Episode Twelve: Podcast Available

If you missed our twelfth episode, you can listen to the archived version, or feel free to download a copy to your desktop or mp3 player.

The quickest way to download is to right click on the "download a copy" link above and select "Save Link As" (Mozilla) or "Save Target As" (Internet Explorer). You will then be given options where on your computer to store the file. Our podcasts are 60 minutes long and average approximately 12mb in size.

If you use Apple iTunes (available for Mac and Windows) to listen to podcasts, click here to subscribe via iTunes to Family Roots Radio.

Common Surname Research is Topic on 26 April Show

If you've been putting off research on one of your families because the surname was too common (and all of us do it!), this is the show for you! It's not just Smith and Jones. There are hundreds of common surnames, and they often require some additional strategies in our ancestral pursuits. With noted surname genealogist Christine Rose on board for our interview, we will also take some time to explore some web sites that provide particularly useful help when seeking common surnames.

Get ready to review Genealogy Forum with us to see some helpful material they have gathered. Then we'll look at GenForum to discuss getting the most out of the larger message boards. Then we'll scoot across the pond and introduce the Guild of One-Name Studies, a fantastic resource for British research. We'll also expose the fallacy of several so-called "surname sites." They're helpful to a point, but. . . . Naturally, you won't want to miss the tip from the pros, or the software tip of the week. Then there's always our free data site of the week to help you find more ancestral answers. So, tune in, and enjoy!

Do you want a little homework before you listen to the show? Check out a couple of your surnames to learn how common they area at this surname frequency site from the U.S. Census Bureau. For more information on surname frequency, review our 15 March show.

Christine Rose to Guest on 26 April Show

We have the rare privilege of having one of America's best and most respected genealogists joining us on Family Roots Radio on 26 April. We are very excited to be welcoming Christine Rose, one of just 50 Fellows of the American Society of Genealogists as we discuss a subject we all have to deal with: researching a common surname. Well known as an excellent genealogist, author and speaker, Christine Rose has spent much of her time pursuing the Rose families. Her experience in sorting out people with a common name, and researching in over 500 U.S. courthouses will be of interest to all researchers. She has also authored several significant reference books, including the quintessential guide to courthouse research. You won't want to miss our discussion about these topics with one of genealogy's leading ladies.

More Library Links from 19 April Show

We sure hope you enjoyed the discussion with Tom Kemp about using libraries effectively, and his introduction to GenealogyBank. We touched on a couple of items in that show for which we wanted to give the web links. Tom told us that there was now a free example of a source posted at GenealogyBank, so we wanted to link to that 1819-20 passenger list.

In our review of state libraries, we also mentioned that there is a great list of links to virtually every state repository: archives, libraries and societies. You can find the best list of such websites here at Cyndi's List.

Although we profiled three state library sites, here are some others you'll want to check out:
Indiana State Library's Genealogy Databases & Indexes
New York State Library Genealogy page
Ohio State Library Genealogy Services, including their online catalog
Library of Michigan Genealogy Resources, with some very useful databases
Pennsylvania State Library discussion of their genealogy collections
Massachusetts State Library Guide to Genealogical Resources
Maine State Library Genealogy Resource Materials

Well, the list could go on and on. Check the state library for your states of research, and then try some local libraries. There'll be some great new finds!

Don't forget the free data site, and those fascinating funeral cards at Genealogy Today. There's a very helpful article that outlines the nature and use of those unheralded records.

Stay tuned, we've got an important show coming up next!

Review of Virginia Immigrants and Adventures

As promised on our 12 April show, we are publishing here a review of Virginia Immigrants and Adventures:

Martha W. McCartney, Virginia Immigrants and Adventures 1607 – 1635: A Biographical Dictionary (Baltimore, MD: Genealogical Publishing Co., 2007). 833 pp., $49.95.

