Eastman's Online Genealogy Newsletter

Marietta, Ohio, Cemeteries to Come Alive

A Marietta City (Ohio) Councilman hopes a project to accurately catalog and map the city's graveyards leads to increased interest and, down the road, funding to make improvements in those cemeteries. Funding would primarily be generated by increased genealogy tourism.

Follow-up: Chromebook Laptop Computers

I have written several times (see http://goo.gl/T9OqY for my past articles) about low-priced laptops that use Google's Chrome operating system in place of Windows, Macintosh, or Linux. Chromebooks have become very popular. The Samsung Chromebook has been #1 on Amazon’s bestseller list for laptops every day since it launched 125 days ago in the U.S., and Chromebooks now represent more than 10 percent of notebook sales at Currys PC World, the largest electronics retailer in the U.K. I own a Chromebook, love it, and use it frequently.

Today, Google introduced a new, high-end Chromebook but my prediction is that it will be a flop.

Connecticut Lawmakers Seek To Restrict Access To Death Certificates

The recent tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut, has spawned a legislative bill that would restrict public access to the records for any children under age 18. State Representative Mitch Bolinsky, a freshman Republican lawmaker from Newtown, testified to a state legislative committee Wednesday that legislators "need to do something." Newtown Town Clerk Debbie A. Aurelia testified that she would like the bill amended to restrict access to all death certificates, not just those where the deceased was under the age of 18.

On the Road Again: This Time to London

By the time you read these words, I will either be in the air over the Atlantic Ocean or I will already have landed in London, England. I will be attending the Who Do You Think You Are? Live! show being held in the Olympia exhibition hall in London. This three-day expo typically attracts 12,000 to 14,000 attendees every year. Yes, that's fourteen THOUSAND genealogists and newcomers. This year's event will feature more than 160 specialist exhibitors and celebrities from the Who Do You Think You Are? television series to help you with your own family history search.

You can read more about Who Do You Think You Are? Live! in my earlier article at http://goo.gl/nD80h as well as on the conference's web site at http://www.whodoyouthinkyouarelive.com/.

Book Review: White Maryland Runaways, 1770-1774

The following book review was written by Bobbi King:

White Maryland Runaways, 1770-1774
Compiled by Joseph Lee Boyle.
Printed for Clearfield Co. by Genealogical Publishing Co., Baltimore, MD. 2010. 364 pages.

The title phrase “white Maryland runaways” characterizes the thousands of white Europeans who did not come to colonies as free men and women. They came as indentured servants, political exiles, or transported convicts. Bound whites preceded the use of black slaves in every colony, and as runaways, they were hunted just as we recall the slaves were.

This book is a collection of transcribed newspaper notices of the white runaways.  The introduction expands upon the history of white servitude in the colonies, a topic not widely discussed nor acknowledged.

Is There a Murderer in Your Family Tree?

The National Archives (of England and Wales) and findmypast.co.uk are cooperating to place 2.5 million records online, dating from 1770 to 1934, including murderers, drunks and petty criminals. This is believed to be the biggest collection of historical criminal records from England and Wales. The documents include mug shots, court papers, and appeal letters. The Crime, Prisons & Punishment records will be crucial to your research as they contain information about your ancestors that isn't available in other records.

New Book: Understanding Documents for Genealogy & Local History

Dr Bruce Durie is a genealogy expert, amongst several other talents. A former neuroscientist, he presently teaches at the universities of Dundee and Edinburgh (in Scotland), is Archivist and Historian to the Chief of the Durie Family and a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland. I have written about several of his past activities with past articles available by starting at http://goo.gl/xN6DT. Now he has written a new book that sounds interesting. Here is the announcement:

Understanding Documents for Genealogy & Local History by Dr Bruce Durie

To be published 21st February 2013, £20.00 Paperback Original

(+) Build Your Own Cloud at Home

This is a Plus Edition article written by and copyright by Dick Eastman.

I have written often about the advantages of backups, especially making backups to "the cloud" where they can be accessed from any location. You can retrieve files from your backup copies on any computer, tablet computer, or even on your Android or Apple cell phone as long as you have the appropriate user names and passwords.

I find many people are nervous about storing their personal files on Internet-based services that are controlled by corporations. Luckily, there is another solution available: create your own backup server at home and make it available to yourself via the Internet when you are away from home, whether it is a trip to the local grocery store or a trip overseas. With a home-based server, YOU control all access. Nobody can read your files without your permission. Even better, you can (optionally) provide access to friends or relatives. You might want to share all of your backed-up files. However, I suspect it is more common to give friends or relatives access to only a limited subset of your files, such as all the photos of the new grandchild or something similar.

This week I installed my own server for storing my backups.

Thank you Bradenton

I would like to thank the Manatee Genealogical Society for inviting me at their Winter Seminar last Saturday. I was able to make four presentations to a good-sized crowd in an excellent facility at the Bethel Baptist Church in West Bradenton, Florida. I also think the crowd was first class. That is, they laughed at my jokes and I didn't see anyone fall asleep. That's how I judge an audience!

Historic Tillyer Collection in Southbridge, Massachusetts is Being Digitized

The Tillyer Papers Volume I: People, Progress, and Poverty in Sturbridge 1738 — 1880 has recently been digitized by Historian Brian Burns and master photographer Robert Arnold.
 
In 1968, the Tillyer family of Southbridge, Massachusetts, donated an eclectic collection of approximately 3,000 pages of historic documents to Old Sturbridge Village. The Tillyer family was related by marriage to the Chamberlain family of Sturbridge. Of that family, A.B. and Clifford Chamberlain, father and son, were town clerks for nearly 75 years, from 1866 to 1945.

