Genealogy
- Publishing Your Family Tree
- The Mormons and Genealogy
- French Dit Names
- Happy New Year
- Where to Get Vital Records
- Nature or Nurture?
- Genetics and Genealogy
- Fun Stuff for Genealogists
- Old Photo Storage
- Gifts for the Genealogist
Posted by
Darlene Vaillancourt
Get your genealogy out of your computer and onto your bookshelf. Custom printing companies offer you the chance to have your family tree immortalized on paper.
There are many print-on-demand publishing companies that you can use to have your family tree printed up in book form. But you might want to consider working with one that specializes in producing genealogy-related works. You never know, you might end up producing a valuable genealogy resource that people someday look for.
Posted by
Darlene Vaillancourt
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints requires that Church members research their genealogical pasts. That's millions of people all added to one huge database.
It is part of official Church teachings, that all members must study and record their family's past, in order to perform certain religious rituals for the dead. It may seem unusual, but the Mormon Church holds one of the largest genealogical databases in the world.
Read my article on the genealogy resources of the LDS Church.
Even if you are not part of the Church, don't ignore this vast and freely searchable genealogy resource.
Read my article on the genealogy resources of the LDS Church.
Even if you are not part of the Church, don't ignore this vast and freely searchable genealogy resource.
Posted by
Darlene Vaillancourt
If you have any French ancestors in your family tree, you may have noticed the unusual double-surname custom. What do these "dit" names mean?
Tracking down relatives is already a complicated and challenging project, having 2 surnames to deal with doesn't help. Especially when the patterns and reasoning for these double names doesn't seem to make alot of sense to the untrained eye.
Find out more about "Dit" names and how to handle them.
Not only may you want to understand the nature of these double names, but how do you organize your relatives who have them?
Find out more about "Dit" names and how to handle them.
Not only may you want to understand the nature of these double names, but how do you organize your relatives who have them?
Posted by
Darlene Vaillancourt
Not that long ago, the year began in March. Which led to alot of historical documents listing 2 years for the date. A custom called "double dating".
When the date of the new year changed from March 25th to the first of January, it took some time for people to change their views. So many old vital records between the 1500s and 1700s have years listed as 1720/21 if the date fell between the 2 different New Years. We call this "double dating" and it's common in British documents from this period.
So don't think you're seeing errors or uncertain dates. It's a legitimate way of recording the year for that time period. Keep reading if you want to know more about how to handle double dates.
So don't think you're seeing errors or uncertain dates. It's a legitimate way of recording the year for that time period. Keep reading if you want to know more about how to handle double dates.
Posted by
Darlene Vaillancourt
Its easy enough to identify that certain people exist due to their birth or death certificates, but sometimes getting your hands on that piece of paper can be a challenge
Vital records are the basic records that are part of everyone's life, such as birth certificates, marriage certificates, death registrations and so on. You can get a good framework for any relative based on their vital records.
But finding originals or decent copies can be hard, especially for relatives who were born or lived in small towns. You won't likely find any handy databases with scanned records for those out-of-the-way municipal offices. You will have to start sending letters or making phone calls to do your research.
There are some places you can look to help located what you need.
But finding originals or decent copies can be hard, especially for relatives who were born or lived in small towns. You won't likely find any handy databases with scanned records for those out-of-the-way municipal offices. You will have to start sending letters or making phone calls to do your research.
There are some places you can look to help located what you need.
Posted by
Darlene Vaillancourt
When you see characteristics in your family tree that you don't like, should you be worried that these traits could be passed on to you?
As genetics becomes a popular tool among genealogists, to determine family lines and prove ancestral connections, it also makes us wonder just how much about our ancestors gets passed down to each of us.
It's the classic Nature vs. Nurture debate, whether we are controlled by our genes or our upbringing. It particularly comes to mind when we discover people in our tree that we may wish not to be related to. Keep reading for more on how much our genes can control our lives. You probably have nothing to worry about.
It's the classic Nature vs. Nurture debate, whether we are controlled by our genes or our upbringing. It particularly comes to mind when we discover people in our tree that we may wish not to be related to. Keep reading for more on how much our genes can control our lives. You probably have nothing to worry about.
Posted by
Darlene Vaillancourt
There are several labs that specialize in DNA testing for genealogical reserach purposes. An interesting way to establish your family tree.
All you need to do is swab the inside of your cheek and send in the sample. These tests aren't cheap and they might not provide the information you hope. Read more about how genetics is starting to become part of traditional genealogy.
Posted by
Darlene Vaillancourt
Shop for yourself or any other genealogist, and put a smile on their face.
I don't normally promote other sites like this, but I couldn't resist. This online shop is called Fun Stuff for Genealogists and that is exactly what it is. You can buy all kinds of items with fun slogans like "so many ancestors, so little time" and many others that would make any genealogist smile. Some things are just fun, but there are lots of useful items as well.
I will be dropping some hints to my own family, and hope to get some neat stuff this Christmas :)
I will be dropping some hints to my own family, and hope to get some neat stuff this Christmas :)
Posted by
Darlene Vaillancourt
It can be a thrill to find old photos of your ancestors. Make sure to store them properly. I have a big project on my own hands with hundreds of old photographs.
I have far too many photos currently stored away in those sticky paged magnetic albums from the 1970s. I know I need to go through them all and find the most important photos for proper storage. Some rainy day this summer, I plan on dismantling many of these old albums and put the really old pictures into protective sleeves. Most of the rest of them are going to be stored loose in a bunch of pretty photo boxes.
Posted by
Darlene Vaillancourt
There are plenty of things you could get for the family tree enthusiast.
If someone on your Christmas gift list is a genealogist, then you might want to get them a gift to help them further their hobby along.
Gifts for Genealogists
Genealogy can be a lonely hobby, spent in quiet libraries, court houses or in front of a computer. Getting a gift for someone who does this can be a nice way to share it with them, even just in a small way.
Gifts for Genealogists
Genealogy can be a lonely hobby, spent in quiet libraries, court houses or in front of a computer. Getting a gift for someone who does this can be a nice way to share it with them, even just in a small way.