Mocavo.com Launches as World’s Largest Free Genealogy Search Engine

Industry breakthrough provides instant search results for billions of names, dates and places worldwide

BOULDER, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Mocavo.com™ (http://www.mocavo.com), a free search engine geared toward genealogists and people interested in learning more about their family history, launches today. Mocavo.com enables the search of more than 50 billion words - including billions of names, dates and places, all within fractions of a second. Mocavo.com fills an important industry need by providing the first large-scale, free search engine for family history research. Coupled with the speed and accuracy by which search results are produced, Mocavo.com represents a major technological breakthrough within the genealogy world.

Mocavo.com has already been met with critical acclaim by several industry experts. Dick Eastman, writer of Eastman’s Online Genealogy Newsletter and a top blogger in the field, wrote, “All my future genealogy searches will start on Mocavo.com. I've been using the site for a while during its testing and have been very impressed. I suspect you will always have better luck searching for your own surnames of interest on Mocavo.com than on any other search engine.”

Randy Seaver, writer of the popular Genea-Musings blog, said, “Mocavo.com promises to be a genealogist's dream - a search engine focused on free online genealogy resources." Mr. Eastman’s and Mr. Seaver’s full reviews can be found at http://www.eogn.com and http://www.geneamusings.com, respectively.

Starting today, the general public can use Mocavo.com for free. Visitors to www.mocavo.com are simply required to type in the names of interest and click on Search. All related results from industry sources such as genealogy message boards, family trees, state and local historical societies, the Library of Congress, National Archives, Ellis Island, Find A Grave, the Internet Archive, various U.S. state archives, and many tens of thousands of genealogy sites built by individuals will be displayed. Similar to other search engines, Mocavo.com honors site owners by linking directly to their content.

Cliff Shaw, founder and CEO of Mocavo Inc., identifies the current trouble for genealogists and the solution that Mocavo.com provides, “Genealogy has always had the problem of information and potential clues being spread across thousands of disparate web sites and sources. Imagine a world where you have all of the Web’s free genealogy content at your fingertips within seconds. That is Mocavo.com.”

“Mocavo.com has the capacity to index every single piece of free genealogy content found anywhere on the web, and will be growing by leaps and bounds in the coming months,” said Mr. Shaw. “We expect Mocavo.com to shortly offer all of the web’s free genealogy information, searchable and accessible to all – something that has never been done before. It’s set to become the go-to search engine for every family history enthusiast.”

Mocavo Inc. is the brainchild of Cliff Shaw. Mr. Shaw is well known in the industry, having created four successful companies and many innovative technologies, including Smart Matching™, the most successful ancestor-matching algorithm. He created GenForum 14 years ago and it quickly grew to become the number one community for genealogists (now owned by Ancestry.com® (NASDAQ:ACOM)). In the early 2000’s, Mr. Shaw launched GenCircles and Family Tree Legends, becoming the number two family tree publishing site and number two family tree software package respectively (both are now owned by MyHeritage.com). More recently, Mr. Shaw launched the well-received BackupMyTree.com, the industry’s only automatic tree backup solution.

About Mocavo Inc.

Mocavo Inc. operates the world’s largest free genealogy search engine, Mocavo.com, giving genealogists access to the best free genealogy content on the web including billions of names, dates and places. Founded by industry veteran Cliff Shaw, and backed by prominent angel investor, David Cohen, (founder and CEO of TechStars), Mocavo.com seeks to index and make searchable all of the world’s free genealogy information. While Mocavo.com discovers new sites every day, some of the existing sites searchable on Mocavo.com include genealogy message boards, family trees, state and local historical societies, the Library of Congress, National Archives, Ellis Island, Find A Grave, the Internet Archive, various U.S. state archives, and many tens of thousands of genealogy sites built by individuals. For further information, visit http://www.mocavo.com.

Quick-Tip of the Month for Preservation--Scan and Share

by Dawne Slater-Putt and courtesy of the Genealogy gems newsletter published by the Allen County Public Library's Genealogy Center.

Perhaps the best way to preserve photographs is to ensure that the ones you have are not the only copies in existence – scan and share!

With improved scanning technology, it takes very little time to scan a photograph. Some libraries, including The Genealogy Center, have a scanner that patrons can use. The Genealogy Center’s scanner allows patrons to choose a file format (tif, jpg, etc.), scan their photos and send the digital copies to their own email addresses.

Once photos are scanned, the possibilities for sharing them are endless, ensuring that the images are preserved for future generations. Consider the possibilities:

*Email them to relatives
*Upload them to an album in Facebook or to another social media or photo sharing location
*Use a different ancestral photo as your Facebook profile picture each month
*Post them on a blog
*Upload them to a family website
*Print them and mail to relatives
*Include them in a print or online family newsletter
*Include them in a print or online local or state genealogical society newsletter
*Mass produce mugs, tee shirts, calendars, mouse pads … with ancestral photos and give as gifts or give away/sell at family reunions
*Include them in a family history book
*Insert them into your genealogy computer program
*Upload them to Ancestry.com’s family tree area
*Create a photobook using computer scrapbooking software

Scanning photos can seem like an overwhelming task. Prioritize!

Perhaps handle your oldest photos first, or those of your direct ancestors. Or tackle one side of the family, then the other. By scanning just a few photos at a time on a regular basis, you can make significant progress in a short period of time.

Who Do You Think Your Are? Renewed for Season 3

According to the TV Line website (http://www.tvline.com/2011/02/nbc-renews-sing-off-two-other-reality-shows/), NBC has renewed their Friday night hit, Who Do You Think You Are?. We will now have a third season of celebrity genealogy.

WDYTYA has had good ratings. For instance, the episode of Who Do You Think You Are? that aired Friday had 5.9 million viewers and a 1.3 in the imporant 18-49 demo.

So I hope to have more in the near future on who we will see next season. In the meantime, enjoy the remaining episodes this season at 8 eastern/7 central Friday evenings on NBC.

Storing CDs and DVDs

This quick tip is courtesy of the Genealogy Gems newsletter published by the Allen County Public Library's Genealogy Center, Steve Myers & Curt Witcher, co-editors.

Store CDs and DVDs in the same manner you would store books: on end, not flat. If you have a large number of discs, stacking them on top of each other can increase the chances of some cracking or being scratched by dust trapped between the discs. Ideally, each disc should be in its own case with each case bearing an appropriate descriptive label.

Western North Carolina Legacy SIG to meet this week

The Western North Carolina Legacy genealogy software Special Interest Group will hold its monthly meeting on Wednesday, February 9 at 6:30 pm at the Moss memorial Library in Hayesville NC (weather permitting). If you are interested in using Legacy software in your research, this free meeting is well worth your time.

Wilkinson Co GA Cemetery Book Now Available

If you are interested in the cemeteries of Wilkinson County, Georgia, a new reference book, published by the county genealogical society, may be the ticket to new family connections.

The Cemeteries of Wilkinson County, Georgia book has been published and is now ready for delivery. If you want a copy, drop a check in the mail to the Wilkinson County Historical Society, P. O. Box 476, Gordon, GA 31031, and Jimmy Lord will mail it to you immediately. The cost is $55.00 plus $6.00 S&H.

You can contact the Society directly through their websote at http://www.netstarz.net/wilco/

RootsTech Conference Will Broadcast Select Sessions Free Online

RootsTech, a new family history and technology conference held in Salt Lake City, Utah, February 10-12, 2011, announced today that six of its popular sessions will be broadcasted live and complimentary over the Internet. The live broadcasts will give those unable to attend worldwide a sample of this year’s conference content. Interested viewers can watch the live presentations at RootsTech.org. The first-year conference has attracted over 2,000 registered attendees.

The free online sessions include some of the keynote speakers and a sampling of technology and family history presentations. Following are the six broadcasts, speakers, and times of the presentations. All times are in Mountain Standard Time (MST):

Thursday, February 10, 2011

· 8:30-9:00 a.m., A world of Information, Shane Robison, chief technology officer, Hewlett Packard

· 9-9:30 a.m., Turning Roots, Branches, Trees into Nodes, Links, Graphs, Jay L. Verkler, chief executive officer, FamilySearch International

· 3-4:00 p.m., Digitally Preserving Your Family Heritage, Barry Ewell, founder of MyGenShare.com

Friday, February 11, 2011

· 8:30-9:30 a.m., The Changing Face of Genealogy, by Curt Witcher, manager of the Historical Genealogy Department, Allen County Public Library

· 9:45-10:45 a.m., Cloud Computing: What is it and how it has been used to create the next familysearch.org, by Brian Pugh, senior engineer, FamilySearch International

Saturday, February 12, 2011

· 8:30-9:30 a.m. Personal Archiving and Primary Documents, Brewster Kahle, founder of the Internet Archives

· 1:45-2:45 p.m., Virtual Presentations Round Table and Collaborative Panel Discussion, Thomas MacEntee, professional genealogist and technology specialist

· 3:00-4:00 p.m., The Power of PDF: Tools for Every Genealogist , D. Josh Taylor, Director of Education and Programs at New England Historical Genealogical Society.

