Indholdsfortegnelse for November/December 2021 i Family Tree

As one generation fades to the next, new memories are created. But memories are lost, too, as older relatives pass on and take lifetimes of stories with them. What are we to do? We could wring our hands and listen to “The Times They Are A’Changin’” on repeat. Or we could roll up our sleeves and get to work. After all, the goal of family history is remembering and documenting otherwise-forgotten people and stories, preserving them for posterity. We’re here to help. In this issue, we’ve got a guide to creating family history binders (page 28)—excellent receptacles for organizing, preserving and sharing family stories and information. And with the right tools for archiving physical “memories,” such as photos and heirlooms (page 50), you can keep family treasures safe for years…

IN AUGUST, MYHERITAGE <www.myheritage.com> announced it had purchased a controlling share of French site Filae <www.filae.com>. Filae, founded as NotreFamilie.com in 1994, hosts more than a billion French genealogy records, including civil registrations, church documents, censuses, and casualty lists. According to a press release, Filae will remain a standalone subscription service, though its records will also be available to MyHeritage users. Later that month, Ancestry.com <www.ancestry.com> revealed its own acquisition of Geneanet <en.geneanet.org>, a France-based genealogy website that has 4 million users. Geneanet will also remain a standalone service, with its subscribers receiving access to some of Ancestry.com’s collections as part of their subscription plans. According to a press release from Geneanet, the site had previously been in merger discussions with Filae, but had to reevaluate its options after the…

familytree MAGAZINE 2021 BEST STATE WEBSITES Each year, we scan the field to find the best genealogy websites for your US-based research. With so many terrific state-focused sites to choose from, we’ve had to become increasingly selective. Many online collections now feature not just indexes and catalogs, but actual images of historical records and photographs. Digitized vital records, wills and family Bible records provide names, dates and places for our family trees, while diaries, letters and photographs reveal biographical details that bring our family histories alive. Many of our returning favorites are still expanding and worth revisiting. Since last year, the terrific Calisphere <www.calisphere.org> collection of California letters, diaries, photos and more has grown by 250,000 items. And the Digital Library of Georgia <dlg.usg.edu> digitized its two-millionth newspaper page back in…

FOR SOME FAMILIES, CONNECTICUT WAS A LONG-term base; for others, it was just a starting point. Some—particularly from indigenous communities—immigrated to New York state in the years surrounding the Revolutionary War. Still others went to Vermont. In the decades that followed, migrants from Connecticut would arrive in Ohio and Pennsylvania as well. No matter your family’s story, these sources can help you document your Connecticut roots. TIDAL RIVER OF HISTORY Connecticut’s name is said to come from the Algonquian word Quinnehtukqut, which describes the tidal river that has shaped the life of the region for centuries. To study the history of the Connecticut River is to study the history of the state itself. Indigenous communities used the river for trade, navigation, and to support the food supply. Notable tribes in…

IT’S HARD TO ARGUE ABOUT SOUTH DAKOTA’S beauty, with its the pastoral prairies (childhood home of Laura Ingalls Wilder of Little House on the Prairie fame) and monumental mountains (both Mount Rushmore and the in-progress Crazy Horse Memorial). Discover your ancestor’s story there with the following tips and resources for researching your family in the Mount Rushmore State. MOUNTAINS (AND PRAIRIES) OF HISTORY Prior to European or American settlement, Native groups (notably the Arikara, Mandan and Hidatsa) had lived in the area for centuries. The state’s namesake, the Dakota/Lakota/Nakota Sioux, originated in neighboring Minnesota, but moved westward into the modern Dakotas by the mid-18th century. After Frenchman René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur da La Salle’s expedition to the Great Lakes in 1682, France claimed the whole of “Upper Louisiana,” including modern South…

For thousands of years, North America has been inhabited by a wide variety of peoples with a variety of language groups, living styles, and family and tribal structures. And cultural values like deep spirituality and survival skills have helped them well into modern times. With such diverse cultures and populations among indigenous groups in particular, it can be difficult to know where to begin learning about your ancestors. This is especially true if you don’t have the name of a tribe, or are basing your research off vague (or worse, terribly inaccurate) family stories about Native ancestry. To help get you started, this article shares information on researching ancestors who were part of the five largest contemporary tribes: Navajo, Cherokee, Sioux, Chippewa and Choctaw. Each of the seven lessons that…

