Monday, September 05, 2011

Sort Your Story Offers Affordable Downloads For Organizing Genealogy Research

The following is from SortYourStory.

Limitless possibilities are provided by SortYourStory.com to genealogy enthusiasts for organizing decades of data

SortYourStory.com offers quick download applications, video tutorials and free email newsletter for recording and organizing genealogy research for just $19.99. Sort Your Story, the complete organizational tool, has been providing best solutions for people who look for ways to store documents, images and other details of their genealogy research. For individuals, who’re looking to discover and preserve their family’s unique history, the website helps in making their family tree by organizing genealogy records.

“Everyone today is interested in exploring their family history by tracking down details about their ancestors. You’d also have encouraged your children and grandchildren with the hobby of genealogy research. Even if you get enough data in the form of documents, certificates and images, you’ll find it difficult to record and organize it to form a complete family tree,” says Lorel Kapke, the genealogy expert, “We offer a practical solution for storing and keeping track of irreplaceable records in a format that is easy to understand and a snap to use.”

“Using Sort Your Story, you can compile genealogy birth records, death records, marriage certificates, photos and more, all in one place to instantly see what information is missing and create reports based on the existing information”, says the expert, when commenting about the benefits of using their genealogy software for organizing family history,” Enter your data into our easy to use Sort Your Story Profiler and organize your digital documents using our colorful category specific file folders. It really can't get any easier than this!”

By downloading Sort Your Story, one can start organizing genealogy research. The download includes profiler application for recording research, file folders to organize it, free online video tutorials and email newsletter with tips and tools for better genealogy organization. Recorded information can be securely maintained on the person’s personal computer itself and the application also provides a perfect electronic format for collecting data.

“By scanning and entering irreplaceable genealogy records into Sort Your Story and storing them on your computer, portable drive and CD ROM, you can be sure that the information and images you’ve collected are maintained safely and securely for generations to come”, Lorel adds further .

About SortYourStory.com

Sort Your Story is a complete organizational tool that stores genealogy records simply and conveniently on your computer. SortYourStory.com allows visitors to download profiler application for genealogy organizing at an affordable price of just $19.99. For more details about how to organize a family tree, visit http://www.sortyourstory.com.

Archives.com Adds the U.S. Census to its Website

The following is from Archives.com.

Family History Website Archives.com Brings Extraordinary New Value to Users and Pledges 5 Million Dollars to Digitize Additional Historical Records


Today Archives.com, the web's most affordable and easy-to-use subscription-based family history site, announces the addition of the U.S. Federal Census, the single most valuable collection of U.S. historical records. The U.S. Census collections were made available by FamilySearch International, the world's largest genealogy organization, as part of a joint effort to introduce more records to family historians worldwide. In conjunction with the Census effort, Archives will also embark on a joint project with FamilySearch to digitize tens-of-millions of additional historical records, the majority of which are not currently online. Archives has pledged a minimum of five million dollars to this important project which will positively impact the entire community.

Archives CEO Matthew Monahan notes, "We're extremely excited to bring this comprehensive collection of U.S. Census records and images that have been enhanced by the FamilySearch volunteer community to Archives.com. We're dedicated to bringing users new and compelling content, and that's why we're happy to contribute at least five million dollars to similar ongoing community projects. Archives already provides members with exceptional value for an extremely low price--adding the U.S. Census and other unique collections as part of this initiative with FamilySearch will be a game changer."

Archives has integrated the full set of U.S. Federal Population Census indexes from 1790¬ to 1930 consisting of over 500 million names along with 3 million images from census years 1850, 1870, and 1900. In the near future, the full set of census images will be accessible. Leading the effort is former FamilySearch veteran Anne Roach AG®, CGSM as Director of Content Development.

Jay L. Verkler, president of FamilySearch, said, "U.S. Census records are the most searched collections for North America. We are pleased when companies like Archives.com join in the collective goal to make more historic records available online quickly and cost effectively. We look forward to working with the entire industry to facilitate these types of contributions." Verkler noted that the daunting challenge to digitize and provide access to the world's genealogical records can only be accomplished with community support and participation from dynamic companies like Archives.com.

While the addition of the entire U.S. Census and the ongoing digitization projects will bring enormous value to Archives members, the company plans to maintain its low annual fee. Already one of the highest trafficked family history websites, the company anticipates massive growth as a result of these enhancements, which clearly makes Archives.com the premier destination for low-cost subscription-based family history research. For regular updates about the census integration and digitization project, visit http://www.archives.com/census.

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 has 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 Archives

Archives.com is a leading family history website that makes discovering family history simple and affordable. The company has assembled more than 1.5 billion historical records in a single location, and makes them available at a price that's up to 80 percent less than the leading competitor. Archives also partners with other leading family history websites to provide integrated record collections, discounted memberships, official certificates and other special promotions. Archives.com is free to try for seven days, allowing anyone to explore the benefits of membership without risk or obligation. Archives.com is owned and operated by Inflection, a fast-growing data commerce company. Find more information atwww.Inflection.com.