About RootsTech

RootsTech is a new conference designed to bring technologists together with genealogists to learn from each other and find solutions to the challenges faced in family history research today. The conference’s activities and offerings are focused on content that will help genealogists and family historians discover exciting new research tools while enabling technology creators to learn the latest development techniques from industry leaders and pioneers.

Who Do You Think You Are Season 2 Starts Tonight

NBC's acclaimed alternative series "Who Do You Think You Are?" begins its second season tonight at 8 pm EST/7 pm CST on most NBC TV affiliates. The show will feature the compelling genealogical story of Vanessa Williams.

In this season of "Who Do You Think You Are?" they will follow some of today's most beloved and iconic celebrities as they embark on personal journeys of self-discovery to trace their family trees. From the trenches of the Civil War to the shores of the Caribbean, and from the valleys of Virginia to the island nations of Australia and Ireland, each episode will reveal surprising, inspiring and sometimes tragic stories that are often linked to events in American and international history.

The celebrities that will be featured in this second season are Gwyneth Paltrow, Tim McGraw, Rosie O’Donnell, Steve Buscemi, Kim Cattrall, Lionel Richie, Vanessa Williams and Ashley Judd.

Each week, a different celebrity is taken on a quest into his or her family history. The search is one of surprising and deeply emotional encounters, resulting in one of the most compelling reality formats of recent years. During each episode, viewers will be taken on a personal and often mysterious quest following some of America's best-known celebrities into their ancestral pasts, as they uncover stories of heroism and tragedy, love and betrayal, secrets and intrigue, that lie at the heart of their family history.

At the same time, "Who Do You Think You Are?" celebrates the twists and turns of a great nation and the people who made their way here in search of freedom and opportunity. As each celebrity discovers his or her unknown relatives - most of whom overcame hard times - the show will take viewers back through world history to expose how the lives of everyone's collective ancestors have shaped our world today.

From Executive Producers Lisa Kudrow ("Friends," "The Comeback") and Dan Bucatinsky ("Lipstick Jungle," "The Comeback"), in conjunction with their production company, Is or Isn't Entertainment, and Shed Media U.S., the series is an adaptation of the award-winning hit British television documentary series from Wall to Wall Productions, created and executive produced by Alex Graham. Jennifer O'Connell and Al Edgington also serve as executive producers.

You can see a preview of tonight's show, watch shows from season one, and much more at http://www.nbc.com/who-do-you-think-you-are/ The show is sponsored in part by Ancestry.com.

Athens Historic Newspapers Archive Now Available

The Digital Library of Georgia is pleased to announce the availability of a new online resource: The Athens Historic Newspapers Archive http://dlg.galileo.usg.edu/athnewspapers .

The Athens Historic Newspapers Archive provides online access to five newspaper titles published in Athens from 1827 to 1922. Consisting of over 57,000 newspaper pages, the archive provides historical images that are both full-text searchable and can be browsed by date. The site will provide users with a view into the history of Athens in its early years as the home to the first state-chartered university in the nation and its eventual growth into the largest city in northeast Georgia.

The archive includes the following Athens newspaper titles: Athenian (1827-1832), Southern Banner (1832-1882), Southern Watchman (1855-1882), Daily/Weekly Banner-Watchman (1882-1889), Daily/Weekly Athens Banner (1889-1922).

The Athens Historic Newspapers Archive is a project of the Digital Library of Georgia as part of the Georgia HomePLACE initiative. The project is supported with federal LSTA funds administered by the Institute of Museum and Library Services through the Georgia Public Library Service, a unit of the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia. Digitization is also made possible through a grant provided by the Francis Wood Wilson Foundation, Inc.

Other newspaper archives available through the Digital Library of Georgia include the Atlanta Historic Newspapers Archive (1847-1922), the Macon Telegraph Archive (1826-1908), the Columbus Enquirer Archive (1828-1890), the Milledgeville Historic Newspapers Archive (1808-1920), the Southern Israelite Archive (1929-1986), and the Red and Black Archive (1893-2006). These archives can be accessed at http://dlg.galileo.usg.edu/MediaTypes/Newspapers.html

And for my students the service is "free."

Families for Android Op System Now Available

Last Tuesday night one of my students in my beginner Legacy class asked if there was a Legacy app for the Android operating system. My answer was not yet. After class I go home, check my email inbox and that answer has now changed. I had the press release below in my inbox.

TelGen Limited is pleased to announce the release of the first version of Families for Android. This app provides the same functionality as the popular Families app for iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad, but now on the Android platform.

This application is designed to operate in conjunction with Legacy Family Tree, the leading Windows-based genealogy software from Millennia Corporation. Legacy family files can be easily transferred from a PC to your iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, or Android device, enabling them to be viewed and edited wherever you are. Families supports the following functionality:

•Multiple family files
•New family files can be created from scratch
•Family View and Pedigree View
•Index, searchable by Given Name, Surname or RIN
•Events
•To Do Lists
•Master and Detail Sources
•Locations and Addresses, with geolocation via Google Maps
•Alternate Names
•Pictures, including the ability to add pictures from camera or photo album
•Portrait and Landscape mode on all views
•Full screen support on the iPad
•Legacy file versions 6 and 7 are supported

Families uses a highly efficient database implementation, allowing very large family files to be supported. Users have successfully displayed and edited files containing over 300,000 individuals on an iPhone and a sample family file is included.

On iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad Families requires access to a Wi-Fi network or use of iTunes via a USB connection in order to transfer family files between your device and your PC. USB transfer uses iTunes File Sharing which requires your device to be running iOS 3.2 or above.

On Android Families uses a USB connection to transfer family files to and from your Android device's SD card.

Families requires a companion program running on the PC to transfer family files to and from the device. This program, Families Sync, can be downloaded free of charge from here. For iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad, iTunes must be installed in order to use this program.

Families for Android can be purchased from Android Market for £8.99 or equivalent in other currencies (approximately US$14.30)

For more information see http://www.telgen.co.uk/families or email families@telgen.co.uk.

New Ancestry iPad, iPhone and iTouch app

How would you like to be able to see and navigate your Ancestry.com family tree on your iPhone or iPad so you can more easily share family stories visually? How would you like to be able to view the Census and other records you’ve attached to people in your Ancestry.com family tree on your iPhone or iPad at your next family gathering? Well good news – now there’s an app for that.

This week Ancestry announced the availability of an enhanced version of their iPhone app, Ancestry, that now has universal support for the iPad and offers several new features:

•Lighter version of your Ancestry.com family tree
•An interactive family tree viewer to visualize relationships in your family history
•Information is automatically available when you log in to your Ancestry.com account from your computer
•Easy to upload photos, add ancestors, correct dates, include notes and more, from within the app.
•Ability to view attached historical documents and source citations attached via Ancestry.com
•Access to family trees that were shared with you
•An improved user experience, Intuitive to use, with iPad functionality

Built with the tablet experience in mind, the new Ancestry app brings to life on iPad’s large screen multi-generational family trees complete with images of original family records and photos, making iPad a powerful tool for you to display and share your trees with family and friends in an interactive, highly visual way.

So check out http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ancestry-com-tree-to-go/id349554263?mt=8

Don’t have an iPad or an iPhone? Do not despair since Ancestry is considering the creation of an Android version of their Ancestry app down the road.

A headstone leads deputy to old grave

Thanks to my friend Al Swint on the ClayCountyGenealogyGroup Yahoogroup for the link to this interesting story. An Oconee county deputy sheriff and genealogists identified the cemetery from which came an old, mysterious headstone found on the side of a road near Athens, Georgia. It is a great story and thanks Al.

http://onlineathens.com/stories/012211/new_774400973.shtml

Oconee County sheriff’s Lt. David Kilpatrick makes a photographic documentation recently of the spot where he returned an infant’s gravestone in an abandoned cemetery. (Picture via link courtesy of the Athens Banner-Herald Online Athens website)

Legacy for the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad

Got an iPhone, iPod Touch, or an iPad? With the Families application from TelGen Limited you can now easily transfer your Legacy Family Tree files from your PC to your iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad, enabling them to be viewed and edited wherever you are. Any changes you make on these devices can then be synced back to your Legacy file on your PC.




Features of Families:

•Family, Descendant and Pedigree Views
•Support for display and editing of privacy fields
•Pictures, including the ability to add pictures from camera or photo album
•Locations and addresses, with geolocation via Google Maps
•Multiple family files
•New family files can be created from scratch
•Index, searchable by given name, surname, or RIN
•Events
•To Do Lists
•Master and detail sources
•Alternate names
•Portrait and landscape mode on all views
•Full screen support on the iPad
•Legacy file version 6 and 7 are supported

Families uses a highly efficient database implementation, allowing very large family files to be supported. Users have successfully displayed and edited files containing over 300,000 individuals on an iPhone.

Families requires a companion program running on the PC to transfer family files to and from the iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad. This program, Families Sync, can be downloaded free of charge. Note that iTunes must be installed in order to use this program.

Families is available in the App Store for $14.95. For more information, and to view screen shots of Families, please click here.

