The UK ‘genealogy giant’ Findmypast has made exciting new updates to their records this week! They’ve announced over 100 million new European records are now available online, and this week highlights their extensive collection for Norway. Also new this week are genealogy records for Staffordshire, England; Queensland, Australia; and Ontario, Canada.
New European Records Online: Norway Featured
Findmypast recently announced their addition of over 100 million new European records now online. “Over 114 million new European births, baptisms, marriages, banns, deaths and burials are now available to search and explore on Findmypast. The new additions consist of transcripts sourced from the International Genealogical Index, a database compiled from a variety of sources from around the world.
Featured from this huge addition are three new indexes containing over 9.1 million Norwegian baptisms, marriages and burials are now available to search as part of our new collection of European records. These new collections span nearly 300 years of Norwegian history (1634 to 1927) and will generate new hints against your Findmypast family tree.
Anyone with ancestors from Norway has probably tapped into the National Archives of Norway’s Digital Archive. It’s one of the shining stars on the Internet that offer rays of research hope for those with Norwegian heritage. That’s why I was thrilled to be able to interview Yngve Nedreb, the Chief archivist at Riksarkivet (National Archives of Norway) for the Family Tree Magazine Podcast. In fact, I published an extended version of that interview in episode #161 of The Genealogy Gems Podcast. This is a “must hear” for those with Norwegian heritage! Click below to listen right now:
Lisa’s special guest: Yngve Nedrebø, Chief Archivist at Riksarkivet. http://www.arkivverket.no/eng/Digitalarkivet
Staffordshire, England Vital Records
Another brand new genealogy records collection online is over at Ancestry.com. The Staffordshire, England, Birth, Marriage and Death Indexes, 1837-2017 collection comprises indexes of civil registrations from Staffordshire, excluding the City of Stoke-on-Trent, reported quarterly to the General Register Office (GRO) in London.
The indexes for the three events are divided into volumes by year and names are listed alphabetically. Once an entry in one of the indexes is found, you are then able to use that information to order of copy of a death, marriage, or birth certificate from the GRO. Information that can be obtained from the birth marriage and death index includes, where available:
Name
Maiden name of mother
Date of event
Death Age
Place of Marriage
Gender
Registration district (each county in England and Wales was divided up into registration districts; jurisdictions are organized and appear as they existed at the time the record was created)
Reference
Queensland, Australia
Also new at Ancestry is the Queensland, Australia, Licensed Victuallers Index, 1900-1903. The names of holders of victuallers’ licenses (publicans) were printed in the Queensland Government Gazette from 1900 to 1914 on an annual basis. This index covers the period from 1900 to 1903 and includes names, districts, and hotel names.
More about licensed victuallers from Wikipedia: “In the United Kingdom the owner and/or manager of a pub (public house) is usually called the “landlord/landlady”, and often, strictly incorrectly, “publican”, the latter properly the appellation of a Roman public contractor or tax farmer. In more formal situations, the term used is licensed victualler or simply “licensee”.[9] A female landlord can be called either a landlady or simply landlord.”
Ontario, Canada Insurance Policy Applications
Findmypast has another new collection now available online. “Did your Canadian ancestor apply for life insurance with The Independent Order of Oddfellows (IOOF) between 1875 and 1929? The IOOF is one of the world’s oldest fraternal orders. These insurance records are a unique source for tracing your family history. You will find images of the original applications which include your ancestor’s medical history, family’s medical history, and a physical description. The applications are two pages long. Be sure to use the next arrow to move to the next image.
Here at Genealogy Gems, we’ve adopted the name ‘Genealogy Giants’ to refer to the 4 major genealogy records websites: Ancestry.com, Findmypast.com, MyHeritage.com, and FamilySearch.org. Each website has its own unique and distinct offerings, but there can also be a lot of overlap. So with hefty subscription price tags, the question we’re often asked is, “Which website subscription do I need?” To tackle this, Sunny Morton’s RootsTech class uncovers the secrets on how to compare these 4 giants so that you spend your time and money wisely. Watch the entire presentation for free below, and then grab a copy of the companion quick reference guide Genealogy Giants: Comparing the 4 Major websites.
