ROOTSWEB REVIEW: RootsWeb's Genealogy News Vol. 3, No. 48, 29 November 2000, Circulation: 728,889+ (c) 1998-2000 RootsWeb.com, Inc. http://www.rootsweb.com/ ROOTSWEB REVIEW and MISSING LINKS are free, weekly e-zines Editors: Julia M. Case and Myra Vanderpool Gormley, CG RWR-Editors@rootsweb.com Advertising: sbrenay@myfamilyinc.com RootsWeb HelpDesk: http://helpdesk.rootsweb.com/ Data Submission Form: http://userdb.rootsweb.com/submit.html New Databases (check often): http://searches.rootsweb.com/ IN THIS ISSUE o News and Notes from RootsWeb (New Searchable Databases; Who Has the Data?; RootsWeb Tip; WorldConnect Tip; Tips from RootsWeb Users; Ask a Genealogist at RootsWeb; Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and Ramadan Cards from RootsWeb; Shaking Your Family Tree; RootsWeb's Guide to Tracing Family Trees; Heirloom Family Tree) o Connecting through RootsWeb 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; How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe RootsWeb's WORLDCONNECT contains more than 49 million names and new GEDCOMs are added daily. Search WorldConnect and upload your own GEDCOM(s) to http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/ NEWS AND NOTES FROM ROOTSWEB NEW SEARCHABLE DATABASES AT ROOTSWEB. RootsWeb thanks all of the individuals and groups who contribute their data to share with the genealogical community. See the full list of contributors at http://userdb.rootsweb.com/contributors.html OKLAHOMA, PAYNE COUNTY. Fairlawn and Perkins Cemetery Transcriptions; 12,605 records; Karla Harp and Mike Johnson http://userdb.rootsweb.com/cemeteries/ * * * WHO HAS THE DATA? Does your state, province, county, parish, or church have a database available that has not yet been placed on RootsWeb and that you think would be of interest to genealogists and historians? Do you have a database that you would like to share that you think would be of value and interest to others? In most cases, RootsWeb would be proud to host them. Please use the data submission form to tell us about such databases: http://userdb.rootsweb.com/submit.html * * * ROOTSWEB TIP: If you would like to know what RootsWeb mailing lists you are on or if you ever need help unsubscribing from one, go to RootsWeb's PASSWORD CENTRAL at http://passwordcentral.rootsweb.com/ type in your e-mail address, and then under "Mailing Lists" check "What list(s) am I on? (for subscribers)" Go to the bottom of the page and click SEND. In a few moments you will receive by e-mail a list of all the RootsWeb mailing lists to which you are subscribed. * * * WORLDCONNECT TIP: Genealogy Software and GEDCOMs Q. In order to submit a family tree to WorldConnect I need to have a GEDCOM. I am a beginner and I have no idea what a GEDCOM is and what it should contain. How do you prepare it and what does it consist of? A. GEDCOM is the acronym for GEnealogy Data COMmunication. A GEDCOM is a specially-formatted text file that lists names, dates, places, relationships, events, and so on. The purpose of the GEDCOM format is to enable genealogical data to be exchanged between different software programs without the need to reenter the information. Most genealogy software programs will automatically generate a GEDCOM from the information the user has already input into the database. The first step in preparing a GEDCOM is to enter your data into a genealogy program. There are many programs to choose from. Make sure that the program you choose is GEDCOM-compatible. Marthe Arends' GENEALOGY SOFTWARE GUIDE compares 27 genealogy programs. RootsWeb's Guide to Tracing Family Trees: Using Technology -- Software and GEDCOMs, provides information and links (where they exist) to the publishers of the most popular genealogy programs. http://www.rootsweb.com/~rwguide/lesson3.htm For more information explaining what a GEDCOM is, see http://helpdesk.rootsweb.com/FAQ/wcgedcom1.html When you are ready to create a GEDCOM from your family tree database, see the WorldConnect FAQ on creating a GEDCOM at http://helpdesk.rootsweb.com/FAQ/wcgedcom3.html * * * TIPS FROM ROOTSWEB USERS (Send tips to rwr-editors@rootsweb.com) [In response to the tip below which appeared last week:] Numbers sort before letters. Upper case sorts before lower case. To speed browsing to frequently used files, create folders named #My Gedcoms, #My Documents, etc. These will then be at the top of the list of files. Do not rename current folders. John Folsom JORFO@aol.com [Editors' Note: The foregoing message advocates use of the number symbol, #, immediately before the word "My" as shown in the examples.] In response to the WorldConnect Tip of the Week (RWR 3:46, 15 November 2000) "Finding Files on Your Computer": I solved the problem