Websites for Genealogy #2

 Free websites for genealogists, part 2:  We don't talk a lot about YouTube.com as a genealogical source.  

There are tons of educational videos, most notable among them, Lisa Louisa Cooke (Genealogy Gems), whose presentations contains a plentiful amount of inspiration as well as content.  Ancestry.com also has a major presence at YouTube, primarily featuring Crista Cowan, The Barefoot Genealogist.  Crista likes to go barefoot and at a recent Rootstech.org appearance, she actually took her shoes off!

However, when you want "real" sources, with names, dates, and places, the best you can do at YouTube.com, is enter search terms like  "Clark Family Reunion".  or, if you have a famous ancestor like George Washington, you might enter "George Washington Family", you can actually watch a biography of his life and other such clips.  Historical events and characters have a great representation at YouTube.com!  

Another goodie from YouTube.com: Information about places!  I like this Virginia Counties Map site.  It was intended for children but I enjoyed it, too.  There are way too many map sites to list.  If you don't believe me, just enter a place!  Not sure all of them would be helpful to a genealogist but you will just have to find that out for yourselves!

So I decided to look for "timelines".  Again, there are a multitude of timelines!  Hint:  You are looking for "historic" timelines; I know because I was faced with way too many timelines that had nothing to do with history!  I recommend adding the word "genealogy" to the word "timeline" if you want some excellent ways to utilize timelines for family history purposes.

Stay tuned for more websites and genealogy, section #3!


 

Genealogy Web Sites Review

Let's pick a few of the many, many, genealogy websites and shine a little sunlight on their effectiveness.  How valuable are they?  Should you incorporate this website into your "favorite's" folder?!  Are they "free" to use?  We love free! 

• Relative Finder:  Brigham Young University Research Page.  
• Originally created for the members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who are looking to find out which (if any) of their ancestors were members of their faith.
• This site has been enhanced and updated to include how you are related to past U.S. Presidents, signers of the U.S. Constitution, European Royalty and more!
• I have utilized this site in the past and recently checked again to review for any updated information.  I think that this site is a candidate for a "fun" way to consider your family's possible links. 
• You have to sign into this site via your FamilySearch.org account.  The familysearch account is free to everyone, so just there is no reason not to have that site in your family history tool bag!
• This site (Relative Finder) is primarily for those that have already uploaded their family tree information to the FamilySearch site
• After picking which categories I was interested in (entertainers, authors and poets, and folks from the science/technology field), I learned that Johnny Cash is my tenth cousin.  Whoopee! When you click on his name, a family chart for Mr. Cash pops up.  This chart is generated by the information that familysearch.org currently has access to.  It may or may not be relevant or strictly correct.  However, this chart can be utilized to give you ideas for research and names or relations  that you may recognize! 
  
  I discovered, from this chart, that my relation to Johnny Cash may be via/through my Tucker line.  Grandma Hall's maiden name was Tucker.  Clicking on an individual takes you to the FamilySearch profile for that person.  When that happens, you are going to look for common denominators between what you know and the information for this individual--you know like that person's other family names, where (location) these folks lived, and what documents/proof/resources are associated with the person.
• Finally, this is a free resource that may or may not prove efficacious in providing you with new information, new avenues for research, or actual connections for your lineage, etc.

This "article" is part of a continuing project of choosing various websites and evaluating their usefulness in finding our kinfolks! 

Historical Notes

Find an old newspaper (archives, library, online) and see what events coincide with your ancestor's life.  He/she may or may not have been affected by every historical happening, but this type of info will add color and sometimes vital records information to your genealogical search.  

Access   https://www.pbs.org/opb/historydetectives/technique/genealogy/  Check out this site and click on "Detective Techniques". These suggestions will make you an expert historian in no itme!

Here are some discoveries that I made in a trip to my local Fort Walton Beach Library in 1997 from the historic publication of the  Okaloosa News Journal on microfilm, Film #2:

• June 10th, 1921:  GASTON DAVIS DROWNS AT VALPARAISO, contains news article and a memorial written by his teacher Lula Edge, and signed by the students in his class. 
• Also in this issue of the newspaper:
• J.E. WORTHINGTON, a legislative correspondent, announces the forthcoming wedding of two prominent young people.
• "UNCLE GEORGE EDGE was in town Monday and requested us to state that there is a cemetery working at the Old Bethel Cemetery on Friday...".
• MRS. TOBE EDGE left here the first of the week to visit her sister who lives in Texas.
• ADVERTISEMENT: W.W. Clark & L.V. Trueman, lawyers in Milton, Florida.
• (Rock Hill Dots):  MR. JOHN H. CUTTS and Mesdames Ida Steele and Will Cutts were visitors to Laurel Hill [on] Saturday.
• Medames Chipley and Ida Steele were dinner guests of Mrs. Ed Wang Sunday.
• Miss Era Hart visited at Svea Sunday last.
• (Laurel Hill News): "Mrs. J.W. Weatherly is expected home from a visit with her daughter, Mrs. P.C. Richbourg, and family in Pensacola."
•  (Laurel Hill News): Tuesday, Rev. Wiley F. Martin was greeting old friends in Laurel Hill.  Wednesday he left for a visit with a sister in Pensacola.

 

What are the old detective questions?  In the case of finding family history, you want to ask:

• Who?  (Name)
• Where? (Place, locale)
• When? (Date)