The “rules” for archiving family papers and other important items vary depending on what is being stored. But there are a few key principles that apply to most objects: 1 Purchase storage containers and materials from reputable companies that supply libraries, archives and universities. 2 Make sure your storage containers and materials are: archival-quality, acid-free and lignin-free. 3 Use plastics labeled “archival” or “P.A.T. Approved.” 4 Avoid recycled products, as they contain unknown materials. 5 Use the best-fit archival container for your items (i.e., don’t use containers that are too big or too small). 6 Focus on materials, not stated functionality. Archival containers are interchangeable, so you don’t need to use them exactly in the ways they’re marketed. For example, a shoebox-size archival-safe “photo box” can also be used to…

All the items we’ve mentioned in this article make great holiday gifts for family historians. Here are a few others: BOOKS Take your research to the next level with titles like: • the Unofficial Guide to Ancestry.com by Nancy Hendrickson (Family Tree Books) • The Family Tree Toolkit by Kenyatta D. Berry (Skyhorse) • Evidence Explained: History Sources from Artifacts to Cyberspace by Elizabeth Shown Mills (Genealogical Publishing Co.). We’ve collected some other reader favorites at <www.familytreemagazine.com/resources/books/best-genealogy-books-results>. WEBSITE SUBSCRIPTIONS Give the gift of research! Offer to buy your loved one a subscription to a records site like Ancestry.com (six months of access to basic US records: $99) or MyHeritage (one year of basic access to records: $129). Or you could buy one year of digital access to Family Tree Magazine…

1 Know your fabrics. Most military uniforms used before the mid-20th century were made entirely of wool, linen or cotton. These natural fibers are a feast for moths and other pests, especially if body oils, dirt or perspiration remain. Avoid transferring body oils from your hands to vintage fabric by wearing white cotton or nitrile gloves. 2 Have items cleaned. Before storing, have vintage uniforms professionally dry cleaned by a reputable local service. Consult a textile conservator for repairs or restoration through the American Institute for Conservation <www.culturalheritage.org>. 3 Remove metal and leather. Remove pins, leather and other accessories before storing to avoid damage to the fabric as the metal ages. You may also want to remove metal military buttons if you don’t plan to wear the garment again. Avoid…

Tips for Researching Jewish Ancestors 1 Yes, there are records. Contrary to popular belief, not all European records of your Jewish ancestors were destroyed in the Holocaust. Many documents—especially those kept by the local government—survived, and organizations and volunteer groups have tirelessly worked together to preserve these and other records of Jewish communities. Look for your Jewish ancestors among records of the wider secular community. 2 Study history. Once you’ve discovered where your Jewish ancestors came from, learn about the history of their communities and the region they lived in. European borders frequently changed—especially in the 18th and 19th centuries, when many Ashkenazi communities in Eastern Europe were shuffled between various nation-states. The social history of an area will also inform you about what hardships your ancestors likely faced. 3…

A SLICE OF CABLE, about two inches thick. It is from one of the two cables which provide electricity to historic Mackinac Island, Mich. My brother was the electrical engineer who designed and headed the project.May Kay Knudstrup via Facebook My great-grandfather’s Civil War bayonet.Michael Moroney via Facebook A piece of peat my great-grandmother brought on the ship with her when she came from Ireland in 1884, when she was 9 years old.Sandy Mitchell via Facebook MY GREAT-GRANDFATHER was a mule trader in Missouri. I have his walking cane wrapped in leather with an ivory handle. The handle pulls out a yard stick which measures in withers.Linda Mansur via Facebook A fava bean over a hundred years old my great-grandfather carried on the ship over from Sicily for good luck.Cindy…

Subscription genealogy website Findmypast <www.findmypast.com> has published over 10 million additional Scottish baptism, marriage and burial records, dating back to the 1500s. These come from “Old Parish Registers” of the Church of Scotland, a strong source of vital events before national civil registration began in 1855. The Findmypast blog calls the births and baptisms collection, in particular, “the most comprehensive collection” of its kind. Death and burial records reach all the way to 2017.…

Consumer DNA company Family Tree DNA* <www.familytreedna.com> overhauled its online experience this summer. According to the company, Family Finder (autosomal) customers can expect improved DNA matches and predicted relationship ranges, as well as X-chromosome matching (a new feature) and a redesigned interface for viewing matches. Y-DNA customers also have an updated matches navigation experience. An improved Help Center includes tutorial videos and links throughout the site to help you understand and navigate your test results. * Note: Family Tree DNA and Family Tree Magazine are owned by separate companies.…

