ROOTSWEB REVIEW: RootsWeb's Genealogy News Vol. 3, No. 15, 12 April 2000, Circulation: 606,956+ (c) 1998-2000 RootsWeb.com, Inc. RootsWeb.com, Inc., P.O. Box 6798, Frazier Park, CA 93222-6798 Editors: Julia M. Case and Myra Vanderpool Gormley, CG RootsWeb HelpDesk: Advertising: Media Contact: WELCOME. We are happy to welcome many new readers this week, primarily participants in RootsWeb's GenConnect message boards , but also from our mailing lists and the RootsWeb Surname List (RSL) . TO UNSUBSCRIBE from ROOTSWEB REVIEW and MISSING LINKS, send any e-mail to . TO SUBSCRIBE, send to . Please DO NOT reply to this message to unsubscribe or subscribe. IN THIS ISSUE: o News and Notes at RootsWeb (RootsWeb Takes up Residence at Fortune City; WorldConnect and WorldConnect Tip of the Week; Social Security Death Index Updated; WW II and Other Wars Stories Page; RootsWeb's Guide to Tracing Family Trees: Court Records; RWGuide Queries and Names boards) o Connecting through RootsWeb o Trips to the Past -- Genealogy in the Summertime o New Genealogy Mailing Lists o New Genealogy Web Pages o GenConnect o USGenWeb Archives o Letters to the Editors o Humor o Reprint Policy, Back Issues * * * * * NEWS AND NOTES FROM ROOTSWEB ROOTSWEB TAKES UP RESIDENCE AT FORTUNE CITY. ROOTSWEB will be the newest shop in FORTUNE CITY , a virtual Internet metropolis that attracts more than one million visitors a day from all over the world. Its communities are built around such diverse interests as arts and culture, football, humor, trivia - and now the best in genealogy and family research. Fortune City is literally a community in cyberspace, offering its "citizens" the opportunity to have a direct impact on how Fortune City is run. As its site says, "This unique relationship allows us to focus on meeting the desires and needs of our citizens and partners . . ." In August 1999, Internet audience measurement firm Media Metrix ranked FortuneCity.com as the Web's 13th fastest-growing site. According to a just-released Media Metrix survey, 8.6 percent of all U.S. Internet users visited Fortune City at least once in January 2000 alone. Upon completion of the agreement with Fortune City, RootsWeb Chairman Brian Leverich said, "This is a natural match, the top virtual community and the leading genealogy and family research site. With more than six million unique visitors to Fortune City a month from all over the world, we appreciate this golden opportunity to let so many more people know what we are all about." What RootsWeb is about is providing a place for the free exchange of information on family research, and sponsoring the biggest volunteer genealogy projects on the Web. It is home to the casual and the serious genealogist alike. With more than a million unique users a month, RootsWeb has helped people track down information on their ancestors, contact long-lost family members, and discover relatives they didn't know they had. RootsWeb is a one-stop cybershop for genealogy, with interactive how-to guides, discussion lists, and numerous tools for tracing one's ancestry. It hosts more than 13,500 independently authored Web sites, 18,500 mailing lists, 839,000 RootsWeb Surname List entries, and 27 million WorldConnect entries. RootsWeb Review and Missing Links are the most widely circulated genealogical publications in the world, read weekly by more than 600,000 online genealogists worldwide. Surveys by Media Metrix and Nielsen//NetRatings have shown that RootsWeb is the most popular genealogy Web site, as well as the most popular site of any kind for people over 55 -- the heaviest Web users. RootsWeb also ranks consistently as one of the 20 "stickiest" sites on the Web, meaning that when people visit they tend to stay awhile. * * * Upload your GEDCOM to RootsWeb's WORLDCONNECT Project . The WorldConnect database now contains nearly 27 million names submitted by more than 10,000 RootsWeb researchers. Remember that, unlike with other Web sites, you can revise or remove your GEDCOM on RootsWeb at any time, and RootsWeb will never burn it onto a CD or charge others to access it. Search the names already uploaded, upload your