Chula Vista (CA) Genealogical Society Meeting on Wednesday, 26 March Features Sara Cochran

 Wednesday, 26 March 2025, 12 noon PDT 

Chula Vista Genealogical Society 

General Meeting (in a Zoom Video Conference) 

"Who Needed it Anyway?

Getting Around the Missing 1890 Census"

by Sara Cochran

The loss of the 1890 Federal census is a source of great frustration for American Genealogists, but all hope is not lost! Learn strategies and gather tips for success in locating your family in other records between the 1880 and 1900 Federal censuses.

Sara is a full-time professional genealogist with thirty years of research experience. Her research has taken her to nearly every state in the USA and Ireland. She especially enjoys breaking down brick walls, discovering the stories of black sheep ancestors, and helping individuals preserve their photographic legacy.

Sara holds a Boston University Genealogical Research Certificate, a Bachelor's Degree in Library Science, and is an alumna of the ProGen Study Group. She is a member of DAR and other lineage societies, the Association of Professional Genealogists, and the Genealogical Speakers Guild.

You can find her online at TheSkeletonWhisperer.com.

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PLEASE REGISTER for this event on the CVGS website (https://chulavistagenealogysociety.wildapricot.org/event-5872063). An event email and reminders will be sent to all CVGS members the week before the event.  A cofirmation email will be sent to all those who register with the Zoom link and the last email reminder will be sent on Wednesday morning.

Attendance is free but only 100 Zoom seats are available, so please register soon.

This program will be held online using the Zoom video conferencing platform for Meetings.  It will be hosted by CVGS President Terri Seat.   Contact presidentofcvgs@gmail.com if you have problems or register too late for the email.  

Please note that the meeting starts at 12 noon Pacific Time (3 p.m. Eastern time, 2 p.m. Central time, 1 p.m. Mountain time). The Zoom Meeting room will be open by 11:45 a.m. Pacific Time for visiting and helping attendees connect.

NOTE: The Chula Vista Genealogical Society offers an annual membership of $30. Besides the monthly General Meeting with a program speaker on the last Wednesday of each month, there is a monthly Research Group meeting on second Wednesdays on Zoom, an in-person Education meeting on third Tuesdays, and a DNA Interest Group meeting on third Wednesdays on Zoom, all at 12 noon Pacific time.  The speaker handout and the program recording are available to CVGS members for one month after the event.  There is also a monthly 8 page email newsletter chock full of program announcements, research tips, research articles, and program reviews.

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Disclosure:  I am a lifetime member of the Chula Vista Genealogical Society, a former Treasurer (2003-2004), Vice-President Programs (2005-2006), President (2007-8), and am currently the Research and Queries chairman (since 2003) and Newsletter Editor (since 2009).

The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2025/03/chula-vista-ca-genealogical-society.html

Copyright (c) 2025, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Share it on Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.  All comments are moderated, and may not appear immediately.

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Saturday Night Genealogy Fun -- What Plans Do You Have To Pass On Your Genealogy Work?

 Calling all Genea-Musings Fans: 

 It's Saturday Night again - 

Time for some more Genealogy Fun!!

Come on, everybody, join in and accept the mission and execute it with precision. 

1)  What plans, or potential plans, do you have to pass your genealogy work to relatives and/or descendants, or posterity?

2) Tell us about your plans to pass your work on in your own blog post, in a comment on this post, or in a Facebook post.  Please leave a link on this post if you write your own post.

Here's mine:

I've been pondering this question for decades...

Initially, my hope was that I could write 17 multi-generational ancestry books (one for me to cover the most recent 5 generations, and one for each 2nd great-grandparent back, say, 10 generations) and publish them, at least as an eBook or in FamilySearch Books.  I did eBooks in 2012 and put them on Scribd for free, which is searchable.  I also did several "Descendants of..." eBooks and they are also on Scribd.  Almost all of the information has not changed since!

But I know that the modern 21st century grandchild will never care about all of that.  They want family stories, they want audio and video, they want to hear about what their grandparents did in their lives.  

So now I've written and published a StoryWorth book and a MyStories book about my life (both with essentially the same content), and both of my daughters have a copy and claim to have read it, but I doubt that the grandchildren have.  Perhaps I should email the text file to them?

In the process of writing my Genea-Musings blog for almost 19 years, and writing over 18,000 blog posts, I have endeavored to write a genealogical sketch, with as much detail as possible based on records and published information, for my direct ancestors, from my parents back through the known 7th great-grandparents (they are on my 52 Ancestors/Relatives Biographies page).  I am not a great writer and those sketches are full of facts but precious few family stories (because there aren't many stories before the great-grandparents).

