Research Resource Book

Resource Book

In opening my cabinet of resource books today I decided to share another one from my “Family Tree” collection. I purchased this book, “The Family Tree Sourcebook” about 10 years ago while attending a conference. Its listed as a guide/directory for your county and town records here in the US. If you’ve ever attended one of the many great genealogy conferences I’m sure you’ve seen this cover.

The Family Tree Sourcebook

I will have to say I have gotten quite a lot of use out of this one over the years and find it quite handy. No matter if you’ve been researching for a while I think you could find this one just as useful. Each chapter is broken down by states and in those chapters, you’re provided with some brief historical information on that state and some helpful contact information.

Let me elaborate just a little, let’s take Kentucky for instance. You’ll find mailing and email addresses, website information, and phone numbers.  All these guiding you to different societies, archives, and libraries. Plus (insert smile here) county details with some of the best information on each county within that state. The only downfall is it’s limited to the US but then again with over 700 pages full of helpful information, I can’t imagine how large it would be with more countries added.

I can say that I have seen this particular book at a few conferences this past year. But in case you are unable to locate on, I’ve included this link to Amazon for you, https://amzn.to/2u4FVOU.

Mistleoe

Mistletoe Aplenty

During the winter holiday season, how many of us have stepped under the mistletoe? We might walk through a doorway as it’s hanging above us, or maybe have some hanging on a wreath on the door. Whatever the case maybe did you realize that during the depression it helped to feed many families. Don’t worry I didn’t either until after I read a small history notation in my local paper by Roger Martin.

Middletowntranscript Nov. 23, 2017

 November 25th, 1937 With mistletoe aplenty 4,000 Sussex County workers began making holly wreaths which brought 3 to 6 cents a wreath. While seemingly not much, it was at least something for the work-starved people in the area during the Depression. 

I will admit after reading this, even as small as it was. I will never look at this piece of holiday greenery the same way again.

Panda Bear

First Panda

In a purchase from eBay, there were a couple of photos, just like this one. Noted on the back of one “1st Panda Bear at Brookfield Zoo“. While I typically share photos with people in them, I thought this might be of interest to some.

Su-Lin

Therefore I couldn’t help myself and wanted to see what else I could find out. The Brookfield Zoo in Chicago served as the home to Su-Lin, pictured above.  Yes, I’m having a small celebration, I have a name, location, and more. It turns out that she is the first Panda Bear in a United States zoo. She made her appearance around 1936, now that doesn’t mean that’s the photograph date. A BBC news article dated December 2, 2013, states she was a baby in 1936. This photograph was obviously taken a couple years later. In reading the article linked above you will learn more about Su-Lin. Along with those who rescued her and the meaning of her name. 

Family Legacies

Book of Legacies

Building a book full of legacies just got a little easier and more fun for some. A few years ago, for Mother’s Day, I received “Family Tree Legacies” from my kids. It wasn’t until the last blog post that I realized I never shared this with any of you. I’m pretty sure they purchased it through Amazon, but it is published through Family Tree Magazine.

Family Tree Legacies

This is the perfect gift idea for the family historian in our family or heck even yourself. Held together in a nice three-ring book it consists of eleven chapters including a foldable family tree. Each chapter is full of pages for you to fill in with all your information, your family, and your ancestor’s information. You’ll even find helpful tips and hints along the way in collecting what is needed. This family keepsake binder is customizable and even comes with a disk, so you can print off more pages as needed.

Each chapter of this book provides you with some helpful tips when answering the questions. Take this section, Memories & Traditions. Most of us can remember some of those family stories passed down from generation to generation. You will even find a section on interviewing your family members, they might have some wonderful stories to add.

Memories & Traditions

I thought this was the perfect time to share such a treasure with the holidays around the corner.

Land and Property

Land and Property Research

Land and property research was not and isn’t one of my stronger areas of research. That’s why I was happy t find “Land & Property Research in the United States” by E. Wade Hone. Yes, you guessed right, this was another one of my many conference purchases.

