Friday Findings: Many Marriages, A Hay Press, 1891 Canadians, and the FBI

I thought I would summarize my findings for the past week. There were some amazing discoveries online from a variety of websites and databases.

Many Marriages
Last week's Wordless Wednesday featured the marriage certificate of my husband's maternal grandparents. This week, I found three marriage certificates for his grandmother's twin brother, Lee Joseph "Mick"MARTIN, at the Washington State Digital Archives website. The fact that he had been married three times wasn't news to me, and I had the women's names, but these records gave me marriage dates and locations, full names of the women, and a previous marriage for his third wife. Also, an older MARTIN brother, Steven Charles, was a witness at two of the weddings, as well as "Mrs. Steve MARTIN." Steve himself was married three times (one marriage was to a sister of Mick's second wife), and I had hoped to find his marriage records in the WSDA as well, but no luck (not all the counties have had all available marriage records uploaded to the database yet). I've looked in other online marriage indexes for other Western states for Steve, without success so far. But I was very happy to find this information on Mick!

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A Hay Press

Remember Alice Teddy, the rollerskating bear? The same gentleman, Michael Kirchmeier, who sent me her amazing photograph has been sending me tidbits, now and again, from newspapers from Cottonwood Co., Minnesota about my ROBBINS ancestors and CRAPSEY relatives. A while ago, he had sent me the news articles of how my 3rd-great-grandfather, Charles H. ROBBINS, had his hand crushed in a hay press in February 1880. This week, he sent me an article describing the proprietor's hay press establishment, and Charles is listed as an overseer. Mr. Kirchmeier speculates that my ancestor was given the job as overseer because of his injury in that hay press, which is probably true. The article was written in January 1881, and ran several times in subsequent issues. (It reminds me of the articles that Lidian features on her blog!) It also establishes that my ROBBINS family did not return to Michigan until after February 1881.

I'm also happy to report that Michael Kirchmeier, who started out working as a historian by avocation, has recently become the director of the Jackson County Historical Society in Lakefield, Minnesota. Congratulations!

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1891 Canadians
As you may have heard, Ancestry released the 1891 Canadian Census this week, available to its Canadian or World Deluxe members. I've been attempting for some time to find information that will give me parents' names for my brickwall ancestors, Mary (TERRY or LAMOREAUX) and Richard WILKINSON, who lived in Whitchurch Twp, York County, Ontario in 1871 and 1881. Early last year, I found Mary's death record, but I have been unsuccessful in finding Richard's so far. The Ontario Cemetery Finding Aid has not been helpful, either.

I did find Mary living with her widowed daughter and married grandson and his household in Markham Twp., York County, as well as finding all three of the other known children of Mary and Richard still living in Canada (son John, my ancestor, was in Michigan). These records established certain facts for me, including narrowing Richard's and son-in-law John GILLIAN's death dates to the 1881 - 1891 range, stating Mary's parents were born in Nova Scotia, and providing two more names of children of son William.

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The FBI (and My Great-Great-Grandfather!)
In honor of the 100th anniversary of the FBI, Footnote this week released the FBI Case Files collection from the subscription area to the public area; translation: free access! Descriptions of the records of these files can be found here. I had been reading some other genea-blogs and noticed a reference to the Old German Files, 1915-20. Wait a minute! I had a German immigrant ancestor who lived in Michigan during those years. Could he have had an FBI file?

BINGO! This was not only my best Find of the week, but one of my Best. Finds. Ever. My poor great-great-grandfather, John D. HOLST, had had to fill out an "Application for Exception from Classification of Enemy Alien." This could only have been slightly less humiliating than filling out his registration as an Enemy Alien in 1917. A man who had been a hard-working farmer and involved member of his communities for 35 years was suddenly looked upon with fear and contempt. His request to finalize his naturalization process had been postponed. Fortunately, he had residents of his community who agreed to vouch for his character, including the village doctor. I realize that John's experience was no different--and perhaps less intimidating--than those of thousands of Germans, and later Italians and Japanese--during our country's involvement in the World Wars, and those of certain political affiliations during the Cold War. These continue today in the American communities of Middle Eastern immigrants.

The bonus side of my ancestor's experience was that it created paperwork that has given me information on him and his wife that I had been unable to find thus far: a photograph; his signature (multiple times); his middle name; his complete date of birth; his wife's middle name; her specific birthplace in Sweden; the fact that he had a sister; his sister's married name and address. This is only the tip of the iceberg; there is much more information in these seven pages of documents, but most of it I have discovered elsewhere. My one regret is that in the area where he was to fill out information on his parents, he simply lists "Deceased."

If you have an ancestor--especially an immigrant one--who came from a WWI-era enemy country, you need to check out this database!

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Trijntje Gerrits (DOLSTRA) VALK (1826 - 1912)

Source: Valk, Trijntje Gerrits Dolstra. Photograph. Bef. 1888. Original photograph believed to be in the possession of John Heidema, Little Silver, New Jersey, 2008.

My 4th-great-grandmother and immigrant ancestor, Trijntje "Katherine" Gerrits DOLSTRA was born 8 November 1826 in the municipality (similar to a township) of Ferwerderadeel, the province of Friesland, the Netherlands. Her parents were Gerrit Hendriks DOLSTRA and Willemke Gerryts ENBRENGHOF, and it is likely she was born in the village of Marrum where her parents were married twenty years earlier.

I know more about Trijntje's (TRINT-yah) mother Willemke's family than her family of her father Gerrit DOLSTRA. Willemke's father was Jan Gerryt Martens ENGBRENGHOF, and he had been born in 1755 in Burgsteinfurt, Westfalen in what is now Germany. He immigrated to Friesland between 1774 and 1778. It is possible that his immigration was motivated by religious reasons, as the Netherlands was religiously tolerant and a haven for the persecuted (think of the Pilgrims). We know that Jan was a member of the Evangelist church before he left Westfalen, too. In Marrum, he opened a shop and became a master linen weaver. He married Trijntje HESSELS (1762 - bef. 1811) on 29 Aug 1779 in Marrum. She was the daughter of Hessel Daniels van der PLOEG, a ship master, at a time when the Netherlands built the best ships (fishing and war) to sail the seven seas. It is this Trijntje for whom my Trijntje was indirectly named.

