Press Release about Footnote.com Changes

Even though almost every genealogy blogger I know was already posting and talking about this change, the official press release did not arrive until 10 am today. We bloggers were under an embargo to not release it until 2pm ET today.

So here is the official press release for those who haven't been reading the buzz about this on Facebook, Google+, Twitter and oh yes - the Fold3.com Blog! 

Press Release

 

Footnote.com Announces New Focus on Historical U.S. Military Records and Changes Name to Fold3

 

New Brand will Honor and Remember those who have Served

 

LINDON, UTAH -- (August 18, 2011) – Footnote.com, a premier destination for discovering family history records, today announced it will now focus primarily on offering the finest and most comprehensive collection of U.S. Military records available on the internet.  The site gathers the most valuable U.S. military records, photos and stories to help family historians and others discover and share the memories of those who served.

As part of this new focus, the name of the site will change from Footnote to Fold3.  The Fold3 name is derived from the third fold in a traditional military flag folding ceremony which “is made in honor and remembrance of the veteran departing our ranks who gave a portion of his or her life for the defense of our country to attain peace throughout the world.” 

Fold3 is the web’s premier collection and destination for original U.S. military records, helping people find and share more than 74 million images of historical documents and photos. These records include valuable collections from the Revolutionary War, War of 1812, Civil War, World Wars I and II and America’s more recent engagements in Vietnam and elsewhere.  Specializing in digitization of paper, microfilm and microfiche collections, Fold3 brings many never-before-seen historic documents to the web through patented processes and unique partnerships with The National Archives and other institutions. This combination of innovative technology and access to strategic partners provides subscribers with an easy way to search original documents and discover stories about the people, places and events in the conflicts that shaped America and the world.

“We have already begun expanding Fold3’s robust military collection to include new pension application files and draft cards,” said Brian Hansen, General Manager of Fold3.  “It’s truly gratifying to help researchers easily discover at home what they previously could find only by traveling to an archive.”

Fold3’s significant collections illuminate history that was once hidden. For example, Fold3’s World War II photos, Missing Air Crew Reports and JAG case files include detailed information about the ordeal of Louis Zamperini, subject of the New York Times Best Seller, Unbroken.  Similar stories about millions of service men and women lie undiscovered within the records available on Fold3.

Fold3 will continue to operate as a subsidiary of Ancestry.com, the world's largest online family history resource, which acquired Fold3 as part of its purchase of iArchives in 2010. In addition to connecting more closely to its military collection, the rebranding helps distinguish Fold3’s value as a highly complementary brand to Ancestry.com. Many family historians and genealogists may use Ancestry.com to find an ancestor who served in the military and then use Fold3 to discover the details of their service.

Small World Experiment (6 Degrees of Separation)

 Yahoo  and Facebook are joining forces to test a social experiment that showed there are just six degrees of separation between most people on the planet.

The current Small World experiment -- anyone with a Facebook account can participate by going to http://smallworld.sandbox.yahoo.com -- could help determine that. The study is intended as academic social research and will be published in a peer-reviewed scientific journal, said Watts, a widely recognized authority on social networks.

From the Small World Experiment website:

The Small World Experiment is designed to test the hypothesis that anyone in the world can get a message to anyone else in just "six degrees of separation" by passing it from friend to friend. Sociologists have tried to prove (or disprove) this claim for decades, but it is still unresolved.

Basically you sign up as a sender. You are given a target somewhere in the world, and a message to send. Using your Facebook account you send the message to one person. That person sends it on and so it goes until it reaches the intended target. Sounds like a bit of fun and you'll be helping social research.

Interview With Hudson Gunn of Legacy Markers

Recently I spoke with Hudson Gunn, creator of Legacy Markers. I published a Press Release about this product a few days ago on my Olive Tree Genealogy blog called "Legacy Markers: Barcoding Your Ancestors?"

I'm very intrigued by the concept and can see ways we genealogists could utilize Legacy Markers in our genealogy pursuit. Basically a Legacy Marker is a barcode plaque which you place on a tombstone. When the barcode is scanned with a smartphone, the viewer is directed to a website with information (a memorial) of that deceased person.

I love this idea. Since Legacy Markers can be linked together online, we genealogists could create family trees simply by creating memorial pages for each ancestor tombstone we can physically visit, then linking them together as one family unit.

