Genealogy and Family Research at Chicopee Library

We're starting a new year at the Chicopee Public Library.  In addition to the "Research Clinics" we run every Thursday from 9 AM to 4 PM, I will conduct a variety of classes on the "art" of genealogy and family research.

The upcoming series will be 2 sessions on Monday evenings February 3rd and again on February 10th.

We'll be talking about what to look for, what to expect, what is "free" and what is not, web sites (and there are HUNDREDS!) and how to use them, research strategies, tips and tricks to find what you're looking for and, most importantly "IT'S NOT ALL ON THE INTERNET"!!  Where to find those documents you need that are not available just by clicking through sites such as Ancestry.com or FamilySearch.org.  Even how to use Google to "Google your ancestors"!  And a crash course in DNA.

Alternately, another genealogist, Alan Horbal of Adams, MA, will conduct classes as well in a clinic format.

These classes are designed for beginners to intermediary researchers and have been very well received by all who have attended in the past.

If you're nearby and would like to attend, call the Reference Department at (413) 594-1800 ext 108.

See you there!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="350"] English: Image of Chicopee Public Library (Photo credit: Wikipedia)[/caption]

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Genealogy Courses - Chicopee Public Library

Having just finished a successful 4-week program at the Chicopee Public Library in Chicopee, Massachusetts, we continue to run our "Genealogy Clinics" on Thursdays from 9 AM to 4 PM.  As this is becoming more than just an idle past-time for many, the interest is growing and so is the class time!

I have just booked 3 series totaling 10 weeks of classroom at the Library:

February 3 and 10, 2014

June 2, 9, 16 and 23, 2014

July 21, 28 and August 4, 11, 2014

Subjects we cover include basic pedigree charts and family group sheets, relationship charts (What's a 3rd cousin twice removed?), getting the most out of vital records (birth, marriage and death) as well as census records, military records (enlistments, draft registrations, pension applications), newspapers, immigration and naturalization records, deeds, tax records, probate and even criminal records.

Most are pretty comprehensive and seem to satisfy everyone's curiosity.  We certainly demonstrate that you can't find it all on the internet!  Much of the research is carried out by getting out and visiting various repositories, city and town clerk's offices, libraries...wherever you might be able to turn up a clue.

Now wold be a good time to explain a little about Ancestry.com and FamilySearch.org.  There are 2 basic types of information that can be found at either site:  personal family trees and historical records.  The personal trees and the data within them are not necessarily the best resource.  That is unless there is PLENTY of supportive documentation and sources...other than other people's uploaded trees!  I'll give you a quick example: Someone has uploaded my own family tree to FamilySerach.org.  Nothing inherently wrong with that.  However, they have my 3rd great grandfather and his wife having a baby when he was 11 years old and she 9!!  It's not the end of the world, but the problem here is that there's no way of telling how many people will just download that information without checking the details!  If only I had the time.  Those of you who know me have heard me call myself the Cobbler with No Shoes!

Anyway, the point of all this is that if you're any where near Chicopee and would like to attend, please call the Reference Department at 413-594-1800.

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="1590"] English: Image of Chicopee Public Library (Photo credit: Wikipedia)[/caption]

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Northern Italy: Melting Glaciers Reveal Corpses of WW1 Soldiers

A remarkable discovery in Northern Italy was reported in the British newspaper "The Telegraph".  The macabre scene is of the bodies of World War I soldiers who died near Peio, once the highest village in the former Austro-Hungarian Empire.

Read the story at this link:  The Telegraph.  If the remains could ever be identified, imagine the impact to the families.  Not knowing what happened to your brother, father or son for what amounts to the rest of your life is tragic from anyone's perspective. Imagine getting THAT call! At the very least, it will allow those families....if they're still around...to "close the book" on that part of their families.  

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="350"] The town of Peio and Mount Vioz, Italy (Photo credit: Wikipedia)[/caption]

 

 

 

 

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Websites - Blogs - Facebook Pages for Genealogy Research

Over the past several months, I've collected a list of helpful websites.  It began as a single page list that I used as a handout in my "Genealogy and Family Research" classes.  As time went by, of course, more and more sites interested me and I began to add them to the list.  Lately, a few Facebook pages have crept onto the list.  They're under "Polish Research".  The latest addition is Russ Worthington's blog for Family Tree Maker users.

Image via CrunchBase

So I put the list into Dropbox and you're welcome to click this Handouts link and download the list for your own use.

I could also use your help.  If there is a site that you have found to be particularly helpful in your own research, let me know!  I'll be happy to add it and upload the edited list to Dropbox for everyone to share.

I've been using Family Tree Maker for several years.  As a matter of fact, I bought my first edition at Circuit City and they've been gone for quite awhile!  I think I started using it around 1998 and I've bought every update since.  Recently, I've been reading Russ Worthington's blog titled Family Tree Maker User.  There is an amazing amount of information, instruction, tips and other useful information about getting the most out of FTM and with it, many research tips as well.  Click the link or put ftmuser.blogspot.com into your browser!