Now artificial intelligence comes along and the chatbots are excellent in summarizing, describing, and integrating historical and social context into a narrative, especially if it is in a text format.  What's not to like?  I've been trying to write "improved" and "interesting" family biographies based on the sketches, and any other resource I can find, using the AI tools.  Over the last 9 months, I have been (see my list of blog posts in https://www.geneamusings.com/p/artificial-intelligence-posts.html) doing this to pass things along:

• Creating a biography for each ancestor with historical and social context (I've found Claude and Google ContentLM are really good at this).
• Creating poems and song lyrics, and then a song using the lyrics, for each of my close ancestors (I really like Claude and Grok for the poem and the lyrics, and Suno for the song in an MP4 file). 
• Using Google NotebookLM to create an audio overview (in a WAV file) of the ancestor's biography (and have used TurboScribe to provide text from the audio WAV file).  These are often interesting and insightful.

Now the challenge is how to pass all of that on to the younger generation.  I'm terrible at creating videos, but I'm thinking about:

• Gathering photographs and document images of each ancestor in chronological order.
• Making a video recording for each ancestor using my Zoom account to display the photographs while telling the ancestor's story in my voice, perhaps reading the poem and/or playing the audio overview, and/or then playing the song.  Is that overkill?  

Then there is the massive RootsMagic family tree project with over 74,000 profiles at present - how do I pass that on?  I have an Ancestry Member Tree and a MyHeritage family tree that are nearly identical to the RootsMagic tree.  Many of my RootsMagic profiles are matched to the FamilySearch Family Tree, and my ancestors are in WikiTree in some form.  I'm hopeful that my genealogy work and my blog archive will live on for several more decades.

What about the generated genealogy stuff - the digitized family photographs (4 generations worth), digitized home movies (3 generations worth), record documents (~12 generations worth), Christmas family letters (40 years worth), autobiography, my life story books, and my ancestor and descendant eBooks?  I have a FOREVER account and have put quite a bit of those items on that account which should be accessible to my daughters and grandchildren.

What about the 70 linear feet of paper in my genealogy cave stuffed into three-ring binders that I haven't looked at for about 20 years?  Well, I'm thinking bonfire or 1-800-GOT-JUNK.  I don't think any repository will want them and that my descendants won't have any interest in them.   Sad, but true.  It's almost all on the Internet now.

And then - NEW TECHNOLOGY will come along to make some or all of that obsolete.  Holographs, virtual reality, brain implants, and more.

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The URL for this post is:  

Copyright (c) 2025, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Share it on Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com. Note that all comments are moderated, and may not appear immediately.

Subscribe to receive a free daily email from Genea-Musings using www.Blogtrottr.com.

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The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2025/03/saturday-night-genealogy-fun-what-plans.html

Copyright (c) 2025, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Share it on Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com. Note that all comments are moderated, and may not appear immediately.

Subscribe to receive a free daily email from Genea-Musings using www.Blogtrottr.com.

Ask NotebookLM AI: A Summarization of Information About Benjamin Seaver (1791-1825)

I wrote several blog posts back in late 2024 about using the FREE Google NotebookLM artificial intelligence tool to summarize and analyze text about a subject, and enjoyed the "Audio Overviews" (essentially a podcast discussion about the subject) presented by this AI tool for each analysis.  See Google's NotebookLM Can Summarize Large Text Files Using AI - My First Notebook (3 October 2024) and Betty (Carringer) Seaver's Life Summary, Chat Q&A and Audio Overview Using the Google NotebookLM AI Feature (9 October 2024).

I now have 29 Notebooks (and "Audio Overviews") about my own life and the lives of some of my close ancestors (back through my 2nd great-grandparents).   

NotebookLM's graphic interface and capabilities have changed some over the past six months, and I want to share my latest interaction with the AI tool.  

1)  Here is the opening page for my NotebookLM site (after I sign in with my Google account):

The page now includes all of my Notebooks.  I can select "Most Recent" as above, or "Title" or "Shared With Me."  I can "Create new" another "Notebook."  I can open any of my existing Notebooks and add or edit source information. 

2)  The latest Notebook is for my 3rd great-grandfather, Benjamin Seaver (1791-1825).  I uploaded, as a source, a PDF of my blog post about his life (52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Week 25: #32, Benjamin Seaver (1791-1825)).  After I uploaded the source document, and worked with the different options, the NotebookLM screen looked like this:

There are three panels on the screen above.  I can collapse or expand the left and right panels, but not the center panel.  If I collapse the left and/or right panels, the center panel expands,

a)  In the left-hand "Sources" panel is the Source information.  If I had more source articles I could add them using the "Add source" button.  I can click on the link and the source article text will appear.

b)  In the center "Chat" panel, there is a very short summary of the source document(s).  I can click the "Save to note" button to save that information.  There are buttons below that to:"Add note" (using the "Start typing" field); an "Audio Overview" button to set off the Audio Overview (which appears at the top of the right-hand panel); and "Mind Map" which creates a mind map of significant information.   

In the "Start typing box, the user can click on each of the "suggested" topics and see the response, and then save the response as a note.  The user can also ask their own questions about the subject matter.  On the screen above, I selected the first "suggested" question which was "What broader historical context, such as military service and community roles, is revealed about Benjamin Seaver through this genealogy?"  After collapsing the left and right panels, I saw:

The user can expand the "Mind Map" button to show each event in the map:

c)  In the right-hand "Studio" panel, the "Audio Overview" feature can be listened to by clicking the Play button.  Below that area, there are "Notes."  All of the saved Notes can be found there.  There are some suggested "Notes" - "Study Guide," "Briefing doc," "FAQ" and "Timeline."  

