RootsWeb Review: RootsWeb's Weekly E-zine 11 April 2007, Vol. 10, No. 15 (c) 1998-2007 RootsWeb.com, Inc. http://www.rootsweb.com/ * * * ROOTSWEB HELPDESK: Check here for announcements: http://helpdesk.rootsweb.com/ * * * ROOTSWEB REVIEW ARCHIVES: Current and previous editions: http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/review/2007/0411.txt http://e-zine.rootsweb.com/ ============================================================== IN THIS ISSUE: 1. Editor's Desk: News and Notes 1a. The RootsWeb Store 1b. "The Official Guide to RootsWeb.com" 1c. Watch out YouTube--Here Comes RootsTube 1d. Book Notices (2) 1e. Using RootsWeb: RootsWeb, the Ever-changing Resource 2. Connecting Through RootsWeb: Reuniting Through Reunions A Novice Gets a Nudge in the Right Direction 3. Bottomless Mailbag: Finders Keepers Shelby County Cemeteries More on Cemetery Photos Indicating a Rufname? 4. New at RootsWeb 4a. New User-contributed Databases 4b. New/Updated Freepages and Homepages by Individuals 4c. New/Updated Freepages and Homepages by Counties, States, and Genealogical/Historical Societies 4d. New Mailing Lists 5. Humor/Humour 6. Subscriptions, Submissions, Advertising, Reprints ============================================================== IN THIS ISSUE: 1. Editor's Desk: News and Notes 1a. The RootsWeb Store Starting this week, you will see a new feature on RootsWeb--The RootsWeb Store. The store contains historical photographs and maps, genealogy software, and books. You'll find novels like "The Isle of Canes," about a multi- racial family in Louisiana, U.S.A., that transcends the bonds of slavery to rule the Isle of Canes, and more traditional family history resources, such as "This and That Genealogy Tips," "Writing the Family Narrative," and "A Guide to Researching, Dating and Contextualizing Family Photographs." Every time you buy something from the store, a portion of the profits goes to the RootsWeb community, keeping it free and functioning. The store is located under "Buy" on the homepage or can be found at: www.therootswebstore.com If you have suggestions about the store send your comments to feedback@rootsweb.com. 1b. "The Official Guide to RootsWeb.com" You've waited long enough. "The Official Guide to RootsWeb.com" is finally here! For all you who have missed your weekly dose of former editor, Myra Vanderpool Gormley, here's your chance to find those buried treasures hidden at RootsWeb--with her help. Along with Tana Pedersen Lord, author of "The Official Guide to Family Tree Maker 2006," Myra takes you on an insider's tour of RootsWeb.com and teaches you the tips and tricks to unlock the full potential of the world's largest, free genealogy website. The guide is available in two formats. The e-book version ($7.95) is available for immediate download, or you can pre-order a print copy of the book ($12.95) that will be shipped when it becomes available in mid to late April. You will not be charged for the print book until it ships. To purchase your copy, go to the RootsWeb store: www.therootswebstore.com 1c. Watch out YouTube--Here Comes RootsTube Launched just a few months ago, Roots Television is the first-ever online home for family history programming. It boasts twenty channels of great shows for the roots-enthusiast. And now, to celebrate the launch of RootsTube, they are holding a Wild Roots contest. Submissions of all things genealogical are welcome, but viewers are invited to tell the world about the craziest thing they ever did in their quest to learn about their heritage. (Did you accidentally pull an all-nighter at your computer? Did you cross a field with a bull in it to get to an old cemetery? Did you purposely get yourself locked into a library overnight?) You can tell your tale directly to the camera, re-enact it, animate it, use hand puppets, or whatever appeals to you. Create your video by yourself or with your sister, research buddies, fellow society members, or that sixth cousin of yours in New Zealand. On 15 May 2007, Roots Television will select and announce the winner. Visit Roots Television at: www.rootstelevision.com 1d. Book Notices THE LATE SOONER By Sally Jadlow "The Late Sooner" is historical fiction based on the diary of Sanford Deering, the author's great-grandfather. Sanford staked a claim in the unassigned lands of the Oklahoma Territory four months after the first land opening in 1889, where he wrote one line a day in a ledger. He and his family survived the famine of 1890 known as "The Year of the Turnip" when all crops failed except turnips. Men and beast alike had nothing else to eat. The book can be purchased for $16.95 at http://AWOCbooks.com or at http://amazon.com. For more information check out http://TheLateSooner.com or visit Sally's blog at http://thelatesooner.blogspot.com. * * * BAKER DESCENDANTS OF WILLIAM AND MARGARET, 1750-1950 By Diane E. Price and Patrick G. O'Neill Surnames included are BAKER, PATTERSON, LAWLEY, FITGERALD, BAILEY, SEATON, EDWARDS, MILLS, and STRICKLIN. Price is $30 including shipping and handling. Check or money order only. Order from Pony22@cmc.net or write to: Patrick O'Neill 100 Banton Avenue Eugene OR 97404 1e. Using RootsWeb: RootsWeb, the Ever-changing Resource By Joan Young joan@volunteer.rootsweb.com How many times have you suggested