Thursday, May 4, 2023

Treasure Chest Thursday -- Marriage Record of 7th Great-Grandparents Thomas Greenman and Mary Weedin in Rhode Island

I looked in my digital image files to see what treasures I can find for my family history and genealogy musings for Treasure Chest Thursday.

The treasure today is the marriage record of Thomas Greenman and Mary Weedin in South Kingstown, Rhode Island:

The marriage record is in the middle of the page:


The transcription of this marriage record is:

"GREENMAN, Thomas (1669-1728) & Mary [WEEDIN] (-1728+); b 1701?; South Kingston, RI"

The source citation for this marriage record is:

"U.S. New England Marriages Prior to 1700," indexed database with digital images, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com), page 324, Thomas Greenman and Mary Weedin marriage entry, South Kingstown, R.I., before 1701; Original data from Torrey, Clarence A., New England Marriages Prior to 1700 (Baltimore, MD : Genealogical Publishing Co., 2004)

This record is a Derivative Source, with Secondary Information and Indirect Evidence of the marriage of Thomas Greenman and Mary Weedin.  Clarence A. Torrey reviewed records from all over New England for marriages that occurred before 1700, and the original records were eventually published in a book.  In this case, there were only records for ancestors and/or descendants, including Thomas Greenman's will, to estimate the marriage as "b[efore] 1701."

Thomas Greenman (c1669-1728) was born about 1669 probably in Newport, Rhode Island, the son of Edward and Mary --?--.  He married Mary Weedin (1673-1743)  in about 1690 (first child was born in 1690) in South Kingstown, and they had five children. 

Thomas and Mary (Weedin) Greenman are my 7th great-grandparents. I am descended through their daughter, Judith Greenman (1694-1786), who married Job Card (1690-1760) before 1716 in Westerly, Rhode Island.

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The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2023/05/treasure-chest-thursday-marriage-record.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, or Pinterest using the icons below. Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Free Access to MyHeritage U.K. Records (4 to 8 May)

 I received this information from Daniel Horowitz of MyHeritage this morning:

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We’re celebrating the upcoming Coronation of King Charles III in true MyHeritage fashion: starting tomorrow, we’re offering free access to all 1.1 billion U.K. historical records, from May 4–8, 2023!

Search all U.K. records for free



There’s no time like the present to discover your British roots and explore your family’s unique place in history. 

MyHeritage’s historical records from the U.K. consist of 635 collections including birth, marriage, and death records, census records, baptisms, wills and probate records, military records, and more. Search for your ancestors and gain valuable insights into their lives through collections such as the 1911 England & Wales Census, England & Wales Index of Wills and Probates, 1853–1943, and United Kingdom, Death Index, 1980–2022

The collections span several centuries of history and cover England, Scotland, Wales, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man.

You can  search the collections for free over the next few days (through 8 May).

NOTE:  You will have to sign into your MyHeritage account in order to use these records.

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Disclosure: I receive a complimentary subscription to MyHeritage, and gave received other material consideration in past years. I uploaded my autosomal DNA raw data to their DNA product. This does not affect my objective analysis of MyHeritage products.  


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, or Pinterest using the icons below. Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Wednesday, May 3, 2023

Genealogy Education Bytes - Week of 27 April to 3 May 2023

Welcome to Genealogy Education Bytes, posted on Wednesday afternoon for the past week, where we try to highlight the most important genealogy and family history education items that came across our desktop since the last issue.


1) Upcoming Conferences, Institutes and Seminars

* Conference Keeper Calendar

* New England Regional Genealogy Consortium (NERGC) 2023 Conference - 3-6 May 2023, In-Person only (Springfield, Mass.)

* 2023 National Genealogical Society (NGS) Family History Conference -- 31 May to 3 June 2023, Virtual and In-Person (Richmond, Virginia).

* International German Genealogy Partnership 2023 Conference - 9-11 June 2023, Virtual and In-Person (Fort Wayne, Indiana).



