UpFront with NGS: February 2015

26 February 2015

20 Free and (Relatively) New Genealogy and Family History Resources, Part 3

My present continues ... 20 more FREE resources ....

Google launches Maps Gallery, a new digital atlas that lets you explore third-party maps
PRONI Guide to Northern Irish School Records Holdings
Reading old documents (UK Archives) -- online tutorials on Latin and palaeography will help you to read documents from the medieval period and beyond
If You Can’t Make It To the Lecture
North Carolina Gazetteer is Online Through NCpedia
How I Discovered New York City’s Old Typography District
Montgomery County [IN] Genealogy Club Digitizes Bible Records
Early Records of the Town of Providence [RI]
Personal Digital Archiving: The Basics of Scanning
Digitised Tasmanian Archive and Heritage resources online (Australia)
Tiki-Toki: Online Timeline Creation Tool
Similar Site Check -- a free search engine that that finds similar and related Web sites
Catholic Cemeteries with Online Burial Databases in the US
Town of Morrisville (NC) Public Records Access
British Pathé to open up entire film archive of 85K videos to YouTube -- 85,000 videos, contains footage of historic content from both World Wars, interviews with survivors of the Titanic, etc
History of the Great Lakes States
Archivio di Stato di Torino (Italy) – Digitization projects
New Finding Aids Online (Library and Archives of Canada)
Yivo Digital Archive on Jewish Life in Poland
Online Digital Map Collections by State

Editor’s Note: As of today, each of the above links worked. Now, whether the links in any of the identified articles work, I cannot vouch for that. And, armed with the information provided, it should be relatively easy to get to determine where the discussed database currently resides. If you get really stuck, drop me an email and I’ll try to ferret out the recalcitrant link or cross out my entry in the above list!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

NGS does not imply endorsement of any outside advertiser or other vendors appearing in this blog. Any opinions expressed by guest authors are their own and do not necessarily reflect the view of NGS.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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 [email protected]. All republished articles may not be edited or reworded and must contain the copyright statement found at the bottom of each UpFront article.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Think your friends, colleagues, or fellow genealogy researchers would find this blog post interesting? If so, please let them know that anyone can read past UpFront with NGS posts or subscribe!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Suggestions for topics for future UpFront with NGS posts are always welcome. Please send any suggested topics to [email protected]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Unless indicated otherwise or clearly an NGS Public Relations piece, Upfront with NGS posts are written by Diane L Richard, editor, Upfront with NGS.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Want to learn more about interacting with the blog, please read Hyperlinks, Subscribing and Comments -- How to Interact with Upfront with NGS Blog posts!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Follow NGS via Facebook, YouTube, Google+, Twitter

25 February 2015

Digital Public Library of America (DPLA) Continues to Expand

The Digital Public Library of America (DPLA) continues to expand!

DPLA welcomes four new Service Hubs: Tennessee, Maryland, Maine, and the Caribbean. The notification goes into some detail about what entities are involved with these new hubs; often several different archives as part of a partnership/consortium.

There is a map at the bottom of this announcement showing Service Hubs, Service Hub partner states, Hubs in active development and 2015 applicants.

The collection currently includes over 8 million items from libraries, archives, and museums.

Want to learn more about this great resource, check out the Tutorials & Introductory Videos page. This gives you perspective on the project as well as some helpful information about how to best access the available collected and growing history of America.

As always, do not assume that you will only find information in repositories located in the same geographic location of your locale of interest. I searched on “Wake County” and came up with a list of materials from local institutions and also from institutions in Boston (MA), NYC, MD, VA, UT, SC and other locations! In the past, it would have been very hard to identify, never mind visit, these out-of-state repositories for information about Wake County (NC).

"Wake County" NC records are found in many repositories outside of NC -- I bet the same holds true for whatever locale you are researching!

Sometimes it almost feels like so many neat collections of records and so little time!

There will be another call for DPLA Hubs this June (2015). If your state is currently not represented, this could be an opportunity for them to join this vibrant growing online digital library.

Editor’s note: Previous Upfront with NGS posts about DPLA ...

