NY State Archives INCREASES hours

Paula Stuart-Warren  Archives, Research  Leave a comment

Yes, you read that correctly. The New York State Archives in Albany is adding Saturday hours as of this Saturday, 16 October 2010. This is wonderful in contrast to the many archives, historical societies, libraries, and other research facilities that have seriously reduced hours. This archives is open full days so that researchers have time to order, study, and copy records.

The archives is located in the Cultural Education Center building. The NY State Archives website is at http://www.archives.nysed.gov/aindex.shtml.  “The New York State Archives is located in the Cultural Education Center (CEC) in Albany, New York. The CEC is at the south end of the Empire State Plaza, across Madison Avenue (Route 20) from the Plaza (at the opposite end from the Capitol). Public access to the Archives is gained via the Reference Room” which is located on the eleventh floor of the CEC and is open Monday through Friday 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Saturday from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

On Saturdays, free public parking will be available in the Madison Avenue parking lots adjacent to the CEC.  Directions and parking information is available on the New York State Museum website at http://www.nysm.nysed.gov/information/general/muswhere.html.

The archives as a great Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/#!/nysarchives.

I have a list of things to do at that facility if I ever have the chance to get there.

FamilySearch Beta update

Paula Stuart-Warren  FamilySearch  Leave a comment

Just catching up on some recent press releases that have been patiently waiting in my inbox!

 We made some additional enhancements this week at beta.familysearch.org. The following post describing the updates along with visual illustrations can be found at FamilySearch Blogs. Enjoy!
October 8, 2010
We released another substantial update to the FamilySearch Beta website. In addition to the four major updates outlined below, we’ve made a large number of improvements under the hood that aren’t really visible to users of the site but make a big difference in the overall performance and function of the site. Here’s the quick list of updates.

·         Redesigned Home Page
·         Brand New – Getting Started Section
·         Redesigned Learning Resources including online Research Courses
·         Just Released – FamilySearch Center Section

Redesigned Home Page. We redesigned the home page to highlight more of the site features like the Getting Started Section, Learning Resources and FamilySearch Centers. We also added a basic browse by location feature under the search form. We plan to make the browse by location tool much more interactive over time and would love to get your suggestions of how to improve it. Click the Feedback link on the site to leave us a suggestion.
Brand New – Getting Started Section. We have big plans for the Getting Started section of the site. What we released last week is just the beginning. Right now you can look at profiles of some famous ancestors that have been researched by our experts in the Family History Library. You can also choose from a number of designer pedigree charts and fill out your own family tree. Another valuable addition to the Getting Started section isn’t quite ready yet, but you can still see a placeholder for it on the page. A new four-part video series in the Getting Started section will teach people how to begin researching their family history.
Redesigned Learning Resources Section. The learning resources section has been redesigned to try and make it easier to access the tremendous content created by FamilySearch and a community of volunteers. You can quickly search over 40,000 articles containing a wealth of knowledge about how to do research or where to find records all around the world. You can also add your own knowledge by updating an article or creating a new article. We’ve also added over 100 online courses dealing with a range of topics from Beginning English Research to Reading Russian Records. Watch these courses online to learn to research or improve your genealogy skills.
Paul Nauta
FamilySearch Public Affairs Manager

October is . . .

Paula Stuart-Warren  Uncategorized  Leave a comment

National Cancer Awareness Month, National Anti-Bullying Month, Family History Month, and American Archives Month. All are very special to me.

My mom had breast cancer, my paternal grandmother, maternal grandaunt, and others suffered from this horrible disease. I have some very dear gay friends who have suffered at the hands of bullies. I have only an inkling of all that horrific feeling. All my life I have been picked on for being so short, wearing glasses, and for being overweight. Several of those gay friends helped me through a time several years ago when I was being bullied. The bullying must stop. I hope I never learn that my fellow genealogists have been the bullies — we should respect all human lives, loves, and embrace each other in a special way.

