Eastman's Online Genealogy Newsletter

NARA Has a Brand New Blog

NARAtions is a blog about public access to the records of the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration.

Like most government agencies, any information released by the National Archives and Records Administration has always been written in the finest government double-speak, passed from committee to committee before being released to the public. In short, I find most announcements from NARA to be nearly unreadable.

The new NARAtions blog is a welcome change: it is actually easy to read.

(+) Eighteen Hundred and Froze To Death

The following is a Plus Edition article, written by and copyright by Dick Eastman.

Growing up in New England, I heard a number of my older relatives talk about the year, "eighteen hundred and froze to death." I thought it was a cute phrase but otherwise never paid much attention. It wasn't until I was an adult that I learned that there really was such a year: 1816. In fact, none of the relatives who had mentioned that year to me were even alive in 1816; none of them were born until many years later. They obviously had heard about it from their older relatives. Being at least five generations removed from 1816, I became curious: what was so severe about this year that it left a mental imprint so strong that stories would be handed down in my family for generations?

Brandywine Battlefield Park May Close

This appears to be a very sad "sign of the times."

The state park at the site of the largest land battle of the Revolutionary War, fought on September 11, 1777 in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, is about to close for lack of funding. How can a National Historic Landmark be in jeopardy?

How Google Picasa Face Recognition Software Can Help Genealogists

From Kathi Reid's Ancestor Search Blog at http://ancestorsearch.blogspot.com/2009/08/how-google-picasa-face-recognition.html:

"Google Picasa Web Albums has face recognition software that can help name the unknown people who are in your old family photos.

"This free software even recognizes the same person at different ages."

Video Interview: Eric Keith of Footnote.com

Roots Television has posted another video interview that may be of interest to many readers of this newsletter. At the recent Southern California Genealogical Jamboree, Matthew Poe talked with Eric Keith, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at FootNote.com - the resource for original historical documents online.

1901 Census Completed for England & Wales - 24 Counties Added

The following announcement was written by findmypast.com:

A brand new transcription of the 1901 census with newly scanned high-quality images is now complete on findmypast.com. The final 24 counties and other UK territories have just been added comprising over 5.6 million new records - so you can now search the census in full at http://mail.findmypast.com/cgi-bin11/DM/y/eA0THoAO0GEV0BPLV0EL. This new transcription has already helped researchers to find many individuals whose names have been wrongly transcribed in earlier versions.

Myheritage.com Adds Maps to its Family History Suite

The following announcement was written by MyHeritage.com:

New version 4.0 of MyHeritage.com’s Family Tree Builder visualizes family history in colorful maps, and offers Family Chat™ in a new family toolbar

London, England & Tel Aviv, Israel – August 13, 2009 – MyHeritage.com, a leading family and genealogy Website, today announced the release of Family Tree Builder 4.0. With more than 5 million downloads so far, Family Tree Builder is the world’s most popular free genealogy software, allowing seasoned pros and beginners alike to build family trees, research their family history, add photos and videos, and obtain unique Smart Matches™ with other family trees worldwide. The key improvements of the new version include a map module, a family toolbar with Family Chat™ and extensive support for albums to organize a family’s photos, videos and documents.

Video Interview: Bruce Buzbee

Matthew Poe recently interviewed Bruce Buzbee, Founder and President of Roots Magic about his company's latest software release, upgrades, and website enhancements. Roots Television videotaped the interview and has now made it available online.

HP Restores Creased Photos With Flatbed Scanners

I haven't seen this yet but it certainly sounds interesting: Scientists at Hewlett-Packard have developed a technique to detect creases in photographs using standard, unmodified flatbed scanners. Once correctly scanned into a computer, software can determine where the photograph's defect is, and artificially correct it to remove any trace of a crease or fold. The result is a spotless JPEG scan from a creased photo, with absolutely no modified hardware and no technical know-how required on the part of the user.

FGS Conference Syllabus is now Online for Registrants

The following announcement was written by the Federation of Genealogical Societies:

Jan Davenport, Chair of the 2009 Federation of Genealogical Societies Conference, announces that the conference syllabus is now online for registrants! If you are registered for the conference, you can view, download and print the syllabus materials for any of the sessions before you even leave home! (At the conference, all registrants will receive a CD with the complete syllabus.)

Ernie Thode Honored With the 2009 Harvey Harsh Award

Ernie Thode, manager of Local History and Genealogy at the Washington County Public Library in Marietta, Ohio, has received the 2009 Harvey Harsh Award, the highest honor in Palatines to America.

"This prestigious award has gone to a man who possesses talent that few of us could ever hope to match," said Anne Rodick of the awards committee, who announced the award.

U.S. Bares ‘Alien Files’ Kept on Immigrants

The announcement of the release of the "Alien Files" was made some time ago. Now the New York Times has an article by Janie Lorber that explains why these files are so important for many people trying to find their family trees.

