Do you ever feel like you are getting nowhere with your to-do list? I often feel like I don't accomplish as much as I would like, which prompted my husband many years ago to encourage me to make lists of what I accomplished each day rather than ...
Christmas Traditions
Christmas has been deemed “the most wonderful time of the year” in a song made popular by Andy Williams. Indeed, much time is spent each year to make it a magical season. I was recently reflecting on Christmas traditions and it was fun to think abo ...
Requesting Naturalization Records from USCIS
A few months ago, I wrote about the Naturalization process for immigrants to the United States. In my post, I noted that records for naturalizations occurring after 1906 are held by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS). The process ...
Creating a Research Reference Guide in Google Drive
I recently submitted my Level One four-generation project for ICAPGen accreditation. I am now creating a research reference guide to help me prepare for the Level 2 & 3 tests. These tests will include a general knowledge exam, document inte ...
3 Easy Ways to Discover Ancestor Stories
"How do we make our ancestors real? We tell their stories." (Rosemary Wixom) My genealogy journey began a number of years ago when I decided to compile a book about my ancestors. As I discovered stories that I had never before heard, I remember ...
Discovering Ancestors on Pennsylvania Maps
I have been researching my husband's ancestors, the Beck family of Westmoreland County Pennsylvania. During the process of my research, I was able to locate land records for Daniel Beck and his sons. These land records provided great evidence that ...
Finding William’s Father: Possible Candidates
I am trying to find the father of William Munford Stubbs, my second great-grandfather who was born to Ann Munford in Hethel, Norfolk, England in 1858. I am using DNA and traditional genealogy research to aid my quest. Over the last fe ...
Understanding New York Jurisdictions
An important term to understand when engaging in genealogical research is "jurisdiction." In general terms, jurisdiction refers to authority over a particular area or group of people. For example, the federal government has jurisdiction over the Un ...
Honoring My Pioneer Ancestors
On July 24 we celebrate Pioneer Day in Utah. It's an official state holiday commemorating the arrival of Brigham Young and the first group of Mormon pioneers into the Salt Lake valley on July 24, 1847. They were looking for a place of refuge after ...
The French Republican Calendar
I recently completed a client project in which one of the objectives was to verify the genealogically significant information in some German and French birth, marriage, and death records. As I was abstracting the French records, I noticed some unfam ...
