RootsMagic Genealogy Family Tree Statistics Update - 1 January 2026

I was curious to see how much progress I had made in my family tree during the last 12 months.

Here is the family tree database summary from RootsMagic 11 on 31 December 2025:

Here are the "numbers" from 31 December 2025 in my RootsMagic database (with increases from 1 January 2025):

*  74,870 persons (+ 908)
*  30,363 families  (+ 387)
*  234,015 events  (+ 2,539)
*  15,415 Alternate names (+ 67)
*  21,704 places (+ 840)  
*  2,707 sources ( + 421)
*  147,932 citations (+ 607)
*  1,184 Multi-media Items (- 81)
*  3,213 Multi-media links (+ 2)
*  53,031 Persons matched to FamilySearch Family Tree persons (+ 818)

In the past 12 months, I've averaged adding 2.5 persons, 1.1 families, 7.0 events and 1.7 source citations each day.  I try to work at least an hour in the evening adding content and sources to the database, although baseball and the holidays intervene.

Consequently, this year I managed to reduce my citations per person from 1.99 to 1.98, and my citations per event from 0.636 to 0.632 this past year.  I don't have a citation for every event, name or relationship, and in some cases I have more than one citation for an event, name or relationship.  Obviously, I have added more profiles and events with no or only a few source citations.

2)  I added 908 persons to my database in 2025 (+ 1.2%).  Some are in my 4th great-grandparents' descendant lines (including lines to DNA matches with known common ancestors), some are in my one-name studies, and some are from further and ongoing research on my ancestral families.  My one-name studies include Seaver (with variations Sever, Seever, Sevier and plurals), Carringer, Auble, Vaux, Dill, and Buck in my tree, and McKnew in my wife's tree.

3)  I "mine" and search new Ancestry, MyHeritage,  and FamilySearch databases and use RootsMagic WebHints for my ancestral and one-name study surnames, and add content and source citations.  I add or correct name, relationship, date and place omissions or errors found while working on the database.  I use RootsMagic to match my tree profiles to the FamilySearch Family Tree profiles, and exchange source-verified information both ways on a near-daily basis.

4)  I stopped doing the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge after 10 years in 2024.  I finished writing genealogical sketches for my ancestors from my parents to the 7th great-grandparents by ancestor chart numbers (although I skipped those for whom my research and/or reliable information is poor or non-existent).   In 2025, I also stopped writing the 52 Relatives in 52 Weeks challenge.

5)  I continued the effort in 2025 to convert current place names to historical place names as required.  As an example, Medfield, Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States was Medfield, Suffolk County, Massachusetts Bay Colony, British Colonial America before 1776.  

6)  As I write ABC Biographies, I'm taking the opportunity to refresh my Notes and Sources for my ancestors, and adding ancestor biographies, plus listing my "current thinking" to the ancestor's Note.  This is a big task and I'm about 5% done (back through 7th great-grandparents).

7)   I determined that I was wasting time chasing every Ancestry Hint or MyHeritage Record Match, and started writing family stories for my closest ancestral families.  That is why the number of profiles, families, events and sources are lower this year than last year.

8)  My conclusion is:  I've made steady progress, and I'm actively improving my database in both quantity and quality, but still have a long way to go to have a "fully sourced and accurate" family tree.  It's better than it was, but it can still be improved.  It is truly a lifelong task, I think!  I really need a genealogy clone or assistant.  I doubt that Siri, Alexa, Google Home or any other virtual assistant is yet capable of doing genealogy research, source citations, etc.;  I know that Artificial Intelligence is not able to do actual research, but it can help document submitted information.

 9)  I updated my Genea-Musings readers on the "numbers" in my RootsMagic genealogy family tree database over the years in:

*  RootsMagic Genealogy Database Statistics Update - 1 January 2025

*  RootsMagic Genealogy Database Statistics Update - 1 January 2024

*  RootsMagic Genealogy Database Statistics Update - 1 January 2023

*  My RootsMagic Genealogy Database Statistics Update - 1 January 2022

*  My RootsMagic Genealogy Database Statistics Update - 1 January 2021

*  My RootsMagic Genealogy Database Statistics Update - 31 December 2019

*  My RootsMagic Genealogy Database Statistics Update - 31 December 2018

*  My Genealogy Database Statistics Update - 1 January 2017

*   My Genealogy Database Statistics Update - 1 January 2016 

*  Genealogy Database Statistics Update - 1 January 2015 

*  Genealogy Database Statistics Update - 1 January 2014  

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

The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2026/01/rootsmagic-genealogy-family-tree.html

Copyright (c) 2026, 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 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.

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun -- Your Genealogy Database Statistics

 Calling all Genea-Musings Fans: 

 It's Saturday Night again - 

Time for some more Genealogy Fun!!

