War of 1812 Pension Project to Resume!

Paula Stuart-Warren  Uncategorized  2 Comments

In case you haven’t seen this press release from yesterday, I am reprinting here.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 1, 2017

PRESERVE THE PENSIONS ANNOUNCES RESUMPTION OF DOCUMENT

CONSERVATION AT NATIONAL ARCHIVES, DIGITIZATION SOON TO FOLLOW

Austin, Texas  – The Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS) is pleased to announce National Archives staff have recently resumed document conservation of the War of 1812 Pension files covering surnames M(Moore)-Q. Document conservation is the essential first step in digitizing these files. Our digitization partner, Ancestry.com, has scheduled image capture of these newly conserved documents to begin the second week of September 2017. As capture resumes, new images will be added to Fold3.com on a rolling basis. The Federation and the dedicated volunteers of the Preserve the Pensions project have worked tirelessly for well over a year to negotiate a resolution to the work stoppage. This portion of the project plan is expected to be completed by third quarter 2018.

The War of 1812 pensions are among the most frequently requested set of materials within the holdings of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), yet had never been microfilmed or digitized. Through a (more…)

New and improved location coming for the Minnesota Genealogical Society!

Paula Stuart-Warren  Minnesota Genealogical Society  2 Comments

The exciting news is officially public. The Minnesota Genealogical Society library and offices are moving later this fall, at the end of October. Plan your research visit accordingly as there will be some down time.

The new location is 1385 Mendota Heights Road. It’s across the Minnesota River from the MSP international airport, but I don’t think river access is a good idea. It will have lots of room for classes, offices, and the wonderful library with books, microfilms, and internet access and FREE parking.

I am looking forward to this move and to spending some time there as a volunteer. Check the MGS website for details on the current location and hours.

For more details on the new location from President Linda Westrom, see the current MGS news.

More looming cuts to records research access for genealogists

Paula Stuart-Warren  Uncategorized  Leave a comment

Last week the U.S. National Archives announced big changes in hours. Now the Montana Historical Society has announced changes.

We need to make our legislators at the state and national levels understand the importance of these research facilities. It’s not just for general family history research, but also affects legal research, property ownership research, Native American enrollment issues, medical research for genetic issues, and so many other reasons.

 

 

German research conference deadline and WWI enemy alien registrations

Paula Stuart-Warren  Conferences, Conferences/Institutes, Germanic Research, Uncategorized  Leave a comment
Tomorrow, Saturday, July 1 is the final registration day for the 2017 International Germanic Genealogy Conference. You may register any time Saturday before registration is closed at midnight.
I am also a speaker at this conference that is taking place in the Minneapolis, Minnesota area. One of my presentations at this conference is about the U. S. World War I Enemy Alien Registrations. I will present some background information on this ugly time period and how it was directed at those non-citizens of Germanic descent, tell what does still exist from all the forms that were completed, show a variety of abstracts and indexes, tell where to find some lists of those who registered (think partial substitutes), show the rise of legal cases, and inform you about one state that did registrations of all people who were not yet U.S. citizens, no matter their country of origin. All of these latter forms do exist and are housed about 30 minutes from the conference hotel!

FGS Genealogy Conference discount deadline is July 1

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

This Saturday is July 1. That means it’s the last day to get the nice registration discount for the big Federation of Genealogical Societies being held Aug 30-Sept 2 in Pittsburgh. I am signed up for luncheons, the Wednesday evening boat cruise and dinner, have a list of books I need from vendors in the Exhibit Hall, and know I will be seeing some other genealogists from around the country.  I am one of the many presenters.

The FGS conference is held annually about the same time and is in a different city each year.  It’s a good kind of addiction.

It’s a nice convention center, Pittsburgh has great restaurants and places to research, and the hotels are close. The room block at the Westin has been increased to meet the demand. Peruse the program on the website and the long list of speakers and then sign up right on the website. There are some special things planned and you won’t want to miss it.

https://www.fgsconference.org/ #FGS2017

p.s. The Pittsburgh airport is really nice!

 

 

My birthday and SLIG registration on July 8: a perfect gift

Paula Stuart-Warren  Salt Lake City, Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy, SLIG  Leave a comment

 

Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy
21-26 January 2018
Hilton SLC Center, Salt Lake City, Utah

SLIG 2018 offers 14 courses. It’s time to peruse the website to learn more about each course. Registration opens on in 2 weeks on Saturday, July 8, at 9:00 a.m. MDT. That’s 10:00 CDT, which is my time zone.

July 8th happens to be my birthday. I think a perfect birthday gift for me would be a whole bunch of registrations for SLIG and my course, in particular! I am not shy in wishing for this.