Willemke was the fifth of eleven children, and she married Gerrit Hendriks DOLSTRA (c. 1782 - 1838), of whom we know so little, in Marrum on 29 June 1806. Apparently it was difficult for them to conceive children. Their first child, born in 1807, was named Trijntje (not my ancestor) after Willemke's mother. Eight long years followed before the birth of Grietje, named after Gerrit's mother. Then tragedy struck, and 18-year-old Trijntje died. Sixteen months later, my Trijntje was born. Her parents were 44 and 38 at the time of her birth, and her father Gerrit passed away when she was 12 years old. Willemke died five years later. It is likely that 17-year-old Trijntje and 22-year-old Grietje worked as domestics or laborers until Grietje's marriage six years later.

In the village of Marrum was a young man by the name of Wieger Tjammes VALK, and he and Trijntje wed on 23 May 1857. Wieger was 29, Trijntje 30, not unusual ages for men and women to marry in the Netherlands at that time. A boy, Gerrit, was born 18 November 1858, but died the following January. Then twin boys were born on 24 Jun 1860 and were named Gerrit and Tjamme (T' YUH-muh) after their grandfathers. Life went on in the little village until the boys reached the fall of their 13th year, when Gerrit died. For a while, a nephew of Wieger, also named Tjamme, lived with them, and was enumerated in the Dutch national census in 1880 with the household. Not much further is know about the VALK family until Tjamme, at age 21, immigrated to the United States in 1882. With him was his fiancée, Berber Sjoerds DeJONG, whom he married that June in Rock Island, Rock Island Co., Illinois.

Tjamme and Berber, who in America became known as James and Barbara, started a family. Their first four children were born in Rock Island but only the child that would become my great-grandfather, William, survived childhood. The family moved north and lived briefly in Holland, Ottawa Co., Michigan before moving again slightly east to Grand Rapids, in Kent County. By now it was 1888, and news must have reached them of Wieger's death. Trijntje was all alone; her sister had died in 1866 and her brother-in-law in 1873. There appears to be no nieces or nephews on that side of the family. Trijntje apparently wasn't close with her late husband's family, and James and Barbara must have urged her to come live with them in America. Before she left, she traveled to the nearest big city, Leeuwarden, the provincial capital, and had the above photograph taken in her native Frisian costume. Each area of the Netherlands has a traditional dress and experts can even distinguish between villages by the style of the ladies' caps.

Trijntje became known as Katherine in Grand Rapids. She brought with her her Dutch Bible, in which she carefully wrote the birth and death dates of her grandchildren. We are so fortunate to have that Bible in existence, because in searching the vital records of Rock Island, I was only able to find a recording of one of the four children born there.

Katherine had a long, hard life. She witnessed the death of many loved ones, including three grandchildren in Grand Rapids. She herself died of senile decay at the age of 85 on 19 May 1912 in James and Barbara's home in Walker Township, just west of the city. In the fall of 2000, I stood for the first time ever at an ancestral burial place and photographed the graves of Katherine, James and Barbara in Greenwood Cemetery. It was an emotional experience, and I could only feel gratitude that my ancestors had taken the risk to come to a land where they knew their descendants could have a better, richer life than they had had. I hope somehow they know how much I appreciate them and comprehend the sacrifices they made.

Source: Tombstone of Catherine Valk, Greenwood Cemetery, Walker Twp., Kent Co., Michigan. Photograph. October 2000. Original in the possession of Miriam Robbins Midkiff, Spokane, Washington. 2008.

[Note: Birth and death dates inscribed on the tombstone are incorrect and have been verified to be incorrect by researching vital records in the Netherlands and Michigan. The tombstone was tilted so badly that it had to be photographed from the backside, then inverted.]

FamilySearch Update

46 Million New Names and 1.2 Million New Images Added to Online Census Collections

Approximately 46.3 million new records and 1.2 million new images are now available on the Record Search pilot at http://pilot.familysearch.org. This brings the total number of names available on the test site to 467,180,871.

Two new Records Access projects (1841 & 1861 England Census collections) were published with links to images on findmypast.com. This is important because it tests the pilot search engine’s capacity to ingest third party indexes and link to images hosted on affiliates’ sites. Such functionality enables FamilySearch to better fulfill its goal to increase access to more genealogical records faster for its users and members. Recent Records Access news announcements can be found at FamilySearch.org.

Project Name: 1841 England and Wales Census
Indexed Names: 15,806,949
Digital Image Count: 340,544
Comment: New - linked to FMP images

Project Name: 1850 United States Census
Indexed Names: 6,044,749
Comment: Updated - NY, PA, NC

Project Name: 1850 United States Census (Mortality Schedule)
Indexed Names: 62,269
Comment: Updated - NY,NC

Project Name: 1850 United States Census (Slave Schedule)
Indexed Names: 299,141
Comment: Updated - NC, UT

Project Name: 1861 England and Wales Census
Indexed Names: 19,178,973
Digital Image Count: 922,225
Comment: New - linked to FMP images

Project Name: 1870 United States Census
Indexed Names: 4,350,059
Comment: New - indexed data (15 states)

Project Name: 1930 Mexico Census
Indexed Names: 617,446
Comment: Updated - Chihuahua

Wordless Wednesday: Trijntje Gerrits (DOLSTRA) VALK (1826 - 1912)

Source: Valk, Trijntje Gerrits Dolstra. Photograph. Bef. 1888. Original photograph believed to be in the possession of John Heidema, Little Silver, New Jersey, 2008.

Celebrate Summer!

Featured in the July 26th Edition of Terry Thornton's "Harvest from the Blog Garden" at Hill Country of Monroe County, Mississippi.

It's been a while since I've mentioned my journaling prompts over at my other blog, AnceStories2: Stories of Me for My Descendants. I've been posting prompts fairly regularly this summer, but have not been writing my responses. Last week's topic was "Summer," and this is something I've been wanting to write about for some time.

*How do you feel about summer? Is it a favorite season, or do you prefer another?
Summer is my second-favorite season, following fall.

*What are your favorite summer activities? Do you enjoy being outside, or would you rather curl up with your air conditioner? I am not a fan of the heat...remember, I grew up in Alaska! So I tend to stay indoors a lot, or go out in the evening (the morning tends to aggravate my seasonal allergies). I do enjoy going out to the lakes round about here (Spokane: Near Nature, Near Perfect) because you get the glorious sunshine with a nice breeze and can jump in the water to cool off when you get too hot. When I was younger and worked at a summer camp, I loved to water ski. The last summer I skiied (22 years ago...yikes!) I learned to slalom, which was absolutely awesome!

*Do you have a favorite summertime sport to participate in or watch? Occasionally, we will go to an Indians game. Our family is really not into sports. I do like watching all aspects of the Summer Olympics, and was disappointed that CJ Nuess did not make the Olympic swim team (his mother, a 1968 Olympian, is my supervisor).

