No.53 (British Isles and European Ancestors)

Between 8th and 26th August 2017, family historians in Australia and New Zealand will have a unique opportunity to hear leading international genealogists Chris Paton and Dirk Weissleder explain how to research our British Isles and European ancestors.

I mentioned this briefly in a previous edition of UpdatesGenie and on my Facebook page, but here are a few more details.

Chris and Dirk will give a series of presentations in Brisbane, Auckland, Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Adelaide and Perth during Unlock the Past's genealogy roadshow entitled Researching Abroad: Finding British Isles and European Ancestors.

Every time I've heard Chris Paton speak about Scottish and Irish genealogy, I've learned a lot (and the learning process has been fun). Dirk Weissleder (from Germany) is new to me, but he comes highly recommended by colleagues whose opinion I trust, and I'm sure he will inspire me to resume work on my STEINKE and RIENECKER family trees. While Chris and Dirk catch their breath between talks, local speakers will briefly describe British and European resources held by libraries and societies here. In each Australian city there will also be an introductory talk about using DNA as a tool for genealogy.

In some cities it may be possible to simply arrive and pay on the day, but if you pre-book you will save money, and you will also go in the prize draw. The prize pool is expected to total at least $10,000 over all six Australian cities.

On the roadshow's main page, click on your preferred city to see full programme details and a booking form for that venue. There are also links to pages about the speakers, prizes, special offers, sponsors and exhibitors.

The roadshow starts in Brisbane, and I'm looking forward to catching up with friends and colleagues there. We don't often see such renowned international speakers here, so make the most of this opportunity!

(This post first appeared on https://updatesgenie.blogspot.com/2017/07/no53-british-isles-and-european.html.)

No.51 (genealogy news and tips worldwide)

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• 10% discount:   Until 11:59pm (BST) Sunday 7 May 2017 (which is early on Monday 8th Australian time) Findmypast is giving new and lapsed subscribers 10% off the cost of a 12 month World subscription if you use Findmypast.co.uk or Findmypast.ie or Findmypast.com. You can subscribe there even if you live in Australia/NZ. If two or more people share a computer and/or an email address, only one of you can take up this offer. If you need a separate email address, I recommend a free Gmail account.


• Queensland:  Over 4,000 new records have been added to the Queensland School Pupils Index, which now has over 1.6 million names from 1,022 schools.


• UK parish records:   Findmypast, through their exclusive partnership with the Federation of Family History Societies, has the largest online collection of UK parish records. Recent additions include records for Devon, Kent and Wiltshire. Find out how best to search them.


• 1861 source:   Researching someone aged 14 or older in 1861? Try searching the British Army Worldwide Index 1861, which covers units serving in Britain and the British Empire.


• Missing records:   Find out what records are missing from UK censuses (links are on the left side of the page).


• Catholic records:   Scottish records have been added to the Catholic Heritage Collection. Most of the collection has never before been available to the public.


• Scotland:   Viewing images on Scotland's People.


• Ireland:   The Irish Genealogy website and workbook will guide you through the free online resources that exist.


• Evernote:   Lisa Louise Cooke explains an innovative way to use Evernote for genealogy - create your own genealogy library for easy on-the-go reference.


• Giveaways:   Prizes up for grabs here last week were a 12 month subscription to Findmypast (value: about $114) and a choice of five genealogy-related items (value: about $30). Winners' names are on the Prize Draws and Competitions page.

(This post first appeared on http://updatesgenie.blogspot.com/2017/05/no51-genealogy-news-and-tips-worldwide.html.)
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No.43 (genealogy news and discounts worldwide)

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• 50% discount:   FindMyPast (one of my favourite sites) has a half-price offer that ends 15 Jul 2016.


• Proof:   Read Else Churchill's delightfully simple and sensible explanation of how we can apply the Genealogical Proof Standard.


• Queensland:   A new index on the Qld State Archives Web site is 'Monthly and Half Yearly Returns for Moreton Bay 1829-1837'.


• New South Wales:   Learn how to use the new Web site for State Records NSW (the NSW equivalent of Qld State Archives).


• Western Australia:   Western Australian birth, death and marriage certificates are now cheaper. See Australian Genealogy and History Snippets.


