Genealogical institutes are perfect for family history education

Paula Stuart-Warren  GRIP  , ,  Leave a comment

Did you have time to register for a 2023 Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh (GRIP) course when registration opened at the end of February? Some courses filled and some have a handful of open seats.

Education is a basic part of family history research if you want to do it well. Education should never stop. We are fortunate today to have many options both online and off. I’m one who loves to sit in my own apartment (sometimes barefoot) to watch or present online educational opportunities. Genealogical institutes offer more intensive learning than a one-hour webinar. I coordinate the course “Digging Deeper: Records, Tools, and Skills” for the Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh. It’s an annual course that evolves every year as we instructors continue our research on the topics, laws, implementation, and online connections. It also includes interactive sections and opportunities for guided research and feedback.

GRIP courses include extensive syllabi full of tips, websites, books, and document examples. Some course syllabi reach 200 pages!

Three of the GRIP June 18-23 live virtual courses with some open seats are:

 

The July 9-14 in-person week has some openings, too. I know at least one does:

Get Your Hands Dirty! A Workshop in Land and Property Records 

 

The GRIP registration page https://www.gripitt.org/registration/ shows which courses have waiting lists, meaning that the course has reached its coordinator determined limit. Limits are chosen based on the style of the course, personal assistance given, and hands-on sections that are tough to do with unlimited numbers. 

 

 

Enhancing parish registers from Quebec

Paula Stuart-Warren  Church records    1 Comment

 

My French Canadian ancestors are probably smiling down down at me. . I am thrilled when a subscription website (and free ones too) work on making record images better. We’ve all seen wills, church records, deeds, and other records that are awful to read. It’s a combination of things that contribute to this.

An announcement tells us, “Over a million images from the Drouin collection have been rescanned and made available on the website over the past few years. Another 135,000 images from the registers of 158 Catholic and Protestant parishes in Quebec have been rescanned on Genealogy Quebec, to improve their quality and clarity. The resolution of these new images is two to three times higher than that of the previous copy, which ensures superior clarity.”

I have gained many records and connections from my subscription to the The Drouin Collection Records. “The Drouin Collection Records are a collection of parish registers (baptisms, marriages and burials) covering all of Quebec and French Acadia as well as parts of Ontario, New Brunswick and the Northeastern United States, from the parish’s foundation up to the 1940s and sometimes 1960s.”

I suggest a subscription to this collection for French Canadian and other records in Quebec and many beyond. You can utilize the many parts of the Drouin collection with a subscription to Genealogy Quebec https://www.genealogiequebec.com/en/ 

“The LAFRANCE, also available to Genealogy Quebec subscribers, is a search engine allowing you to explore these parish registers by searching for the individual(s) mentioned in them. Browse all of Quebec’s parish registers as well as millions of historical documents by subscribing to Genealogy Quebec today!”

 

 

June 2023 Virtual Course: Digging Deeper into Genealogy

Paula Stuart-Warren  Conferences/Institutes, Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh  , ,  Leave a comment

It’s just over 3 months till the 2023 virtual week of the Genealogical Institute of Pittsburgh (GRIP). The wide variety of courses provide education on almost everything genealogical. The course I have told you about does still have some openings after last week’s rush to register. Not everyone had free time to do that registration last week. “Digging Deeper: Records, Tools, and Skills” takes you beyond basic genealogy into more records, repositories, analysis, and some interactive sessions.

You still have time to register, and the other instructors and I welcome you. We are currently working on our syllabus material. Lots of new material to add, new online databases, verifying URLs, and working on the actual presentations at the same time. The 2022 syllabus for this course ended up at 175 pages.

We will be meeting online via Zoom and it works amazingly well for this course. Participants do not need their own subscription, GRIP takes care of that. Sunday evening, 18 June is a GRIP welcome session and details for all participants. Monday through Thursday this course meets all day and Friday is a half day.


Adoptees and family members may apply for FREE DNA kits. 5,000 kits!

Paula Stuart-Warren  Adoption, MyHeritage  ,  Leave a comment

An announcement from MyHeritage at RootsTech is special for adoptees and family members searching for their connections.  In his announcement, Daniel Horowitz states that he was proud of the “company’s commitment to make the world a better place. In that spirit, it gives me great pleasure to tell you that we have just launched a third installment of our DNA Quest project to reunite adoptees with their birth families through DNA testing.” 

No matter where you live, “anyone in the world over the age of 18 who meets that criteria is welcome to apply from now until March 17, 2023.” Click here to apply.

DNA Quest feature image 753 x 423

I applaud this wonderful project by MyHeritage. Please let others know about it.

p.s. If you need to purchase a kit, they are on sale at MyHeritage’s website.



South Dakota State Historical Society Shutdown for renovation

Paula Stuart-Warren  Archives  ,  Leave a comment

A March 3, 2023, Press Release provided dates for a lengthy shutdown while the Cultural Heritage Center in the state capital of Pierre is being renovated.