Tips For Using Your Digital Camera for Genealogy

A digital camera has been part of my genealogy bag of trick for a number of years now. I own a Nikon D5000 DSLR (left) with a bag full of lenses and stuff. I can't imagine doing genealogy without it.

If you own a digital camera here is some goodies from the Family Tree Magazine Genealogy Insider Blog:

"You have a great research tool in your digital camera! It can capture images of gravestones, ancestral homes, family heirlooms and your ancestors' records. But it's not quite as simple as taking a quick snapshot.

"Before you start a genealogical photography session, create a shot list of the pictures you want. Check out our recommendations on the Genealogy Insider blog."

Editor has fun with marriage announcement - 1835

Got this cute piece courtesy of the good folks at the GenealogyBank blog. The newspaper editor of the Norfolk Advertiser had a little fun with this marriage announcement.


The last marriage reads: At Onondaga Hollow (now Syracuse, New York), Mr. Sier Patterson to Miss Precious Little, all of that town. Mr. P. has made up his mind to enjoy Precious Little during the remainder of his life. (22 August 1835, page 3).

For newspaper research I highly recommend GenealogyBank. I have made significant genealogical discoveries in the last few years regarding my family via their service. You can read about some of them on my personal blog at http://larry-family-history.blogspot.com/. There is a link to GenealogyBank in the Genealogy Research Site section of this blog (right side of page).

Legacy Family Tree 7.5 update now available

Just minutes ago I downloaded the long-anticipated Legacy 7.5 update! This update adds additional New FamilySearch support (for those with a new.familysearch.org LDS account) and includes several minor bug fixes that have been reported to their support team.

How to Update

For Deluxe Edition users, all you have to do is connect to the Internet, start Legacy 7, and click on the "Install and Download Now" link on the Legacy Home tab. If you're reading this from within the Legacy Home tab inside of Legacy 7.0, you'll first need to click on the Home button in the top left of the Legacy Home tab.

If you are a Standard Edition Legacy user, you will need to visit the Legacy website. Go to http://www.legacyfamilytree.com/DownloadUpdate.asp and follow the instructions.

The Top Ten Indicators That You've Become A Gene-Aholic

From Alan Jones' webpage via the GAWILKIN Mailing List

10. You introduce your daughter as your descendent.

9. You've never met any of the people you send e-mail to, even though you're related.

8. You can recite your lineage back 8 generations, but can't remember your nephew's name.

7. You have more photographs of dead people than living ones.

6. You've ever taken a tape recorder and/or notebook to a family reunion.

5. You've not only read the latest GEDCOM standard, you understand it!

4. The local genealogy society borrows books from you!

3. The only film you've seen in the last year was the 1880 census index.

2. More than half of your CD collection is made up of marriage records or pedigrees.

1. Your elusive ancestor has been spotted in more different places than Elvis!

Genealogy Wisdom

Dan was a single guy living at home with his father and working in the family business.

When he found out he was going to inherit a fortune when his sickly father died, he decided he needed a wife with which to share his fortune.

One evening at an investment meeting he spotted the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Her natural beauty took his breath away.

"I may look like just an ordinary man," he said to her, "but in just a few years, my father will die, and I'll inherit $65 million."

Impressed, the woman obtained his business card and three days later, she became his stepmother.

Understanding Geneaology has its value.

Blog: Five Interesting Genealogical Web Sites

Sometimes the road less traveled can make a difference in our genealogical research. Genealogist, writer, blogger, and indefatigable researcher, Carolyn Barkley travels that road and details five Internet genealogical stops that may make a difference in your research. Check out her article on the GenealogyandFamilyHistory.com at http://www.genealogyandfamilyhistory.com/?p=528.

A Really Simple Explanation of Really Simple Syndication (RSS)

A Really Simple Explanation of Really Simple Syndication (RSS) by Dick Eastman

Blog Editor's Note: The following article is from Eastman's Online Genealogy Newsletter and is copyright by Richard W. Eastman. It is re-published here with the permission of the author. Information about the newsletter is available at http://www.eogn.com/.

The World Wide Web was invented by Tim Berners-Lee when he launched the first web site on 6 August 1991. That web site described a new protocol that Berners-Lee had invented, called "HyperText Transfer Protocol," or http. Tim Berners-Lee's invention has become very popular in the eighteen years since that modest beginning!

How info-glut wastes valuable time

Of course, the World Wide Web has encountered various problems and "growing pains" in the past eighteen years. One of the biggest problems, in my mind, is simply that of popularity. There are millions of web sites available today. I like to check frequently with a rather large number of web sites to see what has been added recently. However, I find that checking each web site by using the 1991 technology that uses http protocol is time-consuming. Going out to each site and manually scanning to see what is new can consume quite a bit of time, especially if you want to check several hundred web sites!

Luckily, there is a simple solution: skip the http and use RSS instead.

The newer, easier, and faster way

Instead of you going out, make the new info come to you. In effect, your computer can retrieve all the new information and store that information on your hard drive.

The new RSS (Really Simple Syndication) protocol simply adds a method of automation: instead of performing repetitive tasks yourself, let your computer do them. After all, computers are really good at performing repetitive tasks.

In the old-fashioned http method, you (the user) open a web browser and go out to various web sites of interest and retrieve information. That process works well but is really slow. Checking a few hundred web sites might require hours.

In the newer method of using RSS protocol, your computer (or web program) will go out to the Web and retrieve any new information on web sites that you have specified in a list. You manually create the list, but the computer does the repetitive checking and retrieving of new information. The new information is then stored on the computer's hard drive, waiting for you to read it. Since the information is already stored for you, there is no waiting for web pages to display. Reading new articles that have been stored on a local hard drive is as fast or perhaps faster than reading new e-mail messages in an e-mail program.

Speed is the key here. In fact, if you connect to the Internet via a dial-up connection, you need RSS! However, even users of the highest speed fiber optic connections will find RSS to be pleasantly faster than retrieving information in the old-fashioned way. You can now check hundreds of web sites for newly-added information within a very few minutes, not hours.

What you need: a reader and subscriptions

First, you need an RSS reader. There are many to choose from for Windows, Macintosh, Linux, Palm, SmartPhone, and Apple iPhone operating systems. Most of them are available free of charge; a few with advanced features cost a few dollars. I'd suggest that you start with a free RSS reader and use that until you become experienced enough to understand the advantages of a commercial reader. I suspect that most users never upgrade; they keep using their free RSS readers for years.

An RSS reader might be a bit of software that you install on a local computer or it might be software that runs on a distant web server in the best "cloud computing" manner. Free web-based RSS readers are available at Google.com (http://www.google.com/reader/), Newsgator (http://www.newsgator.com/individuals/newsGatoronline/default.aspx), Bloglines (http://www.bloglines.com/), and many others.

Installing an RSS reader in your own computer usually results in faster operation, especially for people who do not have high-speed internet service. Hundreds of such newsreaders are available. However, if you are new to RSS, I would suggest that you start with one of the following:

* Windows: FeedDemon - http://www.newsgator.com/Individuals/FeedDemon/Default.aspx
* Macintosh: NetNewsWire - http://www.newsgator.com/Individuals/NetNewsWire/default.aspx
* Web-based: Google Reader - http://www.google.com/reader/

You can easily switch to a different RSS reader at a later date if you wish to. Your list of monitored web sites can be exported as an OPML file and then imported into any other modern RSS reader; you won't have to manually create your list again.

Next, you need to "subscribe" to the web sites you wish to monitor. In this step you find web sites that offer information in RSS format. Luckily, millions of web sites do just that today. Most major news services, stock market information services, weather forecasts, sports reports, and much more are available as RSS feeds. I even monitor my checkbook entries via an online RSS feed!

In addition, almost all blogs offer RSS feeds. One estimate claims there are more than 50 million blogs, and that the number is increasing rapidly.

My EOGN web site has offered RSS feeds for more than five years, and there are many other genealogy web sites that also offer RSS feeds.

Subscribing means creating a list of sites you are interested in monitoring. The exact process will vary from one RSS reader to another, so you will need to read the program's documentation to find the exact steps for creating that list in the RSS reader you selected. With most RSS readers, you use a normal web browser to first find a web site of interest, then switch to the RSS reader and give it a command to "check this site often." In many cases, you can simply enter the URL for a favorite web site in a subscription search box. If that site offers an RSS feed, it will automatically be added to your list.

Most RSS readers check for updates at least daily; most can check even more often than that. Should you wish to, most RSS readers will even check hourly.

Use your computer for automation

Instead of manually going out to find new information, you can make that info come to you. In effect, your computer retrieves all the new information and stores that information on your hard drive or on the hard drive of a single web server. The end result is simpler, easier, and much faster operation.

New articles will start arriving in your RSS reader without any action on your part.

I can say two things about RSS readers: they simplify your life, and they are almost as addictive as genealogy!

Technology Tip of the Month--Inserting Images into Shapes Using Microsoft Word 2007 or 2010

From the Genealogy Gems newsletter (No. 82, December 31, 2010) published by the Fort Wayne Library by Kay Spears.