own GEDCOM, or find more detailed answers to your questions at . GEDCOM is the acronym for GEnealogical Data COMmunication. A GEDCOM is a text file that is created automatically in a special format from information in a genealogical software program's database -- there is no need to re-key. Most, but not all, genealogical software programs have GEDCOM capability. For more information and links to a number of genealogical software publishers (PC, MAC, and UNIX), see Lesson 3: Using Technology to Dig up Roots in RootsWeb's Guide to Tracing Family Trees at . WORLDCONNECT TIP: IGNORE, CLEAN, and REMOVE -- three words that are commonly used in the English language; but what do these words mean when used in the context of submitter options for living individuals included in a GEDCOM on WorldConnect? IGNORE means that no processing is done at all for the living individuals in the GEDCOM you submit. Information included for the living individuals in your file will be displayed exactly as shown. No other options that you select for the living make any difference to how they are displayed if you choose IGNORE. CLEAN means that details specified for the living in the additional options will be processed according to your selections. Data displayed for items including notes, sources, and marriages will be affected by those selections. REMOVE means exactly what it says. The living individuals will be removed from the database displayed to the public. The Standard set-up page offers only the clean and remove options, along with the choice of removing notes and sources for the living, and replacing the given names of the living with the notation "LIVING." The Advanced set-up page offers additional options. WorldConnect maintains two copies of your GEDCOM; one exactly as you submit it, and a second processed copy for public display based upon the options you select to IGNORE, CLEAN, or REMOVE the living. WORLDCONNECT'S LITTLE BLUE PEOPLE. A little blue graphic now appears beside the entry for any child with descendants included in the next generation in the database. Thanks to WorldConnect volunteer, Chris Hankins, who created the new graphic. More WORLDCONNECT TIPS: * * * SOCIAL SECURITY DEATH INDEX (SSDI) UPDATED 12 April 2000. There are 63,503,542 records in this version of the SSDI. The new total reflects 207,214 records added (including changes) and 1,878 records deleted from last month's version. See RootsWeb Guide Lesson 10: SSDI and Railroad Retirement Board * * * SUCCESS STORY SCRAPBOOK Your local news media may be looking for the very story you are carrying around in your head. There's no time like the present to share your genealogical triumphs by posting a story in RootsWeb's Success Story Scrapbook. * * * WORLD WAR II STORIES While the emphasis is on WW II, stories are welcome about wars from other eras from veterans everywhere. If you tried to add a story but were unable to post last week, please try again now. You might post a veteran's biography, locate an old buddy by registering at the Lost and Found Window, post a memorial in the Veterans' Garden, or post a story about a nurse who served. * * * ROOTSWEB'S GUIDE TO TRACING FAMILY TREES Index page: In addition to links to the 30 interactive lessons, you will find links to the new RootsWeb Guide Genealogical Query board and What's in a Name? board , the Notable Kin, Royal and Noble, Ancestor Tables of American Presidents, World War II Stories, and other special Web pages and message boards. The final installment of the first series of RootsWeb Guide interactive genealogy lessons is now available, Lesson 30: COURT RECORDS * * * ANCESTOR TABLES OF U.S. PRESIDENTS. New this week at are pages for John Tyler, Zachary Taylor, Millard Fillmore, Franklin Pierce, Rutherford Hayes, James Garfield, Chester Arthur, Grover Cleveland, and Theodore Roosevelt. **PAID ADVERTISEMENTS** What early US cottage industry employed 60,000 Americans - more than half of whom were women? Which of the thousands of patents issued in the 1800s did the U.S. dairy industry strongly oppose? Which decade saw the greatest increase in immigration to the U.S. and Canada and