RootsWeb Review: RootsWeb's Weekly E-zine 21 March 2007, Vol. 10, No. 12 (c) 1998-2007 RootsWeb.com, Inc. http://www.rootsweb.com/ * * * ROOTSWEB HELPDESK: Check here for announcements: http://helpdesk.rootsweb.com/ * * * ROOTSWEB REVIEW ARCHIVES: Current and previous editions: http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/review/2007/0321.txt http://e-zine.rootsweb.com/ ============================================================== IN THIS ISSUE: 1. Editor's Desk: News and Notes 1a. Myra Gormley on Family Roots Radio 1b. U.S. Conference Announcements (2) 1c. Conference Correction 1d. Some Sites Worth Seeing (3) 1e. Using RootsWeb: Exploring My Family History at RootsWeb 2. Connecting Through RootsWeb: The Price of Looking for Something Lost 3. Bottomless Mailbag: Search Old Newspapers by OCR Sawyer/Lawyer (2) Was My Grandfather Lazy? 4. New at RootsWeb 4a. New User-contributed Databases 4b. New/Updated Freepages and Homepages by Individuals 4c. New/Updated Freepages and Homepages by Counties, States, and Genealogical/Historical Societies 4d. New Mailing Lists 5. Humor/Humour 6. Subscriptions, Submissions, Advertising, Reprints ============================================================== IN THIS ISSUE: 1. Editor's Desk: News and Notes 1a. Myra Gormley on Family Roots Radio In case you missed the announcement in the RootsWeb Newsroom this week on Myra Gormley's appearance on Family Roots Radio, I am posting it here: "Our very own Myra Gormley of "RootsWeb Review" fame was the featured guest on the 3/15 episode of Family Roots Radio. Myra talked about RootsWeb and her own journey as a genealogist and then the host, Kory Meyerink, did a brief audio tour of RootsWeb. He highlighted various features of our site and did a nice overview of the vast amounts of information available here on RootsWeb. "You can read more about the episode at http://www.familyrootsradio.com/labels/RootsWeb.html and you can download an MP3 of the episode at http://www.familyrootsradio.com/2007/03/sixth-episode-podcast-available.html. "P.S. Myra mentioned that her new book, "The Official Guide to RootsWeb," will be available for purchase very soon. We're still waiting for details on how to purchase and download the electronic version of her book, and we'll pass that information on to you just as soon as we have it." 1b. The Ohio Genealogical Society Annual Summer Genealogy Workshop The largest state genealogical society in the United States is holding its annual summer genealogy workshop 24-29 June 2007. Nationally known speakers will cover topics of interest for Ohioans and other researchers, including researching in Pennsylvania, Virginia, New England, Germany, Italy, Scotland, and Ireland. Week-long registration for members is $240; $275 for non-members. Single-day registration is $50 per day for members; $60 for non-members. For more information, including registration details, call 419-756-7294 or visit the society's website at: www.ogs.org * * * All-day Seminar with Dick Eastman in San Diego The Computer Genealogy Society of San Diego and the San Diego Genealogical Society are proud to present an all-day seminar and luncheon with Dick Eastman, author of the popular genealogy newsletter, "Eastman's Online Genealogy Newsletter." The Conference will take place 12 May 2007 at St. Andrew's Lutheran Church in San Diego. Registration is $28 for members; $30 for non-members. Presentations include "Grandpa in Your Pocket," "The Internet--The Good, the Bad and the Ugly," "Google for Genealogists," and "Putting the Genes in Genealogy." For full details, contact Gloria Osborn at globob22@yahoo.com or 619-298-2447; or visit the website at: http://www.rootsweb.com/~casdgs/ 1c. Conference Correction In last week's newsletter, we made an announcement about the "Twenty- seventh International Conference on Jewish Genealogy" and said it would be occurring from 15-19 July 2007 in Salt Lake City, Utah. I have been informed by the publicity chair for the event that it will actually be occurring the 15-20 of July and that the official title is the "27th IAJGS International Conference on Jewish Genealogy." The IAJGS is the International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies. In addition, the second Genealogy Film Festival will be taking place as part of the event. Films will screen from morning to evening during the conference, at no additional charge, and will cover a variety of genealogical subjects. A complete listing of films will be available in April, but some highlights include, "Sugihara: Conspiracy of Kindness," a movie about Chiune and Yukiko Sugihara, who risked their careers, livelihoods, and futures to save more than 6,000 Jews in Kaunus, Lithuania; and "West Bank Story," an Academy-Award winning musical comedy about an Israeli soldier and Palestinian cashier who fall in love amidst the animosity of their families' dueling West Bank falafel stands. www.slc2007.org 1d. Some Sites Worth Seeing Midlands Historical Data This website was created to help family history societies, libraries, and archives in the West Midlands make digital copies of their old local history books, maps, photographs, directories, etc. The