Make 2021 Your Breakthrough Year in Family History
Whether you're a beginner or a seasoned family historian, get organized in the new year and learn reliable tips and tricks to get the most out of your research, and to take it to the next level.
Finding Your Roots Host Henry Louis Gates, Jr. Interviews Harvard Historian Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham
Join us online for our Winter Family History Benefit honoring Harvard historian Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham,a renowned expert in African American studies.
Higginbotham will share an illustrated presentation, History in the Face of Slavery: A Family Portrait, after which Finding Your Roots host Henry Louis Gates, Jr. will engage her in a conversation about her discoveries in the field of African American history.
FREE Webinar! The Crown: A Tour of Filming Locations of the Most Expensive TV Series Ever Made
Join us January 15 at 4 p.m. EST for a special virtual tour! The Netflix original series The Crown is the most expensive TV series made to date. The luscious interiors and expansive exteriors taken from England’s country houses are just as much of a leading character as the royal family depicted. Join Curt DiCamillo for a tour of the filming locations that stand in for the palaces, castles, and other royal estates.
The Crown is a registered trademark of Left Bank Pictures (Television) Limited.
Spotlight: Fern Prairie Cemetery
By Valerie Beaudrault
Fern Prairie Cemetery in Washington state was established in 1855, as the family cemetery. The family later donated their cemetery for use by the community. Originally known as Oak Grove Cemetery, it was enlarged over the years and its name was changed to Fern Prairie Cemetery. It is located in city of Camas, Clark County, which is in southwestern Washington.
Click the Find A Person link in the contents bar and select the Burial Records link from the dropdown list to begin your search. The burials database has been sorted alphabetically by last name. You can run search by entering a name in the search box. The burials list can be filtered by selecting a cemetery section. The data fields are name, section/block/lot, date of birth, and date of death. Click the name link to open the detailed record that may include a photo of the gravestone, place of birth, place of death, and a transcription of the obituary.
Database News: New Additions to the Historic Catholic Records Online project
This week we’re announcing the addition of 14 new volumes and 12 updated volumes to Massachusetts: Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston Records, 1789-1920 from Holy Trinity (Boston), St. Anthony of Padua (Cambridge), St. Stephen (Boston) and St. Theresa of Avila (West Roxbury). This update is part of our multi-year collaboration with the Archdiocese of Boston. We’re digitizing sacramental registers from 1789-1920. The most common records in this database are baptisms, marriages, and confirmations.
Each week, American Ancestors introduces a new theme in our Instagram feed to celebrate our ancestors. This week's theme is Unique Family Gravestones. Send photos and a short description of your ancestors gravestones, family plots, or cemetery stories to instagram@nehgs.org and we will share them on our social media platforms.
Her Majesty’s Kidnappers “In the 17th century, Nathaniel Giles had the right to conscript young singers into the British royal children’s choir. He and a business partner went a step further.”
Has Thomas Becket's Treasured 'Little Book' Been Found? More has been written about Thomas Becket, the archbishop who died in Canterbury Cathedral 850 years ago, than any other non-royal English person of the Middle Ages. And yet it seems it's still possible to discover new things about his remarkable life.
The Weekly Genealogist Survey
Last week's survey asked if you celebrate Christmas or Hanukkah, how your typical celebration of the holiday has been influenced by previous generations. We received 2,886 responses. The results are:
54%, I serve foods or drinks that are traditional in my family.
61%, I have decorations and artifacts (ornaments, nativity sets, menorahs, dreidels) from previous generations.
39%, I follow holiday customs that previous generations of my family originated.
19%, I follow holiday customs that are rooted in my family's ethnic heritage.
34%, I reminisce and share stories about previous generations.
16%, I give gifts related to our family history.
14%, I display or look at photos (or home movies/videos) of previous generations celebrating.
5%, I travel/have traveled to ancestral towns or countries as part of my holiday celebrations.
6%, I celebrate in a way not mentioned above.
72%, This year my celebration is different compared to a typical year.
20%, This year my celebration is fairly typical.
2%, I celebrate a winter holiday other than Christmas or Hanukkah.
This week's question asks about genealogical resolutions. Take the survey now
Want to share your thoughts on the survey with us? We are always happy to hear from our readers. Email us at weeklygenealogist@nehgs.org. Responses may be edited for clarity and length and featured in a future newsletter.
Readers Respond: Winter Holiday Celebrations by Lynn Betlock, Editor
Last week's survey asked about your winter holiday celebrations. Thank you to everyone who replied. Below is a selection of reader responses.
Carole Kiernan of Watervliet, Michigan: My husband and I are spending the holidays alone due to the current pandemic. We hope to host our customary "Christmas dinner" on July 25th! That is our best solution for a scary time.
Karl West of Walpole, Massachusetts: I am 94. When I was two, I took a bite out of a small glass fruit basket that was a Christmas tree ornament. A small piece of the strawberry in the basket broke but the rest of it is intact. Every year the ornament is hung on the tree and every year someone tells the story of how I bit it when I was small.
J. Knight of Ringwood, Illinois: For the last ten or twelve years I have written a Christmas letter to my children on fancy paper and placed them in red legal-size envelopes. The letter is always the last present to be opened and usually my daughter is enlisted to read it aloud. I have filled the letters with family Christmas stories from way back, some of my own early memories, and reminiscences of my first married Christmas and of their first Christmases. I’ve recalled special celebrations like ones spent in New England with family and one that was postponed until a son had leave from the Navy. Once I begin writing my mind expands and I’m flooded with warm thoughts. I get as much out of writing these letters as my kids do in receiving them.
Judy Letchworth of Poquoson, Virginia: I have given all my family Christmas heirlooms to my daughters and sons. I think that option should be included in your holiday survey.
Richard Platt of Milford, Connecticut: My family followed the Puritan tradition and did not celebrate Christmas until well into the twentieth century. My Platt great-grandparents had a winter home in St. Petersburg, Florida, and late every year they would travel there by train in stages, stopping in various cities on the way: New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, etc. I have my great-grandmother’s diary for 1911 and on Christmas Day they happened to be in Washington. The entry in the diary for December 25 says simply, “Cold and rainy. In the afternoon, took the cars to the Smithsonian Institution and found it closed.” That’s all. No mention of what day it was except for the date.
New! American Inspiration Author Events Announced
American Inspiration is presenting more inspiring stories of family, history, and culture in the coming new year. Don't miss Eric Jay Dolin with his account of history-changing hurricanes in America's past; Nadia Osuwu with a globe-spanning memoir of immigration and identity; Janice P. Nimura with the true story of pioneering woman doctors in America; and more!
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