3)  The "Audio Interview" can be played, shared downloaded or deleted using the icons to the right of the subject title.  Here is a link to this "Audio Overview" (which is 23 minutes in length!):

https://notebooklm.google.com/notebook/15a19819-4adc-456c-a720-4a180aaeeb4c/audio

The "Audio Overview" description says "Generated by AI based on user-provided sources and instructions."

I download the Audio Overview" and then use an audio-to-text tool called TurboScribe to save (and edit) the text in a word processing document.  Consistent spelling of surnames and place names are a challenge sometimes.

4)  I really like the "Briefing Document" created by NotebookLM.  Here is the "Briefing Document" text (copied from the screen above):

Briefing Document: Benjamin Seaver (1791-1825) Ancestor Biography 

• Date: October 26, 2023 Source: Excerpts from "geneamusings.com - 52 Ancestors - Week 25: #32 Benjamin Seaver 1791-1825.pdf" and accompanying webpage. 
• Author: Randall J. Seaver (geneamusings.com) Subject: Biographical information on Benjamin Seaver (1791-1825), a 3rd great-grandfather of the author.
• Purpose: To summarize the key biographical details, life events, and family connections of Benjamin Seaver (1791-1825) as presented in the provided source.

Main Themes and Important Ideas/Facts:

This document presents a detailed genealogical sketch of Benjamin Seaver (1791-1825) as part of a "52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks" blogging challenge. The author, Randall J. Seaver, meticulously compiles information from various primary and secondary sources to paint a picture of his ancestor's life. Key themes and facts include:

Vital Statistics and Family:

• Birth: Benjamin Seaver was born on November 15, 1791, in Westminster, Worcester, Massachusetts. The Westminster Town Records confirm this, stating: "November 15th 1791. Benjamin Seaver Jun^r born".
• Parents: His parents were Benjamin Seaver (1757-1816) and Martha Whitney (1764-1832).
• Marriage: He married Abigail Gates (1797-1867) on March 2, 1817, in Westminster. The marriage record notes: "Feb^y 15 1817; Mr. Benjamin Sever and Miss Abigail Gates both of Westminster March 2; published for marriage as the law directs." Notably, his surname was recorded as "Sever" in this instance, highlighting the alternate spelling of the name.
• Children: Benjamin and Abigail had four children: Abigail (1817-1899), Lucinda (1821-1899), Isaac (1823-1901) (the author's direct ancestor), and Benjamin (1825-1836).
• Death and Burial: Benjamin Seaver died on May 25, 1825, in Westminster at the age of 33. The Westminster Town Records state: "Benjamin Sever, parent of the above family, died May 25th 1825 aged 33 years and 5 Months". He is buried in Whitmanville Cemetery in Westminster. His gravestone inscription reads: "Benjamin Seaver died May 25 1825 AE. 33". 

Occupation and Residence:

Benjamin Seaver lived his entire life in Westminster, Massachusetts.

He was "apparently a farmer or yeoman," suggesting his primary occupation was likely agricultural. 

Military Service:

He served in the War of 1812 in Captain Rice's company, Colonel Messenger's regiment of the Massachusetts Volunteer Militia around the age of 21. 

Property and Inheritance:

• Inheritance: In 1817, he inherited a portion (1/10th) of his father's estate. Specifically, on May 22, 1817, he "received 51 acres and 132 rods of the home farm, and agreed to pay each of the minor children (of his father) $28."
• Land Transactions: The document details several land transactions:
• In 1818, he bought 1.5 acres in Gardner that his father had previously purchased. In this transaction, he is referred to as "Benjamin Sever, yeoman of Gardner."
• Also in 1818, he bought the land in Westminster that was the share of his minor siblings for $1,480. The source notes that these land transactions involved an auction where the highest bidder refused, leading to a direct agreement with Benjamin.
• In 1823, he sold land in Westminster to his brother, Isaac Seaver, for $780. The boundaries of this land are described, mentioning neighboring landowners.
• In 1825, shortly before his death, he bought 15 acres and 22 rods of land in Westminster for $300.

 Census Records:

The 1820 US Census places the Benjamin Seaver family in Westminster. The household included one male aged 26-45, one female aged 0-10, and one female aged 16 to 26, likely representing Benjamin, his wife Abigail, and their two eldest daughters at the time. 

Estate and Probate:

• Benjamin Seaver died intestate (without a will) in 1825.
• His widow, Abigail Seaver, filed a petition for administration of his estate on June 8, 1825, stating she was "altogether unacquainted with doing business and besides she is left with four young children to take care of and that it will be impossible for her to administer upon said estate."
• John Jackson of Westminster was nominated as administrator.
• The estate was valued at $1000 in real estate (the Home Farm) and $996.10 in personal estate.
• The estate was later declared insolvent in March 1826, and a commission was formed to address debts. Real estate was petitioned for sale to pay these debts.
• In May 1827, John Jackson's account of the estate showed a small balance to be paid to the widow "to enable her to uphold life," highlighting the difficult financial circumstances of the family after Benjamin's death.
• Abigail Seaver was appointed guardian of her four minor children in April 1826.

