The Genealogy Guys Podcast & Genealogy Connection

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The Genealogy Guys Podcast #240 - 2012 August 19 Aug 21, 2012

Show notes

The news includes:

RootsMagic announces the release of a new minor update to RootsMagic 5. They also remind listeners that they have more than 40 free online classes available at their website.
Ancestry.com announces that they will not be releasing a 2013 version of their Family Tree Maker software, but will, instead, release free bonus features to Family Tree Maker 2012.
The Federation of Genealogical Societies 2012 Conference will be held August 29 through September 1, 2012, in Birmingham, Alabama. Online registration is closed but walk-ins are welcome for single- or multiple-day registration.
Aha! Seminars, Inc., announces a partnership with LearnSurge to provide live and recorded genealogy webinars by George G. Morgan.

George just received the results of a Y-DNA test from Family Tree DNA. The Guys discuss how Drew (and George) pursued researching all the descendants of one of George’s great-great-grandfather’s sons. The Guys located records for almost 200 new people (descendants, spouses, and their parents) in just a few hours.

The Genealogy Guys Podcast #239 - 2012 August 5 Aug 07, 2012

Show notes

The news includes:

Ancestry.com has announced their completion of the indexing of the 1940 U.S. Federal Census.
RootsMagic announced a new update to their software, version 5.0.4.0.
Online registration for the 2012 Federation of Genealogical Societies Conference (August 29-September 1) in Birmingham, Alabama, closes at 7:00 PM CDT on August 17th.
findmypast.com has officially launched its new site in the U.S. with a special World Subscription at $4.95 per month.
Unlock the Past has announced their 3rd genealogy cruise in February 2013.

Listener email includes:

Richard recommends episode 289 at This American Life.
The Greenoughs thank The Guys and Bill for help locating James Greenough and his wife in Saint John, New Brunswick. Their son has also earned his Boy Scout Genealogy Merit Badge.
Nancy writes about the Archdiocese for the Military, USA.
Ed attempted to help another listener seeking Samuel Mansfield in Fayette County, Kentucky.
Beverly thanks The Guys for recommendations for genealogical education.
Anne asks how much information should be stored in a genealogical database program and recommendations for how to store it.
Richard asks about how to find more information about a Hungarian immigrant who is seeking information about her father's parents.
Roger responds to the discussion about cemetery staff difficulties.
Rich discusses privacy and security issues.

The Genealogy Guys Podcast #238 - 2012 July 8 Jul 09, 2012

Show notes

The news includes:

FamilySearch.org has completed many states in the 1940 U.S. Federal Census and other projects including South American, U.K., Scotland, Slovakian, Philippines, and Swedish records.
The Federation of Genealogical Societies announced that a generous donation of $135,000 has been received from the estate of the late Jon Stedman and is designated for the Preserve the Pensions – War of 1812 Pension Digitization Fund.
The Illinois State Genealogical Society has announced a War of 1812 Pension Fund Challenge in the amount of $10,000.
RootsMagic has announced the release of two new CDs of RootsMagic webinars, Volumes 3 and 4. The webinars are still available to view online or download, but there have been many requests to bundle the webinars into CDs.
The Michigan Department of Education and the Department of Natural Resources have agreed to move selected materials of the Family History Collections at the Library of Michigan to the reading room of the Archives of Michigan.
The 2012 winners of the Suzanne Winsor Freeman Student Grant were announced at the Southern California Genealogical Society Genealogy Jamboree in Burbank. The winners are Elyse Doerflinger and A.C. Ivory. Each received a check for $500. Congratulations!
MyHeritage.com has announced that the milestone of 1 billion profiles has been reached. In addition, the company announced its new SuperSearch facility.
The Guild of One-Name Studies announced the publication of a new book, Seven Pillars of Wisdom: The Art of One-Name Studies.
Ancestry.com has recently added 7 more states’ indexes for the 1940 U.S. Federal Census at its site: CO, NY, OH, PA, TN, VA, VT.
The Federation of Genealogical Societies announced the appointment of Patricia W. Rand as its treasurer.
The Florida Genealogical Society (Tampa) has awarded its 2011 Volunteer of the Year Award to George G. Morgan.

