Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Midway Point for the BYU Family History and Genealogy Conference

This past Tuesday, 30 July 2013, the BYU Family History and Genealogy Conference began. It runs until this coming Friday, 2 Aug 2013.

The conference is at the half-way mark and so far I consider it a success.  The conference sold out last week and there was no room for walk-in attendees. The vendors were only going to be there two days.  They were there today and will also be there tomorrow, which is Thursday.  There are not a lot of vendors, but still typical for what the BYU Conference Center will hold. The general public is welcome to visit the vendors during the conference without registering.

If you want to purchase any of the Third Party Products that sync with FamilySearch Family Tree now is a good time to do so. Ancestral Quest, Legacy, and RootsMagic are all selling their programs for $20 each. If you purchase the RootsMagic software you also get the book "Getting the Most out of RootsMagic" for free. That's a big savings.

I attended today, the "What's New in Legacy 8" by Geoff Rasmussen. I will write an article later on the new features.  What I wanted to mention now are some time frames I was told about Legacy.  Currently version 7.5 only works with (old) New FamilySearch.  Geoff said in the next couples of days, or at least by the end of the week they should have a new update to version 7 that will include the ability to sync with Family Tree. So if you already own version 7 this update will be free for you. If you purchase Legacy 7 at the conference you will receive the upgrade to Legacy 8 for free.  Legacy 8 should be coming out in the next month or two as long as development stays on schedule.

Since it's getting late and I need my beauty sleep before tomorrow's session of conference, I thought I'd let you know what classes I have attended so far.

Tuesday Schedule
Keynote Address by Elder Allan F. Packer, "An Invitation to Shape the Future"
Quaker Roots by Lisa Arnold
Introduction to Polish Research by Joseph Everett
Migratory Ancestors by Kory Meyerink
The Best in the World: 7 Sacraments of the Catholic Church by George Ryskamp
Evaluating Evidence and Resolving Discrepancies by Kory Meyerink

Wednesday Schedule
Keynote Address by Dennis Brimhall, "Not Just a Chart, But the Heart"
What's New in Legacy 8 by Geoff Rasmussen
What's New in RootsMagic 6 by Bruce Buzbee - I gave up my seat because there was a line of people waiting to come in, and many having to be turned away. I decided to talk to vendors instead.
Finding Your Kentucky Ancestors by J. Mark Lowe
FamilySearch Family Tree Road Map by Ron Tanner
Beginning French Research by Heidi Sugden
Vendor Class: Research Ties by Jill Crandall

Both of the Keynote Addresses have been excellent.  My classes have been great and I have learned a lot. I have surprisingly ventured out of my New York region that I faithfully research in. So, I'm stretching my wings and am totally amazed at what I am finding. I will try to share some of the highlights on each class with you later.

See ya tomorrow, for tomorrow is always another genealogy day!

FamilySearch New Collections Update 31 July 2013

The following is from FamilySearch.

FamilySearch
FamilySearch Collections UpdateJuly 31, 2013


FamilySearch Adds More Than 1.1 Million Index Records and Images from Belgium, Nicaragua, Spain, and the United States

FamilySearch has recently added more than 1.1 million images from Belgium, Nicaragua, Spain, and the United States. Notable collection updates include the 379,887 index records and images from the U.S., North Carolina, Estate Files, 1663-1979, collection, the 301,441 index records and images from the U.S., North Carolina, County Marriages, 1762-1979, collection, and the 125,530 index records from the new United States, National Register of Scientific and Technical Personnel Files, 1954-1970, collection . See the table below for the full list of updates. Search these diverse collections and more than 3.5 billion other records for free at FamilySearch.org.

Searchable historic records are made available on FamilySearch.org through the help of thousands of volunteers from around the world. These volunteers transcribe (index) information from digital copies of handwritten records to make them easily searchable online. More volunteers are needed (particularly those who can read foreign languages) to keep pace with the large number of digital images being published online at FamilySearch.org. Learn more about volunteering to help provide free access to the world’s historic genealogical records online atFamilySearch.org.

FamilySearch is the largest genealogy organization in the world. FamilySearch is a nonprofit, volunteer-driven organization sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Millions of people use FamilySearch records, resources, and services to learn more about their family history. To help in this great pursuit, FamilySearch and its predecessors have been actively gathering, preserving, and sharing genealogical records worldwide for over 100 years. Patrons may access FamilySearch services and resources for free at FamilySearch.org or through more than 4,600 family history centers in 132 countries, including the main Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Collection
Indexed Records
Digital Images
Comments
0
82,434
Added images to an existing collection.
0
1,562
Added images to an existing collection.
9,453
0
Added index records to an existing collection.
129,626
0
Added index records to an existing collection.
127,576
0
Added index records to an existing collection.
195,858
105,583
Added index records and images to an existing collection.
13,916
365,971
Added index records and images to an existing collection.
125,530
0
New indexed record collection.

