A Visit with Thomas MacEntee

Miriam Robbins Midkiff and Thomas MacEntee. Spokane, Washington. 2 October 2010. Privately held by Miriam Robbins Midkiff, [ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE], Spokane, Washington. 2010.

I just came away from a busy and exciting weekend as my local genealogical society, the Eastern Washington Genealogical Society, held its annual October Workshop with well-known geneablogger Thomas MacEntee as its featured speaker!

Since I was at work when Thomas' flight arrived, EWGS 3rd Vice President Cecily Kelly was kind enough to pick him up from the airport and drive him to his accommodations at the historic Spokane Club. After I got off work, we all met up at Anthony's at Spokane Falls for a great seafood dinner on the terrace overlooking the falls of the Spokane River. It was a gorgeous Indian Summer day, and the three of us had a good time talking about our own genealogy, the future of genealogical societies, and what the Next Big Thing in genealogy might be.

EWGS Members. Spokane, Washington. 1 October 2010. Privately held by Miriam Robbins Midkiff, [ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE], Spokane, Washington. 2010. 

Next, we headed over to the downtown branch of the Spokane Public Library so that Thomas could give his new presentation, "Building a Research Toolbox." This was a members-only presentation, and we had about 40 people in attendance. You can see some video footage I shot that evening posted on Thomas' blog here. Thomas explained why a person would need a research toolbox, what the different kinds of toolboxes (or containers) there were, what kinds of tools (or content) would be stored in it, and how to organize the information. I especially liked the wikis as a type of toolbox, and MediaWiki certainly caught my eye. Another tool that looked extremely useful was Link Valet, a link checker that will make sure all the URLs in your blog or document are working and not broken! If you would like to see one good example of a research toolbox, Thomas has one set up on his blog here. I prefer to use my Google Toolbar's Bookmark feature for mine, as it is accessible from nearly any computer, anywhere.

 EWGS Members and Thomas MacEntee. Spokane, Washington. 2 October 2010. Privately held by Miriam Robbins Midkiff, [ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE], Spokane, Washington. 2010.

The next morning, we were at the library bright and early to prepare for a day long workshop of four presentations. There were about 65 people in attendance, including some from Northern Idaho, Northeast Washington, and the Tri-Cities area of Southeast Washington, representing societies from those areas. After registration check in, the welcome, and some EWGS business, Thomas began his morning presentations, "Facebook for Genealogists" and ""Become a Genealogy Blog User." There was a lot of audience interaction and they were very attentive to his presentations.

At the lunch break, those who had pre-registered received their box lunch from Apple Spice Junction, and those who had not either brown-bagged it or stepped out to one of the many eateries nearby. Then it was time for the afternoon presentations, "Building a Genealogy Blog" and "Google Docs for Beginners." In most day-long workshops, the audience tends to be a big tired after sitting all day, as well as a bit drowsy after lunch. However, these afternoon sessions were pretty lively, as many seemed especially interested in learning how to start a genealogy blog and using Google Docs. As a long-time Facebook user and geneablogger, most of the information presented in the first three lectures were not new to me, but I enjoyed seeing it presented in an easy-to-understand format. Despite the fact that I am a frequent Google Docs user, I did learn a few new things, and was especially happy to see how versatile the Forms feature is!

After the workshop, Thomas and I tiredly said our good-byes. He is staying another day, spending time with a first cousin (and her daughter) on his father's side from North Idaho, meeting them for the first time. At the workshop, he kept everyone well-entertained, engaged, and begging for more! I received numerous e-mails in the last 24 hours from various attendees who were so impressed by his teaching and were very grateful that I had suggested that he be our October Workshop speaker. We even had a couple of members begin their own blogs this weekend!

Thomas was a big hit here in the Inland Northwest and has a standing invitation to return. He let us know that he would be happy to be back, live or virtually, anytime. Thanks for a great workshop, Thomas!

EWGS Presents "Walking With Ancestors"

The Eastern Washington Genealogical Society (EWGS) is proud to present an all-day event, "Walking With Ancestors," in partnership with Fairmount Memorial Association. Guided tours, a barbecue lunch, displays, and how-to classes are all a part of the day-long FREE event, to be held Saturday, July 31st at Fairmount Memorial Park, 5200 West Wellesley Avenue, Spokane, Washington (marker A in the map below).

View Larger Map

Beginning at 9:00 AM, there will be a short opening ceremony, followed by a choice of three guided tours of the cemetery. Attendees will be led to graves where costumed actors representing either the deceased or the deceased's relative will be giving a sketch of the individual's life. Famous Spokanites and ordinary people will be equally represented; their graves were chosen and their lives thoroughly researched by the participating actors. The three guided tours will repeat approximately every 45 minutes, and attendees can attend as many of the three as they wish.

In addition, members of the 1st Michigan Artillery Unit of the Washington Civil War Association, a Civil War reenactment group, will be on hand in full military costume, complete with a cannon! The display tables will be manned by members of EWGS, the Daughters of the American Revolution, the Sons of the American Revolution, Creative Memories Scrapbooking, Fairmount Memorial Park (to assist attendees in finding a loved one's gravesite), Honor Flight, the World War II Memorial Registry, and Nostalia magazine will be on hand to answer questions and hand out materials.

