Are You A Genealogy Geek?

You might be a genealogy geek if:

1. You'd rather go to a genealogy conference than a tropical summer vacation destination.
2. You'd rather visit a cemetery than people who are living.
3. You spend more time on your computer after midnight than during the day.
4. You're daily "newspaper" reading consists of genealogy related blogs in your RSS feed reader.
5. The friends you choose have the same addiction to genealogy passion for doing research on their ancestors.
6. Snow days make you grin from ear to ear as you relish in the thought of a "genealogy day".
7. Most of your photos are black and white or sepia toned.
8. Eating and sleeping are not priorities anymore.
9. Regardless of how the conversation starts, it ends with you discussing your ancestors.
10. The cabinets are bare, the laundry is not done, the bills are not paid, you have not bathed, but genealogy RSS feeds are all read.
11. Your annual tax return is already spent on this year's conferences, online database subscriptions and memberships to more than one genealogy society.
12. You walk around with a magnifying glass in your purse.
    

Copyright © 2010 Joanne Schleier

Ancestor Approved Award - April 4, 2010

These three blog authors have awarded me the Ancestor Approved Award! They also write family history related blogs. Be sure to visit their sites.

Michelle at The Turning of Generations
Carol from Reflections From the Fence
Bonnie/Valentinoswife over at Amore E Sapore di Famiglia

Sometimes you wonder if anyone is even reading what you post! This is confirmation that people are reading my blog and some consider it award worthy - so a big THANK YOU to them!

With the acceptance of this award comes the obligation to "list ten things you have learned about any of your ancestors that has surprised, humbled, or enlightened you” and also to “pass the award along to ten other bloggers who you feel are doing their ancestors proud.”

I really took a long time to tackle this one. Not that I was procrastinating, but because I had house guests last week! Thanks for your patience. So here goes...

1. The first thing that comes to mind are all of those ancestors of mine who have served in the military, especially during wartime. I am humbled by their service to country, flag, and freedom.
   
2. Next I think about all the farmers! I know these first two are somewhat broad, but I can't seem to get anything to grow - did not inherit the green thumb. Everytime I go to the grocery store I am humbled by farmers who grow the food that keeps me and my family alive. I had a lot of ancestors who were general farmers.
3. My 3rd great grand-uncle, Judge Allen Baskin, was accidentally struck by lightening and died.
4. Immigrant ancestors come to mind. Specifically, my 9th great grandfather, Col. Thomas Pettus, from Norwich, England. He was the youngest of 12 children - almost certain not to inherit anything from his father. Believed to be a widower (not proven yet) he came to Jamestowne in 1638.
5. I'm surprised to have many Jamestowne ancestors! Love reading about this time in history and the "starving time", Indian attacks, and other calamities that occurred which people continued to endure to gain freedom and become land owners in their own right.
   
6. Having read a lot of accounts about migrations westward, I am truly amazed at what people endured to make a new life for themselves in an often unknown place. Similar to emigrants, I am humbled by their courage.
7. My great grandfather, Henry Ermon McVicker, lost both his first wife and young twin children during the 1918 flu epidemic.
8. Hugh Baskin was one of my Revolutionary War patriot ancestors. He rode a horse 394 days from May 12, 1780 to July 12, 1783.
9. Three of my female relatives married their husband's twice (married, divorced them, then married them again).
10. I am still astounded that I was able to walk into the Abbeville, SC Courthouse and put my hands on Hugh Baskin's original will from 1790!

1. Gen Wish List
2. We Tree
3. Patten: Genealogy
4. Mississippi Memories
5. Kathy's Genealogy Blog
6. The Graveyard Rabbit Student
7. Clue Wagon
8. Discovering Latvian Roots
9. Family Forest
10. Olive Tree Genealogy

Thanks again to those who recognized my blog with this award! It's my pleasure to pass it on to bloggers I follow!

Joanne

Copyright © 2010 Joanne Schleier

Splendid Genealogy Course at the John C. Campbell Folk School

What could possibly be better than talking genealogy for an entire week? How about doing it at the John C. Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, North Carolina during their Scandinavian week? Yes, I am still recovering from what was to become colossal proportions of motivation and inspiration that I left with. But there's more...