Imagine finding your great grandfather's resting place and noticing a barcode plaque affixed to his tombstone. You scan it with your smartphone and bingo, you are taken to a page on the internet which has information and documents you have never seen. Perhaps it has newspaper articles or personal stories. What a great way to share our research with other descendants!

I approached Hudson and asked him a few questions about this innovative product. He very kindly took the time to respond and I think you will find his answers below quite interesting.

1. Please tell us a bit about how you came up with the idea of Legacy Markers

The idea for Legacy came from the passing of my grandmother a month ago to complications from a stroke.  I was wandering the cemetery with my wife and brother before her interment looking at other relatives that were buried close by.  My wife was asking questions about who these people were and I found I was having a hard time remembering how each person was related to my grandmother. I could recall pieces of stories that I remembered from my childhood, but I couldn't remember the details.

My grandfather finally joined us and was able to tell us stories about each relative and how they were related. It bothered me that I couldn't remember those stories and even more knowing that most of those stories will be gone when my grandfather passes away. If I couldn't remember those stories now, how will I remember them 15 years from now as I'm trying to tell me kids about their grandparents?It got me thinking about how to preserve those memories so I could share them with my family.

My brother and I started thinking of ways to incorporate this idea with my other business that specializes in QR barcodes for businesses to use in advertisements.  This led to the idea of placing a plaque on the headstone with a QR barcode that links to a memorial of all of the stories, pictures, and videos we could find about my grandma.  After the incredible response from extended relatives and friends we decided it was something that others could benefit from.  So we put our heads together and created Code_IT Legacy.

2. Does the fee for the Marker include the website space for the memorial or is there an annual fee for archive space?

There is only a one-time fee for your Legacy Marker. It comes with a life-time subscription to the memorial service and unlimited amounts of space. Our biggest objective was to create a one-time cost instead of a monthly subscription. We didn't want to restrict people from viewing their family information just because someone didn't pay their bill.  Legacy is about preserving memories, not about collecting a monthly fee.

3. Can anyone other than the purchaser of the marker change the information in the archive?

When purchasing your Legacy Marker, you will create a password (Alpha or Numeric) that identifies the owner of each marker.  This password is required to add or make changes to the information on each memorial. This will protect the information from being changed by someone who does not have permission.  You may give that password to other family members so they may add their contributions to the memorial.

4. What happens to the uploaded information in each person's archived memorial if your website ever disappears?

Of course we do not foresee a reason to close our website, but if the event does occur we will provide an option for each user to download their memorial to preserve in their own database.

5. What is the estimated lifespan of the barcode marker?

Each marker has been hand crafted from a specially treated stainless steel and etched with a high intensity laser. These techniques were specifically chosen to resist corrosion and weather the elements. Even the programming of each barcode was taken into consideration to make sure that every mobile device could easily scan each code every time.

We are so confident that our markers will last that we guarantee every marker for life!

6. You mention on your website that special glue and cleaning solution come with the barcode marker. Is there any danger that these chemicals might damage tombstones, especially older ones?
 To preserve the integrity of each headstone we do not use a liquid based glue to adhere the marker. Each marker is affixed with a self-sealing adhesive tape from 3m. It is already applied to the marker, so all you have to do it peel the protective tape off the back and adhere it to the memorial.  We found that cleaning the surface with a simple alcohol prep pad (included with every marker) creates a clean surface to adhere to. These materials will not harm your headstone or memorial. Older headstones may be brittle, so caution should be used when placing your Legacy Marker on deteriorating headstones.

7. Is a smooth surface necessary to affix the barcode marker to a stone? I'm wondering about attaching one to a rough or crumbling older stone.

A smooth surface is definitely the best place for your marker. However, they will still affix to rough or deteriorating headstones. Regardless of the headstone, installation is easy enough for anyone to do in less than 2 minutes. Simple instructions are provided with each marker to help with the installation process. If you marker falls off or does not stick, we will provide replacement adhesive to make sure it adheres properly.

8. What happens if a marker is lost, damaged or stolen?

Hopefully this will never happen, but in the event that your Legacy Marker is damaged or stolen, contact us for replacement instructions so we can evaluate your individual needs!

9. I see that you can link Legacy Markers together to form a family chain. This could be very appealing to genealogists who might like to purchase several markers to create a memorial for various ancestors. Will you be offering a "Genealogy Special" or a discount for volume purchases?