Surname Variation:

The document notes that Benjamin Seaver's surname was spelled both "Seaver" and "Sever" in various records. 

Conclusion:

The biography of Benjamin Seaver (1791-1825) provides a detailed snapshot of the life of an early 19th-century Massachusetts farmer and family man. Through meticulous research in town records, census data, probate documents, and cemetery inscriptions, the author reconstructs Benjamin's life, including his birth, marriage, military service, land ownership, family, and untimely death. The information reveals the challenges faced by his widow and young children after his passing, underscoring the importance of family and community in that era. The document serves as a valuable record for genealogical research, preserving details of Benjamin Seaver's life for his descendants.

5)  I also like the Timeline - it produced this information for Benjamin Seaver:

Here is a detailed timeline of the main events covered in the source, followed by a cast of characters with brief bios:

Timeline of Main Events 

• November 15, 1791: Benjamin Seaver (the subject of the biography) was born in Westminster, Worcester, Massachusetts.
• Circa 1812: Benjamin Seaver served in Captain Rice's company, Colonel Messenger's regiment of the Massachusetts Volunteer Militia during the War of 1812.
• February 15, 1817: The intention of marriage between Mr. Benjamin Sever and Miss Abigail Gates, both of Westminster, was published.
• March 2, 1817: Benjamin Seaver (as Benjamin Sever) and Abigail Gates were married in Westminster, Worcester, Massachusetts.
• May 22, 1817: Benjamin Seaver inherited part of his father's estate in Westminster, including 51 acres and 132 rods of the home farm, and agreed to pay his minor siblings a total of $140.
• January 4, 1818: Benjamin Seaver (as Benjamin Sever, yeoman of Gardner) bought 1.5 acres of land in Gardner, Worcester, Massachusetts, that his father had previously purchased from Josiah Kendal, for $32.
• January 4, 1818: Benjamin Seaver bought land in Westminster which constituted the entire real estate allocated to his minor siblings Martha, Silas, Isaac, Rozilla, and Mary Jane Seaver. Heman Ray, their guardian, represented them in the transaction, and the price was $1480.
• June 1, 1820: The US Census recorded Benjamin Seaver's family residing in Westminster, Worcester, Massachusetts. The household included one male aged 26-45, one female aged 0-10, and one female aged 16-26.
• April 19, 1823: Benjamin Seaver, yeoman, and his wife Abigail sold land in the northerly part of Westminster to his brother, Isaac Seaver, for $780.
• February 1, 1825: Benjamin Seaver bought 15 acres and 22 rods of land in Westminster from Gilman Thurston and Moses Thurston for $300.
• May 25, 1825: Benjamin Seaver died in Westminster, Worcester, Massachusetts, at the age of 33 years and 5 months.
• After May 25, 1825: Benjamin Seaver was buried in Whitmanville Cemetery in Westminster, Massachusetts.
• June 8, 1825: Abigail Seaver, Benjamin's widow, filed a petition for administration of his estate with the Worcester County Probate Court, stating her unfamiliarity with business and the responsibility of caring for four young children.
• July 5, 1825: An inventory of Benjamin Seaver's estate was taken, showing real estate valued at $1000 and personal estate at $996.10.
• October 4, 1825: Abigail Seaver's dower rights to the estate were granted.
• March 23, 1826: Benjamin Seaver's estate was represented as insolvent.
• April 1, 1826: Abigail Seaver was appointed guardian of her four minor children.
• May 17, 1827: An advertisement for the sale of the personal estate was printed. John Jackson's account of the estate was allowed, with a balance to be paid to the widow.
• October 6, 1827: An inventory of the property belonging to Benjamin Seaver's four minor children was filed, valued at $30.

