hometown

  • Those Strange Abbreviations

    Apr 7

    You will at least once in doing family history research come across an ancestor belonging to a fraternal or civic organization. Long before television and computers occupied most of a person’s free-time, being a member of several organizations and clubs in a town or city was a very popular activity.  It offered a social meeting place, a sense of...

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  • Using Google Efficiently to Find Ancestors

    Mar 30

    Yes, Google is not the only search engine on the Internet, but it is one highly used and recommended by everyone. As with any search engine, the top items high up on a search will be those people or events related to celebrities, sports events, scandals or even where the closest place to order a pizza is found. Regrettably, archival records on our ...

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  • The Great Irish Move to America

    Feb 27

    If you have located any Irish ancestry in your lineage, you would want to locate when that branch left Ireland for the America.  A reminder, many Irish immigrants went to other ports, not just New York City.  Many went to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania or to New Orleans, Louisiana or even resettled in Canada, coming into the ports in Quebec or New Br...

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  • Resources from Western Maryland

    Feb 21

    The state of Maryland has a long history, going back to 1634 as a colony and then admitted as the 7th state in 1788.   It is not a large state in land size, but based on its early and then later settlement, it has portions known as an eastern and western region.  Some of the western counties include Washington, Allegany and Garrett as well as Fre...

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  • Finding the Changing Boundaries of Counties

    Jan 20

    When attempting to narrow down hometowns for our ancestors you will quickly see that some towns no longer exist, were incorporated into another town, had a name change or is now part of a different county.  When looking about the name and location of a county, it is boundaries that have changed the most over the decades within the United States. ...

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  • The Eradication of an Ancestor’s Cemetery

    Jan 18

    That sounds pretty harsh, not only the closing to any further burials, but then the eradication and total destruction of a cemetery where one’s ancestors have been at peace and rest for decades.  The very thought does not even sound possible, but it is true and it has happened, even in more recent times. It might be imaginable that a tiny pri...

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  • Alberta, Canada – Proliferate Details

    Jan 16

    From the University of Alberta in Canada, is a very significance online site titled Peel’s Prairie Provinces which should help any family researcher learn more about the western Canadian province of Alberta.  There are several categories including images, newspapers, books, postcards, city directories, Illustrated War News of 1885, railways and ...

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  • Zero in on an Ancestor

    Dec 20

    OK, you have worked on your family tree and have the pedigree chart in good shape with numerous names, dates and locations. The next step is to zero in on just one ancestor.  That person could be a grandmother, a great uncle, your father or a great-great-great grandmother; any one relative who intrigues you the most can be selected. Start by ke...

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  • Add Some Ethnic Christmas Customs – Part 2

    Dec 16

    To embrace your family’s ethnic background try to incorporate a few traditional ethnic Christmas customs. Here are some additional customs. For the ‘land down under’ - Australia, Christmas comes in the middle of their summer weather. Having family picnics is a popular method to celebrate Christmas. A favorite decoration is the native red-f...

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  • Scenes of Old New York City

    Nov 26

    Finding any old photographs is of great assistance to historians and those researching their family background. With so many people having lived at one time or another in the many boroughs of New York, the online collection of vintage photos offers a wonderful treasure chest to explore. The site, Photographic Views of New York City, 1870s - 1970...

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