LOOKING4ANCESTORS

Research Your Immigrant Ancestor for Free

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Sat, 19 May 2012 10:00:00 +0000

German Immigrants by Horatio N. Topley, 1911, Quebec, Quebec.
Photo courtesy of Library and Archives Canada

In celebration of our Victoria Day holiday week-end here in Canada, Ancestry.ca is offering free access to all their Immigration Records Collection, including Canada Immigration records, U.S. Immigration records, U.K. & Ireland immigration records, and European immigration records, until May 21st.

Enjoy your "May Two-Four" while researching your immigrant ancestors.

Copyright by Kathryn Lake Hogan, 2012.

Canadian Ports of Entry - Free Webinar

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 14:55:00 +0000

Herbert Lake and family, S.S. Montrose, emigrating to Canada. Digital image in possesion of Kathryn Lake Hogan, 2004.

You know your ancestors came to North America from the Old Country, but you can't find any records. Please join me as I share strategies for searching ship passenger lists, immigration records and border crossing records available on the Internet.

Canadian Ports of Entry: Ship Passenger LIsts, Immigration Records and Border Crossing Records

Date: Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Time:

9:00 pm Eastern
8:00 pm Central
7:00 pm Mountain
6:00 pm Pacific
12:00 noon, Wednesday, April 18 in Australia
2:00 pm, Wednesday, April 18 in New Zealand

Price: FREE

Experience Level: Intermediate

What You Will Learn:

Where to find clues to start your search
Major ports of arrival in Canada
Detailed information about passenger lists, immigration records and border crossing records
Where to find these records on the Internet

Who Should Attend:

Anyone with Canadian ancestors

Anyone whose ancestors spent time in Canada

Volunteers and librarians who want to help patrons learn about Canadian family history

Space is limited to 100 seats.

Once you are registered, a confirmation email message will be sent with the details about how to join the webinar. A reminder email will be sent the day of the webinar.

Canadians On Board RMS Titanic

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 01:51:00 +0000

I was curious to know how many Canadians were on board RMS Titanic. With the 100th Annivesary of Titanic's sinking, there is a plethora of information available on the Internet. I thought it would be a simple task to find the answer. I was mistaken.

I posted my question on Facebook, and selected a few of my Canadian friends and acquaintances to respond. Two people responded with "it depends". One of these people was my colleague, Lynn Palermo, The Armchair Genealogist. Lynn brought up a good point that I had not considered. She said it depends on how you define "Canadian", because technically at that time Canadians were British citizens.

Obviously, I needed to redefine my term 'Canadian' in relation to what I was seeking. What I wanted to know was how many people on board Titanic were Canadian born and returning to Canada?

Researching 'Canadians' on board Titanic has been an interesting challenge. There is inconsistency in the information available. No two lists about Titanic passengers have the same information. Nonetheless, based upon my research of Titanic passengers at Encyclopedia Titanica, Ancestry.ca, and Find My Past, my answer is there were 29 Canadians on board Titanic.

Here they are:

Hudson Joshua Creighton Allison. His wife, Bessie Waldo Allison was American.
Their daughter, Helen Loraine Allison. Loraine was the only child in first-class to have perished.
Their infant son, Hudson Trevor Allison, was the only one of the family who survived.

Hélène Baxter
Mary Hélène Jane (Baxter) Douglas
Quigg Edmond Baxter

Thomson Beattie
John Hugo Ross
Thomas France McCaffry

Charles Melville Hays
Clara Jennings Hays
Vivian Ponsonby Payne
Mary Anne (Annie) Perreault

Thornton Davidson
Orian (Hays) Davidson

Albert Adrian Dick
Vera Gillespie Dick

Mark Fortune
Mary McDougald Fortune
Ethel Flora Fortune
Alice Elizabeth Fortune
Mabel Helen Fortune
Charles Alexander Fortune

George Edward Graham

James Matthew McCrie

Harry Markland Molson
Major Arthur Godfrey Peuchen

Dr. Alfred (Alf) Pain

Hilda Mary Slayter

George Wright

As we remember the sinking of RMS Titanic, and those people who survived or perished, I will be posting within the next few weeks the stories about some of the lesser known Canadians who were on that ship.

Copyright by Kathryn Lake Hogan, 2012.

Here's to Four, and Many More

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 13:56:00 +0000

Instead of boring you with a post reminiscing about what I have accomplished in the past four years, or what I had hoped to accomplish, blah, blah, blah...
Let's just say "Happy 4th Blogiversary LOOKING4ANCESTORS!"

I hope to be around for at least four more.

Copyright by Kathryn Lake Hogan, 2012.

There's Nothing Mediocre About Midwest Geneabloggers

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 17:27:00 +0000

When you think of the American Midwest, do the words 'middle-of-the-road', 'mediocre', 'mainstream', or 'boring' come to mind? What about the family history researchers in the Midwest? They must be really boring. I once thought those same things. However, I have changed my mind about those Midwestern family historians. They are anything but boring!