Your mission, should you decide to accept it (cue the Mission Impossible! music) is to:

1)  If you have your family tree research in a Genealogy Management Program (GMP), whether a computer software program or an online family tree, figure out how to find how many persons, places, sources, etc. are in your database (hint:  the Help button is your friend!)

2)  Tell us which GMP you use, and how many persons, places, sources, etc. are in your database(s) today in a blog post of your own, in a comment to this blog post, or in a Facebook comment.

NOTE:  WE last did this in November 2021.

Here's mine:

I use RootsMagic 10.0.9 at present for my Genealogy Management Program of choice. Here is the Tools > Enhanced Properties List:

The information in this window says my current database has:

• People: 74,661
• Names:  90,078
• Alternate Names:  15,412
• Families:  30,274
• Events: 233,425
• Places: 28,225
• Sources: 2,660
• Citations: 147,848
• Repositories: 81
• Multimedia items: 1,267
• Multimedia links: 3,213
• Addresses: 10
• Tasks: 336
• Groups:  63

There are 121 sources with no citations (mainly Find A Grave sources that are unique to a person, so not a problem), and there are 21 missing media items (most of them refer to an image downloaded from my Ancestry Member Tree and they need to be deleted). 

I have a number of unused citations, places, media, and repositories.  I need to clean those up. 

I know that I have a lot of duplicate Places.  I need to clean those up too.

I took the opportunity to run the Database Tools (File > Test Integrity, Rebuild Indexes, Clean Phantom Records, and Compact).

Lastly, I saved a Backup File, and copied the database file (.rmgc) to Googly Drive, Dropbox, and my Flash Drive.  It gets updated every night on my iDrive account.

If I do this in other programs, the process is:

*  Family Tree Maker 2024 (and earlier):  in "Plan" Workspace, click "More" button
*  Legacy Family Tree 10: Help > General Information
*  Ancestry Member Tree:  Select your tree, then click on "Tree Pages," and select "Tree Overview."
*  MyHeritage Tree:  Click on "Go to Family Stats" on your home page.

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

The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2025/08/saturday-night-genealogy-fun-your.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.

Using Artificial Intelligence In the Ancestor Biography Creation (ABC) Process

 I have been experimenting for over a year now with Artificial Intelligence tools to determine how I can best use them for my genealogy research and family history work.  After 36 years of research, and blogging about genealogy since April 2006 on Genea-Musings, I have a wealth of material to work with.  It is all imperfect!

A)  The Ancestor Biography Creation (ABC) Goal

My present life goal is to create eBooks for my relatives and descendants, and anyone else interested, about my own ancestry and my wife's ancestry.  I have lots of genealogy records about all of my ancestors back many generations, but very few family stories about my close family, plus any information that I have found in books, periodicals, blog posts, etc. while doing family history research.  How best can I do this with consistency and better wordsmithing than I can create myself?

I also want to create audio and video files about the lives of my ancestors, and about my own life, for my descendants, and try to tell their and my stories in my own voice.

Here is my current process to create consistent ancestor and relative biographies that may interest my relatives and descendants.

B)  Using Artificial Intelligence to Create An Ancestral Biography

1)  Ancestor/Relative Research Notes:  Using the RootsMagic family tree program, I create ancestor and relative research notes in Person Notes with references to sources for most of the events in each ancestor or relative profile.  The Person Notes are essentially chronological and often include a summary of each record found to document the life of the person. 

2)  Ancestor/Relative Genealogical Sketches:  Using the RootsMagic Person Notes, and some of the record images, I write a blog post on Genea-Musings for each ancestor or relative.  A compendium of the blog posts can be found on the 52 Ancestors/Relatives Biographies page on Genea-Musings.  I create a PDF document of the ancestor/relative genealogical sketch. 

3)  Ancestor/Relative Biography:  I attach the PDF document  of the genealogical sketch to the free Claude (usually 3.7 Sonnet) AI tool to write the biography, using the prompt:  "You are an expert genealogist. Please create a draft biography from the attached file, including parents, siblings, spouses and children (with birth and death dates and places), summarize life events, and add historical facts as appropriate, but do not add or embellish any extra genealogical details. Use section headings. Expand the information in each section to add more details. The tone should be casual and suitable for family members."

I usually have to request Claude AI to expand each paragraph for more information. The result of this is copied to a word processing file and saved in my computer "AI Biographies" file folder for the person.

