RootsWeb Review: RootsWeb's Weekly E-zine 13 February 2008, Vol. 11, No. 7 (c) 1998-2008 RootsWeb.com, Inc. http://www.rootsweb.com/ * * * Having trouble reading this newsletter? The online version is available at: http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/review/2008/0213.txt * * * ROOTSWEB HELPDESK: Check here for frequently asked questions about RootsWeb: http://rootsweb.custhelp.com * * * ROOTSWEB NEWSROOM: Check here for the latest RootsWeb news: http://blogs.rootsweb.com/newsroom/ * * * ROOTSWEB STORE: Check here for the latest in genealogy books, software, photos, and more: http://www.therootswebstore.com/ * * * ROOTSWEB REVIEW ARCHIVES: Check here for previous editions: http://e-zine.rootsweb.com/ ============================================================== IN THIS ISSUE: 1. Editor's Desk: News and Notes 1a. Video Tour of the Allen County Public Library 1b. Book Notice 2. Using RootsWeb: Brick Walls: The Value of Discussing Your Research with Others 3. Connecting Ancestors That Go Bump in the Night 4. Bottomless Mailbag: Readers Write In RE: The Watkins Man Dead Fred Website Family Health Histories RE: Comments and Corrections on Ancestry.com 5. What's New: Databases, Freepages, and Mailing Lists 5a. New User-contributed Databases 5b. New/Updated Freepages by Individuals 5c. New/Updated Freepages by Counties, States, and Genealogical/Historical Societies 5d. New Mailing Lists 6. You Found It 7. Subscriptions, Submissions, Advertising, and Reprints ============================================================== IN THIS ISSUE: 1. Editor's Desk: News and Notes 1a. Video Tour of the Allen County Public Library The Allen County Public Library, in Fort Wayne, Indiana, has the largest public genealogy collection in the United States (only the privately- owned Family History Library in Salt Lake City is larger). If you've never been to the Allen County Public Library, are planning a research trip there, or simply want to learn more about it, you can now watch a two-part video tour of the facility and learn more about its resources on YouTube: http://youtube.com/watch?v=tcqDqc0SXgo http://youtube.com/watch?v=mlYhUwu8waQ&feature=related 1b. Book Notice Murder at Green Springs: The True Story of the Hall Case, Firestorm of Prejudices By J. K. Brandau This book documents the 1914 Virginia sensation that was repressed for nearly a century. The Hall murder trial crowned twenty-five years of outrageous history at Green Springs Depot in Louisa County, Virginia, and involved countless individuals throughout the region. The book specifically mentions more than 100 Louisa County families and a lesser number from neighboring Albemarle, Orange, and Fluvanna counties. Drawings, maps, photographs, endnotes, and a bibliography support the text. It is 497 pages. The book is available in paperback and hardback from all on-line booksellers. For more information, visit www.murderatgreensprings.com. 2. Using RootsWeb: Brick Walls: The Value of Discussing Your Research with Others By Joan Young joan@volunteer.rootsweb.com ANOTHER PAIR OF EYES After the publication of my article on reopening brick-wall research, I received e-mails from several readers who put the links and suggestions in the article into practice on their own brick walls, and a few who decided to see if they could help me with my elusive ancestor Abraham ROBINSON. The e-mail discussions that followed reinforced my belief that no resource is more valuable in genealogical pursuits than having others with whom to discuss your research. Having another pair of eyes look over what you have checked and what you have not is invaluable. I struggled for many years with my SMITHs from York County, Pennsylvania. I knew my great-grandfather James Henry SMITH was born in 1858 and baptized at First Moravian Church in York in January 1859. The baptismal record listed his parents as Samuel SMITH and Catharine DIETERICH. I had James's obituary from January 1920, which listed one surviving sister, Mrs. Samuel CORMANY of York. I found Samuel CORMANY and his wife Minnie on census records, so I had a first name for James's surviving younger sister. However, repeated every-line scrutiny of census films going back to the days when doing so meant a trip to the National Archives in Philadelphia, or a two-and-a- half-hour journey to the York County Heritage Trust Library, failed to turn up any hint of Samuel and Catharine with young son James on the 1860 census. When I began my search, there were no every-name indexes to check. The head of household index turned up many Samuel SMITHs, some with wives named