*What is your typical summer outfit? I tend to wear sleeveless tops (dressy or casual, dpending on the setting) and capris or longer shorts. I love going barefoot and wear flip-flops if I have to wear shoes.

*Do you take a summer vacation? Where do you normally go, and what kinds of activities do you do there? We have two or three places we usually visit during the summer. The first is Deer Lake just west of here in Lincoln County, Washington, in the scabland country. It's desolate, semi-arid, and very beautiful in its unique way (here's an example). We tent camp with my children's father's family, usually for the weekend, although they tend to stay longer. It generally gets to 100*+ during the day and down into the 40s at night! There are rattlesnakes, cattle, and coyotes. It's like living in the Wild West! We have to tote in water and the only facilities are an outhouse. But it's a Midkiff tradition going back to when my children's paternal grandfather was a boy. I missed it this last weekend, because of genealogy computer classes and some commitments on my side of the family.

The second place we go to is a resort at one of the Little Pend Oreille (pond duh RAY) Lakes up north in Stevens County. We rent a cabin and stay for about a week, usually in mid to late summer. Often my children's uncle's family also vacations with us. We have lots of good times and memories of practical jokes, water fights, and late night games of Balderdash! See pix here.

My kids usually our kids go to Silverwood for the day with their youth group. We've gone as chaperones for school events and a couple of times my children's father's employer had company picnics there. Since they've added the waterpark, it's a lot more fun than just the great rides!

*What is your favorite summer holiday, and why? I love the Fourth because we get to spend time with my parents at their beautiful log cabin up north. They always have a barbeque and extended family, plus half their church (it seems!) are invited. Then we come back to Spokane and watch the city fireworks show from the campus of Gonzaga University.

*What kinds of summer foods or drinks do you enjoy? I love fresh berries and peaches, potato and green salads, and cold soft drinks. I also enjoy the occasional beer on a hot weekend evening on the front porch, just enjoying the quiet evening or sometimes visiting with neighbors.

*Share some favorite memories of summer vacation from when you were a child. We didn't go anywhere on a summer vacation because we lived in Alaska far from family. We practically lived in one of the nation's largest national forest, so there wasn't much of a point in going camping, with wildlife literally all around us! The closest thing to a summer vacation we had was the trip we took after my parents sold their house in Alaska. They put everything in storage, kenneled our farm animals, and bought a camper and truck. We took a ferry from Prince of Wales Island, Alaska to Prince Rupert, British Columbia and drove down the coast of BC, Washington and Oregon, then came up the east side of Oregon and Washington. All the while we camped at campgrounds and looked for real estate. After finding their present home near Colville, Washington, we drove back to Michigan to visit family while the former homeowners moved out. On the way back to Washington, we stopped at DeSmet, South Dakota, the setting of many of Laura Ingalls Wilder's books. That was a memorable and fun summer!

*What is your least favorite thing about summer? Heat.

*Do you enjoy summer storms? I love them! When I was first married, I lived out on the West Plains and used to go out on our deck and watch the lightning shows. I've never been afraid of them.

*What is the hottest summer temperature you remember experiencing? 116* in the shade at Deer Lake, 2005, I think. Ugh!

*Do you have a memory of a cool or cold summer? Has it snowed on the Fourth of July in your area? It was awfully cool this year for a while. We had snow the morning of June 9th (yes, I realize it wasn't officially summer yet). It made up for it by having 100* temps two weeks later, very unusual for June. It usually rains here from just after Memorial Day to right around the Fourth, then gradually heats up to a sizzling hot August.

*What family birthdays, anniversaries, or events are commemorated in the summer? Are there any significant family history events that occurred during summer? We have nine family birthdays, an anniversary (not mine), Father's Day, and graduations occurring in June. I'm about to force all the young married couples in the families to sign contracts agreeing that they will not give birth to any more children in June! I'm always broke then, and it's a good thing it comes halfway between Christmases!

*What summertime hobbies do you pursue? If you are a genealogist, do you travel to ancestral locations during this season? I have more time to devote to blogging, research, and lookups during the summer. If I get a chance to travel and I come anywhere within 100 miles of my children's paternal ancestors' cemeteries, I try to swing by. All of my ancestral locations are back east (except for one cemetery in the Willamette Valley).

*Do you have any summertime photos of your ancestors? Check out the 49th Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy ("Swimsuit Edition") for great stories and photos of genealogy bloggers' ancestors in swimsuits and summertime wear. I participated in that carnival and my entry is here.

July 2008 Scanfest is Coming!

Yep, it's almost Scanfest time! We're in that part of summer where it just starts going faster and faster, and before I know it, I'm preparing myself and my children for the next school year. I've got this big Rubbermaid tote full of photos and ephemera loaned to us by my father-in-law that is my summer scanning project, and I've barely touched it. Well, to be honest, I did some of the scanning over the winter and spring, but I was supposed to be finished by now. So my plan is to do a bunch of prep on what needs to be finished and see how much I can complete this Sunday.

Won't you join me? We'll be scanning and chatting using Windows Live Messenger this Sunday, July 27th from 11 AM to 2 PM, PDT. Scanning can be tedious, but not when you're chatting with genealogy friends. It seems like there's always a new "face" in our chat conversations these days, so we're expanding our social network AND getting some much-needed preservation finished! Here's how to join us:

You'll need a Hotmail or Gmail account, and Windows Live Messenger downloaded to your computer (Mac users go here to download Microsoft Messenger for Mac). Although Windows Live Messenger states that it is compatible with Yahoo! e-mail accounts, we have had difficulty adding Yahoo! users to our chat conversation.

If you don't already have a Hotmail or Gmail account, it's very easy (and free) to set one up. Just go to the links in the previous paragraph. Once you have gotten set up, send me an e-mail (my address is found on this page) and I'll add you to our chat list. You'll receive an invitation message from me at the e-mail address that you've set up for Messenger, and then you will need to verify that I can add you as a contact for Windows Live Messenger.

The second thing you need to do to prepare for scanning is go to Sally's website here and sign up for her free e-mail newsletter. This will then allow you to download her helpful information called 8 Blunders People Make When They Scan Photographs...and How You Can Avoid Them All. Then you will know how to set your scanner correctly to enable you to scan your items without damaging the originals or compromising the digital images you create.

Sunday, just sign in to Windows Live Messenger and look for me. I'll add you to our conversation!

FamilySearch Teams with findmypast.com and Others to Broaden Access to All Censuses for England and Wales

Online Volunteer Indexers Sought to Improve Select Collections

SALT LAKE CITY—FamilySearch announced today that it is joining forces with findmypast.com, The Origins Network, and Intelligent Image Management—companies that specialize in providing online access to British family history resources—to make significant British historical record collections more broadly available online. The first joint initiative seeks to publish online indexes to censuses for England and Wales from 1841 to 1901. The 1841 and 1861 Census indexes are the first targeted under the agreement and are accessible now at FamilySearch.org and findmypast.com.

