Free BCG Lecture Series in Salt Lake 11 Oct 2014

The following is from the Board of Certification for Genealogist.

Top genealogists Elissa Scalise Powell, Judy G. Russell, Elizabeth Shown Mills, and Stefani Evans will present six lectures at the Family History Library’s Floor B2 classroom in Salt Lake City Saturday, October 11, between 9 am and 4:45 pm. The lectures are free and open to the public, sponsored by the Board for Certification of Genealogists. The board is an independent certifying body and author of the updated 2014 Genealogy Standards.

Topics and speakers:

Saturday, 11 October 2014, Classroom on B2, FHL

9:00 – 9:30 a.m.

BCG Certification Seminar
Elissa Scalise Powell, CG, CGL

9:45 – 10:45 a.m.

Shootout at the Rhododendron Lodge: Reconstructing Life-Changing Events
Judy G. Russell, JD, CG, CGL

11:00 a.m. – noon

From the White Lion to the Emancipation Proclamation–Slavery and the Law Before the Civil War
Judy G. Russell, JD, CG, CGL

1:15 – 2:15 p.m.

Using Evidence Creatively: Spotting Clues in Run-of-the-Mill Records
Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL, FASG, FNGS, FUGA

2:30 – 3:30 p.m.

Oh, The Things You Can Map: Mapping Data, Memory, and Historical Context
Stefani Evans, CG

3:45 – 4:45 p.m. Keynote Address

Trousers, Black Domestic, Tacks & Housekeeping Bills: Trivial Details Can Solve Research Problems
Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL, FASG, FNGS, FUGA

“Whether you stop in for one lecture or all six, you will learn more about how to apply good methodology to your own family research,” said President Elissa Scalise Powell, CG, CGL. “The Board for Certification of Genealogists strives to foster public confidence in genealogy by promoting an attainable, uniform standard of competence and ethics. Educating all family historians of every level is part of this mission.”

You can see the poster here:
2014 Board for Certification of Genealogists free lectures   

For questions or more information contact: Nicki Birch, CG,office@BCGcertification.org.

Mark Your Calendars - UVTAGG Meeting!

The next regular, second-Saturday-of-the-month meeting of the Utah Valley Technology and Genealogy Group - UVTAGG (Formerly the Utah Valley PAF Users Group - UVPAFUG) will be on Saturday, 11 Oct 2014, from 9 am to noon in the LDS "Red Chapel", 4050 North Timpview Drive (650 East), Provo.  Information about the Group, meeting location, main presentations, classes, and class notes are available on their website  http://uvtagg.org  and the press releases are at  http://blog.uvtagg.org .  On the blog you can subscribe to receive the press releases via email when they are posted a week before the meeting.

The main presentation this month at UVTAGG is by Sharon Monson on THE FAMILYSEARCH CATALOG:  KEY TO THE COLLECTION.  The FamilySearch Catalog is the new version of the old Family History Library Catalog which has been retired.  It now includes much more than it used to.  Locating available books, microfilms, or microfiche for a certain place or subject depends on the depth of the catalog search criteria.  Basic searches such as Place, Last Name, Title, Author, Subject and Keyword, will be demonstrated and Ms. Monson will show how you can now instantly view original records in a Historical Records search.  Thousands of books are now online and many have updated indexes and all are every-word searchable.  She will show how to filter your searches to save time and effort.  

Sharon D. Monson is the founder of "GenSearch and more,".  She is an author and frequent conference presenter with extensive research experience spanning 30+ years in courthouses, the Family History Library, and repositories.  Her family history presentations cover a wide range of research methods, useful tips, source document locations and unusual resources.  She specializes in the Southern US region, where burned out counties and loss of records is the norm, and has learned to dig "deeper" and polish the skills necessary to find missing documentation.  As a Residential Appraiser for most of her life, she has learned to pay attention to details.  Examining what doesn't look right, or what appears to be in the wrong place, will often yield that previously missed clue.  She feels it is extremely important to use accurate information to support family data.  As the founder of GenSearch and more, her vision is to teach younger people how to search for their families.  So that no one gets left out, she also teaches those who aren't tech savvy how to use new technology in their search for ancestors.  More information about her is available at  http://icapgen.wordpress.com/2012/10/11/sharon-d-monson/ .  