As you’ll see, each of these 75 sites has its own organizational structures and quirks. (After all, 75 different organizations built and operate them!) It may take some time to find what you’re looking for—particular since many sites don’t have their collections listed on a single page, or an obvious “browse collection” feature. Here are some tips for getting the most out of these sites: « Know what records to expect. These sites typically hold more social history resources (oral histories, published manuscripts, town and county histories, newspapers) and documents that mention groups (city directories, yearbooks, published genealogies, etc.) than they do records of individual people. You may need to consult other sites—such as state archives or vital records offices—for state-held birth records, marriage certificates, and so on. Our state…

Dog people versus cat people, team Mac versus team PC, even how to put toilet paper on the roll (in front of or behind)—no matter the subject, people will find ways of dividing themselves. And genealogists are no exception, getting drawn into a feud with just as much passion: whether to organize research into binders, or folders. Folders certainly have their advantages, and we’ve covered filing systems based on folders <www.familytreemagazine.com/organization/5-genealogy-filing-systems>. But organizing research in binders makes it easier to transport and share with others, particularly those who might be newer to family history. Of course, the binder-versus-folder debate is not a zero-sum game: You can use both types of storage. Perhaps you store your research in folders, but prepare a binder for a specific purpose such as sharing research…

1614 The Dutch explore the Connecticut River 1634 The English enter the region and found settlements at Windsor and Wethersfield 1636 Connecticut Colony is established 1644 Saybrook Colony merges with Connecticut 1664 New Haven Colony merges with Connecticut 1783 The United States secures independence from Britain; Connecticut relinquishes its claims to some western land a few years later 1788 Connecticut becomes the fifth state to ratify the Constitution 1800 Connecticut officially cedes the Western Reserve territory in Ohio 1872 The New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad opens, connecting New York City to Springfield, Mass., by way of New Haven and Hartford 1960 The state government abolishes counties for most operational purposes…

1682 Frenchman René-Robert de La Salle claims “Louisiana Territory,” including the Great Plains, for France 1803 The Lewis & Clark Expedition climbs Spirit Mound near modern Vermillion, S.D. 1817 Fort Pierre is established, the foundation for continuous American settlement in the area 1851 The Treaty of Fort Laramie sets aside large swaths of land in western South Dakota (and other territory) for Native peoples 1861 South Dakota is part of the newly created Dakota Territory, with Yankton as capital 1868 A revised Fort Laramie treaty re-asserts western South Dakota as Native land, the “Great Sioux Reservation” 1874 Gold is discovered in the Black Hills, leading to a gold rush, a population boom, and a reduction of Native reservations 1889 South Dakota is separated from North Dakota and admitted as the…

DO Refer to specific tribes when possible: There are more than 570 recognized tribes across the United States, each with its own culture. Terms like “American Indian,” “Native,” “indigenous,” or “Native American” ignore the differences between those cultures, and may in fact be offensive to some. So instead, ask about someone’s tribal affiliation and how they’d like to be called, then refer to them that way. Note that questions like “How much Indian are you?” (referring to blood quantum) or observations that someone doesn’t “look Indian” are both considered offensive. Work ahead of time: Check the appropriate rolls, censuses and other documents available through websites and government agencies before contacting a tribe. Keep social history in mind: You may discover that your ancestor lived on/near a reservation. But remember that…

No matter what kinds of materials you’re working with, add the following items to your toolkit. Gloves To avoid leaving fingerprints or traces of oils, keep a pair of white cotton or disposable nitrile gloves handy to wear whenever you’re working with photos, film or negatives. Gloves are also essential when handling textiles and old paper. Acid-free File Folders Archival, acid-free file folders are a document’s first line of defense against environmental hazards. Their heavy-weight board material provides protection from handling, light, dust and minor liquid spills. Folders are available in letter or legal size with full edge- or third-cut tabs for labeling. Store folders vertically inside an acid-free document case or a metal filing cabinet. Organize further with acid-free vertical hanging folders. With the right tools and supplies at…

1 Facebook <www.facebook.com> With upwards of 3 billion active users per month, Facebook is a great place to find and connect with living relatives—and even see whether you already have contacts (relatives!) in common. Introduce yourself to possible relatives using the messaging tool; attach an old family photo for good measure. 2 Intelius <www.intelius.com> Run free searches of this background-report database for a person by name or phone number; you must enter your email address to receive the results. There is an address search option, too; results are available only by activating a subscription. (Address searches are especially helpful for identifying other relatives associated with a known address, such as siblings or parents.) 3 LinkedIn <www.linkedin.com> Search among more than 775 million LinkedIn profiles for a person’s contact information and…

