Book Review: Storytelling for Genealogists

Since my emphasis these days is on writing family history for the sake of future generations, I was drawn to this concise and affordable new book by Doug Tattershall, Storytelling for Genealogists.

Tattershall packs a lot of ideas and info into nine chapters plus a humdinger of a worksheet, and an index. The table of contents includes:

1. Why Family Story? - "We work hard to discover our family tree," writes the author. "But what we really want to know is our family story." So true. Names and dates don't illuminate ancestors' lives. That's why this book is so helpful.
2. How to Tell a Good Story - Engage readers. Then plot a course and find a theme to keep readers interested.
3. The Stuff - Put meat on the bones by researching and interpreting history, biography, and "affective history."
4. Puzzle Pieces - We have facts, but we may also have fiction. How to put the puzzle pieces together in the right way and in the wider context.
5. The Value of Things - Going beyond words to tell the story with images, heirlooms, places, and more.
6. Format - Text, audio, and/or video? Considerations as you choose a format to tell your ancestor's story.
7. True and Good - "You've done fact-finding. Now it's time to spin a tale," the author says, and he goes on to explain how to make the story interesting without getting bogged down.
8. Before You Write - Tattershall recommends outlining first to establish how to organize and present your story, with examples. Yes, outlining really works.
9. Conclusion - "Your family history is a story worth telling, and therefore a story worth telling well." 

Although I would have preferred a little more elaboration on the key points in this slender book, I appreciate and agree with Tattershall's emphasis on telling an engaging story, well beyond names and dates with sources. 

In particular, I recommend his Family Story Worksheet, shown on p. 81. The worksheet serves as a quick-start guide to completing the components needed to spin a tale that will interest the next generation and beyond. 

Storytelling for Genealogists is an excellent, practical, readable book for anyone who wants to bring family history alive through storytelling.

Please note: The Genealogical Publishing Company sent me a free review copy of this book, and it has previously provided free review copies of other books. My reviews always reflect my honest opinions, without regard to any outside influence.

Book Review: The Hollywood Strangler by Nathan Dylan Goodwin

Newly released, The Hollywood Strangler is the most gripping genetic genealogy case yet in this terrific series by Nathan Dylan Goodwin. Highly recommended!

The author draws on his extensive knowledge and expertise in forensics, genealogy, and DNA analysis to create an amazingly true-to-life fictional story of talented genetic genealogists digging deep into the mysteries of centimorgans and family history to try to unmask a serial killer who menaced Hollywood decades in the past. 

The prologue, set in 1980, shows dedicated medical examiner Dr. Peter Speth called to the scene of a horrific double murder in Hollywood, similar to but not identical to another recent double killing. Also in attendance: A young rookie cop named Ted Marsden. 

Fast-forward to 2022 in Chapter One, where Marsden is about to retire from the LAPD Cold Case Homicide Unit, headed by Detective Supervisor Mitzi Roberts. Before he leaves, Marsden wants to work on one last notorious cold case: The Hollywood Strangler. The game's afoot.

By Chapter Three, the cold-case detectives have gotten in touch with Venator, an elite investigative genetic genealogy company headed up by Madison Scott-Barnhart, known to one and all as Maddie. The goal is to analyze DNA left at the murder scene in an effort to find familial links to the serial killer. 

Now begins the detailed, step-by-step process of analyzing DNA matches and building speculative family trees to locate living people who are related to the killer. How these talented Venator employees use clusters, centimorgans, vital records, DNA databases, genealogy websites, and other tools and techniques will fascinate genealogy enthusiasts. Very believable and impressive, the quest to tie DNA from the crime scene to a specific family is the heart of the book.

The police procedural chapters that bookend this novel will enthrall mystery lovers. From the acknowledgements, I learned that Dr. Peter Speth is, in real life, a brilliant medical examiner whose meticulous work helped to identify and convict many villains. His involvement in Nathan's fictional case leads to key breakthroughs. I was already aware of Detective Mitzi Roberts because I'm a fan of Michael Connelly's detective mysteries, but it was a delightful surprise to come across her as another pivotal character in Nathan's book.  

Just as important, the author has created interesting, personable, and complex characters whose ongoing life experiences capture the imagination. Although The Hollywood Strangler can be appreciated as a stand-alone novel, I suggest waiting until you read the first two books in this series. As the series unfolds, you'll get to know the characters over time and gain a deeper understanding of how their actions in previous books influenced what happens in this third book.

Highly enjoyable for folks deeply interested in genetic genealogy and for fans of police procedurals. Nathan, I can't wait for your next book in the series!

Free WikiTree Symposium Talks Still Available

If you missed some of the informative WikiTree Symposium talks earlier this month, the handouts for presenters named above are going to remain available, so download handouts here. I especially liked Thomas MacEntee's tech talks, and his handouts are very good.

For an indepth look at ways of safeguarding your genealogy collection, please consider picking up a copy of my book, Planning a Future for Your Family's Past, available from Amazon in Kindle and paperback formats. Thank you!

What Did Mom Know About Family History?