Free "how-to" classes will also be available. They include:

• Beginning Genealogy, by EWGS members Bette Topp and Lola McCreary
• Photographing Tombstones, by Northeast Washington Genealogical Society and EWGS member Susan DeChant
• Gravestone Rubbins for Beginners, by NeWGS and EWGS member Karen Struve
• Properly Cleaning Headstones, by EWGS member and Fairmount Memorial Association historian John Caskey

A free barbecue lunch of hot dogs and hamburgers will be provided by Fairmount Memorial Association from 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM. No tours or classes will be held during this time. The event will conclude at 3:00 PM. For more information, contact Shirley Penna-Oakes at firebugvw@directv.net.

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Please note: Due to street construction on West Wellesley from Division to Maple Street, it is recommended that those travelers heading from the central part of the city take either Garland or Francis Avenue west to the Maple/Ash corridor, follow that corridor to where it intersects with Wellesley, then travel west to Fairmount. Another good alternate route is to take Northwest Boulevard.

Online Registration Now Available for 2009 WSGS State Conference

Online registration is now available for the 2009 Washington State Genealogical Society's State Conference, to be held September 11 - 13 at the world-famous Davenport Hotel in Spokane, Washington. This conference will feature Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak as our main speaker. You can register for your classes AND pay for them using a debit or credit card or your Paypal account.

To register online, go to this page. If you need more information before deciding what you'd like to participate in, you can see details about Saturday's sessions and instructors here, and peruse a brochure with information about Friday and Sunday's activities here. Every meal featured is a Davenport-quality gourmet meal combined with the privilege of hearing Megan speak.

Using the online registration and payment option may be a new experience for some, so I've provided the following tutorial.

1. After you complete the online registration form, click the Submit Registration button at the bottom of the page:

2. A page will load that will confirm your registration and list a copy of the confirmation e-mail which will be sent to you:

3. At the bottom of the confirmation page will be the following. Click on the "Proceed to Payment Page" link:

4. You will then be brought to the Payment Page, where you can confirm the choices you've made:

5. At the bottom of this page, click View Cart:

6. When you view your shopping cart, you can change quantities, remove items, return to add more items, or if you're ready, proceed to checkout to complete payment:

7. On the next page, you will be prompted to either log in to your Paypal account (if you already have one) or click Continue to add a debit or credit card to submit payment. Although I already have a Paypal account, I decided to click Continue to proceed. The process was much smoother than signing in to my Paypal account, and I recommend taking this course for a quicker, smoother transaction:

8. Fill out the online form to add your debit or credit card. Click the yellow button at the bottom of the form to complete the process. An e-mail will be sent to you from Paypal confirming your transaction.

Using Paypal is a safe, convenient, and speedy process. I have used Paypal for many years for various online purchases without any trouble, including purchasing my Subaru via Ebay about 10 years ago!

However, if you prefer to register and pay by mail (checks only), you can download and print the registration form here and mail it to the address listed on the form.

If you are looking for accommodations, the historic and grand Davenport Hotel is offering discounts to conference attendees. Enjoy the conference in style, knowing you are walking the same floors as "royalty, kings of industry, captains of commerce, stars of stage and screen and nearly every American President of the 20th Century."

Do you have a spouse or friend accompanying you who is not interested in genealogy? Do you have some extra time on your hand and would like to know what activities are available in Spokane? Download the local activities brochure here.

For general information (parking, special offers, tours, directions, etc.), see our General Information page here (there are currently text errors on this page, which will be addressed shortly).

We look forward to seeing you in September!

September 2008 EWGS General Meeting to Be Held at Shadle Library

The first meeting of the Eastern Washington Genealogical Society's 2008 - 2009 genealogical year will be held at Shadle Branch (2111 W. Wellesley Ave.) of the Spokane Public Library in the meeting room next Saturday, September 6th. This is a different location from our regular meeting place, the Downtown Branch Library. Coffee, cookies, and conversation will begin at 12:30 PM. At 1:00, the business portion of our meeting will begin, and at 1:30 our main program will begin. The topic of this meeting is "Oh, the Places We Went," and members and guests alike are invited to partake in sharing the great genealogical finds during summer research trips. This meeting is free and open to the general public and will end around 2:30 PM.

Parking is free, but somewhat limited in the library parking lot. Street parking along the east side of Belt Street is available, with a short walk across the edge of the park to the library. The library is also accessible via several of Spokane Transit's bus routes.

There will be various genealogical items sold at our society's Ways and Means table, as well as raffling a certificate worth $25 towards our October Workshop with Barbara Nuehring! Because the workshop cost is $25 for society members and $30 for non-members, for the winner this means either free registration or having to only pay $5 towards registration, depending upon whether they are a member.

Raffle tickets will be $1 each or $5 for half a dozen tickets.

This is a great opportunity to learn a little about the society in an informal manner and get to know others who are as passionate (or crazy!) about family history as you are!

If you have any questions, please e-mail Miriam Robbins Midkiff.

