Eastman's Online Genealogy Newsletter

NEHGS to Celebrate Forty Years on Newbury Street With Open House

The following is an announcement from the New England Historic Genealogical Society, or NEHGS:

NEHGS to Celebrate Forty Years on Newbury Street With Open House

NEHGS will hold an open house at 101 Newbury Street for members and the public on Thursday, September 23, 2004, from 2 to 6 p.m. The theme is "Celebrating Forty Years on Newbury Street," in recognition of the Society's move to its present location in the fall of 1964

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Family History Magazine Earns Royal Approval

A family history enthusiast who founded the world's best-selling British genealogical magazine has been honored with an award from royalty.

National Archives in Waltham, Mass. Changes Hours

The following is an announcement from the U.S. National Archives Regional Library in Waltham, Massachusetts:

Change in Hours

Effective Wednesday September 1, 2004, the National Archives in Waltham will
no longer be open Wednesday evenings after 4:30.

Another vote for Linux

Last week I wrote a Plus Edition article about a particular version of Linux that I now use. I now use Linux about 90% of the time, reverting back to Windows only when I need to run a specific program for which I have not yet found a Linux replacement. Today, Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols of the prestigious eWeek magazine wrote an article that echoes much of my enthusiasm for the same version of Linux.

(+) Free Picture Organizing Software for Windows

The wide choice of free programs available on the Web can be impressive. This week I had a chance to download and use a free Windows program that works with the digital photo files on your PC to create a better, more organized viewing, printing, and e-mailing experience.

Calling All Pimburys

73-year-old Mike Pimbury, from Brent in North London believes he may be the only living Pimbury in the world. Genealogists have failed to find others and as Mr Pimbury has no children he fears his surname will die with him. He told BBC Radio 4's Today: "I'm 73 and I've had a lot of girlfriends but I've never got married - so I'm afraid that's the end of it. If there's anybody listening to this programme whose name is Pimbury, we should be very pleased to hear from you."

CD-ROM: The 1831 Tithe Defaulters

This week I had a chance to use a new Windows CD-ROM of Irish genealogy information containing valuable records that many Irish researchers do not even know exist. During the infamous Tithe War of 1831-38, all Irish occupants of land were required to pay an annual tithe (or religious tax) of 10% of the agricultural produce generated by that holding. This money was demanded from all landholders, irrespective of their religion, and was paid directly to the official state church, the Anglican (Episcopalian) Church of Ireland.

U.S. archivist forced out by White House

Archivist of the United States John Carlin was pressured by the White House in December to submit his resignation without being given any reason, according to documentation submitted last week at a hearing to consider President Bush's nomination of his successor.

BBC Two Plans Family Tree-hunt

Tracking down the ancestors and researching family trees is set to become BBC Two's latest big theme.

Our Roots/Nos Racines

One of the genealogical resources frequently overlooked is local histories. These books are great resources, often containing detailed information not available elsewhere. The biggest problem usually is in finding these books. Luckily, Laval University and the University of Calgary are solving this problem for many Canadian families by placing these books on the Web. The project is funded by the Canadian taxpayer through the federal government.

Wholly Genes Software releases the UK Edition of The Master Genealogist

The following is an announcement from Wholly Genes Software:

Wholly Genes Software releases the UK Edition of The Master Genealogist

New options for family history researchers in the United Kingdom

COLUMBIA, MD, 25 July 2004 -- Wholly Genes Software is proud to announce the release of the "UK Edition" of its popular family history project manager, The Master Genealogist (TMG). This special edition of TMG is configured for people whose principal research interests are in the United Kingdom. It supports new UK-style drop-line charts* and a long list of special customisations designed by UK researchers.

ProQuest and MyFamily.com Introduce Ancestry Product

The following is an announcement from ProQuest and MyFamily.com:

ProQuest Information and Learning and MyFamily.com are partnering to produce a new tool to support genealogy research in libraries. The Web-based database Ancestry Library Edition will replace and supercede the current library product offering, AncestryPlus, which will be phased out over the coming year. Ancestry Library Edition will be available effective August 30, 2004. ProQuest Information and Learning, a unit of ProQuest Company, creates and publishes databases for libraries and educational institutions worldwide.

The End of Bookstores?

A new device may threaten book stores as we know them. Or, as another way of looking at it, a huge book store stocked with tens of thousands of titles could be available in the back corner of the local 7-11 store.

Robots in Libraries

Robotics researchers at University Jaume I in Spain have developed a prototype robot that can retrieve books from library shelves while patrons are present. The robot can navigate the aisles of bookshelves, locate a particular shelf, and then scan for the correct book. Oddly enough, the trickiest part of designing the robot was getting it to remove the book from the shelf.

Update: Mic Barnette's Weekly Genealogy Column Threatened

On July 10 I wrote about a new threat to Mic Barnette's weekly genealogy column in the Houston Chronicle, a major newspaper in southeastern Texas. The genealogy column that has run in the Houston Chronicle for the past 10 years was discontinued in June by the Chronicle when they conducted their, what seems to be, annual redesign of the newspaper. You can read that past article at http://eogn.typepad.com/eastmans_online_genealogy/2004/07/mic_barnettes_w.html

News Stories Listed in "Other Genealogy News"

Last week I announced a new section on this newsletter's Web site:

Under the "Other Genealogy News" title you will find links to other genealogy-related news articles on the Web. These are articles that are not written by me or my guest authors. Rather, these articles appear on other news-related Web sites.

I must say that I am pleased with the new section's first week of operation. More than 25 links to other genealogy-related news stories have appeared on these pages To read any of those articles, scroll down the menus along the left side of the page that you are looking at right now. You will see the links to "Other Genealogy News."

Our Ancestors' Dental Care

1740 Dental Care

Use a good tooth powder once a week or once every two weeks for unclean teeth. But the mouth should be rinsed daily after eating with fresh water and scoured with the finger. The tooth powder should not be composed of all rough or all sharp things such as tobacco ashes, powdered coral, pumice stone or brick but should also contain smoothe things such as prepared oyster shell, chalk made from mussels, with a lot of seasoning and flavoring.

Youth Family History Contest

The following is an announcement from the Godfrey Library:

The Godfrey Library is again sponsoring the Family History Essay Contest this year.

The 2004 Family History Essay Contest is open to all students, grades 4-12th. It is an opportunity for students to learn more about their own families and to permanently preserve their family histories. Entries will be judged by grade level, completeness, style and presentation. All entries must be postmarked by Friday, 15 Oct 2004.

APG Professional Management Conference Early Registration Deadline is July 26!

The following is an announcement from the Association of Professional Genealogists:

Only a few days left to get the early registration discount!

Here's your chance to network with other professionals and hear from some of the best known genealogists in the business -- on Wednesday, Sept. 8, 2004 in the Austin Convention Center. The PMC is being held in conjunction with Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS) and Texas State Genealogical Society's 2004 Conference from Sept. 8-11, where attendees will celebrate APG's 25th anniversary.

Huge Icelandic Genealogy Database Receives Legal Setback

I have written a number of times about DeCODE Genetics, an Icelandic firm that has built an online genealogy database of nearly every resident of the island nation since the twelfth century. The database is called the Icelandic Health Center Database (IHD). (For a list of past newsletter articles about DeCODE Genetics, look at http://tinyurl.com/3nudr.) The ancestry for the past 800 years of almost every Icelandic citizen is contained in that database. The information has been used to produce several medical breakthroughs in DNA-related medical problems. Now a ruling from Iceland's Supreme Court, handed down in November, may have dealt DeCODE's original plans a serious setback.