FGS Announces Three-part Webinar Series on Genealogy Society Membership and Communication

Very seldom does this blog mention American genealogy societies, but I must make an exception in this case. The Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS) is giving a great Webinar series which is of particular interest to those involved in society membership and communication.

The FGS welcomes George G. Morgan, President of Aha! Seminars, Inc. and VP of Membership for FGS, as he presents a three-part webinar series on genealogy society membership and communication.

• Tuesday, October 22, 2013, 8:00-9:00 pm EDT
The Shape of the 21st Century Genealogical Society
We've come a long way as genealogical and historical societies. New technologies such as blogs, print-on-demand publishing, Facebook, Twitter, mobile phone apps, podcasts, webinars, and others have drastically changed what we can do for our societies. This session discusses how the modern society can provide a rich experience for its members and get its message out to the world. Click on the link to register for the webinar: https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/409683718


• Monday, November 4, 2013, 8:00-9:00 pm EST
Harness the Power of Email in Your Society
Email is a powerful tool that, within your society, can build excitement and encourage member participation. Learn the types of email communications that capture attention. Create a professional presence for your organization. Discover strategies for effectively using and managing email. Uncover ways to publicize who you are and what you offer. Attract and keep members! Click on the link to register for the webinar: https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/421955302


• Monday, November 18, 2013, 8:00-9:00 pm EST
How to Develop and Implement Affordable Membership Benefits
Genealogical and historical societies are struggling to attract and retain members while striving to stay solvent. It is essential to offer tangible benefits year-round. This session discusses best practices that can be put in place to provide affordable benefits to members. Click on the link to register for the webinar: https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/111785582

I have known George personally for the past ten years, and consider him to be one of the top genealogy teachers in North America. He is president of Aha! Seminars, Inc., and an internationally recognized genealogy expert who presents at conferences and on genealogical cruises around the world.

Solving Cemetery Problems

Saturday at 1 pm on 19 October 2013, the Quinte OGS Branch will present
Solving Cemetery Problems by Diane Clendenan & Marjorie Stuart.

These two lovely ladies have devoted their lives to cemeteries. They have co-authored a book Solving Cemetery Problems: How to deal with Vandalism, Abandoned Cemeteries, Registration and Heritage Designation.

They have also co-chaired the joint OGS and OHS Cemetery Preservation Committee, and in particular, the Cemetery Registration Project.

Together they bring a wealth of genealogical experience and expertise, relating to a variety of research areas, especially on the topic of cemeteries.

This event will be one you don't want to miss!

The Quinte OGS Branch will meet at the Quinte West City Hall Library, 7 Creswell Drive, Trenton, Ontario.

The website is at http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~canqbogs/about_us.htm

Ancestry.ca puts on Canada GenWeb Cemetery Index

Canada GenWeb has been collecting their cemetery data since 2004, and it is on http://cemetery.canadagenweb.org.

Now, Ancestry.ca has taken this data and has put the index only on http://search.ancestry.ca/search/db.aspx?dbid=70668


But to learn about the records, go to the Canada GenWeb site.

The web site says that “It is a volunteer project of CanadaGenWeb and currently offers a free and searchable listing of over 18,000 known Canadian cemeteries.

This volunteer built database offers a variety of information geared towards genealogists:

♦ Names, locations & histories of cemeteries

♦ Links to repositories & genealogy organizations that offer further information and/or assistance

♦ Lookup offers, transcripts, indexes, and photos compiled by volunteers.

On Saturday, October 12, the British Iles Family History Society of Greater Ottawa, will present And a Brother Who Went to Australia? at 10:00 am by Chris MacPhail.

Chris MacPhail’s maternal grandfather was a Home Child who immigrated to Canada from Scotland with an elder brother in the 1880s. A family anecdote suggested that there may have been another brother who went to Australia. Chris will describe his efforts to verify the story, and the new challenges raised by some of the things learned.

