The Forget-Me-Not Hour: Recent Episodes
janeewilcox
Your Ancestors Want Their Stories to Be Told. Find out how genealogy can help you discover the mysteries of your family history.
Professional genealogist and private investigator Alvie Davidson joins Jane today to talk about freemasonry and masonic records. Alvie, a Master Mason and 32nd Degree Mason (also known as Scottish Rite), will explain what freemasonry is and its history abroad and in the U.S. Alvie will discuss what types of records were created by masonic lodges and where they can be found.
Jim Folts, head of researcher services at the NY State Archives in Albany, joins Jane today to talk about the NY Supreme Court of Judicature and the NY Court of Chancery and their records. Find out the history of the courts, what types of court records the state archives holds, what we can find in the records that are important for genealogists and how to use the records. Jim will also tell us about the recent transfer of Supreme Court and Chancery Court records from NY City to Albany -- a massive and exciting project!
"Duely & Constantly Kept: A History of the NY Supreme Court, 1691-1847 and An Inventory of Its Records (Albany, Utica, and Geneva Offices), 1797-1847" http://www.courts.state.ny.us/history/legal-history-new-york/documents/History_Supreme-Court-Duely-Constantly-Kept.pdf
The Legal Genealogist Judy Russell and the Ulster County, NY, Commissioner of Jurors Paul O'Neill join Jane to talk about jurors in relation to our ancestors and to ourselves. We'll find out the history of jurors and how the system was brought to North America. Judy and Paul will also talk about what the role of jurors was historically, what court systems worked with jurors, and what the qualifications for jurors were for our ancestors and are for us today. Paul will give the inside scoop on what it's like to be juror today, how jurors are selected and what to expect -- as well as give the pep talk that he gives to each batch of jurors going through the Ulster County court system. It's inspiring!
Photos:
Lizzie Borden jury, 1893, via Wikimedia Commons
Grand Jurors, US Circuit Court, Georgia, 1816, NARA microfilm
Burke County NC Grand Jury list, 1798, from Court of Pleas Minute Book, NC State Archives (Judy Russell)
Ulster County Courthouse and John Jay, courtesy Ulster County
Sojourner Truth, via Wikimedia Commons
Today Jackie Graziano, archivist at the Westchester County Archives, and Patrick Raftery, librarian for the Westchester County Historical Society, join Jane to talk about the unique collections that each repository holds. With both located in the same building in Elmsford, NY, the archives holds county government records and the historical society holds manuscript and other non-governmental records. Find out how the archives and the historical society work together to preserve the history of Westchester County.
Research room hours: Tuesday and Wednesday 9:00am to 4:00pm
Westchester County Archives: http://archives.westchestergov.com/
Westchester County Historical Society: http://www.westchesterhistory.com/
Author William Dollarhide joins Jane today to talk about his latest books -- a three-volume set titled Census Substitutes & State Census Records by Family Roots Publishing Co. Bill will talk about the history of state censuses and what information we might find in them. He'll also tell what types of records he included in the books as substitutes and why substitutes are needed. Find out what these books have for researchers. You will be amazed!
To order the books: https://www.familyrootspublishing.com/search_results.php
Thom Reed, Senior Marketing Manager at FamilySearch International, joins Jane today to talk about the Freedmen's Bureau records and the recently launched database and digital images for the records on FamilySearch. Thom will discuss the history of the Bureau of Refugees, Freemen, and Abandoned Lands a.k.a. Freedmen's Bureau which was established in March 1865: explain why the Bureau was established, tell what types of records were created, what types of information can be found in the records, and who used the services of the Bureau. He'll explain how to use the database to find both blacks and whites who were recorded in these records from 1865 to 1868. He'll also share some stories of finding ancestors in the database.
The Freedmen's Bureau database: http://www.discoverfreedmen.org/
Photos from www.discoverfreedmen.org
School students
Widow's pension
Colored census
Freed familiy on a plantation
Ration application
Dr. Richard Haberstroh, author of German Churches in Metropolitan New York: A Research Guide, joins Jane to talk about Germans in the New York City metro area. Find out the history of Germans in NYC, why they came, where they settled, and what churches they organized. Richard will talk about his book and give some tips on researching our German ancestors in the NYC area.
Dr. Richard Haberstroh is a native of New York City, whose six German ancestral lines arrived between 1835 and 1852. He has been involved in German research since 1984, when he made his first of many trips to Germany.
Order the book: http://newyorkfamilyhistory.myshopify.com/products/gcmny-mbr
Find Richard: http://www.icapgen.org/find-an-ag-professional/richard-haberstroh/
Photos:
St. Matthew Lutheran, Broome and Elizabeth Streets
St. Nicholas German Catholic, Kleindeutschland
Professional genealogist Angela Walton-Raji, author of Black Indian Genealogy Research: African-American Ancestors Among the Five Civilized Tribes, joins Jane this week to talk about the African American slaves of the Cherokees, Choctaws, Chickasaws, Creeks and Seminoles -- the Five Civilized Tribes. More than 20,000 enslaved people walked the Trail of Tears with the Southeastern Indians to Oklahoma and then were freed after the Civil War. Find out the history and how to research our Black Indian ancestors using the Freedmen's records (not to be confused with the Freedmen's Bureau records). Angela will also talk about the Dawes Rolls and other federal records with African Indian people.
A founding member of AfriGeneas.com, Angela. Walton-Raji specializes in information for beginning genealogists, via daily and weekly online genealogy chats on AfriGeneas. As host of a weekly genealogy podcast, a number of instructional videos and as an expert consultant on video documentaries, Angela is a published author, host of 3 blogs, in addition to a 10-year ongoing message board, 3 websites, and The African Roots Podcast.
Find Angela: http://www.african-nativeamerican.com/
Order the book: http://www.heritagebooks.com/product/PDF-W4473.html
Michael Perazzini, Senior Interpreter at Johnson Hall State Historic Site at Johnstown in Fulton County, joins Jane to talk about the 18th century history of the Mohawk Valley, with a focus on Sir William Johnson's role in the Mohawk Valley, his Mohawk consort Molly Brant, the Iroquois and early European settlers in the Valley, and their experiences during the American Revolution. The Mohawk Valley's history during the war was particularly tumultuous. We'll spotlight what happened to the Loyalists during and after the war as well. Find out what records can help you in researching your Mohawk Valley Loyalist ancestors during this period.
Johnson Hall: http://nysparks.com/historic-sites/10/details.aspx
Photos courtesy of Johnson Hall State Historic Site, Johnstown, NY Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation
Sir William Johnson, Johnson Hall, Michael Perazzini, Sir John Johnson and Lady Mary Johnson
Author, blogger and speaker Lisa Alzo joins Jane to talk about researching Eastern European ancestors. Find out which groups are considered to be Eastern Europeans and where they came from in Europe. Lisa will give a brief history of our Eastern Europeans -- explaining what their lives were like in Europe and why they emigrated to the U.S. We'll also find out how to go about researching out Eastern European ancestors, what records are available and where they can be found. Lisa is the author of The Family Tree Polish, Czech and Slovak Genealogy Guide.
Find Lisa: http://www.lisaalzo.com/
Order the book: http://www.lisaalzo.com/pcsguide
Maps:
The Univ. of Texas at Austin Libraries http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/europe.html
Topographic Maps of Eastern Europe: An Atlas of the Shtetl http://easteurotopo.org/
Note: The show is about 1.75 hours. Listen in one sitting or listen in shifts -- but listen. It's a fascinating show!
Professor Laurence M. Hauptman joins Jane today to discuss the history of the Iroquois Confederacy in Central and Western New York and his latest book, An Oneida Indian in Foreign Waters: The Life of Chief Chapman Scanandoah 1870-1953. We'll learn the story of an extraordinary man, and how Larry weaves the history of the Haudenosaunee treaties and land claims through the life of Chapman Scanandoah. We'll also find out what records are available for researching the Mohawk, Onondaga, Oneida, Cayuga, Seneca and Tuscarora. Larry will also talk about his inspiration for writing numerous books on the Iroquois.
Laurence M. Hauptman is SUNY Distinguished Professor Emeritus of History. He is the author of numerous books on the Iroquois, including Seven Generations of Iroquois Leadership: The Six Nations since 1800, which was awarded the Herbert Lehman book prize by the New York Academy of History, and In the Shadow of Kinzua: The Seneca Nation of Indians since World War II, which was awarded the annual book prize by the American Association for State and Local History.