* Family Tree Webinars - Wednesday, 3 May, 11 a.m.:  Using Multiple WATO Analyses to break through a Brick Wall by Maurice Gleeson.

*  Family Tree Webinars - Friday, 5 May, 11 a.m.:  
Working on the Railroad: Pullman Porters and Maids, by Janice Lovelace

*  Family Tree Webinars - Tuesday, 9 May, 11 a.m.:  The Latest Mobile Features on the MyHeritage App, by Gilad Katz

* Family Tree Webinars - Wednesday, 10 May, 5 p.m.:  A military heritage: Finding your British army lineage in pre-20th century records, by Cathie Sherwood.

3) Recent Podcasts/Radio Shows:




4) Recent YouTube and Facebook Videos:

*  Amie Cross - Genealogy Hints:  
Searching in the WRONG Place - Don't Make This Family History MISTAKE!

*  Allen County Public Library:  Database Dive: MyHeritage
*  Allen County Public Library:  Introduction to Ohio Genealogy Research
*  Allen County Public Library:  Eastern European Family History Online!











*  Legacy Tree Genealogists:  DNA Basics: What is a centimorgan?

*  Lisa Louise Cooke's Genealogy Gems:  5 Reasons You MUST Review Original Genealogy Records

*  The Family History Guide:  TFHG - Thinking Out of the Box in Genealogy 



5) Did you miss the last post in this series - Genealogy Education Bytes - 20  to 26 April 2023?

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The URL for this post is: 
https://www.geneamusings.com/2023/05/genealogy-education-bytes-week-of-27.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, or Pinterest using the icons below. Or contact me by email at   randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Randy Finding the Garter in March 1970 -- Post 766 of (Not So) Wordless Wednesday

 I can't help it, I can't do a wordless post! This is one of my favorite photographs:

One of the wedding traditions that we observed was the tossing of the garter by the bride to the single men of the wedding guests.  The groom has to first find the garter which is usually on the bride's thigh.  Mr. Fumble-fingers took awhile to find it while Linda stabilized on one foot by holding my shoulder down.  We did not practice this!  

We invited Linda's 4th grade class from Crown Elementary School in Coronado to the wedding.  I'm not sure what they were feeling while I was garter hunting - there are no smiles from the girls standing in the background.  I eventually found it and Linda tossed it over her shoulder to the students, rather than to the single men guests.  I don't recall who "won" the garter toss.  It may be a cherished souvenir of a now-63 year old former student.

Unfortunately, we don't have a photo of the tossing of the bouquet by the groom.  I recall that our friend Sherry outfought several others in a mad scramble when I didn't toss it far enough and it landed on the floor.

This is all part of our family history.

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Note: The photo is on the website - click the URL below. Feedly isn't showing my images now.

The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2023/05/randy-finding-garter-in-march-1970-post.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, or Pinterest using the icons below. Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Tuesday, May 2, 2023

Genealogy News Bytes - Week of 26 April to 2 May 2023

 Welcome to Genealogy News Bytes, posted on Tuesday afternoon for the past week, where we try to highlight the most important genealogy and family history news  items that came across our desktop since the last issue.    


1)  News Articles:







2)  Genealogy Software:


3)  Book Notices and Reviews
5)  New or Updated Record Collections:












5)  Did you miss the last post in this series - see Genealogy News Bytes - Week of 19 to 25 April 2023.

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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, or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Seavers in the News -- 1972 Obituary of Love A. Seaver of Redding, California

 Here is this week's edition of "Seavers in the News" - a weekly feature from the historical newspapers about persons with the surname Seaver that are interesting, useful, mysterious, fun, macabre, or add information to my family tree database.

This week's entry is from the Record Searchlight [Redding, Calif.] newspaper dated 3 May 1972, page 29:

The transcription of the article is:

"Love A. Seaver

"Love A. Seaver of Redding died Monday at Mercy Hospital.  She was 48.

"She had been hospitalized for a week.