You can listen to an interview with Chris at http://www.bifhsgo.ca/cpage.php?pt=106

Arrive early and take in Before BIFHSGO from 9:00 - 9:30 am to listen to Exploring the Find My Past Website by Judy Thamas, and from 9:30 - 10:00 am there are the Discovery Tables and Lesley Anderson will be there to help you Get Help with Ancestry.ca.


The BIFHSGO is http://www.bifhsgo.ca/

Hands-On Claesses in Early Ontario Land Records

Gwyneth Pearc, the Secretary of the Toronto Branch, Ontario Genealogical Society, has sent us this announcement -

“Hands-On Early Ontario Land Records” is a three-session course to be taught by author, educator and long-time OGS member Jane MacNamara. Designed for both family and local historians, this course will provide an introduction to the land granting process and the main types of Crown Lands records. Participants will learn how to use the various finding aids and collections at the Archives of Ontario (including those on microfilm from Library and Archives Canada) to document a person’s acquisition of (or attempt to acquire) land in Upper Canada, and will work in small groups following case histories through the records.

The course fee is $90 ($78 for OGS members), and the schedule is Thursdays November 28, December 5 and 12, 2013, from 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm.

The place that this will be held is the Archives of Ontario, 134 Ian MacDonald Blvd., York University, Toronto

Visit their Branch website at www.torontofamilyhistory.org/courses.html for course and registration details.

Postscript: To those who want to see Jane, she will be at the Ottawa Genealogical Society on March 22, 2014 at which she will appear as Guest Speaker.

For more information, go to http://ogsottawa.on.ca/

Preserve the Fegan Home in Toronto

The OGS has been told that the City of Toronto is interested in the site of the former Fegan Boys Distributing Home at 295 George Street in Toronto. The structure was damaged by fire in 2012.

They say that “Many of the boys passing through these walls left their mark by way of inscribing their names and the dates of their stays on the bricks. These names are still visible.

OGS, along with the broader genealogical and heritage community, requests that the City of Toronto seriously consider the historic significance of this treasure and find a way to preserve it and the information it holds”.

Some additional sites for information are -

J. W. C. Fegan http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._W._C._Fegan A short, concise history of James William Condell Fegan, an Englisman who was the founder of orphanages for boys.

Young Immigrants to Canada http://jubilation.uwaterloo.ca/~marj/genealogy/children/Organizations/fegan.html If you had an relative in the Fegan Home in Toronto, you are given the name of a person in England who can search the English history of your relative for you.

BRITISH HOME CHILD http://www.ogs.on.ca/SIG-BHC/index.htm The OGS has a SIG dedicated to the British Home Child.

UPDATE: Nova Scotia 1921 Census

Dwayne Meisner has been hosting the 1921 census transcription on his site. I think that Halifax and Annapolis Counties are now complete, and he is looking for more volunteers to do the other counties in the province.

He says that “As a lot of you may be aware, I and others have been working on transcribing the 1921 census for Nova Scotia, and I have been uploading the finished transcriptions to my site http://www.dwaynemeisner.com/census/novascotia/index.php .

However, it a HUGE project, and so we are looking for more volunteers. I don't expect anyone to do a whole county; even just one sub-district would be a great
help!"

If you are interested, please visit his site
http://www.dwaynemeisner.com/census/volunteer.php for more information.

Is there anyone out there who can help Dwayne finish the 1921 Nova Scotia census?

UPDATE: Register of One-Place Studies is Now Live!

Further to my notice last week that there was a new website online with the Register of One-Place Studies, they are now announcing the following update -

“The new free Register of One-Place Studies went LIVE earlier this week and we’re off to a flying start. So far we h studies from 3 continents covering 7 countries, 33 counties/states and 235 places. From Angmering in Sussex to the Isle of Mull in Argyll, from Drumnaconagher in County Down to Meldreth in Cambridgeshire and from Acton in Massachusetts to Wando Vale in Victoria, to name but a few, we’re helping to put study owners’ efforts on the map!

