ancestors

  • Is That a Family Heirloom?

    Sep 13

    That can be a hard question to answer and it will vary from family to family. It becomes very important to know what is worth saving if you are part of the group sorting and clearing out a family estate. I recall a situation in a family where a relative was going through boxes of papers they held from earlier generations and she figured now-a-days ...

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  • National Grandparents’ Day

    Sep 10

    The Sunday after Labor Day, Sept. 11, 2016, is known as National Grandparents' Day. This honor for all grandparents in the United States which will rise from 65 million in 2011 to 80 million in 2020 as a result of the baby boomers. It was Marian McQuade of Oak Hill, West Virginia who was the founder of National Grandparents Day. It was officially...

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  • National Parks’ Archive of Photos

    Sep 9

    Combination of the National Parks Service and Clemson University have worked to collect and scan a collection of photos relating to the national parks in the United States. They put together over 220,000 images plus scanned thousands of documents relating to the parks. The homepage of the online site shows you the categories for the many images in...

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  • Labor Day – Your Ancestors at Work

    Sep 5

    The annual public holiday in the United States of Labor Day began in the 1880s by organized trade unions in several different states to recognize the American worker. One of the first big parades was held in New York City in 1882. The state of Oregon was the first to make the celebration an official state holiday in 1887. By 1894 a total of 30 stat...

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  • Back to School for Your Ancestors

    Sep 3

    The new school sessions are beginning across the country. Children in elementary, middle school or high school will create some fond memories of classmates, teachers, sports, classroom activities, etc. What is true today was also true for your ancestors. To learn what school activities, events and friends were similar to today and which were quite...

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  • Database for Bucks Co., PA

    Aug 31

    The Genealogical Society for Bucks County (BCGS) in Pennsylvania has gathered a massive collection of various records (births, baptisms, marriages, deaths, obituaries and cemetery burials) and created a searchable database. This county is in the southeast corner of Pennsylvania, close to Philadelphia, so it does have a long history, created by Will...

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  • Details Missed in Marriage Records

    Aug 27

    Gathering your ancestors' vital records (birth-marriage-death) is very important. These are primary sources, usually created at the time the event happened. Yet, many times, you might over look some interesting or important information on such documents. In honor of my own 33rd wedding anniversary, let us look at marriage records to see what is of...

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  • Bravery of Our Ancestors

    Aug 25

    Over the centuries, countless events, people, diseases could create fear for our ancestors. Yet, they continued on to meet that challenge head on. So what type of fearful events could our ancestors face? Number one was disease and illness. Only in very recent decades was medical advancements help do away with many fears of sickness due to major pl...

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  • Kansas Glass Negatives

    Aug 23

    Finding the lost and forgotten photos is great. There could be untold treasures in such a find. Located at the Fort Hayes State University in Kansas is such a collection. However, these are not ordinary photos but rather glass plates negatives. They were from the William R. Gray Studio in St. John, Stafford County, Kansas. What makes these even bet...

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  • Where Did Your Ancestors Arrive??

    Aug 21

    Ports of Entry into the United States have existed for decades. However, it has not always been solely Ellis Island in New York as many people may have believed. So as you search for where and when your ancestors arrived in American, do not concentrate solely on Ellis or even New York. Ellis Island did not open until January 1, 1892, so if you hav...

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