Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Advice for Organizing Family Archives


One of Diane Haddad's readers received several boxes of family genealogy research that she had to do something with. On her Blog Genealogy Insider she asked her readers for suggestions.



We may not all be faced with a task this daunting, but the suggestions she received are worth looking at. There are organizational ideas that all of us could use, if not in total, then at least in part.



You can read her summary of some of the suggestions at: Genealogy Insider - Your Advice for Organizing Family Archives

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

PGS Facebook Page

For some time now PGS has had a Facebook page. If you go to our webpage, at the bottom of the home page you will find an icon that you can click on to show you "like" the Facebook page. That gets you in the loop to see each new Facebook entry. The same icon is in the right hand margin of this Blog page.

We list all of our classes and events weekly, send out special bulletins, and publish photographs of PGS events and activities.

You can also get to the Facebook page directly by typing the following into the address box of your browser: www.facebook.com/pinellasgenealogysociety

Monday, August 29, 2011

Land Record Insights

If you have ever done research land record office, you know it can be daunting. Anne Roach in her Blog The Technogenealogist shares some things she learned in a recent experience.



You can check out what she has to say at The TechnoGenealogist: A Little Land Record Lesson

Saturday, August 27, 2011

Free Google Tips Webinar

Lisa Louise Cooke with speak at a free webinar on using the genealogy tools offered by Google.

The webinar will be held Thursday, September 1 at 1 pm. You must register for the event, and when you do, you can even submit a question in advance.

You can read the “Genealogy Insider” Blog on the event at Genealogy Insider - Get Google Tips in Free Webinar .

You can register for the webinar at https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/202910537

Photo Editing and Ethics

Today we all have access to one photo editing program or another. Those programs give us great power to alter digital photographs. With this power comes responsibility, however. Are there alterations of reality that we as researchers should shy away from? Are there edits that are OK? We in the Pinellas Genealogy Society deal with such questions as part of our photo editing classes.

James Tanner in the Blog Genealogy's Star addresses that issue. In his post he shares our point of view, and he even shows us two photos, one original and one altered, to reinforce his point.

You can check it out at http://goo.gl/HFGUk .

Thursday, August 25, 2011

Family History Writing Competition

Pinellas Genealogist, quarterly journal of the Pinellas Genealogy Society, is accepting entries for the annual Family History Writing Competition from members and non-members of the Society.

Entries should be based on the author’s research of a family history or a genealogical account of family lines and lives, discussing the steps followed and the conclusions that resulted from the research. Entries may be original, unpublished papers or published papers. If previously published, please submit permission to reprint from the original publisher along with the entry.

Prizes will be awarded to three submissions selected by our judges: 1st prize is $50, 2d prize is $30 and 3d prize is $20.

All entries must be received no later than 31 Oct 2011.
See the competition rules and information on where to send entries on the PGS website at: http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~flpgs/index.htm

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

FSGS Conference in November

The Florida State Genealogical Society will hold its 2011 Annual Conference November 11 and 12 at the Sheraton Orlando North Hotel, Maitland, FL.

The two-day conference will feature Keynote Speaker Lloyd Dewitt Bockstruck who will offer four fascinating new lectures. Additional presenters will address selected genealogical topics, and vendors will exhibit new products.

Visit their new website, http://www.flsgs.org/, for easy online conference registration and hotel information.

Sunday, August 21, 2011

FSGS Has a New Website

The Florida State Genealogical Society recently unveiled its new web site. The Pinellas Genealogy Society as a member of the FSGS, we publish their newsletter on our members-only website, and we participate in their annual conference.

Check out the new web site for lots of good information including upcoming events. You can find it at: http://www.flsgs.org/index.php

Saturday, August 20, 2011

Footnote Changes Its Name To Fold3

You may have seen that Footnote has changed its name to Fold3. Although you can still access the site using the http://www.footnote.com/ URL, it now can be found using http://www.fold3.com/ .

The change was made to emphasize the site's focus on military records. Those records have been part of the site in the past, but it is now refocusing to become the web's premier site for them.

The choice of name is interesting. The name Fold3 comes from a traditional flag-folding ceremony in which the third fold is made in honor and remembrance of veterans for their sacrifice in defending their country.

We all will have our own take on this change. I, for one, welcome it. The military records available were my primary reason for using the site in the first place. I have been anxiously awaiting the digitization of the Civil War Widows Pension Files. With this newly defined focus, I expect more progress in that area as well as records from the War of 1812.

If you want to read more about all this, you can do so at the Fold3 blog at: http://blog.fold3.com/footnote-is-now-fold3/

Remember, if you are a PGS member, you get a significant discount on a Fold3 subscription.

Friday, August 19, 2011

PGS Video on YouTube

While we're on the subject of YouTube videos (see previous post), don't forget to check out the PGS video on YouTube.

Here is the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7qSSGOIR5l8

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Civil War Prints On Display At The Library

Presently there are some great Civil War prints on display in the gallery of the Largo Public Library. They just went up two days ago and will be on display until the end of this month.