+ (2013) Digital Public Library Launches TODAY

+ (2012) Making local history digital, searchable and accessible -- Seven pilot sites join national digital library project

+ (2011) Digital Public Library of America -- 1st Plenary Meeting, 21 October, National Archives (DC)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

NGS does not imply endorsement of any outside advertiser or other vendors appearing in this blog. Any opinions expressed by guest authors are their own and do not necessarily reflect the view of NGS.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Think your friends, colleagues, or fellow genealogy researchers would find this blog post interesting? If so, please let them know that anyone can read past UpFront with NGS posts or subscribe!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Suggestions for topics for future UpFront with NGS posts are always welcome. Please send any suggested topics to [email protected]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Unless indicated otherwise or clearly an NGS Public Relations piece, Upfront with NGS posts are written by Diane L Richard, editor, Upfront with NGS.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Want to learn more about interacting with the blog, please read Hyperlinks, Subscribing and Comments -- How to Interact with Upfront with NGS Blog posts!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Follow NGS via Facebook, YouTube, Google+, Twitter

24 February 2015

Copyright + You -- YES, you as in genealogists and family historians!

Copyright is important. It is important to any family history works we author and want to copyright as well as those writings, photographs or copyrightable materials created by others that we may want to use.

The U.S. Copyright Office has issued the third edition of the Compendium of U.S. Copyright Office Practices. You can read it online or you can download all 1200+ pages in PDF.

As usual, the Legal Genealogist (Judy G. Russell) has written an excellent overview of The Compendium, talking about what has changed since the last edition was published in 1984 and some of what is included in this publication.

This is not a publication to be read cover-to-cover and it is an important reference work to have in your genealogist toolbox!

Editor’s note: Previous Upfront with NGS posts about Copyright ...

+ Oral Interviews + Copyright -- Are You Using Best Practices?

+ Copyright and Copy Wrong -- Genealogists and Family Historians need to do it RIGHT!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

NGS does not imply endorsement of any outside advertiser or other vendors appearing in this blog. Any opinions expressed by guest authors are their own and do not necessarily reflect the view of NGS.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Think your friends, colleagues, or fellow genealogy researchers would find this blog post interesting? If so, please let them know that anyone can read past UpFront with NGS posts or subscribe!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Suggestions for topics for future UpFront with NGS posts are always welcome. Please send any suggested topics to [email protected]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Unless indicated otherwise or clearly an NGS Public Relations piece, Upfront with NGS posts are written by Diane L Richard, editor, Upfront with NGS.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Want to learn more about interacting with the blog, please read Hyperlinks, Subscribing and Comments -- How to Interact with Upfront with NGS Blog posts!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Follow NGS via Facebook, YouTube, Google+, Twitter

23 February 2015

National Genealogical Society Launches NGS Monthly -- A New Digital Publication

ARLINGTON, VA. 23 FEBRUARY 2015. The National Genealogical Society (NGS) today launched NGS Monthly, a new digital publication that, each month, will feature a selection of original articles on genealogical methodology, research techniques, sources, and the latest news from NGS. Published mid-month starting after the February launch, NGS Monthly was created to replace the Society’s older newsletter, What’s Happening, with a new content and design strategy.

NGS Monthly has a cool, clean look with predominantly green and white graphics and a lean design strategy to avoid distractions. “What’s Happening was using an older delivery system that limited the Society in terms of layout, graphics, readability and enjoyment. We wanted to provide our members with a more pleasant experience that will include visuals and varying lengths of articles, plus social media access,” said Jordan Jones, President of the National Genealogical Society.

The new content strategy has at its core the decision to give readers two thoughtful, longer-length original articles each month. One article in NGS Monthly will be devoted to genealogical methods and tie back to a past article in the digital archive of the National Genealogical Society Quarterly (NGSQ) to give the reader examples from case studies. The concept is to “deconstruct” scholarly work so that genealogists of all levels can benefit from analysis of the fine work in this premier journal.

“There are many media options on the genealogical landscape today. NGS wanted to provide something special, something that could bring new understanding to the components of really excellent work that many of us aspire to and look at how expert writers handle sources, information and evidence to build proof of relationships,” explained Terry Koch-Bostic, Chair of the NGS Communications and Marketing Committee.

NGS Monthly editor, Melissa Johnson, added, “The inaugural articles will set the stage for future content. The lead article in the launch issue, ‘What Is an NGSQ Case Study?’ will help NGS members understand the purpose, significance, and structure of the case studies that appear in NGSQ, and the second article, ‘Eight Tips For Deconstructing an NGSQ Case Study,’ provides a look at some individual elements of a case study.”