In the agreement, FamilySearch, in conjunction with The Origins Network, will provide digital images for the 1851, 1871, and 1881 Censuses. It will also extend the 1871 Census index. Findmypast.com will provide FamilySearch copies of its English and Welsh Census indexes from 1841 to 1901. The Federation of Family History Societies will help complete the index for the 1851 Census.

Initially, users of FamilySearch.org will be able to do a free search by record type, given name, surname, age, gender, place of birth, and relationship to head of household (relationship was not recorded in the 1841 Census). The free search capability at FamilySearch.org will include additional fields of data in the future. Users will be able to search the full indexes and view original images for free at FamilySearch’s 4,500 Family History Centers or for a nominal fee at findmypast.com.

The addition of findmypast.com’s English and Welsh Census Collections to FamilySearch’s online databases will increase the use of the valuable record sets and increase traffic to findmypast.com.

Jay L. Verkler, Managing Director for FamilySearch, said, “The new images and additional information provided by FamilySearch will significantly enhance and improve the overall English and Welsh Census collection. And its addition to FamilySearch.org will increase awareness of the rich Web resources of FamilySearch affiliates and the likelihood of success for FamilySearch.org patrons doing British research.”

Elaine Collins, Commercial Director at findmypast.com, commented, “Findmypast.com is delighted to be working with FamilySearch to launch the British Census Collection online. Censuses are the core building blocks for family historians and genealogists alike, and now, at last, here is the definitive version. This has been a very exciting project for us, and we look forward to collaborating with FamilySearch in the future to bring other important collections to an ever wider international audience.”

FamilySearch will utilize its impressive online community of volunteer indexers to add more fields of data to select censuses. When finished, the improved census indexes will be available on FamilySearch.org, findmypast.com, and Originsnetwork.com. Individuals interested in volunteering as online indexers for British historical projects can do so at FamilySearch.org.

Ian Galbraith, CEO of The Origins Network and Upal Rahman, President of Intelligent Image Management (IIM) Inc. said, "The FamilySearch England and Wales Census project is clearly a milestone initiative in the history of genealogical research. It heralds a new era of easier accessibility to a mountain (literally!) of genealogical material available hitherto only to the privileged few, if at all. We are delighted to be working with FamilySearch and proud that they have chosen for the FamilySearch Website the 1841 and 1871 UK censuses—the most accurate available—which The Origins Network and IIM jointly developed."

FamilySearch and Ancestry.com Team to Publish New Images and Enhanced Indexes to the U.S. Censuses

New 1900 Census Images Now Available on Ancestry.com; Volunteer Indexers Sought to Improve the 1920 U.S. Census Index

SALT LAKE CITY—Ancestry.com and FamilySearch, the two largest online family history resources, announced today they will exchange records and resources to make more historical records available online. The first project is a joint initiative to significantly enhance the online U.S. Federal Census Collection (1790 to 1930). The original census records are among the holdings of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).

FamilySearch is digitally converting master microfilm copies of the original U.S. Federal Censuses from 1790 through 1930 and, under this agreement, will give these improved images to Ancestry.com. All census images and indexes will be available on Ancestry.com for subscribers. As projects are completed, images will be available for free in NARA reading rooms and FamilySearch’s 4,500 Family History Centers.

Ancestry.com, which currently offers indexes and images to the entire publicly available U.S. Federal Census Collection, will give FamilySearch copies of its existing census indexes. Through its online indexing system and community of volunteer indexers, FamilySearch is already indexing select censuses. FamilySearch will merge the Ancestry.com indexes with the new FamilySearch indexes to create enhanced census indexes, which will be added to both sites. Indexes to the enhanced censuses will be free on Ancestry.com for a limited time as they are completed. Indexes will also be available for free on FamilySearch.org.

Allen Weinstein, the Archivist of the United States, welcomed this agreement as a significant benefit for researchers. He remarked that, “Census records are among the most important documents the American people have to trace their genealogy and know their family history. Having two of our partners working together to enhance the indexes and images of these essential documents will enable an unprecedented level of access and understanding.”

The first census exchanged is the 1900 U.S. Census. FamilySearch completed a 1900 index in addition to Ancestry.com’s original. In the new index, FamilySearch added several new fields of searchable data, such as birth month and birth year, so individuals can search for ancestors more easily. The two indexes will be merged into an enhanced index, available on both sites. The new 1900 census images are now available on Ancestry.com. The enhanced 1900 index will be available for free for a limited time at Ancestry.com and ongoing at FamilySearch.org.

Ancestry.com will also provide FamilySearch its original 1920 U.S. Census index. Using the Ancestry.com index as a first transcription, FamilySearch will create a new second index with added fields and arbitrate any discrepancies between the two indexes. The 1920 project is currently in progress. Individuals interested in helping create the improved index can volunteer at FamilySearch.org. Once completed, the enhanced 1920 index will be available on both sites and will link back to images on Ancestry.com.

The 1850 through 1870 (partial) and 1880 and 1900 U.S. Censuses can be searched currently at FamilySearch.org; all publicly available U.S. Censuses are already available on Ancestry.com.

Tim Sullivan, president and CEO of The Generations Network, Inc., parent company of Ancestry.com, said, “This collaboration represents a significant step forward in making family history research more accessible. The enhanced U.S. Federal Census Collection that will become available through this agreement is a gold mine for family history researchers, and we look forward to collaborating with FamilySearch in identifying other opportunities to help people discover their roots.”

“The U.S. Censuses are arguably the most important collection of U.S. genealogical records. FamilySearch is excited to see the complete, improved indexes of these collections freely available online over the next two years. And we look forward to working with Ancestry.com to enhance access to additional, significant collections in the future,” said Jay Verkler, Managing Director for FamilySearch.

It's a Boy!

Ethan was born 10 July 2008 in Grand Rapids, Kent Co., Michigan to my cousin Mark and his wife Annette. He joins big brother Miles Danger--yes, danger IS his middle name! Mother and baby are doing well.

This makes grandson number four for my uncle and aunt. Stay tuned as I will be announcing in the very near future grandchild number five/granddaughter number one!

It's Carnival Time!