of "where" my GEDCOM went by creating a folder just for GEDCOMs. I named the folder "My Gedcoms" on my main hard drive so it would appear right after the "My Documents" folder . . . Jackie Wilson Smith fizzbomb@yahoo.com * * * ASK-A-GENEALOGIST AT ROOTSWEB. This week's questions and answers include German birth record for English subject; Bernardo's Boys; English census; 1900 Ontario death certificate; Puerto Rican ancestors; Castle Garden immigration; Irish "family crest"; Greek ancestry; Family Gathering (software); Baptist preachers in colonial North Carolina and Pennsylvania; Brick Wall -- Virginia, Wythe County; Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). http://rwguide.rootsweb.com/ask-a-genealogist.html Before posting a new query, please read the GUIDELINES at http://www.rootsweb.com/~rwguide/askguidelines.html Ask-A-Genealogist at RootsWeb ARCHIVES http://rwguide.rootsweb.com/askarchives.html * * * ELECTRONIC CARDS FROM ROOTSWEB: http://postcards.rootsweb.com/ E-mail FREE cards for all occasions and many holidays from RootsWeb to online family and friends. In addition to your message, you can personalize your greeting by choosing the picture and music (selections offered are appropriate to the type of card being created), and the colors for the background and text, then preview your handiwork and send it (possible only from the preview page) or, if you prefer, start over again. Spend a minute or an hour on the project. New this week are cards for Hanukkah http://postcards.rootsweb.com/han.htm Kwanzaa http://postcards.rootsweb.com/kwa.htm Ramadan http://postcards.rootsweb.com/ram.htm * * * SHAKING YOUR FAMILY TREE (SYFT) by Myra Vanderpool Gormley, CG. Shopping for the family historians on your gift-buying list is much easier this year, thanks to online ordering options and toll-free numbers. Find some timely suggestions at http://www.rootsweb.com/~rwguide/syft/curcolumn.htm SYFT columns are archived by subject and can be browsed at http://www.rootsweb.com/~rwguide/syft/ * * * ROOTSWEB'S GUIDE TO TRACING FAMILY TREES (RWGuide) http://rwguide.rootsweb.com/ African American, Native American, Jewish, Unique Peoples (Melungeon, Black Dutch, etc.) http://www.rootsweb.com/~rwguide/lesson25.htm * * * STUMPED FOR A GIFT? For that relative who has everything, give an HEIRLOOM FAMILY TREE this year -- a beautiful framed heirloom chart in your choice of colorful backgrounds, showing six to nine generations of the family tree. Judy Lashbrook writes, "I ordered two Heirloom Family Trees for Christmas gifts and received them in approximately two weeks after placing my order. These pictures are beautiful. . . Thanks for a wonderful idea." Order yours today. All it takes is three easy steps: (1) Build your Online Family Tree at http://shops.ancestry.com/product.asp?productid=877908&shopid=128 (2) Select background, size, style and frame (3) Purchase your Heirloom Family Tree (prices start at $29) and it will be shipped directly to you. ** PAID ADVERTISEMENTS ** U.S. FEDERAL CENSUS IMAGES Have you seen the U.S. Federal Census Images at Ancestry.com? Now you can view original documents online! Ancestry.com continues the census images project with 1920 postings for parts of MI, MA, MN and NM. Get access for only $39.95. Go to: http://www.ancestry.com/search/io/about/main.htm ***************************************** FREE SAMPLE ISSUE OF "HERITAGE BOOK NEWS" Includes 50-60 new books & CD-ROMs at publisher's introductory discount prices and a COMPLETE CATALOG of 1,400+ BOOKS & CD-ROMs all published by Heritage Books Inc. Visit http://www.heritagebooks.com/ and fill out the online form or call 1-800-398-7709 HERITAGE BOOKS, INC. 1540 Pointer Ridge Place, Bowie MD 20715 ***************************************** You can obtain a FREE trial copy of FAMILY CHRONICLE by visiting http://www.familychronicle.com/. Articles include "Reading the Omens . . . a key to genealogical breakthroughs," "Railroad Records," "Using State Censuses," "Becoming a Genealogical Detective," "10 Frequently Asked Questions at Family History Centers," "Getting Past the Brick Wall," "You Wanted to Know," and "Web sites Worth Surfing." Top journalist Myra Vanderpool Gormley, CG has this to say about FAMILY CHRONICLE: "If you haven't discovered FAMILY CHRONICLE you are in for a treat." Find out how you can obtain a FREE trial copy by visiting http://www.familychronicle.com/ The new HISTORY MAGAZINE is now on the newsstands but you can obtain a FREE trial copy by visiting http://www.history-magazine.com/. Articles include "The History of Whaling," "Farming in the New World," "Christmas Recipes," "The Battle of Agincourt," "How Childbirth has Changed Since Roman Times," and many others. HISTORY