The studies range from small hamlets and specific districts within a town through to whole regions including multiple towns. Some studies are now dormant but have amassed a wealth of information over the years which continues to benefit researchers. We even have one very active study with no residents living in the study area - they were all forced to leave their homes in 1943 and were not allowed to return. What is clear is the hours of selfless dedication and commitment study owners have spent building up their studies over many years.

The Register’s purpose is to provide a listing of one-place studies currently being undertaken across the UK, and internationally, which is:
• open to all
• free to access
• free to add to
• comprehensive
If you have a one-place study and haven’t yet added it to the Register, don’t delay any more!”

The web site may be found at: http://www.register-of-one-place-studies.org.uk.

Kensington Market Through the Lens of the Ontario Jewish Archives

Dara Solomon, Director of the Ontario Jewish Archives, will present the stories found in the collections of the Ontario Jewish Archives about the families, merchants, and community members who made this neighbourhood home during the 1920s-1940s.

She will also discuss how the OJA has shaped these narratives through their 40-year old walking tour of the neighbourhood and their soon-to-be-launched mobile interactive mapping feature on the new OJA website.

The meeting will take place on October 30th at the Lillian H. Smith Branch, Toronto Public Library, 239 College Street, Toronto.

To visit the Kensington Market site, go to http://www.kmhs.ca/

To visit the Ontario Jewish Archives, go to http://www.ontariojewisharchives.org/

The Ontario Jewish Archives is celebrating their 40th Anniversary this year.

Kitchener Public Library Genealogy Fair

On November 2, 2013, there will be the 3rd Genealogy Fair at the Kitchener Public Library in Kitchener, Ontario.

It starts at 9:30 AM, and the fair will be for beginners and experts alike. There will be workshops, speak with experts and more than 25 exhibits and vendors.

Some of the speakers are –

Genealogy in a Community Cookbook
with Carolyn Blackstock, Historian & Blogger

Genealogy and the Law in Canada
with Professor Margaret Ann Wilkinson, University of Western Ontario

Introduction to Genetic Genealogy
with Sue Fenn, Family History Alive

Finding Your Ancestors in Germany
with Noel Elliot, The Genealogical Research Library

There are many more speakers, and if you want more information , go to http://kpl.org/ref/gsr.html

Ancestry.com LLC acquires Find a Grave

On the last day of September, Ancestry.com made the following announcement -

PROVO, Utah, Sept. 30, 2013 -- Ancestry.com LLC announced today it has acquired Find A Grave, Inc., the leading online cemetery database.

With over 100 million memorials and 75 million photos, Find A Grave has amassed an unparalleled collection of burial information. Over the past 18 years, it has grown to become an invaluable resource for genealogists, history buffs and cemetery preservationists. Find A Grave will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Ancestry.com, and will continue to be managed by its founder, Jim Tipton.

"Find A Grave is an amazing phenomenon supported by a passionate and engaged community of volunteers around the world," said Tim Sullivan, CEO of Ancestry.com. "We at Ancestry.com are so excited...honored really...to take on the responsibility of supporting this community. We will maintain Find A Grave as a free website, will retain its existing policies and mode of operation, and look forward to working with Jim Tipton and the entire Find A Grave team to accelerate the development of tools designed to make it even easier for the Find A Grave community to fulfill its original mission to capture every tombstone on Earth."

Ancestry.com plans to bolster the resources dedicated to Find A Grave to launch a new mobile app, improve customer support, introduce an enhanced edit system for submitting updates to memorials, foreign-language support, and other site improvements.

"Ancestry.com has been a long-time supporter of Find A Grave. They have been linking and driving traffic to the site for several years," said Jim Tipton, founder of Find A Grave. "Burial information is a wonderful source for people researching their family history and I look forward to working with Ancestry.com to help continue our growth and accelerate the pace of improvements."

