NARA's New Site to See
The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA; http://www.archives.gov) launched a redesigned Web site yesterday. The overhaul (right, top) was based on comments from researchers like you.
NARA's old site (right, bottom) contained tons of useful information, but it could be a bear to navigate. For example, the genealogy page put news front and
center, with research information below. Deciding where to go next was difficult: Navigation links weren't descriptive and were listed in no apparent order. Links to HeritageQuest Online and AncestryPlus (now Ancestry Library Edition), non-NARA sites you
have use at a subscribing library, were located on the main genealogy page along with NARA databases, rather than on the Other Web Sites page.
It's still too soon to say whether the new site is easier to navigate, but it looks promising. The home page features three columns of links. Those on the left tell you about NARA—its mission, publications and the like. The center of the page features
changing
content such as news. Look on the right to choose links based on who you are, such as General Public, Genealogist, Educator, Journalist. Links to databases and tools such as Access to Archival Databases and eVetRecs are below that.
The main genealogy page links you to online finding aids and research overviews. You also can click to a Q&A, records spotlight and microfilmed records guides. One more click transports you to pages about record groups such as census, military and immigration.
A horizontal bar at the top of the page shows you where you are on the site.
NARA has changed its Web page links, too— although main pages will automatically redirect you, some NARA URLs in the October Family Tree Magazine won't work. Watch FamilyTreeMagazine.com for a listing of the updated links.
We'd love to know what you think of NARA's new site. After you've had a chance to use it, e-mail us at ftmnews-editor@fwpubs.com to let us know.
Fab Five
Genealogy software maker Pearl Street Software has introduced version 5 of its Family Tree Legends program. Among the updates:
- Data sharing. You can burn a CD or DVD of your data and include a version of Family Tree Legends that lets people without the program see your files.
- Fan Charts. Users' most frequent request was the ability to print fan charts.
- Unlimited customized reports. Create the reports you want, then name them and add them to the program's Reports menu.
- Correspondence tracker. A manager lets you organize all your communications with other researchers.
Besides other goodies, the Deluxe and Premium editions include custom-built versions of both GedStar (for Palm) and Pocket Genealogist (for Pocket PC). You can sync a Family Tree Legends GEDCOM file to your handheld computer and view it on the road or at
a family reunion.
The basic edition costs $29.95; Deluxe, $49.95; and Premium, $79.95. Current Family Tree Legends users can upgrade for $19.95. See http://www.familytreelegends.com for more information.
Canada's 1911 Census Update
Canadian genealogists have even more to celebrate now that Library and Archives Canada (http://www.collectionscanada.ca), the government agency that oversees Canada's public records, has said it hopes to
make the country's 1911 census records available by early August. Bill S-18, which recently passed parliament and received royal assent, authorized the records' release. For more on the 1911 census controversy, see the June 23 and and July 7 E-mail Updates
at http://www.familytreemagazine.com/newsletter/archive.html.
Hoosier Genealogy
Want to learn a little about your Indiana ancestors? Check out the Indiana County History Preservation Society, a part-free, part (affordable) subscription site that's chock full of historical tidbits.
Plus, see an E-mail Update reader's trick for dealing with pre-1850 censuses, which list just heads of household. Continue reading at
http://www.familytreemagazine.com/ancestornews/current.html.
Nancy Hendrickson is a family historian and the author of Finding Your Roots Online, on sale at http://www.familytreemagazine.com/store/display.asp?id=70583. Browse her
past AncestorNews columns at http://www.familytreemagazine.com/ancestornews/previous.html.
Be first to check out these new articles on our Web site:
Fatherly Advice
Q. I think my father, Gust Klug, came through Canada to the United States, but I don't know what year. He was in World War I at Camp Custer in Michigan, and I think he was discharged from the Army there in 1919. I'd like to learn his birthplace
and when he came to the United States.
A.
The US began keeping track of border crossers from Canada in 1895, when almost half of immigrants to Canada went on to the United States. These entry lists are sometimes called "St. Albans lists" because they were stored in St. Albans,
Vt. Look for them on microfilm through the Family History Library (http://www.familysearch.org); you can rent it through your local Family History Center. Large public libraries may have the St. Albans lists on
microfilm.
You may find your father's arrival year and birthplace in federal censuses. A search of the subscription site Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com), for example, turned up several Gust Klugs. In the 1930 census,
one Gust was age 40 and unmarried in Wyandotte, Mich., a Russian who came to the US in 1913, and a World War I veteran. You can search the census using Ancestry Library Edition or HeritageQuest Online if your library subscribes to either service; or ask
whether
the library has microfilmed census records. Search for spelling variations, such as Gustav and Kluge. Once you have some candidates, look at family members and compare the information with other records to confirm you've found your dad.
If your father was in the United States by 1917, he may have filled out a draft registration card. Search these cards on Ancestry.com, or see http://www.archives.gov/genealogy/military/ww1/draft-registration
for more information. Chances are your dad's service records were among those destroyed by fire at the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis. It's worth looking into, though— see http://www.archives.gov/research/order/vets-records.html#nprcfor
information. Also check with his county courthouse to see whether he filed his discharge papers there.
—Diane Haddad
Diane Haddad is editor of the Family Tree Magazine E-Mail Update newsletter. Read more Q&A with the experts at
http://www.familytreemagazine.com/nowwhatonline/previous.html.
The Sign Says...
Expert photo historian Maureen A. Taylor helps readers analyze old family pictures in her Web-exclusive column Identifying Family Photographs. This week, she gives hints for researching the fraternal insignia that show up in photos of your ancestors.
Read the column at http://www.familytreemagazine.com/photos/current.htm.
If you have a family photo mystery for Taylor to solve, check out our Submission Guidelines at http://www.familytreemagazine.com/photos/photohelp.htm.
Lufkin, Texas
Emily Anne Croom
July 22-23
Angelina College Genealogy Conference
Topics:
- The Old Dominion: Researching Virginia Ancestors
- The Territorial Papers of the United States: The Southern States
- Genealogy in the Urban South
- Sifting Through the Ashes: Research in "Burned Counties"
For more information, go to http://www.angelina.edu/genealogy.htm.
RootsMagic Genealogy Software - "An excellent choice for any genealogist" says Family Tree Magazine. Get a free trial copy at http://www.RootsMagic.com
Do I need permission to use something off the Internet? Does
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COPYRIGHT AND CONTRACTS: A Primer for Genealogists, Writers &
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GenSmarts Automated Genealogy Research - "the best genealogy add-on software " says Eastman's Newsletter. Only $24.95 at http://www.GenSmarts.com/ftmagDeals.asp
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