“PIERRE, S.D. – Plans are moving forward to renovate the historic Cultural Heritage Center in Pierre.

Last year, the State Historical Society received an appropriation to renovate the Cultural Heritage Center in Pierre. Renovation plans include updates to the archives research room, heating and cooling systems, interior lighting, and increased collections storage capacity. Archives and museum staff and collections will be temporarily relocated during the renovation.

Due to this renovation, the archives research room will be closed to in-person research visits beginning March 10. The archives will continue to provide research services to the public through email, mail, and telephone requests throughout the renovation. Archives staff will also continue to accept donations, process collections, catalog books, digitize materials, and provide outreach services.  

After March 10, researchers are encouraged to call 605-773-3804 or email archref@state.sd.us to request research services. The renovations to the Cultural Heritage Center are anticipated to be complete in 2025, and in-person visits will resume at that time in the newly updated facility.

The South Dakota State Historical Society Museum is currently scheduled to be closed to the public starting March 25. Museum staff have been working on preparing artifacts for storage during the renovation and so far, 50 percent of the artifacts are off exhibit. Further details will be coming about opportunities to see museum exhibits on display around the state in coming months.

For more information about archival support, contact the State Historical Society-State Archives at 605-773-3804 or visit history.sd.gov/archives.”


Tomorrow (Feb 22) is the day to register for GRIP genealogy education

Paula Stuart-Warren  Conferences/Institutes, Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh, Uncategorized  , ,  Leave a comment

Time sure flys! Tomorrow, February 22, 2023 is when online registration starts for the Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh. June courses are virtual, July courses are in-person. Each is a week-long event.

Smart genealogists view the courses and then the registration page details so they are ready on Wednesday. As coordinators and instructors, my colleagues and I watch excitedly to see who signs up for the courses we have developed. I’m partial to the live virtual course https://www.gripitt.org/courses/digging_deeper/ and I will also be teaching several sessions in the live virtual Great Lakes course.

Please let others know about the opening of registration so they don’t miss out on the course they want. Join the GRIP page on Facebook and post your course choice on social media so others know about this great institute. 

 

 

Minnesota lake has been a sanctuary to African Americans for nearly 100 years

Paula Stuart-Warren  Minnesota, Uncategorized    Leave a comment

A recent Google news alert led me to a Minnesota tradition that I did not know about. WDIO, a TV station in Duluth, told a story about a lake in Minnesota.

“In Minnesota, going up North for the weekend to experience cabin life is no rarity. Something good is always cooking up North—family time, fishing, exploring, or just simply enjoying the lake views. However, for the last century a lake in Crow Wing County, Minnesota has done more than that. It is called, Lake Adney, and for nearly 100 years African Americans from all over the country have come there to have their own piece of paradise.” 

Read the full February 16th WDIO story here.

 

 

Only 3 more days till GRIP genealogical virtual education registration

Paula Stuart-Warren  Uncategorized  , ,  Leave a comment
ONLY 3 more days until online registration opens for the 2023 Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh! Week-long genealogical education. Won’t you consider joining us for this live virtual course? You won’t have to wear shoes, can make your own coffee or lemonade, and can start a load of laundry or feed your pets during the breaks between sessions! The syllabus is well over 100 pages. Sign up on Wednesday, February 22.
 
Check out the registration page to be ready when the courses offered online in June will open for registration at Noon ET, 11 CT, 10 MT and 9 a.m. on the U.S. west coast. https://www.gripitt.org/
https://www.gripitt.org/

Minnesota Highway Department photos, maps, and more.

Paula Stuart-Warren  Minnesota  ,  2 Comments

“The Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) recently added 40 books and 272 maps related to Minnesota’s highway history to the Minnesota Digital Library, including planning information, proposed routes, and transcripts from public hearings.”

I read that and had to go look at the material. Historical information on maps, highways, interstates, and related things have always fascinated me. I was not disappointed in what I found!

Highway maps, state road improvements, and whether a road was paved, dirt, or other material were shown from the first part of the 1900s. I could see where roads were improving, what routes people likely took to go to a lake cabin or to visit relatives all around the state. Scrapbooks from employees, photos down sewers, photos of highway department facilities around the state, official trail registrations, and much more. A 1922 photo of state highway department staff WITH NAMES taken on University Avenue in Saint Paul.  

This is where I found the original post: https://minitex.umn.edu/news/minnesota-digital-library/2023-02/new-mdl-content-minnesota-highway-history-mndot

This is the link to the Minnesota Digital Library for all of this. https://collection.mndigital.org/?f%5Bcollection_name_ssi%5D%5B%5D=Minnesota+Department+of+Transportation

Don’t blame me if you spend too much time on the Minnesota Digital Library for all this and for the other many thousands of photos, documents, maps, newsletters, oral histories . . .