Yes, we offer discounted rates for multiple purchases! Right now we have a special going on that gives new users a life-time subscription and one Legacy Marker for only $49. If you would purchase multiple markers they are $45 for 2 or $39 for 4. Contact us for multiple orders! If you have special needs or want higher quanties, contact us so we can meet any needs you may have!  legacy@codeitbarcodes.com

10. Is there anything else you wish to tell us about Legacy Markers?

Each Memorial can be accessed from any computer in the world.  We provide a Legacy Marker to affix to a headstone or memorial to allow visitors a direct link to this information with their mobile device.

We know that technology will change. As this technology changes, so will we. It's our highest priority to make sure your information is safe and easy to access no matter what technology is prevalent.

Webinar: Google+ the Next Big Thing

Did you miss yesterday's Webinar "Google+ The Next Big Thing"? Paul Allen, Dan Lynch and Mark Olsen gave a very good overview and explanation of Google+ :  streams, circles, hangouts, sparks and more.

Olive Tree Genealogy was one of the guests invited by Mark Olsen to appear in his segment about Hangouts on Google+.  It was an interesting experience. Mark's an expert at Hangouts and while I've been to many (including some of  his) this one was different.

If you missed the Webinar you can watch it for the next 10 days at http://www.legacyfamilytree.com/webinars.asp

Google+ the Next Big Thing. Join these three leaders in Google technology as they get together to put on what we think will be one of the best webinars ever. Learn about Circles, Hangouts, Streams, Sparks and more.

Paul Allen, the Founder of FamilyLink.com and Ancestry.com has quickly become known as the unofficial Google+ Statistician. His expert use of posting in Google+ features, stats and using his own insider tricks have helped to make a huge impact on the initial success of Google+. Those who are part of Paul's Circles have already benefited from his expertise. Paul's fame has quickly grown and he currently has more than 22,000 followers on Google+.

Dan Lynch, a.k.a. "Mr. Google" is a technology marketing consultant, professional genealogist, and popular international speaker. One of the first to recognize Google's strengths for family history research, Dan authored the award-winning book Google Your Family Tree Unlock the Hidden Power of Google , and is already helping the genealogical community understand the benefit of Google+ (see his blog at http://GooglePlusforGenealogists.com).

Mark Olsen, is the Marketing Manager for FamilyLink.com and holds a degree in genealogy. Mark is another famous name on Google+ as he is currently hosting the longest ever Google Hangout, nearly one month of a continual hangout. Mark is one of the leading experts on Google+ Hangouts and has been learning how to better connect families and genealogists around the world. His current Hangout has been receiving a lot of positive press and has had visits from many well-known industry leaders.

Cemetery Walk: Cochrane Catholic Cemetery

Today's Cemetery Walk comes courtesy of Jim Rye who submitted 1,400 photos of tombstones in Cochrane Catholic Cemetery, Cochrane Ontario to Olive Tree Genealogy. I will be adding these to the Cemetery Walk videos on Olive Tree Genealogy YouTube Channel Part 1: Video 1 is now online

Featured Photo: CDV of Mrs. Joseph Curtis 1862

 

Mrs. Joseph Curtis 1862 

This is one of my favourite CDVs (Cartes de Visite). It's  #4 in the Fobes Civil War Album on Lost Faces. Her beautiful dress has full Pagoda sleeves drop from her shoulder. Added to that a ruffled undersleeve and gives the illusion of a tiny waist which was every woman's dream during the Civil War fashion period. The extreme fullness of her skirt also adds to the illusion of a very tiny waist.

Her hair is typical of this time period - parted in the middle, pulled over her ears and ending in a roll at the nape of her neck. 

Learn more about early photographs and how to date them on Lost Faces.

Digitalkoot: Digitizing Records Through Video Games

Yesterday a Twitter account called Digitalkoot started following me on Twitter. I check all profiles of anyone who follows me before I decide whether or not to block them, follow them back, or do nothing.

To my surprise, Digitalkoot's Twitter Profile indicated they are based in Helsinki Finland and their Twitter profile description read

Digitizing the Finnish cultural heritage through video games. Join the effort now at www.digitalkoot.fi!

Digitizing through Video Games? I was intrigued so off I went to the website. Wow. I am  impressed!

To quote a bit from the website

Digitalkoot is a joint project run by the National Library of Finland and Microtask. Our goal is to index the library's enormous archives so that they are searchable on the Internet. This will enable everyone to easily access our cultural heritage

You can help us by playing games. Playing games in Digitalkoot fixes mistakes in our index of old Finnish newspapers. This greatly increases the accuracy of text-based searches of the newspaper archives.