why? In which year did the mileage of surfaced roadway overtake that of railroads in the U.S.? In which year and where was the first U.S. telephone exchange brought into service? What was the name of the first newspaper published in the American colonies? What was the number one cause of death for American soldiers in WW I? You'll be surprised by the answers to these questions and by other fascinating historical facts in HISTORY MAGAZINE. Find out how you can obtain a trial copy with no obligation at . The March/April issue of FAMILY CHRONICLE features an article on "Researching Your Irish Roots," by renowned genealogist Angus Baxter. Other articles include, "10 Best Local Library Resources," "Organizing Your Family Records," "How to Choose the Right Genealogy Software," "Why Film Research May Still Be Your Best Choice," and many others. Find out how you can obtain a trial copy by visiting . TWO SOURCES FOR COPIES OF OLD MAPS - BOOKMARK THESE SITES o OLD MAPS OF NEW ENGLAND AND NEW YORK from Historical Ink or Quality reprints are available of maps from towns and villages in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, and New York. Most are from the late 1800s and show the family name on each house. Also shown: businesses, schools, churches, post offices, railroad tracks, etc. ($11-$14) o OLD MAPS OF PENNSYLVANIA AND NEW JERSEY TOWNS from Gleason's Old Maps or Also a few Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, California towns. Photocopies only. ($5) * * * * * CONNECTING THROUGH ROOTSWEB. Thanks for sharing your stories. BONAWENTURA'S CHILDREN by Stephen Lignowski About two years ago, when I began the search into my own surname, I was surprised to find that there were so many LIGNOWSKIs in the United States who were not directly related to me. One of the first additional families I encountered was that of Bonawentura Rudolph LIGNOSKI (1809 - 1878), who came to the United States in 1836, fleeing from Russian persecution. I had the good fortune to find at RootsWeb (I think on a GenConnect board) an historian doing research for a book on Polish Texans in the Civil War, and who had written an article about Bonawentura LIGNOSKI in the journal of the Polish Genealogical Society of Texas. Not only did he send me a copy of the article, but also copies of all the records he had accumulated in his research on the man. One of the documents indicated that Bonawentura LIGNOSKI and his wife Caroline Matilda (1822 - 1904) had had 10 children, but only seven were listed in the article: Rudolph, Bettee, Charles, Julia, Carrie, Maria, and Almeria. Through census records, I was able to determine the names of the other three: E.A., Franklin, and Ella, only to discover from additional records I found a few months later that I had listed the same child under two different names (E. stood for Elizabeth, or Bettee). I was still missing a child. From one of Bonawentura LIGNOSKI's descendants I heard mention of a family story of a "brother of Rudolph who died in infancy." I had first assumed he meant Franklin, whom I had discovered in census records in 1860, and who was missing in the 1880 census. I found him later living with his brother Rudolph in 1870, and I found a marriage record for him in 1881. Back to square one again. I had exhausted all of my leads. If the child was born and had died between censuses, there would be no indication of that except in censuses where the number of children for a mother was mentioned. There was. In 1900, Caroline was still alive, and the entry for her indicated that she had borne 10 children. I despaired of ever knowing anything about the last unknown child, since many states in the South did not start keeping vital records until the early 20th century. Then a few weeks ago, I got an e-mail with the subject "missing child." Not knowing what to expect, I opened it. In the e-mail was a one paragraph note explaining that he had come across my RootsWeb Web page which mentioned an unknown tenth child, and recognized the surname as belonging to a great-aunt of his (Carrie) who had married into his family. He further explained that he had encountered the