Order the book: http://syracuseuniversitypress.syr.edu/fall-2016/oneida-indian-foreign-waters.html
Beth Hessel, Executive Director of the Presbyterian Historical Society in Philadelphia, joins Jane today to talk about the Presbyterian Historical Society (PHS). Beth will give a brief overview of the history of Prebyterianism and how it made its way to the U.S. She'll also tell us about the types of records that were created by Presbyterian churches, what records the PHS has in its collection, what to do in advance of researching at PHS, and what we can find in the PHS museum.
Bradley Longfield, Presbyterians and American Culture: A History
James H. Smylie, A Brief History of the Presbyterians
Janice Knight, Orthodoxies in Massachusetts
PHS: http://www.history.pcusa.org/
Pearl Digital Collections: https://digital.history.pcusa.org/
Town historians are unique to the state of New York. Today Jane interviews Rhinebeck Town Historian Nancy Kelly and Brookhaven Town Historian Barbara Russell. We'll find out what town historians do and how they can be a resource for genealogy research. We'll talk about the state mandate for town historians -- which does not include genealogy -- and how that might impact genealogists when they contact a town historian. Nancy and Barbara will explain what records town historians may keep.
Rhinebeck Town Historian: http://www.rhinebeck-ny.gov/historian.html
Consortium of Rhinebeck History: http://www.rhinebeckhistory.org/
Brookhaven Town Historian: https://www.brookhavenny.gov/History/BrookhavenTownHistory
Association of Public Historians of New York State, List of Historians by Municipality: http://www.aphnys.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/All-Regions-by-municipality-2016-09-29.pdf
Photos: Rhinebeck Town Meeting Records on microfilm.
Professional genealogists Billie Stone Fogarty and her son Rick Fogarty join Jane today to talk about researching the Five Civilized Nations. Billie and Rick will tell the history of the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek and Seminole tribes in the Southeastern U.S. and their removal to Oklahoma in the early decades of the 1800s. Find out how Billie and Rick research for clients looking to establish Native American ancestry, why people want to establish NA ancestry, how DNA comes into play and what types of records they use.
Find Billie and Rick here: http://heritagetrackers.com/
Rick Fogarty is a professional genealogical researcher and lecturer in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He is a third-generation genealogist with deep Oklahoma roots and a citizen of the Muscogee Creek Nation. He specializes in Native American, adoption, and DNA and forensic genealogical research.
Pamela J. Vittorio joins Jane today to talk about the Erie Canal, its upcoming bicentennial and the records that were created. Pamela will give a brief history of the canal and then tell us what documents we can use to research our ancestors who were involved in one way or another on the Erie Canal -- to the builders, the boat captains, the canal workers, the passengers. She'll also tell us how the centennial celebration of the canal is unfolding for next year and about the Chittenango Landing Canal Boat Museum.
Pamela Vittorio is a Associate Teaching Professor in the Department of English Language Studies at the New School in New York City. She has completed extensive research on the Canal, on a variety of topics, for over a decade. Pamela is also on the Board of Trustees of the Chittenango Landing Canal Boat Museum (CLCBM) and often lectures there and at other upstate sites where she conducts workshops and programs on Erie Canal social and cultural history, language and genealogy.
Chittenango Landing Canal Boat Museum: www.clcbm.org or chittenangolanding.com
Also on Facebook and Twitter: @CanalBoatMuseum
Keith Erekson, Director of the LDS Church History Library, joins Jane to talk about the history of the early Latter-day Saint church a.k.a. Mormon church from its beginnings in NY to the migration west through Ohio, Missouri, Illinois and then Utah. Keith will also tell about the handcart pioneers and the migration from California. We'll find out what records were kept by the Mormon pioneers, what databases and catalogs are available on the Church History Library website, and how we can access records about our early Mormon ancestors.
Online catalog: http://churchhistorycatalog.lds.org/
Overland pioneers database: https://history.lds.org/overlandtravel/
Genealogy resources: https://history.lds.org/article/find-your-family-in-church-history
Old Fulton New York Post Cards website creator Tom Tryniski joins Jane to talk about his work on the site. Find out why Tom started Old Fulton Post Cards, what goes on behind the scenes and what his plans are for the future. He'll also tell us how he decides what material to include and how best to use the site.
http://fultonhistory.com/
Donations: http://fultonhistory.com/Donation%20paypal.html
Index to newspapers: http://fultonhistory.com/my%20photo%20albums/All%20Newspapers/index.html
Live from Fort Wayne, IN, today Jane interviews Curt Witcher, Genealogy Center Manager of the Allen County Public Library in Fort Wayne. Having one of the largest genealogy research collections in the world, the ACPL is known for its work with PERSI, the Periodical Source Index. Find out what the ACPL collection holds -- including its special collections -- and how it creates PERSI, the largest subject index to genealogical and local history articles in periodicals in the world. Curt will also talk about what the future holds for the Genealogy Center and PERSI.
Genealogy Center: http://www.genealogycenter.org/Home.aspx
PERSI: http://search.findmypast.com/search/periodical-source-index
D. Joshua Taylor, new president of the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society and host of The Genealogy Roadshow, joins Jane to talk about the NYG&B's new strategic plan. Josh will tell us how it was developed and what new initiatives are in the works for the society and its members. Josh will also talk about his experiences as host of the PBS Genealogy Roadshow. Find out what it's like behind the scenes for the hosts and more.
Newyorkfamilyhistory.org
Genetic genealogy educators and bloggers Blaine T. Bettinger, Ph.D., JD, and Debbie Parker Wayne, CG, CGL, the authors of the new book Genetic Genealogy in Practice published by the National Genealogical Society, join Jane to talk about the book. Find out the scope of the book, what was not included, and how we can apply the contents of the book to our genealogy research. Blaine and Debbie will also discuss whether DNA testing is a necessary tool in all of our genealogy research now -- for all those cases in which DNA testing can be applied.
For more information about the book:
http://upfront.ngsgenealogy.org/2016/05/coming-soon-from-ngs-genetic-genealogy.html
http://thegeneticgenealogist.com/2016/05/03/announcing-genetic-genealogy-in-practice-a-new-book-providing-genealogists-with-the-skills-to-understand-and-apply-dna/
http://debsdelvings.blogspot.com/2016/05/new-book-coming-soon-genetic-genealogy.html
Professional genealogist Gordon Remington joins Jane to talk about New York probate records and his book New York State Probate Records: A Genealogist's Guide to Testate and Intestate Records," published by the New England Historic Genealogical Society. Gordon will give an overview of probate history in NY, tell us what records were generated in the NY probate system, talk about his book and then discuss what records can be found online since his book was published in 2011.
Order the book: http://shop.americanancestors.org/products/new-york-probate-records-a-genealogist-s-guide-to-testate-and-intestate-records
Helen V. Smith joins Jane today to talk about her latest book, Google: The Genealogist's Friend, and another of her books, Death Certificates and Archaic Medical Terms, both Unlock the Past guide books. Find out how Google can help genealogists. Helen will discuss a number of Google applications that are featured in her book. She'll also talk about death certifcates, all those strange medical terms that we find under cause of death and the history of death certificates.
Order Helen's books:
E copies of the books are available at Gen e books, the e book division of Gould Genealogy Australia
http://www.gen-ebooks.com/
Special deal for Forget Me Not Hour listeners: Using the code EB2016-10 will give AUS$10 discount
on any order over AUS$20. Expires 31 October 2016
North American listeners
Print copies of the books are available at Global Genealogy http://globalgenealogy.com/
Australian Listeners
Print copies of the books are available at Gould Genealogy http://www.gould.com.au/
United Kingdom Listeners
Print copy of the book are available at
My History bookshop http://www.my-history.co.uk/acatalog/Unlock- the-Past- Booklets.html
Frank J. Doherty, author of The Settlers of the Beekman Patent (published by the New England Historic Genealogical Society), joins Jane to talk about his multi-volume series. Find out the history of the Beekman Patent in Dutchess County, NY; who settled there, and what inspired Frank to undertake this huge project. Among other things Frank will talk about how he tackled the research, what records he used and what changes he made in the books as he became more seasoned. He'll also share some stories about the families and the research.
http://www.beekmansettlers.com/
Judy Russell, the Legal Genealogist, and Robert Charles Anderson, Director of the Great Migration Studies, join Jane to talk about plagiarism and fabrication in genealogy. We may be stepping on genealogical land mines in our research resources if we come upon word-for-word copying of another's work (plagiarism) and works that make up facts (fabrication). Judy and Bob will explain what each is, give examples, and tell how we can avoid the two mines in our research. They also discuss transcriptions and abstractions, forgeries and copyright infringement.
http://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Category:Frauds_and_Fabrications
We lost Judy at the end. Here is her reponse to the question I asked just before she was cut off: "It isn't plagiarism to reach our own conclusions! But sometimes proving that they are our own conclusions could be hard, especially if we are going down the same paths that others have trod before us. Since we should have done our reasonably exhaustive research, sometimes what we need to be saying is: 'This is where I came out, and it's the same result reached by others.'"
