23andMe DNA company to be sold and continue privacy policies

Today’s AP News (Associated Press) carried a report on the 23andMe DNA company. “Biotechnology company Regeneron Pharmaceuticals is buying 23andMe for $256 million, two months after the genetic testing company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.” Be sure to scroll down the page to read all parts of the article including this important paragraph. “Regeneron […]

Upper Midwest family genealogy connections? Join us for a new institute, UMGI!

August 8-9, 2025. Two-day in-person Institute as part of the Minnesota Genealogical Society‘s education programs. The NEW Upper Midwest Genealogical Institute (UMGI)! Join us for this special institute and related activities held at the Midwest Genealogy Center in the Saint Paul suburb of Mendota Heights. Free parking, an extensive syllabus, comfortable classroom, and a pizza […]

U.S. National Archives free online genealogy presentations

Press release info from the U.S. National Archives. “This year’s #Genealogy Series begins TODAY, May 13! Join us for a series of five presentations, all free and available on YouTube, by experts on US National Archives staff. See the full list of times and topics: https://www.archives.gov/calendar/genealogy-series/2025.” Missed today’s? Catch up on these and past years […]

The first Maternity Hospital in Minneapolis, Part 2

For Part 2, this is an exercise in following up on something written or told to you. Where should we look for additional information on the general topic or specific item. Because the newspaper article discussed in my blog post of May 10th was referring to a Minnesota place, I began some searching for more […]

The first Maternity Hospital in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Part 1

The 10 May 2025 Minnesota Star Tribune has an interesting article titled “Minneapolis’ first maternity hospital in 1886 was a savior for unmarried mothers and unwanted babies.” The subtitle says “Founder Martha Ripley was not only an obstetrician but also a mother figure to the women and infants at the facility.” The article by long-time […]

More Minneapolis and Hennepin County City Directories Now Online

Exciting news from the Hennepin County Library System! More online and free city directories have been added for Minneapolis and other cities in Hennepin County, Minnesota. The following can now be accessed from the already valuable online collection. This announcement fits into one of the sessions I am teaching online June 23-27 . It’s part […]

Debuting 2025–2026 NEW Half-Day Single Topic Virtual Seminars

I love my webinar audiences. They listen and learn for an hour and then have great questions and comments that I love to address then or research more after the webinar. Questions at the end of some one-hour presentations show me that more info is needed on certain subjects. Commenters say “you didn’t mention” or […]

My April webinar is a Top 10 for April at Legacy Family Tree Webinars

From Geoff Rasmussen at Legacy Family Tree Webinars! Always a delight to hear good news from Geoff and the team.     “We’ve crunched the data and unveiled the Top 10 most-watched webinars of April 2025! Did your go-to genealogy gurus make the cut? Ready to discover fresh insights? This list is your passport to […]

Minnesota State Capitol mall to honor tribal nations with a Tribal Flag Plaza

29 April 2025 on Minnesota Public Radio. Many of my readers know of my years of extensive Native American research for Tribes and individuals. I was pleased to learn about the Tribal Flag Plaza being built on the Capitol Mall in the beautiful area of the Minnesota State Capitol building. The mall area has several […]