MyHeritage added 72 million records in March 2023
I did some searching in German, Scottish, and Swedish records. Some interesting things, but not for my families. Seems to be my recurring theme.
Added hours for the library at the Minnesota Genealogy Center
The Minnesota Genealogical Society has announced an additional day of open hours for the Hoffman Research Library at the Minnesota Genealogy Center. It is located in Mendota Heights, just outside of Saint Paul and Minneapolis.
Beginning Monday, May 1st, the Hoffman Research Library will add Monday to the days it is open for researchers. The hours will be from 10 AM to 4 PM. Volunteers make this possible. New volunteers are paired with an experienced volunteer to learn the ropes. No experience is necessary. Go to https://mngs.org/Hoffman-Research-Library to learn more about the Hoffman Research Library and volunteering.
The HRL will now be open on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. On Thursdays, it’s open from 10:00 a.m. until 8:00 p.m. Volunteer to be sure the library is kept open during all those hours.
Volunteering is fun, adds to your own knowledge, and you’ll meet new friends. I volunteered during the first twelve years that MGS had a library and occasionally since then.
An overview of the fantastic material at the HRL. https://mngs.org/Collection
Free Online U.S. National Archives Genealogy Lectures in May and June
National Archives Hosts Genealogy Series in May & June
Participate in our genealogy series – free and online!
WHAT: The National Archives and Records Administration is pleased to present our annual Genealogy Series on YouTube. This educational series of lectures will teach you how to use federal resources at the National Archives for genealogical research. This year we focus on individuals who have served our nation in military or civilian service. You will also learn how to preserve your own family collections. Sessions are intended for beginners to experienced family historians—all are welcome!
Lecture descriptions, videos, handouts, and participation instructions are available at the 2023 Genealogy Series web page.
WHEN: May & June 2023—all sessions take place on Wednesdays at 1 p.m. ET
May 3: Civilians at War: Records of Participation in U.S. Military Conflicts
May 10: Basic Military Records at the National Archives: Revolutionary War to 1917
May 17: National Archives at St. Louis: Understanding the 1973 Fire and Its Impact on
Genealogical Research
May 31: Civilian Conservation Corps Indian Division on the Reservation
June 7: Accessing and Understanding Korean War Army Unit Records
June 14: Planning, Techniques, and Strategies for Preserving Family Collections and Stories
WHO: Staff experts in government records from National Archives facilities nationwide broadcasting from Washington, DC; College Park, MD; Denver, CO; and St. Louis, MO.
WHERE: The series will be broadcast on the U.S. National Archives YouTube channel.
Washington County, Minnesota Cemetery Information
The Washington County (Minnesota) Historical Society has a new online section about cemeteries in the county. This was posted on its Facebook page on Saturday:
“Good news for cemetery researchers! The Washington County Historical Society now has a whole section of our website dedicated to cemeteries in Washington County. A huge thanks to WCHS volunteer Kimberlee Herr for creating this important resource!”
Click here to see the list, cemetery descriptions, some historical notes, whether there is a church connection, and a link to the cemetery website if there is one.
Minnesota Genealogical Society Midwest Migration Institute
Check your calendars! This coming August right here in the Twin Cities area. Join us for this new course. Registration has opened for MIGRATION TO AND THROUGH THE MIDWEST — a first of its kind two-day institute-style course that will provide education for genealogists and family historians on 18-19 August at the Minnesota Genealogy Center, Mendota Heights, Minnesota. https://mngs.org/midwest-migration-institute
The Latest Minnesota Historical and Cultural Heritage Grants
Minnesota Historical and Cultural Heritage Small Grant Recipients
Recipients of small grants ($10,000 and less) from the fiscal year 2023 January small grants cycle are listed in a press release from the Minnesota Historical Society. The list includes 28 grants in 16 counties. “Each project will preserve and enhance Minnesota’s cultural and historical resources. All grants are competitive and awarded according to program guidelines and criteria, as well as professional standards.” Some of the recipients and the purpose of the grant are listed below.
City of Tower, Tower, $10,000
To hire qualified professionals to replace the roof on the 1916 Duluth and Iron Range Railroad Company Passenger Station, listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
Friends of Highland Arts, St. Paul, $9,600
To hire a qualified historian to research and write the history of St. Paul’s Highland Park neighborhood. (This one really caught my interest as I grew up in the post WWII housing in the far southern edge of Highland.)