One quickly becomes acquainted with how the bell tolls before mealtimes and enjoying delectable Scandinavian cuisine while mingling with other attendees, each one eager to discuss the handicraft they're learning in their course. These include ceramics, paper cutting, blacksmithing, woodworking, wood turning, felting, weaving and much more.

Someone asked me which course I was in, quickly followed by "do you have any Scandinavian ancestors?" Well, I didn't think I did. So my answer was "no". However, that answer left me unsettled until I was able to access my database to do a search for any Scandinavian roots. Sure enough, my fourth great grandfather, James Wood Headstream, immigrated from Sweden and finally settled in Monroe County, Arkansas! (Meatballs with gravy! I AM Swedish!) Needless to say, I changed my answer to THAT question for the rest of the week!

My course was taught by genealogist, Ann Mohr Osisek, from Florida. She was a delight - keeping the atmosphere very relaxed and encouraging conversation. She brought with her a whole library of books, some of which she liberally distributed to purge her collection. I acquired enough books and periodicals to keep my nightly reading regime "genealogy-focused" for at least a decade!

One of the highlights of my week turned out to be totally unexpected. You may recall reading an earlier post on my third great-grandfather, Pleasant Nelson Simpson. While doing research on Ancestry.com, I met a cousin who also happens to live in Georgia. Well, that was several months ago and we've been communicating via e-mail but have been unable to meet face-to-face.

On the first day of the course, I tried wrapping up my e-mails. I sent my cousin a note explaining where I was and that I would have limited internet access to check my mail. That evening I checked my mail to find her reply. She told me she was coming to see me there at the school! (Cruising Viking Ships! Are you kidding me?) She was only 20 minutes away via winding road! I called her right away and she arranged to come to the school the next night.

My third cousin once removed arrived and like two long lost friends we embarked on a two-hour non-stop yack-fest exchanging details about ourselves and our common ancestor. She loaned me two ginormous books and promised to return the next day to retrieve them.

It keeps getting better...

She came to the class, welcomed by all of my classmates who heard the story of our reunion meeting and made an announcement. See, we'd been unable to prove Pleasant's third (or fourth) marriage. Didn't even know the wife's name, but had read about it in a book. He was 70 years old at the time! She originally inquired about their marriage record via phone to the county in Texas that held the records. They told her they had the license and that it had "expired" written across it. The clerk was going to investigate and call her back.

She had received the call with the news that Pleasant Nelson Simpson and his third wife, Emeline Frances (Wilson) Williams, never picked up their marriage certificate which she found in the basement! She was sending the original to my cousin! (Great Gotlanders - I think I'm going to faint!)

I am still recovering from all the excitement at the Folk School's Scandinavian Week. I spent a lot of class time on-line doing research and brought a file folder of data to enter into my database while I listened in on the lessons. Here are the results:

Before:
Individuals: 4747
Families: 1650
Sources: 286

After:
Individuals: 4917
Families: 1716
Sources: 300

The difference concludes that I added the following:
Individuals: 170
Families: 66
Sources: 14

I brought home a smile, as sense of wonderment and accomplishment, new friends, a new cousin and the John C. Campbell Scandinavian Recipes book! I always knew that the Swedish Chef was my favorite Muppet for a reason!

Copyright © 2010 Joanne Schleier

Organizing Photos: Manage Folders on Your Computer

One of the biggest frustrations people have is trying to retrieve something quickly at the time they actually need it. Including myself! Last year, I thought I had a brilliant idea to restructure all my photos in a parent folder for the year (i.e 2003). That way everything would remain in chronological order and I could see all of the photos in order no matter what the subject was. That turned out to be a really bad idea! 


 Partway through the process I realized that when I went to retrieve something in particular, but couldn't remember what year it was, I was at a loss to locate it quickly. Then I wasted time seeking where it actually was and became agitated in the process! Here's my new structure, partly based on my old structure, only more definitive. 