When Roots became a national phenomenon in 1977, I was riveted to the TV set and asked my mother to write me a letter about her parents' ancestry. She typed a few paragraphs of what little she knew about Hermina "Minnie" Farkas (1886-1964) and Theodore "Teddy" Schwartz (1887-1965), my maternal grandparents.

I read the letter, and then . . . I filed it away, for more than 20 years. Somehow I knew I would want it in the years ahead, when I could no longer ask Mom about her family's past. Fast-forward to 1998, when I began my genealogy journey, and returned to this letter for clues as starting points for additional research.

What Mom knew--and what she didn't know

Over the years, I learned that some of what my mother wrote in her letter was correct, some was slightly off, and much was incomplete. A few examples:

• Grandpa Teddy came from peasant people in Czechoslovakia, arriving in America at 13 years old. Correct: Teddy was 13 when he arrived, turning 14 just a few weeks later. Incorrect: not of peasant people--they were actually middle class, according to first-hand info from Teddy's niece. Correct: his hometown of Ungvar was part of Czechoslovakia but only briefly, today being in Ukraine. Mom didn't know the name of her father's hometown, but happily, it did appear on Teddy's Social Security application, among other documents.
• Teddy's brother and sister came to America also, but the rest of his family was killed in the Holocaust. Correct: His brother and sister came to America. Not entirely correct: Although most members of Teddy's family were, sadly, killed in the Holocaust, his niece and one or two other folks escaped, thankfully. Apparently, Mom had no idea that after WWII, her father was in touch with his niece, a  survivor of Auschwitz.
• Grandma Minnie's parents/grandparents were prosperous farmers, renting farmland from an admiral. They didn't insure the crop one year and it failed, leaving her father financially ruined--the reason he left Hungary to come to New York City. Correct: I confirmed that the men in the family were managers of a big-shot's acreage in Hungary. Unconfirmed: the crop failure, but that story was passed down in multiple lines of the family tree, and it makes sense as the catalyst for leaving an otherwise comfortable home life, so I accept there has to be some truth to the story. 
• A teenaged Minnie came to America after her parents, with 2-3 younger siblings "under her wing" for the voyage. Correct. Two years after her father left Hungary, one year after her mother left Hungary, Minnie and three siblings arrived at Ellis Island to be reunited with their parents. Minnie celebrated her 15th birthday on board the S. S. Amsterdam enroute to America.

Preserving my grandparents' lives in a photo book

Mom's letter offered many clues to jump-start my research into her parents and grandparents. Now, 25 years into my genealogy adventures, I'm preserving this family history in my latest professional photo book. In addition to photos of Grandpa Teddy and Grandma Minnie, I'm including photos of their siblings, their parents, the ships that brought them to America, their signatures, and much more.

For me, a creating a professional photo book is a worthwhile investment in safeguarding family history for the sake of those who come after. I want future generations to know more about the background of our ancestors than my Mom did!

The Difference Between Genealogy and Family History?

I asked the Artificial Intelligence bot ChatGPT to explain the difference between genealogy and family history. The AI system wrote three sentences of explanation, as shown above. 

Did the AI get it right? Let me add two more perspectives on this distinction: 

• The Society of Genealogists notes that genealogy focuses on building an accurate family tree, showing how one generation is connected to the next, whereas family history is broader--incorporating genealogy.
• Family Tree Magazine columnist Paul Chiddicks wrote a 2021 blog post that continues to generate discussion about the differences between a genealogist and a family historian. 

IMHO, genealogy is narrower than family history. When I began tracing my family tree in 1998, learning about my grandparents' siblings/spouses and going back further in time, I was doing genealogy. 

Once I had the basic branches of my tree in place, I could begin to analyze and understand my ancestor's lives, relationships, and movements within a societal and historical framework--the bigger picture of family history.

What do you think? 

Fave Genealogy Channels on YouTube

YouTube is a really fun, informative resource for genealogy education, news, and opinion! 

Five of my favorite channels for genealogy, in no particular order, are:

• Family History Fanatics - Updated weekly or more often, lots of hands-on demonstrations and insightful examination of topical issues.
• Amy Johnson Crow - Updated weekly, focusing on practical techniques, research resources, and contemporary concerns.
• Allen County Public Library Genealogy - Regular updates with engaging 45- to 60- minute videos about a broad range of topics.
• BYU Family History Library - Meaty genealogy content for all levels, including how-to for genealogy technology.
• Genealogy TV- Updated weekly, with a wide variety of useful genealogy content plus lively expert interviews.

Five more go-to YouTube channels: Family Search, Ancestry, MyHeritage, Find My Past, and WikiTree. 

There are more genealogy-related channels on YouTube, but these are among my very favorites because of the solid content. Whether you choose to subscribe or just watch a couple of videos to gain knowledge about a particular aspect of genealogy, do take a peek at these channels.

If chat is available, try scrolling through . . . often there will be interesting Q&A or additional comments.

RootsTech Begins on March 3

In just a few days, RootsTech Connect 2022 will get underway. Are you registered and ready? Have you seen the RootsTech Facebook page with exciting announcements about famous keynoters and more?

A virtual cornucopia of genealogical education and inspiration, RootsTech will showcase more than 1,500 classes and streaming sessions, available to view for FREE. Experts will present classes on everything from documenting family history and interpreting DNA results to sharing family heritage in the kitchen and finding ancestors in old newspapers. You can already look at class descriptions and download handouts in advance!

