Rootstech 2012 Presentations - 1:45 p.m. Friday, 3 February

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I'm going to list all of the presentations at RootsTech 2012 session by session in a series of posts.  You can see the full schedule of all sessions at http://rootstech.org/schedule/index.

Here is the schedule for Friday, 3 February at 1:45 p.m. until 2:45 p.m.  The links provide information on the presentation and the speaker:  

1:45 - 2:45 pm, Room 257

Presentation for Intermediate Developers

Introduction to Groovy and Grails by  Bill Carroll

1:45 - 2:45 pm, Room 155

Presentation for Intermediate Users

Genealogists “Go Mobile” by  Sandra Crowley

1:45 - 2:45 pm, Room 355A

Presentation for Intermediate Users

A Report Card for the Genealogy Software Industry by  Ron Tanner

1:45 - 2:45 pm, Room 255D

Presentation for Intermediate Developers

Implementation of a REST API for the new FamilySearch Family Tree by  Sam Fletcher

1:45 - 2:45 pm, Room 355D

Presentation for All Developers

Instant Databases in the Cloud for Genealogy Practioners and Developers by  Brent Juelich and Jonathan Vincenzo

1:45 - 4:00 pm, Room 258

Hands-on Workshop for Intermediate Users

Word Processing Tricks for Genealogical Publishing by  Jeri Steele

1:45 - 2:45 pm, Room 255E

Presentation for Beginner Users

5 New Things to Try at Ancestry.com by  Crista Cowan and Anne Mitchell

1:45 - 2:45 pm, Room 255C

Presentation for Intermediate Users

Genealogical Uses for QR Codes by  Thomas MacEntee

1:45 - 2:45 pm, Room 255B

Presentation for Intermediate Users

Use Adobe Creative Suite to Self Publish Your Family History Book by  Nancy Barnes

1:45 - 2:45 pm, Room 255F

Presentation for Beginner Users

Learning Genealogy Online: So Many Choices, So Little Time! By  Lisa Alzo

1:45 - 2:45 pm, Room 255D

Presentation for Beginner Users

Understanding WordPress by  Amy Johnson Crow

1:45 - 2:45 pm, Room 259

Presentation for All Developers

Ancestral Lines Pairing System: Uniquely Numbering Each Ancestral Line, Generation, Pairing and Sibling by  Capers McDonald

The sessions that I might attend include:

*  Sandra Crowley's talk

*  Lisa Alzo's talk

*  Ron Tanner's talk

Which session would you like to attend?

Disclosure:  I am an Official Blogger for RootsTech 2012, and have had my registration fee paid for by the organization.  I look forward to attending this conference! 

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2012/01/rootstech-2012-presentations-145-pm.html 

Copyright (c) Randall J. Seaver, 2012

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun - Do Some Random Research

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Hey genealogy buffs - it's Saturday Night and time for more Genealogy Fun!  Play along with us and tell us about it.

Your mission, should you decide to accept it, is to follow Chris Staats' rules (from Freaky Friday: Random Research Reports)  for picking a random person's name and then doing some online research about that person.  Here are Chris's rules:

1. Go to The Random Name Generator and click the red “Generate Name” button at the top of the screen (more than once if you want).  Pick one of the names you see.

2. Go to Ancestry.com and enter your generated name in the search box on the main search page. [Randy's add:  If you don't have Ancestry.com, go to https://www.familysearch.org/ and do it there - it's free.]

3. From the results, your research target will be the first census result for your generated name.

4. Using whatever online resources are at your disposal, see what else you can discover about your random person and write about it. It can be a formal report complete with footnotes, or just a “research story” about what you tried, problems you overcame, or success you had. Maybe you want to create a research plan for practice?

5. Post about it on your own blog, or as a comment here, or a comment on Facebook, Google Plus or Twitter.


Here's mine:


1)  My random name is Juliette Wood.


2)  On Ancestry.com, the first census record was the 1870 U.S. census, and the first Juliette Wood was:

3)  Juliette Wood - age 47, female, black, born South Carolina.  She resided in Four Mile, Barnwell County, South Carolina.  She was married to Spencer Wood (age 50), and had six (probable) children living with her - Willoughby (age 26), Linda Wood (age 25), Ellen Wood (age 23),  Spencer Wood (age 20), George Wood (age 18) and Joe Wood (age 12).


