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Slavery Database Sheds Light on British Colonial Records

S. Burnette — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 04:13:43 +0000

Genealogists with ancestors who operated estates or plantations in the British colonies have potential discoveries in one of Ancestry.com’s latest databases. There’s also hope within for those with enslaved ancestors to find the earliest mention of them in the record books. Since great numbers of people have emigrated to the U. S. from the Caribbean, this dataset is especially valuable for many Americans.

The database is titled “Slave Registers of former British Colonial Dependencies, 1812-1834.” It is accessible by paid subscription to Ancestry, and includes the names of millions of slaves (some with surnames), owners, (more…)

Westport Historic Private Cemeteries Database Goes Online

S. Burnette — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 01:24:29 +0000

It’s always encouraging to discover new projects that honor our ancestors. One way to make certain they are remembered is to preserve their burial data for future generations, especially when tombstones can become difficult to read over time.

Genealogy and history enthusiasts in the town of Westport, Massachusetts have done just that, and put it all into an online database called the Westport Historic Private Cemeteries. The project was years in the making and brought a number of dedicated volunteers together to make it happen. (more…)

Photos Website Brings History, Genealogy Interest to Life

S. Burnette — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 20:36:07 +0000

Genealogy pursuits often give way to historical excursions as researchers try to understand the times in which their ancestors lived. If, as the saying goes, “a picture is worth a thousand words,” then the website Old Pictures (old-picture.com), is worth a million or more.

The description “an educational site with a wide variety of old photographs,” simply doesn’t do this site justice, and seeing truly is believing. Categories like “Defining Moments” and “Themed Collections,” feature truly beautifully clear historical photographs. There’s everything from Native American chiefs to European American inventors, and lots more in between. (more…)

Enslaved Ancestors Stepping from the Shadows on new Website

S. Burnette — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 20:06:38 +0000

The barriers to finding ancestors with ties to slavery continue to be pushed aside. The latest example of bringing enslaved ancestors out of the shadows can be found at the Lowcountry Africana website.

To quote from this data-rich site, it serves to “document the family and cultural heritage of African Americans in the historic rice-growing areas of South Carolina, Georgia and extreme northeastern Florida, an area that scholars and preservationists have identified as a distinct culture area, home to the rich Gullah/Geechee culture.” (more…)

New Genealogy TV Program Coming Soon

Pat Rhodes — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 22:32:13 +0000

Genealogy and family history programs are finally moving out of the shadows of public television and becoming trendy enough to make the leap to mainstream broadcasting networks.

In fact, NBC is hoping Americans will be interested in the family trees of celebrities. The network is teaming up with U. S. production company “Is or Isn’t Entertainment” and the U. K.’s “Wall to Wall” productions for an American version of the popular BBC television program “Who Do You Think You Are?”

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Search World War II Enlistment Records Free Online

Mary Stratton — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 19:45:46 +0000

It took years to make it happen, but one of the newest online databases on the National Archives website contains long-awaited military records. It includes the names of nine million Americans who saw service in World War II, both in the United States Army and the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps.

The database can be searched on the National Archives website via its Access to Archival Databases (AAD) and documents the period 1938 - 1946. (more…)

National Archives Announces Summer Hours & Programs

Lena Miles — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 18:39:48 +0000

Anyone planning a genealogy research trip to our nation’s capitol in the near future might want to make note of some interesting offerings in the area in May.

During the month, the National Archives will feature a series of programs highlighting records from its holdings. All programs are free and open to the public and will be held in the National Archives Building and at the National Archives at College Park, Maryland. (more…)

THIS WEEK: Online Vietnam War Memorial & Records to Debut

S. Burnette — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 18:29:28 +0000

In just a few days, genealogy researchers will have a new online database to sample. On Wednesday, the National Archives and Footnote.com are slated to unveil a new interactive Vietnam War Memorial, complete with the largest photo of “The Wall” on the web.

According to a news release, the partnership involved extracting information from National Archives electronic records of each Vietnam casualty and linking it to each name on the Wall. (more…)

Israeli Companies Collaborate On Jewish Genealogy Research Tool

USAroots — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 02:52:13 +0000

Jewish genealogy is getting a boost thanks to the combined efforts of two companies in Israel. A genealogy and social network search engine is being launched by Haaretz.com and partner Famillion with the goal of uniting Jewish people all over the world.

Haaretz.com is the online edition of Israel’s Haaretz newspaper, while Famillion is a start-up genealogy company seeking to build a giant digital family tree. Famillion’s focus is on the link (more…)

African American Lives 2, Coming to PBS in February

S. Burnette — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 05:30:32 +0000

Alex Haley would be proud. More than 30 years after his successful book “Roots” soared genealogy research to new heights, Harvard professor and genealogist Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. is carrying the torch and getting set to light the fire of the popular hobby again.

If you missed Dr. Gates’ PBS programs “African American Lives” in 2006, and the follow-up “Oprah’s Roots” in 2007, you won’t want to miss “African American Lives 2″, coming in February. In his previous programs, Gates revealed amazing details about the lives of ancestors who persevered through the bonds of slavery to produce descendants whose names are among the world’s most famous in their fields. (more…)