Eastman's Online Genealogy Newsletter

Are Newspapers Doomed?

History is happening before our eyes. The New Yorker published an article by James Surowiecki which speculates that newspapers may soon disappear. Indeed, the Tribune Company filed for bankruptcy last week. Surowiecki says that others will soon follow. The Miami Herald and the San Diego Union-Tribune are reportedly on the selling block, while lawmakers in Connecticut are trying to keep two newspapers there afloat. Even the New York Times Company has slashed its dividend and announced that it would borrow against its headquarters to avoid cash-flow problems.

Backups: A Testimonial

I have written several times about the need to make frequent backups of your data. That's true for all computer users but especially true for genealogists. We often spend hundreds of hours and a significant amount of money collecting data. It's a shame to lose all that when your hard drive crashes.

Reminder: all hard drives will crash sooner or later.

I'm delighted to report a great success story. Newsletter reader Eileen Souza sent the following message.

Dick, I can't thank you enough for your article on backing up to an online service, particularly www.mozyhome.com. This was the best $4.95 per month that I have ever spent.

New Imprint to Publish Canadian Genealogy Books

Dundurn Press and the Ontario Genealogical Society have announced the creation of a joint imprint to publish books on Canadian genealogy.  The imprint, to be called OGS Dundurn, will be governed by representatives from both organizations.  OGS will be responsible for finding authors, receiving manuscripts, and initial screening.  Dundurn will be responsible for editing, design, and production.  Both organizations will be responsible for marketing: OGS within the genealogical community, Dundurn to bookstores.

FamilySearch Update for 19 December 2008: 15 Million New Records Added

FamilySearch added over 15 million new indexed records to its Record Search pilot—all from the 1850 and 1870 U.S. Censuses. The records are linked to the digital images of the originals. The new records can be searched for free at FamilySearch.org (Click Search Records, then Record Search pilot).

My Holiday Gift to You: Free Access to This Week's Plus Edition

In celebration of the holiday season, I'm taking a few days off and am leaving the front door unlocked. I'd like to let many more people see the Plus Edition newsletter and to simultaneously publicize the differences between the two editions.

Form now through Christmas Day, everyone has full access to this week's Plus Edition newsletter.

To read the December 15 edition of the Plus Edition, go to http://plus.eogn.com and click on "Christmas Special: Free access to the 15 December Plus Edition" in the menus on the left side of the page.

Ex-archivist Gets 4 Years in Prison

The former archivist at The Mariners' Museum in Newport News, Virginia who stole thousands of museum documents and sold them on the Internet was sentenced Wednesday to four years in prison.

Lester F. Weber sold at least 3,500 documents — from collections he was supposed to oversee — on eBay under his wife's name. The items included everything from brochures and boarding passes for old ships to a lawsuit against the company that owned the Titanic.

Florida State Census Collection Now Available Online

The following was written by The Generations Network, parent company of Ancestry.com:

PROVO, Utah -- According to historical documents available as part of Ancestry.com's new Florida State Census Collection, actress Faye Dunaway, famous for her performances in "Bonnie and Clyde" and "Mommie Dearest," was a four-year-old living with her parents and brother in Florida in 1945 and NASCAR co-founder William France, Sr., was already in the car business by 1935, listed as a mechanic living in Daytona. Now others with Florida roots can make discoveries about their own relatives. Ancestry.com, the world's largest online resource for family history, has digitized and indexed the 1867, 1875, 1935 and 1945 Florida state censuses, which contain more than 3.8 million names and 75,000 original images. This is the first time these censuses have been indexed, making the information easily available and searchable online.

New Quebec City Passenger Lists Index 1865-1900 Database Now Online

The following announcement is from Library and Archives Canada:

Library and Archives Canada (LAC) is pleased to announce the launch of a new online database, Quebec City Passenger Lists Index 1865-1900. Through this online database, researchers can search by name of passengers to access digitized images of original passenger lists for arrivals at Quebec from 1865 to 1900 which list the name, age, country of origin, occupation and destination of each passenger.

The database is available at: Quebec City Passenger Lists Index 1865-1900: New Genealogical Database

Irish Families Adds Two New Weekly Genealogy Podcasts

The Irish Roots Cafe featuring Mike O'Laughlin is a very popular web site for anyone with Irish roots. Mike has been offering a lot of text information plus an audio Irish Families podcast for some time. Now he has added two new weekly genealogy podcasts for those who prefer to listen to the news:

Update: Bogus E-mail Warning Messages

This is an update to my earlier article "Bogus E-mail Warning Messages" that is available at http://blog.eogn.com/eastmans_online_genealogy/2008/12/bogus-e-mail-wa.html.

I found the following e-mail message in my "spam folder" today. First of all, I never heard of CommonWealth Bank and do not know where they are located. I am certain that I do not have an account there. Next, the message starts of with a greeting of "Dear customer" while I would have expected it to say "Dear Richard Eastman" or "Dear Mr. Eastman."

Finally, clicking on the link that is labeled "click here" took me to a web site that is NOT a part of Commonwealth Bank. It took me to a web address ending in ".ua" which means that the site is registered in the Ukraine although it might be physically located someplace else.

