Genealogist saves the day — well, some church records

Paula Stuart-Warren  Church records  Leave a comment

Earlier this year, I blogged about the stolen records of a Moravian Church in Chaska, Minnesota. https://genealogybypaula.com/category/church-records/

Unfortunately, the crime hasn’t been solved but the Star-Tribune has an update about some photographed pages of the death records.

“One small consolation came early this month. The church was a polling place, and a voter saw the sign about the burglary on the front door and reminded church staff she had once briefly borrowed the volumes to pursue her genealogy hobby.”

Apparently the genealogist has photographed the death records and supplied the church with the images.

The full story is here: http://www.startribune.com/local/west/283891771.html

 

 

Preview a FGS genealogy conference via lecture recordings

Paula Stuart-Warren  Uncategorized  Leave a comment

Are you thinking about attending the next FGS Conference? As many readers know, it’s this next February 11-14, 2015 in Salt Lake City. It’s a really good deal to sign up for FGS and just add the simultaneous RootsTech for only $39!

If you are unsure about whether this is a conference for you, it’s easy to listen to recordings from past conferences to help you learn the types of lectures typically found at an FGS Conference.  The recordings of most presentations at the 2011, 2012, 2013, and 2014 conferences were done by Fleetwood Onsite Conference Recording. Click here to order downloads of recordings or the CD-Rom.

Then sign up for the conference, luncheons, and other activities that week at https://www.fgsconference.org/  Early Registration (postmarked or online by 23 January  2015) for the FULL four day FGS conference (Wed. through Sat.) is just $159; attend for only a Single Day at $89.

Rooms are still available at two of the four conference hotels. All are within easy walking distance of the Salt Palace Convention Center and are close to the Family History Library.

Welcome to Genealogy by Paula!

Paula Stuart-Warren  Anniversary, Websites  4 Comments

Welcome to my new website which includes the new edition of my blog. If you have been a reader of my former blog, Paula’s Genealogical Eclectica, all that content is being transferred to this website.

Yes, I finally have a true website. Several colleagues have urged me to share more information about me and my involvement in the world of family history. Cyndi Ingle and J. Mark Lowe are two of those folks. Cyndi was instrumental in designing this website and keeping me on task to provide what you see.

Genealogy by Paula is set up to share genealogical news, my expertise, research adventures, resources, tidbits of my own family history, and information about the genealogical services I provide. The tabs at the top of this page each contain additional information about my speaking services, research consultations, publications, and other items. Please let me know if you would like to see other things added.

I compiled a list of most of the events at which I presented in 2013 and 2014. Then I began to compile a list of many of the events at which I presented in years before that. Wow, I have been all over the U.S. and also to Canada. Still more places to go if you are interested in having me do a seminar for your group. All this is under the Speaking tab.

Have fun exploring this website and please don’t hesitate to let me know if you need something explained further or even if you find a typo! I could pretend I am perfect but my children would gladly point out that I am not.

Genealogy, Donny, David, and comedy all wrapped into one in February.

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

Today’s Press Release from the Federation of Genealogical Societies. This means Valentine’s Day begins with Keynote Presenter Donny Osmond, followed by fantastic genealogy lectures, and ending with music and comedy. So glad I have already registered for this February 11-14 conference! www.fgsconference.org/.

“American Idol finalist David Archuleta is teaming up with the popular comedy sketch group Studio C from BYUtv to perform at FGS and RootsTech. The two talents will be performing for the Closing Event at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. Both will be featuring new original pieces for the event, including a new song written by David Archuleta and a never-before-seen sketch by Studio C. 

David Archuleta has sold more than 1 million albums and earned numerous awards. According to David, this gives him a chance to celebrate his family and the influence they have had on his music. His father was a jazz musician who introduced the family to jazz, as well as gospel, pop, rock, and soul. His family’s heritage and history helped craft Archuleta’s unique style. 

“Music was always a part of my life growing up. My mother was also big on dancing and would teach my older sister and me to dance to traditional music,” he remembers. “I can’t think about celebrating my family without thinking about celebrating music.”

The sketch comedy group Studio C from BYUtv has grown to become a household name for people across the nation of all ages, but especially among teens and millennials. Since its launch in October 2012, its loyal fan base has helped grow the show’s online presence to more than 70 million YouTube views to date. 

