Genealogy in the news

Genealogy seems to be all over the news these days. Here are some of the latest news articles dealing with our favorite hobby.

Library Holds Oklahoma Genealogy Treasures - Muskogee Phoenix - this article discusses the Oklahoma Confederate Civil War Pensions, the Indian Pioneer History Collection Papers, Oklahoma homestead records, and the 1890 Oklahoma Territory census.

The Atlanta Journal Constitution reports about a new publication about the Hardy Pace Family, Pioneers of Vinings in Georgia.

Graveyards Where History Lives On is from the Minneapolis Star Tribune. The article discusses the need for historical preservation of cemeteries and focuses on two cemeteries in Washington county: Atkinson Cemetery in Cottage Grove and Mount Hope Cemetery in Afton.

The News Leader of Springfield, Missouri writes about collecting your family history information, interviewing relatives and using the Family History Library.

Flood damaged historical records at the Milwaukee County Historical Society. Wet records are being dried out according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Motivated to record history

"Holdrege - Genealogist Ken Mosman is a detective who tracks families through the centuries. His tools include several laptops, a trusty pen and paper, databases, and court records. He has traced families' lineages back to the 1600s, cleared up mysteries of conflicting dates and sifted fact from myth."

Read the complete article on the Kearney Hub web site.

State research guides are important to have on hand | ajc.com

I'm really glad to see so many articles in the mainstream media about our genealogy hobby/profession. Although I wonder - were these articles always there before and I just never picked up on them? Kind of like when you buy a new car and suddenly you see that model everywhere you go?

The following is from the Atlanta Journal Constitution

State research guides are important to have on hand  | ajc.com

ourFamilyology announes affiliation with FamilySearch

The following news release is from ourFamilyology

April 28, 2010 -- ourFamily•ology (http://www.family-genealogy.com/) announced today its certified affiliation with FamilySearch, the world’s largest repository of genealogical resources. This affiliation will provide access to millions of genealogical records that are invaluable to genealogists as they perform their ancestry research to build their family tree.

OurFamily•ology is a web-based genealogy software program that is now a certified FamilySearch affiliate. “This affiliation will allow subscriber’s to conveniently search, access, and add genealogical records from FamilySearch into a subscribers website through ourFamily•ology. We are excited to offer this feature to help our members build well documented family trees. We look forward to developing more features with FamilySearch,” said Brandy Sacco, Founder and President.
“Both new and experienced genealogist alike will find this website easy to use and an extremely useful tool for source research and documentation,” said Gordon Clarke, FamilySearch Developer Network Manager.

ourFamily•ology is the only family tree builder that offers a simple, visual progress and accuracy rating guide. For the first time, genealogists will easily gain a sense of ‘the big picture’ of where they are and what they should work on next within their family tree. It also includes an optionally ever-present status chart, with a color-coded reliability and progress indicator to gauge the completeness of your family tree as well as provide a clear road map of what you should work on next – all at a single glance.
OurFamily•ology Web-based Features Include

• Subscription includes two websites, one for entering information and another for visitors to view your family tree

• Build your family tree on your own or collaboratively with family members

• Invite visitors to view your family tree with required passwords
• Set which fields for living people are viewable for visitors
• Update genealogical details for the same person in multiple files with one click
• Easily attach sources, photos, notes, etc. to multiple family members
• Receive warnings and reports for probable data issues
• Track changes with transaction reports
• Options to add multiple parents; marriage and child parent relationships
• Add your own custom events and LDS Ordinances
• Track the accuracy and completion of your family tree with a unique color-coded Progress Rating Chart that is setup by the user based on what facts they want to track
• Search, access, and add genealogical records from FamilySearch
Visit ourFamily•ology at the National Genealogical Family History Conference in Utah, held at the Salt Palace Convention Center April 28th – May 1st. We can be found at booth 827 in the GenTech Hall.
About FamilySearch
The Genealogical Society of Utah (GSU)—doing business as FamilySearch—is a nonprofit organization sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. FamilySearch maintains the world's largest repository of genealogical resources; these resources may be accessed through FamilySearch.org, the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah, and over 4,500 family history centers in 70 countries.
About ourFamily•ology
ourFamily•ology is a security conscious, Web-based provider of genealogy tools to help you build and organize a precise family history and a reliable family tree that can be shared with family and friends. For more information, please visit http://www.family-genealogy.com/

Professional genealogists group grows to more than 2,000 members

The following news release is from the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG).

April 28, 2010 – Today at the National Genealogical Society Family History Conference in Salt Lake City, the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG®) announced that it has just surpassed the 2,000-membership mark. As the world’s leading professional organization of family history and related professionals, the APG supports professional genealogists throughout the world.


More Information

The APG has experienced steady growth in membership since its founding more than 30 years ago. With 23 local chapters in the U.S. and Canada, the organization supports a variety of professions within the field, including researchers, librarians, editors, archivists, lecturers, event planners and more.

Core Facts

Visitors to this week’s National Genealogical Society Family History Conference may learn more by visiting the APG booth, number 314. Booth volunteers are available to answer questions regarding how to hire a professional genealogist, use the APG online directory of professionals, and become a professional genealogist. Visitors will also find a list of APG members who are giving lectures at the conference.

Quotes

“This milestone comes at a time when interest in genealogy is mushrooming, as both a pastime and a profession. Recent television shows like NBC’s “Who Do You Think You Are?” and PBS’s “Faces of America” have helped raise awareness and stimulate interest from a broader audience. This increase in interest is leading more people to hire genealogists and we’ll need more professionals in the field. APG helps professionals develop their skills and build their networks, while promoting standards and ethics.”Laura Prescott, president of the Association of Professional Genealogists

Company information

About the Association of Professional Genealogists
The Association of Professional Genealogists (http://www.apgen.org/), established in 1979, represents more than 2,000 genealogists, librarians, writers, editors, historians, instructors, booksellers, publishers, and others involved in genealogy-related businesses. APG encourages genealogical excellence, ethical practice, mentoring, and education. The organization also supports the preservation and accessibility of records useful to the fields of genealogy, local, and social history. Its members represent all fifty states, Canada, and thirty other countries.

300 million names to be added to FamilySearch.org this week

FamilySearch President Jay Verkler said 300 million more names will be available online this week through the LDS Church's family history service. Verkler made the announcement to applause at Wednesday's opening session of the National Genealogical Society Family History Conference in Salt Lake City.

Read the complete story from Deseret News.

Search at FamilySearch.org

Today's Journal Star tells of man's search for his Czech heritage

From the April 26, 2010 Lincoln Journal Star newspaper:

Louis Meyer, 91, always wanted to know exactly where his grandfather came from. He has been looking for answers for years, but after he wrote a letter to the Czechoslovak Genealogical Society International (CGSI) seeking assistance, he found out a lot more.

Read the full story of tracing Mr. Meyer's ancestors.