Join me for Elevenses with Lisa, the online video series where we take a break, visit and learn.
This episode is a follow up to material covered in Episode 6. You will enjoy it much more if you watch episode 6 first. Then click the video below to watch Episode 7, and scroll down for all the show notes and details. (Organization training begins at the 17:28 mark.)
The company was founded in 1775 by John Aynsley in Lane End, Longton, Staffordshire.
From You:
Lori writes:
I know you are asking what we have been doing and I wanted to share this with you.
I have an old photo of my mother’s side of the family and they are sitting down at the table to celebrate my GG Grandmother’s birthday.
Anyway I am a tea cup collector and tea drinker and so was my great grandmother who is also in the photo to the right holding onto my mom.
I wanted to find her china and as you can see this photo is not very good at being able to identify. I sent a close up of this picture on the china pattern to Replacements LTD.com and they were able to help me find the china and pattern!
Here is the photo of the family (and) the china pattern that they helped me discover. I didn’t know that you could send them a photo so when I discovered this I have been telling everyone!
Love the Elevenses show!
Lori’s family and their lovely china place settings.
You may have noticed the watch on my wrist in this episode. I don’t usually wear a watch, but this actually isn’t a watch. It’s a DIY bracelet that I created using one of my grandmother’s old watches.
Click to watch (below) how you can make one yourself:
Answers to Your Questions About My Genealogy Organization Method
From Julie Q: How do you handle legal size papers?
and from MargtheCar
Q: What do you do about oversize documents, panorama photos etc that don’t fit in a binder?
A: Hopefully you won’t have a lot. You can use a legal size binder like this one, or an archival safe box. Gaylord
From Joyce Q: What weight of protectors?
A: Avery Heavyweight 3.3 mils #76003
From Linda Q: Do you put each sheet of a letter in a separate sheet protector or do you put the entire letter in the one sheet protector?
A: One each although sometimes I place one-sided items back to back. You can slip a piece of acid-free paper or cardstock between them if you wish.
From Kathryn Q: Does it matter whether the binders themselves are archival?
A: As long as everything is in the archival safe sheet protectors they should be fine. Gaylord makes a 3 ring archival box but it’s expensive – about $30 each
From Betty in the Episode 6 Show Notes Comments Q: Beginning with “the 4 ancestral lines”…don’t those notebooks become extremely large? Have you gone from a 3” on a name and then added a second for same line?
A: For a few family lines (the ones closest to me because they have the most archival paper) I do have multiple binders. I indicate on the spine the time frame that the binder covers.
From Marilyn Q: For a couple do you make a copy and file it in both of their binders.
A: A couple is in the same binder. The wife goes behind the head of household tab.
From Pamela Q: Do you move the women into another binder when they married and how do you make a note in her birth family binder?
A: The last item in the father’s binder should be her marriage application / license. This tells you the surname of her fiancé. If she is a direct ancestor I create a new binder for her husband’s surname. You are welcome to put a sheet of paper that references the new binder, although my database would also tell me who her husband was, so I would look for that binder. I would only create a binder if there was enough material to warrant it, and if she were a direct ancestor.
From Ginny Q: Are the male sons listed with their father until they marry?
A: Yes – they only move to a new binder if paper warrants it and they are a direct ancestor.
From Keck Q: Do you put photos in the same binders?
A: Yes, for now. I’m setting up archival boxes. If you have a lot of old family photos, I recommend storing them separately. However, I think it’s wonderful to scan them and print copies of some of your favorites to include in their section of the binder.
From Pamela Q: Do you scan all your paper and keep it organized on your computer as well?
A: Yes, if it’s worth keeping for future reference. I don’t keep all paper though. I only keep and archive paper items that are precious and irreplaceable. My goal is to download the digital records I find online and store them on my computer (which is backed up with Backblaze.) And keep in mind, there is no pressure to file ALL paper before resuming your genealogy research. I schedule regular scanning time, for my backlog, and I scan and file as I go with current research. Eventually you will get caught up.
From Susie Q: Do you mark the paper to show that it is also digitized?