David Archuleta and Studio C will be performing for thousands of attendees at the Closing Event on the final day of FGS and RootsTech, February 14, 2015. To reserve your ticket to see David Archuleta and Studio C, register today for FGS 2015″

A county clerk’s ‘Genealogy Corner’ gets national recognition

Paula Stuart-Warren  Databases, Research, Vital records  Leave a comment

If you have heard me at seminars, you know that I often say things similar to “these records are so good because I don’t have family in that locality” or in that particular set of records.

I have several localities where I wish my family had settled just because of the great information online from the county or city. A few of these are:

Then my news feed delivered news of another county with a great genealogy service and that has received a national honor from government colleagues. The Collin County [Texas] Clerk and staff have been “awarded the 2014 Best Practices Award from the National Association of County Recorders, Elections Officials and Clerks (NACRC).”  Just two of the online databases for this county are:

  •  Marriage indexes, dating back to 1864
  •  Birth indexes, dating back to 1903 with some delayed birth records from the 1800

Read the full article from the McKinney Courier Gazetter by clicking here. To access the county’s Genealogy Corner click here.

You may have already guessed that I have no ancestral connections to Collin County, Texas! Dangitall.

2 days left to register: Nov 22 genealogy seminar in Tennessee

Paula Stuart-Warren  Seminars  1 Comment

It’s been a while since I did presentations in Tennessee. That changes on November 22, 2014 when I will be the speaker for the Middle Tennessee Genealogical Society’s all-day seminar. I will be presenting four topics and will be around all day to help audience members with genealogy questions. These are my topics:

  • Railroad Records and Railroad History: Methods for Tracking
  • The Three Rs: Reading, ‘Riting and Research in School Records
  • The WPA Era: What It Created for Genealogists
  • Controlling Chaos: Organizing your Genealogical Materials

The event takes place near Nashville, in Brentwood. You must register by November 14th to be assured of a seat. The brochure and registration information is here: http://mtgs.org/calendar/2014%20Seminar%20brochure.pdf

Free weekend at Findmypast!

Paula Stuart-Warren  findmypast.com  Leave a comment

 From a Findmypast press release:
 

Explore Findmypast’s billions of historical records for FREE this Veterans Weekend
 
Free access to all Findmypast’s historical records throughout Veterans Weekend and a Live Broadcast to be held on Saturday afternoon featuring an expert panel of historians and genealogists
 
This Veterans Weekend, we want to help everyone find their First World War ancestors and learn more about their family history.
 
So we’re delighted to announce that this Veterans Weekend, we’ll be opening up our archives and giving unlimited free access to billions of records and newspaper pages from all over the world. That means that between 7am on Friday, November 7th and 7am on Monday, November 10th (EST), absolutely everyone will have access to all our historical records, including:
  • Global record sets that include census, birth, marriage, and death records from the 1600s to the present. 
  • Millions of local newspaper pages from around the globe spanning 1710 to 2014. 
  • Largest collection of local records from England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland dating back to 1500.
  • Military records dating from 1760, encompassing the U.S. Civil War, World War I and World War II.

  • Passenger lists and naturalizations, covering the United States, Canada, England, Ireland, and beyond.
  •  Local histories, genealogies, and exclusive access to PERSI (the PERiodical Source Index)
And much, much more!As well as millions of other records that will give everyone the opportunity to explore their family history and bring their past to life.
It’s not only new users who will be able to take their family history research further this weekend. Those with current Findmypast Local subscriptions (with an active Britain, Ireland, US & Canada or Australia & New Zealand subscription) will be able to access all our historical World records during the free access weekend. Those with active World subscriptions will have an additional three days added on to their subscription.
Find out more at our dedicated Free Weekend page.
Live Broadcast
This Saturday 8th November, we will be hosting our first ever Live Broadcast. Featuring an expert panel including Findmypast’s Director of Family History, Joshua Taylor, military historian Paul Nixon, and Who Do You Think You Are?’s Lead Genealogist Laura Berry, the broadcast is designed to help everyone get further with their family history research.
The talks will cover a wide range of topics – from getting started to breaking down brick walls – and viewers can choose to watch the entire event, or tune in for specific presentations.
The Live Broadcast will be shown at http://new.livestream.com/innerear/findmypast at 10am (EST) on Saturday 8th November. All of the presentations can also be watched on demand after the broadcast on the Veterans Weekend section of our blog.