Fold3 Content Update

The following is from Fold3.

We are excited to announce that we have begun adding the following new titles to the site, covering 5 wars and 130 years of U.S. military history:

War of 1812 Pension FilesFree

Records in the War of 1812 Pension Files reveal details of each soldier’s service and family. In a declaration made by widow Mary Abbott, she elaborates upon her late husband's engagements in Ohio after stating that he was "out three times in the War of 1812."

Mexican War Service Records

From 1846 to 1848, the war with Mexico determined the southwest border of the U.S. as we know it today. The Mexican War Service Records launch Fold3's commitment to bringing records of this strategic war to our members.

Confederate Casualty Reports

From skirmishes to major battles, documents within the Confederate Casualty Reports describe a unit's role in the conflict and detail casualties, from killed to missing to "slightly" wounded. A few reports from the Battle of Sharpsburg (also known as Antietam) on September 17, 1862, relate the action from several units, beginning with the report of the 13th South Carolina Infantry.

World War I Officer Experience Reports

The World War I Officer Experience Reports reveal intriguing accounts by engineers in the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF). Some reports go beyond military and engineering terms to provide remarkable, sometimes poetic insights, like this January 6, 1919, account of a torpedo attack on a convoy hours after the writer described "the dark forested shores of North America" as "a mere fringe on the horizon."

WWII "Old Man's Draft" Registration Cards

In 1942, men between the ages of 45 and 64 were required to register for the draft in order to create an inventory of those who could provide essential skills to the home front during World War II. The "Old Man's Draft" Cards are the result, complete with addresses, dates, and physical descriptions of each registrant.
Watch for more to come as these titles continue to grow and others are added.
View all New and Updated Titles


Thank you,

The Fold3 Team
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1 million Merchant Navy Seamen records published by findmypast.co.uk today - many include photos!

The following is from FindMyPast.


AYE AYE CAPTAIN - MERCHANT NAVY ARCHIVES REVEAL PHOTOS OF UK’S FORGOTTEN ‘FOURTH SERVICE’
  • Churchill’s ‘fourth service’ who helped to make Britain ‘Great’
  • Fascinating photos of British merchant mariners from 100 years ago
  • A ‘floating United Nations’, women and men, young boys, ‘donkeymen’ and manicurists, as well as personal descriptions such as tattoos
  • 54% of the UK population have no idea who or what the Merchant Navy is
  • Merchant Navy Day is on Saturday 3rd September 2011

One million 20th century Merchant Navy Seamen records are going online for the first time ever, as Britain approaches Merchant Navy Day on Saturday 3rd September. But when asked what the Merchant Navy was, 54% of the British population couldn’t answer correctly, even though almost 90% have heard of them. This is a sad fact considering the Merchant Navy was integral to putting Britain on the trade and industry world map and were named by Churchill as Britain’s ‘fourth service’. The revelation comes as findmypast.co.uk, a leading UK family history website, publishes these fascinating records online in partnership with The National Archives.


Snapshot of a mariner
Today’s launch sees records of crew members of UK merchant ships from 1918 to 1941 made available online, includingrarely seen photos of the mariners. This is the first time that many relatives will be able to see what their seafaring ancestor looked like and also learn more about the people who made up Churchill’s ‘fourth service’.

The records provide fascinating details about each individual mariner. The most complete records have extremely detailed descriptions, including hair and eye colour, height, and distinguishing marks such as tattoos. In one case, Ordinary SeamanHenry Duncan Abbot from Dundee was listed as having a Chinese death head tattoo with the inscription “Death is Glory” on his right forearm – perhaps not so ordinary after all.

The shocking gap in Britain’s general knowledge is highest amongst the younger generation – just 26% of those aged under 35 know what the Merchant Navy is, compared to a wiser 64% of over 55s. Many will therefore be surprised to learn that the Merchant Navy consists of all seagoing UK vessels with commercial interests and their crews.

So it may be a shock to many that at various points in the last millennium, Britain had the largest merchant fleet in the world.The workforce on these vessels was a casual, ‘jobbing workforce’ so in any one year as many as 1.5 million people could be employed in the Merchant Navy, meaning many people are likely to find ancestors in these records. In the popular BBC programme Who Do You Think You Are?, David Suchet and Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen both discovered ancestors who had been in the Merchant Navy.

Debra Chatfield, Marketing Manager at findmypast.co.uk, comments“This is the first time the UK Merchant Navy Seamen records, with their fascinating images of the mariners, have been made available online. Many people aren’t sure what the Merchant Navy is, even though a large proportion of the UK population will have Merchant Navy seamen in their ancestry. Hopefully these records will help fill the gaps and people will enjoy learning about what life was like for the brave, seafaring merchants who helped the island nation of Britain prosper.”