The Expo Hall will also open on March 3, a wonderful opportunity to engage with genealogy companies and hear about new products and features. 

I'm looking forward to polishing my skills and discovering new tools that will help me do a better job of identifying ancestors, understanding their stories, and recording their lives for the sake of future generations.

Are Family Historians Just Nosy?

My genie friend Paul Chiddicks (@chiddickstree) kicked off a thought-provoking Twitter conversation this week when he asked this question about documenting family history:

I have discovered a number of people recently that were married and never had children, when writing a narrative how do you approach the subject with compassion, sensitivity and no way of knowing why?

Paul is known for going beyond names, dates, and places in his genealogy. He tries to flesh out his ancestors with more detail and background on their stories, which is why he raised this question.

In the end, he tweeted that he would follow the suggestion of Derek and use this wording in his family history:

No children were found during this research - Simple, factual, sensitive, to the point and leaves the door open if needed.

How can we know why?

As a result of Paul's conversation on Twitter, I thought back to the couples in my family tree who had no children that I know of. Also I thought about the unmarried aunts and uncles and cousins in my tree--unmarried, so far as I know.

If we never knew these ancestors personally and no relatives living today knew them personally, is it possible to answer "why" in an intelligent way? 

Or would we be speculating, with the benefit of hindsight and through the lens of today's perspective in the absence of any documentation? 

Is an explanation even needed? 

Well, being a family historian, I guess I'm nosy. I always try to consider "why" an ancestor did something--left the old country, got married at an unexpected place or time, left a spouse, left a child, and so on. 

Family dynamics are affected by decisions like these, and I wish I could know "why." That's what I believe Paul was getting at with his question about married couples who have no children that he could find through research.

Will anyone care in the future?

The family historian for my Mom's side has spoken with me privately about sensitive "family stories" not able to be confirmed by a paper trail. I'm not telling any of the stories here, but one is exactly what Paul would want to know about couples on his family tree ;)

I talked with my sister about how to approach these topics. Here's what she said: 

Is it anybody else's business why some ancestor had no children or never married or got divorced? Would telling the reason (if passed down as a "family story") add anything important to the understanding of those ancestors today? Will anyone today or in the future actually care? And since none of this is provable, why bring it up? 

She and I don't have the same answers to her questions. However, we definitely agree that writing the stories down and putting them in my genealogy files is a good way to ensure that they aren't entirely lost...and will be available to my heirs in the future. 

I'll seal them in an envelope and mark them "sensitive family stories" and indicate the origin of each story, emphasizing that there is no way to know the truth today.

Perhaps my nosiness about family stories might be of interest to a future generation?! I won't be here to tell the story, but my notes will reveal what I was told, clearly marked as a "story" and not as fact.

Deleting Photos Instead of Adding to My Family Trees

 

For the next few days, instead of adding to my trees, I'm deleting personal photos from my Ancestry trees (but leaving gravestone photos and other selected items). Why?

Objections to Ancestry's new terms of service

On August 3, Ancestry emailed a notice to all subscribers, announcing a change in its terms of service. An excerpt from that notice is shown below. 

The headline is: "Your privacy is important to us." The next sentence states: "...being good stewards of your data is our highest priority." 

However, the Legal Genealogist (Judy G. Russell) warns that the change actually gives Ancestry a "perpetual, sublicensable, worldwide, irrevocable, royalty-free license" to do whatever it wishes with user-submitted content, forever. -- UPDATE from Aug 6: Judy discusses Ancestry's updated terms here.

If I upload a personal photo (or a story or other content) to my Ancestry trees, I still own the copyright. 

But by uploading, I agree to the new terms allowing Ancestry to use that photo in any way it chooses. The company can use my photo on any of its Ancestry sites, including Fold3 and FindaGrave, or perhaps use my photo in its advertising, without further permissions or notifications.

In the past, I've created bite-sized ancestor bios and uploaded them, with photos, to Fold3 (a subscription site) and FindaGrave (free), among other sites. This was my individual choice, for specific ancestors. It was not my intention to have this content shared across any and all Ancestry platforms (paid and free) without my permission. 

I strongly object to Ancestry's changes and I have some small individual power to act by removing selected content that I originally uploaded. (Note: Randy Seaver has submitted so much content to his trees over the years that he is leaving it there, as he explains in his blog post--while calling this a "major unforced error" by Ancestry.) (Another note: Roberta Estes is deleting her photos before Sept. 2; she also confirmed with MyHeritage that they do not handle user-submitted content in the same way as Ancestry.)

NOTE: If you have uploaded photos of living people to your Ancestry tree, please consider carefully whether those should remain or be removed. I deleted all of mine. Even though the person should not be visible to any public viewer of my tree, the photo would now be "licensed" to Ancestry under the new terms of service. I do not want that to happen, so deleted to protect privacy.

Sync (or download) first

The clock is ticking--the terms apparently will go into effect 30 days from notification.

My first step was to sync my Ancestry trees with my RootsMagic genealogy software, including media items connected to those trees. Before I do another sync, I'll make changes so that I don't overwrite my media-rich trees with non-media trees.