Photo credits: Gustave Anjou, Secretary of the American Genealogical Society, Trow's Register of Public Institutions in the Boroughs of Manhattan and the Bronx, 1911, p. 69 (www.Fold3.com).
Robert C. Anderson, New England Historic Genealogical Society.
Jane welcomes Ken Cobb, Assistant Commissioner of the Department of Records and Information Services for the City of New York, and Aaron Goodwin, professional genealogist and author of the new guide to the NYC Municipal Archives, to talk about the book. Ken and Aaron will discuss what the book, The New York City Municipal Archives: An Authorized Guide for Family Historians, covers and how it will help anyone research their New York City ancestors. Find out what records the Municipal Archives has, what little-used gems are waiting to be used and what surprises Ken and Aaron discovered.
Use this code through 15 June 2016 to receive $10 off the book: $10OFFMUNI
Order the book: http://newyorkfamilyhistory.myshopify.com/collections/products/products/the-new-york-city-municipal-archives-an-authorized-guide-for-family-historians-members-pre-order
Email the Municipal Archives to order records in advance: archives @ records . nyc . gov
Website: www.nyc.gov/records
Bennett Greenspan, President and CEO of Family Tree DNA, joins Jane to talk about yDNA. Bennett will tell us what yDNA is, how it can be applied to genealogical research, and what to do when we get our results from Family Tree DNA. He'll discuss features of the Family Tree DNA yDNA page as well.
We were cut off at the end. Thank you, Bennett, for joining me!
Find Family Tree DNA here.
Cyndi Ingle of Cyndi's List joins Jane today to tell us about this one-off genealogy resource website. Cyndi will tell us her inspiration for starting the list and how she keeps up with all that's new in the world of online genealogy. She'll share her favorites and tell us some under-utilized gems.
http://www.cyndislist.com/
A Guided Tour of Cyndi's List 2.0 on Legacy Family Tree Webinars: http://familytreewebinars.com/download.php?webinar_id=383
Cyndi Ingle, a genealogist for more than 36 years, is the creator of Cyndi’s List; author of three books for genealogical research on the Internet; a past member of the board of directors for the National Genealogical Society; and an active member in several other genealogical groups.
Rhonda Konig, librarian and genealogy specialist at the Grosvenor Room at the Buffalo and Erie County Public Library, joins Jane to talk about Western New York's premier genealogy research repository. Rhonda will talk about the highlights of the collection, such as the scrapbooks and the local history card catalog. Also at the library is the archives of the Western New York Genealogical Society with its early settlers index and member family trees.
Find the Grosvenor Room at https://www.buffalolib.org/content/grosvenor/genealogy-collection
Western NY Genealogy Society: http://www.wnygs.org/
Kimberly Szewczyk, the Chief of Interpretation and Education, joins Jane to talk about the Women's Rights National Historical Park in Senenca Falls, NY. Kimberly will talk about the history of the park, its museum, and the Wesleyan Methodist Church and houses (including Elizabeth Cady Stanton's house) that make up the park. She'll explain the first Women's Rights National Convention held at the Wesleyan Methodist Church in Seneca Falls in 1848 and the Declation of Sentiments and Resolutions that was signed there, as well as what White House personnel were doing there in the past year.
Women's Rights National Historical Park: http://www.nps.gov/wori/index.htm
Declaration of Sentiments and Resolutions: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Declaration_of_Sentiments
Holly Sammons, genealogy librarian and head of the Local History & Genealogy Department at the Onondaga County Public Library in Syracuse, joins Jane today to talk about the Local History & Genealogy Department of the library and the Central New York Genealogical Society (CNYGS). Find out the scope of the department's collection and the unique holdings of this genealogical gem of a library. Holly will also tell us about Tree Talks, the quarterly publication of the CNYGS.
OCPL Local History & Genealogy Department: http://www.onlib.org/web/lh/index.htm
Central NY Genealogical Society: http://cnygs.org/
Tree Talks: http://cnygs.org/publications.html
New York State Family History Conference 2016: http://www.nysfhc.org/
Bennett Greenspan, president and CEO of Family Tree DNA, joins Jane to talk about mitochondrial (mt) DNA. Find out what mtDNA is, what the differences between mtDNA and yDNA haplogroups are, and how to interpret our results. Bennett will explain how the migration maps and origins used by FTDNA were determined, what applications mtDNA has for genealogy research, and where he thinks mtDNA applications will be going in the future.
Find Family Tree DNA here.
Today Cynthia Van Ness, Director of Library and Archives at the Buffalo History Museum, joins Jane to talk about the archives and library at what is otherwise known as the Buffalo and Eric County Historical Society. Find out what gems can be found at the library, especially its War of 1812 collection, the Williamsville Hospital records from the War of 1812 and the 99,000-name newspaper obituary card file.
http://www.buffalohistory.org/Learn/Research-Library.aspx
Catalog: http://opac.libraryworld.com/opac/home.php
Serendipity? Chance? Metaphysics? Author Henry Z Jones discusses these and his book Psychic Roots: Serendipity and Intuition in Genealogy as it applies to genealogy research. Find out what serendipity is and how Hank began his journey to explore the world of metaphysics. Hank will tell us some of his favorite examples from the book and how we can foster our own intuition as we apply good research principles to our genealogy research.
http://www.hankjones.com/
Order the book: http://www.hankjones.com/psychic.htm
Author and spiritual teacher Clark Strand joins Jane to talk about his latest book, Waking up to the Dark: Ancient Wisdom for a Sleepless Age. Clark will explain what his message about the Dark is, how our ancestors related to the dark, and how his message is relevant to the ancestors and to us as genealogists.
Clark Strand: www.ClarkStrand.com
Order the book: http://www.amazon.com/Waking-Up-Dark-Ancient-Sleepless/dp/0812997727
We had some major technical difficulties with this show. It's been spliced and diced, but it's a great interview. Enjoy!
Kathryn Lake Hogan, Dominion Genealogist of the United Empire Loyalists Association of Canada, joins Jane today to talk about New York Loyalists who went to Canada after the American Revolution. She'll answer questions such as: What was the Loyalist experience in New York during the war? Why did they leave? What happened to them once they got there? How do we go about researching them?
Find Kathryn at: http://www.looking4ancestors.com/
Legacy QuickGuide
Liberty’s Exiles: America’s Loyalists in the Revolutionary World by Maya Jasanoff
Loyalists and Layabouts: The Rapid Rise and Faster Fall of Shelburne, Nova Scotia, 1783-1792 by Stephen Kimber
Image: The Coming of the Loyalists, Henry Sandham [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
The directors of IGHR (Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research), SLIG (Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy), and GRIP (Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh) join Jane in a round-table discussion of the genealogy institutes. Hear Peg Ivanyo from SLIG, Lori Northrup from IGHR and Elissa Scalise Powell from GRIP talk about what institutes are, what makes them different from genealogy conferences and other learning experiences, and what direction they think institutes are headed. Plus lots more!
SLIG: http://www.infouga.org/aem.php?eid=16
GRIP: http://www.gripitt.org/
IGHR: http://ighr.samford.edu
Photos: Co-Directors of GRIP, Elissa Scalise Powell, CG, CGL, and Deborah Lichtner Deal
Jane Wilcox, with Elissa Scalise Powell, getting ready to give her "Finding American Women's Voices through the Centuries" talk at GRIP in June 2015
Director of IGHR, Lori Northrup
Director of SLIG, Peg Ivanyo
SLIG Advanced Methods course participants
Jim Gandy, librarian-archivist at the New York State Military Museum and Veterans Research Center, joins Jane to talk about the collection in the archives at the museum in Saratoga Springs. Find out the history of this repository gem, how it's connected to the New York State National Guard, and what its collection contains. Jim will talk about some of the highlights and what can be found online.
NYSMM website: https://dmna.ny.gov/historic/mil-hist.htm
NYSMM on NewYorkHeritage.org: http://cdm16694.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/landingpage/collection/nysmm
Note: Caroline Pointer, Vice President of Membership, filled in for Josh Taylor today.
D. Joshua Taylor, President of the Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS), joins Jane to talk about this organization and its mission. Why was it organized? Who are its members and what are the benefits of membership? What makes an FGS conference different from other genealogy conferences? What upcoming events does FGS have planned? And more!