4)  I looked in the 1880 and 1900 US Census records, and did not find her using all of my search tricks.  I couldn't find Willoughby Wood or Spencer Wood (father or son).  I also tried putting just the first names "Spenc* or Willo* in the search, with a parent of Spenc* or Juli* without success (meaning there were no likely matches in the results in SC or the US).  


Putting Juli* Wood born 1818-1828 in South Carolina on the Ancestry.com global Search page resulted in just a few hits, including the 1870 census record.


Over on FamilySearch, a search for Juliette Wood (born 1818-1828 in SC) gave over 13,000 matches, but none were the 1870 census record seen on Ancestry.  Strange.  A search for Juli* Wood (exact) born 1818-1828 in SC resulted in 6 possible matches, none of them this woman.


Being African ancestored, she and her family were probably slaves before emancipation.  On the page before Juliette's 1870 page, there is a Wm. Wood (white, age 30) with a wife and child, who may have been the son of the plantation owner who owned the Woods.  The Spencer Wood family may have changed their names, may have moved away, or may have died before the 1880 census.  


A Google search for the terms [juliette "spencer wood" barnwell carolina] turned up no results.  


A search for Spencer Wood with a keyword of Barnwell resulted in several pages on GenealogyBank, but none with the names together.  


I'll give up, and hope that some descendants of Juliette's children Google her name and find my post and can see her listed in the 1870 US Census.


The URL of this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2012/01/saturday-night-genealogy-fun-do-some.html

Copyright (c) Randall J. Seaver, 2012

Surname Saturday - ALLEN (England > Massachusetts)

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It's Surname Saturday, and I'm "counting down" my Ancestral Name List each week.  I am now up to number 357, who is Rachel Allen (1708-????), one of my 6th-great-grandparents. [Note: The 6th great-grandfathers have been covered in earlier posts] 

My ancestral line back through five generations of ALLEN ancestors is:

1. Randall J. Seaver

2. Frederick Walton Seaver (1911-1983)
3. Betty Virginia Carringer (1919-2002)

4. Frederick Walton Seaver (1876-1942)
5. Alma Bessie Richmond (1882-1962)

10. Thomas Richmond (1848-1917)
11. Julia White (1848-1913)

22. Henry Arnold White ((1824-1885)
23. Amy Frances Oatley (1826-before 1870)

44. Jonathan White (1806-1850)
45. Miranda Wade (1806-1850)

88. Humphrey White (1758-1814)
89. Sybil Kirby (1764-1848)


178.  David Kirby (1740-1832)
179. Martha Soule (1743-1828)


356.  Ichabod Kirby, born about 1710 in Dartmouth, Bristol, Massachusetts, United States; died about 1794 in Dartmouth, Bristol, Massachusetts, United States.  He was the son of 712. Robert Kirby and 713. Rebecca Potter.  He married 21 February 1733 in Dartmouth, Bristol, Massachusetts, United States.
357.  Rachel Allen, born 11 July 1708 in Dartmouth, Bristol, Massachusetts, United States.

Children of Ichabod Kirby and Rachel Allen are:  John Kirby (1734-1809); Ruhamah Kirby (1737-1807); David Kirby (1740-1832); Rachel Kirby (1747-1818).


714.  Joseph Allen, born 04 March 1667 in Dartmouth, Bristol, Massachusetts, United States; died 31 January 1735 in Dartmouth, Bristol, Massachusetts, United States.  He married before 1700 in probably Dartmouth, Bristol, Massachusetts, United States.
715.  Rachel, died 10 April 1731 in Dartmouth, Bristol, Massachusetts, United States.

Children of Joseph Allen and Rachel are:  Lidia Allen (1700-1772); Phillis Allen (1703-1790); Joseph Allen (1704-????); Rachel Allen (1708-????); Elizabeth Allen (1710-1759).