A: Yes, with a pencil check mark. Or you could use a thin sharpie and mark the sheet protector.
From Regina Q: Do you keep copies of census records in your files? Or do you rely on the big name websites and attach it to an online tree?
A: Not typically, although I have kept a few from when I first started my research when I was a kid. Now I download the digital file and save it on my hard drive which is backed up to the cloud.
From Kay Q: Do you put new items in your heirloom binder? e.g. a gift you received that you think will be passed on? {of course, some things need to go in a will.)
A: Yes, absolutely!
From Carol Q: I’ve really been enjoying your YouTubes and have become a member. I love the idea of the heirloom template, but for some reason when I try to insert a picture, only a small portion shows. I’m obviously doing something wrong. Would you do a quick summary of how to insert the picture?
A: I’m going to show you how to do that, and the best way to find all of the show notes:
I use my online tree as a lead generator, NOT a master tree.
Do the Genealogy 2-Step to Protect Your Family Tree
Step 1: Purchase a genealogy software program and load it on your computer
Step 2: Back up your entire computer with a cloud-based backup service
The best type of backup protection involves:
Multiple copies
Updated regularly
At least one copy stored in a different physical location than your computer
What I look for in a cloud backup service:
Backup of all files automatically (including video!)
Free app for accessing files on mobile
Encryption and security
Ease of restoration
Competitive price
I use Backblaze. If you decide to check them out, please use this Backblaze link. If you do we are compensated at no additional cost to you, and that supports the free Elevenses with Lisa show. Thank you! Whatever you choose, start backing up today!
More Answers to Questions About Genealogy Organization
From Jennifer Q: Do you use the card catalog (behind you) for family “cards” to show what you have and what is filed where?
A: No. My database is my master. If I need to know something about someone in my family tree, I look them up in my database. That is the final word on what I currently know about them. Armed with that information I then know where to look in my computer digital files, and in which binder I will find the archival paper.
From Julie Q: Do you reference the documents in your regular binders so you know how to find them?
A: No. My database is where I turn because it is the most accurate and up to date information on each person in my tree. If I need documentation on any aspect of a person’s life, I turn to my hard drive where the bulk of my documents are. If it’s not there (although it probably is because I scan my archival paper) then I pull the family binder. I can ALWAYS find what I need. I’m happy to say that I haven’t lost an item yet.
From Keck Q: Do you have a Table of Contents in each binder?
A: No – it’s chronological and matches my database. See my previous answer to Julie above.
From Sherry Comment: Cross referencing is great and saves in duplicating paper…that being said, put a cross reference sheet in the front of each binder and list each item that you reference on that sheet.
A: I designed my system so that I would not have to cross reference. People are not duplicated in multiple binders because they can only be in one household at a time. They are either in their father’s household, or their own household. (Yes, an adult may live or rent from someone else, but they are still their own “head of household”.) The database is my guide as to their surname and the life events which is the information I need in order to know which binder to look in. This is the beauty and the simplicity of this system. All filing and organization is driven by the master database. And remember, the goal is keeping the least amount of paper possible. Most items will be digital on your computer.
From Stephen Q: If you have both paper and digital of the same document, do you discard the paper once done with it and reference the digital version in the binder?
A: I discard the paper if it’s not archival-worthy. (In other words, it is not previous, irreplaceable or highly sentimental. Most isn’t.) There’s no need to reference the digital version. If I need backup documentation on anything noted in my database, I know where to find it on my hard drive. We’ll talk more about hard drive organization in Episode 8. There is also an in-depth two part video series on how to do it step-by-step in Genealogy Gems Premium Membership. (Learn more about membership here)
From Karen
Q: My big problem is I have about 8 different Brown families. How do I label them to know which is which?
A: My first questions would be, are all of them direct lines? I tend to archive only the most important items for direct ancestors. Digitize the rest, and toss the paper. If they are collateral relatives you can also file their paper in the direct line binder under the Collateral tab.
You can also include the unique number assigned to the person in Rootsmagic, or use their birth year to identify each unique Brown head of household.
Multiple genealogy binders for one family
From Keck Q: Do you duplicate that in Evernote or in your digital file for the same family?