If you can't sync, be sure to download anything you are going to delete. Yes, you put it on Ancestry originally. If you can't find it easily in your digital files, download again just to be sure. Better safe than sorry.

Decide what to delete and what to leave

I've decided to leave on Ancestry any gravestone photos I've taken, as well as vital records I paid for and uploaded on my own. Also, I'm leaving any obits, photos from nonpersonal sources, and selected genealogy content such as an ancestor's handwritten notes about his ancestors (see above). 

None of this content is particularly personal and it may be valuable to others researching the same ancestors, so I want to keep it available to other Ancestry users.

However, I draw the line at personal family photos. Those I am deleting. Amy Johnson Crow created a video explaining why and how to remove photos from your Ancestry tree. You can view her video here. After I watched, I followed the instructions for viewing all media in a tree's media gallery, and selected those I want to remove from the tree (not just the gallery).

At top is a screen shot showing part of the media gallery for one of my trees. I decided to remove the photo of Chester Carsten (see red rectangle). I can always share it privately with any relatives who are interested, by my own choice. My f-i-l took this photo and I object to Ancestry having the right to do whatever it wishes with Chester's image.

Ancestry-based photos for profiles

I do want ancestors in my trees to be represented by photos or images wherever possible. Not flags or ships, not DNA strands, but photos. Luckily, Ancestry has helped me do just that. 

Remember a few years back, when Ancestry began digitizing school yearbooks? 

I had fun searching for ancestors in the yearbook files and attaching those to their profiles.

Now I'm using yearbook photos as ancestor profiles, as shown at right from the media gallery of one of my trees. There will be photos from other collections, I'm sure, but these are the most accessible for 20th century ancestors.

If not photos, I'll use part of a pertinent document (vital record, city directory, etc.) to add visual interest to that ancestor on my tree.

Amy's suggestion: add web link as a source

Amy Johnson Crow also suggested that we add a web link as a source for selected ancestors. If you have a blog or a website for genealogy, this is a good idea. The blog or website is yours, not Ancestry's, and you control that content.

To follow Amy's suggestion, go to the ancestor's Ancestry profile page, look at the bottom of the column of sources for facts, and see "Add web link" area. Click and paste in the web address, with a title you choose.

I'm currently adding my blog's ancestor landing page for the Wood family of Ohio as a source for ancestors who are part of that family. This allows me to send users to a page that I control on my own blog, with photos I post and other content that is mine. 

Should you delete content? Or add content?

There are many choices of places to plant a family tree online. I have trees on multiple websites, not just on Ancestry. Although I value Ancestry's research tools, and will continue as a subscriber, I do not appreciate the company changing the terms of use in the way it has.

My decision to delete personal family photos (or anything else) doesn't mean you should do the same. I won't be adding any more personal photos, even though I'm currently scanning dozens from the early 1900s. Please, take a look at the situation for yourself and decide whether you are okay with what Ancestry wants to do. 

If you have no major objections, just leave your content. On the other hand, some users are angry enough to download their trees (not just photos) and then delete them from Ancestry. 

This is a decision only you can make.

Gone fishin at RootsTechConnect

 

As you can see, I'm putting up the "gone fishin" sign because from Thursday to Saturday, I'm going to be busy with RootsTechConnect, the entirely virtual genealogy conference. Ready to learn new ways of fishing for ancestors!

There's still time to be part of this extraordinary global genealogy event. More than half a million people worldwide have already registered. In addition to the informative presentations, RootsTech features dozens of keynoters and a virtual expo hall. 

Gone fishin...see you at RootsTech! 

No Heirs for Your Family History? Ideas, Part 3

If you have no obvious heirs to take over your genealogy collection in the future, I hope this series will give you some ideas for keeping documents, artifacts, and photos out of the trash or flea markets.

This post includes a few starting points for getting your genealogy records into shape for donating to an appropriate library, society, museum, archive,  surname/place study group, or another institution. 

As you plan, I highly recommend reading the informative post "what to do with the genealogy and family history" on the Family Search wiki here. 

Idea: Think about non-family eyes on your genealogy

Institutions usually won't accept a stack of loose papers in haphazard order, like the mess I inherited, as shown at top! Unless a non-family member can make sense of your genealogy paperwork, it will not be useful to anyone.

The point of donating your documents is to help other researchers interested in any of your ancestors or that place or period in history. You may have an unusual set of records in your collection, or a person you've confirmed and documented in your family tree who is not mentioned on other trees, or a photo that connects your family to a certain time/location/event. 

In general, the goal is to organize your genealogy documents so that non-family eyes can understand what's in the collection. Take inventory. Know what you have and figure out a logical way to put your materials in order--by surname or by family group, for instance. Family Search has good ideas here about organizing your files.

Neatness counts. You want your collection to be orderly and organized, without physically changing the materials. No punching holes in documents to insert into binders. No stapling, no rubber bands, no paper clips. 

Idea: Written family tree, sources, and table of contents

You can guide outsiders through your family history by creating or adding detail to a written family tree or chart explaining who's who. 

