For %%emailaddr%% July 6, 2006 I hope everyone had a happy and safe Independence Day! The Fourth of July is my great-grandparents' wedding anniversary and the only birth date I've seen for my great-grandfather (on the other side of the family). I think he "adopted" that birthday after becoming a US citizen—I'm eagerly awaiting the results of my Freedom of Information Act request for his naturalization papers. You'll notice the August 2006 Family Tree Magazine is now on newsstands. If you have it in your hot little hands, don't forget you can quickly link to the Web sites recommended in that issue by visiting http://www.familytreemagazine.com/mags/display.asp?id=1781. But only our print magazine subscribers and newsstand buyers can access links to this year's 101 Best Web Sites list—see the article for instructions. —Diane Haddad, Newsletter Editor ftmnews-editor@fwpubs.com P.S. Make sure you don't miss a single issue of your E-mail Update! Add our address (familytree-newsletter@fwpubs.com) to your email-address book—your software will recognize the Update as an e-mail you want to read.     On the Map Waterlogged National Archives Recovers Fine China AncestorNews: A Case of Neglect Sneak Peeks at FamilyTreeMagazine.com Now What? Online: A Place for Everything Identifying Family Photographs: Triple Play Speakers' Schedule Advertiser Special Offers On the Map Want to see where Great-grandpa’s terra firma lies? The Bureau of Land Management’s General Land Office Web site—which lets you search names from land patents—has added a survey search covering 15 states plus the District of Columbia (more states will be added). These land surveys resulted in the official plats consulted when individuals received land from the federal government. If you find your ancestor’s plat, you can use it to find the land referenced in his land patent. Your ancestor’s name isn’t in these survey documents, so you’ll need information from his land patent for a search to be worthwhile. Start with the search advice at http://www.glorecords.blm.gov/SurveySearch/Help/SearchPage.asp. To search, enter at least the state where your ancestor purchased land. Then add as much information as you know, such as the county and township and range numbers. Matches show the survey type, the date it was approved, and the state, county, township and range. Click the survey type to see additional details, then select the Plat Image tab for a map of the original survey—theoretically, you can use the magnifier icon to zoom in and see where your ancestor lived, but this feature didn’t work for us. Similarly, when we clicked the Download This Image link, we kept getting a “file doesn’t exist” message. For information on finding and understanding your ancestor’s land records, see the August 2006 Family Tree Magazine. It’s available online at http://www.familytreemagazine.com/mags/display.asp?id=1781. Waterlogged National Archives Closes for Cleanup The National Archives and Records Administration's (http://nara.gov) Washington, DC, headquarters will remain closed at least through July 11 after last week's storms caused flooding to areas including the William G. McGowan Theater and the Rotunda. No original records were damaged. Staff brought in generator-powered dehumidifiers to combat rising humidity levels, a danger to documents and artifacts after electrical outages knocked out the air conditioning system. The most valuable documents, kept in climate-controlled chambers and backed by moisture-absorbing paper, aren’t at risk. Researchers should visit the archives' Web site or call (301) 837-0700 for updates on the closure. The archives’ annual outdoor Fourth of July celebration took place as scheduled, minus trips inside to see historic documents. Heavy rain caused flooding and closures throughout the Mid-Atlantic states. If your home was affected, see http://www.familytreemagazine.com/photos/sept15-05.htm for information on treating your water-damaged photographs. Fine China The history of Chinese immigrants in Canada dates back to the 19th century, and modern Canadians can research those ancestors with help from a new Web site. The Vancouver [Canada] Public Library has launched Chinese-Canadian Genealogy at http://ccg.vpl.ca. Six sections cover genealogy basics, Chinese names, history of Chinese immigrants in Canada, family sources, records and researching in China. There’s even a Chinese-American Genealogy (http://www.vpl.ca/ccg/American_Genealogy.html) page for Canadians’ southern neighbors. A Case of Neglect Many of you probably think I’m stuck on this cemetery preservation issue. At times, it feels like that to me too.  