About the Author: Lisa Louise Cooke is the producer and host of the Genealogy Gems Podcast, an online genealogy audio show and app. She is the author of the books The Genealogist’s Google Toolbox, Mobile Genealogy, How to Find Your Family History in Newspapers, and the Google Earth for Genealogy video series. She is an international keynote speaker and the Vice President of the Genealogical Speakers Guild.
Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links and Genealogy Gems will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on these links (at no additional cost to you). Thank you for supporting Genealogy Gems!
Making your family history accessible to your visually or hearing impaired relatives may require a little extra work. But the effort can mean making your genealogy discoveries more available and vivid for EVERYONE–now and in the future. Let these ideas help you!...
In this episode you’ll hear about the change to Google search results, how to reunite found items with their families, and 10 strategies for finding school records for your ancestors.
Watch Elevenses with Lisa live on the Genealogy Gems YouTube channel on Thursdays at 11:00 AM Central. After the live show you can watch the video replay at your convenience. You’ll find the show notes for Elevenses with Lisahere on the Genealogy Gems website.
Google Search Update
Watch Episode 6 which features the latest on Google search results.
New Google Message: “No good results.”
MAILBOX: Reuniting Family History
A while back I received an email from Tim. He writes:
“I’m getting back into genealogy in a meaningful way now that my dissertation is done and I realized that I don’t know what to do with all the ‘stuff’ I’ve taken photos of, picked up at yard sales, etc., that could be of genealogical value to someone but not me. I’ve got yearbooks, pictures of the genealogy information inside family bibles, etc. I used to be able to scan and submit to Mocavo for the world to use but that’s gone. With the Rootsweb mailing lists shutting down, do you have recommendations for where I can submit these things so they benefit others?”
From Lisa:
As a matter of I do have a few recommendations for you!
These days a free blog is your own genealogy bulletin board with much greater reach than Rootsweb had. It’s a great way to get the word out about items that you have that you would like to reunite with their families.
Blogger.com (Google’s free blogging platform) is a good choice.
In addition to a photo, include as much text as you can that describes the item.
Tag the items with surnames, record types, and locations.
Encourage people to email you or leave a comment to get in touch.
Interview with Carly Kidd-Osborn
If you have an item that you picked up along your genealogical travels that belongs to someone else’s family history, the Shrubs to Trees – A Pay-It-Forward Genealogy Facebook Group can help. Caryl Kidd-Osborn is the Administrator, and in this episode she explains how the group has helped return over 1500 items to families and how you can enlist their help.
From Caryl: “We are almost 2 years old and in that time we have returned over 1500 “lost” memorabilia items to living family. We’ve given back photos, bronze baby shoes, sheet music that was written by someone’s family member, a marriage license and even someone’s cremains. We aren’t a very big group but we have some wonderful folks who just jump right in with researching the items. It’s a private group since we are dealing with living people. It’s very much a collaboration. Our members are genealogists who, like me, just can’t leave an antique store without taking someone else’s family home with them!”
Here are just a few examples of the precious items that the group has managed to return to grateful families:
Reunited: Little Renee’s baby shoes
Reunited: A photo of Frances Payne. “Our cutest return,” says Caryl.
Reunited: Andrew Johney and Maggie Bosley marriage license. This was found at a dump.
Sarah Fooks Tutherly – photo went to the Historical Society in Laurel, DE. The Fooks family was a prominent family in that town, she was a DAR member.
Reunited: The Vandermaas family. The parents had died before the children were of that age so this is a composite of the whole family.
GEM: Top 10 Strategies for Finding School Records for Genealogy
Click here for the complete article on strategies for finding school records.
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Great comments from you: An inspiring Google Books success story, how one listener gets her shy husband talking about his life story, and a listener’s own version of the poem, “Where I’m From”
The Archive Lady talks to us about historical scrapbooks at archives that may be packed with genealogy gems for us
Pat’s tip: When someone is shy about sharing life stories, interview them informally while traveling. Pat uses her iPad to transcribe his responses, then polishes it up when she gets home and transfers it to her own computer. “Eventually we will have enough to write the story of his life, with lots of pictures. And it’s completely painless.”