Research in the United States

Made up of five different sections and thirteen chapters it covers useful information for beginners to the more seasoned researcher. My favorite and most useful tool in the last two hundred and twenty-seven pages. When trying to locate the land office that our ancestors had to deal with can be a chore. As we know those lines, boundaries, and offices have changed over the years. Thanks to Mr. Hone we can view those boundary maps and the changing lines over time, there are eleven alone for the state of Alabama. Yes, this is what I found in those last two hundred and twenty-seven pages I mentioned earlier.

For those who attend some of the multiple genealogy conferences out there, I’ve seen a few copies. But if you aren’t able to attend you can find it online at Amazon https://amzn.to/2N2lxF9.

Not Just a Book

 Family Bible

At first glance, this might just appear as an old book sitting on a window seal. This was a book full of surprises, I wasn’t sure what I would find. A member of the local historical society had a book she thought I might find interesting. Interesting is exactly the word I would use after a close examination.

A Book Full of Information

Such a family treasure from Virginia, a family Bible that had some obvious wear and tear. At one point a family member hand-stitched a leather cover on the outside, I assume the original had been badly damaged. As you can imagine I was curious to see who the Bible belonged to and what family information was inside.

Hand-sewn Cover

In looking through the pages I came across the page below. Listing the names, dates of birth for some members of the “Coats Family.” The ink had come into contact with moisture but for the most part, it was pretty legible.

• Francis Ann Coats born December 26th, 1820

  

  Coats Family Births

• John Richard Coats born October 15th, 1823
• Mary Elisabeth Coats born June 27th, 1825
• James Coats born March 16th, 1827
• Robbert Coats born February 10th 1829
• Henry Stapleton Coats born December 1830

 

Many of you know family Bibles can hold so much information. What a treasure to have the names with their birth dates listed. Well, I should say that is just a small, and I do mean very small peek into this treasure. The following four pages caused my heart to pound and my eyes to water. I couldn’t believe what I was looking at. Handwritten information that many who are searching for the ancestors, their enslaved ancestors would love to find. I saw the names of slaves, when some were purchased, and from whom they were purchased. The births of their children along with the names, the names of the mothers and their children. On a few, I notice they were sold, their names, and dates they were sold.  

Families of Slaves

The Story Continues

Another amazing side to the story, the lady who showed me the Bible purchased it at auction. She has no direct connection to those listed in this family Bible. When I asked what she plans on doing with the Bible, she wasn’t sure.  I offered a few suggestions but ultimately, she wanted to keep it. I even offered to purchase the Bible in hopes I could place it in a museum or archives of some kind. But again, she wanted to keep it and use it as an educational tool in some way. 

Luckily, she allowed me to take some photographs.  I’m going to begin sharing the names that I can decipher. So please share this post and the future post on the “Coats Family Bible.” Hopefully, those searching for their enslaved ancestors who were from Virginia on the Coats land will find answers.

RootsTech 2019

Largest Genealogy Conference

This past year was the first time I attended one of the largest genealogy conferences in the world, RootsTech 2018. While I was very, and I mean very busy working at one of the vendor booths I still had some opportunity to see and hear all the excitement. You can’t help but get that “WOW” feeling in the pit of your stomach as you walk through the front doors of the Salt Palace Convention Center.

Salt Palace Convention Center

Imagine my excitement when I received the notification that I was selected as one of the RootsTech 2019 Ambassadors. What a great opportunity to share with all of you the excitement building up to the event and the event itself. So yes, this will be the first of many blog posts, videos, and more to come.

Today I want to bring you up to date on a few details that I’m sure you don’t want to miss out on. So, let’s start at the beginning with what to say. Salt Lake City RootsTech 2019 will be taking place from February 27th thru the 2nd of March, of course in Salt Lake City, Utah. Don’t worry you haven’t missed registration, it opens on the 20th of September, that’s right TOMORROW. For a limited time, they will have exclusive early bird pricing for your passes so keep your eyes open.

Lodging

So, what’s next you might ask well booking those flights and hotel rooms. No worries I have you covered here in the hotel rooms. Below you will find direct links to some of the surrounding hotels along with their address and phone numbers. I urge you to call and reserve your rooms first because they do go quickly.

Hilton Salt Lake City Center

255 South West Temple Street

1-801-328-2000

Salt Lake Marriott Downtown at City Creek

75 S West Temple Street

1-801-531-0800 SOLD OUT

The Salt Lake Plaza Hotel

122 West South Temple Street

1-8000-366-3684

Radisson Hotel Salt Lake City Downtown

215 West South Temple Street

1-801-531-7500

You can also visit this link directly to the RootsTech webpage to learn more about the hotels and event itself.  