name in a compilation of obituaries from Alabama. He then quoted the obituary of Ada Amelia, an infant, who died 29 May 1848, daughter of B. R. and Matilda Caroline LIGNOSKI, of Barbour County. Bonawentura's children had finally all come home. * * * * * TRIPS TO THE PAST -- GENEALOGY IN THE SUMMERTIME by Carol Gunby, Genealogy.com Spring is finally here, with sunny weather and the usual round of genealogical conferences and institutes. With summer right around the corner, many genealogists are already making plans for vacations, reunions, and other family activities. So how are you planning to spend the next two seasons? If you want to integrate your love for genealogy into your spring and summer plans, here are some tips. HOST OR ATTEND A FAMILY REUNION. This is a natural for anyone involved in family history. If your family already holds a reunion, take the opportunity to interview those who come. You may get some interesting perspectives on branches of the family you aren't actively researching. Family reunions are also a great time to display the results of your research -- a large family tree printout can help people visualize their connections to each other. If your family doesn't currently hold a reunion, you may want to consider starting one. It is an inspiring sight to see many generations of your family gathered together, and you never know -- there may be another researcher in the bunch with whom you can share information. For tips on how to organize a reunion, visit the free How-To Articles section of Genealogy.com at -- under "Reunions" you'll find information on activities, finances, and everything else you'll need to get your reunion off to a good start. TAKE A RESEARCH VACATION. Summertime is vacation season for most folks, and genealogists are no exception. There are many ways to mix fun and research. For example, you could combine a visit to New England's many historical landmarks with attending the National Genealogical Society's "Conference in the States," which is being held in Rhode Island in May and June this year. For a list of upcoming conferences, visit . Trips to areas of the country that are pertinent to your family's history are a great way to get access to local records and visit any family landmarks. Another type of research vacation is to spend some time at one of the large repositories, such as the Family History Library (FHL) or the National Archives. These are great places to follow your leads, as they have many different types of records under one roof. Many, such as the FHL, are also located in areas that offer a wide range of outdoor activities such as hiking and biking, so that there are things for the rest of the family to do also. These are just a few ways to bring genealogy into your summer plans - start exploring now to find your perfect mix of family history and family fun. * * * * * MAILING LISTS. For an index to most genealogy mailing lists hosted by RootsWeb, visit NEW MAILING LIST REQUESTS. Please request new mailing lists at: TO SUBSCRIBE OR UNSUBSCRIBE from any RootsWeb-hosted mailing list, send an e-mail message with only the word SUBSCRIBE (or UNSUBSCRIBE) in the subject and the body of the message to [name of list]-L-request@rootsweb.com (for mail mode) or to [name of list]-D-request@rootsweb.com (for digest mode). FOR EXAMPLE, if you are interested in discussing ancestors' medical histories and old diseases, send your SUBSCRIBE message to NEW SURNAME MAILING LISTS, GENCONNECT BOARDS, AND CLUSTERS Arneson Behne, Benjafield, Benthamer, Birtcher, Blockley, Bogdonoff, Buttercase Courtois DeFoor Emlen Harves, Hasten, Herringshar Imig Kucera Lauchu, Lazenby, Leist, Lokrig-FA, Luncefords Maldonado, Molinar, Morriss, Mullineux Neilan, Norval Pech, Pressgrove Renno, Robiller Sansonetti, Shadwick, Shoenfelt, Sizemore-Wilborn, Snowberger, Spragg, Spurvey, Staata, Stipak, Stuyvesant Trevorrow Vanderhall Wisler, Wolfort Zeis NEW REGIONAL MAILING LISTS ENGLAND ENG-TEESDALE-DISTRICT -- for all families who have roots in the area of the Tees River or Tees Dale (valley) in Northern England. IRELAND IRL-MAYO-KILTIMAGH -- Kiltimagh, County Mayo