4) Ancestor/Relative Poem and Song Lyrics: I use one or more of the free ChatGPT4, Claude, Grok, Gemini and Perplexity AI tools to write a poem and song lyrics based on the uploaded genealogical sketch PDF. My prompt is usually "Please create a poem and song lyrics to commemorate [this person's] life."  I copy the poems and song lyrics in a word processing document and save it in my computer file folder for "AI Poems and Songs." for the person. I choose one poem and one song lyrics to use in a blog post. The song lyrics are used to create a 3-4 minute song on www.Suno.com for the subject person, which I save in an "AI Songs" computer file folder. The poems and songs could be collected into an audio book or video for a family library, a YouTube channel, or even bedtime stories. <G>

5) Ancestor/Relative Briefing Document and Podcast: I use the free Google NotebookLM to upload the Ancestor/Relative genealogical sketch PDF in order to create a Briefing Document, a Timeline with a cast of characters, answers to assorted chat questions, and an Audio Overview (a podcast in an 8 to 20 minutes WAV file - I can create only three Audio Interviews each day). I save the Audio Overview in an "AI Podcasts" computer file folder.

6) Ancestor/Relative Podcast Transcription: I use the Audio Overview WAV files from NotebookLM to create a text transcription of the Audio Overview podcast using TurboScribe.com (I can do three transcriptions each day for free). I save each podcast transcription in a word processing file and save it in the "AI Audio to Text" computer file folder for the person. The podcast could be used in an ancestor biographical video along with family photographs or genealogy record images.

7) Ancestor Family Images: I will often use a prompt with ChatGPT4, Gemini, Grok, or CoPilot to create a photorealistic image that fits one period or situation of a family's life story. I save the images in an "AI Images" file for each AI Tool. I use these images to illustrate my blog posts and they can be useful for biographies.

C) What I've Done to Date:

1) I have completed all of the above for my two parents, my four grandparents, my 8 great-grandparents, and my 16 2nd great-grandparents. I'm currently doing the tasks for my 32 3rd great-grandparents one week at a time. I want to do the same tasks for my wife's ancestral families back through her 2nd great-grandparents.

2) I have collected all of the Claude AI biographies for my ancestors through the 2nd great-grandparents into one word processing document. I need to edit them and standardize them, and then add some photographs of the ancestors. In the short-term, I will save this document as a PDF in an ebook format and send it to my descendants and relatives as soon as I can so that the work is not lost completely when I pass away. I will do the same for my wife's ancestors also through the 2nd great-grandparents.

3) I can usually perform all of the AI tasks after creating the PDF of the ancestor genealogical sketch in about 30 minutes. Creating and listening to the song, and waiting for the Audio Overview to complete, take the longest time.

D) A Rough Mind Map:

I asked the GenSpark AI Tool to create a mind map of the Ancestor Biography Creation (ABC) Process outlined above, and the above chart is the first pass. I asked it to attach lines from one module to another and it did not do well in a second pass.

In the chart above, each module has identified a task and an output to create an Ancestor Biography. I need to tell GenSpark, or another AI tool that does mind maps, that I want a line from #1 to #2; a line from #2 to #3; a line from #3 to #4, #5, and #7; a line from #5 to #6; and lines from #3, #4, #5, #6 and #7 to the Ancestral Biography Creation box in the middle.

E) The Future?

Dedicated Genea-Musings readers will recognize the elements in this Ancestor Biography Creation (ABC) Process as what I roughly outlined in words in my blog post on 1 April 2025 titled "Announcing YOUR GENEA-GENIE."  See, there was method to my madness!!

I foresee a dedicated Ancestor Biography Creation (ABC) AI Agent tool that can do this ancestor biography creation in one prompt, along with the PDF (or other) input to provide the information for the ancestor.  The researcher will have to do the research work, but this process should turn out a decent set of outputs that can be used or modified to the user's wishes. 

Unfortunately, I am not that good of a programmer or promptmeister to create this type of AI Agent tool.  I would be happy to work with someone on it, though!

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

Links to my blog posts about using Artificial Intelligence are on my Randy's AI and Genealogy page.  Links to AI information and articles about Artificial Intelligence in Genealogy by other genealogists are on my AI and Genealogy Compendium page.

Copyright (c) 2025, Randall J. Seaver

The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2025/04/using-artificial-intelligence-in.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.

Ask AI: "What Are the Secrets of Time Management In Genealogy Research and Family History?"

The Artificial Intelligence tools (like ChatGPT4, Claude, Gemini, Grok, Meta, CoPilot, GenSpark, DeepSeek, and Perplexity) can provide much useful and nearly instant information about subjects in a concise format, especially when they have been pre-trained on a large volume of information about the subjects.

1)  I wondered if the FREE AI tools could provide me with information about the secrets of time management on genealogical projects.

(image created by Microsoft Designer)

Here is my prompt for ChatGPT4:   What are the secrets of time management in genealogy research and family history?