You an read the article at http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/12/us/12archives.html?_r=1.

Why Online Promos Often Fizzle

In recent months several genealogy information providers have offered major online specials. The specials have usually been in the form of free access to a web site or part of the web site for a few days or perhaps even as long as a month. Both Footnote and WorldVitalRecords.com have offered free access in recent days, and other genealogy providers have done the same in past months. 

These "online specials" have proven to be very popular and have attracted thousands of potential new customers. However, the same online events have also suffered significant technical difficulties in the first day or two or even three days. Message boards, including the comments section of this newsletter, often "light up" with messages from would-be users expressing frustrations when things do not perform perfectly. Some messages insinuate that the providing company is misleading people or using "bait and switch,” which is absolutely not true. Some messages have stated, "It doesn't work so I will never go back again."

Anyone who has worked in data centers understands the reasons for such problems, but many others do not. I have been working in data centers for more years than I care to mention, so I thought I would offer an observation or two.

Wisconsin's Vital Records Office to Close Friday for Employee Furloughs

Don't go to the Wisconsin Vital Records Office in Madison on Friday to obtain copies of birth, death, marriage or divorce certificates or to make genealogy appointments. The office will be closed for state-mandated involuntary employee furloughs. The Vital Records Office will reopen on Monday.

WorldVitalRecords.com Offers Free Access for a Limited Time

The following announcement was written by WorldVitalRecords.com:

WorldVitalRecords.com Opens Site Allowing for Free Public Access to More Than One Billion Family History Records

With the addition of the largest number of records to be released in a single day since the site launched in 2006

PROVO, UT, August 11, 2009 - WorldVitalRecords.com, an online family history resource, today announced the addition of the largest number of records to be released in a single day since the site launched in 2006. To commemorate this milestone, for the first time WorldVitalRecords is offering free public access to its entire online collection of historical and genealogical records beginning August 11 and continuing through August 13, 2009. The public will have unlimited access to more than one billion records in over 11,000 databases from around the world including newspapers, census, birth, marriage, death, immigration and military records; family trees; stories and publications; and yearbooks.

Jacksonville Historical Society to Expand

The Jacksonville (Florida) Historical Society announced Monday it will purchase the Old St. Luke’s Hospital complex and convert it into “a premier research and exhibition center.”

The $5 million project, which includes about $600,000 for the purchase of two buildings and 1.2 acres of land, will enable the society to consolidate its scattered archives, provide lots of exhibit space and create a place where the society can teach people how to preserve historic artifacts, said Jerry Spinks,  the society’s president. It will house the offices and library of the Southern Genealogical Exchange Society.

OneGreatFamily.com Adds a Weekly Blog

The following announcement was written by OneGreatFamily.com:

OneGreatFamily.com is now publishing a weekly blog with valuable information and suggestions for genealogy enthusiasts.  While the content varies, each issue generally includes:

• Genealogy Research Suggestions – articles focused on researching a specific ethnicity, or tips on using various resources, whether technology or traditional.
• “One Great Genealogy Site” Award – each week, a different genealogy website is highlighted.  Sites are chosen because their content benefits the genealogy community.
• Genealogy Tip – either a general genealogy tip or ideas for using www.OneGreatFamily.com.
• Customer Service Information for OneGreatFamily users.

Who Was John A. Beasley?

John A. Beasley is an almost-forgotten footnote in the Civil War. His grave in Hutchinson, Kansas was unmarked for nearly 100 years until distant cousin Jim Converse of Olathe, along with Heath Roland, a member of a Kansas City branch of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, discovered that the soldier never received his free government-issued tombstone — something all veterans of the Civil War were granted if they chose. That tombstone is now in place.

Hackers Crack UK's National ID Card in 12 Minutes

The U.K.'s new National ID cards are supposed to be "unforgeable." Embedded inside the card is a microchip with the details of its bearer held in electronic form: name, date of birth, physical characteristics, fingerprints and so on, together with other information such as immigration status and whether the holder is entitled to State benefits. Unforgeable or not, Adam Laurie successfully forged one in twelve minutes.

NARA's Proposed Addendum to the Digitization Agreement with Ancestry.com

This looks like a minor housekeeping change to the agreement that the (U.S.) National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) has with Ancestry.com (formerly The Generations Network). If you have an interest in such details, you might want to read the document referenced in this announcement from NARA:

The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is giving public notice that we are proposing an addendum to the May 20, 2008, digitization agreement with The Generations Network, Inc. (TGN) to engage in digitization of archival materials at a location other than a "NARA location" as specified in section 1.2 of the agreement. Specifically, this Addendum approves the Ancestry.com-Silver Spring, MD, facility as suitable for the ongoing digitizing of Archival Materials, and provides the operative terms under which digitization at that facility may be performed.