After the main presentation the following classes are scheduled; check the meetings page at  http://uvtagg.org/  for last minute changes or additions.   

1. Treasures Found in US Military Records by Sharon Monson
2. LDS Partner Web Sites:  MyHeritage by Sue Maxwell
3. Family Tree Certified Programs: TreeSeek, RecordSeek, Puzilla, and RootsMapper by Don Snow and Linda Westover
4. Ask An Expert (Personal Help) by Don Engstrom and Finn Hansen
5. Video of last month's main presentation: Presenting and Preserving Your Family History: You Can't Take It With You, So How Do You Leave It? by Don Snow and Linda Westover
6. Ancestral Quest by Gaylon Findlay
7. Legacy: Custom Design Your Toolbar - Amazing Legacy Tools at Your Fingertips by Marilyn Thomsen
8. RootsMagic by Renee Zamora

As you can see, there is something for everyone no matter what their level of family history expertise, and this includes youth and those just getting interested in genealogy.  All meetings of UVTAGG are open to the public whether members of the Group or not.  The Group has the goal of helping individuals use technology to further their family history and there are usually about 100 attending the monthly meetings on the second Saturdays, most of whom are Family History Consultants. The officers are Gerhard Ruf, President; Laurie Castillo, 1st VP; Don Snow, 2nd VP; Renee Zamora, Secretary; Liz Kennington, Newsletter Editor; Don Engstrom and Rayanne Melick, Membership and Finances; Bruce Merrill and Marie Andersen, DVD Library; and Chris Stevenson, Webmaster.  Several of these will be at the meeting to answer questions, help with membership, distribute the current issue of the monthly newsletter TAGGology, and check out and sell to members of the Group DVDs of past presentations and classes.  Many members don't live close enough to participate in the monthly meetings, but pay the $10 per year online dues to belong so they can receive the monthly newsletter via email and purchase the inexpensive DVDs of the presentations and classes.  Gift memberships make great presents for family history-minded relatives, friends, and Family History Consultants.  See more information about the presentations, classes, class notes, and to join the Group on the websites above.  You can also contact President Gerhard Ruf at  pres@uvtagg.org (801-225-6106), or 1st VP Laurie Castillo at  laurie@everythingisrelative.net , or 2nd VP Don Snow at  snowd@math.byu.edu .

Announcing MacBridge: Run RootsMagic on Your Mac without Windows

The following is from RootsMagic.

Announcing MacBridge:

Run RootsMagic on Your Mac without Windows

One of the most common questions we are asked is, “When will RootsMagic run on a Mac?” With today’s release of MacBridge for RootsMagic 6, the answer is“right now”. MacBridge for RootsMagic 6 allows you easily install and run RootsMagic on your Mac in mere minutes with almost no additional setup or configuration.

MacBridge for RootsMagic is different than other solutions you may be familiar with. For starters, it does not install Windows on your Mac. It also does not create a slow and bulky virtual computer. It runs right on your Mac, using your Mac file system. You can even put the RootsMagic icon on your dock for easy one-click access! So while we are busily working on an actual native Mac version of RootsMagic, MacBridge for RootsMagic 6 gives you the ability to work on a Mac today.

Want to see it for yourself? Here’s a short video demonstrating how quick and easy it is to download and install RootsMagic onto your Mac:

Still have questions? Take a look at our answers to some Frequently-Asked Questions about MacBridge for RootsMagic.

Currently, MacBridge for RootsMagic 6 is available only as a download. The regular price is $14.95 but for a limited time, you can get it for only $9.95. So if you or someone you know uses a Mac and has felt left out of the RootsMagic magic, do yourself (or them) a favor and check out MacBridge for RootsMagic today!

RootsMagic Adds Direct TMG Import

The following is from RootsMagic.

RootsMagic Adds Direct TMG Import

On July 29th, Wholly Genes Software announced that they would be discontinuing "The Master Genealogist" (TMG).  Since then, quite a number of TMG users have contacted us directly and on our message boards asking what their options were for converting their data to RootsMagic. While data can be transferred to RootsMagic via GEDCOM, TMG loses many details as it exports to GEDCOM including witnesses, roles, source templates, and more.