2)  The ChatGPT4 response (using Search) to the request was:

Effective time management is crucial in genealogy research and family history to ensure productivity and prevent overwhelm. Here are several strategies to help you manage your time efficiently:

1.  Set Specific Goals

• Define Clear Objectives: Identify precise goals for your research, such as discovering the birthplace of a particular ancestor or tracing the lineage of a specific family branch. Clear objectives provide direction and purpose.
• Prioritize Tasks: Determine which research tasks are most critical and tackle them first. Prioritization ensures that essential objectives receive attention before less critical ones.

2.  Break Down Tasks

• Segment Large Projects: Divide extensive research projects into smaller, manageable tasks. For example, instead of "research the Smith family history," focus on "find the birth record of John Smith."
• Set Milestones: Establish milestones for each segment, such as completing the search for birth records within a week. This approach makes the research process more manageable and provides a sense of accomplishment.

3,  Create a Research Plan

• Outline Steps: Before each research session, list the specific records, databases, or archives you plan to consult. This preparation keeps you focused and organized.
• Allocate Time: Assign a specific amount of time to each resource or task to prevent spending too much time on a single aspect of your research.

4.  Use a Timer

• Set Time Limits: Use a timer to allocate specific periods for research tasks. For instance, dedicate 30 minutes to searching census records.
• Maintain Focus: Knowing there's a time limit can help you stay focused and work more efficiently, reducing the likelihood of getting sidetracked.

5.  Avoid Multitasking

• Focus on One Task: Concentrate on a single research task at a time to ensure thoroughness and accuracy.
• Reduce Distractions: Close unrelated tabs or applications, and inform others of your focus time to minimize interruptions.

6.  Digitize and Organize

• Create a Digital Filing System: Organize your research materials into clearly labeled digital folders and subfolders for easy retrieval.
• Use Genealogy Software: Utilize genealogy software or online family tree platforms to keep track of your research and organize information systematically.

7.  Set Boundaries

• Schedule Research Time: Allocate specific times for research and communicate this schedule to family members to minimize interruptions.
• Balance Responsibilities: Ensure that your research time doesn't encroach on personal or family obligations by setting clear boundaries.

8.  Take Regular Breaks

• Incorporate Breaks: Use techniques like the Pomodoro Technique, which involves working for 25 minutes followed by a 5-minute break, to maintain mental clarity.
• Refresh Your Mind: Short breaks can help prevent burnout and keep you focused during research sessions.

By implementing these detailed strategies, you can enhance your efficiency and enjoyment in genealogy research, making meaningful progress without feeling overwhelmed.

By using the Search option, ChatGPT4 provides sources that may help a user find more detailed information about each topic.  Here is the list of sources that ChatGPT4 found and apparently used for their response:

• https://organizeyourfamilyhistory.com/finding-time-to-research/
• https://www.legacytree.com/blog/time-and-place-in-genealogy
• https://family-tree-advice.blogspot.com/2017/11/time-management-tips-for-genealogists.html
• https://genealogycertification.wordpress.com/2013/11/08/time-management-for-a-professional-genealogist/
• https://clustergenealogy.com/2013/11/08/research-hints-time-management-and-classes-its-follow-friday/
• https://familytreemagazine.com/strategies/making-the-most-of-your-genealogy-research-time/
• https://familytreemagazine.com/research/12-time-saving-tips/
• https://ancestralfindings.com/5-genealogy-research-time-management-tips/

I did ask Grok and Perplexity the same question,  and since they use a Search function, they gave me more sources to review!

3) The response from the free ChatGPT4 tool seems credible and realistic, but we always have to verify information.  In my opinion, there is nothng "new" in this recitation of genealogy time management principles.  Some of the sources are from 2013, and others are more recent.  The answers are useful for people who want to know the answer.  It's no real surprise - that's what GPTs do - they are Pre-trained on books and texts that tell people how to do things well.

My own time management processes are without specific goals, are haphazard without a written research plan, are multi-tasked, etc.  But then I'm retired, don't have many family or personal time obligations, don't earn any money from my work, don't have hard deadlines or contract obligations, have thousands of records, and a very large family tree to document my work, etc.  

My main goals in genealogy are to learn as much as I can, have fun while doing it, "advance the research ball" every day, write up my findings on my blog and in my family tree, and hope that other researchers benefit from my work.  I guess I'm a bad example!!

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

My blog posts, and those of other genealogists, using Artificial Intelligence tools are on my AI and Genealogy Compendium page.

Copyright (c) 2025, Randall J. Seaver

The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2025/02/ask-ai-what-are-secrets-of-time.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.

UPDATE: Saturday Night Genealogy Fun -- Run a "Problem Search" On Your Family Tree

NOTE:  Well, it looks like I suggested this topic last in October 2023.  And several times before that over 18 years.  If you did this in October 2023, post a link in Comments, and then go work on your research and write a blog post to tell us about it!