But, a situation was recently brought to my attention that I want to share—and then I’ll do my best to move on to other subjects. Read about a neglected, overgrown national cemetery in Washington, DC, at http://www.familytreemagazine.com/ancestornews/current.html. Hendrickson is a family historian, freelance writer and the author of the book Finding Your Roots Online, on sale now at http://www.familytreemagazine.com/store/display.asp?id=70583. Browse the archive of her AncestorNews columns at http://www.familytreemagazine.com/ancestornews/previous.html. Be first to check out what's new on our Web site: High Societies If your roots go back to American Revolution patriots, the Mayflower passengers or a similar group, you may be eligible to join a lineage society. Here's how to find one and how it can help your research. http://www.familytreemagazine.com/articles/oct03/lineage.html 101 Best Web Sites for 2006 It's finally here—the latest edition of Family Tree Magazine's annual list of the best genealogy Web sites. You'll see a new one on our home page every day, but readers get exclusive access to the whole list—see your August  2006 Family Tree Magazine for your pass code. http://www.familytreemagazine.com/101sites/2006/index.asp All in the Family We're on the prowl for your old photos of relattives' strange hairstyles. So if Great-aunt Millie's updo resembled Marge Simpson's, or Granddad wore the world's worst comb over, e-mail the photo to us at ftmedit@fwpubs.com. You could win a photo album kit from Chatterbox. See page 18 in your August Family Tree Magazine for details. A Place for Everything Q. I've been trying to research the name of a town in Poland that had a name change. (I seem to remember a Family Tree Magazine article on this topic.) I have two different spellings for this town and just can’t seem to find the new name. A. For the answer, see http://www.familytreemagazine.com/nowwhatonline/current.html. Read more Q&A with the experts at http://www.familytreemagazine.com/nowwhatonline/previous.html. Triple Play This week my inbox contained several photographs with quick questions, so I’ve selected three beautiful examples of late-19th century photography. See them at http://www.familytreemagazine.com/ photos/current.htm. Maureen A. Taylor is a photo historian and the author of Uncovering Your Ancestry through Family Photographs. If you have a family photo mystery for Taylor to solve, check out our Submission Guidelines at http://www.familytreemagazine.com/photos/photohelp.htm. Pittsburgh, Pa. Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak July 15 Roots in the Boot Italian Genealogy and Heritage Conference Topics: Trace Your Roots with DNA Building a Village-Based Community For more information, see http://www.rootsintheboot.org/. Moorhead, Minn. Rick Crume July 17 Moorhead Public Library Class  Topic: Trace Your Family Tree Online For more information, see www.larl.org/branch/moorhead.html. Lufkin, Texas Emily Anne Croom July 21-22 Angelina College Genealogy Conference  Topics: Location, Location, Location: Using Maps in Genealogy Lost in 1890? What to Do When the Census is Missing It's Not a Brick Wall Until... Gooly Girl and Fryed Ham: Building Your Case—A Genealogist's Tool Kit For more information, see www.angelina.edu/genealogy.htm. BRITISH GENEALOGY. The best textbook on British genealogy is now even better!  Check out the new, 2nd Edition of ANCESTRAL TRAILS: The Complete Guide to  British Genealogy and Family History, by Mark Herber.  http://www.genealogical.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&item_number=2692 Genealogy Hotel Rates in Salt Lake -You will love the genealogy rates at the Holiday Inn-Downtown along with the free shuttles to & from the Family History Library.  www.holiday-inn.com/slc-downtown RootsMagic Genealogy Software - "An excellent choice for any genealogist" says Family Tree Magazine. Get a free trial copy at http://www.RootsMagic.com PRINTING & BINDING:  Archival hardbound books with 4-color ink-based printing.   Over 53 years experience as bookbinders.  http://www.familyheritagepublishers.com Get Family Tree Magazine back issues at http://www.familytreemagazine.com/mags. Explore Family Tree Magazine E-mail Update past issues at http://www.familytreemagazine.com/newsletter/archive.html. Get free Family Tree News Service articles for your genealogy newsletter or Web site at http://www.familytreemagazine.com/ftns-subscribe.asp. Sponsor This Newsletter For information on sponsoring this newsletter or to receive a rate card, e-mail kworkman@longshoremedia.com You have received this e-mail because you expressed interest in receiving updates about genealogy and genealogy products from Family Tree Magazine and Betterway Books by e-mail. Thanks for your subscription! You are currently subscribed as %%emailaddr%% To unsubscribe, send a blank message to %%email.unsub%% To change the address we send messages to, click here: http://fwpubs.sparklist.com/read/my_account/?forum=familytree To receive the text-only version of the newsletter, unsubscribe using the directions above, then subscribe to the text-only list by sending a blank email to join-familytree-text@fwpubs.sparklist.com. Questions? To ensure a timely response to your questions concerning magazine subscriptions or other general help, please see www.familytreemagazine.com/contactus.html Please only reply to this message with newsletter-specific questions. Entire Contents Copyright© 2006 F+W Publications, Inc. 4700 East Galbraith Road, Cincinnati, OH 45236 All Rights Reserved August 2006 Issue Table of Contents Subscribe Now!