Norwegian-American Historical Association, Northfield, $9,600
To plan and research several Norwegian-American historical topics for a digital exhibit in preparation for several commemorations, including a 2025 conference on migration.
Saint Paul Neighborhood Network, St. Paul, $10,000
To digitize a collection of videos of the Rondo neighborhood in St. Paul, allowing for greater public access to this historic resource.
Grand Rapids Area Library, Grand Rapids, $8,513
To purchase a microfilm reader/printer/scanner to make microfilmed records more accessible to the public.
Read more about the grant program and view the full list of grant recipients.
24 hours of free webinars from Legacy Family Tree Webinars
In a couple weeks, the 4th annual 24-hour Genealogy Webinar Marathon from Legacy Family Tree Webinars will be held on April 13–14, 2023! A wide variety of speakers and topics so you can listen and be bleary eyed but highly educated along with many other people across the globe.
As Legacy Family Tree Webinars says, “From planning your research to DNA, from eBooks, German calendars and the FAN club, to Australia, Poland and Ireland, to the First Kansas/US Colored Troops 79th Regiment, there’s something for everyone. . . in every time zone. And thanks to FamilyTreeWebinars.com and MyHeritage, the entire event is free! Pop in for a session or two, or stick around for the full 24 hours — it’s completely up to you. There will even be time for Q&A and door prizes.”
MyHeritage has a blog post with more information.
The webinars will be online free for a week afterward. If you miss any of them or need to rewatch, consider a webinar membership. $49.95 gives you full access to almost 2,000 webinars, 386+ speakers, and almost 7,500 pages of syllabus material. I’d appreciate you using my affiliate link for obtaining memberships. It’s a way to support my blog and increasing your knowledge.
New virtual genealogy course: “Researching Families of Mexican Descent on Both Sides of the Border”
This June, I am one of the instructors in this brand-new virtual course and am pleased to be among some fantastic people who are also instructors. Coordinated by Colleen Greene, this course features insights into history, records, and understanding of the research processes into these.
Researching Mexican families does involve knowledge of various topics on both sides of the border. Join us for this new course that is part of TIGR’s (the Texas Institute of Genealogical Research) 2023 course lineup. TIGR will be virtual again this year. Save $50 on the cost before the discounted Early Bird registration rate ends on April 15th. Get this by registering today! Read more details on Colleen’s blog.
What’s in your attic or garage? Please donate historical items for safe storage and retrieval
I’ve discussed this in previous posts and also in some recent online discussions. It’s time to post more about safe storage and donations of historical items. My questions and suggestions also apply to an old spinning wheel, trunk, or piece of furniture.
Are you one of the lucky people whose home includes an old bible, diary, or journal? What about an old book of marriage or land records from a county? Maybe great grandfather’s old trunk held a county or town tax list from 1899. Grandaunt Mary may have left you her old desk that included a pile of old papers with a list of the students at the one-room school back in 1877. Even better, some other school records in that pile provide parents and guardians names for students all the way up to 1885. Her grandmother was a schoolteacher at that school. Oh, the gems that would help you and others with family history research! Was Uncle Albert a cemetery sexton who carried burial records in his car trunk back in 1950 and these are now in your attic or are they with a cousin?
It’s likely you have community history in addition to family history details. Do you have these items stored properly in an archival safe folder, box, or other container? I hope it’s also a fireproof container and then stored in your home in the correct temperature for preservation. It’s wise to consult with someone knowledgeable on such storage. A county or state historical society or archive may offer such a service. Some have websites with excellent suggestions from trained archivists.
How would others learn of the neat details in these records if only you get to see them? State laws may prevent individuals from possessing specific old record books and the state archives can assist in learning more about this. That state archives or a county or state historical society may be a better location for housing these old items.
A county or town archive that is only open during certain seasons of the year may not have the proper heat and air conditioning systems for preservation of records. It may not have an online catalog or other finding aid so that someone can find out about those old school records or marriage records.
Think about donating such materials. A logical archive or historical society would be in the county or state to which the material has the most connections. A few suggestions on determining the best place.
1. Check to see if the likely repository has a comprehensive online presence.
2. Verify that it has an easily accessible online catalog and links to collection finding aids. Can you search for a specific surname or place in order to find records? How would someone else know what is there?