Two carnivals were posted today. The first was the 9th Edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy, whose topic was "Research Experiences and Techniques." Jessica Oswalt has hosted this carnival at her blog, Jessica's Genejournal. There were seven submissions by five bloggers, including a first time carnival submitter. (I was not a participant this time.)

poster courtesy of footnoteMaven

The other carnival was the 52nd Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy, whose topic was "Age." Lisa of 100 Years in America hosted this edition, which had 29 submissions by 28 bloggers. My post, "What's Age Got to Do with It?", can be found here; but alas! apparently I was so excited about getting my post finished a day ahead of the due date (instead of the day of, as usual for me), that I forgot to submit it in time. Oh, well! Lisa was so kind to squeeze in my entry! By the way, "well done" to both Lisa and Jessica for all the work they did on their respective carnivals!

The topics for both of these next carnivals will be a Carousel Theme, which means the bloggers may pick their own topic. The due date for the 10th Edition of Carnival of Central and European Genealogy is August 4th; submissions can be entered here. The due date for the 53rd Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy will be August 1 and you can enter your articles here.

Now go enjoy some great reading!

The CHAPLIN - MARTIN Marriage Certificate

Source: Chaplin - Martin Certificate of Marriage. Washington. Clark County. Marriage Certificates 1889 - 1977. Digital image. Washington State Digitial Archives. http://www.digitalarchives.wa.gov/ : 2008.

Yes, I realize that Wordless Wednesday is supposed to be about displaying a photograph, not a document. Inspired by George Geder's posts of posting ancestral photos on Wednesday and then a biographical sketch on Thursdays, I started doing WW back in February, based on a pattern of showing ancestral photos from my father-in-law's, father's, mother-in-law's, and mother's family trees, in that order. The problem was, I don't have access to many photos from my mother-in-law's family, and I don't believe she does, either. Unless I can come in contact with some of her relatives and obtain scans of ancestral photos (if there are any), I'm relegated to displaying photos of tombstones and images of documents. So be it!

I did want to feature this document, however, for a variety of reasons. My husband's family (both parents' sides) has lived in this state since the early 1900s, and Washington State has a wonderful open-record policy, perhaps one of the best in the nation. In addition, the Washington State Digital Archives and FamilySearch Labs are featuring both indexes and images of county, state, and federal records for Washington residents. I'm waiting impatiently for FamilySearch to release the images that have been indexed on their pilot site, and decided to help them along by doing some indexing on that specific collection. That in itself has been a lot of fun...to see records from Stevens County (where my parents live), Spokane County (my residence), and Klickatat County (which we pass through on the way to visit my in-laws). I recognize all these little towns which certainly helps in determining messy handwritten locations on death certificates!

Besides featuring a document with personal sentiment from the fabulous digital archives site, I thought this record was unique because it contains the signatures of four my husband's direct ancestors. John Franklin and Angelia Rebecca (LUKE) MARTIN were Leona Mary MARTIN's parents. Forest "Frank" L. CHAPLIN and Leona were my mother-in-law's parents. I've always seen Forest's name spelled with two Rs, but here he signs it with one. Hmm... I had the privilege of meeting the widowed Leona once--at our wedding--and then attended her funeral in 1993. I've mentioned Leona and her twin brother Lee before in one of my earlier Wordless Wednesdays.

Wordless Wednesday: CHAPLIN - MARTIN Certificate of Marriage

Source: Chaplin - Martin Certificate of Marriage. Washington. Clark County. Marriage Certificates 1889 - 1977. Digital image. Washington State Digitial Archives. http://www.digitalarchives.wa.gov/ : 2008.

What's Age Got to Do With It?

The 52nd Carnival of Genealogy is all about Age: Who lived to be the oldest in your family tree? Who was the youngest when they got married? What was the greatest age difference between couples? I decided to stick with direct ancestors, because I'm fortunate to know the names and much of the vital information of all my ancestors through my 4th-great-grandparents, with the exception of five of that generation and one of my 3rd-great-grandmothers. So after analyzing my database, I came up with the following:

My longest-living known ancestor was William SAYERS, who was actually my 5th-great-grandfather (I'm keeping the rest of my statistics to the 4th-greats on down). He was born in 1758 in Letterkenny, County Donegal, Ireland, and immigrated with children and grandchildren around 1830 to Prince Edward Co., Ontario, Canada. He would have been around 72 years old when he traversed the North Atlantic in a wooden sailing vessel...amazing! We know his age at death in 1860 because a cousin who researched this line found mention of his great age in census records. This family line, which includes my WILKINSONs and LEWISes, had many descendants who lived into their late 80s and 90s. In fact, my great-great-grandfather, George Emmett LEWIS, a carpenter, built his last house when he was in his 90s. He fell off the roof he was shingling, but left the hospital "because they're for old people." He returned to his job and finished the house! When he died at the age of 96, he had 125 living descendants.

I have eight ancestors within the recent seven generations who died in their 30s; of these, Ann Elizabeth ROCKWELL (died when her apron caught fire) and Nelson H. PECK (cause of death unknown) were the youngest, both dying at age 30.

Four ancestral brides were only 14 when they married: Mary Jane BARBER; Marinda ROBBINS; Fannie MARBLE; and Mary Lucy WRIGHT. The youngest grooms--Angelo Merrick ROBBINS, Sr. , Benjamin Henry KIMBALL, and Martin HOEKSTRA--were 18; none of them married the 14-year-old brides! Martin's maternal grandparents, Filippus Willems JONKER (40) and wife Catharina Klaassens van der LAAN (22), had the greatest age difference: 18 years. And their daughter (Martin's mother), Grietje JONKER, with her husband Jan Martens HOEKSTRA were the oldest couple to marry, at 35 and 47 years old, respectively. It was a second marriage for them both.

While these statistics may not be necessary for family history research, they do make it interesting! Have you looked at the ages of your ancestors or family members and found something amazing about them?

Written for the 52nd Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy.

Happy Bastille Day!

Image courtesy of 3D Flags

Happy Bastille Day to any of my readers that also have French ancestry! My children and I don't have a lot of French in us, but I did some looking through my family tree database and came up with the following:

One of my children's father s maternal 2nd-great-grandfathers was François Joseph MARTIN (c. 1828 - 1897), born in Strasbourg, Alsace, France, son of François MARTIN and Anna Eve ROUECHE. He emigrated to America before 1848, marrying Rachel HUBBY, of Scots and English ancestry, that year in Illinois. This line is probably the most recent and heaviest French line of all our children's ancestors.

In another maternal line, my children have DeVERRE ancestry that came out of Louisiana into Kentucky by the early 1800s. It's probable that this is another French line.

