Blog Content
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ID Civil War Photos
Jul 9
You might be one of the fortunate family history researchers who has a photo of an ancestor who served during the American Civil War (1861-1865). I'm saying a photo of them in uniform either just before they entered, during service or immediately after discharge. You might have photos of that ancestor years later, but it is just not the same as...
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MyHeritage Updated its Mobile App
Jul 9
MyHeritage has updated the MyHeritage mobile app. It is available for iOS and Android, for both smartphones and tablets. You can download the app for free. MyHeritage added several new features to their app that will help you improve your family history research. Those features include: Family Timelines, the ability to view family trees tha...
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Birth Spacing
Jul 7
As you are filling in the family tree including any extended families (aunts-uncles), you do want to include all the children born to each couple, not just your own direct lineage. However, that can be difficult, with a couple having many children, babies dying young or other children not living to adulthood. So use the basic principal of...
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UK Census 1931 and 1941
Jul 5
Many researchers may well have ancestors who lived in some part of the United Kingdom (England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales) in 1931 or 1941. If that ancestor was there in 1921, there will be the full official UK census for that year coming out in 2022. But not so for the 1931 UK census. On the night of Saturday December 19, 19...
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AncestryDNA Unveils Over 225 New Communities
Jul 4
Ancestry announced that they have released over 225 new AncestryDNA communities to help their members who have ties to France, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand. Utilizing their DNA network of over 15 million people, their vast collection of public family trees, and their patented Genetic Communities technology, Ancest...
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Did You Think to Find This Information?
Jul 3
Not unless someone suggested some of the following ideas of items to research about your ancestors, it may not have occurred to you some of these could prove to be quite fascinating. Use it as check-off list, those you have attempted (whether successful or not) and those you should investigate and see what can be learned. Start with c...
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Supreme Court Ruled on 2020 Census Citizenship Question
Jul 2
The Supreme Court of the United States heard the case called Department of Commerce v. New York on April 23, 2019. The Court revealed its ruling on June 27, 2019. This is the case about the controversial citizenship question that the Secretary of Commerce, Wilber Ross, wanted to add to the 2020 Census. Chief Justice of the Supreme Cour...
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Washington’s Genealogy
Jul 1
Knowing one's lineage was very important for decades. First the royal families Europe and then for the wealthy of Colonial America. A good example is America's own George Washington, first US President. By the time he was 18, George Washington was a competent genealogist -- and he had to be. In Washington’s Virginia colony, family was a cruci...
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Descendant’s Day
Jun 29
Since 1997 this last Sunday in the month of June, named 'Descendant's Day, has been recognized to showcase descendants, which we all are to our ancestors. It began in the Tennessee House of Representatives on Sept. 11, 1996. You can be a descendant of any ancestors – great grandaunt, 3rd cousin, gr gr grandfather, etc. Remember, se...
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1841-1910 – Vital Records of Massachusetts
Jun 27
The state of Massachusetts has a very long history, being one of the original British colonies and the site of the Pilgrims landing in 1621. So you could have ancestors who lived, married, worked or died in Massachusetts. 1848 The state archives have online a search site for index of vital records covering 1841 to 1910 in Massachusetts. ...
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Is There a Baby Book in the Family?
Jun 25
Once a very popular family custom was the filling out and keeping a baby book on each child born into the family. Unfortunately, it was usually the first born for sure that got a completely filled out baby book; the second baby, maybe a partial filled book and children 3 or 4, etc. no baby book at all. No matter who had a baby book, that...
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23andMe Teamed Up with Airbnb
Jun 25
23andMe announced that it teamed up with Airbnb in order to offer 23andMe customers a new way to connect with their heritage. Together, the two companies will showcase homes and heritage travel experiences based on a 23andMe customer's DNA. Forbes explains how this works. First, a person takes a 23andMe DNA test. The customer can choose ei...
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Scan and Transcribe Letters
Jun 23
You know that all your family treasured photos should be scanned and those digital copies stored in numerous locations and on different devices (flash, hard drive, disc). Yet, do not forget to do the same for all the family letters you might have or can get access to. Those letters (and postcards) are direct insights to an ancestor, what...
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Remembering the Meeting and Marriage
Jun 21
Gathering information about your family is not just names and dates but is truly the back stories, the lives that an individual or couple had. One of the simplest relative / ancestor to learn about are those living. That could be your parents or grandparents. If you have a great grandparent, by all means, interview them. One aspect of a...
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GEDMatch Updated its Privacy Policy
Jun 20
GEDmatch is a website that provides applications for genealogists who want to compare their DNA results with other people. Recently, GEDmatch changed their privacy rules to restrict some access by police. The change will not entirely prevent law enforcement from using the website. Did you upload your DNA results to GEDmatch? Are you thinki...
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Genealogy 101
The study of birth, marriage and death records to discover family relatives. more »
Genealogy Dictionary
Definitions for the most common terms and expressions for the field of Genealogy. more »
Genealogy Site Reviews
Reviews of top genealogy and family tree sites, with feature comparisons. more »