1428.  Joseph Allen, born about 1647 in Sandwich, Barnstable, Massachusetts, United States; died September 1704 in Dartmouth, Bristol, Massachusetts, United States.  He married July 1664 in Sandwich, Barnstable, Massachusetts, United States.
1429.  Sarah Holloway, born about 1642 in Sandwich, Barnstable, Massachusetts, United States; died about 1675 in Dartmouth, Bristol, Massachusetts, United States.  She was the daughter of 2858. Joseph Holloway and 2859. Rose Allen.

Children of Joseph Allen and Sarah Holloway are: Abigail Allen (1663-1733); Rose Allen (1665-????); Joseph Allen (1667-1735);  John Allen (1669-????); Philip Allen (1671-????); William Allen (1673-1760); Josiah Allen (1675-1718).


2856.  Ralph Allen, born about 1615 in England; died before 19 March 1698 in Swansea, Bristol, Massachusetts, United States.   He married about 1638.
2857.  Susannah, died before 1691 in Massachusetts, United States.

Children of Ralph Allen and Susannah are: Philip Allen (1640-1671); Benjamin Allen (1642-1669); John Allen (1644-1706); Joseph Allen (1647-1704); Ebenezer Allen (1650-1725); Increase Allen (1659-1724); Zachariah Allen (1662-????); Mary Allen (1664-1675); Patience Allen (1666-1711).


5712.  George Allen, born before 1585 in Weymouth, Dorset, England; died before 02 May 1648 in Sandwich, Barnstable, Massachusetts, United States.  He was the son of 11424. John Allen.

Children of George Allen are:  Samuel Allen (1605-1669); John Allen (1607-1689); Rose Allen (1609-1692); Joan Allen (1613-1638); Robert Allen (1615-1661); Ralph Allen (1615-1698); George Allen (1618-1693)


The best information that I have, with significant biographical information about these families, is:

The English ancestry and New England descendants of George Allen have been treated in several works, but the conclusions drawn have not been consistent or complete.  One line of the family was treated in the book The Ancestry of Dr. J.P. Guilford by Joan S.Guilford (published by Sheridan Psychological Services, Inc., 1990), Volume 1, page 1. This work extensively discusses the available English data and the New England family, including a transcription of George Allen's will. This work discusses the hypotheses that this particular George Allen married Katherine Starkes or Catherine Davis, and states that the available data does not support either supposition.  Another hypothesis offered by Guilford is that George Allen was the one baptized on 4 April 1582 in Exeter in Devonshire, son of John Allen, who died in Landkey in Devonshire and left a will naming sons siblings William, George, James, Mathew and John.  Guilford makes a strong case that this George Allen had a brother named Ralph Allen, born about 1590.

The most recent work is the book Ancestral Lines, Third Edition by Carl Boyer, 3rd, published by the author, Santa Clarita, CA, 1998. Boyer reviews the previous works and concludes that the first George Allen and the first Ralph Allen of Sandwich, Massachusetts were brothers, and the sons of John Allen of Saltford in County Somerset in England.  He discussed the possibility that the George Allen who married Katherine Starkes in 1624 in All Hollows Church in London, the son of Richard Allen, moneyer of the Tower of London, is this particular George Allen, but the age of this Katherine was not consistent with the age of the immigrant Katherin Allen in 1635. Boyer suggests that he married (lastly) Katherine Davis of Tickenham in County Somerset, the daughter of Rice Davis.  Unfortunately, the surviving Saltford parish registers start in 1712, and the extant Bishop's Transcripts are not helpful.

Are there any Allen cousins with authoritative information?


The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2012/01/surname-saturday-allen-england.html

Copyright (c) Randall J. Seaver, 2012

Follow-Up Friday - in which I Confess to Using Derivative Sources

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I really enjoyed the Thomas W. Jones seminar last weekend, and wrote about it in SDGS Seminar Review - Four Thomas W. Jones Presentations.


One of my comments was:


"The idea I found most intriguing was that an index is not really a source to be cited, whether it's in the back of a book, or an online searchable database with names, dates and places. Researchers should use the index as a finding aid and obtain the original source record since indexes are derivative sources with secondary information."

Reader David Newton commented on my blog post, saying:

"That a false choice. Indexes to books are not sources to be cited because the book in question is available automatically. Indexes to things like birth registers and the like can be sources to be cited legitimately because the registers themselves might not be available or only available after the payment of more money etc.

