Podcast Available! Navigating the 1940 Census...

On Saturday, March 31, I and other members of our Genealogy Discussion Group, along with 100-200 other lucky folk, were fortunate to attend our local Enoch Pratt Free Library's annual genealogy event.  They are big into genealogy at the Pratt! 

This year, Thomas MacEntee, yes, Mr. GeneaBloggers himself, was in town!  Talk about thrilled!

As expected, Thomas gave a great presentation, packed with super information on Navigating the 1940 Census and Social Networking for Genealogists. 

A podcast is now available. Even though the Census has been released, Thomas's presentation still offers helpful insight and tips, certainly timely and worth viewing.

And for a social media newbie like myself, the technology presentations were excellent as well.  Many of us know Google as a search engine, but there are many other applications where a genealogist can while away many, many hours! 

A great day, indeed!

Happy Census Release Day!

Have a great Census Release Day!

Watch a live webcast of the the opening event, on Monday, April 2 at 8:30 a.m., EDT.

Hope you have done your advance research,

have pinpointed the enumeration districts you need,

and are well-stocked with supplies and coffee. 

Enjoy the day! 

Abundant Genealogy - Historical Documents

This is Week 7 of Amy Coffin's Abundant Genealogy series.  The topic is Historical Documents:
Which historical document in your possession are you happy to have?
How did you acquire this item?
What does it reveal about your ancestors?

Last week's topic was Family Heirlooms.  I wrote about the five important documents, shared between my siblings and myself, that tell the story of my dad's life.  While I consider them heirlooms of a sort, they are rightfully, Historical Documents.  But I'm not going to write about them again this week. 

I'll answer Amy's first two questions out of order and quickly:  My mom gave this document to me, along with many other papers and photos, about a year ago when I began researching the family history.  The title of the document is "Department of Defense Personnel Security Questionnaire."

My Dad in his Coast Guard Reserve uniform,
with good friend Pete Santoro.
Baltimore, 1945.

I'm not sure why my father completed the questionnaire.  I have his own copy, unsigned, dated January 31, 1961.  By then, Dad's time in the U.S. Coast Guard Reserve was far behind him (Dad was 4-F and for health reasons could not serve actively.) 

At that time he was working at The Martin Company, grinding and devising tools to specifications...tools that were used in the building of aeronautical things like, oh, B-52 Bombers and such.  So perhaps everyone had to complete one of these questionnaires every once in a while.  I'll have to check what was going on around then that might be behind the need for something like this.  It doesn't matter that I don't really know the "why" of it.  What matters is everything else that's in this fantastic document!

This questionnaire is completed in my dad's meticulous, distinctive printing.  So I can count on the credibility of all the information.  BONUS!

From this document, I have learned:

Every school my dad attended, and the years.

Every job he held, some as a teenage grocery clerk, one as a Western Union messenger, until his eventual employment at The Martin Co. 

His parents and siblings, with birthdates, place of birth, addresses, and for three of those siblings, death dates.  This was helpful; I only knew of one of those siblings who died young.

Every address he lived to date, and the duration.

Five references, always a good thing to have.

Whereas the five documents I posted about last week tell the highlights, this Security Questionnaire fills in the nitty-gritty details.  And I love it!  It was a lot of fun to read through, and also very informative. 

Some (though not any family historians or genealogists worth their salt) may roll their eyes in boredom at the phrase "historical documents," but I can attest, anyone lucky enough to get their hands on a document like mine will be happy, happy, HAPPY!!!
 

Abundant Genealogy, Week 2 - Paid Genealogy Tools

Following along on Amy Coffin's Abundant Genealogy series, this week is all about paid genealogy tools.  Well, I have limited experience here.  I've referred here previously to my free genealogy "basic training" class, provided by Ann Winkler at the Harford County Public Libary.  Like Ann herself, the training was wonderful, fun, informative.  I'd even say it was all-encompassing, as Ann gave me a thick packet of resources and forms to utilize in my search.  And she stressed the many resources that are available at no cost.  Gotta love that! 