MAGAZINE articles cover the social conditions that affected the lives of our ancestors. Check out our Web feature "This Day in History" by visiting http://www.history-magazine.com/ Visit Ancestry.com for a FREE 14-Day Trial and enjoy access to the No. 1 Source for Family History Online. Search more than 600 MILLION NAMES and trace your family tree today. Go to: www.ancestry.com/subscribe/subscribetrial1y.asp?sourcecode=F11GC Holidays Savings at http://www.censusmicrofilm.com/ New genealogy microfilm reader ONLY $470. INDUS 4601-11. Plus links to most genealogy research tools you need. RootsWeb users get a FREE electronic Federal Census Catalog (it has a search engine) and two FREE microfilm take-up spools. Buy four census microfilms priced at $12.95 and get one free (best price by more than $10 each). FREE U.S. MAPS show changing boundaries 1790-1870 informative; a $15 value at http://www.censusmicrofilm.com/fedcens.htm Internet's largest selection of new-used microfilm readers. Test online Soundex Converter. View all 75,000 Catalog census microfilms. Census search services, photocopies and digital census images. These are two Web sites worth surfing. Librarians see a complete line of Canon Microfilm Reader Printers, refurbished and like new and all options. Every GENEALOGY item you want is available at the American Genealogy Mall http://www.genealogy-mall.com/ ** END PAID ADVERTISEMENTS ** CONNECTING THROUGH ROOTSWEB. Thanks for sharing your stories. FINDING FAMILY by James R. Godward WB6ODO@compuserve.com On the Road from Belgrade, Montana My wife of eight years was adopted when she was only a few hours old in 1932. Over the years she had learned her mother's maiden name but had no knowledge of how to find any more information. I have been interested in genealogy for about five years but had not done much because of the lack of knowledge of the records in California. I was slowly learning when we decided to leave California and move to Montana, and so would lose the ability to search for information in the local libraries. I was pleasantly surprised to find the California death and birth records on RootsWeb when we finally got back online [http://userdb.rootsweb.com/ca/death/search.cgi and http://userdb.rootsweb.com/ca/birth/search.cgi]. Using the additional information found in these lists and help from the NORCAL and SOCAL mailing lists, we have found my wife's siblings and are on the way to finding out about her parents in more detail. We will be meeting her brother in a few days and one sister before Christmas. We will meet the other sister on our way home in the spring. While in California we will visit her mother's grave and meet many more of the family members there. Thanks for the help and continue the good work. * * * FOUND A FAMILY by Terry Fike tcfike@home.com A couple of months ago, my brother and I were having a discussion about finding cousins, aunts, and uncles who probably existed somewhere, but we didn't know where to begin. With our parents dead and one aunt remaining, we felt like the Lone Ranger(s). Our father never talked about his relatives and our mother was an only child. Our parents divorced when I was four years old; three years later, our mother died an untimely death. My brother and I lived with foster parents for a year before being separated. While growing up, nobody offered much in the way of family history for us. Then, I read an article in USA Today about Ancestry.com. That was the beginning of my search for our family. On Ancestry.com, I began my family tree with my eight-year-old granddaughter and worked backward. In just a short time, I have nearly 200 members on our tree and it's still growing. Thanks to you, I have found a family. I have spoken to second cousins, aunts, and uncles in Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan, and more are to come. My great-great-aunt was a Catholic nun and she kept a photo album and letters of her "children," who were the children of her brothers and their offspring. I have located several of the people from her album. In November, I visited Kalamazoo, Michigan and went to her grave at Nazareth to pay my respects and thank her for leaving behind a wealth of information from which I found a family. Maybe she knew that someone would make good use of her album one day. From your online census records of 1920, I searched the Kalamazoo, Michigan census records for six hours until I found my great-grandfather and his family in one part of town and my widowed great-great-grandmother and her son (my great-uncle) in another part of town. Little did they know that the grandson of one family would marry the granddaughter of the other family in another 23 years. I can't wait for the index to be available so I can find the rest of our 1920 family. It has been a wonderful, joyous journey. I cannot thank you enough for helping my brother and me find our family members. * * * * * MAILING LISTS. For an index to most genealogy mailing lists hosted by RootsWeb, visit http://lists.rootsweb.com/ NEW MAILING LIST REQUESTS. Please request new mailing lists at http://resources.rootsweb.com/adopt/ 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 the Underground Railroad, send a SUBSCRIBE request to UNDERGROUND-RR-L-request@rootsweb.com NEW SURNAME MAILING LISTS, GENCONNECT BOARDS, AND CLUSTERS Aalders Bessonette, Butters, Buttomer Coitou Delpe, Denyer Falkenau, Fellger, Fessenden, Found, Frausto Griesbach Harguess, Harlond, Houde, Hulford Irlam Joly McMurdo, Moberg Oberle Payson, Peveto, Pockrandt Radmore, Ricard Scurlock, Sillett, Spitsbergen, Strimple, Subject Tahija, Theisen, Trudel, Turgoose Upright Venne NEW REGIONAL MAILING LISTS AUSTRALIA AUSTRALIA-OBITS CANADA CANADA-CEMETERIES -- for anyone searching for ancestors in Canadian cemeteries or interested in preserving historical information about these cemeteries CAN-NS-CUMBERLAND -- for family research based in Cumberland County, Nova Scotia CANADA-OBITS -- for sharing obituaries or requesting obituary lookups of natives or former residents of Canada IRELAND IRELAND-OBITS SCOTLAND SCOTLAND-OBITS U.S.A. AR-ROLLCALL DE-ROLLCALL GA-ROLLCALL IN-CEMETERIES KS-ROLLCALL KY-ROLLCALL MD-FRED-GEN -- second list for Frederick County, Maryland MS-CEMETERIES OH-CLEVE-CEMETERIES -- To request lookups and information about those buried in Cleveland, Ohio cemeteries OH-ROLLCALL PA-YORK-GEN -- second list for York County, Pennsylvania SC-ROLLCALL TX-ROLLCALL VA-CEMETERIES WI-ROLLCALL ETHNIC AND SPECIAL INTEREST MAILING LISTS FAMILIA -- Familia Ancestral Research Association, specializing in Hispanic or Latin descent KITIMAT-FHS -- Kitimat Family History Society; British Columbia, Canada LUMBEE -- Culture, heritage, history, and genealogy of the Indians known today as Lumbee MAUPIN-CHAT -- Off topic chat place for MAUPIN-L subscribers UNDERGROUND-RR -- For genealogical and historical queries about the Underground Railroad * * * * * NEW WEB ACCOUNT REQUESTS. Please see the instructions at http://accounts.rootsweb.com/ 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. http://www.rootsweb.com/~[account name]. Note that the ~[tilde] before the account name is required. FOR EXAMPLE, to visit the Lawrence County, Pennsylvania Web page, go to http://www.rootsweb.com/~palawren/ CANADA onwcbogs -- Wellington County Branch, Ontario Gen. Society U.S.A. ctcdurha -- Durham, Connecticut (city) ctcmiddl -- Middlefield, Connecticut (city) flcfaahg -- Central Florida African American Historical and Genealogical Society ilmcgs -- Madison County Genealogical Society (Illinois) illcgg -- LaSalle County Genealogy Guild (Illinois) inschs -- Sullivan County Historical Society (Indiana) milphsm -- Lincoln Park Historical Soc. and Museum (Michigan) pacrawfo -- Crawford County, Pennsylvania palawren -- Lawrence County, Pennsylvania pawphoto -- Western Pennsylvania Old Photos Project vamip -- Mulberry Island Project 1607-2007 (Virginia) wagcgs -- Grant County Genealogical Society (Washington) SOME NEW HOMEPAGES AND FREEPAGES CHISHAM FAMILY PAGES. Stories, photos, and information. Other surnames: DINWIDDIE, STRIBLING, JOHNSON, ROTHGEB. Surnames to be included in the future: COLCLOUGH, LEWIS, DEHONNEY, RESER, HODGES, HANCOCK, and more. http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~chisdid/ DURIEUX GENEALOGY. Also ANDRE, BISSONNETTE, DURIEU, DURIEUX, GIESBRECHT, LONGFILS, NEWSON, SCHURMAN, SOLEY, WOODSIDE, et al. http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~durieux/home.html KIWI KONNECTIONS. Researching TRELOAR, GILCHRIST, MCGREGOR, COBURN, TAGGART, IDDENDEN, CALDWELL, PETRIE, MUIR, JAMES and the places they came from. http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~patricia/index.htm MENDENHALL FAMILY GENEALOGY. Also JARDINE, JENSEN, PEDERSEN, and DURRANT. http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~mendpeder/ RIEPE ROOTS. RIEPE families in the United States. http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~ariepe/ TRELOAR. TRELOAR names, dates and places. http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~treloar/index.htm * * * * * 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 http://genconnect.rootsweb.com/surnames/adoptable/ o For the form to request to adopt a GenConnect surname board (the same form is used for surname mailing list requests) http://resources.rootsweb.com/adopt/ * * * * * USGENWEB ARCHIVES. USGW-ARCHIVES-ANNOUNCE is a read-only mailing list for weekly announcements of updates and submissions to the USGenWeb Archives. To subscribe, send e-mail that says only SUBSCRIBE to USGW-ARCHIVES-ANNOUNCE-L-REQUEST@rootsweb.com. DAILY-UPLOADS-L is a read-only mailing list that announces every file uploaded or changed in the USGenWeb Archives. To subscribe, send e-mail that says only SUBSCRIBE to DAILY-UPLOADS-L-REQUEST@rootsweb.com * * * * * LETTERS TO THE EDITORS. Please send letters and all submissions as plain text e-mail messages (no attachments or html) to RWR-Editors@rootsweb.com For years I have searched in vain for my aunt who immigrated to the U.S.A. in the early 1920s and married a German -- until I came across your Web site. I found both her and her husband with their dates of death, the cemetery, and location. I found everything except my uncle's birthday and their wedding date. I have read your history, and I'm really impressed with your work. Tor Ekrem, Oslo, Norway tekrem@chello.no Great thanks. Even though I have been having troubles finding my NICHOLS family, your RootsWeb site has been of great assistance for the most recent generation. I found many of the 21 children of William NICHOLS in the Social Security Death Index (SSDI) at your site, and the SSDI http://ssdi.rootsweb.com/ gave me links to the different Web sites for the counties and states in which they lived and died. This helped expand my search from just Wisconsin to Indiana, Illinois, and Kentucky. Thank you very much for all the help you have given me the last two years. Freda.Juli Juli.Freda@wepco.com On Thursday we sat down to a sumptuous family dinner and recalled all that we were thankful for. To that I would like to add: How thankful we should be for the wonderful individuals who run the Web sites to help us find our ancestors. And to the special people who answer our queries and help, without mention of financial gain, in any way they can. I have come in contact with many of these individuals and I am so grateful that they are there to help. Who says we live in a heartless society? Patricia Aloha2410@voyager.net In September 2000, I sent details of a painting of a young girl and a Basset Hound which I had bought at a dog show. I am delighted to tell you someone who had known the artist saw the item when you published it ["Somebody's Links" in ML 5:36, 6 September 2000] and contacted her nephew. He got in touch with me and the painting is now safely back with her family. Thank you for making this reunion possible. Incidentally, I heard from many fellow dog breeders who also share an interest in genealogy, which added to the satisfaction this effort has provided me. Gwen McCullagh GwenM10100@aol.com http://www.rootsweb.com/~mlnews/turkey.htm Absolutely hilarious! Mary McCanney Finley Marmfin@aol.com * * * * * HUMOR. Thanks to tom_speirs@agilent.com who writes that he received this one from the JokesEveryDay mailing list. A woman took to a photographer an old picture of her dead husband wearing a hat. She wanted to know if the photographer could remove the hat from the picture. He convinced her he could easily do that, and asked her what side of his head he parted his hair on. "I forget," she said. "But you can see that for yourself when you take off his hat." * * * * * ROOTSWEB REVIEW and MISSING LINKS do not answer or publish queries. You can subscribe to the relevant surname and locality mailing lists (complete index at http://lists.rootsweb.com/ )and then post queries to those lists. You can do searches of all of RootsWeb's resources by starting at RootsWeb's main page http://www.rootsweb.com/. You will also want to search the WorldConnect database frequently, as new material is added daily (that database now contains more than 49 million entries). Any letter, story, or article submitted for consideration for publication in MISSING LINKS or ROOTSWEB REVIEW should be sent as a plain text e-mail message to rwr-editors@rootsweb.com 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 [author's name, e-mail address, and URL, if given]. Previously published by RootsWeb.com, Inc., RootsWeb Review: RootsWeb's Genealogy News, Vol. 3, No. 48, 29 November 2000. RootsWeb: http://www.rootsweb.com/ BACK ISSUES OF ROOTSWEB REVIEW and MISSING LINKS are fully SEARCHABLE. Search all or download a specific issue by following the links at http://e-zine.rootsweb.com/ A paid advertisement in ROOTSWEB REVIEW or MISSING LINKS should not be construed as an endorsement of the product or service. TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the free weekly genealogy e-zines, ROOTSWEB REVIEW and MISSING LINKS, send any e-mail to: rootsweb-review-unsubscribe@rootsweb.com TO SUBSCRIBE, send to rootsweb-review-subscribe@rootsweb.com