website is not- for-profit and images are searchable online. You can also purchase CDs of the materials. www.midlandshistoricaldata.org/index.html Note: Thanks to Hugh Watkins for making me aware of this site. Hugh runs a great genealogy-related blog, "Genealoge," from the UK. It is located at http://hughw36.blogspot.com/ * * * Find a Grave in Stockholm, Sweden This site, created by the Stockholm Cemeteries Administration, allows you to search for burial information on the approximately 525,000 individuals buried in Stockholm's eleven general cemeteries. Digital maps of the cemeteries are available. hittagraven.stockholm.se Note: Thanks again to Hugh Watkins for making me aware of this site. See Hugh's blog at http://hughw36.blogspot.com/ * * * Immigrant Servants Database Nathan W. Murphy, a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Utah, accredited genealogist, and employee of Price and Associates Genealogical Services (project sponsor), is reconstructing a passenger arrival list of indentured servants coming to colonial America. According to the website, "More than 75 percent of the colonists who settled south of New England financed their voyages to the New World as indentured servants, convict servants, and redemptioners. This project aims to identify all immigrants described by these terms in American and European sources from 1607 through 1820." To date, there are approximately 10,000 immigrant servants listed in the database. That number continues to grow. www.immigrantservants.com 1e. Using RootsWeb: [Editor's Note: I asked our two new columnists, Joan Young and Mary Harrell-Sesniak, to write a brief article introducing themselves, explaining how they got interested in genealogy, and describing the topics they plan on covering in their respective RootsWeb columns. This is Joan's article. Mary's will run next week. Their regular columns will begin running after that.] EXPLORING MY FAMILY HISTORY AT ROOTSWEB By Joan Young As far back as I can remember I was always curious about where I came from and who my ancestors were. I didn't know it at the time, but I was growing up in the same area of southern New Jersey that my maternal ancestors, English and Welsh Quakers, had inhabited as early as the 1670s. I asked my mother whether the streets and landmarks carrying her maiden name of BORTON were connected to our family. I also asked her why she occasionally received letters from a family historian updating "the LIPPINCOTT family tree." She didn't know--all she knew was her father had been a birthright Quaker. She knew nothing of the rich heritage I was later to uncover. The fact that I never knew my paternal grandparents (both died before I was born) made me even more curious about that side of the family. I knew Dad was Pennsylvania Dutch and I knew that meant Germanic ancestry. Dad was born and raised in York, Pennsylvania, and it wasn't until his passing, in 1990, that it dawned on me. I was going through family photos, and although I knew one picture was of his mother's mother and the other his father's mother, I didn't know which was which. That was the tipping point that made me dig in and find the answers. I had worked in a job that provided a great training ground, teaching me how to obtain and evaluate genealogical data, and I used that to my advantage in my retirement. At first, I spent countless hours at the local historical society library, the LDS Family History Center, and in courthouse basements, not to mention walking many a cemetery. When I was a novice, seasoned genealogists marveled at the fact that I knew how to complete a pedigree form. Twenty years as a hobby dog breeder and exhibitor had taught me all about pedigrees. My searches led me to discover two American Revolutionary War ancestors, connections to William Penn, founder of Pennsylvania, plus a whole boatload of poor farmers and tradesmen striving to make a better life for their families in America. They were German, Alsatian, English, and Welsh, with some Scotch-Irish thrown into the mix, and a bit of early Swedish blood for good measure. My research led to membership in the Daughters of the American Revolution, Colonial Dames XVII Century, Descendants of Founders of New Jersey, and the Ladies of the Grand Army of the Republic (LGAR). I had never used a computer before 1995, and decided then that it was "now or never." I dove in and before long found ROOTS-L and a few of the early mailing lists that were "the gleam in the eye" that was later to become RootsWeb. It didn't take long to appreciate that a constantly increasing amount of my research could be accomplished without ever leaving my home. The volunteer spirit of the growing online community sucked me in. I soon joined the ranks of those administering mailing lists and message boards. It didn't take long to realize that even with all the resources that could be found on the Internet the greatest resource of all was the people: people looking for the same ancestors I was, and people who were volunteering their time and energy by submitting information to online databases to benefit future researchers. My people-oriented volunteer efforts eventually led to employment