Listener email includes:

Pat suggested additional meanings for the term “NG” that appears in some fields on census records.
Henry shared several ways to perform and improve free searches on the Internet.
Neil asks The Guys about the ethics of how to handle potentially damaging information discovered during one’s research.
Phil reports back on advice The Guys gave him about contacting the Special Collections area of the library at Kent State University. He did so and was able to obtain 105 pages of copied materials from the 19th century for his family. He also contacted a presidential library and obtained some copies of extracted materials!
Bill has been researching an ancestor, John Greenough. However, in his email, he also discussed the importance of using FamilySearch.org and becoming familiar with the ways that can be used to effectively search their millions of records.
Richard marked a milestone in his listening to The Guys’ podcast episodes.
Kyle McWhirter has been working on a tool that provides statistics for surnames in the U.S. It is a Surname/Family Name Popularity Index, and it can be accessed at http://family-names.findthedata.org.
Richard asked The Guys several important questions about completing a family history started by a distant cousin for the Dimmitt family.
Mike wrote to discuss “term graves” and his experiences with a Chicago cemetery. The Guys ask for comments and suggestions from our listeners.
J.T. asks questions about autosomal DNA testing and database sizes.
Janet wrote with questions about her husband’s ancestors (Mansfield) who moved from Virginia to Kentucky. She is trying to determine the correct Samuel Mansfield.

The Genealogy Guys Podcast #237 - 2012 May 26 May 27, 2012

Show notes

The news includes:

The Guys will be at the Southern California Genealogical Society’s Jamboree on June 8-10, 2012.
RootsMagic announces new webinars and additions to its catalog of recorded webinars.
FamilySearch announces the addition of millions of new records on its site and the completion of almost half of the 1940 U.S. federal census.
The Federation of Genealogical Societies announced that its Malcolm H. Stern-NARA Gift Fund has participated with NARA recently in digitizing and making available the records of the Sultana Disaster at the Fold3.com website.
Ancestry.com announced that it has added its 10 billionth record to its site.
Ancestry.com announced its AncestryDNATM service.

Listener email includes:

Michael asks about the notation on the 1880 U.S. federal census of “NG” under the birthplaces of an ancestor’s parents.
Chris sent a link to a fascinating article about using DNA to determine the origin of the Melungeons.(http://news.yahoo.com/dna-study-seeks-origin-appalachias-melungeons-201144041.html) Rich also sent another link on the same subject right after the podcast was recorded. (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/24/melungeon-dna-study-origin_n_1544489.html?ref=fb&ir=Black+Voices&src=sp&comm_ref=false#s=1022230)
Laurie asked about the available DNA tests, and Drew weighs in based on his experience.
Walter asks whether there is a DNA test available to determine whether his mother and a good friend, who looks like his mother’s twin, are related.
Susanne asks about genealogy sites that are free.
Bob talks about the work he and his wife are doing as arbiters for the 1940 indexing project.
Tom asks when we think an index to the 1940 census will be available, and comments about the indexes not being made available until an entire state is indexed.
Amy shares information about Titanicat by Marty Crisp.
Linda writes about resources for the descendants of the Armenian Genocide. She tells us that University of Michigan Professor Fatma Muge Gocek has done extensive research on this issue with other area specialists (one is also here at U Michigan – Ronald Suny in Political Science). If the person who asked the question in an earlier podcast is still trying to find resources that might help her find information on her ancestors, she might send an e-mail to either Professor Gocek (Gocek@umich.edu) or Professor Suny (rgsuny@umich.edu) to see if they know where information on where people were moved or killed and records that might be useful. Gocek, Suny, and another scholar, Norman Naimark at Stanford, co-wrote a book, A Question of Genocide: Armenians and Turks at the End of the Ottoman Empire (http://www.oup.com/us/catalog/general/subject/HistoryWorld/MiddleEastern/?view=usa&ci=9780195393743) about the genocide. The Guys both recommend checking the University of South Florida’s Holocaust & Genocide Studies Center site at http://lib.usf.edu/hgsc.
Ann has a question about her husband’s paternal grandfather who was born in international waters while his mother was emigrating from Wales to the United States. In another email, she reports on remarkable files uncovered in the possession of a library.
Jo wrote to provide some clues and resources to Moshe who is researching a Jewish man named Markowsky.