• Ireland:   Ireland's wills and administrations 1858-1920 can now be searched on Ancestry.


• Canada:   FindMyPast now has links to images of the original 1911 census for Canada.


• USA:   Naturalisation and passport records are among new USA records added to FindMyPast.


• Scotland:   The Surnames of Scotland: Their Origin, Meaning and History by George F. Black is free online. Below the 'Viewability' sub-heading, click 'Full view'.


• Recommended reading:   'You can think that if you want, but it's wrong'.

(This post first appeared on http://updatesgenie.blogspot.com/2016/07/no43-genealogy-news-and-discounts.html.)
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No.42 (genealogy news and discounts worldwide)

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Examples of letter S (image:Wikipedia)

• German handwriting:   Ten Tips for Deciphering Old German Handwriting.


• Discount:   Until midnight Sat. 28 May 2016, get 20% off any new 12 month World subscription at Findmypast. Untick 'auto-renew' in the MyAccount section of the site. A full list of records available on FindMyPast is at http://bit.ly/2worldlist.


• English & Scottish research:   'Lost in English and Scottish Research' is a Society of Australian Genealogists webinar. Listen live on the weekend of 18/19 Jun 2016, or listen to the recordings after the event.


• Cheaper copies:   For many of the State Archives records that I've indexed (including old age pension records), I've reduced my fee for supplying copies of the original documents. I've also changed the wording on some Web pages to make it easier to see how to order copies.


• Northern Territory:   Looking for wills? Try the Northern Territory probate index 1911-1994.


• Google Books:   There are interesting family history examples in Google Books (52 Weeks to Better Genealogy) and Google Books Finds: Including an Article with Four Photos.


• Epidemics:   The epidemics timeline may explain some deaths in your family tree.


• Lookups:   The Legal Genealogist sets us straight on the issue of genealogy lookup requests.


• When you're gone:   Amy Johnson Crow describes 5 ways to preserve your genealogy research.


• Indigence cases:  A new index on the Qld State Archives Web site is Indigence Cases 1899-1948. Many Chinese, Islanders etc are included.

(This post first appeared on http://updatesgenie.blogspot.com/2016/05/no42-genealogy-news-and-discounts.html.)
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No.17 (genealogy UK, Ireland, USA, Canada)

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• LostCousins:  The LostCousins site is currently completely free. Until early Tuesday 28th August Australian time, or midnight 27th Greenwich Mean Time, you can search and make contact with any living relatives that the search reveals, without paying for a subscription. LostCousins now caters for the 1940 USA census as well as USA 1880; Canada 1881; England & Wales 1841, 1881, 1911; Ireland 1911; Scotland 1881. Be sure to enter your blood relatives and relatives by marriage as well as direct ancestors.  (I tried to share that news earlier, but my wireless Internet connection suddenly stopped working and was out of action for a long time.)


• Guide to London Ancestors:  FamilySearch has a new free guide with articles on each of London's 109 historic parishes, including descriptions of many records available online. Guides are also being compiled for the Greater London counties of Essex, Kent, Middlesex and Surrey.

No.13 (Free Access to LostCousins)

The Lost Cousins site is completely free for all members, new and old, until midnight on Wednesday 6 June 2012. (That would be UK time, so Thursday morning in Australia.) When this 'free full membership' period ends, standard membership will still be free.

LostCousins is a great site for finding your living relatives. The automated matching means that nobody sees your information, but when you do find a 'lost cousin', you can be certain that it is a genuine match. You do not waste time corresponding with people who are not related to you!

To use LostCousins you need to find your relatives in the census for England & Wales 1841, 1881 or 1911; Scotland 1881; United States 1880; Canada 1881; or Ireland 1911. Then you enter the source/page details at LostCousins. Requirements for each census are different, so read the instructions carefully before gathering and entering data ('Information - Read this first'). If you prepare well, entering the data is a lot quicker.

On your My Ancestors page, be sure to enter your direct ancestors' brothers and sisters too, because it is their descendants who are likely to have letters and photos sent by your family.

After completing your My Ancestors page, click 'Search'. The system checks whether anyone else has entered data for the same people. If they have, you can contact them at no cost during this free period until 6 June 2012.

I am a big fan of LostCousins, so please give it a try.