Martha McCartney provides an excellent collection of biographical information on the early colonists along the James River from difficult to obtain primary sources. Virginia Immigrants and Adventures 1607 – 1635: A Biographical Dictionary will no doubt become a favorite work of students and genealogists of colonial Virginia history. That said, this is clearly a reference work. The format of the book is alphabetic for the most part, except where family groups appear listed together. This means that if the person being sought was identified with his/her parents, it may be necessary to search all the entries of the surname to locate the pertinent biography. This problem is negated, however, by the index included at the end of the book, making the book fairly easy to use.

In addition to the biographical information, McCartney has used her knowledge of the early geography of the area to link individuals to a particular place within the area. A map shows the areas where information on the individuals included in the book resided. Each biography references this map. This will be helpful in tracing individuals from the period in which counties govern the area, to this early period where individuals are identified by plantation or now defunct city. The first portion of the book also includes a brief description of the colonization of this area, describing, in great detail, each of the locations referenced on the map.

Clearly a work of many years diligent effort, scholars and genealogists alike may expect to benefit from the wealth of information McCartney has amassed. Unlike most histories and biographies covering this time period, McCartney has clearly tried to gather information on every person mentioned in the available records for this area. This makes it a source for information about the lives and habits of people which are widely available nowhere else.

Amanda Sims, MA (Pending, in history)

Episode Eleven: Podcast Available

If you missed our eleventh episode, you can listen to the archived version, or feel free to download a copy to your desktop or mp3 player.

The quickest way to download is to right click on the "download a copy" link above and select "Save Link As" (Mozilla) or "Save Target As" (Internet Explorer). You will then be given options where on your computer to store the file. Our podcasts are 60 minutes long and average approximately 12mb in size.

If you use Apple iTunes (available for Mac and Windows) to listen to podcasts, click here to subscribe via iTunes to Family Roots Radio.

Effective Library Research on 19 April Show

Libraries are one of the genealogist's life lines. So many records are in so many libraries, we can't live without them. However, sometimes it's hard to live with them as well! With noted genealogical librarian Tom Kemp on board, we have the opportunity to discuss more effective ways to conduct your library research. One of those ways is through a new service called GenealogyBank, available at a growing number of libraries.

In addition, we'll have the chance to look at some of the great state libraries in the U.S., through their websites. Our "Interactive Website" segment is scheduled to explore the Library of Virginia with their great collection of databases, as well as the Connecticut State Library which provides great guides to their collection. And, it would not be complete if we did not take a peek at the Illinois State Library for an example of their important catalog of materials.

If that's not enough, our tip from the pros will tell you how to find more of these great libraries, and our free site of the week will introduce you to a record type you may have never thought of, and an index to thousands of such records. Then, of course, there's our software tip, notice of what's new and more, so listen in!

Tom Kemp to Guest on 19 April Show

Family historians love libraries, in large part because they have so many records. Who better to discuss the effective use of libraries with than Tom Kemp, one of America's premier genealogical librarians. Not only has Tom worked as a genealogical librarian in several libraries, he has served as the director for two major genealogy libraries in New England. He has also worked for two major library vendors, including his current position as NewsBank's Director of Genealogy Products. That will give us a chance to discuss America's Genealogy Bank, one of the newest major collections of information available online for genealogists. We'll also discuss ways to make your library research more efficient, and what every genealogist needs to know about libraries. So, tune in for more research success!

Episode Ten: Podcast Available

If you missed our tenth episode, you can listen to the archived version, or feel free to download a copy to your desktop or mp3 player.

The quickest way to download is to right click on the "download a copy" link above and select "Save Link As" (Mozilla) or "Save Target As" (Internet Explorer). You will then be given options where on your computer to store the file. Our podcasts are 60 minutes long and average approximately 12mb in size.

If you use Apple iTunes (available for Mac and Windows) to listen to podcasts, click here to subscribe via iTunes to Family Roots Radio.

More Links from 12 April Show

We're sure you enjoyed our conversation with Martha McCartney, and her fascinating insight into the sources to learn more about those early settlers. You can find Martha's magnificent book, and others like it, at Genealogical Publishing Company.