A: Evernote is my “active workspace”. It is not a complete look at my research. It is only the notes and clippings associated with my research. The paper organization we’re talking about is archival. All genealogy records are digital on my computer. If you want to remind yourself about an archived item, you can certainly make a mention of it in your Evernote notes.
From Jennifer Q: I’d like to list on Twitter for you and Facebook, are we doing Elevenses with Lisa for forever or are we just looking at May for now? (I want to open the invite.)
A: I plan on continuing indefinitely. I have nowhere to go! And besides, I love meeting with you all each week. thank you for sharing the show – I really appreciate it!
Thank you for sharing Elevenses with Lisa with your friends and genealogy society!
These video classes (each with a downloadable handout) are included in Genealogy Gems Premium Membership and will help you further implement my system and become more productive (Members log in and then click the image to watch the video and download the handout):
Step-by-step 2 part video tutorial series.
Essential viewing!
One hour video class.
Do you have a questions about organizing your genealogy?
Show Notes: I’m excited to share with you my favorite new tool at Google Books. This is a game changer for utilizing the information you find on the digitized pages. Plus I’ll show you other new features recently added to Google Books.
Why use Google Books for genealogy? Well, Google Books features over 10 million free digitized books, most of which were published prior to 1927. That makes Google Books a gold mine for genealogy research. And when you visit Google Books, think “published on paper” NOT just books! In addition to books, the collection includes newspapers, magazines, journals, almanacs, city directories, catalogs, court papers and so much more!
Watch the Video
Why use Google Books for genealogy?
Google Books features over 10 million free digitized books, most of which were published prior to 1927. That makes Google Books a gold mine for genealogy research. And when you visit Google Books, think “published on paper” NOT just books! In addition to books, the collection includes newspapers, magazines, journals, almanacs, city directories, catalogs, court papers and so much more!
On the results page look for the filter menu. If you don’t see it, click the Tools
Click the down arrow for Any View
Click Full View
Now your results list only include free fully digitized materials.
If you haven’t been over to Google books for a while, this is going to look a little bit different. A while back they launched a new user interface. They’ve now made some improvements. The main difference is we’re going to see this menu along the bottom of the screen.
My favorite new feature: convert image to text
Before we even look at the new menu, I promised you my favorite item that they have added to Google Books.
In the upper left corner, click the three vertical dots icon. This reveals a menu that gives you access to a lot of items that typically are kind of ‘behind’ the book. If you were to close this book, you would see the catalog entry for it.
New menu at Google Books
My favorite new feature here is View as Plain Text. Click the toggle button to convert the entire book to plain text. This makes the digitized images of the pages usable in many other projects and programs. Google applied optical character recognition to the books to be able to read the words on the images to make the books keyword searchable. In the past, we had to use the clipper tool to capture a bit of the image and convert it to text. The box was really small and inconvenient. This new feature provides the ability to instantly use as much of the text as you want.
Convert digitized books to text in Google Books
Because this book is fully digitized, it’s already been cleared for copyright. These books are in the public domain. They are available to use for free, copyright free. You are free to copy the text and include it in your projects, in your genealogy database, in a family history book, and so on.
Download a book
Back over at the three-dot menu in Google Books, you can also:
download the book as a PDF or EPUB for free,
find the book in a store, if you need a hard copy
find the book in a library at WorldCat.
Keyboard Shortcuts Hot Keys
Another new feature is keyboard shortcuts.
Google Books shortcuts / hot keys
Find Book Catalog Entry
I mentioned that the catalog entry for this book is sort of ‘behind’ the book. To access that, click the X in the upper right corner of the screen. This removes the view of the book. We haven’t lost access to the book. You can still access it by clicking the blue Read free of charge button.
The nice thing about the book catalog entry page is that it contains all the details about the book such as where you can purchase it, finding copies at the library, and additional editions.