A floating United Nations
The Merchant Navy Seamen records reveal the diverse crews that manned vessels ranging from cargo liners to passenger ferries to luxury cruise ships, working in a variety of professions and industries through some of the most vital moments in British history.

The term ‘floating United Nations’ has often been linked to the Merchant Navy and these records go further to support this idea. As high as 70% of ships’ crews were made up of international seamen from countries such as the West Indies, Scandinavia and Japan. These records hold details, and in many cases photographs, of these multi-national mariners.
Ship shape and women’s fashion
The Merchant Navy has been in existence for a significant period of British history, owing much of its growth to British imperial expansionOne of the most notable observations from the records is that women were prevalent on the ships. One example isDoris Abbey from Liverpool, a 5’4” Manicurist with hazel eyes, brown hair and a medium complexion – perhaps she joined the Merchant Navy to make sure the mariners’ nails were kept ship shape!

Janet Dempsey, Marine and Maritime Record Specialist at The National Archives comments: The Merchant Navy Seamen records cover a very significant era in nautical history commencing at the very peak of the popularity of ocean travel, in the time of the great ocean liners, when overseas tourism meant taking to the seas. The years that followed saw the end of this period of prosperity, and the start of the Great Depression. For mariners this was a time when work on board was hard to get, and many men were forced to take other work between voyages to make ends meet.  These newly digitised records make a fascinating social record as well as a valuable family history resource.”

Young hands on deck
At this time, many young mariners were operational at sea and a number of them can be found in the records. One young seaman, Allison Robinson Saville, was a 14 year old boy who was born in Hull in 1904. As Cabin Boy, the lowest ranking male employee, his role would have been to wait on the officers and passengers of the ship, and run errands for the ship’s Captain.

Remembering
Though these records do not cover the war time period, the Merchant Navy supported the Royal Navy during times of conflict, including WW1 and WW2. During these wars the Merchant Navy suffered heavy losses from German U-boat attacks. Official recognition of the sacrifices made by merchant seamen throughout history has taken place every 3rd September, with the Annual Merchant Navy Parade and Reunion taking place in Trinity Gardens, Tower Bridge on the closest Sunday, this year Sunday 4th September.

The Merchant Navy Seamen records are the only set of their kind available online and have been published in association with The National Archives. The records show that the seamen who made up the Merchant Navy not only came from the UK, but from every continent, with large numbers from across English-speaking world (notably the Maritime provinces of Canada), from the West Indies and Sierra Leone, and from Scandinavia, Somaliland, China and Japan. There are even some seamen from landlocked Switzerland.

You can search these records from today at www.findmypast.co.uk/search/merchant-navy-seamen
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Leading UK family history website findmypast.co.uk (formerly 1837online.com) was the first company to make the complete birth, marriage and death indexes for England & Wales available online in April 2003.

Following the transcription, scanning and indexing of over two million images, the company launched the first website to allow the public easy and fast access to the complete indexes, which until then had only been available on microfiche film in specialist archives and libraries. The launch was instrumental in creating the widespread and growing interest in genealogy seen in the UK today.

Findmypast.co.uk has subsequently digitised many more family history records and now offers access to over 750 million records dating as far back as 1200. This allows family historians and novice genealogists to search for their ancestors among comprehensive collections of military records, census, migration, occupation directories, and current electoral roll data, as well as the original comprehensive birth, marriage and death records.

In November 2006 findmypast.co.uk launched the ancestorsonboard.com microsite in association with The National Archives to publish outbound passenger lists for long-distance voyages departing all British ports between 1890 and 1960.

In April 2007, findmypast.co.uk’s then parent company Title Research Group received the prestigious Queen’s Award for Enterprise: Innovation 2007 in recognition of their achievement.

Findmypast.co.uk was acquired in December 2007 by brightsolid, the company who were awarded The National Archives’ contract to publish online the 1911 census, which it launched in January 2009.

In 2010 in association with The National Archives findmypast.co.uk launched the British Army Service Records 1760 - 1913.


About The National Archives
The National Archives, www.nationalarchives.gov.uk, is a government department and an executive agency of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ). As the official archives of the UK government, it cares for, makes available and ‘brings alive’ a vast collection of over 1000 years of historical records, including the treasured Domesday Book.
Not only safeguarding historical information, The National Archives also manages current digital information and devises new technological solutions for keeping government records readable now and in the future. It provides world class research facilities and expert advice, publishes all UK legislation and official publications, and is a leading advocate for the archive sector.
At the heart of information policy, The National Archives sets standards of best practice that actively promotes and encourages public access to, and the re-use of information, both online or onsite at Kew. This work helps inform today’s decisions and ensures that they become tomorrow’s permanent record.