Behind the Scenes at WDYTYA on TLC
If you're like me, you were happy to see the return of Who Do You Think You Are? to our TV lineup this past summer. You might have thought to yourself as you watched, "They make it look so easy! I wonder how long it took them to find that record?" Well there have been...
Personal Thoughts from Lisa: What Ashton Kutcher and I Have in Common
On August 15 I posted a compelling video and article on my Facebook page about the importance of hard word and making your own luck, values I am fortunate that my ancestors passed on to me. The speech came from an unlikely source: a young Hollywood actor. In the...
Here’s Where Can You Get Free Genealogy Records this Labor Day Weekend
It's a holiday weekend, so you know what that means? Genealogy record websites that are usually only available by paid subscription open up some of their collections for free. Here's where you can get access to family history resources this weekend: MyHeritage...
Here’s Where You Can Get the RootsTech 2014 Conference Schedule
Registration is now open for RootsTech 2014, which will be held February 6-8, 2014 at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. Here's all the info hot off the press including links that reveal classes and computer labs plus a coupon code you can use...
71,000 pages of Canadian Genealogy and History Now Online
If you have Canadian roots, you'll want to know about a rich new resource now at Findmypast.com. It's the Canadian Books collection, with 71,000 pages of keyword-searchable histories, vital records, directories, published genealogies and more. "Dating back to the...
Navigate this Cool Free Tool that Lets You Explore U.S. Immigration Settlement Patterns
Do you ever wonder why your immigrant ancestors to the U.S. settled in a particular location, especially if it wasn't the port city they landed in? The New York Times website has a tool that may shed light on your question. This very cool interactive map displays the...
Preserve Your Heritage in Archival Scrapbooks: New Video
Hands up, how many of you have ever created (or considered creating) an album or scrapbook to showcase your family history finds, life story, career or hobbies - or those of a loved one? Well, the Library of Congress has posted a new FREE video about how to create and...
RootsTech and FGS: Joint Genealogy Conferences in 2015
Ever had to choose between attending two fantastic genealogy conferences? In 2015, your choice will be easier: RootsTech and the Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS) will host events in the same time and place: the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake...
Digital Family History Books at Your Fingertips
Do you sometimes wish you had your own enormous library of family history reference books? Or do you dream of how nice it would be to live near a major research library? Or do you ever wish the family history book in your hand had been better indexed so you could turn...
Find Family History with Online Newspaper Research: More Chronicling America
Have you already searched for your relatives' names at Chronicling America, the the Library of Congress' web collection of digitized American newspapers? Well, search again! Recently the the Library of Congress added more than 600,000 historic newspaper pages to its...
Genealogy Alert: 1921 Canadian Census Images Now Online
The much-anticipated (but little-publicized) 1921 Canadian census is now online and available for browsing at Ancestry.ca. They anticipate releasing an index later this year. On June 29, I blogged in detail about the 1921 census. Check out that post for an image from...
Genealogy Roadshow on PBS: More Genealogy TV is Coming!
Lovers of Who Do You Think You Are! and other genealogy TV favorites will be pleased to know that Genealogy Roadshow is filming for airing this fall on PBS. This clever show follows a format similar to the popular Antiques Roadshow, in which antiques experts travel to...
Genealogy Education Can Be a “GRIPping” Experience
Hello from Genealogy Gems Contributing Editor Sunny McClellan Morton. I'm still flying high after a week just spent at GRIP, the Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh. This was like mini-graduate school for genealogists, complete with a lush green campus in...
Look Where You Can Find PERSI and Your Family History
If you've ever used the Periodical Source Index (PERSI), you know what a genealogy gem it is. PERSI is a master index to thousands of genealogical and historical periodicals, published by the Allen County Public Library's Genealogy Center (ACPL). According to the...
iPad Tips and Interview with WDYTYA Producer in New Episode for Premium Members
Would you like to be privy to the genealogical research strategies of the producers of the TV series Who Do You Think You Are? Genealogy Gems Premium Members get an exclusive cut from my recent interview with Allie Orton, Producer of the series that has moved to the...
Why Genealogists are Flocking to the London Metropolitan Archives
The London Metropolitan Archives says that half the inquiries they receive are from family historians. This is likely due to their rich resources (click here to peruse the collections) Because there is such a strong genealogy interest in the LMA, they are making a...
Were Your Ancestors “Viscious” or in “Chronic Want”? London Poverty Maps Map It Out
There is a fantastic blog posting on Mad About Genealogy about the Booth Poverty Maps, which look like a riveting way to understand your ancestor's 1880s London neighborhood. According to blogger Linda Elliott, "Booth employed a team of social investigators who...
How to Save Fold3 Search Results to Your Ancestry.com Family Tree
Now when you discover an ancestor's record on Fold3.com, you can save it to your online tree at Ancestry.com. According to Fold3.com's press release: "Whenever you see a green 'Save to Ancestry' button above a document or on a Fold3 memorial page, you can link that...