Genealogy in Northwest Florida: Societies

• Bay County, Florida GenGate: Getting Started.  

 This is the place to tap the amazing collection of databases gathered by the genealogy community in Bay County, Florida. 
If you want to know the news and events of the local genealogical society, link to this page .http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~flbcgs/programs.html.

•  Genealogical Society of Okaloosa County

 The program for August will feature George and M. Legge, the Family History Center directors for the Fort Walton Beach Family History Center.  Open the GSOC web link for more information and to preview the web site central to the Family History Center's purpose, travel on over to the FamilySearch site.

• West Florida Genealogical Society 

  Topic: FamilySearch.org: What’s New and How to Use It Speaker: Elder Balling and Elder Blair, from the LDS Church
Presentation will include new records and features of Family Search; how to search, create a pedigree fan chart, share photos, build a family tree, chat with a live person for help, and use Puzilla to “find our cousins.” WFGS member Mrs. Lee Scott will also be available to answer any in-depth general questions.

FamilySearch.org is a free website with many genealogy records to access, and WFGS library volunteers have recently been trained to assist visitors in using its resources.

Note: this is the program originally scheduled for June, which we had to cancel due to unforeseen circumstances. Members and guests are welcome to attend. Refreshments will be available at 9:45. Meeting begins at 10:00 A.M. Point of contact is Charlotte Schipman, 850-477-7166, email cschipman@mac.com

• Genealogical Society of Santa Rosa County

This society has spent many hours in accumulating acquisitions for the Milton Library in the Genealogy Department.  They also hold their monthly meetings in the library on 3rd Saturdays at 10a.m.  For more information, contact one of the board members listed on page 2 of the PDF Document Link above..
 
 

Summer Explorations

• BillionGraves Q&A  I am not yet a part of the Billion Graves project; but I love what they are doing to ease my path in locating interments.  Due to the immense learning curve standing between me and GPS photograpy skills, I have been slow to get on board!  So what is BG and what are they doing that hasn't been done before?  This website offeres Frequently-Asked-Questions in the "Q and A" format so that we can all be in the know. 

What websites and resources do you use to find or locate your ancestor's graves?  Here are some of the ones I've utilized:

1. http://Interment.net
2. Family Search Catalog:  Microfilms, Books, locality resources, etc.
3. FamilySearch Search Your Ancestor!
4. Find-A-Grave
5. USGenWeb
6. Publications of genealogical societies which are housed in libraries: Check Library of Congress and WorldCat or the library catalogs of individual repositories.
7. Periodicals (See PERSI), available at the Allen County Public Library in Fort Wayne, Indiana, as well as at some other locations (Your local library may have Heritage Quest online).  Read more about Heritage Quest at Dick Eastman's Encyclopedia.
8. Newspaper Obituaries:  Wherever you can find digitized or archived newspapers and obituaries, is where you must go.  I would recommend you look at Cyndislist because this is a comprehensive category that may pop up in a number of places.

Other ideas?  

Local Programs in the Northwest Florida Genealogical Community

JULY

Genealogical Society of Okaloosa County

 

Our speaker for the July 12 GSOC meeting will be Amy Raley. Raley, who is the historian associate at the Local History and Genealogy branch of the Mobile Public Library, will speak on early immigration routes in the "old Southwest", and "The Federal Road." 

Is this the "old Federal Road of Alabama"?  Come and Find Out!

 

The Genealogical Society meets on second Saturdays of the month at the Vapariso Heritage Museum at 10 AM. Join us for dutch treat lunch after the meeting! See you there!!!!

Local Programs in Northwest Florida Genealogy Community

AUGUST

West Florida Genealogical Society     

Meeting Date: August 2, 2014
Place: West Florida Genealogy Library. 5740 N. 9th Ave, Pensacola, FL
850-494-7373
Time: 10:00 AM
Topic: FamilySearch.org: What’s New and How to Use It
Speaker: Elder Balling and Elder Blair, from the LDS Church

Presentation will include new records and features of Family Search; how to search, create a pedigree fan chart, share photos, build a family tree, chat with a live person for help, and use Puzilla to “find our cousins.” WFGS member Mrs. Lee Scott will also be available to answer any in-depth general questions.

FamilySearch.org is a free website with many genealogy records to access, and WFGS library volunteers have recently been trained to assist visitors in using its resources.

Note: this is the program originally scheduled for June, which we had to cancel due to unforeseen circumstances.

Members and guests are welcome to attend. Refreshments will be available at 9:45. Meeting begins at 10:00.