Q I was going through old family photos and found one stuck to glass and broken into several pieces. What can I do to rescue it? A Photos get stuck to glass when moisture inside the frame causes the photo’s emulsion to become gelatinous; when it dries, the emulsion sticks to the glass. To save them, according to archivists at the Smithsonian Institution, start by scanning or photographing the image so you have a high-resolution copy. You may be able to “repair” digitally using software programs. As for the stuck original, don’t try pulling on the photo to release it, which can cause further damage and leave part of the picture behind. DIY “solutions” include freezing, heating with a hair dryer, microwaving and applying lighter fluid—none of these are recommended.…

Books & Publications Avotaynu Guide to Jewish Genealogy edited by Sallyann Amdur Sack and Gary Mokotoff(Avotaynu) Avotaynu: The International Review of Jewish Genealogy<www.avotaynu.com/journal.htm> Finding Our Fathers: A Guidebook to Jewish Genealogyby Malcolm H. Stern and Dan Rottenberg (Random House) From Generation to Generation: How to Trace Your Jewish Genealogy and Family History by Arthur Kurzweil (Jossey-Bass) Getting Started in Jewish Genealogy by Gary Mokotoff(Avotaynu) Sephardic Genealogy: Discovering Your Sephardic Ancestors and Their World by Jeffrey S. Malka (Avotaynu) The Jewish Encyclopedia: A Descriptive Record of the History, Religion, Literature and Customs of the Jewish People edited by Isidore Singer (Funk & Wagnalls) <www.jewishencyclopedia.com> Websites Ancestry.com: JewishGen Records <www.ancestry.com/cs/jewishgen-all> Avotaynu, Inc. <www.avotaynu.com> Blood & Frogs: Jewish Genealogy and More <www.bloodandfrogs.com> The Central Database of Shoah Victims’ Names <yvng.yad vashem.org> Consolidated Jewish…

The Israel Genealogy Research Association <genealogy.org.il> has reached a milestone 2 million records available online. The collections include material from more than 60 archives and libraries around the world. Core to the collections are Israeli records ranging from the Ottoman era to the early years of the State of Israel, with growing materials from Jewish communities in North Africa and other Middle Eastern countries like Iran, Iraq and Lebanon. Whenever possible, records on the site may be searched in English as well as Hebrew. You can register and use the site’s search engine for free, but additional details and images require a paid subscription.…

RESEARCH TIP: Photos of Old Buildings If your ancestor’s home was leveled to make room for another building (and thus, won’t appear in person or on Google Earth today), look for old photos of it in documents like county history books or local library files. One surprising source may be old newspapers. The 24 September 1910 issue of The Appeal newspaper out of Saint Paul, Minn., featured three full pages of photos of local-area homes. I found it on Chronicling America <chroniclingamerica.loc.gov>, which has millions of free digitized newspaper pages. SIDE TRIPS: Proclaiming Thanksgiving I jumped at the opportunity to get up close and personal with many of America’s important historical items at a two-day exhibit earlier this year in Dallas. One document I saw there shed light on the…

Title Page “Letter from the editor” explaining the binder’s scope, as well as any research that still needs to be completed Five-generation ancestor chart of the Smith family, with John Smith on far left Person 1: John Smith record summary • Birth and/or baptismal certificate (or index)• Marriage certificate or bans• Census records• (and so on) Person 2: John Smith’s father • Birth and/or baptismal certificate (or index)• Marriage certificate or bans• Census records• (and so on) Person 3: John Smith’s mother • Birth and/or baptismal certificate (or index)• Marriage certificate or bans• Census records• (and so on) Person 4: John Smith’s paternal grandfather • Birth and/or baptismal certificate (or index)• Marriage certificate or bans• Census records• (and so on) Sections for Persons 5 through 31 Appendix • Maps• Timeline…