A 9th-great-grandfather on my father's side was Jacques CAUDEBEC who, according to family history, was born c. 1666 in Caudebec, Normandy, France. The village was likely Caudebec-en-Caux. Jacques emigrated to New York City, where he married a Dutch woman, Margaretta PROVOOST. If my family history is correct, both died at advanced ages in what is now Orange County, New York.

On my mother's side, one of her lines that came out of the Province of Friesland, the Netherlands, was the RENEMA family. It is very likely that this surname is a French derivative (it literally means "of René"--not a Dutch name!) and may be a reference to a French Huguenot (Protestant) patriarch who may have left France for religiously tolerant Holland after the Edict of Fontainebleau.

None of these lines produce much more than a drop in the bucket of our children's combined ancestry, which is mainly German, English, Dutch and Frisian, Norwegian and Scots. However, it is interesting to review, and perhaps someday I will do some active research on these families.

The 3rd Edition of the "I Smile for the Camera" Carnival is Posted

logo courtesy of footnoteMaven

"Celebrate Home" is the topic of the 3rd edition of the "I Smile for the Camera" Carnival, which footnoteMaven has created on her new blog, Shades of the Departed, a free digital publication which highlights photography and genealogy. My entry for this carnival was "Home is Where the Heart Is," and was joined by 19 others. There are beautiful photos, thoughtful Wordles (you'll have to read the posts to discover what that is!), and heartwarming stories, all celebrating the ideal of Home.

The topic for the next edition is "My Favorite Photograph":

Choose a photograph of an ancestor, relative, yourself, or an orphan photograph that is your favorite family photo or that photograph you've collected and wouldn't give up for a King's ransom.

Is it the only photograph of an ancestor, is it funny, poignant, or very rare? My favorite photograph is the first one I ever collected. What's yours? Share it with us! Then get back out in the summer sun.

Your submission may include as many or as few words as you feel are necessary to describe your treasured photograph. Those words may be in the form of an expressive comment, a quote, a journal entry, a poem (your own or a favorite), a scrapbook page, or a heartfelt article. The choice is yours!

The deadline is midnight, 10 August 2008. Submissions may be entered here.

Elenor "Nellie" L. (VREELAND) LEWIS (1835 - 1912)

Source: Lewis, Elenor "Nellie" Vreeland. Photograph. Date unknown. Original photograph in the possession of Jeanne Holst Robbins, Fulton, Texas. 2008.

This photograph, within its oval oak frame and thick convex glass, adorned the walls of my paternal grandparents' living room in Coopersville, Ottawa Co., Michigan for many years, along with its mate, the photo of Nellie's husband, John Wallace LEWIS. Nellie was of the eighth generation of VREELANDs who had made North America their home. Her 5th-great-grandparents, Michiel Janszen VREELAND (1610 - c. 1663) and Sofitje HARTMANS (1611 - 1697) were immigrant ancestors from the Netherlands to the New Netherlands (present-day New York State and New Jersey). Perhaps you have a family line in which many of the men (or women) are given a certain first name, often to honor the patriarch of the family or an immigrant ancestor. In my SWEERS family line (unrelated to the people in this particular post), that name is Daniel; and in my VREELAND family line, it is Hartman. Nellie's 4th-great-grandfather, her 2nd-great-grandfather, her grandfather, a brother, and a son were all named Hartman, in honor of Sofitje HARTMANS VREELAND. (Hartman would also have been Sofitje's father's name; the patronym Hartmans literally means "Hartman's daughter.") The VREELAND family had lived all those generations in New Jersey until sometime between 1840 and 1843, when Nellie's parents, John P. VREELAND and Mary KANOUSE settled in York Twp., Washtenaw Co., Michigan.

Besides brother Hartman, who was about a year younger than Nellie, there were older siblings John H., Elizabeth, and Sarah, and younger siblings George W., Mary Esther, and Martha A. VREELAND. On 20 April 1867, Nellie married John Wallace LEWIS, a New York native who had come to Washtenaw County perhaps to start a new life, having been widowed, leaving his two young children in the care of his parents back in Oswego Co., New York.

John and Nellie had seven children, although our family history only lists five: George Emmett (my great-grandfather); John Wallace, Jr.; Esther Mary "Ette"; Hartman (named for Nellie's brother); and Ida May LEWIS. It was when the 1880 U.S. Federal Census Index was released on CD by FamilySearch that I discovered two more children that remain elusive in our family history: Ethel and Willie. Ethel was born c. 1875 and Willie c. 1879, both in Michigan. Willie's age was listed as one year old, while Ida, known to have been born 11 February 1879, was shown as two years old--curious! I cannot find these two children in any birth, death, or burial records, and they don't appear again on federal census records (I have yet to search the 1884 and 1894 state censuses). In the 1900 U.S. Federal Census, Nellie states that had given birth to five children, five of whom were living. So who were Ethel and Willie? If they were adopted children (perhaps a niece, nephew, or cousins), I've still been unable to find their births listed under John and Nellie's siblings' names.

The Lewis family lived in the Clinton and Washtenaw County area for quite a few years, and it appears to have been a back-and-forth migration. George (1868), Esther (1874) and Hartman (1876) were born in Clinton County, while John, Jr. (1870) was born in Washtenaw County, where his parents had married (1867). The family was in Washtenaw County in 1870 (federal census), but in Clinton County in 1874 (state census). Sometime between 1876 and 1879, the family relocated west to Muskegon County, where they farmed in Whitehall Township until the late 1880s, then moved to Blue Lake Township. There they stayed until at least 1900.

John died 9 February 1908 in Whitehall Village, followed four months later by son John, Jr. Nellie probably went to live with married daughter Ida in Pontiac, Oakland Co., Michigan. She does not have a death record in Muskegon County, but is buried there in Oakhurst Cemetery, Whitehall Twp. with her husband and numerous descendants. Her gravestone reads "1835 - 1912." My goal is to get her death record and obituary.

Source: Tombstone of Elenor L. "Nellie" (Vreeland) Lewis, Oakhurst Cemetery, Whitehall Twp., Michigan. Photograph taken at the request of Miriam Robbins Midkiff by Toni Falcon, volunteer for Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness. 2005.

Home is Where the Heart Is

Source: Lewis Family Reunion, probably in Muskegon Co., Michigan. Photograph. C. 1924. Original photograph in the possession of Jeanne Holst Robbins, Fulton, Texas. 2008. Cropped reprint in the possession of Miriam Robbins Midkiff, Spokane, Washington. 2008.

