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Remember your ancestors and share family history with your loved ones this year by creating a special keepsake ornament. Learn More
Recently on Vita Brevis
"Like a Deranged Easter Bunny"
"After the fourth or fifth time watching A Christmas Story, the word 'deranged' became part of my vocabulary. So when starting a new project, I was surprised to see it used as a description of military service." Read More
Share your thoughts about the survey at weeklygenealogist@nehgs.org. Responses may be edited for clarity and length and featured in a future newsletter.
Last Week's Survey:
How Many Print Books Are in Your Genealogical Library?
Total: 4,371 Responses
26%, 0–10
25%, 11–25
20%, 26–50
9%, 51–75
5%, 76–100
7%, 101–200
5%, 201–500
1%, 501–1,000
1%, Over 1,000
Readers Respond
Joanne Storer Magavern, Buffalo, New York: My answer is too many! As a former librarian who loves research and collecting books, I have 97. That does not include my many pamphlets, quick sheets, workshop handouts, maps, online printouts, and periodicals. My books include fiction, non-fiction, dictionaries, geographical aids, town histories, how-to guides, and many books purchased from NEHGS and other genealogical societies to help me someday “complete” my family history.
Nancy, Belgrade, Maine: I used to have far more books, but I was forced to downsize seven years ago when I moved. I kept the books with a direct connection to my family and hard to find books, but let most of them go because the book or the information is now online. My library now takes up about five lineal feet, but it used to be more than fifteen.
Donna Washburn, St. Augustine, Florida: We have seven books on the Washburn family in England and America. One of them was written in 1918 by the vicar of the church that is on the property in Wichenford, Worcestershire, England, where the Washburns lived for 400 years. When visiting the old manor house there, we met the granddaughter of the man who had purchased Wichenford Court in the 1800s. This woman grew up in the home and was living on a farm next door and taking care of the church. She had two copies of the 1918 family history, and she very kindly gave us one! (She also had two portraits of Washburn men from the 1600s and one looked just like my husband).
Mary Ames Mitchell, San Rafael, California: I have some 150 books in my family history library. The most precious are those written by my ancestors themselves. Two books written by my great-grandmother Alice Vivian Ames Winter consist of Jane Austen-like stories about a young woman living in Minneapolis in 1900—which gave me insight into Alice’s own life there. I have ten books written by my maternal grandfather, Prynce Charles Hopkins, including one that describes his spiritual journey to the Far East in 1948. My favorite is a book by my great-grandfather Charles Gordon Ames titled My Spiritual Autobiography. While working as a Free-Will Baptist minister in newly established Minneapolis, Charles "had an epiphany,” moved to Boston, and became a Unitarian-Transcendentalist minister. I was fascinated to read how from 1858, he became involved with the Transcendentalist group that included Theodore Parker, James Freeman Clark, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry Thoreau, and Julia Ward Howe.
“The footage, which has been donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, captured images of a man’s doomed neighbors in Poland.”
Books on the Battlefield “During World War II, GIs battled boredom with novels provided by the Armed Service Division, raising questions about the 'feminizing' effect of reading.”
Spotlight: Digital Archives, Martin County Historical Society, MN
by Valerie Beaudrault
Martin County is located on southern Minnesota’s border with Iowa. The Martin County Historical Society's digital archives comprise over 111,000 pages from a dozen local historical newspapers, including the Fairmont Daily Sentinel (1901-1923), Martin County Independent (1897-1920), Martin County Sentinel (1875-1918), Truman Tribune (1900-1923), Triumph Progress (1903-1923), and Sherburn Advance Standard (1906-1921). Search by keyword across all papers or within a single title, and limit results by date range. You can also browse individual newspapers. Search Now
Volumes 21-25 (2007-2011) of The Genealogist are now available to search, adding over 22,000 records. This database is free to access, presented in partnership with the American Society of Genealogists. Search Now
Free Resource from American Ancestors
English Genealogy Research Guide
Whether your ancestors arrived on the Mayflower or came over to work in New England’s mill towns, most New Englanders who were here by the early 1800s trace the bulk of their ancestry back to England. This research guide highlights key records and resources available at American Ancestors, online, and beyond. Learn More
Planning for the Future?
Name Your Beneficiaries Today
Non-probate assets such as an IRA, 401(k), or life-insurance policy are not covered in your will or trust—you must name beneficiaries separately. Our friends at FreeWill.com have provided a free and secure online tool to guide you through naming beneficiaries for your assets in one easy place. Learn More