Articles that are reflective about methodology and others providing readers with new insights, combined with NGS updates and news stories, form the core content strategy for NGS Monthly. The new format also encourages members to share news items through social media and gives them easy access to the NGS homepage, Twitter feed and Facebook page. There are also useful links to the digital archives for NGS Magazine, NGSQ and Upfront with NGS.

A subscription to the digital publication, NGS Monthly, is provided as part of a paid membership in the National Genealogical Society along with subscriptions to the National Genealogical Society Quarterly, NGS Magazine and Upfront with NGS blog. Upfront is also available free to subscribers. For more information on NGS Monthly and these other fine publications, visit www.ngsgenealogy.org.

Founded in 1903, the National Genealogical Society is dedicated to genealogy education, high research standards, and the preservation of genealogical records. The Arlington, Virginia-based nonprofit is the premier national society for everyone, from the beginner to the most advanced family historian seeking excellence in publications, educational offerings, research guidance, and opportunities to interact with other genealogists.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

NGS does not imply endorsement of any outside advertiser or other vendors appearing in this blog. Any opinions expressed by guest authors are their own and do not necessarily reflect the view of NGS.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Think your friends, colleagues, or fellow genealogy researchers would find this blog post interesting? If so, please let them know that anyone can read past UpFront with NGS posts or subscribe!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Suggestions for topics for future UpFront with NGS posts are always welcome. Please send any suggested topics to [email protected]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Unless indicated otherwise or clearly an NGS Public Relations piece, Upfront with NGS posts are written by Diane L Richard, editor, Upfront with NGS.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Want to learn more about interacting with the blog, please read Hyperlinks, Subscribing and Comments -- How to Interact with Upfront with NGS Blog posts!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Follow NGS via Facebook, YouTube, Google+, Twitter

20 February 2015

20 Free and (Relatively) New Genealogy and Family History Resources, Part 2

My present continues ... 20 more FREE resources ....

Marriages, Baptisms, Deaths (St. Columbian, Quebec, Canada)
Recorded Cases of Black Female Lynching Victims 1886-1957
Native American Nations (Map)
Polish Sites -- PGSA's first step to inform and build awareness in the ability of our members to access "Digitized Polish Vital Records" via the internet
Two Czechoslovakian websites -- State Regional Archives Litomerice & State Regional Archives Trebon and State District Archives of South Bohemia
Mapping Slavery in Detroit
10 great online newspaper archives – world-wide list from British Library
Atlas of the Historical Geography of the United States
Map and Dataset Gallery (Place My Past)
The Empire That Was Russia
Historic maps in the public domain (British Library)
Lowcountry [SC] Digital History Initiative
Historical Chart of the Causes, Milestones, and Battles of the Revolutionary War
Art & Architecture Thesaurus Now Available as Linked Open Data (Getty Research Institute)
Almost in America: Portraits from Ellis Island
Old Pictures of the US
Locating London’s [UK] Past
Elks, Shriners, and Masons: How 'old man' frats got their names and symbols
Hawaii State Archives Digital Collections
How to Trace Your Ancestors in County Monaghan (Ireland)

Editor’s Note: Missed the 1^st part of this series? No worries, click on 20 Free and (Relatively) New Genealogy and Family History Resources, Part 1 to see what neat gems were posted last week!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

NGS does not imply endorsement of any outside advertiser or other vendors appearing in this blog. Any opinions expressed by guest authors are their own and do not necessarily reflect the view of NGS.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Think your friends, colleagues, or fellow genealogy researchers would find this blog post interesting? If so, please let them know that anyone can read past UpFront with NGS posts or subscribe!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Suggestions for topics for future UpFront with NGS posts are always welcome. Please send any suggested topics to [email protected]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Unless indicated otherwise or clearly an NGS Public Relations piece, Upfront with NGS posts are written by Diane L Richard, editor, Upfront with NGS.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Want to learn more about interacting with the blog, please read Hyperlinks, Subscribing and Comments -- How to Interact with Upfront with NGS Blog posts!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Follow NGS via Facebook, YouTube, Google+, Twitter

19 February 2015

National Genealogical Society Appoints New Executive Director

ARLINGTON, VA 19 February 2015. The Board of Directors of the National Genealogical Society (NGS) announced the appointment of Edward Grandi as the Society’s Executive Director. Grandi joins NGS to help further their mission to promote genealogical excellence by helping enthusiasts improve their skills. His work will focus on the NGS growing portfolio of specialized family history learning resources, many of which can be accessed from anywhere in the world. NGS offers a full spectrum of educational opportunities, including its conference, in-depth publications, digital media and cloud-based, online courses from leading experts. Researchers can select from tailored educational programs to learn how to work smarter at every level and search for the right records, which helps them discover more about their ancestors.

