Are You a Winner?
Conratulations to the fast-fingered and quick-witted winners of our October 2006 Family Tree Magazine issue quiz (published in the Sept.
14 E-mail Update newsletter): Barbara Williams, Sherry Daniels and Sheryl Levin. Each will receive a copy of the May 2006 Trace Your Family History, a special issue
of Family
Tree Magazine.
We know you've been waiting on pins and needles for the correct answers. Here they are:
1. Which US city’s Oktoberfest celebration was recognized in the 1995 through 1997 Guinness Book of World Records
editions for holding the world’s largest chicken dance.
That would be
Cincinnati (aka "Zinzinnati"), which also happens to be home to the
country's best-selling genealogy magazine—yep, that's us.
2. What six nations’ flags have flown over Texas?
Spain, France, Mexico, Republic of Texas, United States and Confederate States of America
3. What’s the term for the loss of small bits of original information every time you copy from a tape or film?
Generation loss
4. What year did civil registration begin in Britain?
1837
5. Name three free public databases of genetic genealogy test results.
You could have said mitosearch (http://www.mitosearch.org), Sorenson Molecular
Genealogy Foundation (http://www.smgf.org), Ybase (http://www.ybase.org), YHRD
(http://www.yhrd.org), Y-Match (http://www.relativegenetics.com) or Ysearch
(http://www.ysearch.org).
We Knew Him When
51 Birch Street—the engrossing documentary whose creator gives you oral history interviewing tips in the October 2006 Family Tree Magazine—may
be coming to a theater near you. Filmmaker Doug Block
tells us you can catch the movie
during
October and November at select theaters in Boston, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, Chicago and other cities. See http://www.51birchstreet.com/index.php/about/screenings for dates
and times.
The film came about when, two months after Block's mother unexpectedly passed away, his father announced plans to move to Florida
with
a secretary from 20 years before. By weaving years of family video clips, photographs, passages from his mother's diaries and interviews with relatives, 51 Birch Street follows Block as he examines his parents' relationship and forms a stronger bond
with his father. His goal, he says, is to inspire you to seek a better understanding of your family. We give it a thumbs up.
Your Ancestors Aren't All The Census Is Missing ...
Governments have passed public records closure laws left and right in an effort to stop identity thieves, but maybe laws need to focus on the
government
itself. Last week the Department of Commerce announced 1,138 laptops—249 of which contain
Americans' personally identifiable information—have been lost or stolen since 2001.
Most of the laptops went missing from the Census Bureau, whose
thousands of field representatives—many of them temporary
employees—used them to compile survey information. Of the 249
devices containing personal information, about half were stolen from
employees and half weren't returned. Most stored
information on 20 to 30 households; 139 were only partially or not at
all encrypted.
"Fortunately, the vulnerability for data misuse is low. While we know of no instances of personal information being improperly used, we regret each
instance
of lost material and believe the volume of lost equipment is unacceptable," says Department of Commerce secretary Carlos Gutierrez in a Sept. 21
press release. Passwords, encryption and database software protect the information. "We are moving to institute better management, accountability, inventory controls, 100 percent encryption and improved training," adds Gutierrez.
The department
inventoried its equipment in response
to public and Congressional inquiries after a computer with data on up to 26.5 million veterans was stolen from a government employee's home last August. An unidentified person turned in the laptop earlier this year, and officials are confident no private
information was compromised.
Documents show the department employee, who's been fired, had received permission to access the data from home.
Look for a special report on genealogists' access to public records in the December issue of Family
Tree Magazine
(on newsstands Nov. 7).
National Archives Cuts Research Hours
After a public comment period that began July 25, the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) in Washington, DC and College Park, Maryland will implement
its shortened research room hours beginning Oct. 2. (See the Aug. 3 E-mail Update for news on NARA’s initial announcement.)
The
new research hours are Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. In response to public comment, NARA will host extended hours once a month on a Thursday and Friday from 9 a.m. to 8:45 p.m., and the following Saturday from 8:45 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. The first extended
hours will be October 19 through 21.
Watch http://www.archives.gov/research for dates of extended hours, as well as the revised hours for NARA’s regional facilities.
NARA, which made the
changes
to cut expenses, received 530 comments and two signed petitions—including an electronic one “signed” by 11,000-plus genealogists—during the public comment period.
Eneclann Offers Prizes for Your Prose
Irish
genealogical book and CD publisher Eneclann, along with Irish Roots magazine, is sponsoring a family tree essay contest. Write up to 500 words on why your family history is important to
you, and you could pocket the $650 prize and see your story in print. Every entrant gets a discount on Eneclann products.
The contest deadline is Oct. 15. See http://www.eneclann.ie/news-comp.htm
for details.
A Heartfelt Farewell
I started writing this column for Family Tree Magazine four years ago, and in that time have received hundreds of e-mails from readers about the many topics I've
covered.
But now the time has come to close out my AncestorNews column.
Read the rest at http://www.familytreemagazine.com/ancestornews/current.html.
Nancy 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 on our Web site:
- Seeking Polar Opposites
For the October 2006 Family Tree Magazine All in the Family challenge, we want to hear about the odd couples in your family tree—maybe a high-society city girl fell for a frontier farmer, a 5-foot mom bore
a linebacker-size son or a Whig brother and his Tory sibling livened up dinner conversations. E-mail your story (less than 200 words, please) and/or photo to ftmedit@fwpubs.com. If we print your contribution,
you'll win a free copy of The Genealogist's Companion and Sourcebook, 2nd edition, by Emily Anne Croom.
- Web Extras
October 2006 Family Tree Magazine readers, there's no need to type in all the URLs we recommend in our articles. Relax those fingers and access the links directly from our Web site:
Just click the October issue and hit the Download link.
- Courthouse Roadblocks
Research at the courthouse isn't always easy. We've gathered some of the most common roadblocks you might encounter along the way and suggested
tried and true solutions for each of them. See http://www.familytreemagazine.com/articles/june03/roadblocks.html
German Guidance
Q. Where would I write to obtain birth information for my great-great-grandfather, who was born in the area of Oberbieber, Germany?
A. To learn 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.
A Picture's Worth 1,000 Words ... Sometimes
A photograph's tale isn’t always in the details in the image. In this photograph of Andrew Jackson Boruff and Orphia Ann Collinsworth, the picture is only part of the story.
What's the rest of the story? Find out 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.
Saugerties, NY
James Beidler
Oct. 7
New York Chapter, Palatines to America Fall Meeting
Topic:
- German Names and Naming Patterns
For more information, see http://palam.org/chapters/ny.htm.
Moorhead, Minn.
Rick Crume
Oct. 7
31st Annual Family History Workshop at Minnesota State University Moorhead
Topic:
- Researching Your Civil War Ancestors Online
- Researching Overseas Ancestry Online
For more information, see http://www.mnstate.edu/heritage/workshop.htm.
RootsMagic Genealogy Software - "An excellent choice for any genealogist" says Family Tree Magazine. Get a free trial copy at http://www.RootsMagic.com
DNA can help your genealogy research. There
are good reasons why 9 out of 10 genealogists choose Family Tree DNA: we have the largest database in the world to match your sample with others to find a relationship our scientists are the top in this field and
developed the right tests that will help your genealogy.
Get Family Tree Magazine back issues at http://www.familytreemagazine.com/mags.
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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.
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