Join us LIVE on your computer tonight for Connect with FGS

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

How much can you learn about the upcoming February 2015 Federation of Genealogical Societies conference in 30 minutes? Join Cyndi Ingle, J. Mark Lowe, and me online tonight!

We are part of the inaugural edition of Connect with FGS. It is hosted by Caroline Pointer and Linda McCauley. Cheryl Hudson Passey is one of the FGS conference ambassadors and she will be on the show, too.

We are on live at 9 ET, 8 CT, 7 MT, and 6 PT.

You can watch all our smiling faces on Connect with FGS live from the FGS YouTube Channel or from the FGS Google+ Event.

For more details visit the FGS Voice blog and also learn how to view the program later. http://voice.fgs.org/2014/10/fgs-launching-monthly-hangout-on-air.html

The Voice blog also carries many other conference, FGS, and general genealogy news.

Beyond online: important genealogy guidebooks for your shelves

Paula Stuart-Warren  Books  Leave a comment

This past weekend I promised the audience at the South Dakota state archives that I would post a list of some basic genealogy guidebooks that are important to beginning and even more advanced researchers. If you are only checking online resources and yet wondering what else there might be, these guides will fill you with tons of ideas and places to look. This is not a list of all that is available

1.    Croom, Emily Anne. Unpuzzling Your Past. 4th Ed. “Expanded, Updated and Revised.” Baltimore, MD: Genealogical Publishing Co., 2010.

2.    Eichholz, Alice, ed. Ancestry’s Red Book: American State, County and Town Sources. 3d ed. Provo, UT: Ancestry Publishing, 2004 [Overview guide to all of the states. [Online edition is part of Ancestry’s free Wiki <www.ancestry.com/wiki>.]

3.    Greenwood, Val D. The Researcher’s Guide to American Genealogy. 3d ed. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 2000.

4.    Hinckley, Kathleen W. Your Guide to the Federal Census. Cincinnati: Betterway Books, 2002. [Includes case studies, appendices, glossary, forms, hints, and more. The best census guide! Out of print but in many libraries.]

5.    Morgan, George. How to Do Everything Genealogy. 3d ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2012. [Update will be out in 2015!]

6.    Rose, Christine and Kay Ingalls. The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Genealogy. 3rd ed. New York: Alpha Books, 2012.

7.    Szucs, Loretto Dennis and Sandra Hargreaves Luebking, eds. The Source: A Guidebook of American Genealogy. 3rd ed. Provo, UT: Ancestry, 2006. Now online at Ancestry’s wiki <www.ancestry.com/wiki>

Registered for the NE Illinois Lake Co Genealogy Seminar 8 Nov?

Paula Stuart-Warren  Illinois, Lectures, Seminars  Leave a comment

I am home from a successful full day of presentations at the Cultural Heritage Center in Pierre, South Dakota. It’s the home of the state historical society and the state archives. The audience was extra friendly as was the staff.

This next weekend I am off to northeastern Illinois to do a full day seminar. It’s 8 November at the Round Lake Beach Cultural and Civic Center. The Lake County Genealogical Society is the host. Debbie Mieszala, CG and Daniel Hubbard, Ph.D. are also presenting lectures that same day.

My four lectures are:

  • Your Anytime Library: Success in the Virtual Stacks
  • Research Reports for Ourselves: More than a Research Log
  • Midwestern Gems: Back Issues of Genealogical, Historical, and Sociological Journals
  • Major Midwestern Archives and Their Records

The lectures and syllabus material is recently updated just for the attendees.

You may register at the door, but as with other day-of-event registrations, lunch and syllabus is not guaranteed for those who did not preregister. Caterers and printers usually need several days advance notice of the total numbers. My advice? Get there plenty early. It’s a nice meeting place. Another reason to attend is that I have been told there are some really nice door prizes, vendors, and a silent auction.

The details are here: http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~illcgs/lcigs%20flyer%202014%20final.pdf