Cemetery section maps for seven W Yorkshire cemeteries now available

The following is from Deceased Online.

Cemetery section maps for seven
W Yorkshire cemeteries now available
Wakefield Map Example
  • Following the addition of burial records for 20 cemeteries in West Yorkshire towww.deceasedonline.comcemetery sections maps have been added to 7 locations
  • The 7 cemeteries are: Alverthorpe, Horbury, Normanton Upper, Normanton Lower, Outwood, Stanley and Wakefield. Maps for more cemeteries will be added soon
  • With three diagrams for each record, the maps indicate the section of each cemetery in which specific graves are located
Now uploading:
Military burial records from
The National Archives
  • We're currently uploading tens of thousands of military burial records digitized by us at The National Archives
  • These non-war grave records date back to the early 19th Century and feature: Greenwich Royal Hospital, Sandhurst, Aldershot, Haslar RN, Royal Victoria, Sheerness Dockyard and other cemeteries and burial grounds
  • Records are accessible on name and area/county searches but we will be adding more details and descriptions to the website soon
Northeast Yorks coming soon
  • All records for a major authority in Northeast Yorkshire are coming soon to Deceased Online. Sorry we can't say which one yet but we'll make announcements soon on Facebook and Twitter

FamilySearch - My Family History Calling

The following is from FamilySearch.

FamilySearch
 
My Family History CallingJuly 2013
 

News you need to succeed—for priesthood leaders, consultants, and FamilySearch center directors.



Getting Others Excited About Photos and Stories-A Success Story

tellthemyourstory
Everyone has a story. In fact, who doesn't love to share an adventure or listen to another's tale--especially if the narrative is about a relative or ancestor? What better way to get to know your ancestors and feel a part of their lives than to read their stories, exploits, trials, failures, and successes?

Search Gets Major Feature Enhancements

 

Indexing Video Gains Acclaim

The FamilySearch indexing team recentlyreleased a video that is touching hearts around the world. It might be a perfect fit for a lesson, to kick-off a meeting, or to enjoy with family.

Merrill_2
 

Center Director's News

Those of us involved with family history have the wonderful opportunity to help both the living and the dead.  It is a blessed experience to help and assist individuals as their hearts turn to their fathers and their fathers' hearts turn to them. Read the full article for center directors.

RootsTech
 

Partner News

FamilySearch is pleased to announce the first four Tree Share certified applications that are PAF Compatible: Ancestral Quest, Celebrating Family History and Me, Legacy Family Tree, and RootsMagic . RootsMagic is the first Tree Share Plus certified application. TenGenChart is now Tree Access Certified. “Certified” means the product is compatible with FamilySearch.org and has features that conforms to our strict standards of quality. Learn more about our new partners.

byu
 

Conferencia Iberoamericana de Genealogia

The Conferencia Iberoamericana de Genealogia is coming. It is being held at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah on 9-14 September. Presented all in Spanish, the first four days (Monday-Thursday) are for professionals and archivists. However, Friday and Saturday are free and open to the public. For more information and to register, visit http://www.genealogia2013.org. If you speak Spanish and would like to volunteer to help on Friday or Saturday for two hours or more, please contact Debbie Gurtler atDSGurtler@familysearch.org.

Stake Inexing230x182
 

FamilySearch.org/ask: A Family History Leader's Best Friend

Did you know one of the best helps for your family history calling is just a click away? If you haven't been using http://www.familysearch.org/ask you're missing out on a wealth of help. Whether you're looking for product support, research assistance, getting started, the learning center, or becoming an online volunteer, this landing page has something for everyone, so try it today!

Best Practices: What’s Working In Your Little Corner of the Vineyard?

As a leader in family history, what are you doing that is working that you could share with others who have your same calling? Click here to go to the blog and tell us your story, or read what others are saying .

News and Events: Family History Conferences from around the World

The following is a list of selected genealogy and family history conferences throughout the United States and around the world. To view the latest events, click this link.

 

Why I Do Genealogy

It was 1978. I was out shopping and went into a bookstore. While browsing around, I saw a book called Our Family History. It was interesting because the book asked so many questions about the family that piqued my interest so I bought it. When I got home I looked through it. In it I found a two-foot pull-out chart for listing several generations of one's family. Read more about this inspiring story.

Royal Prince to Inspire 1,400 Extra Georges

The following is from Ancestry.com.

