Since March 2006, I’ve been posting newsletter-related items and other tidbits here on the 24/7 Family History Circle blog. Similar to the Ancestry.com blog, my posts were created with the intent to provide readers with helpful information as their research their family history. Since both blogs share the same goal, I am joining my colleagues on the Ancestry.com blog, where you will now see my blog posts moving forward. This move will make it easier for you, so that you won’t have to jump back and forth between the two blogs, and will provide a one-stop resource for those ...

Session Start Time: Wednesday, 24 June 2009 08:00 PM Eastern (New York) Speakers: Stefanie Condie and Jennifer Curry Make a lasting impression at this year’s family reunion with a descendant family tree poster or descendant-based family history book. In this hour-long webinar, you’ll learn how to create a book or poster that your relatives will be talking about long after the reunion’s over. Descendant books and posters also make great birthday and anniversary gifts. During the webinar, three randomly chosen participants will receive coupons for a free ...

Session Start Time: Thursday, 18 June 2009 08:30 PM Eastern (Toronto / New York) Come join our Ancestry.ca specialists, Lesley Anderson and Karen Peterson, and Canadian Genealogist, Glenn Wright, in this one hour online seminar as they walk through the history of the Canadian Census. They’ll tackle effective search techniques, and tips which will cover each census year – 1851, 1861, 1871, 1881, 1891, 1901, 1906, 1911 and 1916. Click here to register now!

An estimated half of all Canadians will have an ancestor in the historical censuses / one in four Canadians cannot trace roots back beyond their grandparents 32 million names and 1.3 million images of original records Famous names with ancestors in the censuses include Conrad Black, Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Liberal Party Leader Michael Ignatieff, Pamela Anderson and Alanis Morissette - original images available (Toronto, June 10, 2009) - Ancestry.ca, in partnership with Library and Archives Canada (LAC), today completed the world-first online launch of the Historical Canadian ...

It's easy! I promise. If you enjoy the steady stream of free records added weekly to FamilySearch.org (over 11.5 million International records and 2 million U.S. records were added just last week), please consider "giving back" by contributing a little time online as a FamilySearch Indexing volunteer. You can do as little or as much as you would like - at any time of the day or night (and yes, while in your comfy pajamas!).

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A lot of you who missed the inaugural RootsTech 2011 conference in Salt Lake City last month have been asking me about the availability of online video presentations. Well, I'm happy to say that the keynote addresses (which were streamed live during the conference) and a few other popular presentations can now be viewed online for free at RootsTech.org. The conference which still has the genealogy community buzzing, had over 3,000 in-person attendees and another 4,500 attending remotely over the Internet. In-person attendees hailed from 42 states and 15 countries, according to a ...

Have you ever heard the story that your family's name was changed at Ellis Island? The United States' most famous port of immigration is also, unfortunately, the source of one of the many popular myths of genealogy - one that is still perpetuated with regularity in the media. In actuality, inspection agents and Ellis Island rarely changed immigrants' names. That's not to say that mistakes weren't made, but there is no known documented case of a name change occurring at Ellis Island, according to Marion Smith, senior historian for the immigration service.

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Unlike Union pensions in the National Archives, Confederate pension records were issued by the states in which the veteran lived at the time of his application. Some states only offered pensions to maimed (lost a limb), wounded or indigent soldiers, while others eventually extended pension rights to veterans' widows as well. Some states

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Where to Find Confederate Pension Records originally appeared on About.com Genealogy on Tuesday, March 1st, 2011 at 09:20:30.

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Here is the schedule for the final episodes of WDYTYA? season 2: Steve Buscemi Season 2, Episode 6 March 25, 2011 Actor Steve Buscemi delves into his family tree to unearth information about possible rogues, rebels, and questionable characters in his genealogy. He travels through Philadelphia, New York, and the battlefields of Virginia, as he puts the focus on the secrets of his

Rosie O'Donnell Season 2 March 18, 2011 Rosie O'Donnell, who lost her mother at the age of 10, embarks on a journey that takes her from New Jersey to Canada and finally to Ireland as she investigates her ancestry. In Ireland, she uncovers the unbelievable hardships faced by her family. An Irish saga for St. Patrick's Day. Steve Buscemi Season 2, Episode 6 March 25, 2011 Actor Steve

This is the schedule for WDYTYA? for the next two weeks: Kim Cattrall Season 2 March 11, 2011 (R) Kim Cattrall searches for information about her grandfather who abandoned her mother and aunts when they were young. Before long, she uncovers the haunting truth. Rosie O'Donnell Season 2 March 18, 2011 (R) Rosie O'Donnell, who lost her mother at a young age, embarks on a journey that takes her

Google has dropped the phonebook: and rphonebook: operators used for finding U.S. phone numbers. The phonebook: operator was for both business and residential phone numbers while the rphonebook: operator was for residential phonebook and focused on home phones. In addition, phonebook results no longer appear among regular Google search results. The Google phonebook operator was a great way

Yesterday I pointed out that as our research extends further into the past, we must rely on multiple records to create a “complete picture” of an ancestor. By complete picture, I mean we must gather together enough information about an ancestor to reach correct conclusions about the ancestor’s identity and family relationships.

A principal skill required of all genealogists is the ability to examine two records and determine if there is enough evidence to conclude that both are the subject of the same person. Just as putting together two overlapping photographs ...

Last Wednesday in “Three Reasons Vendors Get It Wrong” I gave three reasons why unwise product managers produce genealogically unsound products: 1. personnel turnover, 2. the deceptive complexity of genealogy, and 3. a chasm that separates time frames 2 and 3.

I was a bit vague about that last one. (Maybe I ran out of time and couldn’t finish the article… Or maybe I wanted to pique your curiosity… Yeah… that’s it… That’s my story and I’m sticking with it.)

There are three time frames or stages of ...

“We have failed to recognize the chasm” Image used with permission.

I am obsessed with explaining a phenomenon I’ve witnessed for 30 years. When it comes to tree management software, why do unwise product managers re-make the same mistakes over and over? (As I’ve said before, these observations do not apply to wise product managers in the industry today.)

I’ve written of two theories. Today I wish to add a third.

Genealogical Maturity

One theory is that personnel turnover limits product maturity.

The name, genealogical ...