Cast of Characters 

• Benjamin Seaver (1791-1825): The central figure of the biography. He was born in Westminster, Massachusetts, served in the War of 1812, married Abigail Gates in 1817, inherited and bought land in Westminster and Gardner, and died at the age of 33. He was described as a farmer or yeoman.
• Abigail Gates Seaver (1797-1867): Benjamin Seaver's wife, whom he married in 1817. After Benjamin's death, she petitioned for administration of his estate and was appointed guardian of their four minor children. The gravestone inscription indicates she later married an Isaac Seaver.
• Isaac Seaver III (1823-1901): Son of Benjamin and Abigail Seaver. He is the ancestor through whom the author of the blog post is descended. He married Lucretia T. Smith.
• Lucretia T. Smith (1828-1884): Wife of Isaac Seaver III.
• Frank Walton Seaver (1852-1922): Son of Isaac Seaver III and Lucretia T. Smith. He married Hattie Louisa Hildreth.
• Hattie Louisa Hildreth (1857-1920): Wife of Frank Walton Seaver.
• Frederick Walton Seaver (1876-1942): Son of Frank Walton Seaver and Hattie Louisa Hildreth. He married Alma Bessie Richmond.
• Alma Bessie Richmond (1882-1962): Wife of Frederick Walton Seaver.
• Frederick Walton Seaver (1911-1983): Son of Frederick Walton Seaver and Alma Bessie Richmond. He married Betty Virginia Carringer.
• Betty Virginia Carringer (1919-2002): Wife of Frederick Walton Seaver.
• Randall J. Seaver (1943-....): The author of the blog post and a direct descendant of Benjamin and Abigail Seaver.
• Benjamin Seaver (1757-1816): Father of the subject of the biography. His estate was partitioned in 1817.
• Martha Whitney (1764-1832): Mother of the subject of the biography.
• Abigail Seaver (1817-1899): Daughter of Benjamin and Abigail Seaver.
• Lucinda Seaver (1821-1899): Daughter of Benjamin and Abigail Seaver.
• Benjamin Seaver (1825-1836): Son of Benjamin and Abigail Seaver, born in the year of his father's death.
• Martha Seaver, Silas Seaver, Isaac Seaver, Rozilla Seaver, Mary Jane Seaver: Minor siblings of the subject of the biography who inherited part of their father's estate.
• Josiah Kendal: Individual from whom Benjamin Seaver's father purchased land that the younger Benjamin later bought.
• Heman Ray: Guardian of Benjamin Seaver's minor siblings who represented them in the land sale to Benjamin.
• Isaac Seaver (brother): Brother of the subject of the biography, who bought land from him in 1823.
• Merari Spaulding, Heirs of Jabez Fairbanks, John Jackson, Asa Rand, Daniel Howe, Hannah Whitney: Neighbors whose land bordered the property sold by Benjamin Seaver to his brother Isaac.
• Gilman Thurston: Yeoman of Westminster who sold land to Benjamin Seaver in 1825.
• Moses Thurston: Yeoman of Cambridge, VT, who also sold land to Benjamin Seaver in 1825.
• Benjamin Bigelow (deceased): Previous owner of the farm from which Benjamin Seaver bought land in 1825.
• Jonas Whitney, Nathan Merriam: Neighbors whose land bordered the property bought by Benjamin Seaver in 1825.
• Captain Rice: Captain of the company in which Benjamin Seaver served during the War of 1812.
• Colonel Messenger: Colonel of the regiment in which Benjamin Seaver served during the War of 1812.
• John Jackson: Of Westminster, nominated by Abigail Seaver as administrator of Benjamin's estate. He posted bond and presented an account of the estate.
• Merari Spaulding, Daniel Howe: Sureties on the $10,000 bond for the administration of Benjamin Seaver's estate.
• Edward Kendall, Zebina Spaulding, Daniel Howe: Individuals who took the inventory of Benjamin Seaver's estate.
• Daniel Howe, Zebina Spaulding, Benjamin F. Wood: Individuals appointed to set out the widow's dower rights.
• Edward Kendall, Simeon Sanderson: Commissioners formed when Benjamin Seaver's estate was declared insolvent.
• Isaac Seaver, Nathan Wetherbee, Henry Collidge Jr.: Sureties on the $5000 bond for Abigail Seaver's guardianship of her children.

Ah, the FAN [Family, Associates, Neighbors) Club!  All in one list.  [Of course, I had to transcribe the records that created the information. AI Tools can do this also!]

6)  Did I  mention that I love how Google's NotebookLM AI tool describes and analyzes available text(s)? 

Did I mention that this is FREE to use?  There can be a limitation on how many can be produced each day.  

Did I mention that Notebook LM performs these tasks without user prompts in a matter of seconds (although the audio overview takes minutes to generate)?  And the user can ask questions on particular issues if desired?  

All you need is source material:  The source material could be notes from a number of sources, a blog post, a periodical article, book pages, etc.  NotebookLM then produces a series of articles and lists that the user can use to better understand the subject matter, plus an audio overview (e.g., a podcast) that discusses the subject matter.  The articles and audio delve into the material and adds social and historical context in some cases. 

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See all of my Artificial Intelligence-related posts at AI and Genealogy Compendium.

Copyright (c) 2025, Randall J. Seaver

The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2025/03/ask-notebooklm-ai-summarization-of.html

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Share it on X, Facebook, or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.  Note that all comments are moderated, so they may not appear immediately.

Subscribe to receive a free daily email from Genea-Musings using www.Blogtrottr.com. 

Added and Updated FamilySearch Record Collections - Week of 15 to 21 March 2025

 Each week, genealogy record collections are added and updated to FamilySearch and listed on the Historical Record Collection list at https://familysearch.org/search/collection/list.

