31 October 2012
Piecing Together 'The World's Largest Jigsaw Puzzle'
 |
| Image as appeared with original article |
Today is Halloween
and I just couldn’t bring myself to do a piece on cemetery records and so
wanted to share an article (NPR website) about the use of computer technology
to reconstruct shredded files ...
When the Berlin Wall came down in 1989,
East Germany
More than two decades later, the vast array of secret papers collected
by the Stasi is still in huge demand. So far this year, 70,000 people have
applied for access to the Stasi archives.
Many are young Germans — some searching for information about relatives,
others just eager to know more about their country's past.
To help meet this demand, archivists are now using groundbreaking
computer technology to reconstruct those shredded files.
Do read the full article as it talks about E-puzzler which
is a fascinating bit of software being used to help reconstruct the shredded
files ...
There's another option: pattern recognition computer technology
developed by German scientists, called the E-puzzler.
The E-puzzler is basically a shredding machine in reverse. You scan
torn-up documents into it. It matches up the pieces using color, paper texture,
fonts, tear lines and other details.
"The E-puzzler works in the way that a person doing a 1,000-piece
puzzle would work. You start at the edge. You look for the forest, you look for
the lake and the sky, and that is exactly how the E-puzzler works," says
Joachim Haeussler, the archivist in charge of digital reconstruction.
Though most of us don’t have ancestors from East Germany
Have you ever opened a folder or box at an archives to find
that you essentially have a pile of document pieces? Wouldn’t it be neat to scan those and have
something like e-puzzler re-create the original documents?
What other technology or apps are out there that help with
the reconstruction of partially destroyed documents?
+++++++++++++++++
Editor’s Note: If you
still feed the need for a piece about “cemeteries” for Halloween, here are some
past Upfront with NGS posts where “cemeteries” are mentioned:
·
UpFront with NGS: Going digital at
the cemetery
·
UpFront with NGS: America's Only
Jewish Military Cemetery
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30 October 2012
Generous Genealogists -- FREE Genealogy Research and Support
Mark Rabideau has
launched a new website, Generous Genealogists. Volunteers donate their time to
provide research, networking, and coaching to the genealogy community at large.
Building on the mission and the intent of the now defunct Random Acts of
Genealogical Kindness website (see editor’s note), the “golden rule” for the Generous
Genealogists community is to “help others as you would be helped.”
The site includes brick-wall forums, coaching and mentoring
articles, and, of course, an
army of volunteers.
Need help with a problem? Are you in a position to help
others with their genealogy and family history research needs? If you answered yes to either, do check out
this website!
++++++++++
Editor’s Note: the generous volunteering of services that
takes place in our community was previously discussed in this Upfront with NGS blog post:
RAOGK -- an important and often overlooked resource for
on-the-ground genealogical help! And as reported, sadly, the founder
of this effort, Bridget Schneider died in November 2011.
Editor’s Note: we also learned of a new site, Genealogy
and Family History Beta.
This is a collaboratively edited question and answer site for expert
genealogists and people interested in genealogy or family history. It's 100%
free, no registration required.
++++++++++
(11 Nov 2012) NEW -- Editor’s Note: Apologies for not acknowledging the "sources" for where I learned about this news! APG eNews, Vol. 1, No. 3, October 2012 (for the 1st paragraph), and Thomas MacEntee on FB and Dick Eastman's blog EOGN for additional insight.
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29 October 2012
Disasters and Genealogy -- our ancestors were greatly affected by natural events, like "Sandy," also!
With “Sandy ”
approaching and many taking important safety precautions ... I thought it
appropriate to post about past disasters and related and how they impact our
search for our ancestors. It might be
that records are missing due to a natural disaster. Or maybe crops were destroyed, factories
ruined or livelihoods otherwise impacted.
This may have cause families to move, prematurely filled cemeteries,
etc. Unfortunately, disasters do give us
records about our family – often not records of the warm and fuzzy kind and yet
how they were affected by a disaster tells us a lot about their lives and our
heritage!
Though, I have to laugh as I went to visit my favorite “disasters”
site, GenDisasters, since it has a genealogy focus to
find that the message on the home page reads ...
This page has gone missing. It could have been lost at sea, swept away
by a storm, or been buried under a landslide.
The page may be here hiding under a different name. So, there's a good
chance that we have the article on that train wreck, hurricane, fire, etc.
Please click below to go to the main page of the site - from there you
can use the search engine or browse the articles by state or province, type of
disaster, and year - to see if you can locate the material.
And, if you just do a Google (or similar) search on
GenDisasters – the sub-pages are listed and you can still use the site. For example, this link takes you to the “browse
by state”
feature.
