Saturday, August 29, 2015

Tom Bergeron on Who Do You Think You Are? Sunday on TLC

This Sunday, August 30th at 9/8c TLC will air TV host’s Tom Bergeron’s episode of Who Do You Think You Are?

In the episode, Tom Bergeron sets out to unravel the murky history of his paternal roots. Tracing back over 400 years, he uncovers the dramatic story of his 10x great-grandparents, who endured brutal warfare and starvation in France. Then Tom follows their daughter, who was orphaned as a teenager and bravely set off across the Atlantic, playing a significant role in establishing the New World.



New FamilySearch Collections Update: August 25, 2015

The following is from FamilySearch.


 
New FamilySearch Collections Update: August 25, 2015
 
Significant birth, marriage, and death records for Imperia, Italy and Savonna, Italy were published this week. Georgia county marriages have also been added, dating back to 1785! Discover these and additional collections updated this week by selecting the links below.

COLLECTION
INDEXED RECORDS
DIGITAL RECORDS
COMMENTS
0
1,002,173
Added images to an existing collection
144,443
0
Added indexed records to an existing collection
95,523
96,875
New indexed records and images collection
862,440
304
Added indexed records and images to an existing collection
0
4,088,394
Added images to an existing collection
84,935
0
Added indexed records to an existing collection
586,960
0
Added indexed records to an existing collection
15
0
Added indexed records to an existing collection
0
4,154
Added images to an existing collection
213,905
0
Added indexed records to an existing collection

Help Us Publish More Free Records Online
Searchable historical records are made available on FamilySearch.org through the help of thousands of online volunteers worldwide. These volunteers transcribe (or index) information from digital copies of handwritten records to make them easily searchable online. More volunteers are always needed (particularly those who can read foreign languages) to keep pace with the large number of digital images being published weekly online on FamilySearch.org. Learn how you can volunteer to help provide free access to the world’s historical genealogical records online at FamilySearch.org/Indexing.
 
About FamilySearch International
FamilySearch 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 for free at FamilySearch.org or through more than 4,600 family history centers in 132 countries, including the main Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.

RootsTech 2016 Exhibitor Registration is Open and Filling Fast

The following is from RootsTech.

RootsTech 2016 Exhibitor Registration is Open and Filling Fast
Registration for RootsTech 2016 exhibitors is open and filling fast. We are almost 50% full with new submissions daily. As a RootsTech exhibitor, you will play critical role in supporting the vision of RootsTech, which is to celebrate families across generations through technology. If your product or service helps individuals to discover, preserve, and share family connections across generations, we invite you to submit an exhibitor application today on our website www.rootstech.org.
Best regards,
The RootsTech Team

Monday, August 24, 2015

The Family History Library Announces Free Classes for September 2015

The following is from the Family History Library.

The Family History Library Announces Free Classes for September 2015

These classes and workshops are designed to help individuals and families find their ancestors and teach others family history techniques. 

These classes and workshops are designed to help individuals and families find their ancestors and teach others family history techniques. 
Sep 3              11:00 A.M. British Resources on findmypast
                        1:00 P.M. British Resources on Ancestry.com
Sep 5                1:00 P.M. Recursos en línea además de FamilySearch.org
Sep 10              1:00 P.M. United States Civil War Records
                         6:00 P.M. Descendancy Research Webinar
Sep 17            11:00 A.M. British Resources on FamilySearch.org
                      11:00 A.M. Czech Online Church Records Webinar
                        1:00 P.M. Key Websites for British Research (Besides the “Big 3”)
Sep 19             10:00 A.M. Boy Scout Genealogy Merit Badge (1½ hours) To register, call 1-801-240-4673 at least one week before the workshop to ensure requirements are met before attending. 
                         1:00 P.M. Conozca el sitio PARES
                         2:00 P.M. Protocolos notariales
                         3:00 P.M. ¿No hay otros registros?
 Sep 22             1:00 P.M. Newspaper Research
 Sep 24             6:00 P.M. United States City Directories Webinar

Click on this link to access the Live Online Classes.  Or go to FamilySearch.org; click on Search; select Wiki. Type Family History Library andchoose the top entry. Click on 2.2 Live Online Classes for details; scroll to find the desired class.

ABOUT FAMILYSEARCH
FamilySearch International is the largest genealogy organization in the world. 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. FamilySearch is a nonprofit organization sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Guests may access FamilySearch services and resources free online at FamilySearch.org or through over 4,600 family history centers in 132 countries, including the renowned Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.

FamilySearch opens a new Seattle Family Discovery Center that provides fun, interactive experiences to celebrate family history.