Catharine, but none with a son James of the right age. I searched until my eyes were bleary. By 1870 the only possible James SMITHs I could locate in York or surrounding counties in Pennsylvania and Maryland were not with parents but were working as farm laborers in households of non-relatives. By 1880 James was married. I knew if I could locate James's parents on a census record I'd have at least a clue about their ages, which could lead me to earlier records where I could possibly learn the identities of their parents and siblings. Nothing worked and I put the SMITHs aside until a couple years ago when I decided to post a query on the PAYORK Mailing List. DON'T YOU THINK THAT IS ODD? A list member who enjoys doing census lookups and sorting out problems found something I'd overlooked all these years. She found a Samuel and Catharine SMITH in York County on the 1860 census with two sons named John SMITH. The first was John J. SMITH, age five. The younger one was John H. SMITH, age two--just the right age to be James. "Don't you think that is odd?" she asked. Was it an enumerator error? Could the second "John" really have been James? I'd overlooked this oddity all these years because I was so focused on looking for a James, not a John. If this was the right family, I had a bit of good fortune: Barney SMITH, father of the head of household, was also living with the family in 1860. Plus, both Samuel and Barney were stone masons. When you are looking for a common surname such as SMITH, finding a unique occupation can help in your search. ONE CLUE LED TO ANOTHER I was able to find Barney SMITH on the 1850 census in York County living with his wife, Catharine, and his son Samuel (still unmarried in 1850). I hadn't found this Samuel SMITH in any of my previous searches due to an error on the census enumeration. Barney SMITH, age seventy-one, was listed as head of household, and beneath his name was listed Ann REED, age twelve. She was listed as black. Everyone else in the household was listed as white. Beneath her name was Catharine, age sixty-seven (Barney's wife), and Samuel, age twenty-seven. The enumerator had used ditto marks under the name REED for the surnames of the other members of the household. The indexer had picked up their surnames as REED, not SMITH. From that point on, it was clear sailing. I found Samuel Leander SMITH's baptismal record at Christ Lutheran Church, York, listing his parents as Bernhard and Catharine SMITH. But I found conclusive proof that I had this family sorted out properly in the 1910 census entry for Samuel and Minnie CORMANY. Who should be living in the household with them but Minnie's older brother, John J. SMITH. Bingo! And all it took to find the information was a helpful list member who took the time to do a bit of checking and notice an inconsistency that I'd overlooked for many years. Oh, the incalculable value of a second pair of eyes. * * * * * * * * * * Advertisements * * * * * * * * * * ANCESTOR SEEKERS RECRUITING PART TIME RESEARCHERS IN SALT LAKE CITY Due to the continued success of their Research Service, Ancestor Seekers are currently seeking researchers with skills in researching records from the United States, Canada, Germany, Ireland, Holland, France, Austria, Switzerland, Scandinavia, Italy, and Poland to conduct research at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For further information contact http://www.ancestorseekers.com/about/researchers.php * * * * * * * * * * End of Advertisements * * * * * * * 3. Connecting Ancestors That Go Bump in the Night By Bob Roy, California My story about "Connecting" is the ultimate example of how helpful other people can be. My grandmother's maiden name was Bump. My mother did years of genealogy research in the old days when it was all done the hard way--by writing letters, visiting graveyards, talking to family members, or going to courthouses. She had tried to trace the Bump line with little success. When I finally got hooked on genealogy I started entering the material she had into Family Tree Maker. She had proposed that her grandfather was named Cyrus Bump, and that he was born somewhere in Indiana around 1850, but I could find nothing to prove it. Finally I posted a query on GenForum, and within one hour, I received a reply. The kind individual not only gave me the proof I needed about Cyrus Bump, but he gave me three generations of Bumps going back, and also listed his website address so I could get more data. Imagine my joy when I visited his website and found seven generations going back to Edouard Bompasse, who came on the first ship following the Mayflower. This ship was named "Fortune" and arrived at Plymouth on 10 November 1621. It contained mostly young, strong men who were partially responsible for saving the struggling colony from starvation. The amount of information I gleaned from this one act of kindness far exceeds any other I have encountered. Thank you Lynn. Since that experience, I have never hesitated to share my data with anyone who has a legitimate family connection and is looking to information that I was able to supply. 