Basically you play one of two games -

* Mole Bridge where you are given words that the computer did not recognize. Getting a word correct adds parts to the bridge so that the moles can cross the river.

* Mole Hunt where you identify words the computer has misread

The National Library of Finland takes scanned newspaper images, converts them using OCR (Optical Character Recognition) and then needs to clean up the text. Doing this manually would require a great deal of time, money and labour. So creating games and calling on a volunteer force to play the games (playing the games = correcting the OCR'd text) was their solution. A rather clever and creative solution in my opinion.

Being curious, I logged in (you can log in via email or using your Facebook account) and started playing Mole Bridge. I don't read Finnish but I had fun anyway trying to copy the letters I saw on the screen. Digitalkoot takes all user responses and compares them but it certainly helps if you know what Finnish words are. I didn't want to waste their time inputting incorrect data so I only played for a few mintues but it was actually lots of fun. I did okay with the easy words or the numbers. Some of my moles even made it across the river!

I think this is an amazingly innovative idea and I hope other digitization projects will take note and think about creating their own fun way to encourage volunteers to help get documents transcribed and saved in digital format.

You can read more about Digitalkoot at Digitalkoot: crowdsourcing Finnish Cultural Heritage on
the Microtask blog .

Echo Smart Pen: Handy Tool for Genealogists

Echo Smart Pen

This is my new Livescribe 8 GB Echo Smartpen which I bought from Amazon.com

I've been looking at them for over a year and finally took the plunge to buy one last month.

The Echo Smart Pen allows me to record anything I want from my pen to special notebooks, and then transfer the recordings to my computer.

Special Noteboo

How great would that be at a family reunion? I could go from person to person and record a few minutes of their thoughts on the reunion, or their memories of past reunions, or I could ask them to give one memory of their childhood.  Then it would be a simple matter to transfer the recordings to my computer, turn them into text and create booklets for the next family reunion!

I can also visit my 88 year old auntie and have her reminisce about the past while my pen is recording and I make quick jot notes in the special notebooks.

The notebooks have controls at the bottom of the pages. You press on Start with your pen to begin recording and Stop when you are done. There are other controls - pause, rewind, scroll ahead for example. You can fast forward and do other functions directly in the notebook.

The jot notes are great because while you are recording the person, you make point form or jot notes. Then you can touch your pen to any point in your jot notes to replay just that portion of the recording.

I bought a set of 4 notebooks and my SmartPen came with one so I'm pretty set for recording family histories. For a limited time a purchase of the 8GB SmartPen also includes a one year premium subscription to Evernote  I already use the free version daily so I'm a happy camper)

Next week I will be visiting my auntie to start recording her memories. I'm really excited! 

Here's what came in the box:

• The Echo smartpen with 8GB of memory
• Livescribe Connect Premium: Includes Connect Basic (Facebook, Evernote, MyLivescribe, your mobile device, and your computer) plus additional connectors for Email and Google Docs
• Livescribe Desktop software for Mac or Windows (download)
• 500 MB of personal online storage
• Starter dot paper notebook
• Micro USB Cable
• Interactive Getting Started Guide
• Smartpen Tips and Tricks
• 2 smartpen caps
• 2 ink cartridges

 If you don't think you need anything as big as the 8GB, there is also the Livescribe 2 GB Echo Smartpen Starter Pack or the Livescribe 4 GB Echo Smartpen  available.

Records of the Old Dutch Church Totowa New Jersey 1756-1822

Today's featured database includes the records of the Old Dutch Church in Totowa New Jersey, baptisms 1756-1822 online in the New Jersey section of Olive Tree Genealogy.

These early church records include Father, mother; child, birthdate, baptism date; Wits: male witness, female witness, additional witnesses. Sometimes more information is provided.

The 1958 bulletin of the Passaic County Historical Society provides information on the history of this church:

From 1755 until about the year 1762, the Reverend David Marinus served as minister and pastor.  After Dominie Marinus left about 1762, the church was supplied by the pastor of the Fairfield Reformed Church for about five years; then until 1772, it appears that there was no one to minister to the congregation.  But in November 1772, the Rev. Dr. Hermanus Meyer came and remained the pastor until his death in 1791.  The Totowa Church now severed its connections with the Pompton Church but remained in close relations with the Church at Acquackanonk and shared in the pastorate of the Rev. Henricus Schoonmaker who gave one-third of his time to Totowa.  He preached at Totowa from 1791 until his retirement in 1816 and for a time lived in Paterson.  After March 1816, services were held every other Sunday and they were conducted by the Rev. William Eltinge, the Pastor at Paramus from 1816 until 1827 when on March 26 a fire on the roof completely consumed the building.