The following is from FamilySearch.


FamilySearch opens a new Seattle Family Discovery Center
that provides fun, interactive experiences to celebrate family history.

High-tech “Museum of You” concept for center guides visitors to discover, share, and preserve their histories and memories.

At the Seattle Discovery Center in Bellevue, Washington, Trace Farmer of Seattle, Washington,
 discovers 4,586 people share his first name while using the “Discover My Story” experience.

BELLEVUE, WA—FamilySearch International announces the grand opening of its Seattle Family Discovery Center, the first to open outside its headquarters in Salt Lake City, Utah. Based in Bellevue, the center offers interactive experiences for visitors of all ages to discover, share, and preserve family histories and memories. It is free to the public. Find out more online at FamilySearch.org/discoverycenter/seattle.

Visitors to the center are provided with a tablet computer as a personal guide to interface with large touch screens, where they learn more about themselves, view family origins, and discover how ancestors may have lived and even dressed. Data used for the interactive experiences is drawn from online data at FamilySearch.org and select partners.

The center creates a “Museum of You” feeling through a variety of experiences and activities for children, five interactive station experiences, and software applications that explore family ancestral lines in fun, creative ways to help patrons discover famous relatives.

When asked how visitors respond to the new attraction, 16-year-old Brynn Stapley of Bellevue, Washington, said, “I see amazement at the technology, the information, and how it’s presented on big screens. Visitors get excited when they discover a little piece of new information that leads to more information about their families. I think people are surprised how much they learn about themselves and their cultural heritage and then leave eager to continue the journey.” Stapley is one of 23 volunteers at the center.

The center features a high-definition video recording studio, where visitors can answer questions about their life stories and archive the recording for long-term preservation so future children, grandchildren, or great-grandchildren can access the recording later. Visitors can also bring a USB drive to take home a copy of the recorded session.
Becca Escoto, 26, resident of Bellevue and center volunteer, said she met a couple engaged to be married and encouraged them to record their engagement story for their posterity. “It was exciting to see them in the studio, sharing a story that will be important for their future family members,” Escoto said. “What a perfect start to begin their family.” Escoto said she was also surprised to discover that she personally is an eighth cousin to President Barack Obama through their maternal family lines.

The Seattle Family Discovery Center is a free community attraction funded entirely by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, of which FamilySearch International is a nonprofit subsidiary.  “We believe our precious family relationships and experiences in this life do not end with death,” said Dennis Brimhall, CEO of FamilySearch International and managing director of the Family History Department of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

“Today family history research and telling, sharing, and preserving family memories through stories, photos, and technology are engaging a growing number of individuals of all ages from every faith and ethnicity like never before,” said Brimhall. “Youth want to discover themselves and their family’s history in fun, exciting ways, and adults want to strengthen family connections and leave enduring legacies. The discovery experiences provided by this facility will help do just that,” Brimhall added.

Planning for the Seattle Family Discovery Center has been years in development, and construction was completed in April 2015. In addition to the family discovery centers in Salt Lake and Seattle, FamilySearch has announced future centers in London, England, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The Seattle Family Discovery Center is located inside The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints facility at 15205 SE 28th Street in Bellevue, Washington.


Two visitors to the Family Discovery Center in Bellevue, Washington, use a tablet computer provided to each patron as a personal guide to interface with large touch screens that help patrons discover fun, new things about their family through FamilySearch data, photos and stories. 


About FamilySearch
FamilySearch International is the largest genealogy organization in the world. 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.  FamilySearch is a nonprofit organization sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Patrons may access FamilySearch services and resources free online at FamilySearch.org or through over 4,800 family history centers in 132 countries, including the renowned Family History Library in Salt Lake City.

Ancestral Quest is Now Available for Mac

The following is from Ancestral Quest.