Indeed, in the Interactive Website segment, we discussed how some similar but older books are now available at Google Books. Time only permitted us to walk through finding Revised History of Harlem (by James Riker), but we've also found the following there (just type in the title words in the Google search box):

Connecticut Puritan Settlers, 1633-1845 (by Hinman)
Register of the Early Settlers of Kings County, Long Island, N. Y. (by Bergen)

In addition, Ancestry.com has posted the following similar books about early settlers:

Great Migration Begins (Robert Charles Anderson)
Herringshaw's Encyclopedia of American Biography of the Nineteenth Century
Massachusetts Pioneers (Charles Henry Pope)
Plymouth Colony, History and People (Eugene Stratton)
Maine Pioneers, 1623-60 (Charles Henry Pope)

Of course, they're not all online yet. Some are still under copyright, so you'll want to visit your local library. Consider these two examples:

The Palatine Families of New York (Henry Z. Jones)
Opening the Ozarks (Marsha Hoffman Rising) [Although not colonial, it is similar]

If you're interested in the early Pennsylvania Germans, check your library for several books by Annette K. Burgert. Of course, sometimes there are too many early settlers for a book. Those interested in early New Amsterdam (now New York City) should seek out the CD-ROM by David M. Riker, New Netherland, Vital Records 1600s which is really his Genealogical and Biographical Directory of Persons in New Netherland from 1613-1674 (as the print title is known)

Those of you who want to pursue the original records behind such research were alerted to one such example in our free data site of the week. The Colonial Records of Connecticut are available online, with a good search engine. Enjoy!

Colonial Settler Biographies on 12 April Show

With an award winning colonial historian like Martha McCartney on the show, it seems good to explore the growing field of biographical sources for colonial settlers. Her new book is certainly not the first. Genealogists have been writing such books for more than a century. Now there are a growing number of websites devoted to the topic. We'll explore some of them, including the People of Colonial Albany as well as Mayflower History. Researchers with Pennsylvania German ancestry will want to learn about the Palatine Project, while all will appreciate the introduction to Google Books and how it pertains to this topic.

Add to that discussion our regular features, including the news of the week, the free site selection as well as the software and professional research tips, and you won't want to miss this show. Tune in right on time, since our question of the week may be considered mildly controversial as well.

Historian Martha McCartney to Guest on 12 April Show

You won't want to miss this one! You don't know her yet, but you certainly should. So far, our guests have been well-known in genealogical circles, but it's also important for Family Roots Radio to introduce others who have had a significant impact on the field. Martha McCartney is an historian-archeologist who has applied her careful and diligent findings to genealogy and the field of family history is much better off for her efforts. A multiple award-winning research historian, with a focus on Jamestown, Virginia, Martha has recently published an 800 page biographical dictionary, Virginia Immigrants and Adventurers, 1607-1635. With biographical sketches of 5,500 early settlers, everyone with Virginia ancestors should take notice.

But, we're not limited to Virginia. We'll be discussing the kinds of sources and strategies Martha used to develop these biographies. Every researcher will want to learn from her experience. Come listen in, and become a better family historian!

More Links from 5 April Show

Once again we wanted to thank Megan Smolenyak for sharing her time with us on April 5th. Her insights into a variety of research aspects were very helpful. And, the work she does for the U.S. Army brings so much comfort to families. It's great to see genealogical skills used to help mend families. In her discussion about researching Rev. Sharpton's African American ancestry, she mentioned Tony Burroughs, a noted African-American researcher. Those interested in knowing more about the work Tony does can find his profile at the website of the African American Genealogical Society of Northern California (AAGSNC). There is also an interview with him about his work on the BBC TV show, "The Real Family of Jesus."

We explored some great and helpful sites for finding living relatives, and there are more out there. One that genealogists should be aware of is a database at Ancestry.com. Their U. S. Public Records Collection provides better information than some of the sites we mentioned, and has almost a billion entries! So, if you've got an Ancestry subscription, be sure to use it. Another "private investigator" site you may want to check out is U.S. Search, while another helpful telephone directory is White Pages.