 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)  Have you run a "Problem Search," "Problem List," or "Consistency Check" or similar in your genealogy software or online family tree?  Do it now, and tell us which program or online tree you used and what your results were.

2) Tell us what you found when you ran a problem list in your own blog post, in a comment on this post, or in a Facebook Status  post.  Please leave a link on this post if you write your own post.

Here's mine:

I use RootsMagic 9 and in the "Tools" menu, there is a "Problem Search" item.  I clicked on the link to "Run selected tool" in the upper left-hand corner, and saw many possible problems that the program will search for:

In the screen above, I selected the problems I consider the most likely to be wrong.  I chose:

*  Born before parent's birth

*  Born after mother's death

*  Age at death should be less than 110 

*  Age at marriage should be between 12 and 90

*  Mother's age should be between 12 and 55

Here is the result (I got a much longer list one year ago, and fixed most of them):

I need to evaluate all of these problems.  The two that stand out is the one for "2 years old when married" and "Mother born after person's birth."

In the other problem areas, the child's birth date, or the mother's birth date, may be approximated or entered wrong - a critical evaluation is needed.  

Before posting this blog, I checked every item on my list and made adjustments in the tree as necessary.  Several of the early marriages on the list were caused by having a baptism date as the birth date of the mother.

I could have done this in other programs - I know that Legacy Family Tree and Family Tree Maker have a similar list, and the Ancestry and MyHeritage have consistency checkers for their trees (may require a subscription). 

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

The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2024/01/saturday-night-genealogy-fun-run.html

Copyright (c) 2024, 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.

How Did I Do With My 2023 Genealogy-Related Goals?

 I posted Saturday Night Genealogy Fun -- What Are Your 2023 Genealogy Goals on 7 January 2023 with hopes of finally meeting at least one of my stated goals in 2023 before being distracted by bright shiny genealogy features.

How did I do?  I'll give myself a grade for the year after reviewing the goals and whatever accomplishments I achieved.

The stated 2023 goals (in green) and the 2023 accomplishments (in red) are:

1)  Keep writing the "52 Ancestors" genealogical sketches.  I will need to decide later in the year if I want to continue this into the 8th great-grandparent ancestors (there are over 400 known ancestors in this generation, so it may take 8 years to complete this generation, and I'm unsure if I'll live that long).  Then add the sketches to FamilySearch Family Tree profiles.

2023 accomplishments:  I wrote 42 more 52 Ancestors genealogical sketches and got up to 7th great-grandfather #1004 on my ahnentafel list.  I have more to do in the 4th to 7th great-grandparents list but I need to do more research on some of them.  I'm going to hold off on the 8th great-grandfathers for the time being.  I added quite a few of the sketches to the FamilySearch Family Tree profiles as Life Stories.  Grade:  B

2)  Keep writing the "Amanuensis Monday" posts transcriptions, mainly of probate records.  I've done probate records of many of my ancestors, and this year have branched out to non-ancestor Seaver persons in Massachusetts.  I may go for other New England states, or New York, next, based on FamilySearch or Ancestry images.  Then, add the transcriptions to the profiles in my RootsMagic database.

2023 accomplishments:  I wrote 50 more Amanuensis Monday posts, mainly probate records of ancestors or Seaver people in New England, New York and Pennsylvania.  Grade:  A-minus

3)  Continue to "collect" records for descendants of my 4th great-grandparents.  This is mainly for DNA match purposes.  Also, continue to create 6 generation descendants report using RootsMagic and post them on Genea-Musings.  

2023 accomplishments:  I slacked off a bit in researching the descendants of my 44th great-grandparents, but still added over 1,500 persons to my family tree, many of them descendants of my 4th great-grandparents.   I posted 8 new 6 generation descendants reports on Genea-Musings, bringing the total to 16 out of 32 possible reports.  Grade:  B

4)  Continue to use Ancestry Record Hints, MyHeritage Record Matches, FamilySearch Research Hints, to find records for profiles in my RootsMagic database, especially for newly added persons.

2023 accomplishments:  I don't know how many record hints/matches I added throughout the year, but I tried to add information from hints/matches every week.  It didn't help that Ancestry deleted all of my record hints from my tree and started adding them for profiles with new information.  It didn't help that I deleted my old MyHeritage tree and added a new updated tree to MyHeritage which wiped out all of my record matches and the system has added matches for about 10% of my tree profiles since April.  Grade: C

5)  Gather family photos into one file folder and standardize photo captions with name, date, place, event information.  