Trillium Grant allows OGS to Preserve At-Risk Heritage Documents

The following was written by the Ontario Genealogical Society:

The Ontario Genealogical Society has received a grant of $179 400 from the Ontario Trillium Foundation as starter funds for a project to help Ontario heritage organizations digitize parts of their collections. The funds, granted over two years, will enable OGS to hire a technician, obtain equipment, and travel to the heritage organizations to scan the material.

This project will:

• provide a digitized version of one-of-a-kind records, increasing security
• allow small organizations access to digitizing they otherwise could not afford
• increase the exposure of small organizations
• increase access to records significant to Ontario’s heritage
• allow an income stream to heritage organizations if they wish
• provide a Canadian not-for-profit portal as an alternative to foreign commercial portals

25,000 Historical Book Titles Now Free Online

The following was written by FamilySearch:

FamilySearch Digital Preservation Initiative Hits a Milestone

Salt Lake City, Utah—FamilySearch International reached a milestone today with the digitization of its 25,000th publication online. It began the initiative in 2007 and is ramping up to do even more—and faster. The effort targets published family, society, county, and town histories, as well as numerous other historical publications that are digitally preserved and made accessible for free online. The digital publications can be searched at www.FamilySearch.org (Go to FamilySearch.org, then click Search Records, then click Historical Books).

(+) Every Tradition Has a Story by George G. Morgan

The following is a Plus Edition article written by George G. Morgan and is copyright by the author.

Last week I wrote about homemade gifts that you can share with other people, and that included photograph ornaments. Since then, we have put up our Christmas tree. (We’ve gone “green” and have bought an artificial tree, rather than contribute to the destruction of natural trees.)

One of the joys of decorating the tree is in the rediscovery of the collection of ornaments accumulated over the decades. Hanging the ornaments would take a comparatively short time if it were not for the recollections we share about almost every one. It’s a nice tradition to invite family and friends over to help with the tree. It’s a wonderful way to share our holiday memories. It is a genealogist’s dream come true to be able to share stories with other family members.

It occurs to me that each ornament’s stories are important and should be recorded for future generations.

Is a $400 Netbook Useful?

A year ago I published a Plus Edition article describing a $400 "netbook" that I had just purchased. A "netbook" is a new term for a tiny, low-powered laptop computer, usually weighing two pounds of less. These are small computers that are cheaper and lighter than full-scale laptops.

In the year since I purchased mine, I have traveled extensively and have used it to check e-mail from many hotel rooms, airports, and other places. I have written newsletter articles using its built-in word processor and have also created web pages for the eogn.com web site using an HTML editor that I downloaded and installed on the netbook.

In short, I have used this two-pound, $400 netbook to perform almost all the same applications that I typically do with my older $1,000+ laptop.

Video: The Mysteries of DNA

The Mormon Times web site has a new 16-minute video that explains DNA and its connection to genealogy. Scott R. Woodward, executive director of Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation, explains what DNA is, what it can teach us, what its weaknesses are and how it can be used to understand and track relationships between individuals and groups.

(+) Resources for Revolutionary Georgia & Sleuthing Methods by Lloyd Bockstruck

All of the Thirteen Colonies were planted during the reign of the House of Stewart except one. It also holds the distinction of being the last English colony and today is the largest state east of the Mississippi River. Except for Texas, it has more counties than any other state in the Union. It is the namesake of one of the Hanoverian kings. When the British recaptured it in the Revolutionary War, our Stars and Stripes dropped from thirteen to twelve stars.  The colony is Georgia, named in honor of King George II.

Jefferson County Newspaper Indexes now Online

The following was written by the Jefferson County (Missouri) Library:

The Jefferson County Library is proud to announce that they have indexed over 45 years worth of historical Jefferson County newspapers.  Articles of genealogical interest pertaining to Jefferson County residents have been included in this database which is now available online at the library website.

OneGreatFamily.com Gift Subscriptions

I normally do not republish advertisements (unless they are from sponsors of this newsletter) but this one is different. I have always been impressed with OneGreatFamily.com (see my most recent article about the service at http://blog.eogn.com/eastmans_online_genealogy/2007/09/onegreatfamilyc.html). I haven't heard much from OneGreatFamily.com lately so it was a bit of a surprise when I received the following in the mail:

Give Your Family the Gift of History with a Subscription to www.OneGreatFamily.com

Genealogy Site Sifts through Millions of Names and Dates, Piggybacking your Information onto Related Family Trees

Bogus E-mail Warning Messages

This article has nothing to do with genealogy. However, it contains information that I believe every Internet user should know.

A newsletter reader sent an e-mail message to me today with a statement that caught my eye:

"There was a problem with Paypal. They advised that someone had tried to access my account."

My first reaction is that the notice was bogus. PayPal never sends such messages.

Update: Scam: An Online Anti-virus Scan

On October 17, I wrote an article about some "scareware" that I had encountered online. In short, I described a certain web site that lies to you in an attempt to sell you some worthless anti-virus software. The full article is still available at http://blog.eogn.com/eastmans_online_genealogy/2008/10/scam-an-online.html.

I was pleased to read today that the Federal Trade Commission got a court order to at least temporarily halt the "scareware" scheme.