Find FGS here: http://fgs.org/
Records Preservation and Access Committee: http://www.fgs.org/rpac/
Preserver the Pensions: http://www.preservethepensions.org/
Author Henry Z Jones, FASG & FGBS, joins Jane to talk about the Palatine Germans in New York. Hank is the author of multiple books on the Palatine Germans who settled in New York in the early to mid 1700s. Find out who these people were, what brought them to North America, and how you can find out more about your Palatine ancestors. Is there more to discover about your Palatine families after Hank's research?
http://www.hankjones.com/
Advice from Hank: http://blogs.ancestry.com/ancestry/2014/10/27/7-genealogical-lessons-for-researching-your-palatine-ancestors/
Order The Palatine Families of New York - 1710 and other books directly from Hank at http://www.hankjones.com/palny.htm
For a list of Hank's other books and articles: http://www.hankjones.com/index.htm
http://fasg.org/fellows/current-fellows/henry-z-jones-jr/
CeCe Moore, Your Genetic Genealogist, joins Jane today to talk about her work with adoptions and DNA. Find out how she uses DNA to help her adoptee clients discover their origins. What DNA tests does she recommend? What are some of her success stories? How can adoptees do it all themselves?
http://www.yourgeneticgenealogist.com/
Art historian and genealogist Deborah Child joins Jane today to talk about her book Soldier Engraver Forger: Richard Brunton's Life on the Fringe in America's New Republic. Find out how art history and genealogy were used to tell the story of 18th century counterfeiter Richard Brunton -- a deserter from the British Army during the Revolutionary War and one of the first makers of engraved family history registers. Deborah will talk about how she researched Brunton's life and his work as an engraver and painter.
Order the book: http://shop.americanancestors.org/collections/american-history-and-culture/products/soldier-engraver-forger-richard-bruntons-life-on-the-fringe-in-americas-new-republic
Find Deborah: http://www.deborahmchild.com/
First image: Sacred to the Memory of Mrs. Lois Foot. She died Dec, 23 1802 age 40 / In love she liv'd; in peace she died/her life was asked and was denied.
Silver medallion, 2 1/16" x 1 9/16"
Illust. William L. Warren, “Richard Brunton.” Art in America 41, No. 2 (Spring 1953), page 71. Photo caption “Mrs. George H. Decker, Watertown, CT.” Current whereabouts unknown
Second Image:
Family register of Charles Raynolds & Hannah Bidwell
Rev War Pens and Bnty-Land-Warr App W17528, NARA
William Dollarhide, author of New York State Censuses and Substitutes, will join Jane to talk about his book. Find out what this indispensible book contains for New York genealogy research. What are the NY state censuses? Which have survived? Where can we find them? What are some of the substitutes?
http://www.genealogical.com/products/New+York+State+Censuses+&+Substitutes/1494.html
Robert Charles Anderson, the Great Migration Project director at the New England Historic Genealogical Society in Boston, joins Jane to talk about his new book, The Great Migration Directory. Find out who and what is in the book and who these immigrants were.
Picking up where The Great Migration series left off in 1635, the book features those immigrants to 1635 and the remaining from 1636-1640. The book is the culmination of decades of work for Bob on the Puritans who arrived in New England between 1620 and 1640.
Order the book: http://shop.americanancestors.org/products/the-great-migration-directory
Join author Craig R. Scott as he talks about his new book "Understanding Revolutionary War and Invalid Pension Ledgers 1818-1872 and the Pension Payment Vouchers They Represent." Find out what the book contains and how to use the book, a valuable how-to and index book! Craig will explain Revolutionary War pensions and what a pension ledger is.
Pension book: http://www.heritagebooks.com/product/101-S5586.html
DNA Conference and Cruise: http://heritagebooks.com/cruise.php
Military Pension Laws by Christine Rose: http://heritagebooks.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=HBI∏_Code=711-4511&Category_Code=
Military Bounty Land by Christine Rose: http://heritagebooks.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=HBI∏_Code=711-0020&Category_Code=
[Note: The broadcast was cut off a few minutes before the end of the show.]
Curator Dan Ward joins Jane to talk about The Eric Canal Museum in Syracuse, NY. We'll find out what its mission is, how it differs from other museums about the Erie Canal and what its archives hold. He'll tell us about the recently opened exhibit wing in this gem of a museum. This is a must-see museum for all things Erie Canal!
http://eriecanalmuseum.org/
Photos:
Erie Canal line boat at the museum
Diagram from the museum
"View on the Erie Canal." 1829. The New York Public Library Digital Collections. The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Print Collection, The New York Public Library. http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47d9-7ba7-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99
Dan Ward at the helm.
Weighlock Station in Syracuse where the museum is housed.
Join Michelle Tucker Chubenko, an organizer of the Ukrainian research Facebook group Nashi Predky (Our Ancestors), as she talks about how this group formed, how it mushroomed in membership in just a year, and what it offers its members of Ukrainian descent. She'll talk about the difficulty of researching ethnic groups from the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe communist countries. Find out how you too can form your own group that focuses on one ethnic group. This show is not just for Ukrainians!
Facebook URL: https://www.facebook.com/groups/NashiPredky/
Website: http://nashipredky.org/
Ukrainian Historical and Education Center: www.ukrhec.org
Photos:
October 25, 2014 - Facebook members who attended 1st Annual Conference
March 21, 2015 - Spring Conference attendees
1897 Map of Galicia (public domain) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Galicia_1897.jpg
Map of Russian Empire Gubernias within today's Ukraine http://commons.
Join Ken Cobb as he talks about one of the richest repositories in New York City: the New York Municipal Archives. Ken, the Assistant Commissioner of Department of Records and Information Services for the City of New York, will talk about the collections of the archives -- the vital records, tax records, police records, almshouse records, mayoral records, and more. Find out what the Dutch holdings include from the 1600s. Ken will also tell us about the vital record digitization project currently underway.
http://www.nyc.gov/html/records/html/archives/archives.shtml
Vital records: http://www.nyc.gov/html/records/html/archives/genealogy.shtml
Join program co-chair Marian Pierre-Louis live from the New England Regional Genealogical Conference in Providence, RI as she talks about the highlights of the conference. Who spoke? What were the most popular topics to be presented? How does the conference get put together? What's in store for us in two years?
http://www.nergc.org/
Photos: John McNiff as William Blackstone, first English settler of Rhode Island
Speaker Judy Russell
Tech Day at NERGC
Jane welcomes the presenters of the New York Genealogical & Biographical Society-sponsored New York Track at the National Genealogical Society's 2015 conference in St. Charles, Missouri. The New York Track team will talk about the lineup of New York topics at this year’s conference. The track presenters include Karen Maurer Jones on New York Land: Patroonships, Manors, Patents, Rent Wars & Land and Records Created by New York's Towns and Cities: Uncommonly Rich Resources, Terry Koch-Bostic on City Directories: Antiquarian People Finders, and Jane on The New York Gateway: Immigration and Migration and New York City and State Vital Records and Their Substitutes. Terry will also give the NYG&B Luncheon talk on Intuition and Genealogy Success: A Sixth Sense, Chance, Coincidence, or Serendipity? The New York Track and Luncheon take place on 14 May.
Terry will also talk about the conference as a whole.
http://www.ngsgenealogy.org/
Photos:
Town of Cortlandt, Westchester County, 1847 Births, Westchester County Archives, Elmsford.
Badger & Porter's Stage Register, 1833, New York State Library Manuscripts and Special Collections, Albany.
This morning author Rosana Y. Wan joins Jane to talk about her book The Culinary Lives of John and Abigail Adams and her experience working as a park ranger at the Adams National Historic Site in Quincy, Massachusetts. Rosana will discuss the traditional New England fare that the Adams ate while living in Massachusetts and the international influences that their travels brought to their food as they became revolutionaries, diplomats and the First Family of the U.S.
Born in Hong Kong and raised in various places in the United States, Rosana Yin-Ting Wan attended University of Houston-Downtown in Houston and later graduated with honors from Suffolk University, Boston, with a degree in history. Since relocating to Boston, where she currently lives, she has pursued her passion for studies in the history of the American Revolution.
Find the book here: http://www.schifferbooks.com/the-culinary-lives-of-john-abigail-adams-a-cookbook-5538.html
Adams National Historic Site: http://www.nps.gov/adam/index.htm
Photo of John Adams birthplace: "John Adams birthplace, Quincy, Massachusetts" by Daderot at the English language Wikipedia. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:John_Adams_birthplace,_Quincy,_Massachusetts.JPG#/media/File:John_Adams_birthplace,_Quincy,_Massachusetts.JPG
Rebroadcast from October 2012.