Confessions of a Genealogy Hoarder

I've always been keenly interested in New Netherland (present day New York) - its history and settlement and most of all, its 17th century settlers. My interest began when I discovered I was descended from several of those early Dutch and Walloon immigrants - Van Slyke, Vrooman, Bradt, Ryckman, Damen, Van Valkenburg.... to name only a few.

As I began researching my own New Netherland family lines in depth I also became interested in others. Because it was so difficult accessing the early records I needed for my research I began to build my own personal research library. I bought out-of-print books and reprints of previously published books. I sought out (and found) all the original court record books for New Amsterdam (now New York City), Beverwyck and Fort Orange (now Albany).

Crumbling NYGBR

Eventually after acquiring dozens of books of 17th century church records, court records and orphanmasters records, I realized there were no more to be had. But the New York Genealogical and Biographical Record (NYGBR) had published many church records and other primary source records that were not found in other formats. I'd been working on an article (The European Origins of the Boelen Family: Boele Roeloffson and His Wife Bayken Arents in Amsterdam ) for the NYGBR which was later published in that journal in April 2000 so I was familiar with the types of articles they  published and those also held appeal for me.

And so I contacted the NYGBR and explained what I wanted - every single issue of the journal since its first publication.  I think they were shocked. They explained they were missing some of the earlier issues but they would ship what they had. I don't want to tell you what this cost (the journals + shipping + border crossing fees + Ontario taxes = gulp) because I'm afraid putting it in print means I've slipped into the realm of those who spend more than they can afford on something they don't really truly need. Or being a hoarder.

When my boxes of journals arrived months later, whoever packed them had done an inventory by hand of every volume and every number and every year. I was the proud, and I admit overwhelmed, owner of 374 yellow journals dating from January 1870 to January 1999.

374 NYGBR journals spanning 129 years. Some of the earlier ones were crumbling. The covers were crumbling with pieces falling off every time they were handled. I made room on all my bookcases in my office. They filled every space and that meant all my carefully sought out-of-print or reprinted books on New Netherland had to go. But where? I wanted everything at my fingertips not in different rooms.

One of my tubs of NYGBR

I struggled with this for several months. My husband complained about the bits and pieces of crumbling covers. It was difficult to do the research I needed to do for my planned series of books on New Netherland Settlers. I started photocopying the sets of primary records I wanted, and put them in binders so I could use them easily. But that was a horrendous job and it never was completed.

And then the NYGBR came out with the entire set on CD ROM a few years later. So I ordered it too. And I packed up my 374 journals, put them in waterproof tubs and had my husband store them in one of our barns.

And there they lie. It bothers me. I don't like using the CD-ROM versions. I know they will not always be accessible as books/journals are.  I want to be able to access every single set of church or miscellaneous records in those journals. But the photocopying project that entails overwhelms me.

Tubs of NYGBR Journals

So I have a dilemma which I've been mulling over for 11 years - what to do with my 374 NYGBR journals?

* Should I find room for them somewhere in my house? That's not physically possible

* Should I destroy the journals by cutting out the pages I want and putting those pages in binders? That idea makes me shudder, there seems something so inherently wrong about that!

* Should I suck it up and start the photocopying project? That seems the best solution of the three I have thought of but then what do I do with the journals? Donate them? Where? No library near me would want them (I live in Ontario Canada, not much call for 17th century New York records) To ship them somewhere would cost a fortune.

And can I give them up? Maybe that's the true test of whether or not I'm a genealogy hoarder. I don't think I can part with them!

I could really use some input and suggestions!

Legacy Marker - Barcoding Your Ancestors?

The following Press Release came out a few days ago. I had a look at the website (Code_IT Barcodes) and it looks like a very interesting concept. My one concern would be that the information is only available as long as the website where it is uploaded remains online. But I'm intrigued.....

Legacy Marker is a method of attaching a barcode to a gravestone. When scanned with a mobile phone, the barcode directs the user to a website with information, stories, photographs, videos, audio recordings and more, all of which tell the story of the deceased person.