2023 accomplishments:  I had my family photographs scattered all over my computer file folders.  I copied as many as I could find from the surname file folders to the "My Pictures" file folders (I have major family photo folders for Seaver, Richmond, Carringer/Auble and Leland/Schaffner surnames).  I also have family photos by year since 1999 in separate file folders in "My Pictures."  In addition, I scanned over 500 photographs from my photo albums on my bookshelves and loose photographs from bags in my piles of stuff.  Many of these were scanned by the Reimagine mobile app and colorized with the MyHeritage tools and saved in MyHeritage Photos.  Grade:  B

6)  Complete one year's worth of family stories using StoryWorth and publish a book with them for my children and grandchildren.

2023 accomplishments:  The StoryWorth writing went well for several months.  I ended up writing 37 stories for the book, including some photos, and I have edited the stories twice now.  I have not completed the bookmaking process.  Grade:  C

7)  Continue chasing DNA matches, especially on Ancestry and MyHeritage, to find the common ancestors for me and each match.  I need to do more "skeleton" trees to solve relationships with more matches without a ThruLine or a Theory of Family Relativity.  

2023 accomplishments:  I have kept up with the new DNA matches on AncestryDNA, MyHeritageDNA, FamilyTreeDNA and 23andMe.  I write notes for many of the new matches if I research them.  For those that I can identify a common ancestor, and a paper trail back to the common ancestor, I add the paper trail families to my RootsMagic family tree.  I made very few (less than 5?) "skeleton" trees for DNA matches with very small trees and didn't solve any (?) mysteries by doing that.  Grade:  C

My conclusion:  It was a fairly successful year achieving my 2023 goals!!  At least I worked on all of them, and graded out with at least a C grade on all of them.  Overall - I think a B-minus.  

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

The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2024/01/how-did-i-do-with-my-2023-genealogy.html

Copyright (c) 2024, 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, Google+ or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Genealogy Pot-Pourri - Week Ending 31 December 2023

 Here are the highlights of my family history and genealogy related activities over the past week.  

1)  Wrote a genealogical sketch for my great-grandaunt Ellen Maria "Nellie" Seaver (1861-1933) of Leominster, Massachusetts for my new 52 Relatives theme series.

2)  Transcribed the 1843 Will of Ebenezer Seaver (1763-1844 of Roxbury, Massachusetts) in the Knox County, Ohio Probate Records for the Amanuensis Monday theme.  

3)  Posted my usual end-of-year blog posts, including:

*  Top 37 Most Viewed Posts in 2023 on Genea-Musings

*  Randy's "Best Of" Genea-Musings Posts in 2023

*  Randy's Genealogy Activity Highlights for 2023

*  RootsMagic Genealogy Database Statistics Update - 31 December 2023

4)  Worked on and wrote blog posts for the new MyHeritage AI features:

*   New MyHeritage Feature -- Artificial Intelligence AI Record Finder(tm)

*  New MyHeritage Feature -- Artificial Intelligence AI Biographer(tm)

*  MyHeritage AI Biographer Feature Is Only on Family View

5)  AncestryDNA now has 44,664 DNA matches (up 88 from 24 December) for me today, with one new ThruLines.  I added Notes to 8 new Matches.    MyHeritageDNA now has 12,024 DNA matches (up 21 from 24 December) for me, with no new  Theories.  Reviewed the new DNA matches on AncestryDNA, MyHeritageDNA, FamilyTreeDNA and 23andMe.  

6)  Occasionally matched RootsMagic 9 profiles to FamilySearch Family Tree.  I have matched 50,271 of my RootsMagic persons with FamilySearch Family Tree profiles (up 62).  

7) Used Web Hints and Record Matches from Ancestry, MyHeritage, Findmypast and FamilySearch to add content and source citations to my RootsMagic profiles. I now have 71,865 persons in my RootsMagic family tree (up 45), and 146,403 source citations (up 3).  Merged about 20 duplicate entries.  Resolved 135 Ancestry Hints. TreeShared 162 new and updated profiles with my Ancestry tree.  My Ancestry Member Tree has Ancestry Record Hints with 15,795 to be resolved, but I work on them several times a week.  

8) Wrote 20 Genea-Musings blog posts last week (Sunday through Saturday), of which one were a press release. The most viewed post last week was New MyHeritage Feature -- Artificial Intelligence AI Biographer(tm)  with over 393 views.  Genea-Musings had about 33,800 page views last week.  

9)  Real life:  This is week 199 since COVID restrictions started.   I visited Linda every day at the skilled nursing/memory care facility. Went grocery shopping on Tuesday and Friday.  Walked several days on the block and talked to several neighbors.  Celebrated Christmas with Linda and went to Tami's on Christmas Day for dinner.  I finished reading John Sandford's book Ocean Prey and started David Baldacci's book Dream Town.  I watched the Chargers games on Sunday afternoon, and they lost to Denver, so now 5-11 on the season.  Watched the SDSU Aztecs basketball game with Gonzaga, which they won 84-74, so they are 11-2 on the season.  Watched some NFL football on Sunday.  It was a pretty quiet week!