Source Citation Tool at Google Books
Also on the catalog entry page is the Source Citation tool. Click create citation to reveal the options. Click the desired style, and then copy the citation and paste it in your family tree database, or other places where you are referencing this book. So, there’s no reason not to cite your source for any book found at Google Books. Source citation is very important, because down the road you might discover something more about your family and realize that you need to access that book again. Without the source citation you may not remember where you got the original information. The source citation is your breadcrumb trail back to the previous research that you’ve done. Also, if anybody ever has a question about what you have put in your family tree, you can point them to the sources that you used.
New Google Books Menu
The final new feature at Google Books that I wanted to draw your attention to is the main menu for this item. It used to be at the top of the screen, but now you’ll find it at the bottom. At the top of the screen, we now have a search box that allows you to search the entire Google Books collection. But oftentimes, when you’re looking at a book, you’re going to want to be able to search for particular names, places, dates, events, topics. You will find the search field for that in the new menu at the bottom of the screen. Type in names or other words and press enter. You’ll be given all of the pages in the book that mention those words. Also, in this menu are:
zoom buttons,
chapters menu (if available for the book you are viewing)
page views (single, side by side or thumbnails.)
Clip and download an image from a book
Also in the new menu is the clipper tool. The materials in Google Books contain maps, drawings, photos and many other types of imagery that you may want a copy of. Or perhaps you just want an image of a section of text. The clipper tool allows you to capture it and save it to your computer as an image file.
Click the scissors icon, and your mouse cursor will turn into a clipper.
Draw a box around the desired area
In the pop-up box click to copy the link to the clipped image.
Open a new web browser tab and paste the link. (You can also paste the link into notes in your family tree, and other programs and documents.)
Press enter and the image will appear in the browser tab.
Right-click on the image.
Select Save Image As to save it to your computer’s hard drive.
There you have it, some of the exciting new features over at Google Books. There’s never been a better time to search for information about your family history in Google Books.
Family Tree Magazine has released its newest list of 101 best genealogy websites–and we’re on the list! This year’s list is all about the best free genealogy websites–for US.research, military records, tech tools and more.
Each year, Family Tree Magazine publishes its list of the 101 best genealogy websites. They love sharing their favorite sites with readers and honoring those who create these sites. We just heard that the new list is out–and we’re on it!
This year, the list focuses on websites that provide genealogy information and records for free. Categories include:
Big genealogy websites
Online vital and grave records
Military genealogy websites
Genealogy immigration websites
Genealogy map websites
Old newspaper genealogy websites
Genealogy library websites
US genealogy websites
Websites for sharing your genealogy
Online genealogy technology tools
UK & Irish genealogy websites
International genealogy websites
Genealogy social history websites
Online genealogy tips and help
Genealogy Gems appears in that final category. Here’s what Family Tree Magazine has to say about us:
More than 200 free podcast episodes with research experts make Lisa Louise Cooke’s “genealogy radio” website a must, along with how-to videos, a genealogy book club and a helpful news blog.
In this episode, Lisa welcomes Mary Tedesco, a co-host of PBS’ Genealogy Roadshow. Mary shares stories and tips about tracing Italian and Italian-American roots. Also:
FamilySearch updates since the end of microfilm lending (and how YOU helped make the last days of lending more effective);
A listener uses Google to find her mysterious great-grandmother, with a success story she calls a “game-changer” for her genealogy research.
The premiere of Military Minutes with Michael Strauss
DOUBLE THE FUN WITH MORE GENEALOGY GEMS PODCAST
This episode launches the NEW twice-monthly Genealogy Gems Podcast format. From now on, watch for two free episodes every month, each about 35-45 minutes long.
If you haven’t downloaded the Genealogy Gems app for easier listening on your mobile device, consider doing so now to make it twice as easy on yourself?and get twice the bonus content from now on!
If you’re listening through the Genealogy Gems app, your bonus content for this episode is?. TheGenealogy Gems app is FREE in Google Play and is only $2.99 for Windows, iPhone and iPad users.
FAMILYSEARCH RECORDS ACCESS UPDATE
ALL of the microfilmed records that have been rented in the past 5 years have now been digitized, over 1.5 million films.
From now on, if you need a film that hasn’t been digitized yet, you can call FamilySearch Support toll-free (866-406-1830) and request it for the priority digitization list.