The first Midwest Geneabloggers Meet-up was held this past week-end in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and this Canadian crashed it. I discovered these midwestern genealogists are cool. We researched, told jokes, shared funny stories, and laughed. Oh, did we laugh! The best part of the week-end was meeting these wonderful geneabloggers face-to-face, and connecting names to real people. I was excited to (finally) meet Thomas MacEntee in person. Thomas is my 10th cousin, once removed through our Ryckman line.

I appreciated having the opportunity as a group to discuss issues and ideas in our collective genealogy community. It was encouraging to hear others' opinions and thoughts.

I want to especially thank Tina Lyons, Terri O'Connell and Thomas for their work in organizing our week-end.

The first Midwest Geneabloggers event was so successful plans are now in the works for another week-end in the fall.

Copyright by Kathryn Lake Hogan, 2012.

Canadian Census Records Webinar

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 14:50:00 +0000

When looking at census records, do you look beyond the first five columns? Most people don't. Once they have the name, age, marital status, relationship to head of household, and place of birth for their ancestor, they stop.
Stopping at the fifth column in the census record doesn't give you all the information you could be getting about your ancestor. Usually, a few more details about your ancestor can be found, when you know where and what to look for.

Want to learn more?

Please join me this Thursday, March 22, 2012 for a free webinar.

Topic: Making the Most of the Canadian Census Records
Time:

9:00 pm Eastern
8:00 pm Central
7:00 pm Mountain
6:00 pm Pacific
12:00 noon, Friday, March 23 in Australia
2:00 pm, Friday, March 23 in New Zealand

Presenter: Kathryn Lake Hogan, owner of LOOKING4ANCESTORS
Duration: 60 minutes
Price: Free
Experience Level: Beginner

About the Webinar

Learn strategies and techniques on how to get the most out of the Canadian census records in order to gain a better understanding of your ancestors. This presentation will put those techniques into practise by following three different families (Canadian, French-Canadian and African Canadian) through the census.

What You'll Learn

The Importance of Name Variations
Where to Find the Canadian Census Records
Detailed Information about the Canadian Census, 1851 - 1911
Detailed Information about the Special Census, 1906 and 1916
Techniques for searching and navigating the census records

Who Should Attend

Anyone who has Canadian ancestors
Anyone who has ancestors that spent time in Canada
Volunteers and librarians who want to help patrons learn about Canadian family history

Space is limited.

Reserve your spot for this Webinar by registering

at:

https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/641018846

Once you are registered, you will receive a confirmation email with all the details about joining the webinar.

A reminder email will be sent the day of the webinar.

Copycats, Collectors, Collaborators and Connectors

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 19:08:00 +0000

What kind of family historian are you?
Are you a copycat? Do you find an online family tree full of information about your great-grandfather, and immediately copy it into your family tree?
Are you a collector? Do you have 13,000 names in your family tree going back to the 1500s?
Are you a collaborator? Do you work with cousins and relatives to further your family history research?
Are you a connector? Do you reach out to the genealogy community to make acquaintances, friends and connections to cousins?

It seems to me there are these four types of people in the family history community.

The Copycat
Chloe Copycat wants the family history information without doing any of the work. The problem with the way Chloe Copycat "researches" her family history is that she doesn't take the time to evaluate and validate the information she has found on the Internet. Chloe Copycat copies all the names and dates she has found from her favourite online source of family trees into her own family tree. This includes all the erroneous information. Then, Chloe Copycat spouts forth these "facts" as if it were the truth. I see it time and time again when I visit the family trees posted at Ancestry or Genes Reunited. Those errors are copied over and over again into other family trees.
Now, I will admit that I have copied some information from online family trees. How I work is I have two copies of my family tree. My family tree called "Our Ryckman Roots" is in my Legacy family tree program, and also in my Family Tree Maker 2012 for Mac program. My Legacy family tree version of Our Ryckman Roots is 'clean'. What I mean by clean is that the people and facts entered into this family tree have been verifed with the sources to support the facts. My other version of Our Ryckman Roots on my FTM tree is the one I play around with. I may enter information from another family tree as a clue to help me find the evidence I am seeking. When someone asks me for information about a Ryckman ancestor, I check my 'clean' version of Our Ryckman Roots for the information I want to share.

The Collector
Chris Collector is the family researcher with the biggest family tree. His goal is to have a million names in his family tree, and link himself back to Adam and Eve. Chris Collector collects every name he can find that matches the surnames in his family tree. He's not really concerned about the facts, or the details of the ancestors and relatives.His family tree software program of choice is of course The Master Genealogist, because in his opinion, it is the best. In my opinion, Chris Collector tends to be a little bit arrogant, and a know-it-all.
Recently, I had the unfortunate experience of communicating with Chris Collector on Genes Reunited. Genes Reunited has a feature that finds "hot matches" in other family trees with people in your family tree. Chris Collector was shown as a hot match for some of my Crawford line. I contacted Chris and asked if he was interested in exchanging information. He replied that yes he was. It was when I asked how he was related to our common ancestor, and what information he was seeking, I ran into a problem. Chris Collector informed me that if I didn't want to give him access to my family tree, then, fine. He already had 15,000 people in his tree, and he really didn't need my information after all.
Pardon me? Really? Sounds like Chris Collector may also be a copycat.

The Collaborator
Colin Collaborator is the type of person most family historians dream of working with. His goal in researching his family tree is to work with cousins and relatives to find facts and evidence that add details about their common ancestors. Colin Collaborator enjoys sharing his information, and has a family tree online at Wiki Tree where others can contribute.

The Connector
Connie Connector is a cousin of Colin Collaborator. Her goal is to connect with cousins and other relatives who are researching the same family lines. Connie Connector's dream is to meet these living cousins in the homeland of their ancestors. She enjoys keeping in contact with everyone by sending out a monthly family newsletter, and includes information from other family members.

Both Colin Collaborator and Connie Connector want to further their family history research by learning the details and stories about their ancestors through sound research using the genealogical proof standard.

What kind of family historian am I? I'm probably a mix of all four. I hope I am more of a collaborator and a connector, than a copycat or a collector. I enjoy working with cousins on solving brick wall problems, as well as sharing photos stories, and sources.

What kind of family historian are you?

Photo courtesy of myu2k2

Copyright by Kathryn Lake Hogan, 2012.

FREE WEBINAR - Digging Your Canadian Roots-Encore Edition

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 12:00:00 +0000

After my first attempt at presenting a webinar last week, I have decided to present this particular webinar again. There are two reasons for this:
1) Many people living in the eastern time zone were not able to attend because they were at work at the time of the webinar. Those living in Australia and New Zealand were likely sleeping.
2) We ran into some technical difficulties.

Here are the details about the FREE encore presentation webinar:

Digging Your Canadian Roots

Date: Thursday, March 15, 2012
Time:

9:00 pm Eastern
8:00 pm Central
7:00 pm Mountain
6:00 pm Pacific
12:00 noon, Friday, March 16 in Australia
2:00 pm, Friday, March 16 in New Zealand

Presenter: Kathryn Lake Hogan, owner of LOOKING4ANCESTORS
Duration: 60 minutes
Price: Free
Experience Level: Beginner

About the Webinar

Discover how to research your Canadian ancestors. Learn techniques and tips for researching Canadian records, as well as the best websites for Canadian family history.

What You'll Learn

A Brief History of Canada
Where to Start
Census Records
Birth, Marriage and Death Registrations
Land Records
Military Records
Provincial Resources

Who Should Attend

Anyone who has Canadian ancestors
Anyone who has ancestors that spent time in Canada
Volunteers and librarians who want to help patrons learn about Canadian family history

Space is limited.

Reserve your spot for this Webinar by registering

at:

https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/313056998

Once you are registered, you will receive a confirmation email with all the details about joining the webinar.

UCLP Images are Online

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 20:14:00 +0000

Did you know that the Upper Canada Land Petition (1763-1865) images are available online?
I discovered this news from the Library and Archives Canada website.
Are you exited? I am!
But wait, there is a catch. These images are not linked to the Upper Canada Land Petition Index. Although this does require a bit of work to find the image, it is worth it. No more having to wait weeks and weeks for microfilm to arrive through inter-library loan at the library.

Here is how to find your ancestor's petition in the indexes and the images.

First go the Upper Canada Land Petitions (1763-1865) Index, and perform a search for you ancestor.

Once you have the results, click on your ancestor's name.

This will take you to the detailed page for your ancestor.

From this result make note of the microfilm number, the bundle number and the petition number.

Second, go to the Microform Digitization database of the Upper Canada Land Petitions (1763-1865). Click on the "Next" button to navigate through the film numbers to find the one you found in the index. From the results I found for my ancestor, Albert Ryckman, the film number was C-2741.

Click on the film number. This takes you to the digitized images of the land petitions. You will have to manually search through the pages of the digitized images of the microfilm to find your ancestor's individual land petition. Use the small arrow key to navigate your way through the images, or you can enter a page number in the search box. Once you know which petition number is at the beginning of the film you can "guesstimate" where your ancestor's petition may be, and use the page numbers to find it.

It took me less than five minutes to find my ancestor, Albert Ryckman's petition:

The quality of the image is excellent. No more hard to read photocopies.
I hope you have success in finding your ancestor's Upper Canada Land Petition.

Copyright by Kathryn Lake Hogan, 2012.

Why Should You Hire a Professional Genealogist?

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 11:00:00 +0000

Sometimes in our family history research we reach a point where we can't go any further. This is often referred to as a brick wall. How family historians deal with their brick walls varies. Some choose to set it aside. Others keep working at it on their own. Some choose to hire a professional genealogist.

Why should you hire a professional genealogist?

1) Not everything can be found on the Internet.
No doubt there is a lot of information that can be found about your ancestors on the Internet. However, if you have reached the point where you can't find anything else, or you know there is information about your ancestor in a specific location you aren't able to access yourself, then it may be time to hire a professional. Hiring a professional genealogist in a certain location will ultimately save you time and money. Genealogists specializing in certain geographic areas, and/or specific ethnic groups know the in's and out's of researching that particular area or group.

2) Education and Experience.
It has been my experience with discussing and networking with other professional genealogists, that professional genealogists take their education seriously. Whether that education is in the form of formal family history courses, or attending conferences, most professional genealogists I know are continually learning. What you gain from hiring a professional genealogist is that knowledge.

3) Professional standards.
When hiring a professional genealogist ask about credentials and standards. If the genealogist is a Certified Genealogist, then he or she has had their work reviewed by the Board for Certification of Genealogists (BCG). Many genealogists are members of the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG). They agree to uphold themselves to the standards of professional conduct set by the BCG or the APG. Not all professional genealogists are certified, however, this doesn't mean they don't do quality work.

4) Research Rates.
Would you pay your plumber or mechanic $15.00 per hour?
Why do you expect to pay a professional genealogist the same? The rate a professional genealogist charges depends on a number of things such as experience, education, certification, and location.
Are you looking for someone to research your family history, or someone just to do a look-up for you? The reality is hiring a professional genealogist isn't cheap. The rate researchers charge varies from place to place. In a large city such as Toronto, you can expect to pay $50.00 per hour. In smaller cities, you can expect to pay $25.00 - $35.00 per hour. Don't be afraid to ask what you are getting for the research fee.
Hiring a professional genealogist is a lot like buying other things in life; you get what you pay for. If someone offers to do your whole family history for $20.00, I would question the quality and reliability of that genealogist.

5) Know Your Limits.
Ask yourself how much time and money do you have to do the research yourself. You might be able to turn a vacation into a research trip, but then again, you might not. Do you have the time to learn how to do the research in that particular state, province or country? Do you know what you're looking for and where to find it? This where hiring a professional genealogist might save you time, money and frustration.

5) Have a Budget.
Plan a family history budget. Knowing how much you can spend on your family history project will help you determine whether or not you can afford to hire a professional genealogist. Most professional genealogists are willing to work within your budget. They will let you know what amount of research can be done within those financial limits.

6) Ask Questions.
Don't be afraid to ask questions. Ask about education, experience, qualifications. Ask how much research can be done within your budget. Ask.

For more information about hiring a professional genealogist, I suggest you visit the APG website.

Pair of Shoes by Kathryn Hogan, Windsor, ON, 2012.

Remember, hiring a professional genealogist should be like buying a new pair of shoes. If they don't feel comfortable, then it's probably not a good fit.

Copyright by Kathryn Lake Hogan, 2012.

Announcing Free Canadian Family History Webinars

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 21:30:00 +0000

"Canadian Treasures", photo by Kathryn Lake Hogan, Windsor, Ontario, 2012.

Need help researching your ancestors from Canada?

Free webinars to help you with your Canadian family history research have now been scheduled. Please join me on the following dates for these topics:

Digging Your Canadian Roots
Tuesday, March 15, 2012

6:00 pm PT

7:00 pm MT

8:00 pm CT

9:00 pm ET

Register here

Making the Most of the Canadian Census Records
Thursday, March 22, 2012
6:00 pm PT
7:00 pm MT
8:00 pm CT
9:00 pm ET
Register here

Canadian Ports of Entry: Ship Passenger Lists, Immigration Records and Border Crossing Records
Tuesday, April 17, 2012

6:00 pm PT

7:00 pm MT

8:00 pm CT

9:00 pm ET

Register here

Fighting for the King: Researching Your American Revolutionary Loyalist Ancestor
Thursday, May 24, 2012

6:00 pm PT

7:00 pm MT

8:00 pm CT

9:00 pm ET

6:00 pm PT

7:00 pm MT

8:00 pm CT

9:00 pm ET

Martin Sheen's Curiosity

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 11:00:00 +0000

This past Monday, NBC Universal held a press and media conference call with Martin Sheen. LOOKING4ANCESTORS was fortunate to be invited to attend this conference call. The first episode of Who Do You Think You Are?, Season 3, which aired February 3rd, featured Mr. Sheen.

During the course of the WDYTYA television episode it was easy to see Mr. Sheen's passion for his family's history. This was also apparent in the conference call interview. Mr. Sheen shared with us his first "wow moment". It was the reason why his mother, Mary Ann Phelan came to America. Mary Ann had been sent away for her own protection because of her brother, Michael Phelan's involvement in the Irish Civil War. She was meant to go back to Ireland when the fighting stopped, but never did. "And so it was a very, very satisfying moment for me to know that she too was involved", commented Mr. Sheen.

Through the research process, the discovery of the connection between Don Diego Francisco Suarez, and the young woman Don Diego had prosecuted for a moral crime in the 1700's was "the biggest surprise and the most intriguing part of the journey", said Mr. Sheen. Turns out Don Diego was Mr. Sheen's 4th great-grandfather, and the young woman was also Mr. Sheen's ancestor. Descendants of both Don Diego and the young woman married, and this couple was Mr. Sheen's great-grandparents!

When asked what is the number one reason someone should look into their family history, Mr Sheen replied "Well gosh it would be hard to place one reason at the top. If I had to and that would be all I would be given I would say just natural born curiosity should inspire one to look from whence we came in order to better prepare for where we are going.
So I would say that the measure of curiosity that one naturally feels is the best instinct to go with, embrace and get set for an amazing journey."

Well said Mr. Sheen.

Conferece Call With Lisa Kudrow

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 23:28:00 +0000

This past Friday I had the opportunity to sit in on a media conference call with Lisa Kudrow, one of the executive producers of Who Do You Think You Are?

Through the course of the thirty-five minute conference call, various people from the genealogy and entertainment media asked Lisa about the upcoming season.

Although I requested a copy of the transcript, I'm still waiting.
What I want to share with you from the conference call is based on my notes, and may not be word for word questions and responses.

Q: Will there be an expansion of the season, with more episodes?

A: Lisa replied more is better.

Already the show has expanded from 7 episodes in season 1 to 12 episodes this season.

Q: Will WDYTYA have a US genealogy conference, or presence at a conference?

A: Although they have been invited, Lisa said they are not sure if they want to participate just yet.

Q: Thomas MacEntee of Geneabloggers asked a question with regard to the use of DNA, and was there any focus on that on the show.

A: Although there was no direct focus about DNA testing on the show, Blair Underwood has taken a DNA test.

Q: Why is genealogy so important to the immigrant experience?

A: There has been little or no information passed down from the immigrants said Lisa. This was due to the hardships they suffered in the Old Country. They wanted to forget about their old lives, and focus on their new lives.

Lisa said the celebrities do get caught up in wanting to find out more information about their families for their mom or dad.

Q: I asked Lisa "How much of the research do the celebrities do themselves?" A: Lisa responded that it depends on the celebrity's own interest, and what information can be found.

One main researcher is assigned to each celebrity. These researchers are usually history majors who reach out to other local experts for assistance in locating information and records. The more engaged the celebrity is, the better the episode.

Q: How long is the research process?

A: Lisa said it really depends on the ancestry of the celebrities. Blair Underwood’s went fast. However, researchers for both Rob Lowe and Marisa Tomei have been working since Season 1.

Q: Dianne Haddad of Family Tree magazine wanted to know what has been the biggest improvement on the show?

A: Getting rid of the video montage from Season 1, answered Lisa.

With only 40 minutes per episode, the montage wasted valuable time.

Also, according to Lisa, this season has more history of events to give better context of the times and circumstances with which the ancestors were living.

When WDYTYA first started in the US, celebrities were a bit apprehenisve about being on the show. They were worried that the show just wanted to dig up dirt about them. Now that they know what WDYTYA is about, Lisa says celebrities such as Blair Underwood, are asking her to be on the show. There is now a waiting list.

Q: Are there any big reveals this season?

A: Some of the stars don't know what's coming. Blair and Reba have big reveals, shared Lisa. Actually they all reveal something, they're all good, but those two are the biggest.

Who Do You Think You Are, Season 3 cast:
Martin Sheen, Marisa Tomei, Blair Underwood, Reba McEntire, Rob Lowe, Helen Hunt, Rita Wilson, Edie Falco, Rashida Jones, Jerome Bettis, Jason Sudeikis and Paula Deen.
Episode One, Season 3 airs this Friday, February 3rd on NBC and City TV.

It's Family History Season

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

Ask any sports fan what is their favourite season, and their response will likely include the name of their favourite sport. For the past few months, it's been football season in my household. Fortunately, that is coming to an end with the Super Bowl in just a few weeks.
My favourite season is Family History season. It started this week and will run through until the end of June.
Some of you might be confused as you have never heard of Family History season, and you may be thinking that I am making this up. Let me assure it is real. Signs of the season include annual genealogy institutes, television shows, conferences and seminars.

The Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy is usually the first offering of the season, and kicks off two weeks of genealogy education and fun in Salt Lake City, Utah. This year's institute ran this past week (23-27 January), and has those of us at home slightly green with genea-envy.
This is followed by the Association of Professional Genealogists' Professional Management Conference, 1 February 2012.
Next is RootsTech 2012 running from 2-4 February.
This two-week period has every serious family historian wanting to be in Salt Lake City instead of warmer climates in January and February.

For those who enjoy curling up on the couch in front of the television, family history season continues through February and March with two series. Who Do You Think You Are?, Season 3 begins Friday, February 3rd with Martin Sheen on NBC in the US, and on CityTV in Canada.
Already the genealogy community is buzzing about this year's season of celebrities. Some of us will be taking part in a media conference call with Lisa Kudrow today, and with Martin Sheen on Monday. I am excited to be a part of this.
The week-end of March 24-25 brings the MidWest Geneabloggers Get-together in Fort Wayne, Indiana. This promises to be a mix of serious research during the day at the Allen County Public Library, plus lots of fun and socializing in the evening.
Also at the end of March, PBS will be airing another season of Faces of America with Henry Louis Gates, Jr. This year, Gates is hoping to discover the identity of his 4th great-grandfather who is believed to be Irish.

Later in the spring there is the National Genealogical Society Family History Conference in May. June is jam-packed with the Ontario Genealogical Society Conference (the largest family history conference in Canada), the Southern California Genealogy Society Jamboree, and Institute of Genealogical and Historical Research.

These are some of the events planned for Family History season. Still can't get enough family history? Be sure to visit the GeneaWebinars site for webinars you can enjoy at home.

Yes, it's my favourite time of year. It's Family History season!

Copyright by Kathryn Lake Hogan, 2012.

Surreal Reinfection

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 10:00:00 +0000

If you have ever been bitten by the genealogy bug, then you will understand the light-headed, giddy feeling of finding a new line of ancestors, followed by the incessant drive to find out more.

For the past five years, I have been helping my friend, Sue Taylor* with her family history. We have found quite a bit of information about her mother's family going back to the early 1800's. However, her father's family was a mystery. Sue's parents never married. Her biological father, Nate Clark* vanished shortly after she was born. Sue's mother married another man, and his family became 'dad's side of the family'.
Although Sue never wanted to meet Nate, she wanted to know where she came from. All she had was Nate's name and an address from the early 1990's. Sue didn't even know if Nate was his given name or a nickname. Sue's mother had no more information about him. No names of siblings or parents.
Past Internet searches on Nate revealed nothing. The only other thing we had to go on was a family group page that I found about six months ago on Facebook. Sue's paternal surname is unusual enough that we knew we had the right family. Some of the people who were posting comments looked like Sue. This was her family, but how did she fit into it? Sue didn't have enough information about Nate's line of the family to post any inquiries. So, we decided to leave it alone.

This past week-end I installed a new genealogy software programme on my computer. One of the features is its capability to search online databases from within the programme. For some reason I decided to play around with Sue's family tree. When I entered Nate's name into the search engine, it returned the name 'Nathaniel' and an address. The entry was from a city directory from 1992. The location matched the address we had about Nate. This was him!
In that instant the genealogy bug bit me again. I was reinfected. When my family asked what was I doing all week-end, I told them "Leave me alone! I'm busy researching." Occasionally, they would hear shouting from my office, as I was relating my finds to Sue over the phone. We were so excited!
The entry in the city directory had other names of Nate's family. When I entered those names into the genealogy database search engine, Social Security Index entries were returned, revealing that Nate's family was from Alabama. What else could I find about Sue's newly found paternal line? I had to find out. I couldn't let it go. Even while I was doing errands, dining out, and attending church, all I could think about was Sue's family.
Forty-eight hours after I began my search for Nate, I had researched back to Sue's 3x great-grandparents. A distant cousin had posted an email address on the family group page on Facebook. Sue emailed them and got a response! She now has a paternal family of her own. When I asked her how she felt about this, Sue responded "All these years I never knew anything about them, and in the course of a week-end we've got names, dates and locations. It feels a little bit surreal."

*Names have been changed to protect the privacy of living people.

Copyright by Kathryn Lake Hogan, 2012.

Answering the Challenge or Double-Dog Dare 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 19:15:00 +0000

At the beginning of the year, I read a blog post from Sheri Fenley, The Educated Genealogist about Answering the Challenge or Double-Dog Dare. Last year, Sheri teamed up with Cheryl Palmer of Heritage Happens. They were answering the challenge of Amy Coffin of The We Tree Genealogy Blog, and Denise Levenick, The Family Curator. They have has once again double-dog dared the geneablogging community.

Sheri, Amy and Denise, I accept the challenge! I have teamed up with Lynn Palermo, The Armchair Genealogist.

Yesterday, I met with Lynn via Skype. We spent the better part of an hour getting to know each other, discussing family history, and making plans for the challenge. We have decided to individually post our goals for 2012, guest author each other's blogs, and meet once a month via Skype to see how we are doing. We are planning to meet in person later in the spring.

While Lynn and I were discussing the challenges, I thought to myself how nicely this was putting into action my three words for 2012. Here are my Double-Dog Dare goals for this year:

Organization
Continue moving, and organizing the contents of my old office into the new office.
Transfer and update my personal genealogy files from Legacy Family Tree to Family Tree Maker 2012 for Mac.

Research
Finish researching and documenting my lineage to my ancestor, John Ryckman of Barton Township.

Writing
Submit an article to a genealogical publication.
Publish my own ebook based upon my research experience and knowledge about Canadian genealogy.

Now I am passing along this challenge. I double-dog dare you to team up with another family historian, post your goals for the year, and blog about your progress. Let's see how many of us accomplish this challenge.

Copyright by Kathryn Lake Hogan, 2012.

Plan, Practise and Joy Are My Three Words for 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 19:50:00 +0000

Happy New Year 2012!

Last year instead of posting resolutions, I posted My Three Words.
Here is a quick review of how I did.

Invest
I did well this year in investing not only in my immediate family but with close and distant cousins. I have successfully made contact with a number of cousins overseas and in the US. I am excited about these connections, and will be blogging about them and our common ancestors in 2012.

Grow
2011 was certainly a year of growth for me personally, and professionally.
I completed the three professional goals I had set for myself in 2011:
1) ProGen Study Group. What a terrific programme! The information I learned has been valuable, and the connections I made with other genealogists has been priceless.
2) Institute for Genealogical and Historical Research. I completed the course Genealogy as a Profession. Learning from the best professional genealogists in the business certainly helped me to grow professionally in the last six months.
3) Professional Learning Certificate in Genealogical Studies from the National Institute for Genealogical Studies. I successfully completed the General Methodology Certificate, the Canadian Research Certificate, and the English Research Certificate.

Share
Through blogging, networking with other family historians, and genealogists, as well as connecting with cousins, I shared my knowledge of family history, and my ancestors during 2011.

My Three Words for 2012

Plan - I want to make better use of my time this year. Taking the time to plan each day will help me stay focused, and make the most of the time I have for work, family and play.

Practise - To take all those things I have learned in the past twelve years of doing family history and continue to put it into practise by researching, speaking, blogging or sharing on a daily basis.

Joy - To find the joy in life everyday. Yes, even on those no-good-totally-awful days. I don't want to be just a "happy" person; I want to be a joyful person.

What are your three words for 2012? Leave me a comment or a link with your three words.

Copyright by Kathryn Lake Hogan, 2012.

The Infirmity Column Reveal

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 18:37:00 +0000

Since January 2009, the 1911 England and Wales census has been available online to researchers. This was three years earlier than originally expected, thanks to the hard work of Guy Etchells. However, there was one catch.

The last column on the household schedule had to remain covered up. The 'infirmity' column contained information about mental health, blindness, deafness, etc., and had to remain hidden due to the 100 year publication restriction of sensitive information.

On 4 January 2012, this restriction will be lifted.
Details about your ancestors' conditions and illnesses will be shown on the digital images of the 1911 census. More information about this exciting release is available at findmypast.co.uk Blog.

Copyright by Kathryn Lake Hogan, 2011.

Christmas Greetings 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 15:28:00 +0000

Just a quick post today to wish all my readers a joyous holiday. I hope you get to spend time with your family and friends celebrating old traditions, and creating new ones.
Happy Holidays, and Merry Christmas!

Photo Credit: D. Hogan, Snowmen, 2011.
Copyright by Kathryn Lake Hogan, 2011.

No Books at RootsTech

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 21:30:00 +0000

When I attend a genealogy conference one of the things I look forward to is the exhibit hall. I enjoy browsing the vendor tables, especially the book sellers. When I purchase family history books, I feel like the boy in the photo.

Unfortuntely, if I were to attending RootsTech 2012, I would be disappointed.
Certain booksellers are no longer wanted in the exhibit hall.

Yesterday, Leland Meitzler of The Genealogy Blog shared his news that as a book vendor he was no longer wanted in the exhibit hall at the upcoming RootsTech 2012 conference in February 2012. And, Leland is not the only one. It seems that certain vendors who sell and/or publish books, genealogical studies, and/or arts and crafts are no longer welcome to sell their wares at RootsTech.

This announcement has caused an UPROAR in the genealogy community right now. Reaction to this announcement has been quick as seen of Facebook, Twitter (@SeekingSurnames, @FamilyStories), and geneablogs such as:

Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf? by Sheri Fenly, The Educated Genealogist
My Genealogy Is Rooted In Books by Thomas MacEntee, Geneabloggers
RootsTech by the Book by Amy Coffin, The We Tree Genealogy Blog

The way I see it, people attending a genealogy/family history conference, do so for three reasons:
1) the speakers
2) to network with other like-minded individuals
3) the vendors (especially the books sellers)

So, you might be thinking what's the big deal? It is called RootsTech afterall. And, the focus is on technology related to family history.

Well, one of the ways I learn about technology in general, and technology related to family history in particular, is by reading (real) magazines and books. In my opinion, genealogists love books. Period. As tech-savvy as we may be with our family history software, electronic book readers, smart phones and laptops, most genealogists still love to hold a book in their hands. In my opnion, RootsTech's announcemnt not to include book vendors is a short-sighted decision.