The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

MacDonald family history

Here is some news from Ron Zinck, who posts to the NSRoots mailing list quite often -

“I spent part of my Friday the Archives of Ontario working my way through
the collection of Rev. Ewen MacDonald. He worked for decades on Scottish
history and the McDonald family history. I have a number of scans that may
be of interest to researchers and I suspect I will have allot more after
every visit. This batch includes letters and a few charts that discusses
Antigonish, Cape Breton, and different septs in Scotland.

I hope that some of the MacDonald researchers will be able to help decipher, interpret and place these scans in context."

I uploaded them onto Google drive at this link
https://drive.google.com/?tab=mo&authuser=0#folders/

The Niagara Peninsula OGS Branch announces new publication

The Niagara Peninsula OGS Branch is starting to take orders of their new book - More Than A Mere Matter Of Marching on October the 1st.

This will be a limited-edition book to commemorate the bicentennial of the War of 1812.

The press release says that “When Thomas Jefferson made his infamous prediction that "the acquisition of Canada this year... will be a mere matter of marching," he underestimated the courage and determination of the men and women of Upper Canada, including their First Nations allies.

Our book, More Than A Mere Matter of Marching contains the fascinating stories of over 60 families whose experiences during the War of 1812 may never have been in print before. The book is 323 pages, contains both colour and black-and-white images, and an index of over 1700 names.

PRE-PUBLICATION PRICE (available Oct. 1 - Oct. 31, 2013): $25.00 shipping and handling
PUBLICATION PRICE: $30.00 shipping and handling”.

For further information, please visit the Niagara Peninsula OGS Branch website: http://www.ogs.on.ca/niagara/. Just click on to the button which says War of 1812.

Gene-O-Rama returns to Ottawa

After a year’s absence, the Ottawa Branch of the OGS, will be having a Gene-O-Rama 2014 at the Confederation Education Centre, 1645 Woodroffe Av., Ottawa.

It will be held on the 21 and the 22 March, 2014, and the featured speaker will be Toronto genealogist Jane E. MacNamara.

So mark your calendar.

For more information, go http://ogsottawa/geneorama/

Sudbury District (OGS) Branch Meeting

On Monday, October 21, 2013 at 7:00 p.m. there will be a meeting at the Parkside Ctr, 140 Durham Street in Sudbury of the Sudbury District (OGS) Branch.

The topic will be The Shouldering of Arms by Gary Peck. He will discuss what led to the First World War, with the intent to help better appreciate ancestors in the context of the times.

For more info, go to http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~onogs/ogs.htm

Kent County Branch Meeting

On Friday, October 11, 2013 at 7:00 pm at the St. Andrews Residence, 99 Park St., Chatham, ON, the Kent County Branch of the OGS will hold their monthly meeting at which Reg Johnston will speak on 150 YEARS! THE CHATHAM GRANITE CLUB.

Mr. Johnston with share the history and the people involved with building the curling club.
Contact http://ogs.on.ca/kent

If you can’t make it to the meeting, there is a short history of the Chatham Granite Club on their website at http://chathamgraniteclub.com/club

Grande Prairie and District Branch - Fall Workshop

The Grande Prairie and District Branch of the Alberta Genealogical Society is offering a workshop this weekend to help you find your ancestors in Canada. The workshop is offered in partnership with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints

The workshop will take place on Friday and Saturday (Sept 20 and 21st), at the Family History Centre at 11212-102 Street and Grande Prairie Public Library at 9839-103 Avenue in Grande Prairie, Alberta.

Quebec Family History Society President Gary Schroder, and John Althouse will headline the weekend with discussion on searching census records, birth, marriage and death records, and passenger lists. More than 60 people have already registered for the event, and they welcome all walk-ins.

There is no cost associated with the event, but a lunch will be available on Sept. 21, for a pre-ordered price of $15.