The Family Search wiki lists many sources of downloadable charts you can use, and you can also download from the National Archives. If you use genealogy software, you can generate reports. Or you may prefer to create a spreadsheet or use another system, as long as it's understandable by non-family eyes.

Cite your sources to show how you know what you know. Other researchers will appreciate seeing sources in writing. Again, neatness counts. So does accuracy. Double-check your spelling, dates, place names, and sources. 

Consider a table of contents for each binder or box or file folder (and label binders and boxes and folders with your trusty label maker). You might assemble all tables of contents into a package that goes with your written family tree, to guide outside eyes through the collection. 

Please don't leave behind a mess like the one I inherited. Little by little, start now to organize your genealogy collection and get it into shape for non-family eyes to understand.

--

Earlier posts in this series looked at donating artifacts to institutions and finding new homes for photos and china with other relatives. More posts to come in this series! 

For additional ideas about sorting your collection and writing instructions for its future, please also see my affordable best-selling genealogy book, Planning a Future for Your Family's Past.

Book review: "Roots for Kids"

 

Note: The Genealogical Publishing Company provided me with a free review copy of Roots for Kids: Finding Your Family Stories, but the positive opinions in this review are entirely my own!

Susan Provost Beller emphasizes "family stories" as a key thread running throughout this practical and engaging book, aimed at introducing the younger generation to the fascinating and fun process of genealogy. She writes: 

History means much more when it is 'YourStory!'

Each of the 15 bite-sized chapters opens with an interesting story, drawing the reader in. Topics range from food and first names to geography and generations. After a few pages of clear explanation, each chapter ends with an activity --something the reader can easily try now to get involved with family history.

Beller encourages curiosity and individuality, giving readers ideas plus hands-on tools to start on the road to discovering and documenting family history. The book includes a blank pedigree chart, a blank family group sheet, suggested websites to take research to the next level, a useful illustrated glossary, and an index. 

The cover and illustrations by Kate Boyer beautifully complement the text and really enhance the reading experience. Do take a look at this book if you want to get the younger generation interested in family history!

Looked for Rachel Jacobs, Found Jane and John Doe

Death certificate from December 8, 1915

I've been taking a fresh look at the life and death of Rachel Shuham Jacobs, my paternal great-great-grandmother. She was born in Lithuania and widowed there. Her two adult children brought her to New York City in the 1880s.

Rachel didn't leave much of a paper trail, and what she left was filled with strange clues.

Rachel Was a First-Time Mother at Age 11?

Only once can I find Rachel enumerated in a census with her family. The US Census of 1900 listed Rachel as "mother-in-law" in the household of Meyer Mahler, who married Rachel's daughter Tillie. Tillie and Meyer (my paternal great-grandparents) had 7 children, so there were 10 people crowded into this apartment at 88 Chrystie Street on the Lower East Side, where many immigrants lived. In fact, Rachel's son Joseph lived in the apartment next door.

Supposedly Rachel was born in February of 1849 and was therefore 51 at the time of this Census. Yet Rachel's daughter Tillie was supposedly born in August of 1860, when her mother would have been 11 years old. No wonder I'm a bit skeptical of the accuracy of this Census data.

Rachel Died in Bellevue Hospital

There was a different age estimate on Rachel's death certificate (excerpt shown above). She died in Bellevue Hospital in New York City on December 8, 1915, at about age 70. I say "about" because there is no birth date on the certificate. If she was 70 in 1915, her birth year would be about 1845.

Causes of death were numerous, including chronic liver problems, chronic heart problems, and double hydrothorax ("water on the lungs"--often associated with liver and heart problems). The cert says that her former or usual residence was 47 Allen Street in Manhattan. That's also on the Lower East Side, just three blocks from where she was living 15 years earlier. Both apartments are a very short walk from today's Tenement Museum.

In the Hospital with Jane Doe and John Doe

Where was great-great-grandma Rachel between 1900 and 1915? She was not living with her son or daughter. I triple-checked. No New York City directory listings seem to fit my Rachel. She didn't die until the end of 1915, so where was she living for 15 years?

Possibly Rachel's chronic health problems, listed on her death cert, are important as clues to this mystery. I twice found a Rachel Jacobs as a patient at Manhattan State Hospital at Ward's Island in Manhattan. This institution was originally designated as an insane asylum for immigrants, but it also housed some medical patients. 

In 1905, the Rachel Jacobs in this hospital is listed as 60 years old, meaning a birth year of 1845. In 1910, the Rachel Jacobs in this hospital is listed as 61, meaning a birth year of 1849. Both times, Rachel is listed as from Austria, which wasn't the case.

All the info came from the hospital administration--that's clear because patients are listed in strict alphabetical order. Despite the inconsistencies, these two Census records are probably for my great-great-grandma.

Sadly, in browsing through the records for the Manhattan State Hospital, I saw not one but three Jane Doe listings and not one but three John Doe listings, as shown in the excerpt above. Several were listed as "unknown" nativity. One John Doe has no age even guesstimated.

Although I'll never know the truth, I imagine that great-great-grandma Rachel's health kept deteriorating and the family couldn't afford treatment or palliative care. That's most likely how she wound up in a big NYC public asylum/hospital with Jane Does and John Does. Rachel's son was in poor health himself, and died of Parkinson's disease only three years after his mother died.