ROYAL PRINCE TO INSPIRE 1,400 EXTRA GEORGES

§  The popularity of a royal baby’s first name increases by an average of 32 percent  the year after the baby is born
§  Historically, Prince Andrew (born in 1960) has had the biggest impact on baby names

Provo, UT (24 July, 2013) – Ancestry.com, the world’s largest online family history resource, predicted today that George will be the fourth most popular baby name in the United Kingdom in 2014, with 1,400 more Georges to be born then in 2013. The birth of a royal baby typically increases the popularity of that name by almost a third (32 percent) the year following the birth. This equates to an average of 1,400 babies born in the UK in the year following a royal birth that are given the same royal name.[i]

With 4,340 George’s born each year in the UK, this trend predicts a total of 5,740 being born in 2014 – pushing it from 12th position to the fourth most popular baby name for a boy.

The royal naming pattern was uncovered through historical analysis of yearly birth indexes available on Ancestry.com, which detail every baby born in England and Wales from 1837 to 2005. The number of babies with the same name as a royal baby in the year of the royal’s birth was compared with the number in the following year. Every royal from King Edward VII (born in 1841) to Princess Eugenie (born in 1990) was included in the study.

“The royals are always trendsetters for the population, and Prince William and Princess Kate have been no exception,” said Michelle Ercanbrack, a Family Historian at Ancestry.com. “If history is any indication, we fully expect George to jump in popularity amongst UK baby names.”

The research from Ancestry.com uncovered these specific impacts of previous royal births:

  • Prince Andrew’s birth was found to have the biggest impact on expecting parents, with the number of ‘Andrews’ born in 1961 increasing by more than 5,500 compared to the year of his birth (1960).

  • In terms of percentages, the birth of Zara Phillips saw the biggest rise in popularity. The number of ‘Zaras’ increased by 92 percent the year after her birth.

  • Other royals who had a significant impact on baby names include Princess Anne (increasing the popularity of ‘Anne’ by 36 percent and 1,507 total babies), Princess Margaret (21 percent, 3,760 babies), Peter Phillips (31 percent, 2,607 babies),Prince William (23 percent, 2,581 babies) and King George VI (3 percent, 1,431 babies).

  • Prince HarryPrincess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie- the youngest of the royals- had only a small impact on the actual number of babies given their names. To the contrary, by percentage their births expanded the popularity of their names by 55 percent, 37 percent and 69 percent respectively.

  • On average, the male royal babies were found to have a bigger impact in volume (resulting in an average of 1,664 instances of the name the following year, as opposed to 1,010 for girls), yet female royal babies had the largest impact by percentage, increasing the popularity of their names by 43 percent, compared to 24 percent for boys. An explanation for this difference could be that female royals have typically had more unusual names such as Eugenie or Zara that were not previously popular.

In fact, the only royal born in the past 170 years whose name actually decreased in popularity after his birth was King George V, with the number of ‘Georges’ born in 1866 falling by more than 7,000 compared to the year before. A likely explanation for this disruption in the naming trend could be the impact of London’s cholera pandemic[ii] on the population, as many people perished during this period.

Derived from the Greek name Georgious, which means farmer, George has been a British staple name for centuries and is the third most common name for English monarchs (6 times) since 1066 after Henry (8 times) and Edward (8 times).

Table 1- The impact a royal birth has on the popularity of that name:

Royal Name
Birth Year
Number of babies with royal name during the year of birth
Number of babies with royal name the year after birth
Actual / percentage increase
King Edward VII
1841
8,930
9,661
+731 / 8%
King George V
1865
33,824
26,437
-7,387 / -21%
King Edward VIII
1894
22,221
22,926
+705 / 3%
King George VI
1895
41,653
43,084
+1,431 / 3%
Queen Elizabeth II
1926
5,839
6,209
+370 / 6%
Princess Margaret
1930
17,695
21,455
+3,760 / 21%
Prince Charles
1948
1,974
2,941
+967 / 49%
Princess Anne
1950
4,234
5,741
+1,507 / 36%
Prince Andrew
1960
12,534
18,081
+5,547 / 44%
Prince Edward
1964
1,597
1,624
+27 / 2%
Peter Phillips
1977
8,381
10,988
+2,607 / 31%
Zara Phillips
1981
166
320
+154 / 92%
Prince William
1982
11,058
13,639
+2,581 / 23%
Prince Harry
1984
695
1,076
+381 / 55%
Princess Beatrice
1988
231
317
+86 / 37%
Princess Eugenie
1990
39
66
+27 / 69%
*** Reduction caused by Cholera pandemic of 1866

About Ancestry.com
Ancestry.com is the world's largest online family history resource with approximately 2.7 million paying subscribers across all its websites. More than 11 billion records have been added to the Ancestry.com sites and users have created more than 50 million family trees containing more than 5 billion profiles. In addition to its flagship site www.ancestry.com, the company operates several Ancestry international websites along with a suite of online family history brands including Archives.com, Fold3.com and Newspapers.com, all designed to empower people to discover, preserve and share their family history.