U.S.A. APPALACHIAN-ROOTS -- Appalachian Genealogy NEW ETHNIC, SPECIAL INTEREST, AND MISCELLANEOUS MAILING LISTS CIVIL-WAR-MINORITIES -- minorities and immigrants in the American Civil War CUSTODIAN -- Custodian Family History software users LAY-PREACHERS -- ancestors who were unordained lay preachers particularly in rural areas MEDICAL-GENEALOGY -- Ancestors' medical histories, old diseases OREGON-TRAIL -- Oregon Trail in the USA concerning many states SINCLAIR-PLACES -- Places named Sinclair, or variations; history, stories SOUTHERN-CHAT -- Companion chat list for Southern-Trails list TRANSLATIONS -- assistance for those seeking document translation * * * * * NEW WEB ACCOUNT REQUESTS. Please see the instructions at NEW WEB SITES. Some of these might not yet be accessible. If one that interests you isn't up yet, please check again in a few days or a week. . Note that the ~[tilde] before the account name is required. FOR EXAMPLE, to visit the Micronesia Web page, go to CANADA abmhsa -- Mennonite Historical Society of Alberta bckdgs -- Kelowna and District Gen. Soc. (British Columbia) nbleprea -- Lepreau Parish (New Brunswick) ontfsv -- The Friends of Stamford Village (Ontario) MICRONESIA microgw -- MicronesiaGenWeb NORTH AMERICA nrthamgw -- NorthAmericanGenWeb U.S.A. alprhgs -- Pea River Historical and Gen. Soc. (Alabama) arlafaye -- Lafayette County, Arkansas ilcanal -- The Illinois and Michigan Canal ilcchgs -- Cass County Historical and Gen. Soc. (Illinois) kycoalmi -- Coalminers of Kentucky kyletche -- Letcher County, Kentucky mecjackm -- Jackman, Maine (city) nygreen2 -- Greene County, New York ohcps -- Ohio Cemetery Preservation Society SOME NEW HOMEPAGES AND FREEPAGES BROBST/PROBST. Detailed presentation of the history of the PROBST and BROBST families of Switzerland, Germany, Alsace, and Pennsylvania. BROADFOOT, BROBST/PROBST, BILLMAN, FEDEROLFF, FOLLWEILER, FOSSELLMANN, FURST/FIRST, KISTLER, STAMBACH, WERTMAN BROWN and MEAR(e)S of NORTH CAROLINA. African American families of Bladen and Columbus counties, North Carolinia. Slave records, wills, deeds, census, plantation history, and family lineage of plantation owner. FREDERICKSBURG CIVIL WAR CEMETERY LIST. Confederate soldiers buried around Fredericksburg, Virginia. Listing in state ordered and also alphabetically by surname. GILCREASE - GILCHRIST - GILCHREST, 1788 to present SC>AL>TX HELMS. Results of HELMS research to find the parents of George, Tilman, and Jonathan who appeared in North Carolina about 1750. Irish MANNINGs of Nova Scotia. Nova Scotia Roots of Peter MANNING from Ireland, George ROSS from N. Ireland, LANGILLE from Montbeliard, SHIELDS from Scotland and N.Ireland, and PHINNEY from New England MENNONITE ANCESTORS: EIDSE, KLASSEN, LOEWEN, ROSENORT E.M.C. Homepage links to Scratching River Reserve, Mennonite, Morris, Manitoba, Canada, Rosenhoff Cemetery, Rosenort Kleinegemeinde, E.M.C., LOEWEN, EIDSE, KLASSEN,Leaders, Historical overview, Lorilee Scharfenberg, GEDCOM NORTONs of the South. Ancestry of Jacob and Abazena SPARKS NORTON of Newton County, Georgia (1850). http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~nortonsofthesouth/> Family of Martin SOHLBERG. HOHE, NICHOLAS, SOHLBERG, WANGELIEN YELTON and OSBORNE Home Pages. Yelton, Osborne, Coleman, Fields, Taylor, Ellis, Williams, et al. from Pendleton, Carroll, Henry and Owen counties, Kentucky. YOUNG family (Ancestors of Nicholas John YOUNG), Saford England, includes HODSON, DAVIDSON, and THOMPSON; also CUNLIFFE family of Bury including BRIGGS and SMITH. * * * * * GENCONNECT. RootsWeb hosts many surname GenConnect boards that are in need of people to maintain them. o For a complete list of adoptable GenConnect surname boards o For the form to request to adopt a GenConnect surname board (the same form is used for surname mailing list requests) Have you found a genealogical treasure, such as a photo album or an old Bible containing a completed family record page, that you would like to see reunited with its family? If so, in addition to submitting a notice for publication in the "Somebody's Links" section of MISSING LINKS or in the SOMEBODY'S LINKS NEWSLETTER (to