We have just released a new RootsMagic update (v6.3.3) which adds a direct TMG import. This direct import not only imports basic genealogical information from TMG like names, events, notes, and media, but also imports witnesses (with roles), source templates, and sentence templates.  In fact, RootsMagic has the most complete TMG import available anywhere. Of course, due to different data models and template languages, no import can be 100% perfect but we have prepared a guide to make the transition as smooth as possible.

And to make it even easier for TMG users to transition to RootsMagic, for a limited time we are offering TMG users a competitive upgrade price of $19.95 for RootsMagic.  To find out more information about the TMG import and to get the TMG upgrade price, visit:

http://TMGUpgrade.com

We know that change isn't always easy, so if you know a TMG user who is contemplating moving to another genealogy software, feel free to let them know about this update and our special pricing for TMG users.

The New York Public Library has released an incredible collection of more than 20,000 maps

The following is from Sally Roles Pavia's Mailing List "Genealogy Bits and Pieces"

The New York Public Library has released an incredible collection of more than 20,000 maps 

US – The New York Public Library (NYPL) has released an incredible collection of more than 20,000 maps with no known copyright restrictions. These maps can be downloaded in high resolution format for free. The collection is diverse. Included are 1,100 maps of the mid-Atlantic United States from the 1500s to the 1800s; 700 topographical maps of the Austro-Hungarian empire from 1877 to 1914; 2,800 state, county and city maps mainly of New York and New Jersey and finally the really big one for genealogists: 10,300 property, zoning, topographical and Sanborn fire insurance maps of New York city from 1852 to 1922 as well as 1,000 additional maps of the five boroughs and neighborhoods dating from 1660 to 1922. The collection can be searched by keyword. Access is free. [Free Historic Maps of New York City]
http://tinyurl.com/olz6s7k

 

The website also has a tool that allows you to ‘warp’ (overlay) historic maps onto modern maps. We have talked about this before (the Map Warper tool is about three years old). Below is the YouTube video that describes how the process works. If you want to download a high-resolution copy of a map for your files, you need to do it through the Map Warper tool. Access is free. Registration is required. [NYPL Map Warper] Included in the NYPL map collection are estate sales of property with the deceased prominently mentioned in the advertisement. Source: From The Lionel Pincus & Princess Firyal Map Division, The New York Public Library This 1890 map of the Mulberry Bend district in New York City (bounded by Canal Street, Worth Street and Broadway) can be zoomed to show detail on individual buildings. Source: From The Lionel Pincus & Princess Firyal Map Division, The New York Public Library This YouTube video describes how the New York Public Library map warper tool works.

 

Now ALL Members Can Get Free Subscriptions to FamilySearch Partner Websites

The following is from FamilySearch.

As of today, free subscriptions to the FamilySearch partner sites Ancestry.com, findmypast.com, and MyHeritage.com will be available to ALL Latter-day Saints. These subscriptions provide access to the premium tools, features, and resources available on each website and can be used in the comfort of home. This free benefit is a $900 annual value and is a recognition of the investment of time and tithes members of the Church have made in the shared records. Free subscriptions are available here:    http://familysearch.org/partneraccess Open New Doors of Discovery Subscriptions to these commercial family history sites provide Latter-day Saints with about 3.5 times the online content (more than 17.8 billion records) to help them find and bring temple blessings to their ancestors. Currently, Church members can submit names to the temple through FamilySearch.org and Ancestry.com; similar functionality is being developed onfindmypast.com and MyHeritage.com.   Spread the Word We encourage you to share the good news with family, friends, and neighbors — and, of course, those you serve in your family history calling. Forward this email, post it on your Facebook timeline, and print this informational flyer and share it at church on Sunday.   Learn More Visit http://familysearch.org/partneraccess to register for free accounts (youth ages 13–17 require parental permission). For additional information about free LDS subscriptions to partner websites, contact FamilySearch Support atsupport@familysearch.org or 1-866- 406-1830.

US Obituaries Project Will Help Find Your Ancestors

The following is from FamilySearch.