As of  21 March 2025, there are 3,419 historical record collections on FamilySearch (an increase  of 1 from last week):

The added, deleted, new and updated collections this week from FamilySearch:

--- Collections Deleted ---

*  England, Staffordshire, Dioceses Of Lichfield and Coventry, Wills and Probate, 1521-1860 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3491898); 17,283 indexed records with 215,254 record images, DELETED

--- Collections Added ---

*  Ireland, Inland Revenue Wills & Administration, Will Registers, 1828-1879 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000207); 239,097 indexed records with 10,723 record images, ADDED 19-Mar-2025
*  Pennsylvania, Cambria County, Naturalization Records, 1835-1978 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000282); 35,406 indexed records with 66,863 record images, ADDED 12-Feb-2025
*  United States, New England Seamen Records, 1790-1947 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000341); 104,411 indexed records with 27,264 record images, ADDED 16-Feb-2025

--- Collections Updated ---

Argentina, Entre Ríos, Catholic Church Records, 1764-2011 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1974185); 540,405 indexed records with 235,772 record images (was 540,405 records with 235,772 images), UPDATED 14-Mar-2025
Arizona, Birth Certificates and Indexes, 1855-1940 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3740251); 411,292 indexed records with 410,621 record images (was 405,387 records with 404,735 images), UPDATED 21-Mar-2025
Australia, Births and Baptisms, 1792-1981 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1770729); Index only (463,909 records), no images (was 469,962 records with 0 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Australia, Deaths and Burials, 1816-1980 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1770857); Index only (103,977 records), no images (was 108,449 records with 0 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Australia, Marriages, 1810-1980 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1770858); Index only (142,362 records), no images (was 143,055 records with 0 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025

Belgium, Antwerp, Civil Registration, 1588-1953 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2138481); 1,161,435 indexed records with 3,208,709 record images (was 1,161,293 records with 3,208,709 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Bolivia, Catholic Church Records, 1566-2020 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1922463); 9,852,621 indexed records with 1,649,601 record images (was 9,851,453 records with 1,649,601 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Brazil, Cemetery Records, 1799-2024 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2137269); 1,451,246 indexed records with 150,972 record images (was 1,450,285 records with 150,972 images), UPDATED 21-Mar-2025
Brazil, Minas Gerais, Civil Registration, 1820-2021 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3479702); 971,281 indexed records with 404,161 record images (was 971,201 records with 404,123 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Brazil, Pará, Civil Registration, 1815-2013 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4473609); 642,034 indexed records with 185,857 record images (was 641,280 records with 185,644 images), UPDATED 21-Mar-2025

Colombia, Catholic Church Records, 1576-2019 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1726975); 30,687,337 indexed records with 12,659,776 record images (was 30,674,044 records with 12,659,776 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Czech Republic, Censuses and Inhabitant Registers, 1800-1990 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1930345); 2,316 indexed records with 4,916,932 record images (was 2,316 records with 4,916,932 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Democratic Republic of the Congo, Census, 1984 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3288450); 27,124,087 indexed records with 5,453,618 record images (was 27,138,568 records with 5,391,189 images), UPDATED 20-Mar-2025
Dominican Republic, Civil Registration, 1744-2019 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1619814); 8,075,847 indexed records with 3,416,801 record images (was 8,075,847 records with 3,416,801 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Ecuador, Catholic Church Records, 1565-2023 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1923402); 6,162,246 indexed records with 1,454,787 record images (was 6,159,566 records with 1,454,787 images), UPDATED 18-Mar-2025

England Marriages, 1538–1973 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1473015); Index only (11,798,802 records), no images (was 11,774,857 records with 0 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
England, Births and Christenings, 1538-1975 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1473014); Index only (45,712,328 records), no images (was 45,633,928 records with 0 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
England, Deaths and Burials, 1538-1991 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1473016); Index only (14,517,219 records), no images (was 14,511,339 records with 0 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
England, Devon, Parish Registers (Devon Record Office), 1529-1974 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2345213); 2,878,339 indexed records with 181,312 record images (was 2,878,711 records with 181,312 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Find a Grave Index (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2221801); 254,677,389 indexed records with 254,142,952 record images (was 253,580,299 records with 253,580,299 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025

Germany, Births and Baptisms, 1558-1898 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1473000); 24,605,154 indexed records with 29,147,064 record images (was 24,594,764 records with 29,147,064 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Illinois, Hancock County, Nauvoo Community Project, 1839-1846 (BYU Center for Family History and Genealogy) (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2769728); 4,403 indexed records with 4,403 record images (was 4,301 records with 4,301 images), UPDATED 20-Mar-2025
Indonesia, Civil Registration, 1806-1997 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000168); 234,066 indexed records with 865,226 record images (was 201,143 records with 865,192 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Indonesia, Jawa Barat, Ciamis District Court Records, 1950-2014 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2358328); Browse 337,963 Images only, no index (was 0 records with 337,963 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Indonesia, Jawa Tengah, Banjarnegara, Naturalization Records, 1960-2012 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2040544); Browse 188,777 Images only, no index (was 0 records with 188,777 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025