Here are some other articles and resources for incorporating
“disasters” and related into your research as well as the stories of your
ancestors:
- Diseases, Disasters &
Distress: Bad For Your Ancestors, Good For Your Genealogical Research
- Top 10 Deadliest U.S. Natural
Disasters
- Timelines of Historic Disasters
& Epidemics
Do you have a favorite source for information about what
disasters might have befallen our ancestors?
Were your ancestors affected by such? My great grandmother died in the flu epidemic
of 1918 and I have not yet uncovered any “natural” disasters in historical
records though I will never forget hurricane Fran when it hit Raleigh
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copyright © National Geneal ogical
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Little Boxes (In the Archives) (Parody)
Sometimes it is
fun, just to have fun!
Have you recently viewed any quirky, funny, made you LoL
(Laugh out loud) videos that bear any connection, however close or far to
genealogy and family history research?
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copyright © National Geneal ogical
Society, 3108 Columbia Pike, Suite 300, Arlington, Virginia 22204-4370. http://www.ngsgenealogy.org.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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27 October 2012
Learn How Death Records Can Add to Your Family Story
Not only can you learn about various types of records (a
nice overview of some of the records you might want to look into) and there is
a contest running through 2 November where you can try for prizes!
As
Halloween approaches, checking into death records seems to fit!
Did you learn about a “new-to-you” place to search for to
find death records? Did you win a prize?
Editor’s Note: You can
“read” the information death records for free, though, to participate in the
various contest challenges, an Ancestry.com subscription is required.
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copyright © National Geneal ogical
Society, 3108 Columbia Pike, Suite 300, Arlington, Virginia 22204-4370. http://www.ngsgenealogy.org.
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Republication of UpFront articles is
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26 October 2012
New Voices of Genealogy Release: Frederick C. Hart Jr., CG, FASG “Becoming a Genealogist”
The
National Genealogical Society is pleased to announce the October video release
honoring the 100th anniversary of the National Genealogical Society Quarterly (NGSQ): Frederick C. Hart Jr.’s
reflections on ”Becoming a Genealogist.”
An
electrical engineer by profession, Fred Hart’s inclination for problem solving
trumped his prior lack of interest in history when he discovered discrepancies
in published histories of his mother’s family. He took on the challenge of
resolving the differences and became dedicated to the discipline of genealogy.
Planning to build a second career when he retired, he began to undertake client
work and in 1993 earned the certified genealogist credential.
Fred
is the genealogist for the Connecticut Ancestry Society and has been a prolific
contributor to Connecticut Ancestry, the New England Historical and Genealogical Register, the New York Genealogical and Biographical
Record, and The American Genealogist.
He was named a fellow of the American Society of Genealogists (ASG) in 2007 for
the quality and quantity of his published genealogical scholarship.
The
video was produced by award winning filmmakers Kate Geis and Allen Moore from
an interview by Melinde Lutz Byrne, CG, FASG, co-editor of the NGSQ. Frederick C. Hart Jr., CG, FASG, “Becoming
a Genealogist,” is now playing for all NGS members at http://www.ngsgenealogy.org.
Previous releases in the Voices of Genealogy archive now
playing at the NGS website (http://www.ngsgenealogy.org) present Robert C. Anderson, FASG;
Mary McCampbell Bell, CG; John Frederick Dorman, CG (Emeritus), FASG, FNGS,
FVGS; David L. Greene, PhD, FASG; Ronald Ames Hill, PhD, CG, FASG; Henry B.
Hoff, CG, FASG, FGBS; Harry Macy, FASG, FGBS; George Ely Russell, CG, FASG,
FNGS; and Shirley Langdon Wilcox, CG, FNGS.
Video
interviews with leading genealogists represent just one of the many
opportunities NGS offers its members for honing their skills. Members receive
the society’s outstanding quarterly publications, the NGSQ and the NGS Magazine,
and can also take advantage of free courses and significant discounts on
publications, courses, and the NGS annual conference to take place in Las Vegas , Nevada , 8–11
May 2013; Richmond , Virginia ,
7–10 May 2014; and St. Louis ,
Missouri
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copyright © National Geneal ogical
Society, 3108 Columbia Pike, Suite 300, Arlington, Virginia 22204-4370. http://www.ngsgenealogy.org.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Republication of UpFront articles is
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25 October 2012
WWII War Ration Books
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| Image as appears on referenced page |
GenealogyToday has
a really neat page about WWII
Ration Books
I love the introduction to the page which really captures
what we all think, at one time or another.