If you've stumbled across this blog while searching the net, please click the "Follow" button or add your e-mail address in the box just below.  Thanks!

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Sad Story that Took 21 Years to Tell!

Here's an article about a man who went missing and, despite his family's efforts to locate him, his story remained a mystery for 21 years.  I'll let the article from the New York Post tell you the story.  Just click "Continue reading" then  NEW YORK POST to be directly to the story.  I'm very aware of the "reputation" of the Post for sensationalist stories so I'll let you judge for yourselves.  It involves a veteran, his illnesses and Hart Island.

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Wednesday Night at the Springfield Archives

It's unlikely that many of you live in or near Springfield, Massachusetts.  But I want to let everyone know that the Western Massachusetts Genealogical Society will be holding our January meeting Wednesday the 6th at 6:00 pm at the Lyman and Merrie Wood Museum of Springfield History.  It's a hidden treasure of the history of Springfield and surrounding areas from it's founding in 1636 to today.  The groundfloor and second level displays are impressive enough: an original Duyrea is on display (the first motorized automobile to ride the

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="75"] Daguerreotype of John Brown (Photo credit: Wikipedia)[/caption]

streets of any city - built in Springfield), John Brown's work desk (Yes, the "John Brown's body is a'moulderin' in his grave" fame), Indian Motocycles (built in Springfield) all over the place, the famed GB racing planes (replicas hang from the ceilings - built in Springfield), a one owner 1928 Rolls Royce that was donated to the museum by the man who drove it for nearly 75 years.

But the real treasures, in my opinion, are downstairs in the archives.  There, you can find a collection of an estimated 2.5 million historical manuscripts, the Loiselle Index (French-Canadian marriages), 6,000 microfilm/fiche, 25,000 historic photos, diaries, deeds, account books, land transfers, hundreds of historical maps including the Sanborn Fire Insurance collection, yearbooks and selected school records from the Springfield Schools, annual voter lists by ward and precinct....  and the list  goes on and on!

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="75"] English: First Church of Christ, Springfield Massachusetts, September 2009 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)[/caption]

The archives are a part of the Springfield museum complex in downtown Springfield.  Springfield residents and members of the Museum's Association have free access otherwise there is a $9 admission fee for visits during their regular hours.  There is no charge to attend the meeting.

So maybe some of you can make it!

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="75"] English: James MacNeil Whistler, a famous painter, grew up in Springfield, Massachusetts, USA. He was, however, born during his family's brief tenure in Lowell, Massachusetts. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)[/caption]

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Genealogy Research Resolutions - First in a Series

Français : Jeanne Calment's birth certificate (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

GENEALOGY RESEARCH RESOLUTIONS FOR 2014

Everyone makes resolutions. They’re not always dependent on surviving New Year’s Eve! That’s mostly because we all make genealogical resolutions year round. “I’m going organize those census records” or “These birth certificates should be filed with the correct families”…. The list goes on.

So maybe it’s time to make a real, honest to goodness, I’m-going-to-do-it-this-time, genealogical resolution. Great! Now where do we start? That’s the hardest question to ask yourself most of the time. In other words, what are your priorities? It’s a new year, so maybe it’s a good time to decide the absolutely most important project that you’ve dreaded and, as a result, put off for weeks or maybe months.

It could be a result of what I’d call “pin-ball research”. You know how that works. You finally find the census record for your great uncle who lived in a small town in West Virginia. But before you get a chance to transcribe those precious tidbits of information, you happen to notice another family that sounds familiar. So off you go, checking out a family that has nothing to do with your great uncle. But it’s really interesting! So you start tracking the “interesting” family---“I won’t forget to get back to Uncle Whatever”---then you find a newspaper article from the depression era that has a very pitiful story that you can’t take your eyes off. And then... “How’d I get here?” Here’s a suggestion: Finish Uncle Whatever, but make notes on what it was that ALMOST distracted you so you can get back to that later.

It’s a matter of discipline and focus. If you’re like most folks, it’s hard to be strictly disciplined with regard to scheduling a regular time to tend to your research. Life has a tendency to interfere! But we’re not talking about punching a time clock here; we’re just trying to put aside a block of time and when that time is over, it’s over! There’s another day with another block of time to deal with another priority.

If you’re like me, you have a gazillion projects with twice as many sticky notes and pads of paper with “important” stuff. I know that I need to set aside some time to sort through it all, save what needs to be saved and toss anything that’s just been hanging around too long, making that big pile on my desk look too daunting to tackle. I've done it before and it is past the time to do it again. I know that I always feel better and I ALWAYS find notes and folders and whatnot that I've been hunting for.

To sum it all up, resolve to clear the decks, organize, file, purge and prioritize. It’s always easier to work when your head is clear and your goals are clearer. Tackle one project and one element of that project at a time. Track you progress with research notes describing where you've been so that you don’t have to retrace your steps weeks down the road. You won’t be fretting about whether you did this or that because you've written down the steps you've taken with each project.

Coming up: What can we do now that a new law has privatized the Social Security Death Index which has always been a valuable research tool?

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