Suzanne Wasserman, director of the Gotham Center for New York City History, joins Jane to talk about New York City during the Great Depression of the 1930s. How did the Great Depression affect your NYC ancestors? What has the 1940 U.S. Census told us about their lives? Suzanne is an historian and award-winning filmaker. She has a Ph.D. in American history from New York University.
Find the Gotham Center at www.GothamCenter.org.
Depression Era photographs by Rebecca Lepkoff.
A rebroadcast from June 2011.
Anne Gordon, Ulster County (N.Y.) Historian, and Bob Lusk, nationally known folk musician, who are spearheading the drive to erect a statue of Sojourner Truth in Port Ewen, N.Y. (where Sojourner lived); and Thomas McLiechey, a descendant of Sojourner from Battle Creek, Mich., talk about Sojourner, her legacy, and slave ancestry in New York. Bob will sing a few songs written by Sojourner as well.
Among the photos is the statue of Sojourner Truth, dedicated on 21 September 2013, in Port Ewen.
Today author Ron Arons joins Jane to talk about his book Mind Maps for Genealogy. Find out what mind maps are, how they can be applied to your genealogy research, and what the best mind mapping software programs are.
Ron has given 250+ presentations internationally, which has earned him a reputation as a humorous, informative, and inspiring speaker. He has authored three books: The Jews of Sing Sing, WANTED! U.S. Criminal Records, and, most recently, Mind Maps for Genealogy. In 2006 he appeared on the PBS television series The Jewish Americans as an expert on NY Jewish criminality. In 2005 he won a Hackman Research Grant from the NY State Archives to continue his research regarding historical Jewish criminals in New York. Ron earned a B.S. in Engineering from Princeton University and an MBA from the University of Chicago.
To order the book: http://www.ronarons.com/
Today's show features New York Family History Research Guide and Gazetteer, a new genealogy resource book from the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society. McKelden Smith, President of the NYG&B, joins Jane to tell us what this monumental work is all about -- the first of its kind ever for New York. Find out what this must-have research tool for New York genealogy includes and how it can aid your New York research.
To order: http://newyorkfamilyhistory.org/global/store/new-york-family-history-research-guide-and-gazetteer
Note: a dropped call in the middle of the show, but we were up and running again quickly.
Michael Leclerc, chief genealogist at Mocavo, joins Jane this morning to talk about Mocavo, the genealogy search engine. Find out how Mocavo works as a search engine, what types of records can be found in its database, how it is different from other databases, and what each subscription tier provides a subscriber.
https://www.mocavo.com/
support@mocavo.com
Note: We were disconnected at the end, so you will hear an abrupt end. Thank you to Dr. Gehring for being a guest on the show!
Today's broadcast is a continuation of Dr. Charles Gehring's interview from Wednesday, November 6. We'll find out more about the Dutch language and customs in New York, the nuances of the provincial Dutch records that have been preserved and translated, how we genealogists can use the records, and more about what the New Netherland Institute does.
Charles dot Gehring at nysed dot gov
www.NewNetherlandInstitute.org
Archivist, paleographer and historical researcher Peter Foden joins Jane from the United Kingdom today to talk about using English manorial records to track your colonial American family, whether they were in New England or Virginia, to their roots in England. Peter will discuss what types of records can be found in the manor records, how to use the records, what information can be found in the records, and the challenges in using these records from the 17th and 16th centuries -- including the penmanship and language. (Many of the records are in Latin!)
Peter has worked in local authority archive services in Shropshire and Staffordshire, in education, and in business (the Oxford University Press and Boots the Chemist). He is currently providing archive consultancy services to a stately home, among other freelance activities listed on his website. He is a member of the Archives and Records Association (UK & Ireland).
http://www.peterfoden.com/
http://apps.nationalarchives.gov.uk/mdr/
Denis Stuart, Manorial Records
Charles Gehring, director of the New Netherland Research Center at the New York State Library in Albany, joins Jane today to talk about the Research Center and its supporting organization, New Netherland Institute. What do the research center and institute do? What new information has been discovered about the Dutch through the new translations of the provincial Dutch records?
A continuation of Dr. Gehring's interview will be broadcast on Wednesday, 3 December. Among other things, we'll find out how can we genealogists use the records that have been preserved and translated from provincial Dutch New York and more about what the New Netherland Institute does.
http://www.newnetherlandinstitute.org/
Charles Gehring is presently director of the New Netherland Research Center (sponsored by the New York State Library). The Center is responsible for translating the official records of the Dutch colony, promoting awareness of the Dutch role in American history, and maintaining a center for research in New Netherlandic studies at the Library.
Jan Alpert, the chair of the Records Preservation and Access Committe (RPAC), joins Jane this evening to talk about the organization and its mission to preserve open access to records around the country. Jan will discuss the Genealogists' Declaration of Rights, which was announced at the NGS Conference in Richmond, Virginia in May 2014; what it means to genealogists as records are increasingly being closed to the public; and what we can do to help keep records available to us and maintain privacy as the same time. She'll tell us where the current hot spots around the country are.
http://www.fgs.org/rpac/
To sign the Genealogists' Declaration of Rights: http://bit.ly/gen-declaration
"60 Minutes" episode on tax refund fraud: http://www.cbs.com/shows/60_minutes/video/RzmZGQTr7RPHG2pfxMj4ufrsdTRnQXPd/biggest-irs-scam-around-identity-tax-refund-fraud/
Join AJ Jacobs on today's show to find out about the Global Family Reunion, which will be held on 6 June 2015 at the New York Hall of Science, on the grounds of the World’s Fair in Queens. Journalist, lecturer, human guinea pig and author of four New York Times bestsellers, AJ is also host of the biggest, most inclusive and most fascinating family reunion in history. He will tell us what's in store for all attendees -- including talks by celebrities, scientists and comedians.
Also with AJ today will be his chief genealogist and cousin coordinator, Eowyn Langholf, talking about the genealogy behind the event.
The Global Family Reunion will be featured in a documentary by Morgan Spurlock (Supersize Me).
http://globalfamilyreunion.com/
To volunteer for researching, contact Eowyn at gfrcousincoordinator@gmail.com.
Today the manager of the ProGen Study Groups, Angela Packer McGhie, joins Jane to talk about the groups and the book on which the study groups are based: Professional Genealogy: A Manual for Researchers, Writers, Editors, Lecturers and Librarians. Angela will discuss how how the study groups work and how they can help you in your careers as genealogists -- professional genealogists and aspiring professional genealogists alike. Find out what topics participants really appreciate learning about and what topics are the most challenging to cover.
http://www.progenstudy.org/
Order the book Professional Genealogy at www.heritagebooks.com. If you are a member of The Association of Professional Genealogists, you can get a 15% discount by using the coupon code available on the members only section of www.apgen.org.
Photos: ProGen Study Group Alumni at Salt Lake Institue of Genealogy (SLIG) 2014.
Today professional genealogist Yvette Hoitink joins Jane to talk about researching colonial American Dutch ancestors in their homeland in the 1500s and 1600s. Joining us from Holland, Yvette will discuss Dutch research -- how to find our roots in Holland, what types of records our ancestors will be found in, tips for negotiating Dutch records, and more.
http://www.dutchgenealogy.nl/
http://www.wiewaswie.nl – WieWasWie [Who Was Who], database of civil registration and church records.
http://www.meertens.knaw.nl/nfb/index.php?taal=eng – Database of surnames in the Netherlands
http://www.newnetherlandinstitute.org – New Netherland Institute. The Research section has an online bibliography that includes the references to the orphan master’s publications:
Fernow, Berthold, trans. and ed. Minutes of the Orphanmasters of New Amsterdam, 1655-1663. 2 vols. New York: Francis P. Harper, 1902-1907.
Images:
Old West India Company, Chamber of Amsterdam, minutes 1635-1636, 20 January 1635
Bredevoort, Gelderland, Netherlands, minutes of the voluntary court, 5-6 January 1614.
Johannes Vingboons, View of Nieuw Amsterdam/New York, 1665
Author Robert Charles Anderson, FASG, joins Jane this morning to talk about his latest book -- hot off the press -- entitled Elements of Genealogical Analysis. Bob will discuss this genealogical research methodology approach that he has used for more than 30 years in his work as director of the Great Migration Study Project which documents the wave of Puritans and others from England who came to New England between 1620 and 1640. He'll tell us what we can find in the book and how it can help us in our genealogy research.
Order the book here: http://www.americanancestors.org/Product.aspx?id=29383
Don Eckerle of the German Genealogy Group (GGG) and John Martino of the Italian Genealogy Group (IGG) join Jane this morning to talk about the mammoth indexing projects their groups took on when they decided to tackle Long Island records and then New York City vital records and then NARA NYC records and then some more. Don and John will discuss what records they have done, what records they intend to do, and what the differences in their groups' databases are. They will also tell us how they manage their indexing projects with more than 2,000 volunteers. They'll also share interesting stories from their indexing and tell us about unusual records or people that they came across in the records.
