VGS Latest News & Tips: 4 October 2016

Tomorrow: October 5, 2016

French Canadian Genealogy SIG Meeting:

9:00 AM in the Julio Iglesias Room at the La Hacienda Recreation Center

Genealogy News Episode 90:
Geneatopia
Patty Roy Podcast #90

• 23and Me
• Rockstar Genealogists Results
• Interview with Nathan Dylan Goodwin author of The Spyglass File
• More news reports
  Listen now...  35 minutes

How to use the Billion Graves Index:
FindMyPast
"The Billion Graves index is a great resource if you're looking for information about your ancestor's death. The Billion Graves index includes over 12 million headstone records for the United States alone, and each entry includes a transcript of what's included in the record, a photograph of the gravestone, and GPS details of the location of the gravestone, so you don't have to leave the comfort of your home to see your ancestor's grave, which can save you a lot of time and money in your search."
Continue reading...

Genealogy Tips: Debunking Myths About Cemetery Research:
GenealogyBank
"In this article, Gena Philibert-Ortega shows some steps to take when researching cemeteries to learn more about your ancestors."
Continue reading...

Local History: Unearthed Copley Headstone Is Mystery Beyond Grave:
Ohio.com
"While clearing an overgrown field, a Copley Township landowner has unearthed a mystery that goes beyond the grave. Huce Beach Jr., 70, of Akron, discovered a 19th century headstone buried in underbrush on the 1.8-acre tract that has belonged to his family for at least 60 years. "
Continue reading...

The Best New Features in iOS 10 (and How to Use Them):
How-to-Geek
"iOS 10 is one of the biggest upgrades Apple has made to their mobile operating system. If you’re overwhelmed by all the new and upgraded features in iOS 10 you’re certainly not alone–but have no fear, we’ve been playing with it for months, and we’re happy to highlight all the really great features you should be using right now."
Continue reading...

This Day In History: 4 October
1874: Kiowa leader Satanta, known as “the Orator of the Plains,” surrenders in Darlington, Texas. He is later sent to the state penitentiary, where he commits suicide on October 11, 1878.
1905: Orville Wright pilots the first flight longer than 30 minutes. The flight lasted 33 minutes, 17 seconds and covered 21 miles.
1957: Sputnik 1, the first man-made satellite, is launched, beginning the “space race.” The satellite, built by Valentin Glushko, weighed 184 pounds and was launched by a converted Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM). Sputnik orbited the earth every 96 minutes at a maximum height of 584 miles. In 1958, it reentered the earth’s atmosphere and burned up.
1822 Birthday: Rutherford B. Hayes, 19th president of the U.S. (1877-1881).

State Timelines:
Even though it is hard to tell what made people move or disappear, these are just a few possibilities.
District of Columbia:
1788: Congress given authority over district not to exceed ten square miles in size.
1792: Cornerstone of White House laid
1793: Cornerstone of Capital building laid
1800: Capital transferred from Philadelphia to Washington D.C.

VGS Latest News & Tips: 8 Sep 2016

Today: September 8, 2016

German Genealogy SIG Meeting

9:30 AM in the Reliance Room at the Late Miona Recreation Center

Tomorrow: September 9, 2016

Genetic Genealogy SIG Meeting

10:00 AM in the Rhett Butler Room at the Savannah Center
Presentation: "Demo of Genome Mate"

FamilySearch International And The Federation Of Genealogical Societies Commemorate Success Of Three Major Projects:
FamilySearch
"For 40 years, the Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS) has influenced the family history community for the better. For several decades, FamilySearch International has enjoyed its association with this great force in the genealogical community, and we congratulate them on their 40th anniversary."
Continue reading...

5 Tips for Finding Your British Ancestors:
FamilySearch
"So your ancestors are from Britain? What do you do now? While having British ancestors is fairly common, finding them and adding them to your family tree can be a bit more difficult."
Continue reading...

Some Tombstone Symbols You Should Know:
AmyJohnsonCrow
"Tombstone symbols can yield clues about our ancestors. This video has some common ones you should know."
Continue reading...

