Did You See These These RootsTech Sessions?

 
Hundreds and hundreds of RootsTech presentations from 2022 and 2021 are still available to view, for free, at RootsTech.org.

There were many excellent sessions, and I still have dozens more to view, waiting on my playlist. 

Here are five sessions that provided food for thought and encouraged me to dig deeper into genealogy and family-history questions. If you haven't seen them, please consider adding them to your playlist!

• Dealing with ethical dilemmas in an online world. So many ethical questions arise in today's world of genealogy, and this session looks at a few very timely concerns (DNA, grave memorials, and terms of service, to name just three). A conversation worth watching.
• When Harry met Dotty. A relatively brief but fascinating and informative case study of how Nick David Barratt used DNA to break down a key brick wall. Maps are part of the story too. A good case study like this can be really helpful!
• Genealogy YouTubers. I've already blogged about this terrific panel discussion. What did I love? The candid conversation about the challenges and opportunities of using YouTube to connect with an audience of family historians. Interesting and fun.
• What to do when there's nothing to do. Speaker Renate Yarborough Sanders reminds us of the many things we can do when we choose to take a break from intense research and return with fresh eyes. Thoughtful and encouraging!
• Family Folklore: Fact or Fiction? Anyone who's heard a family legend will get something out of watching Virginia M. Pratt's talk, featuring interesting case studies of trying to find the truth and suggestions for how to discuss family stories with relatives. 

1950 US Census Prep: Check for Special EDs on the Maps

 

If you, like me, suspect some ancestors were in a hospital, hotel, or another facility on April 1, 1950, let me suggest something to try as you prep for the release of that year's Census.** 

Check the Enumeration District maps for the county, town, or city where that institution was located. You might be lucky and find a listing of special EDs at the top, bottom, or elsewhere on the map where those buildings are shown.

Above, a partial listing of special EDs from an ED map of one section of the Bronx, New York, showing convents, an orphanage, a reformatory, a monastery, hospitals, schools for the deaf, even a large apartment house. This is an unusually long list--but it's not unusual to find special EDs marked on an ED map. Take a look!

Knowing the specific ED for the institution or facility gives you a head start on April 1, when the Census is made public. You'll be able to either browse the handwritten Census sheets for that one ED or use NARA's initial index to search by name and ED. 

I'm not 100% sure where all of my ancestors will be, or which will be away from home. One ancestor lived for years in a residential hotel and that's where I'll look first in the 1950 US Census. Another died weeks after the Census was taken so she might actually be in a nearby hospital, not at home. In each case, having the ED number for the facility can help me find those ancestors more quickly before full indexing.

The big genealogy sites are gearing up to the 1950 US Census fully indexed sooner rather than later. FamilySearch.org has an update page where you can learn more about the release and about indexing. If you want to help FamilySearch index the Census, I recommend watching Devon Lee's Family History Fanatics video about indexing. 

IMHO, since indexing can't be done until April 1st, there is still time to prep by finding EDs and being ready to look for top priority ancestors when the Census is made public!

**To see how to turn a street address into an Enumeration District, I have a case study here. To see how to use Enumeration maps and descriptions, see my case study here.

For even more posts and links related to the 1950 US Census release, please see my summary page here.

1950 US Census Search: Look for Head of Household

 

The 1950 US Census will be released on April 1st!

Recently, the US Census Bureau hosted a webinar at which Census and US National Archives experts talked about the background of this Census and what will be available on the day of release. That webinar is posted on YouTube.

Claire Kluskens of NARA discussed the basic name and location index that will accompany the 1950 US Census release. It could very well give us a head start on our searches!

My key takeaways from her comments are shown in the image at top.

1. Try the search functions but remember the name index is only a first draft and will need to be refined with the assistance of members of the public who submit corrections to NARA.
2. Indexing was line by line on each sheet of the Census, showing the line number and the name written on that line.
3. Enumerators were trained to write the surname of the head of household and the given name/initials. Others in the household who shared the same surname will NOT have the surname listed on the line number, only the given name or initials.
4. If someone in the household has a different surname (such as a married daughter or a lodger), that line will show the surname and given name.
5. BEST SEARCH STRATEGY, says this expert, is to look for the head of household if known--because that line will have the person's full name.