They are there courtesy of Laura Robinson of the Art Brushstrole Gallery on Indian Rocks Road.

The prints are all signed and numbered, so they are of collector value, and they depict some readily recognizable events in the Civil War.

The next time you are in the library, take a detour to the right of the stairs on the first floor to the gallery and check out this wonderful artwork.

Family Search Videos on You Tube

A little while ago Bob Bryan sent an e-mail to our mailing list with a link to a YouTube video from Familysearch, the LDS web site. The video was part of tahe series from Familysearch called "5 minute genealogy." The subject of the video sent by bob was on interviewing family members.

After watching the video don't rush off however, because there is more you can do on that screen.

Underneath the YouTube screen where you watch the video is a box labeled "subscribe." This gives you the capability of subscribing to future videos of this nature from Familysearch. You can be notified by e-mail when they are posted, or if you have a YouTube count it will be posted on your YouTube page.

Also, if you have both a YouTube and a Google account, here is where you can link them so that one sign in will give you access to both services.

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Google Gives Up On Its New Archive Project

By now you have probably heard that Google is not longer seeking to digitize the country's historic newspapers. That ambitious project, and a boon to genealogists, is now a matter of history.

The five-year-old project reportedly resulted in 60 million scanned pages of news print covering some 250 years of publication.

What has been done will remain accessible, but no new content or development will be coming.

You can read more about the project and its fate at: http://thephoenix.com/BLOGS/phlog/archive/2011/05/19/google-abandons-master-plan-to-archive-the-world-s-newspapers.aspx#ixzz1NsCZOITT

Sunday, August 14, 2011

PGS Meeting Features Damon Hostetler

at 11 am on 20 August at the Largo Public Library, genealogist Damon Hostetler will be the guest speaker. His topic is "Where is the Old Geezer" I Knew He's There!"

This presentation will be of interest to anyone who has encountered a dreaded brick wall in their research.

Join us...the meeting is free and open to the public.

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

"Findagrave" Revisited

Susan Peterson in her Blog Long Lost Relatives, gives us an good article on some of the aspects of Findagrave.com that many may not be aware of. These include asking for help with adding pictures to the memorial entries.

You can read the article at http://longlostrelatives-smp.blogspot.com/2011/05/are-you-making-full-use-of-find-grave.html

Monday, August 8, 2011

Leave Your Calling Card at a Cemetery

Michael John Neill in his Genealogy Tip of the Day gives us a unique idea. Leave your calling card (in a baggie to protect it from the elements) at the headstone you visit in a cemetery. Perhaps someone related to the deceased will find it and contact you.

You can read the tip in Michael's words at http://genealogytipoftheday.blogspot.com/2011/05/cemetery-calling-card.html

Saturday, August 6, 2011

New Military Records at Ancestry.com

In case you missed it a couple months ago, Ancestry has rolled out some new military records for it's collection.

You can now search U. S. World War II Navy Muster Rolls (1938-1949). A search will get you information such as service number, rating (rank), date and place of enlistment, and change in status along with the date of the event.

Also available is a collection of U. S. Navy Cruise Books (1918-2009). These are like college year books, except they deal with a navy ship and a particular cruise (or deployment). In them you will find the history of the ship, its ports of call, a list of it's officers and crew. They are actually books and each page has been digitized.

Friday, August 5, 2011

FGS Conference

The Federation of Genealogical Societies is holding its annual conference from 7 through 10 September 2011 at Springfield, Illinois. You can get all the info you need at their website.
Here is a notice we received recently in email:

"The Federation of Genealogical Societies invites you to the FGS/ISGS 2011 Conference for the Nation's Genealogists. Our local host, the Illinois State Genealogical Society, joins FGS in welcoming you to historic Springfield as we celebrate "Pathways to the Heartland."

Click here for their website, conference registration, and full conference booklet: http://fgs.org/2011conference/registration/

Thursday, August 4, 2011

NGS Conference Slides Online

In May the National Genealogy Society held its annual conference in Charleston, South Carolina. You may have wanted to go but price, time, or distance many have discouraged you. However, you can still see some of the presentations.

Jordan Jones posted his slide presentation at slideshare.net where you can watch it at your own pace. His presentation is titled “Beyond Google: Advanced Search.” There is no audio…just the slides, but you can still get a lot of information from them alone.

You can flip through his slides at the following website:

Beyond Google: Advanced Search

On this day...

For you history buffs....on this day in 1821 Atkinson & Alexander published the Saturday Evening Post for the first time as a weekly newspaper.

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Finding Revolutionary War Ancestors in DAR Records

The DAR website goes a long way in helping us find Revolutionary War ancestors, but it may be a bit confusing to use that resource.

Randy Seaver in is Blog Genea-Musings gives a good click-by-click explanation on how to navigate the site to find pay dirt. Check it out with the following link:

Genea-Musings: Tuesday's Tip - Find Revolutionary War Ancestors in DAR Records