"If I had not cited the GRO in England and Wales' BMD indexes as a source for my family tree I would have not known where I got an awful lot of information. I do not have the certificates so I cannot cite them and the registers themselves are not open to public inspection so I cannot cite them. In the 20th century these indexes alone can sometimes be used to reconstruct significant proportions of the trees of unusual names as they contain mother's maiden name information for births and spouse's surname information for marriages.

"They are not a perfect source, but at the moment they are the only one I have for significant proportions of my tree. Just because they are derivative sources with secondary information does not mean that they should not be cited where access to the source they are derived from is not possible/has not taken place yet."


My response is:


1)  I was just reporting what Tom Jones said, not that I totally agreed with it.  He used an example of a California Birth Index available on Ancestry.com (and other sites).  The birth index provides only the child's full name, the birth date, the birth county, and (usually) the mother's maiden name.  He noted that these were all clues for the child's birth information, but the "primary" information is recorded in the birth register at the county level from which birth certificates are created by the county and the state.  The Birth Register is the "original source," the Birth Certificate is a derivative source (treated as "original" by many researchers and heritage societies) and the online birth index is a derivative source (several times removed from the original source).  The birth certificates are available for a fee.  If a researcher wants to obtain direct evidence and primary information for the name, date, place, parents, etc. for a birth in California, they should order the Birth Certificate.  In this case, the records are available, but there is a fee and a wait time.


2)  Thomas W. Jones professional work is in proving difficult to solve cases.  He routinely uses derivative sources, like indexes and databases on microfilm or online, as finding aids to the original sources with primary information that will solve his research problems.  He is usually spending someone else's money to do this.  His advice in his presentation was absolutely correct, but I think he, and other professional researchers like him, realize that researchers like David, myself and many others have to use derivative sources in order to work on our ancestral problems.  


3)  David cites the situation in England with respect to births, marriages and deaths since 1837.  The actual register entries for the events are not available for public inspection, and the researcher must obtain a certificate from the GRO, for a fee, in order to obtain primary information from an original source.  There are, however, publicly available register indexes with the name, approximate date, and registration district to use as a finding aid for researchers.  In some cases, the birth is also recorded in parish registers after 1837, which are available in repositories or on microfilm.  In this case, similar to the California case, the records are available, but there is a fee and a wait time.


4)  There are some U.S. states and countries where vital records are not available due to privacy restrictions, except the person named, some family members, or legal representatives can obtain access to vital records certificates or registers.  In this case, the researcher will have to wait until the restrictions expire or are lifted by law, or use alternative resources (census, directories, family papers, etc.) in order to obtain vital records information.


5)  True confession:  My family tree database is full of derivative source material derived from published books (including what I consider authoritative works, such as Anderson's The Great Migration Begins series for 1620-1633 New England immigrant colonial families), online databases (including the Massachusetts Vital Records Index, 1841-1910, the California Birth, Marriage and Death Indexes, Find-A-Grave, USGenWeb transcriptions, etc.), and even online family trees.  The database is a working file - it's where I put my event assertions (birth, baptism, marriage, death, occupation, residence, census, burial, etc.) and where I select a Conclusion from those assertions based on my analysis of the available evidence.  Not every conclusion has been the result of a "reasonably exhaustive search."  I also discard assertions that have been superseded by higher quality information (e.g., a census record might indicate a birth in "about 1857" .but a death record might provide an exact date).

6)  Many published books provide footnotes referring to "original sources" (e.g., English parish registers, German church records, town records, vital record certificates, land records, probate records, etc.).  
and these are the "finding aids" for researchers to go find to raise their source quality from "derivative" to "original."  Some researchers cite the published book (derivative source) that they use, and add a phrase such as "citing Charlestown Town Records, Volume 1, Page 46" to lead the reader to the original source.  


7)  There is merit to pursuing the "perfect" source but we often have to settle for the "good" source.  I understand Tom Jones comment, and realize that he tries to pursue the "perfect" because that's his job, and is the ideal "best practice" in genealogy research.  In my opinion, the next best "practice" is to use authoritative published books and periodicals, and online databases, to obtain "good" information, and cite it, and then to strive to find the original source information.  But there is only so much time in the day to pursue these issues.