Some Random Acts of Kindness

If there were an award for "Worst Genealogy Lookup Volunteer," I'm sure I'd be the winner, hands down! With all my computer/Internet problems this spring, coupled with a busy life, I haven't been able to keep up with my lookup requests until recently. Yet I can't blame everything on my busy life; I have a tendency to overcommit, and I'm learning (the hard way) to say no. When a distant cousin on my husband's side asked me if I could build her another website to promote her newest book, I had to turn her down, since I haven't even been able to stay on top of a site I'm currently working on!

All that said, last February, I posted a series on "Random Acts of Kindess" Week, and encouraged my fellow genea-bloggers to post about their contributions. I wanted to report to my readers what I've done, not as a "break-my-arm-in-patting-myself-on-the-back" way, but to give an idea of what giving back to the genealogical community entails. I have been the recipient of so many kindesses, that of course, I want to pay it forward. Perhaps in reading this, others will be inspired to do the same.

First of all, I made a couple of small financial contributions to a couple of favorite genealogy-related websites, because I believe in what they are doing to help out the genealogy community. When I've had to make non-genealogy online purchases recently, I've tried to do them through my fellow genea-bloggers' affiliate stores. I've also tried to remember to click on their various advertisements, although many times, I read blog posts through my Google Reader instead of at the actual blog site.

Secondly, I took some training from Carol Nettles, the volunteer coordinator at the Eastern Washington Genealogical Society. EWGS is creating an index of the Patchen file that will eventually be put on our website. The Patchen file was begun 50 years ago by Lee Patchen, who worked for 20 years, clipping out obituaries from Spokane newspapers and pasting them onto index cards, which were filed in dozens of those old fashioned card catalog drawers. A number of us are adding data from these obits to an Excel file which will eventually allow anyone with Internet access to lookup their ancestor and request a copy of the obituary. So far, I'm about 2/3 of the way through a drawer. I'm a pretty fast typist (keyboardist?) and yet it's taken me about 4 hours to index about one foot of cards (some prep work is involved; there are references to published works mixed in with the obits)! While I have no ancestors buried in this area, I feel this is a great payback to the genealogical community, especially since I've used the wonderful results of such work at the Western Michigan Genealogical Society's databases!

Next, I've taken some random photos of graves at Greenwood Memorial Terrace here in Spokane, and using the Washington State Death Index online at FamilySearch Labs, I've slowly been adding memorial pages to Find A Grave for these individuals. Graves that have caught my eye include Civil War veterans' and the many graves in the old part of the cemetery, which for some reason, is not kept up like the main part. It is very rural-looking, no grass, lots of trees and bushes, and has an old-fashioned feel to it.

Lastly, I've had 11 lookup requests since March 27th, most of which I've fulfilled. Two requested death and cemetery records for Muskegon Co., Michigan (I have access to these on microfilm at my local Family History Center). One of those requests occurred before FamilySearch Labs added images of Michigan Death records from 1867 - 1897 to their site. One of the requests was for a death after the early 1910s, which were not microfilmed, so I gave the requestor the link to the online Muskegon County Death Index and recommended if she found the death listed there, to purchase the record through the county clerk's office, rather than the state department of vital statistics (it's cheaper through the county).

Another individual e-mailed me to ask if I had access to all Michigan marriage records (such as a state index) or just Muskegon County Marriages. I wrote back to tell her it was only the county records. However, just today I wrote again to inform her that Michigan Marriages, 1867 - 1925, are now at the FamilySearch Labs site.

There was a request for four lookups for family members in Greenwood Cemetery in Walker Twp., Kent Co., Michigan. I could not find three that died in 1896 in the index; the death in 1870 occurred before the records were kept (and I believe when the cemetery opened) in 1880. I recommended a local researcher in Kent County who is inexpensive, professional, and thorough, and whom I've used on occasion with excellent results.

Three requests, one through RAOGK and another through Books We Own, asked for burial information at Park Hill Cemetery in Vancouver, Clark Co., Washington. I used to own the burial books for this cemetery, as a large number of my husband's ancestors and relatives are buried there. However, I donated the books to my genie society's upcoming book auction, because the listings are now online. However, I keep my volunteer information available at these websites for this cemetery, because there are many people who are unaware that the burial records are online. I was happy to pass this information on to the three requestors.

I've had three requests for lookups in the microfilmed 1899 City Directory of Washington, DC, which happens to be one of many items on a microfilm that contains Muskegon County, Michigan records. I've fulfilled two of these requests. There is also an unfulfilled request for lookups in the microfilmed Grand Rapids City Directory in the 1860s and 1870s. All of these films are those I've put on permanent loan at my local Family History Center.

Speaking of lookups, Genlighten will soon open has recently opened its website as a place where individuals can connect with low-cost volunteer researchers. Dean Richardson, who Randy mentioned at the Jamboree, has also started a blog for the site. Given my terrible record for looking up records in such an untimely manner, I've not signed up as a researcher, although I am considering it (must finish other commitments, first). I see that DearMYRTLE endorses the site, and I think this will become a wonderful resource for our genealogical community. UPDATE: Dean posted some clarifications and corrections in the comments section of this post. Please take a moment to read these!