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

The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2024/01/genealogy-pot-pourri-week-ending-31.html

Copyright (c) 2023, Randall J. Seaver

Please note that all comments are moderated and may not appear immediately. 

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.

Randy's Genealogy Activity Highlights for 2023

 Looking back over the past year, I see that I pursued these genealogy and family history related activities - it was a Zoom-y year (again!) to say the least!  

1)  Genealogy Society Work

*  Moderated 11 CVGS Research Group monthly meetings (in Zoom meetings) with 20 to 40 in attendance, usually providing an hour of content.

*  Moderated 11 CVGS DNA Interest Group monthly meetings (in Zoom meetings) with 15 to 30 in attendance, usually providing an hour of content.

*  Attended 11 CVGS monthly General Meetings (in Zoom meetings) with 30 to 70 in attendance.

*  Attended 3 CVGS in-person education meetings and helped answer questions for new genealogists.

*  Attended the annual picnic (June) and holiday party (December) in-person and enjoyed seeing my CVGS colleagues.

*  Wrote, edited, published, and emailed 12 CVGS monthly Newsletters (10-12 pages each month) to the CVGS membership in the 14th year of my editorship.
*  Served on the CVGS Board of Directors for the 21nd consecutive year as Research Group Chair, DNA Group Chair, and Newsletter Editor, attending monthly Board meetings and General Society program meetings (10 in Zoom).

2)  Education

*  Watched about 15 Legacy Family Tree Webinars as part of my subscription to the service.

*  Attended RootsTech Connect 2023 virtually over three days, and watched over 100 presentations.

*  Attended the SDGS January and September seminars, and every SDGS online program meeting and special webinars on Zoom.  

*  Attended most of the SDGS DNA Interest Group meetings on Zoom from hosted by Colin Whitney, often with speakers.

*  Attended most of the SDGS British Isles Interest Group on Zoom hosted by Colin Whitney.

*  Watched hundreds of YouTube videos about genealogy-related topics - I subscribe to about 120 YouTube channels for genealogy.
*  Read the NEHGS magazines and downloaded them to my genealogy education folders.   American Ancestors also provides digital editions of a number of periodicals for New England which I search occasionally and download articles to my genealogy folders.
*  Downloaded syllabus articles from RootsTech, Legacy Family Tree Webinars, CVGS programs and SDGS programs and saved them to my education computer folders.
*  Read thousands of genealogy-related blog posts from hundreds of geneabloggers using Feedly on a daily basis.

3)  Blogging

*  Wrote about 820 blog posts on Genea-Musings in the 18th year of the blog.  Most of my posts are about my own research (e.g., Amanuensis Monday, Genealogy Pot-Pourri, Seavers in the News, Wordless Wednesday, Treasure Chest Thursday, 52 Ancestors, and Saturday Night Genealogy Fun), but some are genea-curation about the industry (e.g., New and Updated Ancestry Collections; New and Updated FamilySearch Collections; Genealogy News Bytes, Genealogy Education Bytes; and Best of the Genea-Blogs), occasional guest posts, press releases,  questions asked (e.g., Dear Randy posts), research summaries (Rabbit Holes with Randy), genealogy software, online collections, or industry issues.  See:

***  Randy's "Best Of" Genea-Musings Posts in 2023
***  Top 40 Most Viewed Posts in 2023 on Genea-Musings
*  I now have about 16,813 posts and 15.6 million page views on the Genea-Musings blog since 2006 according to Google.

4)  DNA Tests and Analysis

*  I have autosomal DNA test results at AncestryDNA (test), MyHeritageDNA (upload), FamilyTreeDNA (test), 23andMe (test), and Living DNA (upload).
*  Reviewed my DNA matches on a regular basis, and made notes about the match data, including known relationships and common ancestors.  I have spreadsheets for the highest matches on AncestryDNA, 23andMe, FamilyTreeDNA, and MyHeritageDNA matches with collected information.  I occasionally download my Shared DNA segments from MyHeritageDNA, FamilyTreeDNA and 23andMe.
*  Created updated AutoCluster groups for MyHeritage, FamilyTreeDNA and 23andMe  using the Genetic Affairs program.  

*  Did not add much to my DNA Painter chromosome mapping based on known common ancestors on MyHeritageDNA, FamilyTreeDNA, and 23andMe.

5)  Genealogy Research and Family Trees

*  Used RootsMagic 9 as my "master" family tree program on my desktop and laptop computers.  See RootsMagic Genealogy Database Statistics Update - 1 January 2024 for my progress on my family tree.  