They continue to digitally scan about 1000 films per day. (That sounds like a lot, but at this rate it will still take them until 2020 to be done.)
New digital images are being put in the FamilySearch Catalog as soon as possible. This is not the main digital record search area! It will take collections a while to appear here. Instead, under the Search tab, select Catalog, and then search by place and record type or other categories. This is a master catalog of all the Family History Library’s collections, online and offline, and when you click on an item’s individual description, you’ll be able to see a link to its digitized version if it’s available.
If you or anyone else had any films on loan in family history centers and FamilySearch affiliate libraries when the lending program ended, those automatically have extended loan status, which means they can stay there indefinitely unless the management decides to send them back.
If all else fails, you can still go to the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, UT and order microfilmed records to view, or you can hire someone to do it for you.
FamilySearch Affiliate libraries now have access to nearly all of the restricted image collections as family history centers.
Click here to read or listen to Lisa’s special interview with Diane Loosle of FamilySearch. It goes into much more detail about accessing records on the site, at affiliate libraries and more.
Click here to read the August 30, 2017 update from FamilySearch.
To save 30% off a Care.com Premium membership, visit care.com/gemswhen you subscribe.
I had so much fun opening the box. They even sent me an apron!
Visit hellofresh.com and use promo code gems30 to save $30 off your first week of deliveries.
NEWS: FREE GENEALOGY WEBINAR FROM NYC
Lisa Louise Cooke’s Genealogy Gems presents:
Reveal Your Unique Story through DNA & Family History sponsored by Animoto
Saturday, September 23, 2017 11:00 AM EST
Turn DNA results into your family history
Turn your family history into a compelling story
Turn your compelling story into a video!
Learn from Lisa Louise Cooke, Diahan Southard and Animoto’s Beth Forester:
Your DNA testing options (there are more than you think), and possible outcomes
The best free resources for going beyond DNA, back several generations in your family (quickly!)
Creative ideas for filling in the story gaps
How to expand your story in ways you never expected by finding DNA connections
Share the story you’ve uncovered with the world through riveting video
Lisa chat with Hannah about Hurricane Harvey
Keep your family history research, photos, tree software files, videos and all other computer files safely backed up with Backblaze, the official cloud-based computer backup system for Lisa Louise Cooke’s Genealogy Gems. Learn more athttp://www.backblaze.com/Lisa.
MAILBOX: KRISTIN’S SUCCESS STORY
“Among the handful of mystery photographs of my grandmother as a child and the strangers who sat beside her, was a brief article from a newspaper. It was a lesson in manners, titled ‘Silence is Golden’ and it was written by Merton Markert, a student of the Modern Classics. A photo of a young woman with a disheveled Gibson hairdo was attached.”
Try Ebay! Lisa found a listing for a commencement program from 1902, old post cards of the school, and other yearbooks from Lancaster High School. Sign up for a free Ebay account, run a search, and then click to Follow the search. You will then be alerted to future auctions that match your criteria.
Click here for tips on finding yearbooks and other school records.
Genealogy Gems Premium member perk: Premium Podcast episode 16 has great tips for using Ebay to find family history treasures. Click here to learn more about Premium membership.
INTERVIEW: MARY TEDESCO of Genealogy Roadshow
MARY M. Tedesco is a professional genealogist, speaker, and author. She is a host and genealogist on PBS’ Genealogy Roadshow” and Founder of ORIGINS ITALY. Mary speaks fluent Italian and travels often to Italy to conduct client genealogical research and visit family. She is co-author of Tracing Your Italian Ancestors.
Click hereto watch a free interview with Mary Tedesco with more tips on doing Italian genealogy research.
Michael Strauss, AG is the principal owner of Genealogy Research Network and an Accredited Genealogist since 1995. He is a native of Pennsylvania and a resident of Utah and has been an avid genealogist for more than 30 years. Strauss holds a BA in History and is a United States Coast Guard veteran.
BONUS handout to celebrate this new segment: Click here for a 4-page handout on U.S. draft registration records by Michael L. Strauss.
This year, the list focuses on websites that provide genealogy information and records for free. Categories include:
