From Pilgrims to Patriots: Researching Early New England Ancestors
Discover essential resources and records for colonial New England research, understand early settlement and migration patterns, learn how to research your early veteran ancestors, and hear how to verify your connection to Mayflower passengers. March 26 at 9:30 a.m.-5:00 p.m. (MT). Register Now
Online Seminar
Notorious Relatives: Researching People and Family Stories Outside the Law
The Building of Castle Howard: Just Where Did This House Come From?
Christopher Ridgway will trace the origins of Castle Howard during the early years of the 18th century, and the ever-growing vision of the Earl of Carlisle, who turned his corner of Yorkshire into a sublime landscape filled with monuments, lakes, woodlands, and gardens. March 18 at 1 p.m. (ET) Register Now
Spotlight: Cemetery Database, Arkansas
by Valerie Beaudrault
The city of Rogers is located in Benton County, in northwest Arkansas. The city's website offers a database comprising all available information for Rogers Cemetery, plus records from more than 70 additional cemeteries in Benton and Washington Counties. Search records by surname; results include name, birth date, death date, second monument information, cemetery name, and biographical information. The biographical section includes information such as military service, spouse’s name, and the deceased’s obituary. Please note that the full list of cemeteries by county is not available. Search Now
Free Online Lecture
An American Meeting: The Irish and Jews in the Nation's Urban Caldron
Join the Wyner Family Jewish Heritage Center and historian Hasia Diner for a program about the entwined history of Irish and Jewish immigrants in America. March 17 at 3 p.m. (ET)
Save 20% on the Entire Experts' Choice Collection!
Get 20% off any title from our curated collection of genealogical classics, now through the end of March! Savings will automatically appear at checkout and cannot be combined with any other discount, including our member discount.
Our Irish experts will help you navigate the basics of Irish migration to the U.S. and Canada, provide key records and strategies for research, and demonstrate how DNA can help. March 19 at 2 p.m. (ET).
Genealogists Eager to See 1950 Census In his “Out on a Limb” column for TheTimes Leader of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, Tom Mooney discusses the upcoming release of the 1950 census.
The Weekly Genealogist Survey
Last week's survey asked what types of possessions you would put on a five-item “legacy list” to represent your family’s past. We received 3,049 responses. The results are:
93%, Family letters, journals, Bibles, scrapbooks, albums, or photographs
40%, Jewelry, clothing, or shoes
22%, Tapes, cassettes, records, or other non-digital media
47%, China, silver, or glassware
16%, Ordinary household items
21%, Ordinary personal items
13%, Musical instruments or a music box
21%, Toys or items from childhood
32%, Artwork
51%, Furniture from previous generations
22%, Holiday-related items
25%, Family heirlooms of great value
57%, Family heirlooms of purely sentimental value
10%, My list would include items not mentioned above
5%, I do not have a list and do not plan to create one.
This week’s survey asks about your thoughts on the 1950 U.S. census, which will be released on April 1. 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: Legacy Lists
By Jean Powers, Senior Editor
Last week's survey asked what types of possessions you would put on a five-item “legacy list” to represent your family’s past. Thank you to everyone who replied. Below is a selection of reader responses.
Ellen Turner Kuchta, West Allis, Wisconsin: My list would include monogrammed silver spoons for each generation in my family back to the Revolutionary War. I also cherish the small watercolor of my great-grandmother, Abigail Clark Johnson, painted by her brother, telescope maker Alvan Clark. Abigail’s husband, William Wallace Johnson, was an early member of NEHGS and authored the 1882 Clarke-Clark Genealogy. My treasured possessions also include a lock of hair from Abigail’s sister Mary; a scrap of linen woven by Abigail; a fine knitted nightcap made by Abigail’s mother, Mary Bassett Clark; William Wallace Johnson's diaries; and my collection of Johnson family papers. And I’ve barely scratched the surface of my collection!
Deborah Sparbel, Portage, Michigan: My great-grandmother, Lenna Kirby, was given to the care of her maternal aunt in Monroe County, Michigan, sometime before the 1880 U.S. census. Her father, Humphrey H. Kirby, had left Illinois after the death of Lenna’s mother, Mary Ann Sprague Kirby. Before leaving, Humphrey gave his daughter several family artifacts: a photograph of himself, an ornate silver pickle fork with the monogram for Mary Ann Kirby, and a page he tore from the family Bible listing the births of Humphrey and Mary Ann’s children.
Janice M. Sellers, Gresham, Oregon: My ancestors came to the U.S. as Jewish immigrants in the early 20th century with little more than the clothes on their backs. Our family heirlooms were accumulated after they established themselves here: my great-grandmother's silverplate flatware; my grandmother's Passover dairy dishes and hochmesser (mezzaluna knife); and a mink stole and a pair of mittens made by my great-grandfather, who was a furrier. I also have six photos from Europe, one of which is my great-great-grandparents with their oldest child in Kamenets-Podolsky, Russia, about 1890. I have wedding cake toppers from my parents' and grandparents' weddings. And I have one letter that my paternal grandmother wrote to me, describing her memories of her mother's family from England. Because so few of these items survive, they are incredibly precious to me.
Database News
Journal update: New England Historical and Genealogical Register
Volume 175 was recently added to our database archive of the New England Historical and Genealogical Register. This volume contains all four 2021 issues and adds over 8,000 searchable names. Published quarterly since 1847, the Register is the flagship journal of American genealogy and the oldest journal in the field. Search Now
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