Genealogists are always in search of new
record sources when confronted with a brick wall. Well, can you think of a
resource that not only gives you name, address, age and occupation, but also
height and weight of a person? Interestingly, the ration books issued
during World War Two attempted to capture* these items.
Currently the collection includes over 11,000 entries and
there is a nice search feature.
Though my father’s family is not yet found listed here (Acey
in Salem MA
And, that didn’t stop me from looking around and boy are
these neat! I did NOT “really”
appreciate their existence until I started looking around here.
And, there is a nice series of article links where one can
learn about ration books!
Have you tracked your family through ration books? Did you make any neat discoveries? Always
like to hear about what readers have found!
Editor’s Note: The Ames Historical Society has a nice online exhibit about
Ration Books etc during WWII as does the American Centuries site.
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copyright © National Geneal ogical
Society, 3108 Columbia Pike, Suite 300, Arlington, Virginia 22204-4370. http://www.ngsgenealogy.org.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NGS does not imply endorsement of any outside advertiser or
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Republication of UpFront articles is
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from NGS . Please drop us a note
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24 October 2012
New York City welcomes The Genealogy Event this weekend, Oct. 26-27
This weekend on Friday and
Saturday, if you are in the vicinity of New
York City 125 West 18th Street Manhattan New York
Irish Center
The Genealogy Event offers the opportunity to meet local and national
genealogical societies, attend genealogy lectures, see exhibitors who can offer
various genealogical products and services, or have a one-on-one session with a
professional genealogist. There are more than 40 speaking sessions with a
variety of excellent lecture topics like DNA, immigration records and African
American research to choose from ─ presented in 30 minute timeframes (http://www.thegenealogyevent.com/uploads/SCHED.pdf ).
Speaker sessions will be first come/first served on site, so come early to
reserve a seat for your choice of lectures. I will be giving two lectures, one
on using surname variations in your research and one on using NY newspapers to
uncover your family history. I hope to meet some of you there.
The National Genealogical Society
is excited to see this kind of event being offered in NYC and will have a booth
(# 304) for attendees to visit at The Genealogy Event. NGS considers an essential part of its
mission to bring the highest quality of education to Americans interested in
furthering their genealogy and learning. Current and potential NGS members will
have a chance to meet NGS Board members Arlene Jennings and me (Terry
Koch-Bostic) at the show. We will be
there to answer questions and help advise attendees on NGS’s educational
opportunities ─ from our annual four-day NGS Family History Conference (May
2013 in Las Vegas
SHOW HOURS:
Friday October 26th: 12:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
Saturday October 27th: 9:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
VENUE:
Metropolitan Pavilion,125 West 18th Street ,
NY , NY 10011
Located centrally and in proximity of major transit routes. Please see Directions.
TICKETS:
Advance Tickets: $15 per Day ($20 at Door) purchase on-line in advance.
Friday October 26th: 12:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
Saturday October 27th: 9:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
VENUE:
Metropolitan Pavilion,
Located centrally and in proximity of major transit routes. Please see Directions.
TICKETS:
Advance Tickets: $15 per Day ($20 at Door) purchase on-line in advance.
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copyright © National Geneal ogical
Society, 3108 Columbia Pike, Suite 300, Arlington, Virginia 22204-4370. http://www.ngsgenealogy.org.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NGS does not imply endorsement of any outside advertiser or
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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23 October 2012
Are you a Genealogy Geek and Proud of it?
 |
| Source: http://www.nextlevelcomm.net/images/207_GeekEmoticonPNG.png |
I think you will
agree that the last decade has seen an incredible rise in the use of technology
as we research our ancestors!
Whereas my husband, the computer engineer, could easily
out-geek me for decades, often nowadays I will be mentioning something
technological to him and that will be the first he’s heard of it. For that, I often get sent the Yahoo geek
emoticon! Or am I more of a nerd? I’ve
never been able to keep those two straight?!?!
I find it both exhilarating and sometimes exhausting though
to try and keep up with all the newest bells and whistles of technology as it
applies to not just “life” and genealogy and family history research.
And, according to Scott Phillips, there is also another kind
of genealogy geek. Check out his post about some of these other “measures” of being
a “geek” which do not have to do with technology at Huffington Post. I may have "some" of the traits he's listed and I fall short of his example!
Are you a genealogy geek?
How would you define one? Maybe
we can create a universal emoticon?
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copyright © National Geneal ogical
Society, 3108 Columbia Pike, Suite 300, Arlington, Virginia 22204-4370. http://www.ngsgenealogy.org.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NGS does not imply endorsement of any outside advertiser or
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Republication of UpFront articles is
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from NGS . Please drop us a note
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edited or reworded and must contain the copyright statement found at the bottom
of each UpFront article.