3. Check that the hours for in-person visits to view materials are sensible and year-round.
4. Full-time staff with some volunteers is a good sign.
5. Hopefully the website has information about donating material and a phone number or email posted. Then you can contact staff to determine that there is proper storage and if they are likely to accept what you would like to donate.
Don’t let these items sit in a plastic tub in your basement, garage, or attic. Share the history with others. Don’t depend on a family member donating such things once you are gone. Be ready to follow the guidelines of the archive or historical society as far as donations. Everyone will benefit.
Genealogy excitement: 1931 Census of Canada to Be Released on June 1, 2023
Just received an update from FamilySearch this morning! I will be ready to find some of my 3d and 4th cousins named Jones, Reinhardt, Daoust, and some others. It’s worth reading this full press release for many details. this
GATINEAU, QUEBEC, March 15, 2023—After the legislated 92 years in the vault, the highly anticipated 1931 Census of Canada will be made available to the public. Collected during the Great Depression and at a time of significant immigration, the census provides a snapshot of the more than 10 million people living in Canada in 1931. On June 1, 2023, Canadians can expect to browse the digitized census images by geographic districts and sub-districts on the Library and Archives Canada (LAC) website. Following the initial release, LAC will work collaboratively with Ancestry® and FamilySearch International to create an advanced searchable database for Canadians, and those with Canadian heritage who wish to look for their ancestors.
In this collaborative effort to increase access to the 1931 Census of Canada, LAC has digitized all 234,687 pages of the census and Ancestry will apply its state-of-the-art handwriting recognition technology to the digital images to create a full index of the entire census. FamilySearch will then review the computer-generated index to ensure a complete and accurate index of all fields at a level never achieved before. The images and indexes will be available and searchable online for free through Census Search, Library and Archives Canada’s new one-stop shop for national census records. The images and indexes will also be available on Ancestry.ca and FamilySearch.org.
“Library and Archives Canada is very excited to announce that it will be making the eagerly awaited 1931 Census of Canada available to the public in just a few months. Our partnership with Ancestry and FamilySearch will give us the opportunity to provide our users with an improved experience when searching and browsing the 1931 Census. This is directly in line with our goal to provide online, reliable and trusted access to Canada’s documentary heritage.” —Leslie Weir, Librarian and Archivist of Canada
LAC has been working in collaboration with external organizations like Ancestry and FamilySearch for over 20 years to help preserve and provide access to its genealogically significant historical records. Today, collaborations between private organizations and public institutions are the meeting ground of cutting-edge technology and subject-matter expertise. This collaborative partnership is key to meeting public demand and ensuring that the 1931 Census of Canada can be viewed and searched online more quickly than previous censuses.
“Ancestry is delighted to work with Library and Archives Canada and FamilySearch to bring the 1931 Census of Canada to the public and digitize these precious records for future generations. The release of the 1931 Census will enable millions of Canadians over the age of 60 to find census data for their parents for the first time. For those aged between 35 and 49, the census offers the first opportunity to access records for their grandparents. This will be game-changing for people building their family history and making connections with their ancestors.” — Todd Godfrey, VP Global Content at Ancestry
“FamilySearch is excited about the release of the 1931 Census of Canada. We are honored to work with Library and Archives Canada and Ancestry to make its pages easily searchable for those individuals worldwide with Canadian roots seeking to extend the branches of their family tree and make fun personal and family connections,” said Stephen Valentine, Senior Vice President, FamilySearch International.
Quick Facts about the 1931 Census of Canada
- Online censuses are very popular databases for family researchers and valuable resources for historians. Many Canadians and people with Canadian roots have ancestors who lived in Canada in 1931. Finding these ancestors in the census can lead to discoveries about other ancestors and new family connections.
- The 1931 Census of Canada is 234,687 pages in length and includes 10,376,786 people.
- More than 40 fields of personal information were recorded in the 1931 Census of Canada. These include typical questions found on previous census returns, such as family names and relationships, age, gender, and racial origin. There were also five new questions, touching on matters like unemployment and radio ownership.
- The 1931 Census of Canada was the seventh comprehensive 10-year census following Canada’s Confederation on July 1, 1867.
Users can bookmark LAC’s Preparing the 1931 Census web page to stay up to date on the project’s status.