I've wanted to do more FamilySearch Indexing, but other commitments, time contraints and my laptop not working well have created challenges in this department.

How am I doing? Not too badly, I hope--except for taking so very long to fulfill lookup requests. I'd like to read posts from other genea-bloggers on their contributions, too, so if you have some, please add your post links to my comments section. Also, be sure to read Renee's Genealogy Blog as she writes about her adventures in FamilySearch Indexing.

More Syllabuses Available

In both January and February of this year, I gave presentations to the Eastern Washington Genealogical Society's members-only computer classes (see the list of past and future classes here). I'm very proud of the educational programs that our society provides its members and the general public through its classes and meetings. To get an idea of the types of topics we cover, see the "What You Missed" feature of our blog. This helps keep our absent and snowbirding members current with our calendar of events.

If you are interested in any of the syllabuses for the classes I've taught, I offer them freely to anyone who requests them by e-mail. My e-mail address can be found here. My topics are:

• *Finding Vital Records and Obituaries Online
• *Footnote.com
• *How to Use Online Message Boards
• *Finding Volunteer Researchers Online
• *County Genealogy Websites (USGenWeb, USGenNet, etc.)
• *Find A Grave
• *How to Fix Broken Links, and Other Tips and Tricks

This and That Again

From the random thoughts bouncing around in my head:

Every morning, I enjoy reading the latest Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories posts. I've been catching up on my own, and now have numbers 1 - 11 complete. I'm working hard to fill in the ones from when I was so busy the last week of school. I've also added pictures to a couple of ones already posted. The ones I've got in on time to be included in Thomas' daily posts have been sent to him fairly late at night (usually midnight, his time). He probably dreads getting e-mails from me ("can't that gal in Spokane get it together?"). This is what happens when you're competing for computer time with teenagers. They somehow think MySpace and Runescape are so much more important than blogging or genealogy. Sheesh!

I've also been busy with Christmas preparations, like most of you out there. I've got my Christmas letter all written and mailed out (if you would like to get your own copy, just e-mail me; see my address in my profile). Last night I put together the dough and filling for banket, and today I'll roll it out, fill it, and bake it. I'll also bake up a casserole for my hubby's workplace's annual Christmas potluck dinner. Today's plans include finishing up my shopping, and perhaps getting started on the wrapping.

Yesterday brought a nice surprise. We did not know that Norm's oldest niece, nephew-in-law, and grandniece (almost 3) were in town from Illinois. We haven't seen them since they left for Germany a couple of years ago; over the summer, they moved back to the states. They came by our house for a visit, since my husband is working longer hours due to the holidays, and won't be able to make it to the family holiday gathering this weekend. The highlight of my day was when little Evelyn, who doesn't remember me from past visits and was being a little shy, asked me to read a story to her!

A month or so ago, a co-worker brought in a catalog of fund-raising merchandise her son's school was promoting. I saw this bracelet, and simply had to have it! Since it holds six photos in alternating heart- and oval-shaped marcasite-look frames, I've got copies of the six generations of women that I blogged about here. I've received many compliments, and it's a great genealogy conversation starter! Kathryn Beich is the fundraising company, but I can't find it on their website.

EWGS members have been getting their due in the local paper lately. Yesterday's featured past president and current Bulletin editor Doris Woodward, who has written a book on Spokane's circus clown, Harper Joy. The Circus Room on the seventh floor of the world-famous Davenport Hotel honors Joy, and today, Doris will be conducting a book-signing at the Signature Store in the hotel from 4:00 - 7:00 PM. Complimentary hot cider and gingerbread cookies will be served. To read the article, go here. To read the full article without going through the subscription process, simply click the "printer-friendly" link near the top of the page.

What genealogist doesn't love books? Kimbooktu is a blog about all things bookish, including reading accessories and book-themed furniture. Today is the one-year anniversary of the blog, authored by Kim from the Netherlands. Drop by, admire the great finds she's written about, and give her your congratulations.

Sons of the American Revolution Still Going Strong

Here's an interesting story from our local paper that highlights a twenty-one-year-old young man who has recently joined a local chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution (click on the first link on this page). With his dark hair in a ponytail, Travis Miller makes quite a contrast against the other silver- and white-haired members of the SAR, but he is among a growing population of young people interested in their roots. Kudos to EWGS members Bill Ailes and John Ellingson for also being featured in this article, either by being photographed or quoted.

My Own Cabinet of Curiosities

As we approach the holidays, my life--like those of many of you, I'm sure--has been busier than ever. I had hoped to write something for the many fabulous new genealogy-related carnivals that have recently been created; have you seen them? Lisa, at Small-Leaved Shamrock, has an Irish Heritage and Culture Carnival, Jessica Oswalt from Jessica's Genejournal has started one for Central and Eastern European Genealogy, and Tim Abbott from Walking the Berkshires just posted the first Cabinet of Curiosities Carnival, a kind of show and tell of genealogical and historical treasures. I misunderstood when the deadline for the Cabinet Carnival was and just got too pushed for time; I'll have to submit a post next time around. However, several months ago, I was interviewed by a local reporter about my family treasures--which I hope to share one at a time in future Cabinet Carnivals--and today that article was published in The Spokesman-Review's Home and Garden section (online version here).