to a frustrated genealogical researcher that he try checking out RootsWeb, only to have him reply with something like, "I've tried finding my elusive great-grandpa at RootsWeb but there is nothing to be found." Many researchers, especially those who are relatively new to their quest for family history, search once and move on to other pursuits, never looking back. With genealogical research we must remember that we are not working in a vacuum. RootsWeb is a constantly evolving resource where, if the data you seek isn't there one day, it may well be added the next. Not a day goes by without many users posting messages to the RootsWeb mailing lists, the RootsWeb/Ancestry message boards, and the RootsWeb Surname List (RSL); or uploading new or updated GEDCOMs to WorldConnect, creating new websites housed at RootsWeb, updating the content of an existing page, or even submitting a user-contributed database. When you are faced with elusive ancestors who seem to be hiding from you and appear to have had an uncanny knack for eluding the census enumerator, avoiding military service, and not being baptized, you never know when someone else who has information on great-grandpa (maybe even possesses the old family Bible) might come along and post that information somewhere at RootsWeb. It could happen any day! The RSL is easily searchable for surnames of interest to you including information as to the location where the families lived and migrated: http://rsl.rootsweb.com/ There is even a mailing list to which you can subscribe to keep abreast of new additions to the RSL listings: http://lists.rootsweb.com/index/other/Miscellaneous/RSL-update.html From the mailing list homepage, you can easily locate a list or lists of interest to you from among the approximately 30,000 genealogy-oriented mailing lists at RootsWeb. Subscribing to RootsWeb mailing lists is completely free and many lists have resident experts on the topic of discussion for the specific list. This could be the place you hit the jackpot in the pursuit of your ancestors in hiding: http://lists.rootsweb.com/ Before you subscribe to a list, you may wish to search or browse the list archives to see if the information you are seeking has already been posted. The archives of any public RootsWeb mailing list can be browsed or searched from here: http://archiver.rootsweb.com/ Posting a query on a RootsWeb/Ancestry message board can result in others with similar research interests finding you at a later date. Board posts do not always yield instant results but very often lead others to you through a search--weeks, months, and even years later. For security reasons it is necessary to register and login when posting to the message boards, but registration is completely free and ensures you can globally update your account information should this ever become necessary: http://boards.rootsweb.com/ Searching the combined WorldConnect/Ancestry World Tree database can yield a goldmine of results in finding those collateral lines you have not researched extensively and also offer the connection you might need in the form of contact information for the submitter. WorldConnect also offers the opportunity to add your own personal Post-em Note (like an electronic sticky note) to an entry of interest in a family tree, adding or correcting the submitter's information. Perhaps you merely would like to add a note letting the world know that you, too, are connected to this individual in case those finding the file in the future wish to reach you via the contact information in your Post-em Note. As an alternative or additional suggestion, you may wish to compile your own family tree in genealogy software, create a GEDCOM file, and upload it to WorldConnect. In this way, much like leaving a post on a message board, others can find you in the future. It is like leaving your calling card to help as yet unknown cousins locate you and share information: http://wc.rootsweb.com/ And if all else fails, don't forget to check websites at RootsWeb: http://www.rootsweb.com/~websites/ Look for new or updated freepages sites: http://freepages.rootsweb.com/directory/genealogy.html Or look for newly submitted user-contributed databases: http://userdb.rootsweb.com/regional.html Everyday, others are out there adding new information to the various resources at RootsWeb. So tell those who think searching RootsWeb resources once is enough that they are missing out on the constant flow of information. RootsWeb is truly an ever-changing resource. Remember to check back often. * * * * * * * * * * Advertisements * * * * * * * * * * REQUEST A SEARCH FOR YOUR ANCESTORS AT THE FAMILY HISTORY LIBRARY ANCESTOR SEEKERS researchers at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City will search this vast collection for your ancestors from the U.S.A., Canada, England, Scotland, Australia, Ireland, Germany, Holland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Italy. Prices start from $55 (U.S.). For a FREE! initial e-mail consultation visit http://www.ancestorseekers.com/research.rwr/ Or join us JUNE 24-29 at our EIGHTH SALT LAKE CITY RESEARCH TRIP--THE IDEAL GENEALOGY VACATION--a whole week at the Family History Library, accessing the world's largest collection of genealogical records with help and advice from