The interest in traditional and genetic genealogy continues to grow in popularity across the country and all over Europe. The PBS Genealogy Roadshow and Finding Your Roots, plus Who Do You Think You Are on TLC, raise the hopes of many who dream of finding their ancestors, especially to connect to family across the oceans. Grandi begins his tenure with NGS at this exciting time in the marketplace and just as NGS is about to implement strategic initiatives, that will guide the work and the development of new educational products and courses, over the next three years. He recently commented, “I care deeply about family history and I am excited to begin this new role. Not only do I want to foster new ways to advocate education and quality standards in family history, I want to make sure that access is maintained and records are preserved for future generations.”

Working with nonprofits allowed Grandi to hone skills critical to the NGS Executive Director role including communications, fundraising, advocacy, marketing, and in today’s world, social media planning. He had long experience in senior corporate roles specializing in insurance and risk management for nonprofits and most recently served as an Executive Director to a patient-interest association in Washington, D.C.

Jordan Jones, President of NGS said, “Edward Grandi brings a wealth of business and nonprofit expertise to our Society. As part of our recent strategic planning, we are refocusing some of our energies on staff development. Edward is part of that investment and he will help us take NGS in exciting new directions. We view his appointment as a sign of our commitment to leadership in the genealogical field.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

NGS does not imply endorsement of any outside advertiser or other vendors appearing in this blog. Any opinions expressed by guest authors are their own and do not necessarily reflect the view of NGS.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Think your friends, colleagues, or fellow genealogy researchers would find this blog post interesting? If so, please let them know that anyone can read past UpFront with NGS posts or subscribe!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Suggestions for topics for future UpFront with NGS posts are always welcome. Please send any suggested topics to [email protected]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Unless indicated otherwise or clearly an NGS Public Relations piece, Upfront with NGS posts are written by Diane L Richard, editor, Upfront with NGS.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Want to learn more about interacting with the blog, please read Hyperlinks, Subscribing and Comments -- How to Interact with Upfront with NGS Blog posts!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Follow NGS via Facebook, YouTube, Google+, Twitter

National Genealogical Society Announces Official Media Registration For 2015 Family History Conference

Arlington, VA, 19 February 2015: The National Genealogical Society (NGS) announced today the opening of official media registration for the 2015 Family History Conference, which will be held 13–16 May 2015 in St. Charles, Missouri. NGS invites interested press, social media writers, bloggers, radio show hosts, and other media to register for official media credentials at http://goo.gl/kzoX8z. Registration is open through 16 March 2015. NGS will notify registrants of their acceptance by 23 March 2015.

NGS recognizes the importance of media who regularly draw attention to records, research methods, tools, software, events, and other genealogical topics. Individuals and organizations with official media designation play an important role in the success of the NGS Family History Conference by sharing in conference fun, spreading newfound knowledge, and increasing conference attendance and participation.

Official media will be permitted to use the official press and blogger logos, and will be granted use of the press table at the conference. The NGS Family History Conference blog will link to all official blogs, social media pages, and websites. NGS will award five $50 NGS 2016 Family History Conference registration credits to official media who provide the best coverage at this year’s conference. Read the NGS Social Media Policy at http://goo.gl/Sigp7P.

Founded in 1903, the National Genealogical Society is dedicated to genealogy education, high research standards, and the preservation of genealogical records. The Arlington, Virginia, based nonprofit is the premier national society for everyone, from the beginner to the most advanced family historian, seeking excellence in publications, educational offerings, research guidance, and opportunities to interact with other genealogists.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

NGS does not imply endorsement of any outside advertiser or other vendors appearing in this blog. Any opinions expressed by guest authors are their own and do not necessarily reflect the view of NGS.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Think your friends, colleagues, or fellow genealogy researchers would find this blog post interesting? If so, please let them know that anyone can read past UpFront with NGS posts or subscribe!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Suggestions for topics for future UpFront with NGS posts are always welcome. Please send any suggested topics to [email protected]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Unless indicated otherwise or clearly an NGS Public Relations piece, Upfront with NGS posts are written by Diane L Richard, editor, Upfront with NGS.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Want to learn more about interacting with the blog, please read Hyperlinks, Subscribing and Comments -- How to Interact with Upfront with NGS Blog posts!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Follow NGS via Facebook, YouTube, Google+, Twitter