4. Bottomless Mailbag: Readers Write In [Editor's note: The opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and are not necessarily those of the editor or of RootsWeb.com.] ------------------------------------------------------------- RE: The Watkins Man By Angi Ishida ishida.fullerton@att.net Regarding the photograph of the Watkins man submitted two weeks ago, and Watkins products, my aunt sold Watkins products door-to-door in the late 1950s. She had a squarish blue sample case that held spices and flavorings and skincare products. My favorite was a lanolin hand lotion. J.R. Watkins is still in business selling all natural products. Target stores carry some of their skincare line and recently began selling Watkins all natural cleaning supplies and dishwashing liquid. * * * Dead Fred Website By Frances Barkley Willess Last week, you recommended visiting the Dead Fred genealogy photograph website. I can certainly recommend checking Dead Fred. The first time I looked I found a picture of my grandfather's uncle, William Barkley, who lived in Kingman, Kansas. Since a more direct family member never claimed the picture, it was sent to me at no charge after a year. It was made doubly important to me because Uncle William had inscribed it with a note to a cousin and his signature was on the back. The man who started the site found the picture in a second hand store. There is no charge to use the site, but they do appreciate donations. www.DeadFred.com * * * Family Health Histories By Mrs. Marianne T. Creasy hickoryfv@sunlink.net In my years of doing genealogical research (since 1972), I have also recorded a health history for my ancestors. By keeping track of health problems, I have been able to confirm that various health concerns have indeed been passed from one generation to another (e.g., diabetes, stroke, various cancer types, physical disabilities, migraines [sick headaches, as my grandmother called them], and speech impediments). As family trees branch out, so do health concerns. When our oldest daughter (forty-seven) was recently diagnosed with diabetes and the physician questioned about a family health history, she was able to relate the various generations that had this health problem. [Editor's Note: To read an interesting article on creating family health histories, visit "Building a Tree of Prevention," from the January/February 2007 edition of "Ancestry" Magazine: http://www.ancestrymagazine.com/2007/01/features/building-a-tree-of-prevention/. Also, check out the My Family Health Portrait tool available from the Surgeon General's office: https://familyhistory.hhs.gov. Additional helps are located here: www.nsgc.org/consumer/familytree/index.cfm.] * * * RE: Comments and Corrections on Ancestry.com By Richard B. Gilbert I appreciated Mike Walton's contribution last week on sending in corrections to Ancestry.com. I thought I would add that I also occasionally find these transcription errors and use the provided correction facility. When making the correction I try to add some other identifying information, such as the individual's date of birth and/or the names of his parents. I can also occasionally direct attention to a preceding or following census in which the name is more legibly written and/or spelled correctly. To read Mike Walton's article, visit http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/review/2008/0206.txt. 5. What's New: Databases, Freepages, and Mailing Lists 5a. New User-contributed Databases at RootsWeb http://userdb.rootsweb.com/submit/ ------------------------------------------------------------- The following databases have come online recently. They are searchable, but not browseable. VIRGINIA. Westmoreland County. Westmoreland Seminary, 1832 Alumni. 16 records. Submitted by Paula Lucy Delosh. http://userdb.rootsweb.com/alumni/ TENNESSEE. Madison County. City of Jackson. Hollywood Cemetery. 