I didn't know what I was going to write for the 3rd Edition of the "I Smile for the Camera" Carnival: Celebrate Home hosted by the footnoteMaven at Shades of the Departed. As a child, we moved around quite a bit, part and parcel of having parents who worked for The Salvation Army. I realized after living in my current house for six years that that was the longest I had ever lived at one address! My ancestors were awfully migratory, too. Even the homes in Michigan that my parents grew up in were not the homes that my grandparents lived in when we would visit them when I was a child. There isn't one location or old homestead that's been in my direct family line for generations, and I'm probably a pretty normal American in that respect.

So, then, what is home? If you read my profile, you'll read the following:

I consider three locations my "home" and blog frequently about them: Alaska (where I was born and grew up); Michigan (where most of my genealogical research takes place); and Eastern Washington (my residence since 1979).

All three of those places have a piece of my heart in them. Alaska is full of those precious and innocent childhood memories one carries through life...and one small grave of a little boy. Michigan contains happy thoughts of loving grandparents, doting aunts and uncles, and playful cousins, along with the deep, quiet knowledge that generation after generation of family have lived in this peninsula beginning from as early as the 1830s. Washington holds the physical homes of those I hold most dear: my immediate family, my parents, my siblings, my nephews and nieces, an aunt and cousins, numerous in-laws.

The home--or structure--in the photograph above may have been built by my carpenter 2nd-great-grandfather, George Emmett Lewis, who stands alone on the top step of the porch. Whether this was the Lewis home or not, this photograph symbolizes to me the idea of home: it's a place, whether a physical location (the old house or homestead), your memory (thoughts of times gone by), or a place in your heart (love for family and friends). Home is wherever your heart is!

Eastern Washington: A State of Emergency

I've heard a lot of sirens today. We've had high winds all across the Inland Northwest, and they've caused downed trees and power lines. Additionally, there have been a number of fires, both wildfires and incredibly, suspicious structure fires. A three-alarm fire at a business in West Central Spokane was the first big news of the day, in what officials believe was arson. The high winds caused authorities to shut down traffic in the area so that fire crews could contain the flames.

When I went to pick up my daughter from work at 6 PM in North Spokane, we noticed that traffic was at a crawl on the small arterial in front of her workplace. Only an hour earlier, two blocks over on the larger arterial, a motorcyclist had been involved in a head-on collision. He died shortly after. Police had rerouted traffic from that street to the one by my daughter's work while they investigated. In addition, there were four garage fires right by that same street. I am wondering if the motorcycle-automobile collision was caused by rubber-necking drivers who were distracted by emergency crews or vehicles attending to those fires. UPDATE: I was right.

My son, daughter, and I went out to dinner with their uncle's family to celebrate our niece's birthday. As we drove home, we noticed dark clouds of dust? smoke? to the southeast of us, in the Spokane Valley. When we arrived home, there was a message on my answering machine from my sister. She was preparing to evacuate herself and her three young boys because of a wildfire in her neighborhood (that was the smoke we had seen). They were going to her best friend's home, and in her message she said that her cell phone wasn't working too well. I attempted to call her and when I couldn't get through, I called her friend. While I was on the phone with the friend, my sister texted her friend's cell phone and asked her to tell me to call our parents. My sister's cell phone was able to send and receive text messages, but phone service was sketchy. Neither my sister nor I was able to reach our aunt, who lives only a few blocks away from where the fire had started in a gated community at the foot of the Dishman Hills.

I called my parents who live in the mountains north of Colville in Stevens County and spoke with my dad to let him know my sister and nephews were okay and where they were going to stay. He had also been unable to reach my aunt (his sister). He said the power was out at their home and trees were down all over the county. There also had been wildfires here and there around Colville, but they were small ones and nowhere near their home. However, there are wildfires in the area around Kettle Falls, further west.

My children's father, who works out in the valley, called and we discussed the fire near him. It was about three miles southwest of him, so not a danger, but he said there was another small one to the north of his work location.

Next, a friend of my dad's called to ask if my sister and aunt were all right. I updated him on the news and he told me that about a dozen huge trees were down in the city park in Colville. I was able later to view photos of this on one of the local television stations. I was just up in Colville yesterday, speaking to the Northeast Washington Genealogical Society on a beautiful, calm, hot sunny day, and drove by that very park with its stately Ponderosa Pines and Douglas Firs.

At last, I received a text message from my sister as she was leaving her home. She had been watching TV and saw my aunt checking into a local high school which was set up by the Red Cross as an evacuation center. At least four homes have burned in that neighborhood, and of course, we have no idea whose they are. The fire is still out of control, although thankfully, temperatures are dropping as well as the wind. Earlier, a number of firefighters had to use their fire shelters because the firestorm was hopping around so much they couldn't safely retreat.

The governor has declared a state of emergency for Spokane and Ferry Counties, and the Stevens County commissioners have also declared a state of emergency for their county. Thousands are without power from the Canadian border down to close to the Oregon border. Northern Idaho is also suffering fires and winds; portions of Interstate 95 have been closed. Photos and videos of these stores can be viewed at KREM2.

I'm very grateful that all my loved ones are safe.

Wordless Wednesday Rerun: Elenor "Nellie" VREELAND

Source: Lewis, Elenor "Nellie" Vreeland. Photograph. Date unknown. Original photograph in the possession of Jeanne Holst Robbins, Fulton, Texas. 2008.

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.

Midkiff Genea-Wordle-gy

I'm obsessed...!

Wordle You Like to Know My Surnames?

Blame it on footnoteMaven...

RootsMagic Has a Blog

If you're a fan of RootsMagic software (as I am), you'll be pleased to know that president Bruce Buzbee has begun the RootsMagic blog. Regular readers of genealogy blogs will understand the significance of Bruce's first post, "The RootsMagic 'Insider'," as a play on words regarding a certain genealogy subscription website's blog. In this post, Bruce announces that RootsMagic 4 is "rumored" to be released soon. I'm very excited to hear confirmation of this rumor (I've been hearing about it for a while), and can't wait to purchase the latest version.

I've blogged before about how I used FamilyOrigins for years (my dad found me a copy somewhere), and refused to switch to any other software even after the company went out of business, feeling it was superior to everything else that was being offered. One software company tried to advertise that their software was the "upgrade" from FamilyOrigins simply because they had bought out FamilyOrigins. I wasn't fooled. When RootsMagic started up and took the original FamilyOrigins program and worked to improve and upgrade it, I was sold. They kept all that was good about FamilyOrigins and endeavored to make it the best and easiest-to-use family tree software available on the market, for a reasonable price. Unlike another genealogy software company that shall remain nameless, they don't pump out a new version every one to two years "just because."