Online Tutorial

beginninggenealogy

Found this through FamilySearch.  The free course was developed at Allen County Public Library, in the Genealogy Center.  I hope that you will take a look at it, (we all need reminders, from time to time), and I hope you will pass it along to a friend, a grandchlld, a companion.

How Do I Begin To Document and File Family History? An Introduction

How Do I Begin To Document and File Family History?  An Introduction

If this is an introduction, then it is quite comprehensive.  It is a site rich in thought content.  No pretty pictures, no design candy, but chock full of theory, principle, and links.

Take some time to read (yes, I said R-E-A-D) and digest the information.  Perhaps, you could write your own thesis, using what you have learned in your genealogy experience as a basis for a discussion and sharing.

And do not get overwhelmed.  This is a lifelong pursuit you have begun.  You will move from one step to the next, progressing in your knowledge and skill, growing progressively, up the ladder of realization and accomplishment.

Flickr Search: family reunions | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Flickr Search: family reunions | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Yahoo account?  Take a look at the search box--it can be your key to the power of photography.  I chose as my search phrase, "Family Reunion"; it was wonderful to look through these smiling faces, loving families, and who knows, if you search your family names, you might find  your own family reunion photo!

MAP OF THE WEEK: Native American Nations | This Land Press

MAP OF THE WEEK: Native American Nations | This Land Press

I love this map stuff and this link showed up on my twitter page!  I'm not surprised.  After all, I follow genealogists, I follow genealogy organizations, and I search for genealogy everything.  What have you got in your twitter "box", lately?

Person Details for Lucinda Harper in household of David Harper, “United States Census, 1850″ — FamilySearch.org | GenQuestDiary

Person Details for Lucinda Harper in household of David Harper, “United States Census, 1850″ — FamilySearch.org | GenQuestDiary

The chore of the genealogist/Family Historian is to find a document, read the document, evaluate the document, and pull out information that seems to agree with other information gathered previously.  Or, perhaps this is the first historical document on which you will see your family.  In that case, you will want to investigate other sources such as other census info, death and marriage information, land records, etc.  You won't really know the value of the first piece of evidence until you have compared it with other pieces.

The reason that a census page cannot be primary source in and of itself:

• We don't know who was home the day that the enumerator came round.  It may have been an older child or an old aunt who was visiting.  Even if mom or dad was there, they may have been illiterate--as many people were back in the day--literacy took a back seat to survival!  I know that "illiteracy" doesn't equal stupidity, but if you are illiterate you may not have paid quite as much attention to exact dates, exact spellings, etc.  Comments, anyone?  Agree?  Disagree?
• The enumerator was a human being and made very human errors.  He may have had terrible penmanship or the best possible handwriting.  He may have been hot, tired, and hungry and in a hurry.  He may have been hard of hearing?  The list of maybe's is a long one.
• Family members may have become separated, married off, or deceased, so don't expect it to show the perfect record on the census.  Families were very much on the move in rural American and their lives weren't static models.

A Lot of Nonsense | Florida State University Special Collections and Archives

A Lot of Nonsense | Florida State University Special Collections and Archives

Are you in touch (via twitter, facebook, etc) with your university's digital collection?  Search at Twitter and/or Facebook for "state name" + university library + digital collection.

Genealogy's Star: Why must you prove your genealogical case?

Genealogy's Star: Why must you prove your genealogical case?

 Genealogists have only quite recently recognized the need for a systematic methodology for establishing genealogical facts. Until the early to mid-1900s, ideas concerning the need for sources and a proof standard did not exist. The current standards owe their origin to genealogists such as Donald Lines Jacobus, who began to establish a more scientific method of research based on primary source documentation.

My reaction to the article:  Bravo!  The world has become, with every passing year, a complexity of statements, opinions, articulations, and data.  Fabrication and fictionalization pose as truth in supposed publications of infallible reputation.

But, don't take it personally.  Wanting to be accurate and prove the truth of a matter, whether it's your own genealogy or from a database online has a great deal to do with our soaring admiration for our history. 

A familial affection for our ancestors as we uncover the forensics of who they were, where they were, and why they were is the product of our love for things as they are, not things as we would like them to be or as others think they are.  Most of my ancestors were farmers, but it was never that simple.  They moved, relocated, and commuted to work, in search of a job, in search of a life that would be better for them and their families. 

Maybe I pontificate too much.  All I'm really trying to say is that searching for humanity is a search for dignity and something worth memorializing.  Though I doubt that I will ever have the whole story of my ancestors, every fragment makes them more real to me, more dear to me.  Why would I not want to document them?  It's a step toward knowing who they were and a big step toward knowing who I am.