18 February 2015

NGS Announces Research Trip to Allen County Public Library -- Fort Wayne, Indiana 18-22 August 2015

Arlington, VA, 18 February 2015: Registration is now open for the National Genealogical Society research trip to the Allen County Public Library in Fort Wayne, Indiana, which will take place 18–22 August 2015. Under the guidance of research consultants Janet A. Alpert, FNGS, and Patricia Walls Stamm, CG^SM, CGL^SM, participants will research for five days at one of the largest genealogical libraries in the Midwest. The trip is limited to 30 participants. For more information, or to register for the trip, visit www.ngsgenealogy.org/cs/research_trips.

The Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center is the second largest genealogy collection in the United States. The NGS research trip will allow participants to access more than 350,000 printed volumes and 513,000 microforms for family history research. The library is also home to the Periodical Source Index (PERSI), and the library has copies of the 11,000 periodicals indexed in PERSI. For additional information about the Genealogy Center, visit the website at www.genealogycenter.org/.

The research trip includes:

Guidance from experienced research leaders
Online orientation to prepare for the trip
Five days of research at the Allen County Public Library
Meet and greet at the hotel
Research consultations with group leaders throughout the trip
Four nights at the Courtyard by Marriott, including free internet in rooms, and free parking for one car or airport transfers
Fees, taxes, and gratuities

The package price, which does not include transportation to Fort Wayne, varies depending upon room occupancy and NGS membership status. Payment is required in full at the time of registration. Fees are as follows:

	Member	Non-Member
Single Room Before May 21 May 21 and later	$675 $825	$825 $975
Double/Shared Room Before May 21 May 21 and later	$450 $600	$600 $750
Room shared with non-researching companion¹ Before May 21 May 21 and later	$700 $850	$850 $1,000

¹Non-researching companion receives the benefits of the double room and any events planned.

The research consultants, Janet A. Alpert and Patricia Walls Stamm, are available throughout the trip to help guide participants.

Janet “Jan” served as president of the National Genealogical Society from 2006 to 2010 and on the Board of Directors from 2004 to 2010. In 2014, she became a Fellow of NGS. She was co-chair for the NGS Family History Conference in Richmond, Virginia, May 7-10, 2014.

Jan serves as the chair of the Records Preservation and Access Committee, a national committee that educates state and federal legislators on the need for access to public records. She has been researching her ancestors since 1981, a heritage which is mostly English, German, and Dutch. She is familiar with research in New England, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Missouri, and military and DNA records. Jan is also a member of the DAR.

Patricia “Pat” serves as Education Manager of the National Genealogical Society. She lectures on a wide variety of topics at National Genealogical Society and Federation of Genealogical Societies conferences. She is a graduate of the National Institute on Genealogical Research (NIGR) and the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research (IGHR). Pat is a course coordinator at Samford University's Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research (IGHR) and teaches at St. Louis Community College in Missouri.

Founded in 1903, the National Genealogical Society is dedicated to genealogy education, high research standards, and the preservation of genealogical records. The Arlington, Virginia, based nonprofit is the premier national society for everyone, from the beginner to the most advanced family historian, seeking excellence in publications, educational offerings, research guidance, and opportunities to interact with other genealogists.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

NGS does not imply endorsement of any outside advertiser or other vendors appearing in this blog. Any opinions expressed by guest authors are their own and do not necessarily reflect the view of NGS.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Think your friends, colleagues, or fellow genealogy researchers would find this blog post interesting? If so, please let them know that anyone can read past UpFront with NGS posts or subscribe!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Suggestions for topics for future UpFront with NGS posts are always welcome. Please send any suggested topics to [email protected]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Unless indicated otherwise or clearly an NGS Public Relations piece, Upfront with NGS posts are written by Diane L Richard, editor, Upfront with NGS.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Want to learn more about interacting with the blog, please read Hyperlinks, Subscribing and Comments -- How to Interact with Upfront with NGS Blog posts!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Follow NGS via Facebook, YouTube, Google+, Twitter