20% Off Experts' Choice Books at AmericanAncestors.org
Now is a great time to expand your genealogical library! Our experts have curated choices just for you, highlighting books every family historian should own.Throughout the month of February, purchase any title from our Experts' Choice collection at 20% off.
For young women of the past, the creation of samplers was an important exercise and expression of skill; for those in the present, these samplers can provide important family data. This free webinar will feature the stories behind several samplers from the R. Stanton Avery Special Collections. We will also discuss some tips and best practices for preserving such items in your own collection. Join us February 11 at 3 p.m. ET.
This Thursday! Explore 19th-century America and the impactful lives of the immigrant Blackwell sisters, the first women to receive MDs in the United States and founders of the New York Infirmary, with biographer Janice P. Nimura. The Doctors Blackwell provides a history of medicine, women, and our country. Don't miss this and other author events coming soon from American Inspiration.
The Art, Architecture, and Collections of British Country Houses, Part II
For centuries the country house held a unique position of power in English life as centers of productive agricultural estates and repositories of jaw-dropping collections of art. In this three-session online course, Curator of Special Collections and celebrated architectural historian Curt DiCamillo, FRSA, will guide you through nearly two and a half centuries of British decorative arts and style.
Dutchess County, NY: The Settlers of the Beekman Patent
The Settlers of the Beekman Patent series by Frank J. Doherty contains data on over 1300 families who settled in the Beekman Patent, an original land grant given to Col. Henry Beekman in 1697 by the English Crown and the second largest patent in present-day Dutchess County, New York. Many New Englanders lived in and passed through the Beekman Patent on their way west. Others, such as the Palatines and Quakers (almost all from New England), were early settlers and remained for several generations or more. Become a member of American Ancestors to search this and many more exclusive databases.
Plus! This week we’re announcing the addition of 32 new volumes and 2 updated volumes to Massachusetts: Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston Records, 1789-1920Search Now
The Bowen Center Spring Conference: Unlocking the Mystery of the Family Emotional History
The city of Brainerd, the seat of Crow Wing County, which is located in central Minnesota, has made a number of local history resources available on its website. The resources can be found in the contents list on the History page. Check out the Historical Newspapers collection that contains digitized images of two weekly newspapers – the Brainerd Tribune (1872-1882) and the Brainerd Dispatch (1883-1901), a history of Brainerd published in 1910, and collections of historic city maps and photographs.
One Hundred Years Later, Scrapbook Is Back in The Family After purchasing a 1920s scrapbook on eBay, Elmer S. Mekker of Cleveland tracked down the daughter of the scrapbook maker, Jean Steel of Falmouth, Massachusetts, and sent it to her.
The Black Soldiers of the Civil War “A new book by scholar Deborah Willis features more than 70 photos, as well as letters, journal entries and posters.”
Women Chefs Before the 1970s This article looks at women in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries who worked in restaurant and hotel kitchens.
Last week's survey asked about about early interest in genealogy. We received 3,522 responses. The results are:
24%, I became interested in genealogy when I was a child (up to 12 years old).
24%, I became interested in genealogy when I was a teenager.
66%, I enjoyed listening to my relatives tell family stories when I was a child and/or teenager.
68%, I liked looking at family photographs when I was a child and/or teenager.
35%, I enjoyed visiting cemeteries when I was a child and/or teenager.
50%, I enjoyed visiting museums when I was a child and/or teenager.
38%, History was my favorite subject in school when I was a child and/or teenager.
19%, I had other history or genealogy experiences not mentioned above when I was a child and/or teenager.
45%, I have introduced at least one child or teenager to genealogy.
17%, I was not interested in history or genealogy when I was a child or teenager.
This week's question asks about stopping work on your genealogical research. 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: Early Interest in Genealogy
by Lynn Betlock, Editor
Last week's survey asked about early interest in genealogy. Thank you to everyone who replied. Below is a selection of reader responses.
Mary-Alice Wildasin of Kilrush, County Clare, Ireland: During summer break when I was nine, I remember going to the Maine State Archives with my grandparents. When I was eleven, my family took a trip to Ireland and I remember being in the National Library of Ireland in Dublin, searching for records. At seventeen, I was at the local LDS library with my grandfather, still looking for our elusive Irish ancestors. I have gone on to become a professional Irish genealogist and obtained a master's degree in History of the Family from the University of Limerick.
Robbie Gorr of Petawawa, Ontario: I was twelve when I discovered a large old German Bible in the attic of my grandmother's farmhouse in Alice Township, Renfrew County, Ontario. A handwritten sheet contained the full names of my grandfather Heinrich Friedrich Wilhelm Gorr (1870-1938) and his siblings with their birth dates and the 1869 marriage of his immigrant parents Wilhelm Gorr and Caroline Schwarz. Seeing the German versions of their names was significant because for the first time I realized that I had a family heritage and the stories I had heard about my German ancestors became real.
Roger Barnes of Webster Groves, Missouri: When I was in high school, my older brother got married. We found out he and his new wife both had Wolcott ancestry. One Saturday, my mother and I went to the Wethersfield (Connecticut) Public Library to research this. While my mother spoke to the librarian, I examined a large Wolcott genealogy and, within a few minutes, found the connection. They were 10th cousins. My mother was amazed that I had found the answer so quickly, and I have loved library research ever since.
Phil Gourley of Hooksett, New Hampshire: In 1963, when I was twelve, our family took a trip around the country visiting relatives, including my grandfather's sister, Maude, in New York City. She entertained us with stories of our Gourley ancestors and ignited my passion to discover my roots. Twenty years later Maude and I took a trip to Nova Scotia to visit relatives and research. While there, we gathered a vast amount of paperwork. While I wanted the complete Gourley family history, she insisted it be edited and threw some papers overboard as we sailed back from Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, to Portland, Maine!
Catching Up with Vita Brevis
A Resource for Family History from AmericanAncestors.org
