Cousin Larry and the Wood family

Thanks to Cousin Larry, we know a lot about my hubby's Wood ancestors. He's a meticulous researcher and doesn't let up even when the going gets tough. Surprisingly, he found out that a distant cousin of his and hubby's (who married into the huge Foote family of Wethersfield) lived and died in my town. So now I can do some local research the old fashioned way--in my local library--instead of mousing around the web.

UPDATE in 2022: I was never able to find this Foote ancestor's grave, despite searching locally and in the state library. 

National Archives and Family Historians

Browsing the National Archives site, I found "Resources for Genealogists and Family Historians." Lots of "how to" links explaining use of the archives, plus genealogy tips, info on upcoming events, new data and old-reliable collections often searched by people climbing their family trees (like me). Just bookmarked this for fast future reference.

Old Abbreviations Describing Death

Searching online for genealogy blogs, I ran across Life of Riley, which has a very useful post today about old abbreviations. A sample, copied from today's post:

• d.s.p.l. - died without legitimate issue
• d.s.p.m.s. - died without surviving male issue
• d.s.p.s - died without surviving issue
• d.unm - died unmarried

2022 update: Unfortunately, this blog is no longer active. Instead, I've bookmarked the History Detectives site which has common abbreviations plus many well-known terms defined.

Linkpendium has more than 10 million links?!

UPDATE 2022: One reason I like Linkpendium is its categorization of genealogy links, by state, by worldwide surname, etc. Every month it adds new links. So many links, so little time. There are well over 10,000,000 links to family history resources at this time! 

Twitter Genealogy

2022 update: For fun and informative Twitter chats about genealogy, try #GenChat (alternate Friday evenings, US time), #AncestryHour (Tuesday afternoons, US time), and several other live chats that take place only on Twitter.

Watch for the tags #Genealogy and #FamilyHistory for tweets about these topics.

I'm on Twitter as @MarianBWood - see you there!

Google Your Family Tree

Dan Lynch's book is now out of print, but Google Your Family Tree was a wonderful reference tool when I was digging deeper into online searches for ancestors, ancestral communities, and specific aspects of family history. UPDATED 2022.

Online Searches for Family History Topics

2022 update: The author of Google Your Family Tree was speaking at a local genealogy club in 2009, and I was in the audience. Last time I heard that talk, his Google tips helped me find my first cousin, living only 100 miles away. 

I learned a lot about using search operators. Here's my 2017 post about that topic, explaining the use of:

AND

OR

"" (quotation marks)

- (minus sign)

* (wild card)

AROUND(insert number here).

Dating Old Photos and More

To learn more about photo dating and identification, I've read some of the books by Maureen Taylor and also seen her talks/webinars. She has lots of great ideas for looking at clothing clues and more.

Also I've seen talks by Sherlock Cohn (aka Ava Cohn), who has an eagle eye for dating photos and helping put them into family, military, and historical context.

Both have given me some hints to follow up as I caption old family photos from the past 100-125 years.

At top, a photo by Gustav Beldegreen, showing some of my FARKAS ancestors serving as officers of the Kossuth Ferencz Literary, Sick & Benevolent Society.

UPDATED 2022

Getting Organized for the New Year

Dear Myrtle has tools and videos to help genealogy enthusiasts get organized. She retires in May of 2022, but her great content will remain.

One of my 2009 resolutions is to record my family tree information in a more timely manner instead of filing things away to record later. By the time I get back to these documents and notes, I can't remember what I've recorded or where. UPDATED in 2022: Now using multiple genealogy websites (WikiTree, MyHeritage, Ancestry, FamSearch) for my public family trees.

With any luck, some of my distant cousins will find me in 2009 because of the forums, family sites, and blogs where I've mentioned the surnames and places I'm researching. Happy new year and looking forward to hearing from cousins and members of the FAN club (friends, associates, neighbors). 

Daniel Gluck in the Bronx

My cousin remembers that my great-aunt Mary Schwartz boarded with her 2d cousin Daniel Gluck and family in a Bronx apartment after arriving in NYC from Ungvar, about 1911-1912. Daniel had two daughters: Beatrice (a buyer for a lingerie firm?) and Ruth. The family started a furniture store in or near Paramus NJ in one of America's first shopping centers, perhaps during the mid-1930s. So far no luck tracing them but it's some kind of lead. Updated in 2022: Still no luck but will be checking 1950 US Census when it releases.

Ungvar and Lojos Schwartz

Since September I've been hoping to find out that Violet was related to my Schwartz relatives from Ungvar. Violet's family wrote me yesterday to say that they don't know my Schwartz family. Their Schwartz family in Ungvar was Lojos Schwartz, whose sisters were Flora and Margaret. Although I'm disappointed, it's good to at least know for sure.

Updated in 2022: I found my mother's first cousin Violet via Yad Vashem testimony for her mother, killed during the Holocaust! 

Rookie Genealogy Mistakes

2022 update: Paul Chiddicks, blogger and columnist for Family Tree Magazine, lists the "Top Ten Sins of a Genealogist" and certainly I've had my share! Not noting my research when I began was a big mistake, because I doubled back too often. Another rookie mistake was not considering creative spelling. Paul's post is worth reading!

From 2008: I'm still trying to catch up on recording all the info I've collected about my family and my husband's family. And I haven't asked all the right questions (or asked them in the right way) of family members who might remember. I have to keep reminding myself that this is a long-term journey into the family trees. My journey started after "Roots" aired in the mid-1970s. I reentered the world of genealogy in 1998 and really got serious about 10 years ago, when a Family History Center opened in my community. Wonder where the journey will take me next?

Family Calendar Fun for the Holidays

This is the third year I'm creating a photo-filled calendar for my extended family. For the 2009 calendar, nearly all the photos were taken in 2008. This year I'm including a few photos of "ancestors" as well. 

In all, each year's calendar has at least 90 photos; this year's total will reach 100. What a wonderful way to remember special family celebrations all year long and laugh again at funny photos of kids (of today and yesterday) in Halloween costumes, etc. Best of all, the calendar lists everybody's birthday and other special occasions, helping me remember when to send a card or call. 

Many commercial websites offer personalized photo calendars for sale. My best advice: Gather photos all year long so you can upload, arrange, and print in time for gifting to family. Updated 2022. 2023: Also note the discounts and sales available for various photo products. You're saving family history for the future!

Ellis Island Photos

The Library of Congress has images of Ellis Island and immigrant ships and more for people like me, who are climbing their family tree and had ancestors pass through Ellis Island.

About 10 years ago my sister and I went with several cousins to Ellis Island and looked for the names of our ancestors who had come to America through its gates. What a moving visit! And what a great opportunity to tell family stories. Afterward, Cousin Ron guided us to his favorite Chinatown restaurant. It was a day to remember, even as the research continues.

Taking care of the Wood family Bible

One of the Wood second cousins visited last week, with his wife, during a genealogical/vacation swing through New England. I was moved when he brought out the giant and beautiful family Bible, which he protects with a special archival envelope and a custom-made wooden case. Now I wish I had taken a photo but when he had it on the table, I was too spellbound to think of grabbing the camera. He told us the book's history and how he came to have it--and that another beautiful Bible (complete with births/marriages/deaths) once existed in another part of the family but can't be found these days. Auggghhhhh!