Family history month is important because it is a great equalizer. It doesn’t matter if we are tall, short, thin, wear glasses, go to church or not, are straight, gay, or can’t type! Family history helps us understand what tough times our ancestral families went through. Family history helps us understand who we are. And part of discovering that history comes from research at archives.

Celebrate October and invest in the importance of these four vital designations and all that they mean to our lives. End the month being silly on Halloween. Silly, but not overly teasing, bullying, or forgetting that we are all brothers and sisters. Treat everyone equally in all facets of live.

Historical projects in Minnesota

Paula Stuart-Warren  Minnesoa Historical Society, Minnesota  Leave a comment

One way to find out about what historical projects are cropping up around Minnesota is by checking out the Minnesota Historical and Cultural Grants program that operates under the auspices of the Minnesota Historical Society. Grants are awarded for projects that will preserve and enhance Minnesota’s cultural and historical resources. Libraries, archives, churches, historical societies, ethnic organizations, universities, cities, and other groups have been the award recipients. Many of the projects have a direct impact on family history. Just a sampling of the grants in the last couple years:

  • Commission of Deaf, DeafBlind, and Hard of Hearing Minnesotans (Saint Paul) – To record, preserve and make available oral/visual histories of deaf, deaf/blind and
    hard of hearing Minnesotans, $64,100. 
  • Macalester College, DeWitt Wallace Library (Saint Paul) – To digitize and make accessible issues of the college’s student and community newspapers and catalogs, $10,888. 
  • Blue Earth County Historical Society (Mankato) – To add 140 rolls of microfilmed newspapers to broaden public accessibility to primary records, $3,837.
  • Historical and Cultural Society of Clay County (Moorhead) – To add 126 rolls of microfilmed church records, WPA files, and newspapers to broaden public accessibility to primary records, $6,618.
  • Minnesota Genealogical Society (South Saint Paul) – To add 100 rolls of microfilmed primary records to broaden public accessibility, $7,000
  • Friends of the Willmar Public Library (Willmar) – To broaden public access to primary historic records through a digital reader-printer and additional microfilm rolls to augment the current collection, $19,500. 

To see all the grants visit http://www.mnhs.org/legacy/grants/ and click on Funded Projects.

Ancestry in Kingman, Arizona (Mojave County)?

Paula Stuart-Warren  Uncategorized  Leave a comment

Genealogical research on families in this area is about to become easier. The county is digitizing 600 volumes of old records. The article quotes Microfilm Records Technician Stephanie Ciofalo, “As the article says “I love these old books,” Ciofalo said. “The handwriting was amazing in those days. This is Mohave County’s history. These records will be available to the public and much more accessible in digital format. That’s why we are doing this; to preserve the books and to allow ease of access for the public.”

People will be able to request information and the County Recorder’s Office will be able to access the material and print it out but there will be a charge for the copy. I wonder if they will allow the public to view the digitized material? Oftentimes we find valuable details by reading through a book of deeds or other court records.

Click here to read the article in the 3 October online Daily Miner.

Ancestral Journeys blog: David Suddarth

Paula Stuart-Warren  Uncategorized  1 Comment

I am going to begin publicizing (as my schedule permits) some of the blogs and websites of my professional genealogist colleagues. This first one is from David Suddarth, a fellow member of the Northland Chapter of the Association of Professional Genealogists, whose blog is titled “Ancestral Journeys.”

David shared these words about his blog:

“My blog is mainly a family blog mainly concerning the names SUDDARTH, MONROE, MURRAY, LEDDY and RICE.  Although family specific, I try to use my own research to illustrate research methodolgy, different types of records and the ways in which they can be used.”

Visit his blog at: http://dwsuddarth.wordpress.com/

Researching Delaware family history?

Paula Stuart-Warren  Archives, Libraries, Research  Leave a comment

According to DoverPost.com (October 1st) The Delaware Public Archives has produced a series of twelve videos that provide info about the holdings and research at the Archives. Each video is two minutes long. Click here to view the videos.The topics include Visiting the Archives, Manuscript Genealogies, Vital Statistics, Tombstone Records, Photographs, and Orphans Court Records.