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22 October 2012
Ancestry.com to be Bought by a Private Equity Firm for $1.6B
Genealogy
website Ancestry.com has agreed to be acquired by a group led by European
private equity firm Permira
Funds in a cash
deal valued at about $1.6 billion.
The offered price of $32
per share is a nearly 10 percent premium over Friday's closing price of $29.18. Its shares jumped 8
percent, or $2.37, to $31.55 in premarket trading Monday.
Ancestry.com operates a
website for researching family history and has more than 2 million paying
subscribers. It says more than 10 billion records have been added to its site
over the past 15 years.
What do you think about this? Does it help, hurt or have no impact on the genealogical research community?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
copyright © National Geneal ogical
Society, 3108 Columbia Pike, Suite 300, Arlington, Virginia 22204-4370. http://www.ngsgenealogy.org.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NGS does not imply endorsement of any outside advertiser or
other vendors appearing in this blog.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Republication of UpFront articles is
permitted and encouraged for non-commercial purposes without express permission
from NGS . Please drop us a note
telling us where and when you are using the article. Express written permission
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commercial purposes. You may send a request for express written permission to UpFront@ngsgenealogy.org. All republished articles may not be
edited or reworded and must contain the copyright statement found at the bottom
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Insects destroy Idaho county's historic documents
 |
| Image as appeared with original article |
I never like to
read an article with the above headline!
That tells me that future generations will have fewer historic documents
to use in their research!
We often worry about temperature and humidity, fire, water
damage and much more and yet, there is the ever-present issue of insects and
the damage they can wreak!
Think about your own house.
Think about leaving it uninhabited for a few weeks. When you return, odds are that you will find
that many types of insects and other critters have taken up residence. I remember when my children were young
watching a program which pretty much showed that cockroaches can practically
survive anything – possibly even an apocalypse.
Given that, they are always something we, the larger genealogical
community, need to be aware of and have respect for as we work to preserve
either our personal historical papers or the archives of a larger community.
So, if there was ever “more” motivation needed for why
digitizing documents is a critical priority for the repositories where they are
held, this article might help!
Editor’s Note: As this
was being written, another article was brought to my attention! Thousands of Court
FilesDamaged By Water, Mold. Fortunately, mold can typically be handled and the documents are not
necessarily destroyed and unrecoverable! The same is not true for bugs or other critters who have ingested paper or other formats!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
copyright © National Geneal ogical
Society, 3108 Columbia Pike, Suite 300, Arlington, Virginia 22204-4370. http://www.ngsgenealogy.org.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NGS does not imply endorsement of any outside advertiser or
other vendors appearing in this blog.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Republication of UpFront articles is
permitted and encouraged for non-commercial purposes without express permission
from NGS . Please drop us a note
telling us where and when you are using the article. Express written permission
is required if you wish to republish UpFront articles for
commercial purposes. You may send a request for express written permission to UpFront@ngsgenealogy.org. All republished articles may not be
edited or reworded and must contain the copyright statement found at the bottom
of each UpFront article.
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19 October 2012
The Library of Congress -- a NEW & FREE Magazine!
There’s something
NEW & FREE for us to read!
The Library of Congress (LOC) has just started to produce a
bi-monthly magazine. Do check out the
September/October 2012 issue of The Library of Congress Magazine (PDF format).
As described by LOC ...
The War of 1812, often called the Second American Revolution, resulted
in the burning of the U.S.
I found the magazine very colorful, easy-to-read and full of
fun little tidbits of news both about the LOC and its holdings. As with any vast resource, for the LOC there
is so much going on that it becomes challenging to keep current with what’s new
and to also appreciate its history and resources already made available to us –
the public.
The LOC is invaluable – both its architecture and contents
are amazing! It also has an incredibly
diverse online presence, http://www.loc.gov/index.html, which I cannot even begin to
adequately describe and do justice to.
As stated in this initial volume ...
When Congress purchased Thomas Jefferson’s wide-ranging personal book
collection to restart the congressional library, Jefferson
observed, “There is no subject to which a Member of Congress may not have occasion
to refer.” More than two centuries
later, the Library continues to draw from its vast collections to serve the
research needs of Congress, while sharing its rich resources with the nation
and the world.
The LOC is truly a resource for all of us! And, it’s nice that there is now a magazine
to give a voice to this invaluable repository.
I am hoping that, like Prologue (produced by NARA), this will
become a publication often referenced by us as we research our ancestors and
seek context about their lives and the records created about them.
What did you think of the new The Library of Congress Magazine?
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