Local Knowledge, Part 1: Moving Day in the Big Apple

Grandpa and his sister lived
around the corner from each other
in the Bronx, NY in 1942

Today is yet another hot, summery day in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. In other words, a good time to stay safe at home and delve into the whereabouts of siblings of my paternal grandfather, Isaac Burk (1882-1943).

During the early 1940s, these ancestors lived in and around New York City, based on addresses I've researched in the 1940 Census, World War II draft registration cards, and directories. This is where local knowledge of Big Apple customs and resources comes in handy.

Moving Day in the Big Apple

For decades, it was well known in New York City that May 1st was Moving Day (yes, with capital letters). Nearly all rental leases expired as of 9 am on that day. In a city filled with apartment dwellers, families spent the weeks before May 1 talking with new landlords who might be willing to negotiate rents or offer a free month as an incentive to move. Renters also signed contracts to have moving companies lug furniture to the new place on Moving Day.

Why is Moving Day important? Wherever my Big Apple ancestors lived on Census Day (April 1st in 1940), they didn't necessarily live in the same place on or after May 1st! With Moving Day in mind, I wasn't surprised to find my grandfather Isaac's sister Jennie (and other siblings) at one address in the 1940 Census and another address soon afterward.

Jennie Moves Around the Corner

In 1940, Jennie Birk Salkowitz (1890-1972) and her husband Paul Salkowitz (1889-1957) lived as boarders with another family in the same giant Bronx apartment building as my grandpa Isaac Burk and his wife, Henrietta Mahler Burk (1881-1954). The address was 3044 Valentine Avenue, a short walk from the most elegant street in the Bronx, the Grand Concourse.

By spring of 1941, Jennie and Paul had moved to a new address around the corner (literally) from Isaac, at 276 East 203d Street in the Bronx. I can be fairly sure of the timing, because the 203d Street address is on Paul's WWII draft registration card, dated April of 1942. With Moving Day on May 1 of every year, Paul and Jennie had to have moved to the new address during May of 1941.

As shown on the map at top, Isaac and Jennie lived only a two minute walk from each other, suggesting a good relationship between brother and sister (and confirmed by other evidence).

My next step was to see what this new residence looked like. Again, local knowledge helped me in my quest! More in Part 2.

Who's Hidden in That Tintype?

Mystery tintype, before
and after enhancing

My first adventure in mystery photo land has turned up an unexpected discovery!

This adventure combined the sharpening power of the new MyHeritage.com photo enhancement tool with the cleanup and lightening capabilities of Restore software from Vivid-Pix.

Scanning and Cleaning Up The Tintype

It all started with a dark tintype, which I inherited without any frame or identification. I despaired of getting anything from it, and had never even tried to scan it.

Yesterday, I scanned it at high resolution (with my trusty CanoScan 8400F flatbed). Top right is the result. At this point, I could see the shadow of a seated woman and a standing man in a bowler hat. Of course I had to continue!

My next step was to lighten the scan slightly with my Picasa image management software (alas, no longer offered by or supported by Google). More of the people could be seen. I was feeling encouraged to continue with an even more powerful tool.

Vivid-Pix and My Heritage to the Rescue

The image was still so badly degraded that the faces were not visible. So I put the digital image through Restore by Vivid-Pix.

Restore gave me 9 possible images from which to choose when it fixed the image. I chose the one in which the people were most delineated. After a bit of tinkering with the software's tools, I could definitely see where a frame used to be over the tintype, and more of the faces. That's the bottom image above.

Finally, I imported the fixed image into MyHeritage's photo enhancement tool. The result was much clearer faces and clothing. The tintype had been rescued!

Comparing Known Faces for Identification

Look at the man's face--long and lean, with ears sticking out a bit. The woman's face has distinctive eyes and eyebrows. I had a suspicion now.

I uploaded to MyHeritage two photos of my paternal grandparents, Henrietta Mahler (below left, just before their marriage) and Isaac Burk (below right, 25 years after their marriage).

After sharpening their facial features, and comparing with the super-enhanced scanned tintype, I found myself unexpectedly staring into the younger faces of my grandparents, probably around the time of their marriage, pre-1910. That's my best guess on identification.

Wow. Very unexpected to be able to finally tease out recognizable faces from this degraded tintype, well more than a century old. For me, it's also a great demonstration of how combining new tech tools can help my genealogy efforts.




This week's prompt from #52Ancestors is  "unexpected." We're already at week 25, nearly halfway through the year of Amy Johnson Crow's genealogy prompts.

Apres Vous/After You, What Happens to Your Genealogy?

Something new: A #Genchat one-hour live-tweet conversation on Friday, February 28 and the same topic, again a live-tweet conversation, on Saturday, February 29. I'm honored to be the special guest for both!

You're invited to join the discussion as participants from around the world explore ideas and issues related to "Apres Vous/After You."

What happens to your genealogy (and old photos and documents and stories) after you join your ancestors? How do you plan ahead to be sure your family-history collection will pass to the next generation and beyond--instead of landing in the rubbish or a garage sale?

Christine McCloud will host the first of these two Twitter #Genchat conversations on Friday night, Feb. 28, 10 pm Eastern Standard Time.