I know I promised an article on footnotes; however, thanks to an alert reader we are going to cover inserting images into shapes using Microsoft Word version 2010 (version 2007 is similar). The instructions in the previous article worked for version 2003.

Newer versions of Microsoft Word combine the standard menu bar, taskbar and toolbars into what is called a “ribbon.” The tabs on the “ribbon” are: File, Home, Insert, Page layout, References, Mailings, Review, and View. Choose the Insert tab, click on Shapes, and then select one of the many shapes available. As soon as you pick a shape, your cursor turns into a cross. Holding down the left click button on your mouse, drag and your selected shape will appear. The easiest way to insert an image into the shape is by right clicking on the shape. When you do so, the old drawing toolbar and a shape menu will pop up. I will now explain how to insert an image by using each of those tools.

The Paint Bucket method: Click on the Paint Bucket drop down arrow and four options for further action appear: Fill Colors, Picture, Gradient, and Texture. Click on Picture. An Insert Picture dialog box will open. Locate the folder with your image in it and click on that image, then click on Insert at the bottom of the dialog box. Your selected image will fill the shape.

The Shape Menu method: Right click on the shape and find Format Shape at the bottom of the menu. Click on Format Shape, and then Fill. Select Picture or Texture Fill, then click Insert From: Fill. An Insert Picture dialog box will open. Locate the folder with your image in it and click on that image, then click on Insert at the bottom of the dialog box. Your selected image will fill the shape.

Once your image is inserted into a shape, the Format Shape dialog box becomes a Format Picture dialog box. Those who have worked with Adobe Photoshop or Elements may be familiar with some of the visual effects tools that Microsoft has placed in this dialog box. I’d recommend experimenting with these options: Reflection, Glow and Soft Edges, Picture Correction, Picture Color and Artistic Effect. I think you'll
be pleased with some of the effects you can produce with these tools.

Preserve Your Family History for FREE at BackupMyTree.com

This morning while scanning my surname genealogy message newsgroups I ran across this sentence from one of the posters:-

"I have info on this family but only on paper since I lost everything on the computer."

The one big thing I preach in my classes over and over is to backup your genealogy. It is a must. My genealogy students have also heard this many times. My favorite word is . . . wait for it . . . FREE!

So when I saw this interesting article on the morning feed from my friend Dick Eastman, I had to check it out.

The following article is from Eastman's Online Genealogy Newsletter and is copyright by Richard W. Eastman. It is re-published here with the permission of the author. Information about the newsletter is available at http://www.eogn.com/.

BackupMyTree is a FREE (I've taught Dick well-LVH), automatic backup service that is focused exclusively on genealogy files. I have written before about BackupMyTree at http://goo.gl/gn4IO. However, the online service has matured significantly since my earlier article. New features have been added and one or two shortcomings have been corrected.

I was impressed to learn that BackupMyTree now backs up more than three terabytes of family tree data for more than 16,000 registered users. I decided to try the newest and latest version of BackupMyTree.

What happens to all your genealogy data when your hard drive crashes? Note that I wrote "WHEN your hard drive crashes," not IF it crashes. All hard drives will crash sooner or later. If you have a recent backup available, a hard drive crash can be inconvenient. If you do not have a recent backup available, the same hard drive crash will be a disaster.

BackupMyTree is designed to save you when your hard drive does crash. BackupMyTree backs up your data NOW to multiple hard drives under control of the company. Even if one of the company's hard drives later crashes, your data remains safe and secure on the remaining drives. You can restore your data at any time.

In short, BackupMyTree works with many of today's most popular genealogy programs, although not with all of them. It is an automatic backup program to preserve your data and allow you to retrieve that data at any time. BackupMyTree automatically finds and backs up industry standard GEDCOM files as well as data files created by Family Tree Maker, Personal Ancestral File, Legacy Family Tree, RootsMagic (version 4 or later), Family Tree Builder, Family Tree Legends, Ancestral Quest, Ancestry Family Tree, Reunion for Mac, and GenoPro. Note the inclusion of Reunion for Macintosh. The rest are all Windows programs.

When your hard drive crashes, you first repair the damage. Then you log back onto the BackupMyTree.com service and download any or all of your genealogy files. Your genealogy information is preserved.

Of course, BackupMyTree has many other uses besides recovering from hardware failures. First of all, it protects you from the "OOOPS Factor." That is, the accidental deletion of information. Security experts tell us that more data is lost by human error than by all the hardware failures combined. BackupMyTree provides protection against both problems. In fact, BackupMyTree stores previous versions of your family tree file should anything become corrupted. This feature can also come in handy when you accidentally add or delete data and need to revert to an earlier version of your own files.

Another use of BackupMyTree is when you are at a friend's house or even at a genealogy conference. You can easily grab that family tree file you left at home from anywhere you can access a web browser.

Note that BackupMyTree is designed to back up only your genealogy files, not everything on your hard drive.

The thing that fascinates me most about BackupMyTree is how it automatically finds and backs up your files. With most other online backup products, you have to specify what files or folders to back up. Of course, these other products assume you are a knowledgeable computer user and that you know where every file of importance is stored on your own hard drive.

BackupMyTree takes a different approach. When the software is installed on your computer, it (optionally) searches for every GEDCOM file and every file created by any of the software products mentioned earlier. All of the files it finds are added to the list of files to be backed up. While I always know where my primary databases are stored, BackupMyTree is really good at finding those miscellaneous files I had forgotten about. I didn't remember that small GEDCOM file a cousin sent me by email but BackupMyTree found it in my email program and backed it up, all without any intervention by me.

Of course, there are many options. I have described the default actions. However, each user can override most of the default settings and customize BackupMyTree as he or she pleases.

In fact, it isn't even necessary to install software in your computer. I suspect that most users will install the BackupMyTree software for Windows. After all, it provides the most convenient use of the service. However, for those who wish to do everything manually, you can upload files using the manual upload system. BackupMyTree will store the files for you with all the same protections as if you're using the software.

One of the recent changes to BackupMyTree is the ability to exclude groups of files. Previously, you could only exclude files one by one, a tedious process if you had hundreds of files. The latest version now includes a checkbox that says: Allow Multiple Selections, allowing the user to easily exclude or include multiple files in a much easier way.

The online service also recently added the ability to upload genealogy files that are ZIP'd. The code is intelligent; you can put as many trees into a ZIP as you like. This is great for users who use the manual upload function and who don't want to install the Windows software client.

Security of your data is an issue with any online backup service. With BackupMyTree, your family tree files are protected by 128-bit SSL security during transfer from your computer to the servers. Nobody can intercept your data while it is being sent via SSL encryption. Next, your family tree files are stored on Amazon's S3 storage infrastructure so you can be sure it's safe and secure. Amazon even stores multiple copies of all data so there's no risk that a file will be destroyed by a hardware failure in a server. For a detailed explanation of the security being used, read Overview of Security Processes at http://aws.amazon.com/articles/1697

The use of BackupMyTree is automatic. If you install the software and use the default settings, the software will automatically make frequent backups of your genealogy data. The first backup will take several hours if you have a lot of data. Later backups will perform quickly as they only back up the new information recently added. The previous information is already resident on the servers so there is no need to keep backing up the same information time and time again. Should you need to restore the data, BackupMyTree will automatically retrieve what information you specify and assemble it into one dataset. You never have to combine retrieved files to get what you want; BackupMyTree does that for you automatically.

Backups are performed simultaneously while you are using the computer for other tasks. The backups might slow the computer down slightly while a backup is in progress. However, most users report they don't notice any change in computer operations.

Did I mention that all of this is FREE?

OK, now what is your excuse now for not backing up the genealogy files that required hundreds of hours for you to research and create?

BackupMyTree is supported on Windows XP, Vista, and on Windows 7. It reportedly works on earlier versions of Windows as well but is not officially supported on those older products.

BackupMyTree provides fast, automatic backup and off-site storage for all of your family tree files. All of the most popular family tree file formats are supported. You can retrieve any or all of your files at any time. It is FREE, simple, easy, safe and secure.

I rarely recommend specific products but I am recommending this one. BackupMyTree should be installed on every genealogist's Windows computer.

You can learn more about this great free service at https://www.backupmytree.com/.

Preservation Tip of the Month--Care and Management of CD-ROMs/DVDs

From the Genealogy Gems newsletter (No. 82, December 31, 2010) published by the Fort Wayne Library:

During the holidays, you’ve likely took a number of digital pictures, and perhaps even exchanged information electronically with a family member. As your thoughts turn to backing up that data and you plan to use CD-ROMs or DVDs, we have a couple of common-sense tips for you.

*Use a soft marker to label the disks.

*If you're going to use a label, use one that covers the surface evenly. Don't use something like a return address label, as it will make the disc off-balance in today's high-speed drives, causing damage to the disc and/or the drive.

*Burn more than one copy, and store a copy in a different location than the computer. If your house burns down, the back-up disk doesn't do you any good if it was laying next to the computer.

*Check your media periodically, perhaps once every six months. If something is wrong, immediately burn another copy from one of the other backup disks.