In May 2014 Don, John and their GGG partner Bob Boeckle received the National Genealogical Society's Award of Merit in recognition of exceptional contributions to the field of genealogy.
Photos:
John and Don are pictured with the other New York attendees at the NGS conference in Richmond, Virginia. They are all members and volunteers for the GGG and IGG indexing projects.
http://www.germangenealogygroup.com/
http://www.italiangen.org/
Rebroadcast from 6 December 2012
What did your New York ancestors think about the ratification of the U.S. Constitution in 1787? Were they for it? Against it? Join U.S. Constitution historian John Kaminski, professor and director of the Center for the Study of the American Constitution at the University of Wisconsin, as he talks about how New Yorkers felt about all that was going on as our country's law of the land was created and ratified. John also talks about other states.
John is also the co-editor of The Documentary History of the Ratification of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, 1787-1791
http://history.wisc.edu/generalinfo/links/ratification_of_constitution_project.html
For information on the books, see also http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/ratification/
Emily Aulicino, author of Genetic Genealogy: The Basics and Beyond, will join Jane this evening. Emily will explain some of the foundations of DNA testing for genealogy, discuss the purposes of the different DNA tests, and talk about some of the features the three main autosomal DNA testing companies (23andMe, AncestryDNA, and Family Tree DNA/FTDNA) offer to aid genealogists. She'll give us an overview of her book, telling us what we'll discover, and most importantly, she'll give us some examples of how DNA testing solved genealogical mysteries.
Find Emily's book here: http://dna-explained.com/2014/01/24/genetic-genealogy-the-basics-and-beyond-by-emily-aulicino/
Find Emily's blog here: http://genealem-geneticgenealogy.blogspot.com/
Jane's Note: We had a little glitch toward the beginning of the show when the calls were dropped. We finished the show without any others.
The editor of "The New York History Blog," John Warren, will join Jane to talk about this excellent blog for New York history. If you don't know about this blog, listen to this show, find out about it and read it!
http://newyorkhistoryblog.org/
Legislation before the NY State Assembly to create a state history commission: Bill No. 6226. Contact your representative to co-sponsor the bill.
Tonight host Jane Wilcox welcomes Genie Milgrom, the author of My 15 Grandmothers. Genie made headlines in January when her story of tracing her lineage to Crypto Jews became known. We will talk about Genie's journey of discovery, the ancestors she learned about on the way, and her book. It's a fascinating tale.
Genie Milgrom crossed the planet in search of her Crypto Jewish or Marrano ancestors. She was able to find 15 grandmothers in an unbroken maternal lineage going back to the early 1500's. It was also possible to successfully prove that her family had been Converso Jews from before the Spanish Inquisition. This Jewish lineage was traced back to a small village called Fermoselle in the province of Zamora, Spain right on The Duero River, across from Mogadouro, Portugal.
http://www.geniemilgrom.com/
Special Edition: Live from the National Genealogical Society Family History Conference. Jan Alpert, co-chair of the 2014 NGS Family History Conference, joins Jane to recap this year’s conference in Richmond, Virginia. Find out the highlights of the conference: who spoke, what sessions were not to be missed, what activities outside the conference were happening, who won the writing awards, and much more. We'll also talk about the newest feature of the conference: live streaming of several of the presentations.
http://conference.ngsgenealogy.org/
http://jamb-inc.com/
Members of the Memory Keepers, a group of descendants of the Old Edgefield District (South Carolina) African American diaspora and one historian, join Jane this evening to talk about their collaboration on their new book called Our Ancestors, Our Stories. Tonight's show includes Bernice Bennett, Harris Bailey, Jr., Ellen Butler and Vincent Sheppard.
The Memory Seekers came together to share their family stories, create a family legacy, and fulfill a vision to write and publish a book about their African American ancestors.
This book offers you insights into the African American experience in Edgefield County, South Carolina through the eyes of five very different authors, who have a strong belief that it is their responsibility to tell these stories. They want their ancestors to be remembered as individuals who lived, loved, worked, survived, raised families, and had faith in God. Through their walks in life from slavery to freedom, they left a legacy.
http://thememorykeepers.net/
Today Rev. Wayne Brandow, minister of the Bible Baptist Church of Galway (Saratoga County), joins Jane to talk about the history of the Baptist movement in England, what beliefs separated them from other English non-conformist movement, and the evolution of the churches in North America and in New York in particular. Learn how the Great Awakening in the mid 1700s impacted the Baptist movement in New York. Find out why those of us with Baptist ancestors are hard-pressed to find data about our ancestors in the church records.
Rev. Brandow taught Baptist church history at the Northeast Branch of Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary in Schenectady, NY.
Photos: Bible Baptist Church of Galway, Saratoga County.
References:
Backus, Issac. A History of New England with Particular Reference to the Denomination of Christian Called Baptists Second Edition with Notes by David Weston, 2 Vol. Reprint, 1871. T (note Backus' ed 1784)
Benedict, David. A General History of the Baptist Denomination of America and Other Parts of the World. 1813
_____________ . Fifty Years Among the Baptists. New York, Sheldon & Company, 1860. reprint
Gardner, Robert G. Baptists of Early America: A Statistical History, 1639-1790. 1983.
Jane welcomes the presenters of the NYG&B-sponsored NY Track at the NGS 2014 conference in Richmond. The NY Track team will talk about the lineup of NY topics at this year’s conference. The track includes Naomi Joshi on Navigating the Past: Gazetteers and Genealogists, Terry Koch-Bostic on Upside Down Migration: South Carolina to Nova Scotia to New York, and Joan Koster-Morales on New York’s Confederate Prisons: Elmira and New York City. Naomi will also give the NYG&B Luncheon talk on How to assemble a weighty genealogical tome and survive the experience! The NY Track and Luncheon take place on 8 May.
http://www.ngsgenealogy.org/
Note: The recording for Terry's Misspelled, Misunderstood or Deliberate? Are Your New York Ancestors’ Records Hidden Under a Surname Variation? and Jane's Looking for Your New York Tenant Farmer: Little-Used Resources were lost with some Skype problems.
Photos: Fort Lafayette, by Deloss Barnum, NY Public Library, Photography Collection, Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs
New York Family History Research Guide and Gazetteer book cover, New York Genealogical and Biographical Society,
Westchester County from the New York Family History Gazetteer.
Rensselaer Manor Mill, from the collection of the Peterburgh Town Historian.
Author William Ruddock talks about the property forfeitures and confiscations of New York's Loyalists during the American Revolution. Learn how the new state of New York went about confiscating property of those who supported the king and what records were maintained in the process. After a general conversation, we will focus on Putnam County and the confiscated properties of the Philipse Highland Patent, featured in Bill's new book, Confiscated Properties of Philipse Highland Patent, Putnam County, New York, 1780-1785.
To order Bill's book: http://heritagebooks.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=HBI∏_Code=101-R5385&Category_Code=
Bill Ruddock, a native of Washington County, New York, has described genealogy as his avocation more than 3 years. He has written three family histories and a history of an Irish owned linen mill in Greenwich, New York. He has numerous journal articles and currently serves as contributing editor of the New York Genealogical & Biographical Register and as Editor of the Detroit Society for Genealogical Research Magazine. He specializes in working with tough problems in genealogy. He is currently writing an article on the Darvall family of Amsterdam and New York. He is the author of Confiscated Properties of Philipse Highland Patent, Putnam County, New York, 1780-1785.
Special 30-minute edition (with some broadcast hiccoughs, live from London): Today David Showler, sales manager for the Who Do You Think You Are? LIVE event, joins Jane to recap the three-day event in London. Find out how an event with up to 13,000 genealogists is produced, what special features the event has for the participants, why should Americans attend, how this event is tied in to the British TV show "Who Do You Think You Are?," and lots more.
Find out about the world-wide WWI commemoration project and how you can particpate with your own WWI ancestors. http://www.livesofthefirstworldwar.org/
http://www.whodoyouthinkyouarelive.com/
Special Edition 30 minute show: Join Dick Eastman and host Jane Wilcox live from the annual Who Do You Think You Are? Live event in London. First-timer Jane will get an introduction to the event on her first day there from Dick, who has attended multiple times in the past. Find out from Dick what it's like for an American to attend the three-day event, what features of the event are particularly interesting and are not to be missed, how one navigates an event of up to 13,000 genealogists, and how this event is different from genealogy events in the U.S.