It was a lot of fun to share with the reporter and photographer (both delightful individuals!) the stories behind the antiques and mementos that have been handed down through the generations to me. I was pleased that what I had to say about the Eastern Washington Genealogical Society was published, and I hope that it will generate more interest in the society from the community. The only quibble I had with the article is that the reporter and I did not engage in a discussion about DNA long enough for me to explain that one does not need resort to exhumation of corpses to obtain a DNA match for a deceased ancestor. This is where genealogy is so handy: by tracing the family tree, you can find other descendants of an individual, and by attempting to match your DNA with theirs, you can prove relationship to the ancestor! While you can only view one photograph in the online version, the print article had many detailed shots of various family treasures, including my 4th-great-grandmother's cross-stitch sampler, my great-grandmother's baby picture, and a genealogy bumper sticker on my car! I purchased several copies of the newspaper to share with family and friends.

This Thanksgiving, I hope you'll take the time to talk to your own family about your traditions, tales, and treasures. Don't forget to write down what you learn to preserve those things for future generations!

EWGS Wins Honorable Mention in RootsTelevision Contest!

RootsTelevision.com recently announced the winner of the Societies and Libraries Contest. The Friends of the Allen County (Indiana) Public Library won a $1000 prize for bringing the most visitors to the RootsTelevision site via their own website during the month of October. My local society, the Eastern Washington Genealogical Society, has won a $100 prize for honorable mention, along with three other societies, the Muskogee (Oklahoma) Genealogical Society, the Escondido (California) Genealogical Society, and the Village (Arkansas) Genealogical Society.

I think we did ourselves proud!

How Do You Spell Hartal?

If you saw Monday's Spokesman-Review (story at the top link here), you may have seen the humorous front page photo of Chief of Police Anne Kirkpatrick and her team, "Crime and Punishment," as Whitworth University professor Dr. Victor Bobb announced that they were the first to be eliminated from the Spokane is Spelling adult spelling bee. This fund raising event was held at The Big Easy Concert House last Sunday, October 21st, at 4:00 PM.

Three members of the Eastern Washington Genealogical Society formed "The Genealogists" team in order to support the Spokane Public Library Foundation and get our society's image out to the public. The team consisted of President Bill Hire, Distinguished Service Member and EWGS Bulletin editor Doris Woodward, and myself. We were very excited and a little nervous about participating. There were some well-known Spokane names and faces among both the participants and the audience, including Washington State Senator Chris Marr, Spokane Public Schools Board of Education President Christie Querna (participating), and Mayor Dennis Hession (audience). Directly behind us in line were Spokane Symphony Orchestra members Brenda Neinhouse and Don Nelson, with Maestra Eckart Preu...and were they ever a riot! When the word "requiem" came up for another team, the SSO team groaned. Of course, their team was not going to be lucky enough to get any of the music vocabulary as spelling words!

The first two rounds consisted of fifth- and sixth- grade words, to shake out our nerves and--as emcee Mike Gonzalez retorted--to see if we were "smarter than a fifth-grader"! Our first word was "party." Easy enough. Rounds Three and Four brought harder words: "centaur" and "deterrent". Then Round Five brought the challenge: "hartal". Bill and Doris had conflicting spellings. They're both sharp spellers, but on the pad we were supplied, Bill wrote h-a-r-t-o-l, while Doris had h-a-r-t-a-l. I was the team's announcer, and we had 15 seconds from the time the word was announced and the definition given before we had to give the correct spelling. Together, we made a snap judgment, and chose Bill's spelling. All we could say was that at least we were eliminated on a toughie!

We didn't do too badly, getting knocked about about halfway through; there were 26 teams total. "The Pacific Northwest Inlander" team won, then had to compete among themselves for the final grand prize, a $1000 shopping spree at River Park Square, dinner for two at Fugazzi and an overnight stay in the penthouse suite at Hotel Lusso. Michael Bowen won with the word "urceolate". Whew!

Busy Week = Light Blogging

View digital images of Texas Birth and Death Certificates Online.

I can't remember when I've had such a light blogging week without being out of town. Being ill on and off the past couple of weeks has prompted me to get to bed as early as possible this week, for my health's sake. It's also just been plain busy around here: Monday evening was my third of four weekly Online Genealogy classes I'm teaching; Thursday, I spoke to the Kootenai County Genealogical Society in North Idaho (what a great group they are!). Later this morning, I will be attending a computer class on Online Land Records for members of the Eastern Washington Genealogical Society. Tomorrow afternoon, a team of four members of EWGS (including myself) will be participating in the "Spokane is Spelling" spelling bee to raise money for the Spokane Public Library Foundation, and to give our society a little publicity. The wife/mom/homemaker side of me has been busy caring for other members of the family who've been ill, making sure teens get caught up on schoolwork after being absent, and trying to catch up on housework and paperwork that have naturally piled up from neglect.