The Genealogy Guys Podcast #236 - 2012 April 29 Apr 30, 2012

Show notes

The news includes the following items:

Ancestry.com has announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Archives.com.
FamilySearch.org uploaded 14 million new records for 19 countries, and the 1940 U.S. federal census indexing project is in full swing.
The Southern Genealogist’s Exchange Society in Jacksonville, Florida, is hosting a virtual tea party on Mother’s Day (U.S.) on 13 May 2012 as a fundraiser and as a way to honor female ancestors.
Drew reviews the book Family Matters by Michael Sharpe.

Listener email includes:

Jason asks about a program that keeps track of digital source materials and about cloud computing.
Doug reports that volunteers for the FamilySearch U.S. federal census indexing project can only specify the state for which they would like to index.
Paul provided us with a fascinating story about two children who survived the Titanic sinking from a newspaper clipping in his great-grandmother’s scrapbook. He provides a link at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michel_Marcel_Navratil for more information. He also shared information about dogs on the Titanic and offers another link at http://www.mnn.com/family/pets/blogs/remembering-the-dogs-of-the-titanic to learn more - including a story of a mother cat and kittens.
Eric wrote to discuss copyright and fair use, and discusses a research problem involving a colleague.
Beth Cook of Best Public Relations wrote to share information that Dracula was Irish and not Transylvanian.
Janet asks for advice about whether DNA testing might help her in her quest for her husband’s ancestor.
Moshe sent document images and asks for suggestions about his search for a Jewish man, Irving Markowsky.

The Genealogy Guys Podcast #235 - 2012 April 8 Apr 10, 2012

Show notes

The news includes:

FamilySearch continues to add millions of new records online each month. They also state the 10 new digital records are created every second.
MyHeritage has announced:
- Introduction of DNA testing
- Release of cutting-edge personalized family calendars
- Release of a new app for the iPhone, iPad, and Android
The Guild of One-Name Studies announced the results of the Federation of Family History Societies (FFHS) 2011 Awards.
Calico Pie has announced the release of version 5 of Family Historian, its genealogy software program.
The 1940 U.S. federal census was released by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) on 2 April 2012.
FamilySearch is indexing the 1940 U.S. federal census records.
Ancestry.com has made its collection of 1940s-era materials free through 10 April 2012. They are indexing the 1940 U.S. federal census records.
Findmypast.com is also participating in indexing the 1940 U.S. federal census records. Furthermore, the company has announced that it will search for your ancestors for you as soon as the records are indexed. They will then send you an email when they have located the census record for you.
The 1940 U.S. Census Community Project has issued a call for more volunteers to help create a free, searchable index to the 1940 U.S. federal census records. It is a joint venture between Archives.com, FamilySearch.org, and findmypast.com

Listener email includes:

Dennis asks about some of the questions on the 1940 U.S. federal census. George also advises Dennis that the Farm Schedules and Housing Schedules were destroyed, and that 1940 was the last year in which an annual enumeration by Bureau of Land Management Indian Agents of Native Americans on reservations was performed.
Phil lives and works in Spain, and he is seeking suggestions on how to learn more and access materials that were donated to Kent State University in Ohio in about 1996.
Laura in Ireland shares a way that she has gotten her eight-year-old daughter interested in looking at the Irish censuses of 1901 and 1911.
Ben asked about the term “New York-ODM” which he has encountered in looking for records in the FamilySearch.org catalog.
Emily responds to Avi's question in the 31 January episode, and suggests contacting the cemetery in the event that it still has the transit permit for the body. It will usually indicate the origin of the shipment of the body, and sometimes contains the deceased’s address, age, and cause of death.
Caroleen shared her genealogy research blog with The Guys, at http://grampsandmamawsgirls.blogspot.com.
Richard submitted a follow up on his Robert George Jones, along with an impressive profile of his extensive research.