*  Continued to research, find, source and enter information on my ancestors and descendants of my 4th great-grandparents to help find common ancestors with DNA matches.  
*  Used the WebHints for Ancestry, MyHeritage, Findmypast, and FamilySearch to add content (names, relationships, events, dates, places, notes and source citations) for records found that apply to each profile.  
*  Searched for more records for selected profiles on all of the sites, adding content and source citations for records found that apply to each person profile.  
*  Mined selected record collections on Ancestry (using the specific database tool for Ancestry Member Tree profiles), on MyHeritage (finding Record Matches for a specific collection for my MyHeritage tree profiles), on Findmypast (Record Hints on Findmypast tree profiles), and on FamilySearch Record Hints for FamilySearch Family Tree profiles.
*  TreeShared each week the changes to the RootsMagic tree to my latest Ancestry Member Tree, which generates more Record Hints for those profiles.  Updated my MyHeritage tree using GEDCOM in early 2023.
*  Matched my RootsMagic profiles with FamilySearch Family Tree profiles on a regular basis using the FamilySearch tools in RootsMagic, and added or edited Family Tree profiles and/or RootsMagic profiles to add content, notes and source citations.

*  The General Society of Mayflower Descendants membership application process is still on hold after submitting the preliminary form.

6)  Family Photos

*  Reorganized my family photos into major families - mine and Linda's, our daughter's families, my parents, Seavers, Carringers, Lelands.  

*  Found several caches of family photos and artifacts hiding in the genealogy cave closet, file cabinets, and file boxes.

*  Used the MyHeritage Reimagine mobile app to image photo album pages and loose photos to add hundreds of photos to my collection.

*  Colorized and enhanced over 600 family photos using the MyHeritage photograph tools.  

7)  Family Stories

*  Wrote 37 stories about my life, many with photographs, for the StoryWorth book I received last year for Christmas.  There are still more to do, and I should have the book ready for publication in 2024.

*  Scanned and OCRed the 37 pages of my Aunt Geraldine Seaver's audio tape transcriptions of her family memories and edited them (the scans and OCR were imperfect!).  I put them in an RTF and PDF document on my computer and saved them in Google Drive, iDrive and FOREVER for now.  

*  Made a presentation and Zoom video of our life since 1970 with over 200 slides, just in time for our wedding anniversary and birthday celebration in October.

*  Started writing biographies about my close relatives (aunts, uncles, cousins, etc.) for 52 Relatives series.

*  Experimented with Artificial Intelligence programs to write ancestor biographies using ChatGPT and MyHeritage AI Biographer.  

8)  Digital Data Maintenance

*  Added digital images of genealogy records, including downloaded books or articles, to my ancestral education, surname and family files on a regular "as found" basis.
*  Added other genealogy-related documents (e.g., CVGS Newsletters, presentation slides and handouts, etc.) to my Genealogy file folder.  
*  Backed up the digital files to Google Drive occasionally and iDrive in the cloud daily, and some files to Dropbox for transfer to the laptop on an as-needed basis.  

9)  Summary

*  I do this almost every day for 5 to 11 hours a day seemingly chained to my computer; plus eat and sleep, but I usually take a mid-day nap to recharge. A lot of my reading of email, blogs and social media are done on my phone now.  I worked about 2,000 hours on genealogy-related activities in 2023.  I didn't make any money doing this but spent some.  I think I'm my own boss.  I made some discoveries and had a lot of genea-fun.  

*  We celebrated our 53.5 year anniversary (we missed out on our 50th in March 2020), my 80th birthday and Linda's 81st birthday in October at our church with 70 in attendance, plus an Elvis impersonator who sang for 90 minutes.  It was the first time Linda was seen by many of our friends since June 2021 when she broke her hip.

*  The year saw improved health for me - I had a pacemaker installed in September to stabilize my heart rate, slept better, but have lapsed into eating sweets again.  I'm trying to walk a bit every day.

*   I love having time for family activities (occasional visits with the daughters and grandkids - some calls on Facetime).  I visit Linda in her skilled nursing and memory care facility almost every day for an hour.  I watched Padres baseball on TV, Chargers and NFL football on TV, and Aztecs football/basketball on TV, and read the newspaper, genealogy magazines, and fiction books (mostly mystery books) while watching TV.  Then there's household chores (shopping, cooking, laundry and cleaning, but I'm lax - I did buy a Roomba to help!).  I check Facebook and Twitter daily, and read or watch local news and political news/events online, on my phone, and on TV. 

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

The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2023/12/randys-genealogy-activity-highlights.html

Copyright (c) 2023, 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, Google+ or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.