It is planned that the NSDAR will honor two Revolutionary War soldiers by marking gravesites at the Vaughn Hill Cemetery in Wood River Twp, Madison Co., Illinois. The National Society Daughters of the American Revolution will place commemorative markers in the cemetery for the unmarked graves of two soldiers, Pvt. Anthony Alexander Harrison of Virginia and Pvt. John Cornelison of North Carolina. Stones will also be placed on those of the wives of soldiers John Ratton and Martin Pruitt. Wood River declared the cemetery an historic site in 2004. One of the oldest cemeteries in the Illinois, ...

Berlin Township, Ionia County, Michigan - It was a celebration of community at the annual Lakewood Area Chamber of Commerce awards ceremony Thursday night at the West Berlin Wesleyan Church. The event highlighted local businesses and community members in the Lakewood area. … Receiving the Outstanding Member Award was the Ionia County Genealogical Society . “One thing the chamber looks for is how chamber members interact with other members,” Johnson said. He said the group received this award for their outstanding communication skills in letting the community know what is ...

Urn and Willow Publishing has announced the release of a new DVD publication: “Photographs of Lakeville, Massachusetts Gravestones 1711-2003,” by Jean A. Douillette. The pictorial companion to the recent book “Lakeville, Massachusetts Gravestone Inscriptions 1711-2003,” contains excess of 6,000 photographs. Every gravestone present in the 31 known cemeteries of Lakeville in 2003 is included on the DVD. Also, one or more photographs for every gravestone mentioned in the book is found on the DVD. Lakeville resident, Jean A Douillette, started taking photographs of the ...

The following News Release was written by Ancestry staff: Ancestry.ca Celebrates Canada’s Black History With Largest Collection of Online Records - Highlighting the Black Battalion, Abraham Shadd, and Ancestors of Hundreds of Thousands of Black Canadians. In honour of Black History Month, historical records allow almost 800,000 black Canadians enhanced opportunity to uncover their heritage. TORONTO, Feb. 5 /CNW/ - Ancestry.ca , Canada’s leading online family history website, celebrates Black History Month with an unprecedented array of online historical records that trace the ...

A short time ago, I found that “Find My Past, Limited,” will now become “brightsolid online publishing limited.” Since findmypast.com was purchased by Brightsolid Limited in December of 2007, they have increased their presence in the family history market, operating 1911census.co.uk , ScotlandsPeople and Discover My Past Scotland . It has thus been decided to change the name of the company that operates findmypast.com from “Find My Past Limited” to “brightsolid online publishing limited.” Expect to see the new company name on websites soon.

I just received the following news release from Paula, Hinkel, co-chair of the upcoming Jamboree in Burbank. The 40th Annual Genealogy Jamboree , hosted by the Southern California Genealogical Society , promises to be an exceptional event for genealogists of all experience levels. This year’s Jamboree will be held Friday through Sunday, June 26-28, 2009, at the Burbank Airport Marriott Hotel and Convention Center , in Burbank, California. Jamboree will offer over 100 lecture sections over the three days, nearly 25% more sessions than were offered in 2008. “We will have sessions ...

British crooner, Tom Jones, grew up as Thomas Woodward. As a youngster, Tom attended the Wood Road School in Treforest, Pontypridd . He is recorded in the school register on September 7, 1948, along with his classmates. It has now been announced that the Rhondda Cynon Taf council wants to locate all school registers produced in the county and preserve them electronically. School log books and punishment books may also be preserved. Access to the general public will be restricted by data protection laws, so don’t hold your breath while waiting to see the digitized records… ...

Alvin B. Aberdeen Duncan, a decorated Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) veteran of the Second World War and a man whose roots extended to the Underground Railroad in Oakville, died Thursday at age 95. … Alvin died just short of his 96th birthday. He was born on Feb. 27, 1913 in Oakville and attended Oakville Trafalgar High School before going to Ryerson. … Alvin had been an active member of the Oakville Historical Society, Oakville Black History Society and Ontario Black History Society, said Arlene. He shared his extensive research with the Oakville Museum and assisted with ...

David Stevenson would like to know who his mother is. It seems that he was left in a second-floor hallway at West Heath Court, North End Road, Golders Green, England as an infant in December of 1960. Scotland Yard conducted a search in a futile attempt to locate his mother, but it all came to naught. His picture, and an accompanying article were on the front page of the December 21, 1960 edition of the Daily Mail. You can now find his picture in the February 4, 2009 edition of the Daily Mail - as well as an extensive article about being abandoned - his life - and his longing to know… ...

Pendleton Woolen Mills is running a “Tell Your Family Story” contest . You must share your family story in 500 words or less - and you have a chance to win an exclusively designed jacquard blanket depicting the story - patterned after a traditional Native American trade blanket. “For generations, blankets have been woven with story-telling designs that speak to various aspects of important elements of life, such as rites of passage, legends and community,” says Robert Christnacht of Pendleton Woolen Mills. “This contest gives one family an opportunity to tell ...

The following is from NEHGS eNews, Volume 11, Number 5: The National Genealogical Society (NGS) is seeking nominations from the entire genealogical community for persons whose achievements or contributions have made an impact on the field. This educational program increases appreciation of the high standards advocated and achieved by committed genealogists whose work paved the way for researchers today. Since 1986, when Donald Lines Jacobus became the first genealogist elected to the National Genealogy Hall of Fame, twenty-three outstanding genealogists have been recognized for their ...

The following was received today from Linda Woodward Geiger: FGS 2010 Annual Conference: Rediscovering America’s First Frontier at the Knoxville Convention Center, Knoxville, Tennessee, 18-21 August 2010 - Request for Lecture Proposals - Deadline: 1 May 2009 We encourage lecture topics that focus on the historic and cultural roots of Tennessee and Kentucky as well as the in and out migrations of Tennessee and Kentucky. Suggested subject areas include (not to the exclusion of others): Basic research topics Methodology Archives/Libraries Record types (military, land, probate, tax, ...