accredited genealogist professionals. * * * * * * * * * * End of Advertisements * * * * * * * 2. Connecting Through RootsWeb: Reuniting Through Reunions By Victoria Johnson Springfield, Missouri vjohnson@drury.edu Our family decided to have a reunion--sounds simple enough. We had been so busy tracing our ancestors that we had forgotten about all those living cousins we had lost track of. So the quest was on: I had five missing cousins to find! I found one of them still living in the old family area in Iowa. He then told me his mother was still alive. I immediately gave her a call and what a joy that was. She sent me photos I didn't have and the location of two of her other children plus one other name I was looking for. The city she gave me for one of my cousins was wrong but through a little detective work I found the correct one: I looked up all the matching names and one in particular looked perfect so I called and left a message and the next day got a call back. He was the son of an only child, who was the son of an only child, and now he had family connections. Then came the hard part: tracing a missing female cousin. I had one of my California cousins go to the state library and look up all of the Barbara J. Johnson's that got married within a certain time period (deciphered from photos) and then we set up a spreadsheet and started weeding. We had it down to a manageable number to start looking into. I also posted to a couple of possible locations on the boards at RootsWeb. About a month into this search I was driving home from work and my cell phone rang. I didn't recognize the number. The person on the other end said, "Hi, my name is Barbara Jo Johnson and I hear you are looking for me!" I had to pull over I was so stunned. Turns out that my elderly cousin in Iowa started her own search, found her, and sent her a letter with my phone number in it. Barabara was excited. Before the call she had been an only child and afterward she had a bunch of cousins. This reunion will be special to say the least. * * * A Novice Gets a Nudge in the Right Direction By Leisa To my surprise, there are plenty of people in the world willing to help track down other people's ancestors out of goodwill. I am searching for my ancestors, KRAETZIG/KRATZIG and all I did was send a simple e-mail to someone who had information about a place called Kratzig in Poland because I thought there was a connection. Turns out there isn't, but this person has been helping me in the most friendly way possible, giving me so much information and a better understanding of where my ancestors actually came from. I have come across a few other people around the world who have given me bits and pieces of information out of kindness and it has been a lot of fun, and very interesting. I have found that some people who normally charge fees will sometimes give you small amounts of information too. I am grateful I made contact with these people because even though I thought I was wasting their time, I wasn't. It just goes to show--don't be afraid of asking a short, simple question. You never know your luck. So thank you to everyone who has given their time to e-mail me. 3. BOTTOMLESS MAILBAG [Editor's Note: The opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and are not necessarily those of the editor or of RootsWeb.com.] ------------------------------------------------------------- Finders Keepers By Liz Petry, author of "Can Anything Beat White? A Black Family's Letters," published by University Press of Mississippi After a computer crash I'm catching up on old RootsWeb Reviews and came across the humor entry for 12 December 2006. The author quotes an ad in an 1811 newspaper in which the subscriber says he will give a "one cent reward, and no thanks" to anyone who will return his runaway apprentice. Employers and slave owners published such ads to absolve themselves of liability in the event that the indentured servant or slave damaged another person's property or became a public charge. The sentence about forbidding such persons from harboring the apprentice was also boilerplate to protect the employer/owner. With the publication of such an ad, he was off the hook. To see the submission to which Liz Petry is referring visit: http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/review/2006/1213.txt * * * Shelby County Cemeteries By Jeannette T. Walton jtwalton13@comcast.net I was very interested in reading "My Start in Genealogy and Cemetery Surveys" by Mary Harrell-Sesniak, especially the part about Shelby County, Indiana. While we lived in Shelby County, I volunteered for Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness taking photos of graves and markers for researchers far away. Shelby County has or had some very dedicated people who have indexed all the cemeteries, even the family plots, in the county. This information is published and kept in the Genealogy Department of the Shelby County Library, Shelbyville. I didn't realize what a gift this index was to researchers until we relocated to Florida, where this had not been done. I hope that Ms. Harrell-Sesniak was able to take advantage of this gift, and that others searching in Shelby County, Indiana, are made aware of it. To read Mary Harrell-Sesniak's article, "My Start in Genealogy and