Indonesia, Jawa Tengah, Kebumen, Naturalization Records, 1951-2013 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2144029); Browse 280,340 Images only, no index (was 0 records with 280,340 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Indonesia, Jawa Tengah, Kudus, District Court Naturalization Records, 1958-2013 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2280561); Browse 535,681 Images only, no index (was 0 records with 535,681 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Iowa, World War I Bonus Applications, 1922-1954 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000051); 116,643 indexed records with 114,378 record images (was 116,641 records with 114,377 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Ireland, Catholic Parish Registers, 1740-1900 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2820100); 9,245,917 indexed records with 323,991 record images (was 9,060,370 records with 320,372 images), UPDATED 21-Mar-2025
Italy, Cremona, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1744-1942 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1987747); 611,728 indexed records with 1,325,362 record images (was 611,887 records with 1,325,362 images), UPDATED 20-Mar-2025

Italy, Oristano, Oristano, Civil Registration (Tribunale), 1866-1941 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1947719); 132,409 indexed records with 342,194 record images (was 132,382 records with 342,194 images), UPDATED 18-Mar-2025
Italy, Padova, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1621-1936 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2120751); 43,158 indexed records with 601,344 record images (was 43,158 records with 601,344 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Italy, Palermo, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1820-1947 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2608509); 1,833 indexed records with 4,331,932 record images (was 1,833 records with 4,331,932 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Italy, Potenza, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1697-1923 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2450876); 6,604 indexed records with 3,139,547 record images (was 6,604 records with 3,139,547 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Italy, Treviso, Treviso, Civil Registration (Tribunale), 1871-1941 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1947831); 59,152 indexed records with 427,232 record images (was 59,126 records with 427,232 images), UPDATED 18-Mar-2025

Italy, Udine, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1806-1815, 1871-1911 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1939238); 503,200 indexed records with 1,262,279 record images (was 503,200 records with 1,262,279 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Italy, Venezia, Venezia, Civil Registration (Tribunale), 1871-1930 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2043809); 449,356 indexed records with 628,744 record images (was 449,279 records with 628,744 images), UPDATED 18-Mar-2025
Italy, Viterbo, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1870-1943 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2016212); 90,257 indexed records with 936,472 record images (was 90,257 records with 936,472 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Mexico, Sinaloa, Civil Registration, 1861-1929 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2290241); 1,470,969 indexed records with 1,403,105 record images (was 1,470,969 records with 1,403,105 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Mississippi, County Marriages, 1818-1979 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3477669); 1,761,033 indexed records with 562,579 record images (was 1,751,492 records with 562,579 images), UPDATED 20-Mar-2025

Mississippi, Marriages, 1800-1911 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1680835); Index only (425,101 records), no images (was 422,401 records with 0 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Mississippi, Military Discharge Records, 1917-1974 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4474057); 17,690 indexed records with 12,492 record images (was 17,278 records with 12,492 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Montana, Military Records, 1898-1919 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3010075); 49,436 indexed records with 50,189 record images (was 51,225 records with 50,189 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Netherlands, Noord-Holland, Civil Registration, 1739-1951 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2020117); 1,981,371 indexed records with 6,635,049 record images (was 1,981,263 records with 6,635,049 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Papua New Guinea, Vital Records, 1867-2000 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2114430); 440,946 indexed records with 421,485 record images (was 495,570 records with 421,485 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025

Peru, Huancavelica, Civil Registration, 1915-2003 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4320413); 524,095 indexed records with 521,734 record images (was 524,090 records with 521,729 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Philippines Civil Registration (National), 1945-1996 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1852584); 4,787,513 indexed records with 20,274,621 record images (was 4,787,513 records with 20,274,621 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Philippines, Camarines Sur, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Caceres, Parish Registers, 1716-1977 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1457939); 776,803 indexed records with 136,616 record images (was 776,803 records with 136,616 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Philippines, Catholic Church Records, 1520-2014 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2861657); 12,118,556 indexed records with 2,867,383 record images (was 12,128,272 records with 2,863,275 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Philippines, Church Census, 1542-1980 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000216); 3,162,529 indexed records with 74,044 record images (was 3,301,396 records with 74,044 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025

Poland, Church Books, 1568-1990 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4135958); 11,392,410 indexed records with 1,150,410 record images (was 11,392,410 records with 1,151,120 images), UPDATED 20-Mar-2025
Portugal, Porto, Catholic Church Records, 1535-2006 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1913408); 2,488,107 indexed records with 1,207,157 record images (was 2,489,031 records with 1,207,157 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Puerto Rico, San Juan, Cemetery Records, 1888-1988 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4376727); 183,086 indexed records with 79,238 record images (was 182,814 records with 85,536 images), UPDATED 15-Mar-2025
Scotland, Births and Baptisms, 1564-1950 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1771030); Index only (8,141,513 records), no images (was 8,151,224 records with 0 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Scotland, Marriages, 1561-1910 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1771074); Index only (2,006,971 records), no images (was 2,007,371 records with 0 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025