How to Enable Private Browsing on Any Web Browser:
How-to-Geek
"Private browsing has been around in one form or another since 2005, but it took some time for every browser to get behind it. Now, no matter what browser you use, you can surf the internet without leaving behind a local trail of history, passwords, cookies, and other assorted bits of information."
Continue reading...

How to Limit OneDrive’s Allowed Transfer Speed:
How-to-Geek
"Microsoft OneDrive is a pretty solid cloud storage offering, and it’s deeply integrated into Windows. Not only does it do a good job syncing folders, it also allows you to remotely fetch files on your PC. OneDrive can be a bit of a network bandwidth hog, but with the Anniversary Update of Windows 10, you can now set transfer speed limits."
Continue reading...

This Day In History: 8 September
1644: The Dutch colony of New Amsterdam surrenders to the British fleet that sails into its harbor. Five years later, the British change the name to New York.
1921: Margaret Gorman of Washington, D.C., is named the first Miss America.
1971: The Kennedy Center opens in Washington, DC with a performance of Leonard Bernstein’s Mass.
1900 Birthday: Claude Pepper, Democratic senator and congressman from Florida, champion of senior citizens rights.

State Timelines:
Even though it is hard to tell what made people move or disappear, these are just a few possibilities.
California:
1850: Gold discovered near Columbia and California is admitted to the Union
1857: Major earthquake near San Bernardino and the SS Central America sank carrying 13 to 15 tons of California gold to New York., 425 died.
1858: Chinese and Mongolians barred by law from entry
1861: Fort Point built to protect San Francisco

VGS Latest News & Tips: 8 January 2016

Today: Friday, January 8, 2016:

Genetic Genealogy SIG Meeting

10:00 AM in the Rhett Butler Room at the Savannah Center

War of 1812 Pension Record

The Battle of New Orleans: January 8, 1815
Fold 3
"On the morning of January 8, 1815, British forces attacked American positions outside of New Orleans, Louisiana, resulting in a bloody defeat for the British in the last major battle of the War of 1812."
Continue reading...

How to Start Your Own Family Genealogy Blog?
I'm often asked this question by members at one of our many VGS meetings. I don't know if they really want to do undertake this task or just testing me to see what I know. In my mind there are several ways to do this but I can't explain my thoughts in a minute or two. I think the best way to answer this question is to show you an example of a very interesting blog someone else has created.
It's called iwiKiwi:
View: A Kiwi in search of her Irish, English and Scottish Tribes

Why Do People Contribute to Find A Grave?
where2look4ancestors
"If you’ve followed my blog for any length of time, you may already know I’m a Find A Grave contributor.
In fact, last year my love of cemeteries and headstone photography upstaged my family history research! I believe Find A Grave plays an important role in the preservation of history, art and architecture. And the people laid to rest under each headstone should not be forgotten."
Continue reading...

U.S., School Yearbooks, 1880-2012:
Ancestry
"Find out what your relatives were really like in high school and college with our newly-expanded Yearbooks collection. With 51,000 yearbooks and more than 7 million photos, it’s a treasure trove of fascinating family details."
You must be a subscriber to view this collection.
View Collection

Tombstones: They Come In All Shapes And Sizes
FindaGrave
Every once and a while I come across something in findagrave.com that is a little different from what you usually see in grave memorials. I wish I knew more about who designed or why this design was created.
Here is an example...

10 “Must-Do” Genealogy Projects for January:
Ancestry Findings
"The long, cold month of January is here, and with it, an excellent opportunity to do some new and interesting genealogy projects that are just perfect for this time of year. Just because it’s freezing and possibly snowy outside doesn’t mean you don’t have plenty of things to do with your genealogy research to keep you busy. In fact, some projects are more suited to January than any other month. Here are ten “must-do” genealogy projects for January."
Continue reading...

This Day In History: 8 January
1815: A rag-tag army under Andrew Jackson defeats the British on the fields of Chalmette in the Battle of New Orleans.
1892: A coal mine explosion kills 100 in McAlester, Oklahoma.
1908: A subway line opens linking the New York boroughs of Brooklyn and Manhattan.
1862 Birthday: Frank Nelson Doubleday, founder of Doubleday publishing house.