Thomas M. Summers, Manage of Outreach Services for the Archives, is the man you see in the videos. Also check out their Facebook page and blog. All of these along with the Delaware Public Archives website provide extensive details about their holdings and research.

Makes me wish I had some Delaware ancestry.

FGS Voice: A free montly newsletter

Paula Stuart-Warren  Federation of Genealogical Societies  Leave a comment

The Federation of Genealogical Societies has a monthly newsletter, FGS Voice, that is free to anyone. It’s a great way to keep up with general FGS news and with news from the FGS member societies. Please let your fellow genealogists, librarians, and others know about this great offer.

If your society is a member organization of FGS, be sure to send society news, activities, and events to the editor, Drew Smith, MLS at [email protected].

SUBSCRIBE TO THE VOICE: Send name and e-mail address to the FGS Voice editor at [email protected].

Update on databases at NARA locations

Paula Stuart-Warren  Uncategorized  Leave a comment
This press release was just received from the U.S. National Archives and gives us yet another reason to visit a NARA location. I use many of these in background, historical, and genealogical research. If you have any handouts from my various lectures you will note that I often recommend several of these.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                      
September 30, 2010
National Archives and Records Administration Makes Available U.S. Serial Set Digital Collection
Washington, DC… The National Archives and Records Administration will make available  the LexisNexis® U.S. Serial Set Digital Collection of US Government publications to the public free of charge in all NARA research rooms nationwide. 
The U.S. Serial Set is a collection of U.S. Government publications compiled under directive of the Congress. It contains comprehensive and often detailed information on an extremely wide range of subjects. Its earliest documents date from 1789 and additions are made continually.
The LexisNexis® U.S. Serial Set Digital Collection provides researchers—whether novice or advanced—fast, immediate access to this broad collection of historical congressional information.  This digital collection is powerfully indexed, easy to use, and lets researchers search across multiple other collections for more comprehensive results.  Researchers can access full-text, original documents from the pages of the original U.S. Serial Set. 
This Serial Set is the latest addition to the list of online commercial resources that NARA makes available free of charge to all researchers at its research facilities nationwide.  Other free online resources at NARA facilities include Ancestry.com, Footnote.com, JSTOR, ProQuest’s Research Library, HeritageQuest, Archive Finder, Digital National Security Archive, and digital New York Times and Washington Post, as well as EBSCO’s America: History and Life and Gale’s Biography and Genealogy Master Index and Declassified Documents Reference System.  Together, these resources provide free and open access to digitized NARA records as well as contextual information about NARA’s holdings.
For more information on these resources, see NARA’s Archives Library Information Center at http://www.archives.gov/research/alic/.  For information on NARA research centers nationwide see http://www.archives.gov/locations/archival-research.html.

Federation of Genealogical Societies seeks editor

Paula Stuart-Warren  Federation of Genealogical Societies  1 Comment

Can you imagine editing a popular genealogical publication for 25 years? And not just editing, but doing it well, convincing others to write for you, gathering a strong set of columnists, and so much more. Sandra Hargreaves Luebking has done just that for the Federation of Genealogical Societies. Sandra has announced her retirement. The upcoming winter issue of the FGS FORUM will be her last issue. I am not sure when I first subscribed but guess it has been close to 20 years ago. I have had the pleasure of reading the publication and also writing for Sandra. Both have been great experiences. If you would like to subscribe to the FGS Forum please visit www.fgs.org.

The Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS) today announces that it is accepting applications for the position of editor of its electronic quarterly magazine, the FGS FORUM.

The Federation is a non-profit organization founded in 1976 for the purpose of helping genealogical and historical societies and family associations strengthen and grow. The FGS FORUM is an important publication that supports the organization’s mission. The magazine is accessible in PDF format by individual subscribers and by two officers of each FGS member organization.

Requests for details about the editor position are available via email. Requests should be sent to [email protected]. Applicants may then submit a detailed résumé for consideration, along with several examples of publications for which they have been responsible as editor. These should be sent electronically to [email protected].

Submissions should be received no later than November 1, 2010.