Even though I didn't do any posting of my own, I did keep current this week by reading all my favorite blogs and commenting here and there. For those few of my readers who do not read other genealogy blogs, I want to recap some recent highlights:

• *Georgia's death index from 1919 - 1927 is now available online with links to digital images of original death certificates. Details are here.
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• *The parent company that owns Ancestry.com, The Generations Network, has been acquired by Spectrum Equity Investors. Details are here, and a current list of commentary and interviews of CEO Tim Sullivan are here.
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• *"Halloween and the Supernatural" was the theme of the 34th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy, which was hosted by Jasia at Creative Gene. Click on the link to read your free online "magazine" of great genealogy-related "articles" written by 19 bloggers!
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• *Craig Manson, our resident genea-blogging law professor, has published a new series of law lessons entitled "Defamation and Privacy Issues in Genealogy" on his blog, GeneaBlogie. The first post is here. Craig's last series on the law regarding genealogy was about whether Ancestry.com violated copyright law with its Internet Biographical Database (part one of that series is here).

Several bloggers have mentioned the beautiful autumn colors they've observed in their communities (see, we're not always stationed in front of our computers!). We've had some lovely color here as well, but it's not been as dramatic. This year, showers, gray skies, and a damp chill have replaced our normal Indian Summer season of warm, sunny afternoons and cold, crisp starry nights. I miss what I call my "October Blue" skies which usually provide a stunning contrast with the fall crimsons, rusts, and golds! Snow has been reported in the higher elevations and to the north. Our month-long "Seattle weather" is probably to blame for the recent rash of chills, sniffles, and bugs that's been sweeping our community as of late.

Well, I'm off to practice for tomorrow's spelling bee: abeyance: a...b...e...

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Introducing the EWGS Blog

It's official! The Eastern Washington Genealogical Society has a blog! Yesterday morning, three team members and myself were given the nod by the board of the Eastern Washington Genealogical Society for the blog to become an official medium of the society. Donna, Bette, Charles and I have been doing light blogging since we set it up in July, waiting for the first board meeting of the 2007 - 2008 society year for our "go ahead."

During the regular meeting held that afternoon, I announced the blog and gave the URL: http://ewgs-spokane.blogspot.com. I had posted a message earlier that morning, explaining what a blog is and its purposes in our society. Many of our members are unfamiliar with blogs, and I will continue to write posts to help them understand and be able to use the blog. We are especially excited to use it as a means of communication regarding the upcoming Washington State Genealogical Society's 2009 Conference, to be held in Spokane's historic Davenport Hotel (where, not-so-coincidentally, the EWGS was formed in 1935).

Today, I listed the EWGS blog with Chris Dunham's Genealogy Blog Finder under Associations and Societies. If you have Eastern Washington roots, please visit often!

Using Genealogy Message Boards

On Saturday, I taught a computer class to members of the Eastern Washington Genealogical Society on the topic of "Using Genealogy Message Boards." This is a part of our society's educational sessions, in which members learn about genealogy as it relates to the Internet or computers in general. Different members take turns presenting the classes. Most of us are familiar with our topics, but a few have been very brave and chose to teach a subject on which they knew little, for the purpose of educating themselves. In the educational field (my real-life career), we have a saying, that the one who learns most is the one who teaches. True, that!

The classes are presented three times each, on the third Saturday of each month, excepting December, in the Gates Computer Lab of our public library, downtown branch. Each session can seat up to 15 people at the computer stations, with room in the back for those willing to simply view the overhead on-screen presentation. The classes are normally filled to capacity (summertime attendance has been down a bit, understandably), and since this is a members-only privilege, we've had a number of people join the society in the last couple of years, expressly for the purpose of taking advantage of these classes!

In teaching this class, I have had some experience using message boards, and even am an administrator for the WESTABY, SWEERS, and TUINSTRA boards at RootsWeb/Ancestry (the sites' boards are duplicates of each other). But I realized that I, like probably many of you, do not utilize these boards to my advantage as often as I should. I was also pleasantly surprised several months ago, as I prepared my syllabus, to discover that RootsWeb/Ancestry have streamlined their message boards and made them much more navigable and user-friendly. While The Generations Network, the parent company of these two websites, also owns Genealogy.com, I found that the message boards on that site don't have quite the clean and high-tech looks as its sister sites. Nevertheless, the system works well, and is obviously well-used.

I demonstrated how to search the messages boards, reply to existing messages, start a new thread (conversation), and use the various views (thread vs. flat) of the message boards that RootsWeb/Ancestry offer. Both RootsWeb and Ancestry require that you register (for free) in order to leave responses or new threads on the boards; when you attempt to post a message, you'll be prompted to do this. If you already have an Ancestry subscription, you can use your login information instead of registering. Not renewing your Ancestry subscription will not prevent you from utilizing the boards later; you will simply need to create a free registration message board account instead.