I am coordinating Taking your Research to the Next Level. From the course description: We all reach the point where we need to learn about other resources and delve more deeply into those we already know. This is the way we take our research to a higher level, solve problems, and advance our family history. This course provides in-depth learning on 19th-21st century U.S. resources and the methodology for using them. We probe deeper into the content, origin, location, and interpretation of records. It’s not just listening to lectures, but interactive classroom time that takes you beyond basic research tools. On-site Family History Library support and a computer lab from course instructors provide one-on-one assistance and guidance with your own research.

Read more about the classes in this course and in others here on the SLIG website. Click on Course Schedule in each section for the full lineup of topics for each course.

Iowa genealogy: more vital records online!

Paula Stuart-Warren  Iowa, Vital records  Leave a comment

The Iowa Genealogical Society shared this great news on Facebook:

New vital records have been digitized and are now online!

Delayed Birth Records from 1850-1940 and Deaths from 1921-1940 are now both on Ancestry and FamilySearch. Details here: bit.ly/2tRNmqe

 

I have no ancestors connected to Iowa but I do have collateral family there and one grandchild has some Iowa connections.

 

 

https://www.iowaculture.gov/history/research/collections/vital-records

Yet another entry into digitized newspapers but not U.S. centric

Paula Stuart-Warren  Uncategorized  Leave a comment

I saw reference to this in several places today. Yet another upcoming resource for digitized newspapers and other materials. This is a bit different in that it will include many newspapers from outside the U.S. The company involved, East View Information Services, is located here in the Twin Cities area of Minnesota.

From the press release last year:

“Minneapolis, MN, USA. November 2, 2016—East View is excited to announce a long-term relationship with Stanford University Libraries and the Hoover Institution Library & Archives to make rare newspapers from around the world available for research. East View will work with faculty and collection development specialists in numerous subject areas to improve discoverability and access to over 2,500 predominantly foreign-language titles dating as far back as the nineteenth century that are part of the collections at Stanford Libraries and the Hoover Institution Library & Archives.

Opening a treasure trove for researchers, this joint initiative will digitally preserve and make searchable potentially 25 million pages of newspaper content originally collected by Hoover curators and later cataloged, organized, and stored at an offsite facility by Stanford University Libraries.”

This company deals with a variety of countries and more information on this newspaper initiative and other material is available here: eastview.com/pressreleases/rarenewspaperspr

The press release states that it will take about ten years for the process but that some would be available in a years. For those researching in Russia, Eastern Europe, East Asia, the Middle East,and some other places, this is welcome news. I got lost (in a good way) reviewing the East View website, blogs, press releases and other segments. I see that some university libraries already have access to some East View research products.

Scholarships for the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy (SLIG) in January 2018

Paula Stuart-Warren  Conferences/Institutes, Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy, SLIG, Uncategorized  Leave a comment

News from SLIG!

SLIG Scholarship Opportunities

Planning to attend the January 2018 SLIG? There are several scholarship opportunities available for SLIG students.

SLIG Jimmy B. Parker Scholarship

Deadline June 20, 2017

Named in honor of Jimmy B. Parker, whose legacy of service to the genealogical community covered more than 50 years, this full-tuition scholarship will be awarded to an individual who has “demonstrated commitment to genealogical excellence and community involvement”. The winner will be announced July 1st and their course of choice pre-reserved.  Full details here.

SLIG Scholarshp for First-Time Institute Attendees

Deadline June 20, 2017

This fund, opened at SLIG 2016, was created to enhance scholarship opportunities for SLIG students. Donations have been made by Maia’s Bookstore and SLIG students. More details and submission requirements may be found here.

ASG Scholar Award, American Society of Genealogists

This award provides “financial assistance for a developing scholar to attend one of five academic programs in American genealogy.” The award, which will be given in October, will apply toward a SLIG 2018 course of study. To find out more, visit their website.

AncestryProGenealogists Scholarship

Deadline TBD for SLIG 2019

Established to “foster and support professional genealogists in their ongoing development efforts”. Scholarship covers tuition and specific other expenses to attend one of the four US-based genealogical institutes.

Unfortunately, due to a lot of complicating factors, applicants won’t be aware of the courses to be offered for SLIG 2019 until after they have completed their application. For that reason, we offer the opportunity to have open dialogue with the director if needed to help you rank SLIG in order of attendance preference on your application.

You can learn more about the AncestryProGenealogists Scholarship on their website.

p.s. The SLIG Course I coordinate is Taking Your Research to the Next Level.  The SLIG 2018 dates are January 21-25. Registration opens on July 8th. Get your fingers ready to log in on that date!