with RootsWeb from July 1999 to July 2001. During that time and since then, I have continued to delight in figuring out how all the features and programs work at RootsWeb and how to make the most of the various resources offered there. I enjoy, even more, explaining RootsWeb resources to others and watching new researchers grow their own "wings" and soar on their own as they, too, learn to make the most of all that is offered. I plan to continue in that capacity through future columns to teach both new and experienced family history researchers to better understand the wonders of RootsWeb. Together we'll explore every nook and cranny of the site and learn to use every resource to its fullest capacity. * * * * * * * * * * Advertisements * * * * * * * * * * REQUEST A SEARCH FOR YOUR ANCESTORS AT THE FAMILY HISTORY LIBRARY ANCESTOR SEEKERS researchers at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City will search this vast collection for your ancestors from the USA, Canada, England, Scotland, Australia, Ireland, Germany, Poland, Russia, Holland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Italy. Prices start from $55 (U.S.). For a FREE! initial e-mail consultation visit http://www.ancestorseekers.com/research.rwr/ Or join us JUNE 24-29 at our EIGHTH SALT LAKE CITY RESEARCH TRIP--THE IDEAL GENEALOGY VACATION--a whole week at the Family History Library, accessing the world's largest collection of genealogical records with help and advice from accredited genealogist professionals. * * * * * * * * * * End of Advertisements * * * * * * * 2. Connecting Through RootsWeb: The Price of Looking for Something Lost By Shawna Wolfgang In May of 2006 it cost me $13.32 in postage to find what I had lost long ago. I mailed eighteen letters. I was looking for my aunt. I sent one letter to each male person in Morgan City, Louisiana, with her married name. Then, I received the phone call. The man said, "Baby, this is Mike Falcon Senior"--with Southern dripping off every word. The story really began in 1956. In October of that year, my Daddy's parents were killed in a car accident. He was seven years old and his sister Linda was two years older. They bounced around for a few years but didn't fit in with the families who tried to care for them. Finally they were given to Catholic Social Services. They went to St. Joseph's Orphanage. Then Daddy went to the Don Bosco Boy's Home. In 1964, he turned eighteen. In fairly short order, he came to Michigan, met my Mom, married her, and I was born in 1971. There was little contact between my dad and his people in Louisiana. When I was eight years old, we took a ride down south to see his sister. We couldn't find her. I remember driving past a sign that states the city limits of "Breaux Bridge" and thinking, "Hey, my name is Breaux!" So my mom's people were my only family. I didn't really know the difference being so young. Then when I was ten, the police came with the sad duty of informing my mother that her husband, my daddy, had been killed in a car accident. Just like his parents. And he was gone. Just like that. When I was old enough to really wonder about the family I was missing, I started to think. Who were these people? Where were they? Did I have more family? So, I began looking for my aunt, Linda Marie Breaux Falcon. I started with Internet postings on all of the usual genealogy websites. There were no responses. In May of 2006, I mailed my eighteen letters. It cost $13.32 to find her. When that phone call came, it was Uncle Mike who called and then put her on the phone. I'll always remember her saying, "Baby, I love you." She died 17 July 2006. My whole life I wondered. For two months I knew. And then she was gone too. Just like that. It was the best leap of faith I have ever taken. My hope is that my story will give someone the hope and the guts to leap into their own faith. It doesn't cost much. 3. BOTTOMLESS MAILBAG [Editor's Note: We love to hear from our readers. Send in your genealogy or RootsWeb tips, success (or failure) stories, discoveries, and more. If it's genealogy-related, we want it. Remember, however, that the opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and are not necessarily those of the editor or of RootsWeb.com.] ------------------------------------------------------------- Search Old Newspapers by OCR By Russ Sprague Kensington, Maryland russxsprague@hotmail.com In recent months, I've found three sites where you can view images of old newspaper pages and search them for names, places, or events using simple or more complex search terms. The search is accomplished by Optical Character Recognition (OCR). OCR is not perfect but it is a powerful search tool that can search thousands of newspaper pages in seconds. Two of the sites consist of northern New York papers while one is international, with a large selection of U.S., Canadian, Mexican, and other papers. OCR works because newsprint is fairly standard, as opposed to handwriting. Depending on the image quality, it may not always pick up names and phrases as expected or may include stray unexpected material. As a rule however, it is a very powerful and fast method to find articles of