OREM, UT, July 29, 2011 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Code_IT Barcodes, based in Orem, Utah takes an innovative approach to a long-held tradition. Its new branch, Code_IT Legacy, offers miniature QR barcode plaques that can be affixed to a gravestone, new or old, to tell the stories of the person buried there. When scanned with a smartphone, these barcodes connect the living with the dead in a way never before seen.

Family members choose favorite memories, pictures and videos of their loved ones who have died, and then they have Code_IT Legacy connect these memories with a completely unique barcode. The barcode can then be updated and changed by the family as often as desired.

Inspired by the recent passing of his own grandmother, Hudson Gunn, President and owner of Code_IT Barcodes, explains it in his own words. "I wanted people to know who my grandmother was and the great things she did and stood for. She isn't just another headstone in the cemetery. With the videos and pictures we uploaded, my kids can now see and hear her voice instead of just seeing a headstone. We are preserving her legacy."

These new Legacy Markers are being used to honor military heroes, brothers, sisters, mothers and fathers. Gone are the days when the dead no longer have a voice. Now mourning families have an outlet for their grief. They find a sense of closure in this new ability to make the lives of the dead known to the living.

Code_IT, Legacy is working with genealogy archives to provide important genealogy information on every marker, creating a chain of families for others to follow. "Adding this link to genealogy is very important to us at Code_IT, says Hudson. Knowing more about our past is the only way to sculpt a successful future."

Legacy Markers are also helping to facilitate much needed research to conquer many of the diseases that carved these names into granite. The markers are being used to link scanners with donation pages for organizations like the National Stroke Association as well as links to donation funds for families who are struggling financially with the loss of a loved one. It's a great way for people to perpetuate the cause and help local families.

Those who would like to honor family members who have passed away need only visit http://www.codeitbarcodes.com/legacy to order the distinctive and timeless Legacy Marker for their loved one.

Code_IT Barcodes is a growing company leading the industry in QR Barcodes. For more information, please contact us at info@codeitbarcodes.com or visit us at http://www.codeitbarcodes.com

Interview With Coffin Plate Collector

Coffin Plate

Nicole of MyGraveAddiction,com just published an interview she conducted with my husband about his coffin plate collection.

Brian has been collecting coffin plates for many years and has put over 400 online at AncestorsAtRest. 

Coffin plates are a unique source of genealogical information but many researchers are not aware of their existence as a genealogy resource.

Canadian Genealogy Survey Now Available Across the Country

The following Press Release was sent to Olive Tree Genealogy by Professor Neilson of Carleton University. I just spent some time filling it out, and it was very interesting. I suggest taking a few moments to participate:

August 5, 2011
Canadian Genealogy Survey Now Available Across the Country

(Ottawa, ON) – Carleton University researchers are seeking family historians to complete an online survey detailing how they conduct their genealogy research. Originally pilot-tested in Nova Scotia, the Canadian Genealogy Survey is now looking to attract a wider audience. Canadians researching their family’s history in Canada or abroad are invited the complete the survey, available at http://www.cusurveycentre.ca/gensurvey. The researchers are also inviting family historians who are researching their Canadian ancestry from outside the country to take part.

Associate Professor of Marketing, Leighann Neilson revealed that over 400 people completed the survey during the first 10 days after it became available. “We’ve had a wonderful response from the genealogy community in Nova Scotia,” Neilson said, “Now we are trying to get the message out across the country.” While the majority of people completing the survey have been from Canada, responses have also come in from across the United States, the UK and as far away as South Africa.

Del Muise, Emeritus Professor of History at Carleton, is collaborating with Neilson on the survey. “In addition to completing the survey, we’ve had a number of people send us their comments and suggestions via email or leave comments on our blog. It’s the chance to have this kind of interaction with people taking the survey that makes it really interesting for us.”

As the survey moves across the country, the public can follow its progress at http://www.genealogyincanada.blogspot.com. Family historians, librarians, archivists and others interested in genealogy are able to comment and offer their opinions. “As results become available, we’ll be posting them on the site and inviting the community to react,” Muise said.

For more information:
Del Muise                                               Leighann Neilson
Emeritus Professor of History                Associate Professor, Marketing
Carleton University                                Carleton University
902-235-2583                                         613-520-2600 x8511
delmuise@rogers.com                            leighann_neilson@carleton.ca

A Sad Passing of a Genealogist's Husband

My very dear friend, Sue Swiggum of TheShipsList.com, lost her husband  Gery on July 27, 2011.  His obituary can be viewed here.I never met Gery but I have known Sue for many years and my heart goes out to her at this time.