MAILBOX: GOOGLE BOOKS SUCCESS STORY FROM KIM
Click here for another inspiring genealogy discovery using Google Books?with how-to tips and a free video preview of Lisa Louise Cooke’s Premium video tutorial, “Google Books: The Tool You Need Every Day”
MAILBOX: “WHERE I’M FROM” POEM SUBMISSION
Genealogy Gems Podcast Episode 185: Learn more about the “Where I’m From” poetry project and hear a conversation with the original author, Kentucky poet laureate George Ella Lyon.
THE ARCHIVE LADY: HISTORICAL SCRAPBOOKS
Scrapbooks are one of my favorite record sources to do genealogy research in and to also process in the archives. There are all kinds of scrapbooks; each and every one is unique and one-of-a-kind. They were put together with love and the hope that what was saved and pasted onto those pages will be remembered.
The origins of scrapbooking is said to go back to the 15th century in England and it is still a hobby enjoyed by many today. Most archives, libraries, historical and genealogical societies have scrapbooks in their collections. They will most likely be found in the Manuscript Collection as part of a specifically named collection.
Scrapbooks contain all kinds of wonderful genealogical records, photographs and ephemera. There is even a scrapbook in the Houston County, Tennessee Archives that has candy bar wrappers pasted in it. This particular scrapbook is one of my absolute favorites. It was compiled and owned by Evelyn Ellis and dates to the 1930’s and 1940’s.
Among the normal newspaper clippings and event programs are interesting pieces such as a Baby Ruth candy bar wrapper with a handwritten note by Evelyn that reads “Always remember June 11, 1938 at Beach Grove at the Ice Cream Supper.” There is also an original ticket pasted into the scrapbook from the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee where Evelyn Ellis visited and recorded her comments on April 1, 1939.
There are scrapbooks for just about any subject. Aside from personal scrapbooks, you can find war scrapbooks, obituary clipping scrapbooks and scrapbooks that collected and recorded local or national events. The obituaries found in scrapbooks could be a real find because sometimes they are the only pieces of the newspaper that survive and can be a treasure trove for any genealogist. Many scrapbooks contain one-of-a-kind documents, photographs and ephemera.
To find scrapbooks in an archive, ask the archivist if they have any scrapbooks in their records collections. Many times scrapbooks are housed with a particular manuscript collection and will be listed in the finding aid. Some archives have a collection of just scrapbooks that have been donated to them and can be easily accessed. Most scrapbooks will not be on research shelves and will be stored in back rooms at the archives and will have to be requested. You should also check the archives online catalog for any listings of scrapbooks before you jump in the car and drive to the archives.
I encourage all genealogists to check with the archive in the area where your ancestors were from and see if they have any scrapbooks in their archived records collections. Scrapbooks are like time capsules: you don’t know what will be found in them until you open them up.
Start creating fabulous, irresistible videos about your family history with Animoto.com. You don’t need special video-editing skills: just drag and drop your photos and videos, pick a layout and music, add a little text and voila! You’ve got an awesome video! Try this out for yourself at Animoto.
RootsMagic family history software has publishing tools (for print and online publishing):
Visit www.RootsMagic.com
Lisa Louise Cooke uses and recommends RootsMagic family history software. From within RootsMagic, you can search historical records on FamilySearch.org, Findmypast.com and MyHeritage.com. RootsMagic is now fully integrated with Ancestry.com: you can sync your RootsMagic trees with your Ancestry.com trees and search records on the site.
A BRILLIANT WAY TO “MEET” YOUR ANCESTOR
Your DNA Guide Diahan Southard shared this story from Christine:
“Friday night I brought out large cut out of my Grandmother, Christine Doering, sitting in an easy chair so it looks like she is talking with you, and I played a recording done in 1970’s of her talking and giggling about coming to America in 1896 at the age of 9. For some they had never heard her voice before.”
Lisa Louise Cooke, Host and Producer
Sunny Morton, Editor
Diahan Southard, Your DNA Guide, Content Contributor
Vienna Thomas, Associate Producer
Hannah Fullerton, Production Assistant
Lacey Cooke, Service Manager
Work on your New York genealogy research with these new naturalization and marriage license records. Also: WWII draft registrations; family history records for AL, ID, KS, KY, LA, OH, VA; and records from Australia, Canada (including a mapped-out photo archive of...