Some of the members who attended were not quite sure what a message board was, so right from the beginning, I gave an analogy of a message board's physical counterpart: a bulletin board, on which all the messages relate to a single topic, whether it is a surname, a location, or an interest group (DNA, Civil War, adoption, etc.). Unlike a mailing list, a message board doesn't have to be limited to queries. They can be used to post transcriptions of tombstones, obituaries, Bible records, etc.

A few members also did not know what a mailing list was, so my best analogy was likened to belonging to a genealogy writing club, where a member would send out a query about an ancestor, or location, or topic of genealogical interest, and each member of that club would receive a copy of that message. Someone else brought up a blog (a new idea for many of our members) and I responded that a blog was like a newspaper...informative, but not so interactive as a mailing list or message board. Just as you can write your editor and comment on the content of your local paper, readers of blogs may comment (usually) on the content of a blog. Sometime, I'd like to expand this presentation to include mailing lists and blogs, because I can see that many of our older society members aren't as familiar with these resources as they could be.

If you would like a copy of my syllabus for "Using Genealogy Message Boards," which includes links to many popular, well-used message board sites, please e-mail me (click on "View my complete profile" in the right-hand menu).

A Relaxing Day

Today I had a rare treat: nine hours of being home alone; no teens, no hubby, no cares, no interruptions (even the cat knew better than to bother me!). The kids were gone all day to Silverwood with their church youth group, so after my husband left for work in the early afternoon, I enjoyed the peace and quiet.

I polished up my syllabus on Message Boards that I'll be presenting on August 18th for our EWGS members' computer class. And I've been having an incredibly fun time delving into the lives of the neighbors of my great-grandfather, William Bryan ROBBINS, as part of the series of posts I'm blogging on his military service in North Russia at the end of World War One. In a letter from home, his mother mentions a number of relatives, friends, and neighbors, and putting this "mini-community" into context with my ancestors' lives has been enriching. I hope that I have enough time to post the next two blogs in that series before we leave on vacation this coming weekend (sheesh! all the work that goes into "getting away" creates a need for a vacation from the vacation, if you follow me!).

One of the things I "stumbled upon" while doing some more research on World War I, was this astonishing website of color World War I photos...did you know any existed? Well, neither did I! It is a true documentary of the grim results of war; shelled buildings, hospital wards, refugees. I must have spent over an hour visiting this site, by turns fascinated by how color creates a starker reality than black-and-white does and mourning the evident loss of life and destruction of the great architecture of France (medieval cathedrals have always captivated me).

Oh, and by the way, I was encouraged by the Footnote team to create a Story Page about Bryan in North Russia, especially considering their recent release of the Historical Files of the American Expeditionary Forces. Labeled "A Polar Bear in North Russia," my Story Page is a copy of the series found here on my blog. What are Story Pages? They can be anything you want them to be: a blog, a research log, an online scrapbook, a way to share information with family and friends. And you don't need to purchase a subscription at Footnote to start one; just sign up for a free membership. Think you might like to have full access to this website? Check out your local Family History Center to see if they have a Footnote subscription yet (if not, check back again - soon all FHCs will have access). This is a terrific way to discover for yourself all the fascinating features of Footnote; I'll bet after playing around on this site you won't be able to resist signing up for their affordable subscription!

Darn! It's time to turn off the computer and go pick up the kids!

Internet Genealogy Magazine Highlights Genea-bloggers

I received my September issue of Internet Genealogy magazine today, and was pleased to see an article titled "Genealogy Blogs" by Donna Pointkouski. She highlighted six bloggers, five of whom are on my daily must-read list: Jasia (Creative Gene); Craig Manson (GeneaBlogie); Chris Dunham (The Genealogue); Randy Seaver (Genea-Musings); and Steve Danko (Steve's Genealogy Blog). Also included was Lorelle VanFossen from Family History, whose blog was new to me.

Ms. Pointkouski's interviews with these genea-bloggers demonstrated how genealogy blogs are social networking and genealogy tools, by touching on getting started, determining a focus for a blog, finding something to say, how blogging can help your research, and getting the word out to let others know about your blog. In this last part, she highlighted the Carnival of Genealogy.

She also mentioned Chris's Genealogy Blog Finder, Ancestry.com's 24/7 Family History Circle, DearMYRTLE, (Dick) Eastman's Online Genealogical Newsletter, George G. Morgan's Along Those Lines..., and Joe Beine's Genealogy Roots Blog (Joe's Online County Histories, Biographies & Indexes--USA: A Genealogy Guide is also featured in Rick Crume's article, "Online Local Histories: Family History at Your Fingertips").

Other great reads I found in my initial skim include an article on Footnote by Diane L. Richard, "Getting the Most Out of Google's Tools" by George G. Morgan, and "Internet Blessings," a philosophical look back on the impact of the Internet on genealogy, written by my friend and co-member of EWGS, Beverly Smith Vorpahl.

I encourage you to pick up your own copy today!

Family Link at WorldVitalRecords

As I was preparing for my presentation "Finding Volunteer (and Low-Cost) Researchers Online," I remembered that Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness, my number one resource on my syllabus, has recently announced a partnership with WorldVitalRecords.com, using its social networking site, Family Link (still in beta). Taking another look at this site, I realized that to fully round off my presentation, I had better offer a tutorial for using this site in addition to my syllabus, and promised my fellow EWGS members that I would write one up here on my blog.