Cemetery Surveys," visit: http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/review/2007/0328.txt To visit Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness, go to: www.raogk.com * * * More on Cemetery Photos By Teresa Lehman I just wanted to write another tip on taking photos at cemeteries. When using a 35mm camera, it sometimes helps to use black and white film as it picks up the stone's transcription without the distraction of all the color of the surrounding grounds. I took two pictures of a set of stones--one in color and one in black and white. In the black and white picture I was able to see a headstone in the background that I missed in the color photo. The stone was one I had been looking for but overlooked. Also, when photo-copying an information page containing a photo, black and white seems to copy better. * * * Indicating a Rufname? By S. M. Hughes I'm curious. When an individual in my database is known by his or her middle name (as in Thomas Woodrow Wilson), is there a proper way to indicate that fact when recording the name? I've read that, in Europe, an underline is used in some official records to indicate which name is the "rufname" or "call name," but that its use is inconsistent. My genealogy program makes no provision for underlining text. Anyway, when exchanging genealogical information on the Internet, underlining text would create confusion and annoyance. Is there no generally recognized convention among genealogists? Quotation marks around the middle name make it appear to be a nickname. That's misleading. It shouldn't be recorded as an AKA either. I've considered an asterisk, placed before the name so that it won't appear to be a footnote reference. What are other people doing? [Editor's Note: In some countries and religions, children are given prenames or saints' names at baptism in addition to their given name or rufname (call name). For example: Johan Georg SCHMIDT--Johan is the prename and Georg is the rufname. A rufname is not the same as a middle name or a nickname. The rufname would be the name Georg was called throughout his life. In genealogy programs and in genealogy reports you would generally want to include the full name, with the prename and rufname as well as the surname: Johan Georg SCHMIDT. You would want to indicate in reports that Johan Georg went by the name of Georg and a generally accepted way to do that is by showing the name: Johan Georg "Georg" SCHMIDT. By the same token, you could show Thomas Woodrow "Woodrow" WILSON to indicate that this is the name he was called by. The "AKA" or "alternate" field in your genealogy program is another proper place to include whatever name--rufname, middle name, or nickname--the person used. Genealogy programs vary in whether they display (and how they display) the "AKA" name in reports. Another option in some software is to add a new "fact." You can name the new fact whatever you want. Make sure you add the fact to any reports before printing them.] 4. New at RootsWeb 4a. New User-contributed Databases at RootsWeb http://userdb.rootsweb.com/submit/ ------------------------------------------------------------- The following databases have come online recently. They are searchable, but not browseable. Search: To look for specific data or occurrence of text in a file. Browse: To view the entire contents of a file or a group of files. NEW YORK. Nassau County. Union Free School, 1929. 77 records. Emily (Tvrdik) Brady. http://userdb.rootsweb.com/alumni/ U.S. Cemetery Records: DAVIS/VALACHOVIC Family Burials. 2669 records. Beverly Davis Valcovic. http://userdb.rootsweb.com/cemeteries/ 4b. New/Updated Freepages and Homepages by Individuals To Request a Free Web Account: http://accounts.rootsweb.com/ ------------------------------------------------------------- Can your cousins find your website at RootsWeb? Has it ever been mentioned here or do you have a new, updated, or substantially revised website at RootsWeb (it will have "freepages" or "homepages" in the URL)? Send the URL, the title of the website, the name of the author, and a BRIEF description of the site, including major surnames, to: Editor-RWR@rootsweb.com * * * If your genealogical or historical related site is located somewhere other than at RootsWeb.com, you can add the link here: http://resources.rootsweb.com/~rootslink/addlink.html * * * Our Maternal and Paternal Ancestors: 300 Years of History in America. Features three separate family sub-sites as follows: (1) DELLINGER, KNECHT, PFEFFER, SILAR, and allied families; (2) BOZARTH, PEIFFER, QUIGLEY, RHUBART, and allied families; (3) MORELAND, MCVICKER, PINNELL, SCRUGGS, and allied families. View new and updated web-pages added between 1 January 2007 and 31 March 2007 at: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~tqpeiffer/ Cindy L. TIBBE--Jeffrey L. TURNER website. The website contains the 1834 emigration story of two brothers, Christopher Heinrich and Gerhardt Heinrich JURGENS, sons of Eberhard Heinrich JURGENS and wife Katharine Marie Elisabeth MOLLENPAGE-VOSS (nee WILKER) of Belm, Osnabruck, Germany, to the City of Richmond, Wayne County, Indiana, U.S.A. http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~tibbeturner 4c. New/Updated Freepages and Homepages by Counties, States, and Genealogical/Historical