*Use only high-quality media. In most cases, you do get what you're paying for.

*Don't use re-writable CDs or DVDs. The chemical process that allows the recording media to be written onto repeatedly is not as stable over the long term.

Legacy Tip: How to create a 2011 birthday / anniversary calendar using Legacy Family Tree

Now that the new year is here, why not resolve to be a better relative by remembering family birthdays and anniversaries? Two features of Legacy Family Tree makes this easy to do:

•Legacy's birthday and anniversary reminders described here.
•Legacy's Calendar Creator.

Legacy can create a birthday calendar, an anniversary calendar, or a combination of the two. There are options to include a cover picture, picture pages above each calendar month, and complete control over color, layout, shadows, fonts, page size, and more. The calendars can be blank or include the birthdates and anniversaries of the people already entered in your family file.

That's right! Because the information (birthdays and anniversaries) is already in your Legacy family file, Legacy will automatically add this to the calendar pages. With the who to include options, you can customize the calendar so only certain family lines are included. You even have the option to skip the anniversaries of divorced couples.

You can get started by clicking on this link.

Google Earth 6 now available (free)

Google Earth has done it again. And this time, genealogists will be dancing with excitement.

After viewing the new Historical Imagery video for the newly-released Google Earth 6, I can't wait to start using these new tools. In Google Earth 6, you can travel back in time to see imagery from previous years.

You can download Google Earth 6 at http://earth.google.com . Watch the Historical Imagery video below.

Genealogy Tip - Are You Building Your Own Brick Walls?

By Joan Young as published in the Rootsweb Review:

It's a new year, a new opportunity to dust off some of your trickiest research issues and take another crack at finding the answers.

We all have them--brick walls, impossible to locate ancestors who we swear arrived on a mother ship from Mars and plopped full-grown in the place we first found them leaving no trail or records in their wake. Mind you, these elusive ancestors lived well before the days of the Witness Protection Program. They probably were not spies or secret agents whose identity was changed or hidden. They most likely didn't need protection from the bad guys (or maybe the good guys) despite possible family stories to the contrary.

Granted there are occasions where there simply is no evidence to be found for your brick wall ancestor, but there may also be instances where your approach to breaking down the wall may need some fine tuning.

Here are a few suggestions for taking a New Year's shot at cracking those long-standing brick walls.

1) If you have only considered that your SMITHs are English expand your horizons if you have no direct proof of ethnicity. Take a look at who your John SMITH married and what community he lived in and his religious affiliation. You may find that John SMITH was originally Johan SCHMIDT. Being locked into assumptions of ethnicity can result in building your own brick wall.

2) Did your Aunt Susie tell you great-grandmother Matilda was a "Cherokee Princess?" Examine anything you can find about Matilda such as census records and place of birth before you run off to check Cherokee records. Even if you don't know Matilda's maiden name, clues such as her birth location could help you establish whether Aunt Susie was on the mark or not. Since Native Americans didn't use titles such as "Princess" the use of this term could be an indication that not everything you were told was completely accurate even if there is a kernel of truth to the story.

3) Have you been accepting the family trees you found online which list no sources for your John SMITH in Arkansas being the same John SMITH who fought for the Union in the Civil War from Maine? Family trees are a great resource, but make sure you personally verify sources for the data you find there. Do not accept online unsourced information at face value. If no sources are given, contact the database submitter, when possible, to learn where they got their facts. Finding multiple trees or messages listing "facts" with no sources is no guarantee of accuracy. Others may simply have copied from the original submitter.

4) Have you given up on finding your SMITH ancestors because you searched everything online and off last year and the year before and found nothing? Thousands of new records are added online and placed in files at your local historical society library (or a society in the area where you first located your SMITHs) every year. Always start off the New Year with a fresh search to see what might have come to light or been digitized since you last checked.

The point of all of these suggestions is to keep an open mind, don't jump to conclusions, and while not ignoring family stories and lore, consider other possibilities as well. Follow where the evidence trail leads you rather than leaping to conclusions or jumping at illogical connections.

If you do make new discoveries about elusive brick wall ancestors be sure to post them online in an updated family tree, or on a message board or mailing list. Sharing what you have learned will help others and provide them with an opportunity to share any additional data they uncover with you.

Happy hunting in 2011!

Previously published in RootsWeb Review: 12 January 2011, Vol. 14, No. 1

Two New Family History Blogs

Thanks to the favorable response and feedback we have received from visitors to this blog, Gayle and I have now moved our family history information to new separate genealogy blogs. We will continue to focus on general genealogy information and announcements on this blog.

You can find information on all of Gayle's family history on her new blog at
http://gayle-family-history.blogspot.com/

You can find information on all of Larry's family history on his new blog at
http://larry-family-history.blogspot.com/

Hope you enjoy the new look and continue to watch this blog for new stuff of general interest to the genealogist and family historian.

Legacy 7.5 receives FamilySearch certifications - to be released January 17, 2011

Legacy Family Tree 7.5 has now received official FamilySearch certification in four new categories and will be available as a free update for both Standard and Deluxe edition users on Monday, January 17, 2011.

For years, FamilySearch has worked on developing a web application for researchers to be able to interact with a very large, unified database of connected genealogical information. This new system is being released in phases - first for members of the LDS church while it is tested and perfected, and then to the public. This new database, commonly known as "New FamilySearch" is the database with which Legacy 7.5 will interact. All other databases, including the new Historical Records, Family Trees, and Library Catalog are currently open to everyone at www.FamilySearch.org.

Who should install this update?

Everyone. Although the only major new feature in the 7.5 update will be the addition of more new FamilySearch integration tools, there will be dozens of minor additions and fixes for everyone. However, gaining access to the new FamilySearch databases requires an account. Currently, registering for a new account is restricted to members of the LDS church.

New FamilySearch Certifications

•Sync - ability to keep FamilySearch family tree current with Legacy's information for selected persons and information (optional - you do not have to share anything if you do not desire)

•Update - publish to new.familysearch.org family tree. Also includes request to combine matched individuals (also optional)

•Ordinance Reservation (LDS-specific) - identify persons needing ordinances, prepare for Ordinance Request, and check for duplicate ordinances

•Ordinance Request (LDS-specific) - request ordinances in order to print the ordinance cards

Previous FamilySearch Certifications

•Access - search and read new.familysearch.org family tree

•Print - print multiple reports and charts using online data from FamilySearch

•Ordinance Status (LDS-specific) - read and display ordinance status information

•PAF Import - PAF data can be imported into Legacy for use in the tree

We also expect to be certified in the "Helper" category for this update.

I want to remind the local genealogists here in western North Carolina that I will be teaching Legacy classes starting the second week of January 2011. I will be teaching both beginner and advanced Legacy Family Tree software classes at Tri-County Community College in Peachtree, NC, during this Spring semester. Seating is very limited and on a first paid registration, first seated basis only. Cost is only $55 for each of the 13 week courses. You don't want to miss this one, so after the New Years holiday, call the campus at 828-837-6810 and ask for Lisa Long to get on the list.

FamilySearch Wraps Up Genealogical Gifts for the Holiday Season

FamilySearch Wraps Up Genealogical Gifts for the Holiday Season

Nearly 4 million images added from 7 countries
Nearly four million new digital images are now available on Beta.FamilySearch.org. These collections include the first images from South Africa, as well as records from Brazil, Canada, Germany, Guatemala, the Netherlands, and the United States. About 1.7 million of these records are indexed.

See the chart below for the complete list of newly added or updated collections.

Project Digital Images Indexed Records Comments
Brazil, Catholic Church Records 100,110 0 New images added to existing collection
Canada, Quebec Catholic Parish Registers, 1621-1900 85 79,936 New records linked to images; most images already published
Germany, Hessen, Darmstadt City Records, 1627-1939 55,528 0 New images
Guatemala, Civil Registration, 1877-1934 0 22,448 New records added to existing collection
Netherlands, Civil Registration, 1792-1952 1,505,610 0 Images added to existing collection
Netherlands, Zuid-Holland Province Civil Registration 6,349 0 New images
South Africa, Orange Free State, estate files, 1951-1973 79,466 15,879 New records linked to images; multiple images per record
U.S., Maryland, Register of Wills Books, 1792-1983 62,763 0 New images
U.S., Minnesota Territorial Census, 1857 342 156,888 New records linked to images; most images already published
U.S., North Carolina, County Marriages, 1762-1979 39,836 45,204 New records linked to images; partial collection, with more images to come
U.S., World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942 2,040,944 1,371,394
New records linked to images; includes the states of Louisiana, Oklahoma, Texas, and Wisconsin

FamilySearch International is the largest genealogy organization in the world. Millions of people use FamilySearch records, resources, and services to learn more about their family history. To help in this great pursuit, FamilySearch has been actively gathering, preserving, and sharing genealogical records worldwide for over 100 years. FamilySearch is a nonprofit organization sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Patrons may access FamilySearch services and resources free online at FamilySearch.org or through over 4,600 family history centers in 132 countries, including the main Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.