Ancestral Quest is Now Available for Mac

Salt Lake City, Utah (August 19, 2015) – Incline Software, LC announced today thatAncestral Quest™, its family tree software, is now available for Mac.
For over 20 years, Ancestral Quest has been a Windows program, providing excellent, easy-to-use yet comprehensive tools to millions of users worldwide, both professional and beginner. During that time, it has been sold directly by Incline Software, and licensed by others, often under different titles, including Ancestry Family Tree (AFT) by Ancestry.com and with more extensive adjustments as Personal Ancestral File (PAF) by FamilySearch. This powerful family tree record keeping program is now available to users of Mac. Ancestral Quest for Mac will run on OS X 10.7 and later.
Ancestral Quest for Mac simply downloads and installs directly to the Mac, without the need for additional software. Those who have used Ancestral Quest on Windows computers will find that AQ for Mac is the same program as AQ for Windows.
Overview of Ancestral Quest for Mac
Ancestral Quest for Mac allows users to record their family tree, including the names, dates and places of ancestors and descendants, and provides for the recording of notes and sources for each individual, as well as scrapbook collections for each person. AQ for Mac also allows users to print standard forms and charts such as Pedigree charts, Family Group Records, Ancestry and Descendancy charts, birthday and anniversary calendars, and scores of additional charts, lists and reports to help them review and share their family tree. AQ for Mac can create a web-site that can be uploaded to the Internet, showing whatever parts of a family tree users feel like sharing. It also generates a customizable research timeline, to help put ancestors in perspective of the times and events in which they lived, and provides users with a research log and manager to keep their genealogical research efforts organized.
Ancestral Quest provides an ability, unique for desktop family tree software products, to have several users work as a team on a single data file, from multiple computers anywhere in the world. This feature is called "Collaboration." Whether the user has a Windows computer or a Mac, team members will be able to work together with AQ's Collaboration system.
Ancestral Quest for Mac meets the same certification requirements with FamilySearch Family Tree (Family Tree) as its Windows counterpart. This means that users can upload portions of their personal family tree to the Family Tree, or download portions of theFamily Tree into their personal file. Users can also synchronize individuals, families, and notes and sources for both individuals and families between their personal file and Family Tree. Additionally, like its Windows counterpart, Ancestral Quest for Mac allows users to search such online databases as those of Ancestry.com and FamilySearch.org, along with other sites that can be added into Ancestral Quest's Internet search engine.
Ancestral Quest has won several awards over the years, including the 2009 FamilySearch award for "Most Comprehensive Syncing", which is indicative of the way AQ is not only easy to learn and use, but of paying attention to the important details required by genealogists. AQ was also awarded the 2009 FamilySearch award for "Best Listing Tool", which epitomizes the fact that AQ provides the most advanced tools for finding individuals and defining groups of individuals for various reporting and research tasks.
Benefits to PAF Users
Many PAF 5 users have moved, or are contemplating moving, from Windows computers to Mac computers. Because the Windows versions of PAF were derived from AQ, these PAF users will feel right at home as they use Ancestral Quest for Mac. Ancestral Quest for Mac can directly update a PAF 5 file, so current or former PAF 5 users can simply copy their PAF 5 file from their Windows machine to their Mac, and AQ will be able to open and work with their data, as is.
Summary
Incline Software™ developed Ancestral Quest in 1994, and has been enhancing it ever since.
In addition to English, Ancestral Quest is also available in German, French, Spanish, Danish, Norwegian, Hungarian and Swedish, with other language modules being developed. You can learn more about Incline Software, Ancestral Quest, and Ancestral Quest Basics, by visiting www.ancquest.com or calling Incline Software at 1-800-825-8864.
Ancestral Quest for Mac is expected to sell for $34.95. But for a limited time, it can be purchased at the same price as AQ for Windows, which currently is $29.95. Ancestral Quest Basics for Mac is a free version of Ancestral Quest, with all of the essential features of a family tree program available for free, but with the more advanced features locked. The free version will only be available for a limited time, so those wishing to take advantage of obtaining a full-featured, free genealogy program for Mac should act quickly. Ancestral Quest for Mac can be downloaded from www.ancquest.com/mac.

Announcing the new Ancestry website - try it now

The following is from Ancestry. I do like the new Ancestry website, especially now that the FamilySearch tool is in it. I believe still only available to those with an LDS Account. I can share my Ancestry finds to FamilySearch and then in RootsMagic import them. 


Explore all the ways you can add more life to your family story.
Try the new Ancestry
 
Ancestry
Announcing the new Ancestry website - try it nowAnnouncing the new Ancestry website - try it now
New storytelling features. New modern look. It’s practically a new Ancestry.
It’s here. We’ve made some big changes to our site that can completely transform the way you discover and tell your family story.
From narrative timelines to fascinating historical insights to a fresh, streamlined design, you’ll love how the new site can help you weave together richer stories that bring you closer to knowing your ancestor as a person.
It’s your family story, reinvented.
And with one click, you can experience it right now. Learn more
Try the new Ancestry
 
All the research and information you have now will be on the new Ancestry.

LDSTech now Church News and Updates - Aug 2015 Newsletter

The following is from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

 
The Church News and Updates newsletter is a new resource that replaces the LDSTech newsletter with a broader focus on topics like news, technology, tools, resources, and events related to the Church.
 
