped us full of resources, ideas, strategies and tips during her “Google Tools and Procedures for Solving Family History Mysteries” and “Future Technology and Genealogy.” The only thing she couldn’t provide was time to do all the exciting opportunities she shared. Maybe that’s why I’m still on the computer and it’s after 11 p.m.!

The day also forced me to choose two hour-long workshops from the 14 offered today. (Side note: 40 different workshops were offered at the conference — and I had to choose only 6 — an almost impossible task!) I decided I needed the focus and motivation to get organized, so I attended “Solve Genealogy Problems by Creating a Timeline” with Beth Foulk and “Building a Research Plan” with Janice Lovelace. Two great classes with step-by-step (easy) plans, tools and resources to organize myself. I’m feeling positive about my future success.

The day closed with a banquet at the Glen Eagle Country Club where we were treated to Blaine Bettinger, tomorrow’s keynote presenter on DNA and genetic genealogy, giving us a peek at the “Science Fiction Future of Genetic Genealogy.”

Eastside Genealogical Society German Interest Group

Aug19 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 20^thSt, 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

NW Genealogy Conference — Day 1

Aug18 by Roxanne Lowe

The theme of the first full day of the Northwest Genealogy Conference in Arlington was “Gathering Your Family’s Story.” Keynoter Claudia Breland, noted author of four books and at least six more in the works, shared her knowledge, experience and advice about:

Claudia Breland sharing her expertise on self-publishing.

Writing Up Your Research (without using genealogy software). Yes, you really can use your word processing software to write your family’s story!
Self-Publishing for the Family Historian. You don’t have to be J.K. Rowling to publish a book.
Finding and Using Historic Newspapers (check out her book “Searching for Your Ancestors in Historic Newspapers“).

Daniel Earl entertained his audience, leaving us dying to hear more!

In between Claudia’s sessions, the 250+ attendees chose two hour-long sessions from a tantalizing list of topics from Secret Societies (fraternal organizations) and Huguenot Records to Census Strategies and Funeral Homes (where they’re dying to meet you!). I couldn’t resist Daniel Earl’s “Funeral Homes and Family History” class and wasn’t disappointed. He filled the room (literally — it was standing room only) with humor and new awareness of the wealth of information to be gleaned from bills of sale, service programs and funeral cards. The other class I chose was “Using Homestead Records to Tell Your Ancestor’s Story” with Michelle Goodrum, a professional genealogist from Mesa, Arizona. I was amazed at the amount of rich information I can get from a land entry case file from the National Archives for my homesteading ancestors. Definitely on my To Do List!

Blogger Roxanne Lowe with professional genealogist Janice Lovelace

Downtown Arlington rolled out the welcome mat for us

A new feature offered at the conference was “Ask the Experts,” a limited number of one-on-one consultations with a member of the Puget Sound Chapter of the Association of Professional Genealogists. I was lucky enough to meet with Janice Lovelace, an expert in early Ohio records. She was able to focus my efforts to find my 2x great grandfather (Thomas Ferbrache, where are you?), give me promising suggestions for new avenues and specific resources to check.

The end of our day included dinner, shopping and a stroll through historic downtown Arlington. Businesses agreed to stay open later to roll out the welcome mat to NWGC attendees. A great day from dawn to dusk.

THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM’s Wednesday Evening E-News

Aug18 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.

Continue reading →

Are You at the Northwest Genealogy Conference? There’s Still Time!

Aug17 by Roxanne Lowe

Beth Foulk entertained NWGC attendees at today’s free beginner classes.

“Wanna talk about dead people?” That’s how featured speaker Beth Foulk kicked off the Northwest Genealogy Conference‘s entertaining free beginner class (actually three classes!) today. From that opening question (and roomful of chuckles), we were off to 3+ hours of stories, examples, resources, tips, reminders and ah ha’s — everything you could ask for. It didn’t matter how you defined “beginner” — we all learned plenty in Beth’s engaging classes:

The Best Tools for Beginning Genealogy Success
Secrets of Ten Record Groups
If I’d Only Known: Beginning Mistakes, Tips & Tricks to Keep From Tripping Up

The day ended with a fun networking reception at local hot spot Skookum Brewery. What a great way to see old friends and meet new ones.

If you missed today’s classes, don’t despair. The organizers at the Stillaguamish Valley Genealogical Society are ready for you (Boy — are they ready!). You can still register for the conference (although you’ll need to bring your own meals) — even if you only want to come for one day ($80/day). Just show up at the Byrnes Performing Arts Center in Arlington and be prepared to be educated and entertained.

I’ll post again tomorrow. Looking forward to hearing keynote speaker Claudia Breland’s three presentations, but I’m a little worried about how to choose only two individual classes from the 13 being offered, plus visit the vendors and do a little networking. What a dilemma!

Seattle Genealogical Society Tip of the Week

Aug17 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

Aug17 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.