In English: Occupations - Professions and Trades, Module 2  we jumped right in and learned quite a bit about the apprentice system in England. Wow, that was a lot of interesting, new, and eye opening information for me. I think I will continue to process it for a while.

Library With Books by Serge…

Men’s Clothing, 1900-1950 

What trends existed in men’s clothing during the 20th century? Knowing what clothing was popular in which decade can help you pinpoint when that family photograph was taken and who possibly is pictured. Some trends by the decade include:  

Photography: Clues Pictures…

What a wonderful course!  Really, once again I am surprised by exactly how much I didn’t know about a simple, basic topic. The U.S. Federal Census is a staple for researchers in the states, but it is also complicated and at times detailed. Unless the family history researcher takes the time to dig deeper it will never give up all of its secrets to them. I would almost say it could be…

Before you start your family history research

What can be better than researching your family history?! While it is a fulfilling pursuit it is also a lot of work. You should expect to run into some problems along the way. It’s important though, that you not create your own frustrations by making mistakes in the initial stages of your research.

A couple of don’ts

• Don’t make any…

So why would a native German take the German Records courses offered at the National Institute for Genealogical Studies? Most of the research I have done in the past 23 years has been in American records not German. I mistakenly thought that German family history research was pretty much impossible for those living in the United States. Although I was born in Germany, I came to…

Women’s Clothing in Photographs: The 1900s 

What were women wearing in the decades of the 1900s? That answer is important as we look at family photographs. Here’s a few trends seen in the 20th century.  

Photography: Clues Pictures Hold, Editing, Digitizing and Various Projects

1900s – The styles of the late 1890s continued into this decade. The…

I love maps. Really, maps are a fantastic research tool, and even more important when you are using census records. Think about it, why do you think that would be the case?  I can think of several reasons; hopefully mine and yours match.

Map of the United States of America. Library of Congress. http://www.loc.gov/item/98685348/…

Are you a descendant of a Mayflower passenger?

Which Mayflower passengers left known descendants? The following are the heads of families who left descendants and the only families from whom descent has been proven:

There are many names missing in the above list, names of men who died the first winter leaving no family behind. Some entire families were wiped out – the Crakstons, Martins, Rigdales, Tillies, Tinkers and Turners. Did these…

In modules 5 and 6 of Skills: Transcribing, Abstracting & Extracting we learned about extractions.  It is a similar concept to an abstraction but not exactly the same. Trust me, I am sure you have used them both, but you may not have realized the distinction between the two.…

Everyone's Research is Different

One of the most frequently asked genealogy questions is “How far back can I go?” This is a very difficult question to answer. Everyone’s research is different. Accessibility and the availability of documents as well as the possible destruction of records means that the answer to the above question might be different even for the same person tracing two different families on their tree.…

Nothing like jumping in and seeing if you sink or swim. There is no goofing off and easing into the subject matter with this course. You are into the meat of the subject from page one, which is great!  Don’t get me wrong, I am happy to start off strong. There is just a lot, and I mean a lot, of information.…

Passenger List

We have William Bradford to thank for taking pen in hand and keeping records of the early years. He wrote down the names of the passengers and did a separate accounting of the increasings and decreasings of these passengers thirty years later. Unfortunately, one piece of information he did not record in his history was the name of the ship Mayflower. It is known only from a 1623 land division in which settlers were listed under the name of the ship…

Family Albums, Friends and Neighbors

Obviously, knowing where a photograph came from is always helpful. Because of social media and genealogy websites, you may have access to family photographs posted by a family member or even a friend of the family. That person’s photograph collection may include more pictures of the same ancestor taken at different times or with other relatives.

Family albums are repositories of photographs of friends,…

When you think of an “institution” what comes to mind first? For me, it is prisons or asylums. But guess what, this word can cover a whole bunch of other places as well. Places which most of us had ancestors in attendance. Not to say all ancestors were black sheep, just that they had reasons to attend an established facility.…

What does Genealogy mean?

A definition found in the dictionary states that “genealogy is the science of tracing your family back through the centuries.” Genealogies record the descent of an individual or a family from a certain ancestor.  It is the study of your pedigree.

Well, this course didn't dally around; it jumped straight into the nuts and bolts of creating a good transcription. While several of the courses I previously wrote about did touch on the basics of transcription, Modules 1 and 2 of Skills: Transcribing, Abstracting & Extracting  provides an intense introduction to the process.…

Basic Questions

How do you learn more about a photograph? Here are some basic questions to help get started.

Photography: Clues Pictures Hold, Editing, Digitizing and Various Projects

WHO is in the…

20th Anniversary Special

We're celebrating our 20^th Anniversary!  What better way to do that, then to bring back those 1999 registration fees of only $50.00 per course.

You can register for as many courses as you wish.  That's right, there is NO limit.  Heck, you could even…