Slovenian Consulate opens in my neighborhood of Roseville

Paula Stuart-Warren  Roseville, Slovenia  2 Comments

It’s not every day that a foreign country’s consulate opens near me! It’s practically in my backyard. The Consulate of the Republic of Slovenia is in the home of Miro Medved who was named Honorary Consul of the Republic of Slovenia.

“Slovenia, a country about the size of New Jersey, gained its independence in 1991 from communist controlled Yugoslavia. . . Medved said it was time to establish a consulate in Minnesota, where he said around 30,000 people of Slovenian descent reside.”

I was aware that many Slovenians first settled in northern Minnesota on what is fondly called the Iron Range and were miners or in other occupations. The article related that many have moved to the Twin Cities metro area. It also told me that Minnesota’s own U.S. Senator, Amy Klobuchar, is of Slovenian descent.

Yul Yost, a Slovenian-American, who lives in Roseville, . . . said he wanted to forge a network of Slovenians together living in Minnesota, so he and others organized the group Twin Cities Slovenians ten years ago. The group’s goal is “to honor Slovenian heritage interest through the sharing of fellowship, culture, history, music, language, literature and genealogy activities.”

Ah, that magic word, genealogy!

Read the full article in the May 28th Roseville Review.

St. Paul’s Pilgrim Baptist Church celebrates 150 years

Paula Stuart-Warren  African American, Minnesota, St. Paul  Leave a comment

Sasha Aslanian, a reporter from Minnesota Public Radio, has a wonderful story today about Pilgrim Baptist Church. The church is celebrating 150 year of existence. It was founded by former slaves.

Sasha relates “. . . Robert Hickman, an escaped slave from Missouri who 150 years ago led slaves traveling north on the Underground Railroad, a physical and spiritual migration that Pilgrim Baptist celebrates this month.”

The name Hickman is definitely a recognizable one in St. Paul’s black community. Unfortunately, when they arrived in St. Paul, members of the group were forced to separate with some going to different places in Minnesota. This sad occurrence may have solved a research mystery for me.

 ” In 1866, Pilgrim Baptist Church moved to a permanent home in downtown St. Paul, making it the first predominantly black church in Minnesota. Church members celebrated with a baptism on the shore of the Mississippi.”  Today the church is located on Central Avenue in St. Paul.

Robert Hickman, a 39 year old preacher is listed on the 1870 census of St. Paul, Ramsey County, Minnesota (page 15/1097, line 6). The census entry states he was born in Missouri. Here is a view of his household on that census from Ancestry.com.

 Please click here to read the great story on MPR’s website.

For more on Robert, read this website www.blackpast.org/?q=aah/hickman-robert-t-1831-1900

Bus it to the FGS Conference from Minnesota

Paula Stuart-Warren  Conferences/Institutes, Federation of Genealogical Societies, Minnesota Genealogical Society  Leave a comment

If you live in Minnesota or Wisconsin, why not consider riding to the Federation of Genealogical Societies August 21-24 Conference in Fort Wayne with a bus filled with eager genealogists? The conference theme is “Journey through Generations” and you have the opportunity to travel with others who understand that phrase!

Check the website of the Minnesota Genealogical Society for the full details. MGS has arranged for hotel rooms and the bus will deliver you to the convention center each day.

2013 FGS Conference Early-Bird discount ends July 1

Paula Stuart-Warren  Conferences/Institutes  Leave a comment

This press release is from the Federation of Genealogical Societies. I am on the FGS Board of Directors and am also National Conference Co-Chair for this event.

“Journey through Generations” – A Conference for the Nation’s Genealogists

June 10, 2013 – Austin, TX.  Discounted early-bird registration for the 2013 Federation of Genealogical Societies Conference will continue only until July 1. Early registrants receive a $50 discount for the full four days, or a $20 discount for any single day. Details at http://www.fgsconference.org. 

The conference will be held 21-24 August 2013 in Fort Wayne, Indiana at the Grand Wayne Convention Center. This year’s conference theme is “Journey through Generations,” and the local hosts are the Allen County Public Library (ACPL) and the Allen County Genealogical Society of Indiana (ACGSI). Platinum sponsors are FamilySearch.org, FindMyPast.com and Ancestry.com.

The conference offers opportunities for all who are interested in researching their family history, with over 160 educational sessions on records, strategies, and tools for genealogists at all levels. The exhibit hall features over 70 vendors offering a wide range of genealogical products and is open and free to the public. 

Luncheons, workshops and special events provide additional opportunities for networking and learning. Make sure the get your tickets to these conference “extras” early to guarantee your spot.

See you in Fort Wayne in August!

Learn More and Stay Connected:

Southern California Genealogical Society Jamboree

Paula Stuart-Warren  Conferences/Institutes  Leave a comment

I really enjoyed the special genetics learning day at the Jamboree. The speakers, lectures, and comaraderie were great. I volunteered as a room monitor all day and tonight my feet really know I did that! I learned a lot about DNA testing from knowledgeable presenters in the rooms where I worked. I am convinced more than ever that I need to do this NOW.