Records for Historic East London Cemetery added to Deceased Online

The following announcement was written by Deceased Online:

All 420,000 records for the large and historic Manor Park Cemetery and Crematorium in East London have been digitized and will all be available on www.deceasedonline.com by early March 2013. The unique Deceased Online web portal now features over 3 million London burial and cremation records and millions more for the rest of the UK.

Computer Screens of the Future

Ask the owner of any Apple iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch or the owners of several competitive Android devices: "What's the best thing about your device?" Many owners will reply, "The screen." Indeed, Gorilla Glass and similar glass products in many of today's handheld devices produce better displays than that of any traditional desktop computer screen. The Apple MacBook Pro I am using to write this article also has an excellent video display, called a Retina Display, that produces better video than any other laptop I have ever seen.

Corning knows something about the glass business as well as about computers, as the company makes the display screens for many of today's laptop and handheld computers. Now Corning has released a video showing the company's vision of the future of computer displays. The video has nothing to do with genealogy but can you imagine using these tools to view images of census records and other old documents?

New Gravestone Inscriptions on FindMyPast.ie

FindMyPast Ireland has released a new record set comprising of gravestone inscriptions for nearly 41,500 individuals, most of them dating from between 1618 to 2005.

The bulk of the records date between 1618 and 2005. The full memorial inscription for each gravestone is included. As well as the name of the deceased additional family names are often included. Other details recorded can include cause of death and the profession of the deceased.

Polish State Archives and Jewish Records Indexing - Poland Sign Historic Agreement Providing Expanded Access to Jewish Records in Poland

The photo to the right shows Polish Consul General Andrzej Szydło and Stanley Diamond signing the agreement. You can click on the image to view a larger picture.

The following announcement was written by Jewish Records Indexing - Poland:

Bethesda, Maryland and Warsaw, Poland, February 15, 2013 - Today the Polish State Archives (PSA) and Jewish Records Indexing - Poland (JRI-Poland) entered into a new multi-year agreement to expand access to Jewish records.

Photographs of the Empire That Was Russia

While this is not strictly a genealogy product, the Library of Congress online display of photographs taken in Russia from about 1907 through 1915 will interest many genealogists as well as historians. It shows images of many of the places where our Russian ancestors lived during a time of great social upheaval. Many people left Russia during those years and the following years to escape persecution. These photos may show the environment they left behind.

Book Review: A History of Louisa County, Virginia

The following book review was written by Bobbi King:

A History of Louisa County, Virginia
by Malcolm H. Harris
Reprinted for Clearfield Co. by Genealogical Publishing Co., Baltimore, MD. 2010.

This is a reprint first published by The Dietz Press, Richmond, VA in 1936.

In 1935, Malcolm H. Harris, M.D. completed this very large (445 pages) history of Louisa County, Virginia. From his introductory remarks, I’d say he and his parents were born and raised in the county, and his love for the province is evident in the extensive amount of detail he’s compiled into the book.

His early chapters of Political History sketch out the topographic details of the district. And detailed details they are: “On the North Anna the creeks flowing into that river from Louisa are Hickory, Duckinghole, Goldmine, Contrary, Chamberlains, Elk, Little Rockey, Great Rockey, and Bear Swamp. There are several others of lesser importance. Some have had their names changed. Gladys Creek is, for instance, written on the Fry and Jefferson map of 1775 as Gladey, and lies between Contrary River and Elk Creek.”

FamilySearch Adds 18 New Collections Including Germany, Italy, Netherlands, and the United States

The following announcement was written by FamilySearch:

Included are 19 new collections: 7 from Napoli, Italy, 7 from the United States, 4 from Germany, and 1 from Netherlands. Among these collections are the United States Draper Manuscript Collection from 1740 to 1960 (more information can be found here), the Germany, Brandenburg, Bernau bei Berlin Jewish Records from 1688 to 1872, and the United States Revolutionary War Rolls from 1775 to 1783. See the table below for the full list of updates. Search these diverse collections and more than 3.5 billion other records for free at FamilySearch.org.

Announcing "Going In-Depth," a Free Digital Genealogy Online Magazine

Prepared by the team at The In-Depth Genealogist, the premier issue of Going In-Depth was introduced to subscribers earlier today. Filled with over 70 pages of guest articles, regular columns and free resources, it is a great publication for every genealogist, no matter the age, stage or focus of your research.

The owners of this new, free new online magazine plan to issue a new edition on the 15th of each month. Sign up today for your free subscription so you do not miss an issue.

You can learn more at http://www.theindepthgenealogist.com/?page_id=6086.

MacFamilyTree 6.3.6 for $29.99

I have written about MacFamilyTree several times. It is one of the most popular genealogy programs for Macintosh. You can find my past articles by starting at http://goo.gl/0NYc0. The program normally sells for $59.99 but is on sale now for half price: $29.99. 

You can download the demo at no charge at http://goo.gl/Ssk5J and try the program. If you like it, you can purchase the full edition for  $29.99 at the same web ste: http://goo.gl/Ssk5J.

This sale started today and only last until Sunday evening, Feb. 17, at midnight Eastern time.

Help Wanted: Genealogy Job Openings in Houston

The following "help wanted" announcement was written by the Houston Public Library:

Just as the world around us is exciting and rapidly changing, so are public libraries! If you are looking for an opportunity to be a vital member of a forward thinking, customer focused, progressive organization where you can help take library services to the next level and make a difference in the lives of people every day - the award winning Houston Public Library (HPL) is looking for you! Located in Houston, Texas, the nation's fourth largest and most culturally diverse city, the Houston Public Library serves a population of 2.2 million citizens through a network of 44 unique facilities.

HPL is currently recruiting for the following positions at the Clayton Library Center for Genealogical Research: