| FHC Info | |
Hours of Operation:
Mon: Closed
Fri: 9:30 am-1:00 pm
Saturday:
9:30 am-4:30 pm
Tues, Wed, Thurs:
9:30am-4:30pm, & 7-9:30 pm
Directors: Linda & Kurt Christensen Washington DC Stake Carol & Gary Petranek, Silver Spring MDStake |
| Join Our List |
 |
|
|
|
WDC FHC News
| | |
Upcoming Classes
July 20 - 9:30-10:30 Research in Cajun Country
Presenter: Cheryl Singhal
The deep south is an area rich in genealogical resources. This class will focus on research specific to the Gulf Coast of Louisiana, Alabama, Georgia and western Florida.
* Join a Focus Group to Enhance Your Research Skills *
DNA Group: meetings on Sept. 18, Oct. 2 & 30 at 7:00 p.m.
RootsMagic Users Group: monthly meetings on the 2nd Saturday at 9:30 a.m.
Irish Group: bi-weekly meetings on the 1st, 3rd & 5th Tuesday evenings at 7:00.
African-American Group: weekly on Monday mornings, 9:30 a.m.
Thank you to all of our presenters who volunteer their time to teach!
All classes are free of charge, but registration is requested.
Email info@wdcfhc.org, or call 301-587-0042
|
|
Who Do You Think You Are Returns!
| |
The television show, Who Do You Think You Are, returns on Tuesday, July 23 at 9:00 p.m. Eastern time on TLC. Among the celebrities featured will be Christina Applegate, Kelly Clarkson, Cindy Crawford and Chris O'Donnell. This link to the TLC website has further information and will also be where episodes are archived.
|
|
Ordering an Application for a Social Security Number
| | |
by Judy Russell
An ancestor's application for a Social Security number, Form SS-5, can provide valuable information about the ancestor and his/her parents. There are two methods to ordering this document, online and by mail.
In this important article, Judy Russell explains the difference in ordering methods, which one you should choose and why:
SS-5. Recent changes in the law have a significant impact on what information is released under each method.
Source: The Legal Genealogist Blog, May 31, 2013
|
|
Hamburg Passenger Ship List Updated
| | | by Joseph B. Everett
I just learned that the Hamburg Passenger Lists have been updated on Ancestry.com: Hamburg Lists.
The name index now covers 1850-1914 (previously it was 1877-1914). This means that the bulk of this collection is now indexed, including the time period of peak migration through that port. The only remaining piece to index are the records following WWI (1920-1934). (You can still browse the images, though).
The update adds over eight hundred thousand new records to the index, which now includes over 4.6 million names.
(Note that they have not updated the little yellow notification in the search box to reflect the expanded index coverage yet. The "About this database" section has the updated coverage information, though. I have also tested numerous searches for the earlier years back to 1850 and they are working.)
|
 | | Alternatives to Death Certificates in Genealogy |
Alternatives to Death Certificates
| | |
This video by Crista Cowan explores other documents which can substitute for death certificates:
|
|
Jumping the Pond
| | |
by Michael J. LeClerc
One of the biggest challenges in researching the origins of immigrants is getting them back to their place of origin. Passenger lists and naturalizations are the first place we look for. But they are often unavailable. Then it is time to turn to other resources that can provide valuable information - or not.
1. Church Records
2. Obituaries
3. Grave Markers
4. Organizational Records
5. Compiled Genealogies -- Maybe!
To read how each of these resources may help you, click here.
Source: Mocavo Genealogy Blog, June 12, 2013
|
|
How Do You Research Online?
| |
Which would you prefer: finding one or two people with your ancestor's name, located in the area where he or she lived, in the years he or she lived there? Or will you find 100 men or women across the country with the same name?
In this insightful article, Dick Eastman describes the differences in search techniques between experienced researchers and "newbies." Click here.
Source: Eastman's Online Genealogy Blog, July 4, 2013
|
|
Questions to Ask Before Declaring a Brick Wall
|
| |
by James Tanner
1. Have I carefully checked the location where my ancestor was supposed to live?
Most of the claimed brick wall issues turn out to be situations where the researchers are looking in the wrong place or have yet to identify the place. Whenever someone comes to me with a question, I immediately examine where and when the event they are looking for supposedly occurred. It is no longer surprising to me to find out that they have been looking in the wrong place all along. Usually, it is a jurisdictional issue, with the county or the city being different than the one they have identified in their passed down records. I use the Newberry Atlas of Historical County Boundaries and other mapping programs, to start to verify the county boundaries at the time of the supposed event.
2. What do I know about the specific ancestor's family, especially children and grandchildren?
Sometimes people claim that they have hit a brick wall when all they really have hit is one brick. Constant attention directed at the missing person is unproductive. You already know that person is hard to find, so try someone else; brothers, sisters, neighbors, children, grandchildren. You need to learn as much as you can about the entire family and any records that may have survived from family or neighbors.
3. Have I looked in newspapers?
I keep asking this question and the answer is almost always no. The number of online digital newspaper collections increases daily. You can also see which newspapers were published in the state and county by going to Historical American Newspaper on the Library of Congress website. There are also several very large online subscription websites.
4. Have I read a good book lately?
What I mean by a good book is one that talks about the history of the location where my target ancestor lived. Check your local library or historical society for suggestions or go online and search in WorldCat.org for the location plus the words genealogy or history. You might find your ancestor's family in the book or not, but you will come away with a greater appreciation for the area where they lived and just might get some good ideas about where to look.
5. Have I followed the suggestions in a record selection table?
If you haven't looked at a record selection table, especially for the country or state (province, district etc.) where your ancestors lived, you probably have no idea of what is available. I suggest the United States Record Selection Table on the FamilySearch.org Research Wiki as a starting place.
Source: Genealogy's Star, May 1, 2013
|
|
Preparing for a Genealogy Trip
| | |
by Kimberly Powell
The process of researching your family tree will eventually lead you to a courthouse, library, archives or other repository of original documents and published sources. The day-to-day joys and hardships of your ancestors' lives can often be found documented among the numerous original records of the local court, while the library may contain a wealth of information on their community, neighbors and friends. Before heading for the courthouse or library, however, it helps to prepare.
To read Kimberly's 10 tips for planning your visit and maximizing your results, click here.
Source: About.com: Genealogy, June 25, 2013 |
|
Genealogy "Tips of the Day"
|
by Michael John Neill
Funeral Home Records. The records maintained by a funeral home are privaet business records--not public records. Funeral homes to not "have" to allow you to see their old records. Some do as a public service and because it generates goodwill. A few even charge. But a funeral home is under no obligation to let you have access to any materials they retained after your relative's funeral--no matter what it cost.
Widows Who Had to Prove. Did any sisters of your ancestors survive their husband who had military service? Would those ladies have qualified for a military pension based upon the service of their husband? If so, the "proof" of their marriage and relationship to the soldier may have included testimony from some of their relatives documenting the relationship. It is always good to check out the siblings in any records, but pension records may contain unexpected family details.
The Neighbors of Every Sibling. The "trick" to locating one ancestral sibling was to look at each sibling in every census and "say out loud" the names of the neighbors. That was when we realized that the married sister was "right under our noses" with a rendering of her last name that was difficult to transcribe and impossible to find with creative soundex and wildcard searches. Sometimes you just have to look at the other names one by one and think "could this sound like" the name for which I'm looking?
Many Conclusions are Temporary. When research in the United States gets back beyond a certain point, records are fewer and less likely to make direct statements. It is important to remember that any conclusion reached when the records are not clear may need to be revised if new information comes to light. Keep your mind open to the chance that you may be incorrect or may have not looked at all the records. Never assume that your initial "hunch" is Gospel Truth.
Was There an Earlier Spouse? Keep your mind open to the possibility that an ancestor was married before what you think was the "first marriage." The reason details do not quite "fit" may be because there was a previous marriage that ended because some died in childbirth, got ill, or simply left. Always worth remembering as well that sometimes things seem confusing because there are details we have yet to discover.
|
|
Research Tips & Resources
| |
Michigan County Resources
The Michigan County Histories and Atlases Digitization Project is comprised of 428 digitized titles (many composed of multiple volumes) published before 1923: http://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/micounty/.
(Source: Michael J. Neill, Genealogy Search Tip of the Day, June 30, 2013)
Pennsylvania Oaths of Allegiance
The Pennsylvania Oaths of Allegiance are one of the jewels of Early American genealogy. Relatively unique among genealogy records, they give the researcher terrific keys to unlocking family stories in Pre-Revolutionary Pennsylvania.
If you are searching for non-English immigrants to Pennsylvania pre-Revolutionary War, please read the full article about this resource here. Source: Genealogy Decoded Blog, May 23, 2013
Gravestone Preservation
|
Thank you for subscribing to Generations. We hope this publication will motivate you to successfully begin or continue your family history research. We would like to hear from you! Please submit your questions, research tips, and favorite websites to us at info@wdcfhc.org
Sincerely,
Carol Petranek, Newsletter Editor
Linda & Kurt Christensen
Gary Petranek
Co-Directors, Washington DC Family History Center
10000 Stoneybrook Drive, PO Box 49
Kensington, MD 20895
|
|
|
|
|