interest (marriage announcements, obituaries, births, etc.). One site is from NNYLN (Northern New York Library Network) at http://news.nnyln.net/ This site is well organized, with newspaper names and dates of coverage listed. Click on a paper name and a new window pops up asking what you want to search for. Enter 'smith' and it will display links that in turn will display newspaper images where 'smith' is found. Enter 'james and smith' (without the quotes) and select search type 'boolean' and it will return links for pages where any combination of those two words exist. This returned 1,000 hits in the paper I was searching. A most useful search can be along these lines: 'james w/3 smith' and select search type boolean. This selects instances of James found within three words of Smith and returned 220 hits in the paper I selected. It would select, for example, James Smith, James Ward Smith, or other combinations where Smith was within three words of James. Each time you start a new search, be sure to select search type 'boolean.' You can also search 'smith w/7 married' or 'smith w/8 died,' etc. Try variations and see what you find! The other site with northern New York papers is at http://www.fultonhistory.com/Fulton.html Fulton is a town in Oswego County, New York, but don't let the site name fool you. Several papers from around upstate New York are included. This site searches all newspapers with each search. The papers searched are listed separately but you don't have to search each separately. Also, the site will save your last-used search term. If you use boolean operators, it will save that term. I have had problems off and on with this site displaying fully. I believe it has such heavy use that it sometimes cannot keep up with demand. This next site was referred to me recently and is truly international. It can be found at http://www.paperofrecord.com/ "Paper of record," as the site is called, is free but requires you to register. After registration, they e-mail you a complex password (upper and lowercase with some numbers). You may want to save the password to a text doc. of some sort so you can copy and paste it when you sign in. I've just briefly checked that site, but it's very similar to the others in allowing different types of searches. You would almost always find variations of boolean searches to be most useful. I've absolutely lost track of all the great information I've found from these sites. The images are large and can take time to load so it helps to have a high-speed Internet connection. One reason I'm writing this is that I would like to hear about any other similar sites people might have found around the U.S. or internationally. Over time, I'll add to my list and possibly be able to write again with a longer list. * * * Sawyer/Lawyer By Isabel Morse Maresh I read with great interest the letter in last week's Review about the man thinking his ancestor was a "Lawyer" when he was actually a "Sawyer." He said that a "Sawyer" cut down trees. I have noticed that across the length and breadth of this great nation of ours, there are different titles for the same things. My husband was for many years a sawmill "Sawyer." In Maine, a "Sawyer" saws the logs into lumber; he doesn't cut down trees. Just thought that I could clarify this. * * * Sawyer/Lawyer By Hugh Watkins Try a google search for "saw pit." I found this: "Pit-sawing is a technique that has been practiced since ancient times. The cutting process is accomplished when the saw is pulled down through the log. Only on the down-stroke does the saw blade actually cut. The 'pit sawyer' (bottom man) pulls the saw down and the 'top sawyer' pulls the saw back up and keeps it aligned with the chalk lines. The sawyers do not cut completely to the end of the log, as that would weaken the log and not give the top sawyer anywhere to stand. When all of the cuts are finished, individual boards are broken off from the four or five inch butt end left uncut." Sometimes two children worked in the pit and the pit man got covered in sawdust. Try a google image search for "saw pit" too. * * * Was My Grandfather Lazy? By Lynette Mincks lfm@gwtc.net I'm hoping there is another explanation for the job title my great- grandfather was given on my grandfather's birth certificate. He is listed as a "loafer." Is there another possibility other than they thought he was lazy? The truth is, he was a sickly man, and the family was moving by covered wagon from eastern Iowa to Colorado for his health when they stopped in west central Iowa for my grandfather's birth. Maybe they just thought he was a loafer. Is there another possibility for a job title of "loafer" in those days, like that he baked bread? [Editor's Note: There is a great site at http://www.genealogytoday.com/guide/help/answers.html where you can enter old occupation names and find out their meanings. The answers are taken from "A List of Occupations" prepared by John J. Lacombe, II. You can also search for old-world diseases and other generic genealogical terms. When I entered "Sawyer" it returned "someone who saws timber to boards." Unfortunately, there was nothing for "Loafer." Your first impression may have been right.] 