More…

Oh yes, I don’t want to end this post without mentioning the exciting announcement made on the 28th of August by Steve Rockwood, CEO of FamilySearch International, and Jen Allen, director of the RootsTech event.  RootsTech is heading to…wait for it… London in October 2019, please click the link to learn more. Will you be making that trip?

Genealogy Rabbit Hole

Rabbit Hole Success

So you’ve started your family research only to find you’ve headed down a “rabbit hole”. You’re not the only one, many of us have taken that adventure, so don't sweat it. Even Randy Whited has taken that turn and shares his outcome with you.

Randy Whited

In my video interview with Randy below, you will hear his story. A family story that was validated with the results of a DNA test. The interview wasn’t all based on genealogy, we had some fun. I couldn’t resist finding out if his heart lies with Star Wars or Star Trek. How do you think he answered?

Proof in Research

Genealogical Proof

If you’ve ever attended any type of family history or genealogy conference, then I’m sure you’ve heard of Thomas W. Jones. He’s the author of “Mastering Genealogical Proof” and has been the keynote speaker at many events.

Thomas W. Jones

With this book, he helps to address many of the dilemmas researchers face in verifying facts from fiction. Through this nine-chapter, workbook, as I refer to it, helps to evaluate what you encounter while researching. It is published through the National Genealogical Society (NGS), if you are unable to purchase it through them then, of course, you always have Amazon, https://amzn.to/2znQOQT.

I know there are many societies that plan events around each chapter within this book. It’s a fun idea if you belong to a society and are looking for ideas.

Handy Time Line Guide

Breaking Brick Walls

How many times have you asked yourself, “What the heck could have happened to Great Grandma Margaret?” Have you ever stopped to think about what was going on in the world at that time? I don’t know about you but I can’t remember every piece of history. But hey if you can, fantastic! For me, I’ve found this book extremely useful in my genealogical research.

Pin Me

While researching your ancestors you begin to realize you’re also researching history. You can’t have one without the other, dang isn’t that a verse in some song?   My point is our ancestors are intertwined with history. Judy Jacobson’s book; “History for Genealogists“ helps you look at the connection.  In this book, she covers everything from wars, natural disasters to disease epidemics, and much more.

 

Researching for a client in Kentucky I was shocked to find there were so many deaths in 1890 around the same time in Louisville. My first thought, there must have been an illness, an epidemic that swept through the community. Nope, that wasn’t the case as you can see in the photo to the right, “Tornado in Louisville (76 died).” See history and our ancestors go hand in hand.

 

In addition to last week's post “Books for Your Journey“ I would recommend including this one in your research library. What books do you find useful in your library?

Books for Your Journey

Family Research Journey

Let’s face it when we first started researching our family, our ancestors it became a true journey. A journey into the past, learning more about them, their lives, and those around them. There are three books that I would often refer to and still find useful. So, it doesn’t matter if you're starting out or you’ve been researching for a while, check these three books out.

 

Mastering Census and Military Records by W. Daniel Quillen    Searching for our ancestors can sometimes be a nerve-racking task. Those wanting to learn some tips, tricks, and techniques in searching census records, military records, and even mortality records will find this book especially useful. Mr. Quillen shares with you some of the pitfalls he’s encountered along the way helping you to learn from his journey. 

 

 

 

Mastering Immigration & Naturalization Records by W. DanielQuillen You’ve been working hard to learn more about your ancestors, here in the United States. You’ve researched census records, military records, birth, and death records, what more could there be. Well, we know that most of our ancestors crossed “the pond” so to speak. Now you find yourself looking for those immigration and naturalization records. This is the perfect time to take a look at this book. 

 

 

 

Mastering Family, Library & Church Records by W. Daniel Quillen    Our family letters, bibles, and other personal collections hold so much personal information. We sometimes forget to look at the information that can be found in our churches, our libraries. Obtaining church records can seem like a foreign language to some. Thankfully with this book and Quillen sharing some of his helpful tips you can maneuver those obstacles.