1,359 records. Submitted by Cristie Sanders Wright. http://userdb.rootsweb.com/cemeteries/ 5b. New/Updated Freepages by Individuals To Request a Free Web Account: http://accounts.rootsweb.com/ ------------------------------------------------------------- If you have a new or substantially revised freepage at RootsWeb and would like to see it mentioned here, send the URL, the title, and a BRIEF description, including major surnames, to Editor-RWR@rootsweb.com. * * * If your genealogy- or history-related site is located somewhere other than RootsWeb, you can add the link to RootsWeb here: http://resources.rootsweb.com/~rootslink/addlink.html * * * Anderson Web page. By David L. Moody. This page contains information about Otto Andersson, born 5 May 1858 at Hogsater Parish, Alvsborgland, Sweden. http://freepages.misc.rootsweb.com/~edmundmoody/index.html Audet dit LaPointe Web page. By David L. Moody. This page contains information about Nicolas Audet dit Lapointe, born before 13 Jul 1637 at Saint-Pierre-Maille, Poitiers, Poitou, France. http://freepages.history.rootsweb.com/~edmundmoody/index.html Edmund Web page. By David L. Moody. This page contains information about Edmund Moody, born about 1495 in County Suffolk, England. http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~edmundmoody/index.html Matkovic Web page. By David L. Moody. This page contains information about Johann Matkovic, born 1871 in Tanca Gora, Slovenia. http://freepages.family.rootsweb.com/~edmundmoody/matkovic/ 5c. New/Updated Freepages by Counties, States, and Genealogical/Historical Societies To Request a Free Web Account: http://accounts.rootsweb.com/ ------------------------------------------------------------- Some of these Web pages might not be accessible yet. 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] * * * Note that the ~[tilde] before the Web account name is required. For example, the Castro Valley Genealogy Group (California) website is at http://www.rootsweb.com/~cacvgg/ * * * U.S.A. cacvgg -- Castro Valley Genealogy Group (California) mdcemete -- Maryland Cemeteries mevhs -- Vienna Historical Society (Maine) mncemete -- Minnesota Cemeteries nhcemete -- New Hampshire Cemeteries tnpchgs -- Polk County Historical & Genealogical Society CANADA canharri -- Harrigan Cove (Nova Scotia) 5d. New Mailing Lists To Request a New Mailing List: http://resources.rootsweb.com/adopt/ ------------------------------------------------------------- To find or subscribe to a mailing list, or to search archived posts to more than 30,000 RootsWeb-hosted genealogy mailing lists, go to http://lists.rootsweb.com/. NEW SURNAME MAILING LISTS APONTE ARROYO ASCENCIO BAIZ BONETA CALDERON CANO CARTAGENA CASA CIRINO COMAS COMASTRO ESCABI ESCOBEDO GALARZA LEBRON LUGO MACMANUS MCCLUNEY MCDILDA MCLERRAN MCLIN MCNITT MCQUATER MIRO OCASIO PACHECO PASTRANA SANABRIA SCRASE NEW REGIONAL MAILING LISTS PUGH-DNA--A mailing list for discussing and sharing information regarding DNA testing of Pugh descendants. NEW ETHNIC OR SPECIAL INTEREST MAILING LISTS KEFALONIA--A mailing list for anyone with a genealogical interest in the Greek island of Kefalonia (Cephallenia, Cephallonia, Kefallinia, or Kefallonia) and ancestral lines originating on this island. 6. You Found It We know genealogy is all about dead relatives, but here's one that goes a bit far. As the new historian of the Southern Genealogist's Exchange Society of Jacksonville, Florida, I have been reviewing the binders of historical material, and I came across this a binder title from the Society's formative years of 1965-66: "Opinion Survey for Deceased Members of the Southern Genealogy Exchange Society." This was actually a survey of the very living members of the society, on the subject of how to extend condolences to the families of deceased members. --Thanks to Karen Rhodes * * * I work regularly with naturalization records for three Wisconsin counties. The oddest name I've found is one from Jefferson County-- Ortgies Bulwinkel. --Thanks to Karen Weston, University Archivist, University of Wisconsin- Whitewater * * * Found a funny name or humorous tidbit in old records or an amusing entry in census, parish, church, or other records? Send these and other genealogy-related humor/humour items to Editor- RWR@rootsweb.com. For a description of, subscription information to, and an index of the more than 30,000 RootsWeb-hosted genealogy mailing lists go here. 7. Subscriptions, Submissions, Advertising, and 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 editor is considered to be for publication--send to: Editor-RWR@rootsweb.com and please include your full name and e-mail address in the text. * * * ROOTSWEB REVIEW ADVERTISING CONTACTS. Ad Sales 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: 13 February 2008, Vol. 11, No. 7. * * * *