Massive Online US Obituaries Project Will Help Find Your Ancestors

Volunteers making over a billion names from US death records searchable online

Salt Lake City, Utah —October 1, 2014—In celebration of Family History Month, FamilySearch International (FamilySearch.org) and GenealogyBank (GenealogyBank.com) today announced an agreement to make over a billion records from historical obituaries searchable online. It will be the largest—and perhaps most significant—online US historic records access initiative yet. It will take tens of thousands of online volunteers to make GenealogyBank’s vast U.S. obituary collection more discoverable online. Find out more at FamilySearch.org/Campaign/Obituaries. The tremendous undertaking will make a billion records from over 100 million US newspaper obituaries readily searchable online. The newspapers are from all 50 states and cover the period 1730 to present. The completed online index will be fairly comprehensive, including 85% of U.S. deaths from the last decade alone. The death collection will easily become one of the most popular online genealogy databases ever, detailing names, dates, relationships, locations of the deceased, and multi-generational family members. Family history information from obituaries are being indexed by volunteers and made searchable online. Obituaries can solve family puzzles, tell stories, dispel myths, and provide tremendous help with family history research. A single obituary can include the names and relationships of dozens of family members. For example, Alice E. Cummings’ obituary (See above) sheds light on where she lived during her lifespan, her personal history, and it provides information connecting five generations of ancestors and descendants in her family tree—14 people in all. Dennis Brimhall, CEO of FamilySearch, explained that obituaries are extremely valuable because they tell the stories of our ancestors’ lives long after they are deceased. He invites online volunteers to help unlock the “treasure trove” of precious family information locked away in newspaper obituaries. “Billions of records exist in US obituaries alone,” Brimhall said. “The average obituary contains the names of about ten family members of the deceased—parents, spouse, children, and other relatives. Some include much more. Making them easily searchable online creates an enormously important source for compiling our family histories. The number of people who will benefit from this joint initiative is incalculable.” GenealogyBank has over 6,500 historical U.S. newspapers and growing, spanning over 280 years. The death notices in these publications go beyond names and dates. They can provide insightful first-hand accounts about an ancestor that simply are not available from censuses or vital records alone. “Obituaries, unlike any other resource, have the ability to add incredible dimensions to an individual's family history research. They contain a wealth of information including facts and details that help capture the legacy of those who have passed on,” said Dan V. Jones, GenealogyBank Vice President. “The unique life stories written, dates documented, and generations of family members mentioned are often only found within an obituary, which makes them such an invaluable resource. Obituaries have the unique power to both tell a story and enable individuals to learn more about their family relationships. GenealogyBank is proud and excited to partner with FamilySearch in bringing these obituaries to researchers all over the world.” Volunteers Are Key The success of the massive US obituary campaign will depend on online volunteers. The obituaries are fairly simple to read, since they are digital images of the typeset, printed originals, but require human judgment to sort through the rich, historic data and family relationships recorded about each person. Information about online volunteering is available at FamilySearch.org/indexing. A training video, indexing guide, detailed instructions, telephone and online support are available to help new volunteer indexers if needed. FamilySearch.org volunteers have already indexed over one billion historic records online since 2006, including all of the available U.S. Censuses, 1790 to 1940. In 2012 volunteers rallied in a record-breaking effort to index the entire 1940 U.S. Census in just four months. Today, the US censuses, 1790 to 1940, are the most popular online databases for family history research. Indexed obituary collections can be searched online at FamilySearch.org and GenealogyBank.com. About FamilySearch FamilySearch International is the largest genealogy organization in the world. FamilySearch is a nonprofit, volunteer-driven organization sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Millions of people use FamilySearch records, resources, and services to learn more about their family history. To help in this great pursuit, FamilySearch and its predecessors have been actively gathering, preserving, and sharing genealogical records worldwide for over 100 years. Patrons may access FamilySearch services and resources free online at FamilySearch.org or through over 4,600 family history centers in 132 countries, including the main Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah. About GenealogyBank GenealogyBank.com is one of the largest exclusive collections of newspapers and historical documents for family history research. It provides information on millions of American families from 1630–today. Over 6,500 newspapers provide first-hand accounts of your ancestors’ lives that simply can't be found in other genealogy resources: obituaries, birth and marriage notices, photographs, hometown news and more. Over 380,000 historical books and documents from 1749-1994 include military records, widow's claims, orphan petitions, land grants, casualty lists, funeral sermons, biographies and much more. Discover the stories, names, dates, places and events that have shaped your family story at GenealogyBank.com.