Photos: Jane and Dick at the My Heritage booth at Who Do You Think You Are? Live event. We're in London!
http://www.whodoyouthinkyouarelive.com/
Biographer David Fiske joins Jane this evening to talk about his co-authored book Solomon Northup: The Complete Story of the Author of Twelve Years a Slave. David wrote this biography of Twelves Years A Slave author Solomon Northup, whose own memoir recently came out as a movie. David talks about Solomon's life in upstate New York before and after the travesty of his enslavement.
Find the book here http://solomonnorthup.com/
Photos: Cover of David' book with the only known likeness of Solomon Northup.
The Old Fort House in Fort Edward, N.Y., where Solomon lived before moving to Saratoga Springs. The Fort House still exists and is part of a museum complex in Fort Edward, on the Hudson River in Washington County.
Join Annaline Dinkelman, founder of Wall Street Walks, as she takes us on an audio tour of Wall Street and other historic areas of downtown Manhattan. Find out about founding fathers Alexander Hamilton, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson in relation to Wall Street, the financial capital of the country. How did the founding of the new federal banking system impact our ancestors? When did our ancestors start investing? How did Abigail Adams speculate wisely?
Annaline Dinkelmann is the owner and founder of Wall Street Walks. It is the first guided walking tour company in New York City to focus exclusively on the stock market and financial history. Prior to starting Wall Street Walks in 2007, Annaline worked at Morgan Stanley.
https://www.wallstreetwalks.com/
Photos: New York Stock Exchange (with flag)
Wall Street
One World Trade Center from West Street
Fraunces Tavern
Lower Manhattan showing original island and landfill
Alexander Hamilton's grave at Trinity Church
Trinity Church steeple
James Watson House
Customs House at Bowling Green
Find out what the New York State Archives in Albany holds for genealogists as Dr. Jim Folts shares his unsurpassed knowledge of the archives with us. We'll explore military records, tax records, vital records, little-used gems at the state archives and more. Jim is head of researcher services.
NY State Archives: http://www.archives.nysed.gov/aindex.shtml
NY State Dept of Health Genealogical Research Death Index starting 1957:
https://health.data.ny.gov/Health/Genealogical-Research-Death-Index-Beginning-1957/vafa-pf2s?
Ancestry.com NY Portal: http://www.archives.nysed.gov/a/research/res_ancestry.shtml
Photos:
New York State Cultural Education Center in Albany.
Digitized images available to New York residents via the Ancestry.com New York: Abstracts of Civil War Muster Rolls, New York State Archives series 13775. Sample image126th Infantry Regiment, record for Pvt. William BakerCensus of Poorhouses and Almshouses, New York State Archives series A1978. Sample image: Ulster County Poorhouse, 1888.
Jean Wilcox Hibben joins Jane this evening to tell all about behind the scenes of PBS's "Genealogy Roadshow." Lead reseacher for the show, Jean will talk about the research that went into each segment and what role the researching genealogists played in what we saw on the air.
Find Jean at circlemending.org
Find the Genealogy Roadshow at http://www.pbs.org/program/genealogy-roadshow/
and the application for a possible second season at http://www.grcasting.com/
Photos of researchers: Jean Wilcox Hibben, Jamie Mayhew, Gena P. Ortega, Linda Serna, Alice Volkert.
Join Ron Taylor from the Patterson (Putnam Co., New York) Historical Society as he talks about one of the most challenging areas in New York to research -- The Oblong. The Oblong is the 1-3/4 mile wide strip of land that was disputed by New York and Connecticut. It slipped through the cracks in many records. Find out the history -- who owned it, who lived there -- and what records are available to do research on ancestors who lived in The Oblong.
http://www.pattersonhistoricalsociety.org/History.html
Correction: Dutchess County Ancients Documents (a.k.a. Court of Common Pleas) are under Dutchess County Probate records on FamilySearch.org.
Photos:
Ron Taylor at the Old Burying Ground, Patterson, NY
Valleyville Quaker Meeting House, Haviland Hollow, NY
Fredericksburg map
James DeWolf Perry, executive director of The Tracing Center on Histories and Legacies of Slavery and a descendant of RI slave traders, joins Jane to talk about the work of The Tracing Center, whose mission is to create greater awareness of the entire nation’s complicity in slavery and the transatlantic slave trade and to inspire acknowledgment, dialogue and active response to this history and its many legacies. James will discuss the PBS documentary Traces of the Trade: A Story from the Deep North, in which Tracing Center founder, Katrina Browne, discovers that her RI ancestors were the largest slave-trading family in US history. She and nine cousins, including James, retrace the Triangle Trade, explore the ways in which slavery impacts our nation even today, and gain powerful new perspectives on the black/white divide.
James DeWolf Perry has facilitated discussions about the legacy of slavery and race with corporate, educational, religious and community groups.
Find The Tracing Center on Histories and Legacies of Slavery at http://www.tracingcenter.org/
Photo:
Dain, Jim and James Perry at James DeWolf’s family cemetery in Bristol. By Allie Humenuk
Join Jonathon Lothrop, Curator of Archaeology, and Wayne Lenig, Research Associate, at the New York State Museum in Albany as they discuss prehistoric history and archaeology in the Upper Hudson and Mohawk Valleys of New York. Find out when the first humans arrived here, how they lived and what evidence they left behind -- from early prehistory to the time of contact with Europeans in the 1600s. Learn what the state museum exhibits hold for visitors. It's fascinating! Photographs of exhibits: New York State Museum Find out more: http://www.nysm.nysed.gov/
In commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the Touro Synagogue in Newport, RI, tonight David Kleiman joins me to talk about Jews in Colonial America -- North and South. Discover the history of the Jewish migration to the new world, what motivated the migration, why some Jews had to hide their Jewish identities, and what ties the various colonies had with each other. You will also learn where you can find resources for researching them and what events are planned for the Touro anniversary. Find out more about the Touro Synagogue events at http://www.tourosynagogue.org/index.php/upcoming-event-home?id=128 Photos: Touro Synagogue, Newport, R.I., c 1865 Jewish Graves in Hunt’s Bay Cemetery, Jamaica David Kleiman is curator of Touro Synagogue’s Loeb Visitors Center, Newport, RI. and consulting archivist for the Touro Archives. He is contributing editor of the newly released A Genesis of Religious Freedom: The Story of the Jews of Newport and Touro Synagogue (2013) by Mel Urofsky.