4. New at RootsWeb 4a. New User-contributed Databases at RootsWeb http://userdb.rootsweb.com/submit/ ------------------------------------------------------------- The following databases have come online recently. They are searchable, but not browseable. Search: To look for specific data or occurrence of text in a file. Browse: To view the entire contents of a file or a group of files. GEORGIA. Polk County. Index to Death Certificates 1951-1965. 3682 records. Clarence Atkins. http://userdb.rootsweb.com/deaths/ TENNESSEE. McNairy County. Huggins Cemetery. 92 records. Carrol Heath. http://userdb.rootsweb.com/cemeteries/ WISCONSIN. Jackson County. 1914 Directory Garden Valley Township, Jackson City, WI. 147 records. Roger Davis. http://userdb.rootsweb.com/atlas_gazetteer/ 4b. New/Updated Freepages and Homepages by Individuals To Request a Free Web Account: http://accounts.rootsweb.com/ ------------------------------------------------------------- Can your cousins find your website at RootsWeb? Has it ever been mentioned here or do you have a new, updated, or substantially revised website at RootsWeb (it will have "freepages" or "homepages" in the URL)? Send the URL, the title of the website, the name of the author, and a BRIEF description of the site, including major surnames, to: Editor-RWR@rootsweb.com * * * If your genealogical or historical related site is located somewhere other than at RootsWeb.com, you can add the link here: http://resources.rootsweb.com/~rootslink/addlink.html * * * No New/Updated Freepages and Homepages by Individuals. 4c. New/Updated Freepages and Homepages by Counties, States, and Genealogical/Historical Societies To Request a Free Web Account: http://accounts.rootsweb.com/ ------------------------------------------------------------- Some of these Web pages might not yet be accessible. They are created by volunteers, so if one that interests you isn't up yet, please check again in a few days or next week. http://www.rootsweb.com/~xxxxxx[accountname] DRT=Daughters of the Republic of Texas USGW=USGenWeb U.S.A. gacghs -- Ocmulgee Genealogical and Historical Society (Georgia) ilwashin -- Washington County (Illinois) USGW ingenweb -- Indiana GenWeb State Site njcseca2 -- City of Secaucus (New Jersey) USGW nyrgs2 -- Rome Genealogical Society (New York) nyschs -- Schuyler County Historical Society (New York) txgwsdrt -- George Washington Stell (Texas) Chapter DRT 4d. New Mailing Lists To Request a New Mailing List: http://resources.rootsweb.com/adopt/ ------------------------------------------------------------- For information and an index to the more than 30,000 RootsWeb-hosted genealogy Mailing Lists and for easy subscribing (joining) options go to: http://lists.rootsweb.com/ NEW SURNAME MAILING LISTS No New Surname Mailing Lists. NEW REGIONAL MAILING LISTS No New Regional Mailing Lists. NEW ETHNIC AND SPECIAL INTEREST MAILING LISTS WILLIAMS-CHAT -- A list for WILLIAMS descendants to discuss aspects of their heritage that do not specifically relate to genealogy (e.g., living conditions, family traits, etc.). 5. Humor/Humour: I had occasion to research the Pickell family in Barry County, Michigan. In the 1860 census I found the family with a young son named "Cucumber" Pickell. Thanks to Gordon Mitchell * * * Found a funny or "proper name for the job" in old records, or an amusing entry in census, parish, church, etc. records? Send them to: Editor-RWR@rootsweb.com. We also welcome other humorous genealogy- related submissions. 6. Subscriptions, Submissions, Advertising, Reprints ------------------------------------------------------------- SUBSCRIPTIONS. To manage your e-mail communications (i.e. to subscribe or unsubscribe to this newsletter, or to sign up for others), visit our newsletter management center any time at: http://newsletters.rootsweb.com/ If you use a spam-filtering program, in order to receive the RootsWeb Review please make sure that you're allowing e-mail from: rootswebreview@email.rootsweb.com The RootsWeb Review is a free publication of The Generations Network, Inc., 360 West 4800 North, Provo, UT, 84604 * * * The RootsWeb Review does not publish or answer genealogical queries, and the editor regrets that she is unable to provide any personal research assistance or advice. RootsWeb Review welcomes short (500 words or less) articles, humor, stories, or letters, and reserves the right to edit all submissions. The announcement of books and products is provided as a community service and is not an endorsement in any way. All mail sent to the RootsWeb Review editor is considered to be for publication--send in plain text (please, no attachments) to: Editor-RWR@rootsweb.com and please include your full name and e-mail address in the text. * * * ROOTSWEB REVIEW ADVERTISING CONTACTS. Ad Sales Worldwide: Shana Davis, creative@tgn.com * * * REPRINTS. Permission to reprint articles from RootsWeb Review is granted unless specifically stated otherwise, provided: (1) the reprint is used for non-commercial, educational purposes; and (2) the following notice appears at the end of the article: Previously published in RootsWeb Review: 21 March 2007, Vol. 10, No. 12 * * * *