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200 Million More Historic Records See the Light of Day

As the nation’s genealogical societies gather in Knoxville, Tennessee, at the Federation of Genealogical Societies Conference this week to share tips and tricks for finding one’s elusive ancestors, there will certainly be some clamoring over an unexpected gift from FamilySearch, a world leader in historic records preservation and access. FamilySearch announced the addition of over 200 million new searchable historic records online representing 18 countries. The new records were added to the hundreds of millions FamilySearch published earlier this year at a similar event in Salt Lake City, Utah. The total number of records on the pilot site totals 700 million.

The latest deluge of records includes 53 new or updated collections from the United States, and over 100 million new records from Europe, Scandinavia, and Mexico. The United States collections include the 1910 U.S. Census, and states’ birth, marriage, and death records. There are 10 million new records for New Jersey and Michigan respectively, 4 million from Tennessee, an amazing 41 million from Massachusetts, and much more from other states.

“Some time ago, FamilySearch committed to creating access to the world’s genealogical records online in a big way. Today’s updates are part of an ongoing effort to make good on those commitments,” said Paul Nauta, FamilySearch public affairs manager. “We have only just begun,” Nauta concluded.

In the U.S., FamilySearch is focusing currently on digitizing and publishing online federal and state censuses, and state birth, marriage, and death records. When complete, the initiative will provide a definitive collection of U.S. genealogical resources for family history researchers.

In addition to the new U.S. collections, over 100 million records were added to FamilySearch’s international collections online—making it most likely the largest international genealogy collection online. The new international databases come from birth, marriage, and death records, and from municipal records. (Go to FamilySearch.org, then click Search Records, then click Records Search pilot) to see a full list of the free collections. The records will soon be available also at beta.familysearch.org.

“What makes today’s announcement even more impressive is that FamilySearch uses predominantly a growing corps of volunteers to accomplish the task of digitizing and indexing the records for online publication. That’s also in large part how we can do it for free, how it can be done at no cost to the patron,” said Nauta. Currently, 350,000 volunteers worldwide log on to FamilySearchIndexing.org and use FamilySearch’s proprietary software to view digital images of historic documents of personal interest and type in the desired information. FamilySearch then creates a free, searchable index of the historic collections online for the public to use.

Families Genealogy App for iPhone, iTouch, iPad

Telgen Ltd has released a fabulous new genealogy app for the iSeries of devices that interfaces directly with the Legacy Family Tree Software. The new software package is called Families.

Using this new software package, Legacy family files can be easily transferred from a PC to your iPhone, iTouch or iPad, enabling them to be viewed and edited wherever you are. Families supports the following functionality:

• Multiple family files
• New family files can be created from scratch
• Family View and Pedigree View
• Index, searchable by Given Name, Surname or RIN
• Events
• To Do Lists
• Master and Detail Sources
• Locations and Addresses, with geolocation via Google Maps
• Alternate Names
• Pictures, including the ability to add pictures from camera or photo album
• Portrait and Landscape mode on all views
• Full screen support on the iPad
• Legacy file versions 6 and 7 are supported

Families uses a highly efficient database implementation, allowing very large family files to be supported. Users have successfully displayed and edited files containing over 300,000 individuals on an iPhone.

You can see some iPhone screens shots at http://www.telgen.co.uk/families/iphone/iphone.html.

Legacy is the premier genealogy software package that I recommend to my genealogy students, and now if you have one of the iSeries of devices, you can take your genealogy with you literally in your pocket. The app sells for $14.99 through the iTunes store and has our highest recommendation if you are a Legacy / iPhone / iTouch / iPad user.

Tennessee Page on FamilySearch Research Wiki

The Tennessee page on the FamilySearch Research Wiki has recently been updated and now includes a wealth of new information and resources to help people find their ancestors in the Volunteer State. The link for this revised page is: http://wiki.familysearch.org/en/Tennessee.

The FamilySearch Research Wiki is a free resource created by the genealogy community. The core content for the Tennessee page was contributed by the expert researchers at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah. The page also includes tips and research advice from local experts.

The Wiki staff is currently working on updating all of the state pages; Tennessee is one of the first because the 2010 Federation of Genealogical Societies Conference will be held in Knoxville August 18 to 21. For more information about the FGS conference, please visit: http://www.fgs.org/2010conference/index.php.

Page Highlights

· A clickable county map on the main page
· Easy navigation at the bottom of each page
· How to find Tennessee sources in archives, libraries, in print, and online
· Information on substitute sources when records are lost
· Local lists of published family histories
· Links to published Tennessee county tax lists
· Audio files of locals pronouncing Tennessee county names
· Contact information for volunteers who will look up information in local resources

Newberry Library Announces the Digital Atlas of Historical County Boundaries

Courtesy of Dick Eastman's EOGN, the following announcement was written by the Newberry Library:

The Newberry Library is pleased to announce the completion and release of its Digital Atlas of Historical County Boundaries, a dataset that covers every day-to-day change in the size, shape, location, name, organization, and attachment of each U.S. county and state from the creation of the first county in 1634 through 2000.

Nearly every aspect of American life can be described, analyzed, and illuminated through data gathered and organized by county or available in county records, and knowing how and when boundaries changed is often the key to finding and understanding great quantities of historical data. For example, a farm may have been in one family for many generations, but over the decades changes in county lines may have effectively moved that farm from one county to another. When looking for old family records, how does the modern genealogist know which county seat will hold great-grandmother’s marriage certificate? How does an attorney know which county seat recorded the deed to great-great-grandfather’s farm?

In addition, population figures are commonly aggregated at the county level, but comparing statistics from one enumeration to the next may not accurately reveal actual change. Was a change in the figures from census to census due to population movement or to a change in the boundaries of the reporting counties, or to a combination of both?

With the Newberry’s Atlas of Historical County Boundaries, genealogists, geographers, historians, political scientists, attorneys, demographers, and many more now can find accurate county data that will greatly assist them in their research.

The data are organized by state and are available online in four versions:

Viewable, interactive maps (electronic analogues to printed maps) on which the historical lines have been plotted against a background of the modern county network

Downloadable shapefiles for use in geographic information systems (GIS)

Downloadable KMZ files for use with Google Earth

Downloadable and printable PDF files (each full-page frame shows a map of a different version of each county, with the historical boundaries displayed against a background of the modern county network)

Supplementing the polygons and maps for each state are chronologies, commentary on historical problems, long and short metadata documents, and a bibliography.

The project began in 1988, with principal funding provided by the National Endowment for the Humanities, an independent federal agency. Additional support came from the Newberry Library, which also served as headquarters, and from other foundations and individuals. The Newberry Library is the copyright holder; all files of the Digital Atlas of Historical County Boundaries are free for use under an Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 Creative Commons License. Queries should be addressed to scholl@newberry.org. The Website for the Atlas is http://publications.newberry.org/ahcbp

NMDA Sponsors Yorktown Historical Dig

The board of directors of the Nicolas Martiau Descendant Association (NMDA) recently voted to fund a very special archaeological project that could have major significance to the descendants of the progenitor of their family association - Nicolas Martiau.

In 2003, the James River Institute for Archaeology, Inc., conducted a preliminary archaeological survey of Lots 110, 113, 114, and 115 in Yorktown, Virginia, that are owned by York County. These lots are located within the city of Yorktown between Buckner and Martiau Streets. The survey consisted of several hand excavated test pits and two machine-cut trenches. The survey discovered several potentially significant archaeological remains including British Redoubt No. 1, a dwelling and outbuildings from colonial Yorktown, evidence related to Nicolas Martiau's settlement, and intact layers dating from the Chiskiack Indian period through the 17th and 18th centuries.

As the article below indicates the NMDA funded the use of ground penetrating radar survey on the site recently in the hopes that artifacts of our early ancestor and his family may be found.

This is appear to be a first for any family lineage based organization, financially supporting an attempt to recover family artifacts that date back to nearly the first settlers of this country in the early 17th century in colonial Virginia/Jamestown/Yorktown.

So who is Nicolas Martiau and why is he so important in the history of this country?

You get a glimpse of him in an excerpt from the Daily Press, Newport News, VA., Thursday, September 27, 1973, Martiau: A Common Ancestor - Father of America's Fathers Studied

"First in peace, first in war, first in the hearts of his countrymen ... This accolade, describing George Washington - America's first president - surely must continue to strike a note of pride in his now ancestors.

"And there are quite a number, according to Robert Clay of Richmond. Clay is a descendant of Nicolas Martiau, first known forebear of Washington in this country. Clay, who is a staff member of the Virginia State Library in Richmond, says Martiau "is kin to half the people in the English-speaking world.



"John Baer Stoudt authored a book titled Nicolas Martiau - Adventurous Huguenot, in which he describes his subject as the earliest American ancestor of both General George Washington and Governor Thomas Nelson.

"There was a distinct French Huguenot strain in the lineage of Governor Washington," he says. "It came to him from his first American ancestor, Nicolas Martiau, a Huguenot refugee who came to Virginia in 1620. This resulted in Washington's blend of Cavalier and Huguenot, Stoudt observes.

