TILL WE MEET AGAIN IN THE NEW YEAR

Friends, I'm taking a little blogging break for the Holidays but promise you I will be back in the New Year.

This past year the big news was the release of the 1950 census. I'm still tangling with it a bit and love that it held some surprises.  What discoveries will we make in the coming months?  What mysteries will we solve?

In the New Year there will be a number of excellent books I'll be telling you about and recommending you read too. It's my hope that we will all maintain our sense of adventure about our research.

If you have any books or other materials that you would like me to know about, please use the Comments Feature to leave me a message.  I read all comments before publication and if you do NOT want me to publish your message to me, just say so and I will respect that.

I'm also open to some questions.  If you are blocked in some way, please leave as detailed a comment as you can explaining where you are in your research.

I'm always seeking resources that are new or that I don't know about. I'm sure that even as the big genealogy database companies load more and more on there is plenty more that one must find using older, pre-Internet methods.  I meet people who do not know that you can call an archive or even a library local to your ancestor's location to see what they may hold in special collections. If you are determined you seek it all.

Wishing you some Relaxation and Rejuvenation!

Christine

BOOKS! BOOKS! MORE BOOKS!

Hello My Readers,

Over the last few months I've been reading so very many books.  The libraries in my area opened up slowly and for a while it seemed like I was one of the few people who had returned to using the library. (Yes, we are still masking.) In fact a good number of books on my list are available only in e-books. Luckily, ordering books in from other branches is possible because I dislike reading e-books.  I spend a couple hours a day on a computer as is. I feel paper books are easier on my eye-sight and easier to fall asleep with too.

I started looking at what was on the Newly Purchased book shelves and I have to say that I have found some wonderful books that are history and genealogy oriented. I'll be excerpting parts of these books that I found especially illuminating or useful in the next several months and into the New Year of 2023.

I've always found that researching the history that our ancestors lived through is a great way to learn history overall, though often specific to their time and place. Some of the books I will be sharing with you concern Colonial American history. Others fall into the category of spiritual books, concerning a favorite subject of mine, which is reincarnation.

I'm fascinated with the notions that we might reincarnate into the same family groups, even have the same 'soul mate' spouse in more than one lifetime. I also like the idea that we might take some skill, talent, or expertise that we spent a lot of time on in this life into the next.  (I should be a very advanced genealogist by then!)

Hoping you're keeping cool!

Christine

GENEALOGY SHOW YOUTUBE VIDEOS BECOME PAY FOR SERIES - THE VALUE OF PRINT LIBRARIES

I want to respect other people's copyrights but I do listen to and watch YouTube videos.  I know that what started as a volunteer and free service, which made listening to artists who were not getting paid or asked permission, falls into an area of copyright that says for personal use and research or to illustrate a point, a person doesn't have to go through a permissions process.  YouTube has departed into pay for play films and videos and this is a reason I fail to post many here at ANCESTRY WORSHIP - Genealogy BlogSpot. If I find an ad attached to a video, I tend to skip the ad immediately or do not watch it, searching for someone who posted not expecting financial return.

But sometimes when I'm resting, I like to listen to reruns of Who Do You Think You Are, or Louis Henry Gates Jr's series, Finding Your Roots.  Not long ago I spent a Sunday morning in bed watching these videos on my cell phone.  Sometimes I learn from them.  Sometimes I'm compelled to watch a particular video because I like the celebrity.  

I saw a blurb about Carly Simon, the singer/songwriter who is known for her own creative musical work as well as her marriage-with-children to singer/songwriter James Taylor. I've listened to her albums.  I listened to her memoir on audio book. I also read a Vanity Fair magazine article long ago that suggested that there was a mystery attached to her mother's parentage. She had been told that her mother's mother was an orphan, perhaps an illegitimate member of the Spanish royal family.  Simon's mother was Catholic and her father was Jewish.  The not so religious family was raised in The Ethical Cultural Society (if I remember correctly).  The Gates blurb suggested that the truth was her grandmother was of Cuban-African origin and the Spanish royal family connection was probably a myth.  Louis Henry Gates Jr. was there telling Carly Simon that of all the white people he had tested, she had the most African DNA of all, 10%. So of course I wanted to see that show.

I learned that few of the videos are still available without paying - about $1.99 per - and was disappointed.

Yet I know I can go to my public library and find these on CD (if not electronic books) and watch them for free.  What, if anything, libraries pay for these items to offer to the patron/citizens/library card holders, I do not know.  I love libraries and have cards for two local cities, a county, and a state library card.  These days due to all the books available as electronic books and the use of cell phones as personal computers, there is some question about the value of libraries with print/paper offerings or even the value of offering public computer use in them.  At one time the libraries were full of students using these public computers to do their assignments but now children have computers at their schools or are given laptops to do their work on.

I know that librarians themselves as well as library systems with lots of property and locations are asking themselves what value they will have in the future and it seems to be working in education, in particular in reading. Hand in hand with educational programs, local libraries offer classes to help immigrants become citizens and adults learn to read.  But will they really need as much staff?

In my area it seems retired librarians are working part time in the system and this is slowing the number of new librarians being hired.

At some point it's possible that a library card will entitle direct payment by the library for a patron's use of YouTube videos and other electronic offerings not available from the library.

C 2019  Ancestry Worship Genealogy 

1940 CENSUS coming up - WE CAN BARELY STAND TO WAIT!

The 1940 U.S. census is going to be released in a few months and most of us can barely stand to wait! Actually you don't have to. You can use CITY DIRECTORIES to get an address for a family, and then be ready to find the ENUMERATION DISTRICT for that address as a first step, as it will be some time before any of the INDEXED DATABASES catch up with the volume of need for information.

Of course, if you're using the 1940 to find someone who is not showing up on CITY DIRECTORIES or the 1930 census, someone who has, perhaps, been the victim of terrible handwriting or inaccurate indexing or transcribing to databases, this can be frustrating.

My advice is NOT TO BE AFRAID OF DOING THINGS THE GOOD OLD FASHIONED WAY!

At least half of my personal genealogy has NOT been possible to replicate using Ancestry Databases, to give you an example. And believe me I tried.

When you pull something up instantly on a database it's a blessing, because it will save you time. However, don't get lazy looking for your family... Don't hesitate to call the closest archive, library, or museum to find out about any local publications such as newspapers, trade magazines, ethnic-oriented club literature, and historical books, to get a better position in your research!