David is founder and chair of the NYC Computers and Genealogy SIG and serves on the board of the Jewish Genealogical Society-NY, the education committee of New York Genealogical & Biographical Society and the Leadership Council of Newport Historical Society, and is a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists. Heritage Muse, his company, are digital and print pu
Tonight Jane welcomes Russell Gasero, archivist at the Reformed Church of America Archives in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Russell talks about the early Dutch Reformed Church records in New York, telling us what we can find in them, how they were organized, and what records have survived and are held in the RCA Archives. Photos: Pages from the Shawangunk Reformed Church Register in Ulster County. Find the RCA Archives here: https://www.rca.org/page.aspx?pid=230 RCA Guide to the archives: http://images.rca.org/docs/archives/churchrecords.pdf RCA Historical Directory: http://images.rca.org/docs/archives/hdchurches.pdf A Netherlands site (in Dutch) seeking all colonial Dutch records from around the world. https://www.wiewaswie.nl/
The Forget-Me-Not Hour takes a trip outside the U.S. for tonight's show. Jane welcomes genealogist András Koltai from Hungary. Andras will talk about researching Hungarian Jewish ancestry, as well as other groups in Hungary. For a decade now, András Koltai has been researching Hungarian ancestry for clients mainly from the USA and Israel. Though he focuses on Jewish genealogy, he has had a number of cases where the family researched was non-Jewish. Apart from doing the regular work genealogists do, he has also been the researcher for five episodes of the tv-series "Who Do You Think You Are?"; in some of these episodes he was on screen, too. Find
Glenn Leisching, an elder in the Dagara African spiritual tradition, and his student Violet Snow join Jane tonight to talk about genealogy and honoring ancestors in an African spiritual tradition. Glenn and Violet will talk about deepening our ties with our ancestors with practices that help us achieve more connection them them and how that can help us and heal us. Violet, an author, will share her journey with her Civil War-era ancestors, which she has written about in local media and on the internet. Glenn can be found at http://villageoftheheart.com/ Violet's blog is at http://newsofmyancestors.wordpress.com/
Join McKelden Smith, President of the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society, as he tells us all about the first ever New York State Family History Conference on 20 and 21 September in Syracuse. Find out how the conference will help to break down research barriers in New York and provide a forum for sharing research knowledge and problem-solving experiences. McKelden also talks about the NYG&B's forthcoming book on New York genealogy resources -- a must-have book for anyone with New York ancestry. Find out more at www.nysfhc.org
Special Edition In commemoration of the Two Row Wampum Renewal Campaign that just occurred in the Hudson Valley, today's special edition of the show features Ulster County Clerk Nina Postupack and Bearsville resident Jim Davis, a descendant of 17th century Dutch settlers and Esopus natives. Nina and Jim will talk about their experience of the historic Two Row Wampum campaign, with members of the Onondaga Nation and friends in kayaks and canoes on the Hudson River, and the Unity Riders, members of the Dakota Nation from Manitoba, Canada, on horseback when they converged in Kingston on August 1 as they made their way to the United Nations. The events in Kingston featured the treaty wampum belt from the 17th century that was given to English governor Nicolls by the Esopus, now in the Ulster County archives. What is the story behind the treaty and wampum belt? Find out more about the renewal campaign at http://honorthetworow.org/ The Unity Riders at http://www.theunityride.com/ The 1665 Esopus treaty http://www.jrbooksonline.com/PDF_Books/EsopusIndianTreaty.pdf The educational curriculum "When Cultures Collide" from the Ulster County Clerk's office http://www.co.ulster.ny.us/archives/downloads/cultures/When_Cultures_Collide-Full.pdf
NYC, Long Island and Westchester Co. Research with Laura Murphy DeGrazia. Join New York Genealogical and Biographical Record co-editor Laura Murphy DeGrazia as she talks about her new book NGS Research in the States Series: New York City, Long Island, and Westchester County. As those of us with pre-1880 New York research can attest, New York state is a challenge for researching. Find out from Laura what resources are available in the counties in and closest to New York City. You may find some gems that you had not thought about. Laura Murphy DeGrazia, CG, FGBS, is coeditor of the NYG&B Record, trustee and past president of the Board for Certification of Genealogists. Born in Brooklyn and raised on Long Island, she specializes in research in the New York City area. Order the book:
Jane welcomes David Rencher, chief genealogical officer of FamilySearch.org, to tonight's show. Learn what's new at FamilySearch. Learn about hidden gems the site offers. Learn what David's role is in this great genealogical database. Learn what the mission of FamilySearch.org is and why genealogy is important to Latter Day Saints. And much more! Find FamilySearch at www.FamilySearch.org
Jane welcomes Tracy McNally, Executive Director of Historic Huguenot Street. Tracy will tell us about the first founders of New Paltz, New York, the Huguenots who were French Protestants. Find out their story of immigration from Europe, their history in New York and what you can find at Historic Huguenot Street--including historical records and activities. Find Historic Huguenot Street at http://www.huguenotstreet.org/
Tonight Jane welcomes Thomas W. Jones, author of the recently released book, Mastering Genealogical Proof. Tom will discuss what genealogical proof is and why we need it. He will explain how the book can help all genealogists -- from novices to professionals-- in their quest to correctly identify their ancestors. Thomas W. Jones has been the co-editor of the National Genealogical Society Quarterly since 2002. He is past APG board member, BCG trustee, and president and teaches at BU, IGHR, and SLIG. With over forty years of research and teaching experience, he frequently lectures, teaches, and writes about genealogical methodology. Find the book at http://www.ngsgenealogy.org/cs/mastering_genealogical_proof
Jane E. Wilcox welcomes Christopher Densmore, head of Friends Historical Library at Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania. Chris will talk about Quakers in New York. Where did they come from and where did they live? What is so unique about Quakers? What records did they keep in NY? Where can we find the records? Christopher Densmore is head of Friends Historical Library, the largest repository of Quaker records and papers in North America. Friends Historical Library serves as the archives for all of New York Yearly Meeting. Chris is the author of numerous books and articles on Quakers in Canada, New York and Pennsyvania. He is a co-author of Quaker Crosscurrents: Three Hundred Years of the New York Yearly Meetings. Find the library here: http://www.swarthmore.edu/academics/friends-historical-library.xml
Did you know that John Rolfe and Pocahontas from the colony of Jamestown, Virginia, have living descendants? Tonight their descendant Wilhelmena Kelly, organizing regent of the Increase Carpenter Chapter DAR in Queens, joins Jane to talk about colonial Jamestown genealogy. What records are available to trace your colonial Jamestown family? What is the story of John Rolfe and Pocahontas? Portrait of Pocahontas and sketch of the Jamestown fort in 1608 from Wikipedia Commons.
Special Edition: Live from the National Genealogical Society Family History Conference in Las Vegas. Julie Miller, Vice President of NGS, joins Jane to recap this year’s conference in Las Vegas. Find out the highlights of the conference: who spoke, what sessions were not to be missed, what activities outside the conference were happening, who won the writing awards, and much more
Jane E. Wilcox welcomes The Legal Genealogist Judy Russell as she talks about women's rights in the major legal systems in Colonial America. What rights under the law did our grandmothers have in the Dutch, British, French and Spanish colonies in North America? Were the laws different for single women, married women and widows? Where can we look for the documents during these periods, and where can we learn how to interpret them? Judy Russell is a genealogist with a law degree and blogs as The Legal Genealogist. She has a bachelor’s degree in political science and journalism from George Washington University in Washington, D.C. and a law degree from Rutgers School of Law-Newark. She has worked as a newspaper reporter, trade association writer, legal investigator, defense attorney, federal prosecutor, law editor and, for more than 20 years she has been an adjunct member of the faculty at Rutgers Law School. Find Judy at http://legalgenealogist.com. Images: Petition of Jean Baptiste Faucon Dumanoir, who upon learning that his son-in-law, Lieut. Joseph Chauvin de Lery, has been killed by savages, prays for the convocation of a family meeting to elect a curator to the minor widow, and a tutor and under-tutor to the unborn child. Petitioner also prays for an order to take inventory. 21 Feb 1738. Louisiana Digital Archive. Whelply vs Blackman, Wilcockson, and Rice, 24 May 1656. Records of the Particular Court of Connecticut, Connecticut State Library, Hartford.
Journalist Paul Lukas talks about a treasure of school records from the Manhattan Trade School for Girls he found in a discarded filing cabinet in New York City. What incredible data did these 1920s and '30s report cards and records contain? What stories did he find when he researched the lives of these young women? We'll also talk about the ethics of using school records in our work as historians and genealogists. Paul is a journalist and media artist who specializes in the inconspicuous. His work has appeared in The New York Times, GQ, Fortune, Gourmet, Saveur, The Wall Street Journal, ESPN The Magazine, Spin, and The Financial Times, among many other publications. He currently works as a columnist for ESPN.com, where he writes “Uni Watch,” the sports world’s foremost (okay, only) column devoted to uniform design. His investigation into the stories behind some very evocative 1920s and ’30s report cards that he found in a discarded file cabinet resulted in a 10-article series for Slate.com, entitled "Permanent Record."
A special live broadcast from Rootstech 2013 in Salt Lake City. This afternoon join Jane live from Rootstech where she will interview Dan Martinez, Rootstech chair. Find out what the highlights of the three-day conference were, what new technology for genealogy was unveiled and what is in store for us in 2014. Find Rootstech here: http://rootstech.org/
Tonight we explore the rich heritage of New York Jews prior to the Civil War. David Kleiman, genealogist and owner of Heritage Muse, will tell us about the early history of Jews in New Amsterdam and his work with the Gomez Mill House in Ulster County. He'll also share the stories of the early nineteenth century Jews, touching on an era that is less well-known than that of the great influx of immigrants in the late 1800s. Find David Kleiman at http://heritagemuse.com Find the Gomez Mill House at http://www.gomez.org/ Links for research resources: American Jewish Historical Society at http://ajhs.org/ Database of Early American Jewish Portraits at http://loebjewishportraits.org/ Shearith-Israel's 1654 Society at http://1654society.org/ Photo of Torah damaged by the British during the American Revolution courtesy of Shearth-Israel Synogogue. Denization document courtesy of Gomez Mill House.
Join Stefani Evans, conference chair for the 2013 NGS Conference in Las Vegas, as she talks about all that is in store for conference participants this year at the conference from May 8-11. Who will be speaking? What special events and tours will be offered? Why should you go? Find out about the conference here: http://www.ngsgenealogy.org/
Join Crista Cowan, family historian and presenter at national genealogy events from Ancestry.com, on tonight's show to find out what is new with Ancestry.com. What is new with their databases? How does the purchase of Archives.com affect both websites? How does Fold3.com fit into the greater picture of genealogy on-line resources? How do the three websites differ and complement each other? What is the new DNA offering from Ancestry.com?
www.Ancestry.com