Consultant Webinar: Member Triage: Adapting to Individual Needs

The following is from FamilySearch.

Family trees come in many shapes and sizes. Some members may have several generations of ancestors on their family tree. Some may only have a few. Some may only have themselves. A recent consultant webinar demonstrated how to analyze a member’s tree and adapt your approach to his or her individual needs. Watch the recording to learn how to: Identify the most common tree situations. Customize the help that you provide to each person. Help members in a variety of circumstances bring their ancestors to the temple. You can download the presentation slides for your own use. You can also download the handout. Try it yourself, and then help someone else! Watch Now

ICAPGen Conference - 50 Years of Excellence

ICAPGen Conference 

ICAPGen/BYU Center for Family History & Genealogy

Saturday, November 1, 2014 from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM

Joseph F. Smith Building - BYU, Provo, UT

The International Commission for the Accreditation of Professional Genealogists and the BYU Center for Family History and Genealogy present a combined conference featuring 42 lectures in 7 tracks for intermediate-advanced and professional genealogists.

To view the class schedule, map and other registration information,

 please visit http://icapgen.org. 

Heritage Collector Webinar - Getting Started With Heritage Collector Part 2

The following is from Heritage Collector.

Getting Started With Heritage Collector Part 2 Webinar Thursday October 9th   7:00 PM - 8:00 PM MDT

 This webinar will help you learn to: Create and share via a gift CD/DVD Share the Standard version on the Gift CD/DVD Use Hot Spots to label photos Text Hot Spots Audio Hot Spots Video Spots Making Storybook pages interactive Questions and Answers Click on the button below to sign up for the webinar

Did you miss the last webinar?

Good news! You will find a link to the recorded webinar by clicking the "Learn More" button above.

Improved Quality. Our webinar service provider has made major changes to their system and provided us with all the latest updates. We can now stream video with sound during our webinars! The quality of recorded webinars should also be much better.

Best Wishes,

Marlo E. Schuldt
President
LifeStory Productions, Inc.

Upcoming Timpanogos Storytelling Events

The following is from Timpanogos Storytelling.

The Timpanogos Storytelling Institute presents a free, family-friendly evening with award-winning storyteller and author Antonio Sacre at the Orem Public Library at 7:00 pm.  Join Sacre as he shares Spanish and English stories rooted in his own mixed cultural ancestry and folktales from around the world. Sacre's awards include an American Library Association's Notable Recipient Award, the Parent's Choice Gold and Silver Awards, and the National Association of Parenting Publications Gold Award. He has written ten plays and over thirty stories, published four picture books, and produced three CDs of his storytelling. This project is supported in part by the Utah Arts & Museums, with funding from the State of Utah and the National Endowment for the Arts.  Hauntings Finale Contest October 27, 2014   7:00 p.m.-Orem Public Library See the finalists compete and discover who gets crowned the winner of the spookiest story. Intended for older audiences, 12 and up recommended.   Hauntings Preliminary Contest October 10, 2014 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.-Orem Public Library Come enjoy a good spooky story during this first round of competition. Open to the public. Do You Have a Spooky Story to Tell? Registration Information-   The registration link to perform at the Hauntings contest is available here. $10 entry fee, pay here. Deadline for entries due by October 8, 2014, online at timpfest.org. For ages 12 and older. You will be contacted prior to the preliminary contest to schedule your performance time sometime between 5:00 and 9:00 p.m.Top performers from the preliminary contest will participate in the Hauntings Contest Finale on October 27, 2014. We look forward to hearing your story!   Enjoy an amazing evening as storyteller Steffani Raff and the Utah Valley Symphony celebrate the holidays with two special nights of stories and music. December 3-4, 2014, Covey Center for the Arts. Click here to purchase tickets.