Sign-up begins at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, to save your seat call 780-766-2920 or 780-538-9464.

For more information and a complete schedule, visit http://gp.abgensoc.ca

Region One Annual Meeting

The Region One Annual Meeting of the Ontario Genealogical Society hosted by Lambton County Branch OGS will be held on October 19th, 2013 9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the John Knox Christian School at 4738 Confederation Road, Wyoming, Ontario.

The title of the one-day conference will be On and Off the Internet Strategies for Effective Genealogical Research.

Steve Fulton, Technical Support and Innovations Committee Chair, OGS/Chair, Niagara Peninsula Branch OGS will talk on Searching the Past with the help of the .com

Alan Campbell, Newsletter Editor and Past Chair, Lambton County Branch OGS will talk about Going Totally Off-line-Almost/On-Site Researching in Libraries and Archives

Heather Lavallee, Archivist -Lambton County Archives, Wyoming, Ontario will talk about Finding the Secrets of the Archives

Advance Registration [Includes Lunch] OGS Members $30.00 CDN Non Members $35.00 CDN Registration at the Door $35.00

Register on-line at http://www.lambton.ogs.on.ca/Bulletinboard.html

OGS Webinars for Members Only

American genealogist blogger and speaker Judy G. Russell, the Legal Genealogist, will give the first OGS Webinar - Genealogy in Your Genes on Saturday October 5, 2013 at 4:00 pm EDT via Adobe Connect. This Webinar is for Members Only.

They say that “The key to so many genealogical secrets may be locked inside your genes -- but today those secrets can be unlocked through DNA testing. Learn about the three major test types -- YDNA, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and the new autosomal DNA testing -- and what each offers to the genealogist.

The Legal Genealogist Judy G. Russell, JD, CG, CGL, is a lecturer, educator and writer who enjoys helping others understand a wide variety of genealogical issues, ranging from the interplay between genealogy and the law to the way DNA tests can be used in genealogy.

She is a trustee of the Board for Certification of Genealogists, a member of the National Genealogical Society, the Association of Professional Genealogists and numerous state societies, and on the faculty of the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy, the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research at Samford University, and the Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh.

OGS Webinars allow you to expand your genealogy knowledge from the comfort of your own home.

This event is open to OGS members only and is free as a benefit of your membership. For more information about Webinars, visit the Webinars link in the OGS Members Only area.

The OGS website is www.ogs.on.ca

Join Italians and Italian Fans for a Record-Setting Weekend!

We have received this exciting news from FamilySearch

“FamilySearch International, Salt Lake City Italian natives and those with Italian language skills, Italian ancestors, or a love of all things Italian are invited to help index (transcribe) historic Italian records this weekend (Sept. 13-15) to make them freely searchable on FamilySearch.org.

The event, part of the ongoing Italian Ancestors Project sponsored by the National Archives of Italy and FamilySearch, will unite participants from around the world in an attempt to set a new two-day volunteer mark of 35,000 records (approximately 100,000 ancestor names) indexed.

The event will start Friday, September 13 at 6:00 p.m. (MDT) and end Sunday, September 15, at 6:00 p.m. (MDT). To volunteer, or for details and status updates throughout the event, visit the Italian Ancestors Facebook event page.

About the Italian Ancestors Project

The Italian Ancestors Project, jointly sponsored by the National Archives of Italy and FamilySearch, is the largest historic Italian records preservation and access initiative ever.

Through this unprecedented effort, more than 115 million historic birth, marriage, and death records from Italy’s civil registration (1802 to 1942) containing some 500 million names of Italian ancestors, will be digitized, indexed (transcribed) and made freely searchable online.
Indexing of these valuable records is being provided by thousands of volunteers worldwide. Working from their homes at their own pace, volunteers have already made more than two million records available. Thousands more volunteers are needed”.

For more information or to volunteer, visit www.familysearch.org/italian-ancestors.