Websites Connecticut Digital Archive <www.ctdigitalarchive.org> Connecticut State Library: Genealogy Guides <libguides.ctstatelibrary.org/hg/home> ConnecticutHistory.org <www.connecticuthistory.org> CTGenWeb Project <www.ctgenweb.org> Cyndi’s List: Connecticut <www.cyndislist.com/us/ct> FamilySearch Research Wiki: Connecticut <www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/Connecticut,_United_States_Genealogy> Linkpendium: Connecticut <www.linkpendium.com/ctgenealogy> Publications Connecticut Town Meeting Records, Volumes I and II by Jolene Roberts Mullen (Heritage Books) Finding Early Connecticut Vital Records: The Barbour Index and Beyond by Linda MacLachlan (Clearfield) History and Genealogy of the Families of Old Fairfield, 3 volumes by Donald Lines Jacobus (Clearfield) Families of Ancient New Haven, 9 volumes compiled by Donald Lines Jacobus (Clearfield) Archives & Organizations Connecticut Ancestry Society <www.connecticutancestry.org> Connecticut Historical Society <www.chs.org> Connecticut Society of Genealogists <www.csginc.org> Connecticut State Library <www.ctstatelibrary.org> Godfrey Memorial Library <www.godfrey.org/scholar/godfrey-home.html> Middlesex County Historical Society <www.mchsct.org> Mystic Seaport Museum <research.mysticseaport.org> National Archives at Boston <www.archives.gov/boston> New Haven Museum <www.newhavenmuseum.org> New London…

Websites Cyndi’s List: South Dakota <www.cyndislist.com/us/sd> FamilySearch Research Wiki: South Dakota <www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/South_Dakota,_United_States_Genealogy> Linkpendium: South Dakota <www.linkpendium.com/sd-genealogy> SDGenWeb <www.sdgenweb.com> Publications History of South Dakota, 4th edition by Herbert S. Schell and John E. Miller (South Dakota State Historical Society Press) A New South Dakota History edited by Harry F. Thompson (Center for Western Studies) Roadside History of South Dakota by Linda Hasselstrom (Mountain Press Publishing Company) South Dakota Geographic Names by Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve (Brevet Press) South Dakota Post offices by Alan H. Patera and John S. Gallagher (The Depot) They Captured the Moment: Dakota Photographers, 1853–1920 by Robert Kolbe and Brian Bade (Pine Hill Press) With A Shirt Tail Full of Type: The Story of Newspapering in South Dakota by Robert F. Karolevitz (South Dakota Press Association) Archives &…

As a genealogist, you might quickly discover you’ve become a family archivist as well as a family researcher. Word spreads like wildfire when relatives learn we are happy to take the old photo albums and loose papers cluttering their garage. Soon, more pictures, documents, and artifacts come our way. But how can you be a good steward of all that stuff? And how do you safely store those items? With the right tools and supplies at hand, organizing and preserving family treasures doesn’t have to be complicated or overwhelming. Extend your genealogy toolbox to include these basic archival supplies and know-how, and you will be ready to confidently care for the next family treasure that comes your way.…

Archivists use a basic vocabulary to describe the preservation-quality supplies used in their work. Here are some key terms to know about and look for when you’re shopping for archival products: Acid-free: Products made of non-acidic materials or that have been treated to neutralize acids. (As you might remember from chemistry class, anything with a pH of less than 7 is considered “acidic.”) Objects made of acidic materials (like newsprint or other cheap paper) quickly deteriorate, yellowing and turning brittle. Using acid-free storage materials will slow down deterioration and help prevent damage. Acid migration: High-acid materials can come into contact with other items and cause brown stains or a change in colors. You may have seen color photos stored in plastic photo pages or “magnetic albums” of the 1970s that…

The road to discovering your ancestor’s past is often gated by the need to answer essential questions about his or her beginnings: When was he born? Where was her birthplace? Who were his parents? The key to unlocking that gate often lies in birth records. This article will look at what you might find in a birth record, what types of records exist for different places and time periods, and how to access the records. Because birth records aren’t always available, we’ll identify other resources you can utilize as alternatives. CLUES IN BIRTH RECORDS Birth records are prized sources to genealogists because the informant was often a parent, doctor or other witness to the birth. As a result, a birth record generally contains primary (firsthand) information. The two main types…

JewishGen <www.jewishgen.org>, a project of the Museum of Jewish Heritage, has a wide variety of tools for Jewish researchers, making it one of the most useful Jewish genealogy websites. Here are some of its most valuable features. Unified Search Family Tree of the Jewish People Online Worldwide Burial Registry QUICK LINKS Home page <www.jewishgen.org> FAQ <www.jewishgen.org/InfoFiles/faq.htm> Unified Search <www.jewishgen.org/databases/all> List of Databases <www.jewishgen.org/databases> Family Tree of the Jewish People <www.jewishgen.org/gedcom> Online Worldwide Burial Registry <www.jewishgen.org/databases/Cemetery> Communities Database/Town Finder <www.jewishgen.org/Communities/Search.asp> JewishGen Gazetteer <www.jewishgen.org/Communities/LocTown.asp> Many of JewishGen’s records and tools have been adapted and made available at Ancestry.com <www.ancestry.com/cs/jewishgen-all>.…