Those who were not already subscribed to LDSTech emails must opt in through their LDS Account, so we hope you will help spread the word and make others aware of this new subscription.
THE CHURCH TODAY
 
 
 
2016 Curriculum Announced for Children, Youth, and Adults
App Update Helps You Memorize Anything from Gospel Library
Media Library Videos Now Have Transcripts and Searching and Sharing Capabilities
10,000 LDS Volunteers Help at Special Olympics World Summer Games
CHURCH EVENTS
 
 
 
Past–Recorded
ONLINE
 
‌Now–September 18
ONLINE
 
‌August 14–September 5
MEXICO CITY, MEXICO
 
‌August 22–23
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA
 
‌Ongoing throughout August
CLASSES AT FAMILY HISTORY LIBRARY, SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH; WEBINARS ONLINE
 
‌October 15
UNIVERSITY OF UTAH INSTITUTE OF RELIGION, SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH
(RECORDING AVAILABLE ONLINE AFTER EVENT)
 
 
DID YOU KNOW?
 
 
 
As a Latter-day Saint, you qualify for a free subscription to several commercial family history websites.

FamilySearch partners with these sites to multiply offerings and provide deeper and broader research.

To get your free subscriptions, visit familysearch.org/partneraccess.

New FamilySearch Collections - Week of August 17, 2015

The following is from FamilySearch.


 
 
New FamilySearch Collections: Week of August 17, 2015
 
Fun FamilySearch additions to the Colombia, FrancePeru, and Philippines international collections this week including significant digital images for Colombia Catholic Church Records from 1600 to 2012. Significant additions were also made to the Texas andWisconsin marriage collections.  Over 7 million searchable records have been added this week. Follow the links below to explore the new content!

COLLECTION
INDEXED RECORDS
DIGITAL RECORDS
COMMENTS
0
1,002,173
Added images to an existing collection
144,443
0
Added indexed records to an existing collection
95,523
96,875
Added indexed records and images collection
862,440
304
Added indexed records and images to an existing collection
0
4,088,394
Added images to an existing collection
84,935
0
Added indexed records to an existing collection
586,960
0
Added indexed records to an existing collection
15
0
Added indexed records to an existing collection
0
4,154
Added images to an existing collection
213,905
0
Added indexed records to an existing collection

Help Us Publish More Free Records Online
Searchable historical records are made available on FamilySearch.org through the help of thousands of online volunteers worldwide. These volunteers transcribe (or index) information from digital copies of handwritten records to make them easily searchable online. More volunteers are always needed (particularly those who can read foreign languages) to keep pace with the large number of digital images being published weekly online on FamilySearch.org. Learn how you can volunteer to help provide free access to the world’s historical genealogical records online at FamilySearch.org/Indexing.
 
About FamilySearch International
FamilySearch 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 for free at FamilySearch.org or through more than 4,600 family history centers in 132 countries, including the main Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Upcoming ISGS Webinars - Sep 2015

The following is from the Illinois State Genealogical Society.

Illinois State Genealogical Society


Join us on TuesdaySeptember 8, at 8:00 PM Central, when Michael Lacopo, will present Using Tax Records for Genealogical Problem Solving. To attend this webinar, register at https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/5664379703628947969.

Last week's webinar, School Daze – Finding and Using School Records to Trace Our Ancestors, presented by Peggy Clemens Lauritzen, AG, is now available to ISGS members in the Members Section of the ISGS website (http://ilgensoc.org/members.php).

Upcoming Webinars
September 8 – Using Tax Records for Genealogical Problem Solving
Presenter: Michael Lacopo
Registration:  https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/5664379703628947969

October 13 – Polish Genealogy – Four Steps to Successful Research
Presenter: Steve Szabados
Registration:  https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/8211336816720900865

November 10 – In-laws and Outlaws: The Bylaws of Talking About The Family Skeletons
Presenter: Janet Hovorka
Registration:  https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/1041320337723100418

For the complete list of upcoming webinars, visit http://ilgensoc.org/cpage.php?pt=234.

Make a Contribution:  Support the ISGS Webinar program by making a financial contribution, which will help ISGS expand its educational offerings in a virtual manner.  To learn why we need your help, or to make a contribution, please visit http://ilgensoc.org/cpage.php?pt=345.

Please direct any questions to the ISGS Education Committee at isgseducation@ilgensoc.org.

 

ISGS Calendar of Events

Click here to check out all the upcoming events at ISGS and its member societies.
The 2015 ISGS Webinar Series is Sponsored by FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org).
 

Free ISGS Databases

Click here to check out our free genealogy research databases!