When you go to WorldVitalRecords' home page, http://www.worldvitalrecords.com, choose the link in the top menu bar for Family Link. If you are already a Family Link member, you can choose to Login in the upper right corner of your screen. Otherwise, you will need to register for this site (don't worry, it's free!) by entering your first and last name and e-mail address and clicking "Get Started for Free." You will then be prompted to through a Profile set-up process: gender, birthdate and location. You are asked to give correct location information (which can be hidden from other members), so that you can "perform distance calculation between you and other members and search for location based events." At this point, you can also choose to upload a photo of yourself.

The next screen is really the heart of the volunteer lookup portion of this social networking site. You can choose to show your genealogy background to everyone, or just your contacts, as well as list the number of years you've been doing genealogy and whether you will do local records (from your home location) or Internet lookups for others for free, for a nominal fee, for an hourly professional rate, or not at this time. Other information you may wish to choose to list are databases you have access to, family history software you use, your heritage, genealogical societies you belong to, languages you speak or read, and surnames you're researching. Keep in mind you can list as much information as you would like, or none of it.

The next step asks you to invite your friends to Family Link; you can choose to skip this step. You can then check over your settings and save your information. Another choice you have is to write a biography about yourself and decide who may view it. You also decide how much (if any) contact information about yourself is available to others, such as phone numbers, instant messaging user names and your personal website. What I like about all this is that you are completely in control of what information you wish to list, as well as with whom you wish to share it.

Once you're finished, click on Profile > Edit Profile from the top menu bar. My Research Places is listed in the lower right side of the Edit Profile page. You can add as many or as few research places as you'd like. Under the More > Research Cities menu in the top menu bar, you can then browse locations to find others researching the same areas, as well as to find others who are willing to help you with your research in those locations.

Going back to the Profile > Edit Profile page, on the bottom right side of the page it also lists Events. This is a place where you and others can list family reunions, workshops, and other genealogy-related events. There are many other features on this website, including adding a family tree, creating ancestor pages, finding friends and meeting other people. I encourage you to check out the various features and utilize the ones that fit your needs.

I really like this social networking site, and that's saying a lot, as up until now I haven't found one I really have cared for. The clinchers for me are the ability to connect with others researching the same locations, finding others who can assist me with my own research, and having an opportunity to give back to the genealogical community by doing lookups for others.

Harold Hinds to Lecture August 11th in Spokane

History and genealogy professor Dr. Harold E. Hinds, Jr., PhD from the University of Minnesota will present a free lecture on "Expanding Your Research Into a Family History." This special summer one-hour lecture will be held Saturday, August 11th, at 1:00 PM in the main floor meeting rooms at the Downtown Library, 906 W. Main Ave., Spokane, Washington, courtesy of the Eastern Washington Genealogical Society. You need not be a society member to enjoy this lecture, nor do you need to register for the program.

Limited paid parking is available in the library basement, accessed from the rear of the building on Spokane Falls Boulevard. Paid parking is also available in the block to the east in River Park Square. Attendees can use the skywalk across Lincoln Street from the parking garage to the second floor of the library.

EWGS Internet Education Class: "Finding Volunteer (and Low-Cost) Researchers Online"

Every third Saturday of the month, with the exception of December, Eastern Washington Genealogical Society members can attend members-only computer classes held in the Gates Computer Lab of the Downtown Branch of the Spokane Public Library. Various members take turns presenting the information in three hour-long class times which can accommodate 15 people each.

Today's presentation was supposed to be on Animap, but the instructor fell ill. Playing a bit of musical chairs with the schedule, I volunteered to present my topic, "Finding Volunteer (and Low-Cost) Researchers Online," which I had already had practice presenting at the March LDS Genealogy Conference.

In my class, I will carefully explain that there is definitely a time and place for hiring the expertise of a certified, professional genealogist, and that this information is not to be used in place of such services. But sometimes we simply need an extra hand or one or two records looked up. In these cases, finding a quality volunteer or low-cost lookup researcher can be indispensable! Genealogy is one of those areas where volunteerism works at its best!

If you would like a copy of my syllabus, please contact me. My e-mail is available by clicking on the "About Me" section (see right-hand menu).

New Prompt (Week Twenty-Two) Available at AnceStories2

Inspired by Pat Richley's descriptions of making raspberry jam at DearMYRTLE, I have created my next set of journaling prompts at AnceStories2: Stories of Me for My Descendants. "Your Recipes" is the topic, and it is similar to the 16th Carnival of Genealogy: Food and Family Recipes. My newest posted recipes, Spaghetti and Peach Dessert, are posted on my personal blog, &Etc.

My friend and fellow EWGS member, Susan Heil, e-mailed me to tell me she is taking a writing class and that my prompts have been helpful in getting started. Thank you, Susan! And for other family historians who are looking for great topics to write about, I do recommend the Carnival of Genealogy, even if you don't have a blog. Between AnceStorie2 and the COG, you can leave lots of wonderful memories for your descendants to read!