8)  Thank you, David, for the extensive comment, and I agree with you that there are some original sources that are unable to be viewed, or are expensive to obtain, and that derivative sources in books or databases have research value.  


The URL for this post is: http://www.geneamusings.com/2012/01/follow-up-friday-in-which-i-confess-to.html


Copyright (c) Randall J. Seaver, 2012

Rootstech 2012 Presentations - 11:00 a.m. Friday, 3 February

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I'm going to list all of the presentations at RootsTech 2012 session by session in a series of posts.  You can see the full schedule of all sessions at http://rootstech.org/schedule/index.

Here is the schedule for Friday, 3 February at 11:00 a.m. until 12 noon.  The links provide information on the presentation and the speaker:  

11:00 am - 12:00 pm, Room 255E

Presentation for Beginner Users

Using a Blog as Your Online Research Log by  Drew Smith

11:00 am - 12:00 pm, Room 255B

Panel or Discussion for Intermediate Users

Genealogy 2.0: international panelists discuss their use of social media to connect with cousins, collaborate on projects, discuss issues, market and promote genealogy services and perform acts of genealogical kindness. by Jill Ball, Audrey Collins, Amy Coffin and Lorine McGinnis-Schultze

11:00 am - 12:00 pm, Room 255D

Presentation for Beginner Developers

Citation Principles for Tech Creators by Robert Raymond

11:00 am - 12:00 pm, Room 355A

Presentation for Beginner Users

Database Design 101 by  Amy Johnson Crow

11:00 am - 12:00 pm, Room 255F

Presentation for Intermediate Users

No More Guessing, Secure Your Computer and Data in 10 Easy Steps by  Barry Ewell

11:00 am - 12:00 pm, Room 255C

Presentation for Intermediate Users

Telling stories: transforming the bare facts of genealogy into the astonishing tale of you and your family. by Ian Tester

11:00 am - 12:00 pm, Room 155

Presentation for Intermediate Developers

Optimizing Your Site for Search Engines by  Robert Gardner

11:00 am - 12:00 pm, Room 257

Presentation for Beginner Developers

Tools and methods for internationalization of applications by  Aaron Davis

11:00 am - 12:00 pm, Room 258

Hands-on Workshop for Beginner Users

Snagit for Genealogists by  Barbara Renick

11:00 am - 12:00 pm Room 355D

Presentation for All Developers

Scalable Applications: Handling Big Data on the Public Cloud by  Sam Fletcher

11:00 am - 12:00 pm, Room 255A

Presentation for Intermediate Developers

A Robust Open-source GEDCOM Parser by  Dallan Quass and Ryan Knight

11:00 am - 12:00 pm, Room 259

Presentation for Intermediate Developers

Developing iOS applications using Apple's Core Data and iCloud Storage APIs by  Joshua Proulx

The sessions that I might attend include:

*  The Genealogy 2.0 panel with four geneabloggers

*  Barry Ewell's talk

*  Ian Tester's talk

Which session would you like to attend?

Disclosure:  I am an Official Blogger for RootsTech 2012, and have had my registration fee paid for by the organization.  I look forward to attending this conference! 

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2012/01/rootstech-2012-presentations-1100-am.html 

Copyright (c) Randall J. Seaver, 2012

Follow Friday - This Weekend's Genealogy Radio Shows

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There are two genealogy-related radio shows on Blog Talk Radio (www.blogtalkradio.com) this weekend.  They are:

1)  GeneaBloggers Radio Episode 51 -- Go Local: Local History and Genealogy.  This show is hosted by Thomas MacEntee and is on:


Friday, January 20, 2012
9pm-10:30pm Eastern US
8-9:30pm Central US
7-8:30pm Mountain US
6-7:30pm Pacific US
2am London UK1pm Saturday Sydney AUS  


The show co-host this week is Lisa Alzo.  The show guests are:


*  Marion Woodfork Simmons of The Discovering Yesterday blog and author of Memories of Union High: An Oasis in Caroline County, Virginia 1903-1969 – she’ll tell us how she has combined her love of local history and genealogy into her recent book. 
*  Steve Glauberman, CEO of Enlighten Ventures and creator of the startup site What Was There – a virtual time machine you have to see to believe. 
*  Author Dan Burns, known as “the cop who could write more than tickets,” who has written four local history books about the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area.