I had the pleasure of meeting Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. during a late afternoon break with Cyndi Ingle Howells and Elyse Doerflinger. Thank you to Cyndi for arranging the meeting.

Elyse Doerflinger, Dr,. Gate, and me

I met new friends and spent some time with long-time friends. That’s an important part of these conferences. Also, that we ate too much! Looking forward to three more days in Burbank learning, presenting and having meetings. Hey fellow Minnesotans, the sun really does still exist.

St. Cloud, Minnesota Genealogy Conference, June 22

Paula Stuart-Warren  Conferences/Institutes, Minnesota Genealogical Society  1 Comment

The Minnesota Genealogical Society and the St. Cloud Area Genealogists are hosting the St. Cloud Genealogy Conference on Saturday, June 22, 2013. It’s an all-day event and the cost is only $35 which includes lunch and snacks.

The program features two plenary sessions and two rounds of breakout sessions, with topics including researching at the National Archives, scanning images, finding European origins, and the newest changes at FamilySearch.org, plus two German research topics: reading German church records and German research on the web.

The location is the Apollo High School at 1000 N 44th Avenue in St. Cloud, Minnesota.

For more details and to register, visit the MGS website:  www.mngs.org

Ancestral information NOW before it’s too late

Paula Stuart-Warren  ancestral homes, Cook  3 Comments

We all hear about interviewing the older generations of our family before they are gone. I have an additional task for your list of family history activities. Take pictures of the ancestral homes and businesses now. That’s now as in NOW.

We don’t know when the buildings might be destroyed by fire, floods, tornados, or by a wrecking ball. This afternoon I decided to drive past a couple places where my family had lived in the past. 1011 Portland Avenue in St. Paul looked just fine. This is where my maternal Grandmother Gertrude M. (Cook) Hanley lived for many years as a child.

But earlier I had driven up Marshall Avenue from the St. Paul Cathedral to take a look at 358 Marshall where the sisters of my maternal Great Grandfather John T. Cook had lived. Minnie, Ellen, and Catherine Cook had a nice home where members of the greater family were welcomed. I have written about this home several times. I have a faint memory of being in the home as a very young girl. My mother and grandmother told me about the many happy hours spent there.

As I drove west on Marshall I saw two fire engines with lights flashing. My heart sank and I hoped that the house wasn’t on fire. It had been in less than ideal condition the last time I drove by there. Then I saw the fire engines were in front of homes in the lower address numbers. Whew!

A couple seconds later I was in the correct block and there was still shock. The house is gone and replaced by a big building. I had never stopped to take a picture of the home. I am kicking myself and feel sad about it. In its place is 370 Marshall. It was built in 2005. Had it really been that long since I drove past there?

I came home and did some online searching. 370 Marshall is a 68 unit upscale condominium building. I found one item on an older city council agenda:

Agenda of the St. Paul City Council
Wednesday, October 8, 2003

5. Letter from the Office of License, Inspections and Environmental Protection announcing a public hearing before the City Council on October 22, 2003, to consider the appeal of Real Estate Development Group to a decision of the Heritage Preservation Commission denying a demolition permit application to raze the house and garage at 358 Marshall Avenue in order to construct a six story 68-unit condominium building.

http://service.govdelivery.com/service/docs/STPAUL/STPAUL_DeptCityCouncil/STPAUL_65/STPAUL_65_20031008_en.pdf

Take those pictures now or get someone to do it for you if the homes and businesses are not nearby. I will be taking many pictures of other homes and businesses in the coming months.

FamilySearch Updates for genealogists

Paula Stuart-Warren  Uncategorized  Leave a comment

Another press released was received from FamilySearch this week. How often do you check the FamilySearch website’s section of digitized records and indexes? When you visit the website click on Search and then scroll down the next page to “Browse All Published Collections” and then click on the country of interest. I plan to keep checking the Illinois county marriage records.
 
“FamilySearch has added more than 2.16 million index records and images this week from Argentina, Austria, Italy, Paraguay, Portugal, Spain, and the United States. Notable collection updates include the 1,152,830 index records and images from the U.S., Illinois, County Marriages, 1810–1934, collection, and the 244,523 images from the Spain, Province of Valencia, Municipal Records, 1611–1935, collection. See the table below for the full list of updates. Search these diverse collections and more than 3.5 billion other records for free at FamilySearch.org.”

Check the full table of this week’s updates at https://www.familysearch.org/node/2181

MyHeritage offers free access to military records

Paula Stuart-Warren  Military, MyHeritage  Leave a comment

Memorial Day weekend brings another press release about free access to military records. Enjoy!

“In honor of Memorial Day next week, MyHeritage is granting free access to millions of military records from our most popular collections. The records can be accessed from here.

The free offer ends on May 28.

The collections will help you journey back in time to some of the most important conflicts in world history, which impacted American families as well as millions of families worldwide.

Here is the link to our official blog post here – http://blog.myheritage.com/2013/05/memorial-day-free-access-to-us-military-records/ and an image is attached.”

Click on “Search Now” in their blog post.