South Africa, Dutch Reformed Church Registers (Cape Town Archives), 1660-1994 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1478678); 6,111,654 indexed records with 45,728 record images (was 6,110,564 records with 45,728 images), UPDATED 20-Mar-2025
United States, World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1861144); 12,895,572 indexed records with 19,317,962 record images (was 12,896,707 records with 19,317,962 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Uruguay, Census Records, 1726-1858 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4470326); 195,872 indexed records with 6,456 record images (was 73,589 records with 2,583 images), UPDATED 21-Mar-2025
Uruguay, Civil Registration, 1879-2020 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1837849); Index only (1,957,735 records), no images (was 1,947,588 records with 0 images), UPDATED 21-Mar-2025
Venezuela, Civil Registration, 1843-2021 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1823609); 1,496,056 indexed records with 586,312 record images (was 1,493,080 records with 586,312 images), UPDATED 16-Mar-2025

West Virginia, Military Discharge Records, 1866-1990 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4166146); 37,843 indexed records with 8,776 record images (was 37,793 records with 8,747 images), UPDATED 19-Mar-2025
Zambia, Archdiocese of Lusaka, Church Records, 1908-2019 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3736255); 1,058,738 indexed records with 204,592 record images (was 1,025,477 records with 194,031 images), UPDATED 21-Mar-2025

--- Collections with new images ---

Argentina, Buenos Aires, Civil Registration, 1861-2018 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000041); 1 indexed records with 106,780 record images (was 1 records with 106,778 images), last updated 07-Jun-2024
Argentina, Military Records, 1911-1936 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000280); 1 indexed records with 1,042,343 record images (was 1 records with 1,042,337 images), last updated 31-Oct-2024
Brazil, Alagoas, Civil Registration, 1876-2023 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4469403); 1 indexed records with 208,859 record images (was 1 records with 208,854 images), last updated 07-Jun-2024
Brazil, Maranhão, Civil Registration, 1827-2022 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4469402); 1 indexed records with 139,083 record images (was 1 records with 137,673 images), last updated 07-Jun-2024
Canada, Census, 1931 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000196); 2,466,494 indexed records with 2,462,522 record images (was 2,466,494 records with 2,462,360 images), last updated 16-Jun-2024

Germany, Baden, Church Book Duplicates, 1804-1877 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1395660); 733,778 indexed records with 1,770 record images (was 733,778 records with 1,768 images), last updated 07-Nov-2024
Italy, Torino, Diocese of Torino, Catholic Church Records, 1801-1899 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000113); 1 indexed records with 271,054 record images (was 1 records with 271,053 images), last updated 05-Dec-2024
United States, Census, 1950 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4464515); 52,785,233 indexed records with 52,718,690 record images (was 52,785,233 records with 52,637,039 images), last updated 16-Jun-2024
United States, Civil War Widows and Other Dependents Pension Files, 1861-1934 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1922519); 3,711,529 indexed records with 3,678,491 record images (was 3,711,529 records with 3,676,049 images), last updated 02-May-2013

--- Collections with images removed ---

Alabama, Deaths, 1908-1974 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1307888); 1,875,684 indexed records with 1,851,806 record images (was 1,875,684 records with 1,852,988 images), last updated 21-Oct-2024
United States City and Business Directories, ca. 1749 - ca. 1990 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3754697); 64,961,936 indexed records with 952,170 record images (was 64,961,936 records with 952,512 images), last updated 20-Dec-2024

--- Collections with new records ---

Brazil, São Paulo, Immigration Cards, 1902-1980 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2140223); 2,319,338 indexed records with 4,039,657 record images (was 2,319,337 records with 4,039,657 images), last updated 14-Jun-2024

--- Collections with records removed ---

Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Civil Registration, 1810-2022 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3741255); 1,845,494 indexed records with 933,552 record images (was 1,845,495 records with 933,552 images), last updated 04-Mar-2025
California, Birth Index, 1905-1995 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2001879); Index only (24,589,419 records), no images (was 24,589,420 records with 0 images), last updated 01-Mar-2012
United States, Public Records, 1970-2009 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2199956); Index only (875,605,786 records), no images (was 875,605,787 records with 0 images), last updated 24-Jan-2025
United States, Residence Database, 1970-2024 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000290); Index only (413,872,532 records), no images (was 413,872,539 records with 0 images), last updated 22-Jun-2024

=====================================

My friend and SDGS colleague, Marshall, has come up with a way to determine which collections are ADDED, DELETED or UPDATED, and to alphabetize the entries in each category. Thanks to Marshall for helping me out here!

Marshall notes that there are:

*  1 removed entries

*  3 added entries 

*  62 updated entries

*  16 entries with more or fewer images and/or records

The FamilySearch website says there are 3419 total entries on the list (without signing in). Marshall's list says there are 3419 (without signing in).  They are in-sync.

In order to select a specific record collection on FamilySearch, go to 

 https://familysearch.org/search/collection/list and use the "Filter by collection name" feature in the upper left-hand corner and use keywords (e.g. "church england") to find collections with those keywords.

Each of the collections listed above has a Research Wiki page (use the "Learn more" link). It would be very useful if the Wiki page for each collection listed the dates for when the collection was added as a new collection and the dates for major updates also.

==========================================

The URL for this post is: https://www.geneamusings.com/2025/03/added-and-updated-familysearch-record.html

Copyright (c) 2025 Randall J. Seaver

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