Liam "Sir Leprechaun Rabbit" will host the second Twitter #Genchat conversation on Saturday, Feb. 29. For U.S. participants, the starting time is 3 pm Eastern Standard Time. If you're elsewhere, starting time is 8 pm Greenwich Mean Time.

Please join the conversation! One hour of interesting and thought-provoking tweets focused on planning for "Apres Vous."

How Blogging Helps My Genealogy

The movements of an ancestor who caught Ohio fever

Every blog post I research and write helps my genealogy. Even after more than 11 years of blogging, and 21 years of genealogy enthusiasm, there are always new things to learn.

The process of blogging enhances my genealogy because it (1) sharpens my focus, (2) reveals gaps, and (3) serves as a rough draft of written family history.

Sharpening My Focus

Every time I blog, I narrow my focus to one ancestor, one surname, or one occasion. Or I choose one genealogical resource or method to explore. The point is to keep the focus on someone or something I can discuss in one post--a bite-sized piece of my family history.

My recent blog post about my great uncle Julius Farkas is a good example. I'm participating in Amy Johnson Crow's intriguing #52Ancestors series of weekly prompts for genealogy bloggers. For the "soldier" prompt, I decided to focus on Julius, the only conscience objector I've ever found in my family--someone who did not want to be a soldier.

Previously, I had written a few sentences about Julius in the context of others from my family who served in World War I. This time, to flesh out his story, I dug deeper into his military experience, going beyond the usual draft registration card and the summary of military service.

To my surprise, I discovered an Army transport list that had not been available when I last searched. Julius's name was the only one crossed out. The others were sent overseas into combat. With a shiver, I realized Julius would have wound up in the second battle of the Somme, had he not been reassigned at the very last minute as a Stateside Army cook. Sharpening my focus led me to this new aspect of his life.

Revealing Gaps

Gaps--yes, there are still quite a few in my family and my husband's family tree. When I blog about one ancestor or a branch of the tree, I often discover that I'm missing some information.

Take my recent two-part blog post about Mary "unknown maiden name" Shehan, my husband's ancestor who lived in London but was born in Ireland. My original intention was to try to find out where exactly she and her husband were born, and (if possible) to learn her maiden name. I wrote my blog post as I did my research.

First, I reviewed their whereabouts according to the UK census. Nowhere was any county or town listed, only "Ireland" as their birthplace. Sigh. On the other hand, there was nothing at all after 1871--a gap I needed to fill.

That's when I switched my goal to finding where and when these ancestors died. I had to dig deeper to find more documents, but ultimately I learned the sad ending to Mary "unknown" Shehan's life, unfortunately echoed in her daughter Mary Shehan Slatter's life. Blogging about these ancestors led me to discover gaps and conduct research to find out more. And it gave me crucial new insights into these ancestors' lives.

Rough Draft of Family History

Blogging allows me to "think out loud" about an ancestor or family-history situation in a post. Sometimes I write a series of blog posts about a particular topic of family, which I later turn into my first draft of a written family history.

That's what I did with my "Ohio fever" series. After reading David McCullough's well-researched book, The Pioneers, I turned my attention to three of my husband's ancestors who had caught Ohio fever. With the historical background in mind, I could understand "why," not just "when" and "where" they moved to Ohio.

With more detail and some editing, that three-post series became a seven-page booklet for the family, complete with colorful maps like the one at top. I especially wanted to grab the attention of younger relatives and show them how our family actually made history. With my blog posts as a rough draft, it was faster and easier to create the booklet than starting from scratch.

Genealogy blogging has another big benefit: It's absolutely fantastic cousin bait.

Some of my posts are brief, some are lengthy, sometimes I don't post for a week or two, but I always find blogging worthwhile and fun.

It Should Have Been Easy: Finding an Ancestor in the 1870 Census

Although I'm a long-time user of Ancestry, I subscribed to MyHeritage earlier in the year and added Genealogy Bank after finishing a year's subscription to newspapers.com. Of course I've been using FamilySearch.org regularly for years, and also Find a Grave. Plus HeritageQuest Online.

Why?

Because one website is simply not enough. Even for something that should be easy, such as searching for a particular ancestor in a specific year of the U.S. Census.

It takes a village of genealogy websites to dig deep, find ancestors, and learn more about their lives.

For me, the most effective village consists of both free and paid websites (accessed individually from home or, at times, accessed for free from a Family History Center or local library).

Focus on Rinehart Family

Here's a mini-case history of how I found two of hubby's ancestors in the 1870 Census, part of my ongoing Genealogy Go-Over to fill in holes and verify information. This should have been straightforward and easy, but it wasn't.

Joseph W. Rinehart (1806-1888) was my husband's 2d great-grandpa, married to 2d great-grandma Margaret Shank (1807-1873).

In constructing the family timeline, I noticed that in 1850 and 1860, the Rinehart family was intact, farming in Tod township, Crawford county, Ohio. In 1880, Joseph was a widower, living with a married daughter in Tod township, Crawford county, Ohio.

What about 1870? That was missing from my timeline for husband and wife and some children. Clicking to search the indexed Census in Ancestry, HeritageQuest Online (yes, I know, same database as Ancestry), and FamilySearch didn't reveal their whereabouts. Nor did it find their youngest child, Nancy.

I then browsed every page of the US Census for Tod township, and for Nevada township in neighboring Wyandot county, where a few children and extended family were living at the time. No sign of Joseph, Margaret, or Nancy. Not as straightforward as I'd hoped.

They Went Where?

Next, I clicked to search the Census on MyHeritage, where I have been building a tree to support my DNA outreach. Up popped a Joseph Rinehart and wife Margaret living with Hugh Rinehart and family in 1870 in . . . Angola, Steuben county, Indiana. (Snippet from the Census is shown here.)

All the details fit, right down to Joseph and Margaret's youngest daughter, Nancy (age 19 in 1870) living there. The head of household was her brother Hugh. Joseph isn't listed as "Joseph W." but it is a clear match. Interestingly, Joseph--the former farmer--is shown in 1870 as a tailor, with real estate worth $3600 and personal estate worth $200.

A big clue is Margaret's birth state of Delaware, which she listed in 1850 and 1860 also. Another clue is the final name, Catherine Ransburg, whose daughter married a Shank (Margaret's maiden name)...they lived in Steuben county, IN, also. Catherine's personal estate was valued at $1500 on the Census.

It's a bit amazing to think of Joseph Rinehart and his wife Margaret making a home with a son 140 miles away from where they used to farm. Especially since I see by the 1880 Census that Joseph was back in Tod, Ohio after his wife died.

I'm currently using my village of websites to look for any news items, obits, social items, etc. hoping to find clues to when/why these ancestors went to Indiana. Again, not an easy search because of the many ways to spell "Rinehart" but I'm still trying. If there's a clue out there, my village of genealogy websites is likely to find it.

Many thanks to Amy Johnson Crow for the "easy" prompt this week in her #52Ancestors series.

Ancestor Landing Pages: Summaries and Cousin Bait

As shown above, my genealogy blog includes tabs for a series of "landing pages," mostly devoted to summarizing what I know about key ancestors in my family tree and hubby's family tree.

I established the first of these ancestor landing pages more than 6 years ago, and expanded until now I have 14 such landing pages. Each tells the story, in brief, of an ancestral couple or family. When I blog about one of those ancestors or families, I update the landing page with a link to the newest post. This enables anyone who searches for that surname to see, at a glance, what I've learned about that family and what I'm still learning or wondering about.

In addition, I have a landing page devoted to hubby's Mayflower ancestors. The remaining 3 landing pages include links to free genealogy resources, sample templates for family history, and my genealogy presentations.

McClure, Larimer, and Schwartz

By page views, the three most popular ancestor landing pages are:

• Halbert McClure and family from Donegal. This is the Scots-Irish ancestor of my husband who had enough money to sail, with many members of his family, from the north of Ireland to Philadelphia. The family then walked to Virginia to buy farm land. 
• Robert & Mary Larimer. According to my husband's grandfather, family lore has it that Robert Larimer was sent from the North of Ireland to America to make his way in the world. Alas, he was shipwrecked en route and forced to work off the cost of his rescue. 
• Schwartz family from Ungvar. This is my maternal grandfather's family. Born and raised in what is now Uzhorod, Ukraine, Grandpa Teddy was the first in his family to leave for America. Soon he sent for an older brother and together, they saved their nickels and sent for a baby sister.

Cousin Bait

My landing pages are attracting thousands of views, so I know people are finding them via online search. Sometimes people even leave me a comment or write me c/o my blog to discuss possible family connections.

More than once, a cousin I didn't know I had (or couldn't find) has landed on my blog and gotten in touch with me. Genealogy blogs are excellent cousin bait, and ancestor landing pages increase the odds of being found via online searches.

Real Clues on Other People's Trees

Example tree -- I'm not related to Martha or George!

Lately I've been browsing other people's trees in search of real clues to help research elusive ancestors and maybe even break down brick walls.

Of course I'm NOT going to copy anything without confirming for myself, but I do want to see whether other trees have something I don't have.

For example, when I buy a birth cert or a marriage license or some other record, I scan it and post on my Ancestry tree. Sure, I paid for it, but why keep it to myself? After all, I'm sharing with folks who are researching my family. Stands to reason that others might post their purchased documents, too (and I've been lucky enough to find some, thank you).

The same goes for scanning and posting family photos, sometimes with visible dates or other original captions. I add these to my trees and I really appreciate when others are generous enough to share with the rest of us.

So the first thing I do is check the sources on any tree I'm browsing. If the source is only another family tree (X marks the spot on the sample at top), I ignore. I'm looking for a substantive source.

If I see something like the SAR application in the source list above, I gladly click to see what I can learn. I want to actually view the document for myself, because indexing and transcriptions aren't always accurate, let alone complete.

Also I check the "facts" to see whether there is a scan of a document added as media for, say, a marriage, as in the example at top. Maybe I've never seen that media before and it's worth examining...

If so, I download the scan, blow it up to read if necessary, and scrutinize. Credible sources I follow up on and add to my tree once I've verified that the ancestor mentioned belongs to my family.

#Genealogy
#familyhistory