FamilySearch Adds More Than 5.4 Million Images to Collections from England, New Zealand, Philippines, Portugal, Russia, Spain, and the United States | FamilySearch.org

FamilySearch Adds More Than 5.4 Million Images to Collections from England, New Zealand, Philippines, Portugal, Russia, Spain, and the United States | FamilySearch.org

This is some great news, friends!  I strongly encourage each of you to look at the FamilySearch Indexing project...without this vital ingredient,  these images and others like these will not be searchable and easily  accessed.

You can become an indexer and  spend a few minutes each week volunteering your energies to a project that will forever afterward make the records available online, to all and FOR FREE.  It is so easy to do a little that will mean a lot.  I even know of children who are helping to index!

Especially needed are folks with foreign language skills.  Oh, and the service pool includes many, many folks who come from all backgrounds and ethnicities, from various cultures and religions.  Whoever you are, wherever you are, if you can read and work a computer, you can join the ranks!

The Genealogical Society of Okaloosa County meets Saturday, May 10, 2014, at 10 a.m. at the [Valparaiso] Heritage Museum of Northwest Florida. 

Bruce Rova, past president of the West Florida Genealogical Society, (Pensacola), will be the featured speaker.  Watch a YouTube video interview with Bruce Rova  that showcases the West Florida Society.

The topic upon which Bruce will focus on Saturday will be "Who's That Lady?".

This program will address a problem that genealogical researchers often encounter: identifying maiden surnames, parents, and other information for women in family trees when we only know a married surname.

Mr. Rova will discuss strategies and resources that can help in this process and will share practical examples of a myriad of means he has used successfully in his research: reviewing how to find direct sources and, especially, gathering and using clues from indirect sources to reveal new information and resolve such problems.

The meetings of the GSOC are open to the public and there is no charge for the regular monthly meetings.  So if you're interested in genealogy or family history, please join us.

Interest in genealogy on the rise

Interest in genealogy on the rise

The article link above correctly points to how the development of technology has changed the face of genealogy in this century.  

Genealogy Quips (Genealogy Humor)

Genealogy Quips

Genealogy's Star: The State of the States: Digitization Projects by State

Genealogy's Star: The State of the States: Digitization Projects by State

I'm always excited to hear of digitization projects, especially if it is happening in a state in which I have research interests.  So, whether it's newspapers or vital event records, I'm always happy to hear of it.  Check the article out and do an Internet search to see if your "location of interest" is in the news!

History of Alabama and dictionary of Alabama biography : Owen, Thomas McAdory, 1866-1920 : Free Download & Streaming : Internet Archive

History of Alabama and dictionary of Alabama biography : Owen, Thomas McAdory, 1866-1920 : Free Download & Streaming : Internet Archive

It's just amazing that you can search this archive from the recliner or your desk at home!  You can search and download materials and it costs nothing.  NOTHING.

Information is power.  Power at your fingertips with this web site.  In 21st
Century, genealogy is family history and all about drawing from the well of knowledge so that you can see how it was, "back then".

GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY OF OKALOOSA COUNTY

GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY OF OKALOOSA COUNTY 

supports and shouts out to Saturday in the Park.  What is that?!  Preserve Heritage!  Show Heritage!  Come visit with us in the Vale of Paradise (Valparaiso).  Saturday, 26 April, 2014. 

In an article from the Deseret News published Wednesday, April 2, 2014, this morning, there is a confirmation that while progress is being made whereby members of the LDS church will obtain free access to certain certain databases later the is year, it is reiterated that

"Free access to two of the commercial family history websites is already available to the general public at more than 4,700 FamilySearch-owned family history centers and libraries worldwide. Ancestry and FindMyPast currently offer free access to all patrons at the centers. MyHeritage will begin granting free access later this year...".

This article came to my attention when I was getting my morning dose of Dick Eastman and his online genealogical newsletter. 

While we all dream of being able to do everything genealogy-wise from the recliner in the living room, occasionally, much good can result in getting up and out the door and going down to the local Family History Center.  

I enjoy, very much, the opportunities I have to do just that, probably because the opportunities are few and far between.  I enjoy being able to use "for-profit" databases (like Fold3 and FindMyPast), for free.  I am inspired to see others at the Family History Center who are dedicated to finding their ancestors.  I am enlightened by the staff members and their combined pool of genealogy "how-to".  The staff is eager to help and the resources at FamilySearch.org are growing every day.

As in any "breaking news", take the time to read the article, ...all of it.  

Finding Family History Through Social Networks - NYTimes.com

Finding Family History Through Social Networks - NYTimes.com