1. Start by creating folders within the "My Pictures" folder in File Explorer. Find this by right clicking on the start menu. Select the My Pictures folder then click File-New-Folder. Do not get too specific. Name your folders with broad "categories". Think in terms of it being a general keyword. If you already have a folder structure in place, then you may wish to just revise what's there based on the photos you have. I call these my "parent" folders. 2. The next step is to add more descriptive folders under each of the folders you created in step one - if you need them. I call these my "subfolders". The plus signs to the left of the photos in the picture above indicate that there are subfolders underneath. I may create one additional set of subfolders under these (a third folder from My Pictures), but remember that each time you go to retrieve one photo, you'll need to click through several layers of folders to get there so minimize this effort if at all possible. Think in terms of grouping your folders based upon the subject or event where you took the pictures. For example, if it was a birthday party and you took 40 photos than those 40 photos should be grouped together in their own folder. Try not to separate a grouping that was shot together into separate folders. It's a misconception that you can have too many file folders on your computer (the ones I call "Parent Folders"). You can create as many folders as is necessary in order to retrieve something quickly. Think of all the folders and subfolders you have in a file drawer within a filing cabinet. It's the same concept. You generally would not have a folder within a folder within a folder - three folders. You would have a folder within a folder - only two folders. 


 I also prefer to begin the subfolder name with the year followed by a descriptive name, which could just be a string of descriptive keywords, to help trigger my memory of the event,occasion, or subject. Here's an example: in February 2002 I swam with the dolphins at a park called Xcaret in Mexico. Instantly I know that this is under my "Travel" parent folder. Because, logically for me, that's how I set it up. The subfolder is "2002 Feb_Mexico_Xcaret _Dolphins". I just used a string of keywords or tags that make sense to me. When I think of the event, what comes to mind is "Joanne-swimming with the dolphins" but that doesn't make a very concise folder name. Instead I've chosen keywords that will trigger my memory. Remember, it's all about retrieval. 


One more thing. I've found it helpful to have a parent folder named "Dump_From_Camera". Each time I connect my camera, I don't always have time to go through photos right then and there and "file" them. I just create a subfolder there with the date i.e "2009 07 28". Then when I have time to sit at my computer, I can go to Dump_From_Camera and sort the photos into the parent folders where they belong and create the subfolder. It saves time and keeps them in order. When your done, go ahead and create the same structure under "My Videos". I'm still working on tweaking the hierarchy of folders in my system and narrowing down what's there. Then I'll work on the actual file names for each individual photo. I'll write again once I get there! 


Copyright © 2010 Joanne Schleier

Progress for Goals in 2010

It's already March 2010! Can you believe it? I've been diligently working towards getting my goals accomplished. You can read about them here: 2010 Has Arrived!

These are the things I've been working on recently:

1. Research: My local genealogical society finished up their Beginners Course with two field trips. The first one was to the Georgia State Archives. I am an officer and took the tour the last two years in a row so I opted to spend this time doing research on my McVicker/Brown Georgia ancestors.
2. Education: The week following, our field trip was to the National Archives Southeast Region. The Georgia Genealogical Society hosted an all-day lecture there which I attended instead of their tour.
3. Education: I watched parts 1 & 2 of Research Logs:The Most Important Tool for Organizing Your Genealogy.
4. Organizing: Inspired by #3 above, I created a new research log template.
5. Organizing: As part of an ongoing project to manage all of my photos, I have restructured the file folders within My Pictures on my computer. I'll share my method in another post.
6. Organizing: I have finally compiled all of my genealogy books, binders and other reference materials into one spot designated exclusively for them.
7. Heirlooms:
   
1. I brought three of my mother's oil paintings to show to an antique dealer for some advice.
2. I polished my grandmother's silver tray and also showed it to the antique dealer who advised me not to have it re-plated.
3. I polished one of the two silver tea pitchers.
4. I cleaned and hung three of my mother's antique clocks and one barometer and my cuckoo clock from when I lived in Germany. (I can't afford to have her clocks serviced and working yet though). Excuse the treadmill in the photo, but I wasn't about to move it!
5. I polished one of my Grandfather's Trophy's. My husband is going to apply a finish to the mahogany and we will reattach it with brass tacks. (It was a yacht race and he was a crew member - still searching for more information about this race).

I still need to register for the 2010 FGS Conference and next week I am attending a week-long genealogy course at the John C. Campbell Folk School in NC. I'm also presenting to our Beginner's Course on Saturday - "Internet Tools for Genealogy".

That's quite a bit of progress. I guess I didn't realize it until writing this post! How are you progressing with your genealogy/archiving goals? I hope this post was at least motivating for you! Keep going a little piece at a time.

Copyright © 2010 Joanne Schleier