Societies To Request a Free Web Account: http://accounts.rootsweb.com/ ------------------------------------------------------------- Some of these Web pages might not yet be accessible. They are created by volunteers, so if one that interests you isn't up yet, please check again in a few days or next week. http://www.rootsweb.com/~xxxxxx[accountname] DAR = Daughters of the American Revolution NEW = New England Women UDC = United Daughters of the Confederacy DUVCW = Daughters of the Union Veterans of the Civil War U.S.A. almwjdar -- Martha Wayles Jefferson (Alabama) Chapter DAR canhlduv -- Nancy Hanks Lincoln Tent #5 (California) DUVCW ilphs -- Palos Historical Society (Illinois) mschick2 -- Chickasaw County (Mississippi) txdjtnew -- Deacon John Tenny (Texas) Colony NEW txjdcdac -- Jefferson Davis (Texas) Chapter UDC vawbcdar -- William Byrd (Virginia) Chapter DAR NEW ZEALAND nzlwihs -- Waiheke Island Historical Society (New Zealand) 4d. New Mailing Lists To Request a New Mailing List: http://resources.rootsweb.com/adopt/ ------------------------------------------------------------- For information and an index to the more than 30,000 RootsWeb-hosted genealogy Mailing Lists and for easy subscribing (joining) options go to: http://lists.rootsweb.com/ NEW SURNAME MAILING LISTS UNSWORTH NEW REGIONAL MAILING LISTS NLD-ZHEILANDEN -- This list will serve as a meeting point for anyone with ancestors on the Dutch South-Holland Islands. NEW ETHNIC OR SPECIAL INTEREST MAILING LISTS TMG-BRISTOL -- A mailing list for members of the Bristol Area Users' Group for The Master Genealogist software. TMG-UK -- A mailing list for UK users of The Master Genealogist software and for users elsewhere with UK research interests. 5. Humor/Humour Speaking of having a "proper name for the job," the president of "Friends of Animals" is named Priscilla Feral. I ran across her name while reading an article from the New York Post dated 2 April 2007. The article, titled "Judi's Job with Pup-Killer Firm," was about a previous job of Mrs. Judi Giuliani, wife of U.S. presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani, in which she demonstrated surgical instruments on canines. Here's an excerpt from the article: "'It was a horribly cruel, outrageous program,' Friends of Animals President Priscilla Feral said about the demonstrations of medical staplers on dogs conducted by U.S. Surgical Corp. employees during [Judith] Giuliani's tenure there in the late 1970s." --Thanks to Dana DeAndra Turner * * * Occasionally, as editor of the Review, I get similar submissions from multiple sources. Several weeks ago I got a submission from Bernice Gunderson for the humor/humour section. "Dear Editor," she wrote, "A name I came across in the New England census was 'Preserved Fish.'" Just the day before, I received a similar submission. Bernice, perhaps this will shed light on Mr. Preserved Fish: "David and Jemimah (TALLMAN) FISH lived in Newport, Rhode Island, in the early 1700s. Their first known child, born twenty-three years after their marriage, was named Patience Fish. She was followed five years later by Ruth Fish. Five years later their last child, a son, was born when David and Jemimah were both in their fifties. I guess they thought he had been held for the later part of their lives, because they named him Preserved Fish. Interestingly enough, brother and sister Preserved and Patience married brother and sister Jeremiah and Elizabeth Austin, who are my wife's third cousins, many times removed. I guess Elizabeth really had to have been in love." --Thanks to Bill Ferris Found a funny or "proper name for the job" in old records, or an amusing entry in census, parish, church, etc. records? Send them to: Editor-RWR@rootsweb.com. We also welcome other humorous genealogy-related submissions. 6. Subscriptions, Submissions, Advertising, Reprints ------------------------------------------------------------- SUBSCRIPTIONS. To manage your e-mail communications (i.e. to subscribe or unsubscribe to this newsletter, or to sign up for others), visit our newsletter management center any time at: http://newsletters.rootsweb.com/ If you use a spam-filtering program, in order to receive the RootsWeb Review please make sure that you're allowing e-mail from: rootswebreview@email.rootsweb.com The RootsWeb Review is a free publication of The Generations Network, Inc., 360 West 4800 North, Provo, UT, 84604 * * * The RootsWeb Review does not publish or answer genealogical queries, and the editor regrets that she is unable to provide any personal research assistance or advice. RootsWeb Review welcomes short (500 words or less) articles, humor, stories, or letters, and reserves the right to edit all submissions. The announcement of books and products is provided as a community service and is not an endorsement in any way. All mail sent to the RootsWeb Review editor is considered to be for publication--send in plain text (please, no attachments) to: Editor-RWR@rootsweb.com and please include your full name and e-mail address in the text. * * * ROOTSWEB REVIEW ADVERTISING CONTACTS. AdSales Worldwide: Tami Deleeuw, tdeleeuw@tgn.com * * * REPRINTS. 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: Previously published in RootsWeb Review: 11 April 2007, Vol. 10, No. 15. * * * *