But, as I have also mentioned here, I got started in genealogy because of a paid research tool--a gift subscription to Ancestry.com.  Hence the limited experience.  So far, Ancestry.com is one of two paid research tools I have utilized.  Because it's so comprehensive, I'm sure Ancestry.com will be a favorite among genealogists.  It's kind of like one-stop shopping, and who doesn't appreciate that.  I certainly do. 

But for all that it shares, and for all it's limitations, I like Ancestry.com because it has gotten the family talking.  Yes.  Now I ask questions that go beyond the old "Seen any good movies lately?" 

A brief example:  in talking with my uncle, I learned my grandmother's wedding anniversary (March 2, same as his!).  He told me where and how my grandparents met (around 1918, at a dance in the Baltimore City Recreation Pier, a building that later served as the police station on the award-winning television drama Homicide: Life on the Streets) and about their life together as newlyweds (stories too numerous for here and now).  As a kid, I would never have thought to ask Grandma those questions; once I did, it was too late. 

An old photo of Baltimore City Recreation Pier,
where it all began for my paternal grandparents!
Photo from Kilduffs.com.

The same holds true for my hubby.  He got into searching his roots after witnessing my immediate, though introductory, results on Ancestry.  Those dancing green leaves amazed him.  His work goes back several generations.  He's discovered that the roots are not as deep in Wales as was believed; a grandfather many generations back is from, ...gasp..Ireland!  We smile at that revelation!  But it's gotten his family talking as well.  He and his Dad now converse about much more than the latest Premier League scores. 

For example, during our 2011 visit to World War One sites, his Dad shared important family memories. We are looking forward to talking more, learning more, going to family cemeteries and other places when we visit Wales in the spring.

The other paid research tool I've used (and this was also a gift, now that I think about it) is DNA testing, though I don't know how much that will help in my research.  I'm still waiting for my results from the Genographic Project. 

So, there we have it, these are my paid research tools.  That is, of course, if you don't include paying for copies at the Archives or historical society!  I do drop a lot of coin there!

It's Right Before My Eyes -- Maybe!

Today was no sunny day.  I awoke to a morning of thick fog, which eventually burned off into a cloudy, dull day.  Like many of you, I spent time running errands…grocery store, library, mall, and on and on.  And as these things often go, I traveled in a loop, probably never further than five miles from my home.

As I drove the familiar roads of my neighborhood,

I was stunned to notice such amazing autumn color, despite the dull skies!  My immediate thought was how sad that many days I go along these roads, unaware of the surrounding beauty.  Something so worthwhile had been right in front of me, and I took no notice. 

Immediately I thought of my genealogy research.  So often I am searching for a date, place, or other connection, when the clue I need is right before me.  Saying that, I have vowed to re-examine my files and have a good look around the house.  Here’s what I’ll be doing over the next weeks:

Re-reading my collection of family obituaries, death notices, newspaper articles and other records.  Take note of any names I may have overlooked, simply because they were not the known "family" names.      

Many of my old photos have one or two unidentified people.  I’ll schedule time to sit down with Mom and figure out just who these folks are!

Thumb through shelved books that have sat undisturbed for years.  I’m sure to turn up at least a good bookmark, if not a holy card, photo or old newspaper article. 

Re-examine my father’s application for a high-security military clearance.  I’m sure knowing more about the people who were named as his references will be helpful.  

Do the same for my 2x great-grandfather’s Civil War pension record.  The folks who signed as witnesses on the record’s many government forms knew him for much of his life.  Whether family or not, this could provide clues. 

Review death certificates to determine if there was an autopsy (another report!)  

In general, I'll update my research with the clues I already have.  I might find a bit of helpful information along the way, and at the very least, all the piles of paper on the dining room table will be straight!





All photos by the author, 11/10/2011.