Sue wrote to me when Gery's illness was first diagnosed, and after he passed away she asked me to let others know but she had one request -  that no one contact her at this time. Gery's Celebration of Life is being held today.

Update: FamilySearch YouTube Channel

Olive Tree Genealogy received an intriguing email early this morning from FamilySearch. Here's what they said

We're pleased to announce the launch of our updated FamilySearch YouTube channel, Thursday, Aug. 4th. Over the past few months, we have been creating video content to reach a variety of audiences throughout the genealogy world.

The playlists includes:

• Genealogy in 5 Minutes – a 24-episode series offering an overview of how-to’s, best practices, and helpful hints for doing genealogy.
• Woven Generations – an inspirational series about the benefits and success stories of genealogy work.
• Genealogy Fun – a fun video series highlighting the lighter side of genealogy.
• Societies and Archives – a video series highlighting genealogical societies & archives.
• Genealogy News & Events – What’s going on the genealogy world?
• Family History: Getting Started – a training video series for using FamilySearch.
• “How-to’s” from the Experts – a series of interview clips with best practices for finding your ancestors.

It sounded interesting so I watched Episode One of Genealogy in 5 Minutes. I was impressed. The video was well done and explained clearly how a person can take the first step in beginning their genealogy search.

I'm subscribed to this YouTube Channel and look forward to watching more of the videos and any new ones that are put online.

My Y-DNA & mtDNA Surnames & Haplogroups

I've had my Mitochondrial DNA tested (mtDNA) and my brother's Y-DNA tested at Family Tree DNA . Here is a summary and our ancestor surnames in each category. I am only listing the surnames that belong in the direct lineage tested.

Perhaps someone will spot a connection.

My Paternal Lineage: Surname McGINNIS. Y-DNA Haplogroup is  I1b2a. Apparently my brother has a rare mutation called M284. 

McGINNIS (DOWNEY spouse) - Co. Down Ireland to Ontario Canada 1847
McGINNIS (KING spouse) - Wellington Co. Ontario Canada
McGINNIS (PEER spouse)  - Wellington Co. Ontario Canada

My Maternal Lineage: mtDNA Haplogroup is J

This follows the female lineage only from me, my mother, her mother, her mother's mother and so on.


ANSELL- England (married in Kent England 1792)
ELVERY - Kent, England
ELVERY- Kent England
STEAD- Kent England
SIMPSON - Kent England

Do you match any of these surnames and locations? I am going to start including this list in any emails I send to connections from Family Tree DNA . So far I've not heard back from anyone regarding my mtDNA and several email addresses bounce. I'm not sure why anyone would register with a DNA site, have their DNA tested and then not keep their contact information up to date. But they do.

Cemetery Walk in Trinity United Church Cemetery

Watch Cemetery Walk 4 for Trinity United Church Cemetery in Beeton Ontario Canada, This is the last video of four of the tombstones in this cemetery taken in April 2011.



See more Cemetery Walks on Olive Tree Genealogy YouTube Channel

Genealogy Challenge - Care to Have a Guess?

Oliver Price Jones?

Opinions and guesses wanted. Yes I do want my readers to have a look at this name and give their best guess as to what it is.

The name is "OLIVER PRICE xxxxx". What is the last name?

At first I thought the upper case letter was a "T" but it doesn't match how the writer formed other "T" as in "Thomas"

T seems to be just a straight hard horizontal bar on top of a vertical stick. No little "thingey" sticking out the left side as in this letter

Upper Case "T"

Here's another example of upper case T.  It is nothing like the first letter of Oliver Price's surname.

Upper case letter "F" in Farrier and Foster

Then I thought perhaps it is "F"? But look at the word "Farrier" and "Foster-father" F isn't formed the same way as the start of this surname. F has a distinct horizontal line/bar through the middle and a curving top that looks almost like a Y.

The first letter in the surname above does not have that "Y" top.


My final thought is "J". Perhaps the surname is JONES or JANES?

I am unable to find this individual as the time of this document is 1940. The place is England - Streatham in Wandsworth to be exact. But I've no way of knowing where Oliver lives.  I suspect Oliver was born before 1885 but have no way of knowing that for sure either. I also have a hunch that PRICE might be PREECE but again - no proof, nothing but a hunch....

All ideas/suggestions/opinions welcome! And if you find Oliver Price unknown in any record I'd be forever grateful. 