You can try your search with a combination of the head of household's surname, given name, and location (ED or city/town and county). 

Use all your usual search strategies but be prepared to browse by ED if your search doesn't lead you to your ancestors.

Meanwhile, Ancestry and Family Search and MyHeritage will all be working hard to index the Census. 

For more 1950 US Census tips and info, see my summary page here.

Honoring the Memory of Ancestors Killed in the Holocaust

 

Rezi Regina Schwartz Winkler was the oldest sister of my grandpa Theodore Schwartz. Sorry to say, Rezi and too many other family members were killed in the Holocaust. As I learn more, I've been adding their names to my online family trees, to honor their memory and not let them be forgotten in the future. 

Also I'm specifically identifying the cause of death for these ancestors where they appear on my family trees. 

• MyHeritage adds an automatic designation of the yellow star when the user selects "Holocaust" as the cause of death from the drop-down menu. This is a visual indication of the fate of that ancestor.
• WikiTree has different Holocaust stickers that can be posted on an ancestor's profile. I can separately identify an ancestor who died, an ancestor who survived, and so on, depending on each person's circumstances.
• Ancestry allows me to add a custom TreeTag to ancestors. I created one to indicate any ancestor who was a Holocaust victim. If I choose, I can create a custom TreeTag for Holocaust survivors.
• On FamilySearch, I created a custom fact for the "other information" field to indicate an ancestor who died in the Holocaust.

Prior to World War II, most of my grandfather's family lived in and around Ungvar, which is now Uzhhorod, Ukraine. One way I'm supporting relief efforts in Ukraine is by attending the all-virtual Jewish Roots in Ukraine workshop on April 3d. The four experts will be talking about research strategies, sources of information, and understanding Ukrainian ancestors in context. I'm registered and ready to learn as well as to aid Ukraine.

Save March 26-27 for History for Ukraine

Want to support Ukraine relief efforts AND learn from well-known history and genealogy experts?

Get ready for History for Ukraine, the star-studded live marathon of talks assembled by Nathalie Pithers and a team of volunteers, taking place March 26-27!

Here are some of the speakers already confirmed to participate: 

• Josh Taylor, President of the New York Genealogy and Biography Society
• Judy Russell, "The Legal Genealogist"
• Amy Johnson Crow, Host of Generations Cafe podcast and #52Ancestors originator
• Earl Charles Spencer, best-selling history author and founder of Althorp Literary Festival
• Dr Janina Ramirez, BBC documentary maker, author, and President of the Gloucester History Festival
• Dr Wanda Wyporska, head of the Society of Genealogists

More speakers will be announced shortly. A few days ago, Family Tree Magazine conducted an interview with Nathalie Pithers. In her words, "History for Ukraine is a combination of Live Aid and Red Nose Day, but for history!"

Although this special event is entirely free, donations will be gratefully accepted! (In fact, donations can be made in advance if you wish.)

All proceeds go to DEC Ukrainian Humanitarian Appeal which is administered by the British Red Cross.

Please mark your calendars! See you at History for Ukraine on March 26-27.

New, Free New York City Vital Records!

Anyone with ancestors who were born, married, or died in New York City from 1855 through 1949 can now search the New York City Municipal Archives site and view more than 9 million document images, at no charge. This action wasn't directly due to any specific lawsuit by the nonprofit Reclaim the Records, although it has sued the agency four times to get public images made public. This particular release of documents is a project that New York City has been working on for years, and now the results are being made available for free. 

As shown in the image above, note that these images are for vital records only from 1855 through 1949. Also, not all images have yet been scanned, but the majority are available to be found via search or browsing.

Search by cert number

NYC recommends searching by certificate number, borough, and year for the best results. You can find a cert number in a number of ways. There are indexes on Ancestry, Family Search, and other sites, but usually I use the databases at ItalianGen.org - also free, thanks to the efforts of many incredible volunteers. 

As shown above, you can search the ItalianGen databases for birth, marriage, death by surname and given name or initial, specify a range of years, and narrow the search to a specific New York City borough. When I did this for my great aunt Sadie Mahler's marriage, I found two possibilities. I know her spouse (Samuel Smith) but if I didn't, the ability to look at either of these certs FOR FREE is a big, big plus.