subscribe, send e-mail that says only SUBSCRIBE to: , you can read and post notices to the GenConnect SOMEBODY'S LINKS board: NEW THIS WEEK Want input about your next research move? Try posting a genealogical query here. What's in a Name? Curious about the origin or meaning of your names (surname or given)? Try posting here. For posting tips, see * * * * * USGENWEB ARCHIVES -- THE ARCHIVES NEWSLETTER contains the current USGenWeb Archives submissions from the last week. 10 April 2000 issue http://www.rootsweb.com/~usgenweb/newsletter/2000/apr/apr10.htm USGW-ARCHIVES-ANNOUNCE-L is a read-only mailing list for weekly announcements of new updates and submissions to the USGenWeb Archives. To subscribe, send e-mail that says only SUBSCRIBE in the body of the message to this address: * * * * * LETTERS TO THE EDITORS may be posted to the GenConnect board at http://genconnect.rootsweb.com/genbbs.cgi/RWR-LettersToTheEditor or e-mailed to RWR-Editors@rootsweb.com. * * * I have enjoyed being a sponsor of RootsWeb as well as an avid user. . . All the volunteers on every site have been very cordial and their kindness never ceases to amaze me. . . I remain indebted to you, but oh so very happy with the "bug" I seem to have caught in diggin' up them "bones." Katherine L. Dusek * * * Something wonderful has happened since I listed my Web site with RootsWeb. Three PREUDHOMME cousins have contacted me. The walls have finally come down on my research. How wonderful to discover these family members. Thank you for your wonderful service. Patricia Dunne Clovis, California, U.S.A. * * * WorldConnect board 11 April. I'd like to commend you and the team on the excellent service you're providing. I've only just taken a moment out of my busy schedule to test the WorldConnect Project out with my own GEDCOM and was thoroughly impressed and suprised at the customisability offered. Thanks a lot! Leith Hutton * * * HelpDesk board . RootsWeb shines again. . . Suggestions . . . Please add links: American War Orphans Network . . . ; American Battle Monuments Commission . . . maintains overseas cemeteries [and has] recently put online searchable databases of those who died in WW I, WW II, and Korea -- overseas cemeteries only ; National Personnel Records Center, St. Louis ; World War II Links on the Internet (a definitive list) . . . Thank you, thank you for this wonderful new part of RootsWeb, my favorite genealogy research site. Gail Brown, daughter of 1st Lt. Harry Rudolph (Rudy) Albright Co A 337th Inf 85th Div KIA 12 May 1944, Italy **PAID ADVERTISEMENTS** **************************************** FREE COMPLETE CATALOG 1300+ BOOKS & CD-ROMS all published by Heritage Books, Inc. Request Catalog #150 1-800-398-7709 or HERITAGE BOOKS, INC. 1540 Pointer Ridge Place, Bowie MD 20715 **************************************** Put TURBO SURFER - 2000 on your computer: * Your Internet speed will increase up to 220% instantly. * Web pages will load faster -- It really works! * You can send and receive email much faster. * You will get quicker downloads of files, graphics, pictures. * You will locate web pages you want almost instantly. * Faster Internet speeds without buying a new computer. And all with a 100% No Hassle Refund Guarantee! **END PAID ADVERTISEMENTS** HUMOR. Thanks to Michael K. Smith Thesaurus (n.): An ancient reptile with an excellent vocabulary. * * * * * PERMISSION TO REPRINT articles from ROOTSWEB REVIEW is granted unless specifically stated otherwise, PROVIDED: (1) the reprint is used for non-commercial, educational purposes; and (2) the following notice appears at the end of the article: Written by . Previously published by RootsWeb.com, Inc., RootsWeb Review: RootsWeb's Genealogy News, Vol. 3, No. 15, 12 April 2000. RootsWeb: BACK ISSUES OF ROOTSWEB REVIEW may be read online or downloaded from DONATIONS HELP ROOTSWEB HELP YOU AND ARE GREATLY APPRECIATED. For details about support levels, benefits, and payment options (check or credit card), e-mail or visit . Mailing address: RootsWeb.com, Inc., P.O. Box 6798, Frazier Park, CA 93222-6798. (Please write your e-mail address on all correspondence and checks.)