DON'T FORGET TO CALL THE COMMUNITY COLLEGE, THE BRANCH LIBRARY, THE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY : MANY HAVE SPECIAL COLLECTIONS

Believe it or not, many smaller institutions take great pride in one shelf or bookcase, or a hidden away spot in the basement where they keep a special collection.  Always ask.  

At the Getty Research Institute, a large and prestigious place,which focuses on art no doubt, I found that there were books on Native American culture, a massive Hungarian - English dictionary, and books on ethnic clothing - fashion and even burial customs.

So we cannot think of ART as only paintings or sculptures, but where DESIGN is.  Fashion and the language of tombstones are very much part of our exploration into the society and culture that our ancestors lived in. I love that stuff!

Now here's the thing.  If you've located your ancestor, say on a census, you should explore the schools and libraries around there. However, sometimes libraries hold collections that are about some other location because they were donated to that library for some other reason, such as that the donor retired in the area.

But with unlimited long distance cell phones, what's to stop you from calling and asking?

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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