Once I plugged in the cert number, borough, and year using the NYC search function, up popped Sadie and Sam's marriage document, both page 1 and page 2 (with their signatures and the witnesses). I don't need a certified copy for my genealogy, but if you do, you can click to buy.

Want to browse?

If you want to browse in search of an ancestor's cert (maybe you can't find the cert number, for instance), you can use the browse interface here. Select type of certificate, borough, and don't forget to use the slider to narrow the range of years.

What a wonderful treat to have, just two weeks before the 1950 US Census is released!

PS: I tried finding Sadie's marriage cert at FamilySearch but "no image" was available, only a transcription. Much better to have the actual image to view!

1950 US Census Prep: Finding Small Town EDs

The 1950 US Census is almost here! Only 20 more days until this mid-century Census is released to the public by the US National Archives.

Even though there will be a basic index and the ability to search by name and location, nobody expects the initial index to be perfect or complete. Just in case, I've been using 1950ish addresses to locate the Enumeration District for my ancestors so I can browse the ED pages when they're made public. Or, at the very least, be able to search by name and ED, to be more specific about my searches. 

Most of my ancestors were in big cities in 1950. I described how to turn a big-city street address into an ED in an earlier post, using the incredibly powerful (and free!) Unified Census ED Finder on SteveMorse.org. 

Small town ED process

However, there's a slightly different process for finding the EDs of towns with fewer than 5,000 residents, because Steve Morse has no tables for towns that small. (He explains why on this FAQ page.)

Here's the process for finding a small town ED.

As shown in the screen grab at top, I'm using the example of the small town of Woodbury, Connecticut, which had 2,564 residents in 1950. 

First, I went to the Unified Census ED Finder page, and used the drop-down menus to specify the state of Connecticut and the county of Litchfield, where Woodbury is located.

Although some larger population centers are available in the drop-down menu for town/city, Woodbury is not. So instead, I selected "other" in that drop-down menu area and typed the town name (purple arrow).

ED map or description or both?

There are five possible EDs in this general area, listed in numerical order in the image at top. I don't want to browse all five in search of a Woodbury resident.

To narrow down my options, I checked the ED descriptions (in image at top, see green arrow). 

This took me to a page with written descriptions of the five possible EDs for Woodbury, as shown directly above. However, I don't know Woodbury well enough to determine from these descriptions which ED would be the most likely for my purposes. Anyone who knows the streets might take a solid guess from these descriptions.

Then I clicked to see the ED maps for the entire county (orange arrow). This took me to the list of map links shown above. The first five of the jpegs are what I wanted to view. These were sections of the entire county map, and I wanted to navigate around each map section to look for Woodbury. 

Most of the town is in one ED 

Of course, the fifth map I checked was the one where most of Woodbury is located. As shown directly above, the town is marked on the map and the ED number for the vast majority of that area is noted as 3-121. 

Combining the maps with the descriptions narrows things down considerably, even allowing for edges of the town that stick out beyond these straight lines.

Lifespans at a Glance in New MyHeritage Feature

New feature alert!

At RootsTech, MyHeritage announced a number of new features. Today I tried the Family Tree Timeline.

Above, one example of how the timeline allows a graphical view of ancestors' lifespans. I can select any starting ancestor (here, my late mother-in-law, Marian Jane McClure Wood), and see as many as 9 generations back (here, I selected only 3 generations back). The color-coding tells me at a glance which ancestors belong to each branch, a practical visual reminder. 

I particularly like the age of death shown at right of each bar on the graph. When a death date isn't known, the bar fades in color and no "age at death" number appears. I can also turn on and off more complete info to be shown on each bar of the graph (such as birth/death years). I can use the length of each bar and the number at the end to analyze patterns (such as short or long lifespans in a particular branch).

This feature allows me to display or not, as I choose, major historical events (such as World War II), for context. Another useful element is a consistency checker, in which a dot next to a parent/child relationship alerts me to double-check dates (did I list a child's birth date that's after the mother's death, for instance?). 

Hovering over an ancestor's name on the timeline leads me to additional options, such as opening the profile to edit it or researching that ancestor. If I wish, I can download and/or share any timeline with a click. 

In short, I find this an easy and helpful way to visualize lifespans at a glance and put them into both family and historical context.

What Age Was My Longest-Lived Female Ancestor in 1950?

On April 1, I hope to learn more about my oldest female ancestor, great-grandma Tillie Rose Jacobs Mahler (1852ish?-1952), daughter of Rachel Shuham Jacobs and Jonah Jacobs and husband of Meyer Elias Mahler.

At left, a 1900s photo of Tillie beautifully colorized by MyHeritage in Color.

The story passed down is that great-grandma "fooled" the family into giving her a 100th birthday party...and then died at the age of 99. Even today, nobody knows her true birth month, day, or year, only that she outlived everyone else in the family tree (by a lot).

Census records were inconsistent

I consulted US and NY Census records about Tillie's age and found, as the years went on, a number of inconsistencies. How did Tillie age so quickly between 1920 and 1925, for example? Or between 1930 and 1940? 

Likely it was not Tillie talking with the enumerator, IMHO, but someone else in the household (or a neighbor) giving an age guesstimate in later years. Take a look at how her age changes:

• 1900 US Census: Tillie is enumerated as 39 years old (Census day: June 1)
• 1905 NY Census: Tillie is enumerated as 45 years old (Census day: June 1)
• 1910 US Census: Tillie is enumerated as 50 years old (Census day: April 15)
• 1915 NY Census: Tillie is enumerated as 55 years old (Census day: June 1)
• 1920 US Census: Tillie is enumerated as 60 years old (Census day: January 1)
• 1925 NY Census: Tillie is enumerated as 67 years old (Census day: June 1)
• 1930 US Census: Tillie is enumerated as 73 years old (Census day: April 1)
• 1940 US Census: Tillie is enumerated as 86 years old (Census day: April 1) - see image excerpt below. (Note: Neither Tillie nor her daughter has a circled X next to the name, which would ordinarily suggest they were not the informants. Since no names on that page have an X, this enumerator didn't indicate which member of any household gave the information.)
• UPDATE: 1950 US Census, Tillie is enumerated as 100 years old (April 1).

What will 1950 US Census say?

Looking ahead: If Tillie was 99 years old when she passed away in 1952, she would be enumerated as 96 or 97 years old in the 1950 Census. NOPE, she was supposedly 100 yrs old as enumerated in 1950 US Census.

Remembering Great-Grandma Tillie with affection on International Women's Day.

This is my post for the Genealogy Blog Party of March, 2022.

RootsTech 2022: Don't Forget to Check the Chats! (Limited Time)

My favorite sessions during the kickoff weekend of all-virtual RootsTech 2022 were the live talks and panel discussions. 

Why? Because these encouraged interactivity and offered a sense of connection even though we were home in our bunny slippers rather than being together in person at the Salt Palace.

Above, the four panelists who spoke on Saturday with enthusiasm and candor about their experiences with YouTube. More than 400 people attended the Zoom. The session is on YouTube here. I'm a fan of these folks and I enjoyed hearing them discuss their experiences, successes, frustrations, and ideas for the future. The audience chat was a mix of questions, comments, and "hi from Connecticut" greetings that added to the community feeling.

Another group discussion I really liked was the Ethical Dilemmas panel, on YouTube here.

Check the chats! Available until about March 13

With prerecorded sessions, the chat box was a great way to interact with other audience members and, crucially, with content experts. During the first day's session about the 1950 US Census (featuring Crista Cowan of Ancestry and Stephen Valentine of Family Search), I actually learned key, updated details from the experts in the chat. My least favorite parts of this session were the interviews with people in New York's Time Square--entertaining but not informative. You can watch the entire recorded session here.

As I watched the main sponsors' keynotes, I joined the chat and was pleased to see links to some of the new features being introduced. A running Q&A in chat (still available after the sessions) was of interest, as well. More than 500 people commented in the MyHeritage keynote chat...more than 230 in the Ancestry keynote chat...more than 550 in the FamilyTreeDNA keynote chat. Not all chat comments were of broad interest, but there were many good suggestions and links.

As of today, "join the chat" is still available for all sessions on my playlist. BUT chats will be unavailable after another week or so (by March 13 approximately). Do take a moment to check the chat for any session on your RootsTech playlist. 

Mark your calendar: The next RootsTech will begin March 2-4, 2023, less than a year away ;)