"Stoudt further states that Martiau, who was the personal representative of Henry, Fifth Earl of Huntington, was naturalized in England before coming to Virginia. In this country, he served in the House of Burgesses, and was appointed a justice. He was a member of the Virginia Company. With the rapid growth of "adventure," Stoudt says, "and with the great increase in the value of the trade with the mother country, it became evident of the need for fortifications in the colony."

"Henry sent Martiau and another to Virginia at his own expense. Stoudt opines that the Earl apparently obtained for Martiau, the special form of naturalization granted only by proclamation. This gave him the right to acquire property and privilege to vote and hold office.

"Martiau was 33 years old, when he came to Virginia in the sailing ship, Francis Bona Ventura - one of 153 passengers. He selected places for palisades and fortifications at Yorktown; at Fort Story; and at Old Point Comfort, Fort Monroe, one of the oldest forts in America.

"In 1632, Martiau took his seat in the House of Burgesses as a representative from Yorktown and Isle of Kent.

"The Martiau Plantation comprised 1300 acres including the site of Yorktown. For his dwelling, he selected the high bluff on the curve of the York River as it widens to the Chesapeake Bay. This patent is in the Land Office at Richmond, and contains his family's name. His will is on file in the State Library. In his will, he provides for, and sets free his two Negro servants. This gesture antedated similar actions by George Washington a century and a half later. Washington was one of the first slave owners – if not the first to do so.

"The Courts of Virginia," Stoudt says, were "much like county courts of England. The first court at which Martiau sat was July 12, 1633. His last appearance was on Sept. 24, 1655. Occasionally, the court met at Martiau's home.

"Martiau's wife was the widow of an army lieutenant, according to Stoudt. Nothing is known of her arrival, or of her maiden name, he says. "It seems that the family name of the earliest maternal ancestor in Virginia of George Washington, must remain unknown," he continues.

"Jane Martiau died before 1640, and was buried most likely in the family burial plot not far from the big house, Stoudt says. Also buried there are Captain Nicolas Martiau Sr., and his son, Nicolas Martiau Jr., who never attained majority. Other children were Elizabeth, (married to Col George Reade. Mary) married to Col. John Scarsbrook, leader in Bacon's Rebellion, Sarah was married to Capt. William Fuller, Puritan Governor of Maryland.

"The gravestones of Elizabeth Martiau, and her husband, Colonel George Read, are in Yorktown's Grace Episcopal Church graveyard. The ledgers were discovered during excavations on Buckner Street, Yorktown. They were restored and preserved in 1931 by another Martiau descendant - Letitia Pate Evans. The colonial town's Read Street is named for Colonel Read, according to a native Yorktownian.

You can learn more about the Nicolas Martiau Descendants Association on their website at http://www.nicolasmartiau.org/.

Genealogist who can prove descend from Nicolas Martiau are eligible for membership in the Nicolas Martiau Descendant Association (NMDA). A six generation descendants chart in pdf format is available at the URL below and if you can prove a connection to anyone on that chart, you would be eligible for membership in the NMDA.

Nicolas Martiau Six Generation Descendants Chart

Your blog reporter serves as the National Registrar of the NMDA and I will be happy to assist anyone with their membership application into the Association. You can contact me at the email in the masthead above.

NARA Lists Microfilm Pubs and Orig Recs Digitized by Partners

The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) has posted a list of all the documents that have been digitized and placed online by its commercial partners Ancestry.com and Footnote.com. If you want to see what is available online go to http://www.archives.gov/digitization/digitized-by-partners.html.

The list is arranged in alpha-numeric order by NARA microfilm publication number. Original records that have been digitized will have "Original records" listed in the microfilm publication number column. The list can be re-sorted by clicking on any of the column headings. Clicking on the titles in the list will direct you to the web sites of our partners.

The Social Security Death Index and Ordering SS-5 Copies Online

This genealogy tip by Joan Young is courtesy of the Rootsweb Review 12 May 2010 Vol. 13 No. 5.

My August 2008 article covered using RootsWeb's Social Security Death Index (SSDI) database. As a follow-up to my article I want to share a little more about the SSDI.

The article explained the procedure for ordering copies of the original SS-5 by mail. While the form that generates a request letter is still available on RootsWeb's SSDI page, the Social Security Administration now has an online order process which promises a much faster turn-around time and greater ease of ordering via credit card.

The online order form is located on a secure server on the SSA Web site. Both a photocopy of the original SS-5 or a computer extract called a "numident" may be ordered. As a rule, genealogists use an SS-5 because they want to learn the place of birth and/or the parents' names of the deceased account holder. The computer extract would usually not provide parents' names, so it would be of little value for genealogists if this is the information you are seeking.

Information obtained from the Social Security Administration based upon the SSDI is subject to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) which applies to deceased individuals. You can find the FOIA guidelines here. In some cases, the Privacy Act may also apply. Information covered under the Privacy Act is discussed here. The Privacy Act covers the living as well as those individuals who may be presumed by the SSA to still be living.

The individuals found in the SSDI at RootsWeb are deceased; however, the parents who are identified on the SS-5 copy may still be living. The SSA will not release the parents' names unless the parents are proven to be deceased (you would be required to submit proof of death) or, based upon the information included in the SS-5, it could be presumed that the parents would currently be one hundred and twenty (or more) years old. This is the cut-off age the SSA uses at present when processing FOIA requests when there is no actual proof that a named individual is deceased.

Keeping the above guidelines in mind will be helpful in deciding whether it would be worthwhile to request an SS-5 copy from the SSA. You will also be able to avoid needlessly paying for information that the SSA may not divulge under The Privacy Act. If the wage earner on the account would currently be under one hundred years of age the SSA is unlikely to release parental information where there is no proof of death on file for the parents.

Additional information in using the RootsWeb SSDI can also be found here:
http://helpdesk.rootsweb.com/ssdi/
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~rwguide/lesson10.htm

FamilySearch - Over 300 Million New Names Added Online

There were over 150 new collections added or enhanced this week at FamilySearch.org. FamilySearch volunteers indexed over 120 million records—over 300 million new names—from original source documents to accomplish this great feat. The massive release was announced this past week at the National Genealogical Society annual conference in Salt Lake City, Utah.

The records can be found at FamilySearch’s Record Search pilot (FamilySearch.org, click Search Records, and then click Record Search pilot) or Beta.FamilySearch.org.

See below for the complete list of all the newly added or improved collections.

Collection Name Time Frame Records Indexed

Argentina Baptisms, 1645—1930 4,209,653
Argentina Marriages, 1722—1911 150,895
Australia Deaths and Burials, 1816—1980 106,767
Austria Births and Baptisms, 1651—1940 88,885
Austria Burials, 1768 – 1918 31,756
Austria Marriages, 1722 — 1898 25,383
Bahamas Births, 1550—1891 53,476
Barbados Baptisms, 1739—1891 222,010
Barbados Burials, 1854—1885 92,226
Barbados Marriages, 1854—1879 15,666
Belgium Births and Baptisms, 1560—1890 354,038
Belgium Deaths and Burials, 1564—1900 67,182
Brazil Baptisms, 1688—1935 3,597,609
Brazil Deaths, 1750—1890 43,931
Brazil Marriages, 1730—1955 475,107
Canada Births and Baptisms, 1661—1959 2,160,243
Canada Deaths and Burials, 1664—1955 101,189
Canada Marriages, 1661—1949 262,982
- British Columbia Death Registrations, 1872—1986 928,851
- British Columbia Marriage Registrations, 1859—1932 124,593
- New Brunswick Births, 1819—1899 25,414
- Nova Scotia Births, 1702—1896 125,791
- Nova Scotia Marriages, 1711—1909 32,245
- Ontario Births, 1779—1899 455,469
- Ontario Marriages, 1800—1910 28,574
- Quebec Births, 1662—1898 27,212
Caribbean Births, 1590—1928 438,073
Caribbean Deaths, 1790—1906 13,088
Caribbean Marriages, 1591—1905 88,186
Costa Rica Baptisms, 1700—1915 176,574
Costa Rica Deaths, 1787—1900 31,505
Costa Rica Marriages, 1750—1920 57,849
Czech Republic Births, 1637—1889 33,062
Czech Republic Marriages, 1654—1889 12,698
Dominican Republic Baptisms, 1726—1924 114,209
Dominican Republic Deaths, 1666—1862 14,636
Dominican Republic Marriages, 1743—1929 31,992
Ecuador Baptisms, 1680—1930 593,710
Ecuador Deaths, 1800—1920 43,852
Ecuador Marriages, 1680—1930 271,061
El Salvador Baptisms, 1750—1940 218,500
El Salvador Marriages, 1810—1930 28,162
France Deaths and Burials, 1546—1960 347,368
France Marriages, 1546—1924 1,397,204
Germany Births and Baptisms, 1558—1898 33,749,332
Gibraltar Marriages, 1879—1918 2,201
Gibraltar Births and Baptisms, 1704—1876 30,515
Great Britain Deaths and Burials, 1778—1988 69,278
Great Britain Marriages, 1797—1988 22,036
- Channel Islands Births and Baptisms, 1820—1907 41,647
- Isle of Man Births and Baptisms, 1821—1911 224,489
- Isle of Man Deaths and Burials, 1844—1911 42,389
- Isle of Man Marriages, 1849—1911 42,662
- Wales, Births and Baptisms, 1586—1907 773,392
- Wales, Deaths and Burials, 1586—1885 15,109
- Wales, Marriages, 1541—1900 39,630
Grenada Births and Baptisms, 1866—1891 33,239
Guatemala Baptisms, 1730—1917 466,223
Guatemala Deaths, 1760—1880 20,921
Guatemala Marriages, 1750—1930 112,610
Honduras Baptisms, 1730—1930 220,317
Honduras Marriages, 1800—1910 31,686
Hungary Baptisms, 1734—1895 14,210
Iceland Marriages, 1770—1920 42,954
India Births and Baptisms, 1800—1945 887,579
India Deaths and Burials, 1800—1945 566,529
India Marriages, 1800—1945 203,970
Ireland Deaths, 1864—1870 51,249
Italy Births and Baptisms, 1806—1900 1,940,693
Italy Deaths and Burials, 1809—1900 438,494
Jamaica Births and Baptisms, 1752—1920 331,497
Luxembourg Births, 1662—1840 7,835
Luxembourg Deaths, 1702—1798 1,554
Luxembourg Marriages, 1700—1810 1471
Mexico Deaths, 1680—1940 362,067
Mexico Marriages, 1570—1950 6,232,176
Panama Baptisms, 1750—1938 269,054
Panama Deaths, 1840—1930 21,463
Panama Marriages, 1800—1950 39,839
Paraguay Baptisms, 1800—1930 101,337
Paraguay Marriages, 1800—1900 14,400
Peru Baptisms, 1556—1930 4,013,461
Peru Deaths, 1750—1930 101,257
Peru Marriages, 1600—1940 443,248
Philippines Births and Baptisms, 1642—1994 334,139
Philippines Deaths and Burials, 1726—1957 5,128,622
Philippines Marriages, 1723—1957 2,247,381
Portugal Baptisms, 1570—1910 424,354
Portugal Deaths, 1640—1910 100,234
Portugal Marriages, 1670—1910 59,735
Russia Births and Baptisms, 1755—1917 170,844
Russia Deaths and Burials, 1815—1917 100,647
Russia Marriages, 1793—1919 33,559
Samoa Baptisms, 1863—1940 28,013
Samoa Burials, 1895—1970 42,061
Spain Deaths, 1600—1920 186,259
Sweden Baptisms, 1611—1920 9,280,828
Sweden Burials, 1649-1920 1,207,501
Sweden Marriages, 1630-1920 2,243,064
Switzerland Baptisms, 1491-1940 1,001,685
Switzerland Burials, 1613-1875 138,011
Switzerland Marriages, 1532-1910 268,739
Switzerland, Basel City Church Books, 1380-1917 Images Only
Switzerland, Schaffhausen Genealogies and City Directories, 1460-1952 Images Only
Ukraine, Births and Baptisms 14,166
Uruguay Marriages, 1840—1900 19,810
United States 1910 Federal Census (AZ, CA, DE, FL) 4,078,117
United States Births, 1867—1931 20,946
United States Deaths, 1867—1961 3,705
United States Marriages, 1733—1990 7,176
- Arizona Births and Christenings, 1909—1917 27,483
- Arizona Deaths, 1910—1911; 1993—1994 10,168
- Arizona Marriages, 1888—1908 75,094
- Arkansas Births and Christenings, 1880—1893 11,724
- Arkansas Deaths and Burials, 1882—1929; 1945—1963 38,956
- Arkansas Marriages, 1837—1944 1,005,608
- Delaware Births and Christenings, 1710—1896 30,298
- Delaware Deaths and Burials, 1815—1955 209,592
- Delaware Marriages, 1713—1953 70,024
- District of Columbia Births and Christenings, 1830—1955 121,224
- District of Columbia Deaths and Burials, 1840—1964 372,173
- District of Columbia Marriages, 1830—1921 242,760
- Florida Births and Christenings, 1880—1935 28,301
- Florida Deaths and Burials, 1900—1921 24,800
- Florida Marriages, 1837—1974 860,110
- Hawaii Births and Christenings, 1852—1933 150,992
- Hawaii Deaths and Burials, 1862—1919 105,519
- Hawaii Marriages, 1826—1922 103,871
- Idaho Births and Christenings, 1856—1965 75,881
- Idaho Deaths and Burials, 1907—1965 31,253
- Idaho Marriages, 1878—1898/1903—1942 88,588
- Kansas Births and Christenings, 1818—1936 59,392
- Kansas Deaths and Burials, 1885—1930 39,907
- Kansas Marriages, 1840—1935 378,903
- Kentucky Births and Christenings, 1839—1960 547,119
- Kentucky Deaths and Burials, 1843—1970 1,971,681
- Kentucky Marriages, 1785—1979 1,532,718
- Louisiana Births, Christenings, 1811—1830; 1854—1934 16,890
- Louisiana Marriages, 1816—1906 129,641
- Maine Births and Christenings, 1739—1900 940,882
- Maine Deaths and Burials, 1841—1910 172,879
- Maine Marriages, 1771—1907 597,508
- Maryland Births and Christenings, 1650—1995 206,288
- Maryland Deaths and Burials, 1877—1992 11,686
- Maryland Marriages, 1666—1970 253,727
- Montana Marriages, 1889—1947 197,930
- New Mexico Births and Christenings, 1726—1918 435,411
- New Mexico Deaths, 1788—1798; 1838—1955 9,627
- New Mexico Marriages, 1751—1918 93,387
- New York Births and Christenings, 1640—1962 1,351,166
- New York Deaths and Burials, 1795—1952 701,396
- New York Marriages, 1686—1980 859,927
- North Carolina Births and Christenings, 1866—1964 156,156
- North Carolina Deaths and Burials, 1898—1994 2,742,609
- North Carolina Marriages, 1759—1979 2,128,391
- Ohio Deaths and Burials, 1854—1997 2,535,557
- Oregon Births and Christenings, 1868—1929 70,253
- Oregon Deaths and Burials, 1903—1947 29,035
- Oregon Marriages, 1853—1935 57,523
- South Dakota State Census+1921, 1935 673,322
- Tennessee County Marriages, 1790—1950 10,145
- Utah Births and Christenings, 1892—1941 48,049
- Utah Deaths, 1888—1946 148,933
- Utah Marriages, 1887—1966 308,854
- Vermont Births and Christenings, 1765—1908 402,329
- Vermont Deaths, 1871—1965 235,415
- Vermont Marriages, 1791—1974 185,433
- Virginia Deaths and Burials, 1853—1912 785,241
- West Virginia Births and Christenings, 1853—1928 544,589
- West Virginia Deaths and Burials, 1854—1932 56,688
- West Virginia Marriages, 1854—1932 203,378
- Wyoming Marriages, 1877—1920 14,070
World Misc Births, 1534—1983 616,742
World Misc Deaths, 1767—1950 15269
World Misc Marriages, 1662—1945 28668

I will have some additional details including some new FamilySearch links in my next Finding Your Roots syndicated genealogy column.

The End of the 3.5 Inch Floppy!

My good friend Dick Eastman on the EOGN blog is reporting this morning the following storey:

"Technology marches on. Sony has announced on its Japanese website that the company will be ending sales of the classic 3.5 inch floppy disk in the country in March of 2011. Whether you still have a 3.5 inch floppy drive in your computer or not will make little difference if you cannot purchase the disks."

You can read the rest of the article in Dick's blog at
http://blog.eogn.com/eastmans_online_genealogy/2010/04/the-end-of-the-35-inch-floppy.html

Who Do You Think You Are?

Local Family Historian to Conduct Free Genealogy Seminar

A new prime time NBC network television program on Friday nights has sparked an amazing revolution in the world of genealogy research. The new program, Who Do You Think You Are?, has inspired many would-be genealogist to take up the mantle and research their family roots. While the program provides the viewer the motivation to research their family history, it is short on actual details of how to conduct the process.

First, there is no such thing as an ordinary family. Each one has its own stories: the black sheep, the Civil War hero, the ancestors who fled to the United States, or the lost family fortune. No matter how plain you think your background is, chances are there is a saga just waiting to be discovered by you and your family. So if you are interested in researching your family history, a special program will be presented in April in Hayesville, to help get you started in researching your family genealogy.

Larry Van Horn, noted local family historian and syndicated newspaper columnist, will conduct a free genealogy seminar for genealogy beginners on April 10 (Saturday morning) between 9:30-11:00 a.m. at the Moss Memorial Library, 26 Anderson Street in Hayesville.

Larry, who has been teaching genealogy classes at Tri-County Community College for the last 12 years, will present material that will aid the newcomer in discovering their family's past. The program will focus on the first steps you need to get started, Internet resources you can use in your research, and some genealogy tools you can use to document your family findings.

So if you are interested in researching your past, and uncovering your family's great American story, be sure to mark April 10 from 9:30-11:30 a.m. at the Moss Memorial Library on your calendar.