You can read more information about the guests at GENEABLOGGERS RADIO – SHOW NOTES FOR FRIDAY, JANUARY 20, 2012


Don’t forget that there is a chat room where all the “cool kids” hang out on Friday night! Sign in to BlogTalkRadio with your Facebook account or set up a free BlogTalkRadio account to join in the fun.


2)  FGS Radio - My Society, an Internet radio show on Blog Talk Radio presented by the Federation of Genealogical Societies.  This week's show is Crafting an Effective Member Survey.  It will be hosted by Randy Whited.  The show airs at:


Saturday, January 21, 2012
2-3pm Eastern US
1-2pm Central US
12-1pm Mountain US
11am-12pm Pacific US


The special guests and features include:


*  Paula Hinkel, of the FGS-member society Southern California Genealogical Society in Burbank, California, and
*  Taneya Koonce, a member of the FGS Education Committee. Paula and Taneya will discuss all facets of survey design, implementation methods and analysis.
*  Spotlighted FGS member society, Idaho Genealogical Society.


You can read more information about the guests at FGS Radio -- Crafting an Effective Member Survey.

You can also listen to the archived shows on Blog Talk Radio by going to the two show sites:


*  Geneabloggers Radio:  http://www.blogtalkradio.com/geneabloggers/


*  FGS Radio - MySociety: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/mysociety/   


Enjoy!!

Rootstech 2012 Presentations - 9:45 a.m. Friday, 3 February

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I'm going to list all of the presentations at RootsTech 2012 session by session in a series of posts.  You can see the full schedule of all sessions at http://rootstech.org/schedule/index.

Here is the schedule for Friday, 3 February at 9:45 a.m. until 19:45 a.m.  The links provide information on the presentation and the speaker:  

9:45 - 10:45 am, Room 355D

Presentation for All Developers

Supercharge the Experience with HTML5 and Ajax by  Dovy Paukstys

9:45 - 10:45 am , Room 155

Presentation for Intermediate Users

Publish Your Genealogy Online by  Laura Prescott

9:45 - 10:45 am, Room 259

Hands-on Workshop for Intermediate Developers

Building high-performance web services with SCALA by  Timothy Stokes

9:45 - 10:45 am , Room 255E

Presentation for Intermediate Users

Can You Hear Me Now? Voice Recognition Software and Genealogy by  Luana Darby

9:45 - 10:45 am, Room 255A

Presentation for Intermediate Developers

Deep Linking and Deeper Linking: How I get the most out of existing Search Applications by  Stephen Morse

9:45 - 10:45 am, Room 255D

Presentation for Beginner Users

Awesome Family Websites: Record Your Living Family History by  Tevya Washburn and Kurt Francom

9:45 - 10:45 am, Room 258

Hands-on Workshop for All Users

Google Search 2012 by  Dan Lynch

9:45 - 10:45 am , Room 255C

Presentation for Intermediate Users

A User’s Perspective: Developing a Universal Metadata Structure for Genealogical Content Providers by  D. Joshua Taylor

9:45 - 10:45 am, Room 257

Presentation for Beginner Developers

Implementing a continuous interaction and deployment strategy for PHP/LAMP applications by  Don Stringham

9:45 - 10:45 am , Room 255B

Presentation for Beginner Users

New Avenues in Genetic Genealogy by  Jane Buck and Elise Friedman

9:45 - 10:45 am, Room 255F

Presentation for Beginner Users

Genealogy Internet Gems by Ancestry Insider

9:45 - 10:45 am, Room 355A

Presentation for Beginner Developers

Introduction to jQuery and Family Search by  David Hansen

I may attend any one of these presentations:

*  Laura Prescott's talk

*  Dan Lynch's workshop (but I think it's sold out)

*  D. Joshua Taylor's talk

Which session would you like to attend?

Disclosure:  I am an Official Blogger for RootsTech 2012, and have had my registration fee paid for by the organization.  I look forward to attending this conference! 

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2012/01/rootstech-2012-presentations-945-am.html 

Copyright (c) Randall J. Seaver, 2012