The Guys talked briefly about their own research into the 1940 U.S. federal census records.

The Genealogy Guys Podcast #234 - 2012 March 24 Mar 24, 2012

Show notes

Drew shares his third and final set of interviews from RootsTech 2012. This set features Janet Hovorka of Family ChartMasters and her three children; D. Joshua Taylor of brightsolid; Michael Leclerc of Mocavo; and Elissa Powell (noted genealogical educator and professional genealogist from Pennsylvania).

The Genealogy Guys Podcast #233 - 2012 March 11 Mar 12, 2012

Show notes

Drew shares the second set of interviews that he conducted at RootsTech 2012. This set includes FamilySearch Senior VP of Product Engineering David Burggraaf, Instructure CEO Josh Coates, FamilySearch Senior VP of Patron Services Don Anderson, and Google Software Engineer David Barney.

The Genealogy Guys Podcast #232 - 2012 February 29 Mar 01, 2012

Show notes

Drew shares the first set of interviews that he conducted at RootsTech 2012. This set includes FamilySearch Chief Genealogical Officer David Rencher, author and speaker Lisa Alzo (an expert on Eastern European genealogical research), past FamilySearch CEO Jay Verkler, and new FamilySearch CEO Dennis Brimhall.

The Genealogy Guys Podcast #231 - 2012 January 31 Feb 01, 2012

Show notes

The news includes:

Who Do You Thing You Are? debuts for its third season on NBC on Friday, February 2, 2012.
Fold3 announced that it is providing free access to all of its Black History Collection records throughout the month of February in celebration of Black History Month.
brightsolid is one of the major sponsors for RootsTech 2012 in Salt Lake City this week.
brightsolid has announced that they have recruited renowned genealogist D. Joshua Taylor as their business development manager and media spokesperson in the U.S.
WikiTree has announced that they have closed new user registration. New members must now be invited by current WikiTree members.
Ancestry.com, Behind the Name, and WeRelate have announced a new approach for searching for variant names. Learn more at http://www.werelate.org/wiki/WeRelate:Variant_names_project.
Ancestry.com is partnering with the Historical Society of Pennsylvania to bring more than 300 years of Pennsylvania records online.
George G. Morgan's new book, How to Do Everything Genealogy, 3rd edition, has just been published by McGraw-Hill in softcover and in electronic format. George will soon announce how people can order a signed copy.
Registration is now open for the Federation of Genealogical Society's 2012 Conference on August 29 to September 1, 2012, in Birmingham, Alabama.
Registration is open for the Southern California Genealogical Society's Jamboree on June 8-10, 2012, in Burbank, California.
DNA genotyping is being used to help answer the centuries-old mystery of the so-called "Lost Colony" of Roanoke Island on North Carolina's Outer Banks. Learn more at http://the-scientist.com/2012/01/01/lost-colony-dna/.

Listener email includes:

Joel Weintraub tells The Guys about a collection of One-Step tools for working with the forthcoming 1940 U.S. Federal Census at Steve Morse's website.
Patricia has a question about her great-grandfather, John A. Hamilton.
Rob of New Port Richey, Florida, asks about access at the University of South Florida Tampa Library and at the Tampa-Hillsborough Public Library system to records outside of Florida.
Margaret discusses how she shares family history information with relatives and others using her blog and Dropbox.
Steve shares information with family members in a similar manner. He also talks about his experiences in transferring data between genealogy database programs, a topic that The Guys discussed in a previous episode.
Avi asks questions concerning his family members who lived in the area of Troy, New York.
Phil asks for help because he has discovered that his grandmother had four first names.

The Guys reviewed several new items:

Family Roots Publishing has a new book by Ruby Coleman titled Genealogical Research in Nebraska. (Order at http://www.familyrootspublishing.com/store/product_view.php?id=1545.)
Genealogical Publishing Companyhas released three new QuickSheet publications written by Elizabeth Shown Mills. They are:
- The Historical Biographer's Guide to the Research Process
- The Historical Biographer's Guide to Finding People in Databases & Indexes
- The Historical Biographer's Guide to Cluster Research (the FAN Principle)

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