RootsTech's response to the geneablogging community's reaction has been posted on their Facebook page stating "We are listening and are going to revisit this issue."

RootsTech, I hope you really are listening because the geneablogging community has voiced their concerns about your decision, and we are not happy.

Image credit:
photostock / FreeDigitalPhotos

Copyright by Kathryn Lake Hogan, 2011.

Remembrance Day 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 16:06:00 +0000

In Flanders Fields
By: Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, MD (1872-1918) Canadian Army

IN FLANDERS FIELDS the poppies blow
Between the crosses row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

Lest We Forget.

Nothing to Lose, and Knowledge to Gain

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 16:39:00 +0000

Every January, there is a buzz in the air in genealogy circles. People are excited about going to Salt Lake City in January. Really?
Yes! And, do you know why?

Genealogists don't care about the snow and cold in SLC in January because they are going to 'school' to learn from the best. The knowledge, the wisdom, the comraderie. This reminds me of IGHR at Samford in June. The Utah Genealogical Association (UGA) offers a superb educational opportunity for genealogists known as the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy (SLIG). SLIG offers twelve course tracks on a variety of genealogy topics. Already, four of these tracks are sold out. No surprise there, if you look at who the instructors are: Dr. Thomas Jones, D. Joshua Taylor, Angela McGhie, Richard (Rick) Sayre, and Pamela Boyer Sayre. The other courses are just as well taught by genealogy experts such as Dr. John Philip Coletta, Kory Meyerink, George G. Morgan, Drew Smith, and Paula Stuart-Warren.
You want to learn from these people because they are the experts.

I have never attended SLIG. It looks similar to the Institute of Genealogical and Historical Research I attended this past June. IGHR was a marvelous learning experience. I have read the 2012 brochure on the SLIG website, and the course offerings look terrific. This year I really would like to attend because there is a course track I haven't seen before that is of immense interest to me. It's Course 3: Welsh Research, coordinated by the only ICAPGEN Accredited Welsh Researcher, Darris Williams AG. My Welsh roots run deep in Pembrokeshire and Cardiganshire, Wales going back to the 1700's. I get goosebumps just reading the course offerings of civil registration, non-conformist records, newspapers, maps and gazetteers, probate, land records, parish chest records, and more. Imagine the things I would learn by attending SLIG!

Two weeks ago, I met online, JG, a cousin whose 2x great-grandfather, Jacob Nicholas was the brother of my 2x great-grandmother, Martha Nicholas. I was excited to make this connection because JG is the first cousin I have met in my Welsh line. JG shared with me that Jacob Nicholas was a Baptist minister in Wales. My interest in my Welsh family history has been ignited again. I'm sure you can see how exciting taking the Welsh Research track at SLIG 2012 would be for me.

This is where I want to be in January 2012!

Unfortunately, where I want to be and where I will be in January 2010 are about 2600 km apart. I don't have plans to attend SLIG 2012 due to a limited budget. I'm greatly disappointed. It will be a long time before the Welsh Research track is offered again. But, wait! I just might have an opportunity to attend afterall. SLIG is holding a contest, and one random, lucky winner will have their tuition paid for. The winner will be announced this Sunday. Also, Michael Hait at Planting the Seeds is holding a contest in conjunction with the SLIG contest.

You have just read my entry. What about you? Are you going to SLIG 2012? Have you entered the contests?

Copyright by Kathryn Lake Hogan, 2011.

New Post at Our Ryckman Roots

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 14:39:00 +0000

A new post about my Presidential relative can be found at Presidential Relations on my blog, Our Ryckman Roots.

Copyright by Kathryn Lake Hogan, 2011.

Occupation Records and Videos at Ancestry.co.uk

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 14:58:00 +0000

When I visited the Ancestry.co.uk website this morning, I was pleasantly suprised by the new videos that are available about our ancestors' occupations. Currently, there are two short videos to view on the site, with more to come.

The purpose of these videos is to highlight the new collection of occupation records that are being released at Ancestry.co.uk. The first collection is the Postal Service Appointment Books, 1737-1969. If your ancestor worked for the British Postal Service, as a postman, or in another position such as bookkeeper, sorting clerk or porter, then this is a record collection you won't want to miss.

If your ancestor was a doctor, vicar, pilot or policeman, there are a number of special collections already available on the Ancestry.co.uk site to help you research these occupations.

Ancestry.co.uk will be releasing more videos and occupation records in the next few weeks, so be sure to check back often.

Copyright by Kathryn Lake Hogan, 2011.

Ancestry.ca Offers the Royal Treatment

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Lake Hogan) — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 13:38:00 +0000

With the Royal visit of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge to Canada, Ancestry.ca is offering free access to the UK National Probate Calendar, 1861 - 1941. Hurry, though, as this offer expires tomorrow, July 8th.

Copyright by Kathryn Lake Hogan, 2011.