No Biggie But a Couple of Google+ Tips For You

Playing in the Google+ playground is fun. I've been to a lot of Hangouts, have set up a couple myself and am making lots of new genealogy friends!

It's an adventure and it's new so there's lots to discover. I thought I'd tell you about a couple of neat things I found out you can do on Google+  Now maybe everyone but me already knew this but in case you didn't...

1. You can share a URL or a note with one person. Let me give you an example. My husband hates IM. He refuses to set it up, won't use Gmail chat or Facebook chat or AOL Buddy. So I have no quick way to send him a link to an article he might find interesting or useful. Of course I could email him but he only picks up his mail once or twice a day (can you imagine???!!! Mine is open whenever my computer is turned on)

But he is on Google+. So today I had a link for a story he might want to read. I went to my Stream (Home page) in Google+  and put the link into my SHARE box. I then chose ONLY his name to share with and hit SEND. He got it in two places - his email and his Google+ Stream. It was almost instantaneous. He liked it in Google+ because it also showed him a photo, a bit of text and the link to the article.

No one but him will see this link because I also disabled the ability for it to be reshared or commented on.

Joan's Default PopUp Profile Box

2. Want a longer description that displays when folks hold their cursor over your Profile Photo box in Google+? The default is a few words that you entered on your Profile page. I'm using my friend Joan Miller of Luxegen Genealogy's Profile page and popup as an example of the default.
 
Well here's my tip for you - go to the About part of your Profile.

Choose "Edit Profile" In the "employment" area, write up a brief bio and put it in the spot for your employment. Click the "current" box and Save it.

Now when someone hovers their cursor over your name and photo, your bio will display.

Lorine's Extended Profile Box PopUp

Here's what my popup looks like now. I like that people who find me on Google+ can now see at a glance what I'm all about. If they want to they can continue on to my Profile page to learn more.

Ancestor Stepping Stones: More Genealogy Fun With Children

My two oldest grandchildren are coming in August for their annual week-long stay with us. As many of my readers know, we always create a genealogy activity to do while they are here.

Lorine's Stepping Stone
for Grandma

This year we've decided to create Ancestor Stepping Stones. These will be stones that make a pathway leading from Point A to Point B.

We live on a 100 acre hobby farm and have lots of room to make pathways - in the vegetable gardens, in the gravel garden, from the back deck to the animal fields, from the house to the forest..... we can create dozens of paths if we want to.

Our idea is that each Stepping Stone will have an ancestor's name as well as years of birth and death. Each child creates a stone for themself, then decides which parent they want to add. Because these are Ancestor stepping stones, the grandparent chosen by the child needs to be either the father or mother of the parent they chose.

We'll discuss the different ways they could tackle this  - do they want to follow the male line? The female? A mix of both? Maybe they want to put two names on one stone, for example they might want to make a stone that reads "My grandparents Joseph & Ellen Smith" or "My grandparents Joseph Smith & Ellen Jones" or just "Joseph Smith 1898-1957" (These are invented names by the way)

Working on Grandma's Stone

Their own stone should have their name and date of birth or age, plus the date they created the stone. They could add many different items - hand prints or perhaps a few words that best sums up their likes or explains who they are. For example one might put "Sally Smith, age 10.  Bieber Fever!" Or little Sally might put "Sally Smith age 10. Love fashion & my iPod" It's their choice.

Of course we'll talk about the ancestors for whom the children are going to create stones. We'll also talk about how they are leaving their mark and a bit of history for future generations by creating these stones.

 Colour Added to Hub's Stone

The first step is to buy clear plastic holders for plants. These will be our molds.

Next my husband will mix the cement and pour it into the molds. We have powdered colours that can be added to the cement, so the grandchildren can also choose what colour they want each stone to be. It's going to be tricky to work on more than one mold at a time so I think we will likely create one each day they are here.

After waiting about an hour for the cement to partially set, the children will be able to write or print the name of the ancestor on their mold. Then they can add decorations such as coloured marbles or coloured glass, beads, etc. They can also use items to stamp designs into the mold or create them freehand.

Hubs working on his stone

After the decorating is done, we'll let the cement set and then ease it out of it's clear plastic mold. By the time their visit is over they should have at least 5 ancestor stepping stones done and ready to be laid in the garden.

We have completed a prototype ahead of time so that we know what we're doing when the kids are here! I think it's going to be a lot of fun, and I can also have my other 7 grandchildren create their paths when they come for a visit.