The free data site of the week was the wonderful Missouri Death Certificates, which, as always, is also linked from the Genealogy Sleuth. Stay tuned, there's always more in store!

Episode Nine: Podcast Available

If you missed our ninth episode, you can listen to the archived version, or feel free to download a copy to your desktop or mp3 player.

The quickest way to download is to right click on the "download a copy" link above and select "Save Link As" (Mozilla) or "Save Target As" (Internet Explorer). You will then be given options where on your computer to store the file. Our podcasts are 60 minutes long and average approximately 12mb in size.

If you use Apple iTunes (available for Mac and Windows) to listen to podcasts, click here to subscribe via iTunes to Family Roots Radio.

Finding Living Relatives on 5 April Show

We all have them, it's just that sometimes we don't know where they are. What's that? Living relatives. Oh, sure, you may know where your brother and his kids live, but what about your second cousin, once removed? What about relatives you don't even know you have? Family history research includes coming forward and seeking descendants of our ancestors, as well as searching for earlier ancestors. There can be great value in finding living relatives. They may have pictures and records (think: family Bible) we don't have. With a guest like Megan Smolenyak, we'd be missing a great opportunity if we did not discuss some of the ways to locate these living, but often unknown, relatives.

So, in the "Interactive Website" segment, we're going to explore a couple of the more controversial websites, those that provide information on living persons. Names, addresses, phone numbers, ages may already be out there (gathered from public records). We'll look at a couple of "phone book" sites, such as Switchboard or Directory Assistance Plus. But, there's more, including what some call "private investigator" sites. While sites like PeopleFinders charge a fee for a complete report, you can get a lot of information for free. The same with Intelius. But, the champion of free data, and controversy, is ZabaSearch. We'll explore and explain why.

Of course, you'll want to hear the news of the week, as well as our research tip from the pros, our software tip and our popular free data site. Be ready to link to the Genealogy Sleuth for that one! We'll be there on your Internet connection. Tune in and enjoy!

Megan Smolenyak to Guest on 5 April Show

She's been all over the television on network news shows, and now, we've got her at Family Roots Radio! Megan Smolenyak, one of the founders of Roots Television will be our guest on April 5th. Learn the inside scoop on the search for Rev. Sharpton's roots and hear about the great additions at Roots Television. But, most of all, enjoy Megan's wonderful insights as we discuss ways of locating some of your missing, but living, relatives. With experience as broad, and touching, as hers, you won't want to miss this show. Be listening!

Genealogical Software, Links and More from 29 March Show

Well, that was a great show with Dick Eastman, and we thank him for his insights and comments about genealogy software and other issues. We've already posted the links for the software we talked about, but we also talked about a great site that has reviews of 14 different software packages, and has ranked the software on numerous criteria. You'll want to spend some time at Top Genealogy Software to see who has the features you want.

There's also a couple of comparison charts online that show you the different features of different software. They're a bit dated, but are still a useful place to look. Check out Richard Wilson's chart, as well as Bill Mumford Report Card. Of course, we don't know who's selling the best, but with the help of Amazon.com, we can tell which software seems the most popular on their site. So, based on their sales ranking and figures (which are open to interpretation in many ways), here's the 15 top selling genealogy software programs there:

1. Family Tree Maker
2. RootsMagic
3. Family Tree Legends
4. Legacy Family Tree
5. Heritage Family Tree
6. GSP Family Tree
7. GenoPro Family Tree
8. The Master Genealogist
9. Generation Family Tree
10. Ultimate Family Tree
11. Family Tree Quick & Easy
12. Family Tree for Dummies
13. Easy Family Tree
14. Softkeys Family Tree
15. Multilingual Family Tree

In our news segment, we mentioned that vital records for Nova Scotia are now on line. The free data site of the week was the Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System. Well, all of that should keep you busy till the next show. Be listening then!