Throughout the last couple of years on my blog, I've mentioned how much I love RootsMagic and how wonderful the source wizard is at creating quality citations. It's software I recommend each and every time to all my Online Genealogy students or whenever I'm asked when I'm speaking at a genealogical society. I've seen a number of genealogy bloggers become sold on this software, too, Ruth of Bluebonnet Country Genealogy being the latest.

Even if you're not a RootsMagic user, I hope you'll become a reader of the RootsMagic blog. You'll be sure to learn a lot about the way this software works, as well as upcoming features in the new version, during the next few posts.

The 51st Carnival of Genealogy is Published

Poster created by the footnoteMaven

"Independent Spirit" is the theme of the newly-posted 51st Carnival of Genealogy, hosted by Thomas MacEntee of Destination: Austin Family. Twenty-three genea-bloggers shared a story of a man or woman in their family tree that marched to a different drum or had an independent spirit. My post was "An Independent Man: John WILKINSON, Jr." and can be read here.

The theme of the 52nd Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy is "Age" and will be hosted by Lisa at 100 Years in America:

Do you have a member of the family who went to work to support the family while still of a tender age? Someone who accomplished something that was typically done by others beyond his or her years? A couple who married young? A couple with disparate ages? A family member who accomplished something of note at an advanced age? How about family members that lived many years, outlasting many of their relatives and friends?

With the understanding that "age is often a state of mind", share your family story about someone whose story stands out because of their age, either young or old. Submit your blog article for the Carnival of Genealogy using our carnival submission form.

Submissions will be due July 15th.

Happy Independence Day!

The fourth--and my favorite--stanza of The Star-Spangled Banner:

Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand

Between their loved home and the war's desolation!

Blest with victory and peace, may the heav'n rescued land

Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.

Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,

And this be our motto: "In God is our trust."

And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave

O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

--Francis Scott Key, 1814

Animated graphic from 3D Flags

Ann (WILSON) WESTABY (1822 - 1902)

Source: Westaby, Ann Wilson. Photograph. Date unknown (c. 1870s - 1880s?). Original photograph believed to be in the possession of David Eden, Bushnell, Illinois. 2008.

Ann WILSON was my husband's 3rd-great-grandmother, and of all our English ancestors, one of the most recent immigrant ones. She was born 22 October 1822 (her family Bible says October 21st), probably in Holton Le More, Lincolnshire, England, the seventh of ten or eleven children born to William WILSON and his wife Maria [--?--]. Ann married George Rice WESTABY of Barrow-Upon-Humber, Glanford Brigg, Lincolnshire 12 April 1850 in Glanford Brigg. I've blogged before about how Ann, George, George's brother Charles, a number of WILSONs and some possible relatives, the MILLTHORPEs, arrived in New York City on 22 May 1822 on the Western World. The WESTABYs made their way to Jo Daviess Co., Illinois, where they lived in the Apple River and Woodbine communities.

Ann and George had seven children: Stephen, Thomas William, Wilson, Mary Maria, George Rice (my husband's ancestor, who always went by his middle name), a child who apparently died young, and James. Only four--Stephen, Tom, Wilson, and Rice--survived childhood. However, they raised Ann's grandnephew, Thomas WILSON, born 28 August 1864, whom Ann brought with her to Illinois after a visit to relatives in England sometime before 1878. Thomas' grandfather is not named in The History of Jo Daviess County, Illinois (published 1878 by H.F. Kett & Co., Chicago); he would have had to have been one of Ann's brothers who survived childhood: Thomas, William, or Robert--although, I suppose it's always likely that Ann's grandnephew was the grandson of one of Ann's sisters, perhaps unmarried: Mary, Sarah, Elizabeth, or Maria (who may have been a niece, not a sister of Ann).

I have another digital copy of a photograph of Ann, taken during her elder years. Not a particularly attractive woman to begin with, this photo shows she suffered from female baldness, whether from genetics or ill health:

Source: Westaby, Ann Wilson. Photograph. Date unknown (c. 1890s - 1902?). Original photograph believed to be in the possession of David Eden, Bushnell, Illinois. 2008.

What Ann did leave behind to her son Stephen when she passed away on 10 March 1902 was her family Bible. Recently, a descendant of hers contacted me after seeing family tree information online, which I had posted. He generously scanned the Bible and sent the scans to me on discs. This was a treasure, because it confirmed and/or corrected written family records that had been handed down without citation through the generations to my husband's maternal grandmother. In addition, it provided a residence for Ann's parents (Holton Le More) which we did not have previously.

Source: Westaby, Ann Wilson, Family Bible Records, 1802 - 1878. The New Testament of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. New York: American Bible Society, unknown date. Privately held by David Eden, Bushnell, Illinois. 2008.



Source: Tombstone of Ann (Wilson) Westaby. Thompson Cemetery, Jo Daviess Co., Illinois. Digital photograph taken by Find A Grave photo volunteer Bonnie Sellig. Digital copy in the possession of Miriam Robbins Midkiff, Spokane, Washington. 2001.

Wordless Wednesday Rerun: Ann (WILSON) WESTABY (1822 - 1902)

Source: Westaby, Ann Wilson. Photograph. Date unknown (c. 1870s - 1880s?). Original photograph believed to be in the possession of David Eden, Bushnell, Illinois. 2008.

July Is...

...not a month that has a particular heritage associated with it. However, there are a number of national holidays and a historical celebration during this month:

July 1: Canada Day

July 4 - Independence Day (United States)

July 9: Independence Day (Argentina)

July 14: Bastille Day (France)

July 17 - Constitution Day (South Korea)

July 20: Independence Day ( Colombia)

July 24: Pioneer Day (observed by the State of Utah and members of the LDS church)

Do any of the above events feature in or affect your heritage, culture, or family history?

Carnival Deadlines:

Posted July 4 - 51st Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy - Independent Spirit

Posted July 14 - 3rd Edition of the Smile for the Camera Carnival - Celebrate Home

Posted July 18 - 52nd Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy - Age

Posted July 18 - 9th Edition of the Carnival of Central and European Genealogy - Research Experiences and Techniques

Posted July 28 - 7th Edition of the Carnival of Irish Heritage and Culture - Summer Reading Challenge

The Cabinet of Curiosities is on summer holiday until September. Tim Abbott is looking for hosts for future editions.

July 1 - Data Backup Day

Ken Spangler of Beyond Fiction shares his close call in "A Very Scary Last Few Days". Don't let this happen to you!


Scanfest: Sunday, July 27th, 11 AM - 2 PM, Pacific Daylight Time

Go here to learn how to join our group of chatting, scanning family archivists, historians, and bloggers!

Go here to add the above deadlines and dates to your Google Calendar, courtesy of Thomas MacEntee of Destination: Austin Family.