"She was born Dec. 7, 1923, in California, and had lived in Shasta County less than a year.

"She was a former telephone operator in Norwalk and was a homemaker.

"She was a member of the Norwalk Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

"She leaves a daughter, Robin Lee Seaver of Redding, and a brother, William Wilkinson of Redding.

"Funeral services will be held Friday at the Chapel of Memories mortuary in Norwalk, with interment to follow at Little Lake Cemetery.  Lawncrest Funeral Services is in charge of local arrangements."

The source citation is:

"Love A. Seaver," Record Searchlight [ Redding, Calif.]  newspaper, Wednesday, 3 May 1972, page 29, column 7, Love A. Seaver obituary,   Newspapers.com   (https://www.newspapers.com : accessed 1 May 2023).

This obituary identifies her married name, residence, age, date of birth, date and place of death, names of her daughter and brother, occupation, church affiliation, burial location, but no education,  or other information.  

Love Anna Salsbury (1923-1972) was born 7 December 1923 in Long Beach, California, the daughter of Thomas Lionel and Anna Sorina (Somborger) Salsbury.  She died 1 May 1972 in Redding, California.  She married Roy Alfred Seaver (1914-1969), the son of Leroy Horatio Glenn and Clara Mae (Goalby) Seaver,  on 5 February 1947 in Bakersfield, California.  They had two children:

*  Terri Lyn Seaver (1950-1970),
*  Robin Lee Seaver (1954-????).

Love Anna (Salsbury) Seaver's Find A Grave memorial says:

"Biological Father was Thomas Lionel Salsbury, her mother Anna Sorina Sornborger, remarried to Johnnie Ace Wilkinson, Love Anna took that name as her own at the time of the marriage when she was 12 years old as it was easier, however, she was never adopted by him.

Roy Alfred Seaver (1914-1969) is an 8th cousin twice removed to me.  Our common Seaver ancestor is Robert Seaver (1608-1683).

There are over 10,000 Seaver "stories" in my family tree - and this was one of them.   Life happens, accidentally and intentionally, and sometimes a person has an obituary with only a few living relatives listed. I am glad that I can honor Love Anna (Salsbury)  Seaver today.  

You never know when a descendant or relative will find this blog post and learn something about their ancestors or relatives, or will provide more information about them to me.

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Disclosure:  I have a complimentary subscription to Newspapers.com and have used it extensively to find articles about my ancestral and one-name families.


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,  or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Monday, May 1, 2023

Genealogy Pot-Pourri - Week Ending 30 April 2023

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

1)  Moderated the Chula Vista Genealogical Society (CVGS) General Meeting on Zoom on Wednesday with 62 in attendance.  Lisa Louise Cooke presented "The Genealogist's Google Research Methodology."

2)   Wrote a genealogical sketch for #757 Martha (Ackers) Card (1668-1716) of New Shoreham and South Kingstown, Rhode Island for the 52 Ancestors series on Friday.  I've written 477 of these sketches for my ancestors.

3)  Transcribed the three page 1862 Will of Abram Seaver (1807-1881) of Keene, New Hampshire for the Amanuensis Monday series.

4)  Took photos of some of the treasures found in the closet last week, and wrote about one of them (my father's bowqling scrapbook and photos) in Treasure Chest Thursday - Treasures in the Closet - Part 2: Fred Seaver Bowling Photos.

5) AncestryDNA now has 43,087 DNA matches (up 60 from 24 April) for me today, with one new, but wrong, ThruLines.   I added 1 Note to my new matches.  MyHeritageDNA now has 11,340 DNA matches (up 23 from 24 April) 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 49,422 of my RootsMagic persons with FamilySearch Family Tree profiles (up 24).  

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 70,976 persons in my RootsMagic file (up 20), and 145,944  source citations (up 26). I TreeShared 64 new or modified profiles with my Ancestry Member Tree, and I resolved 390 Ancestry Hints. My Ancestry Member Tree has Ancestry Record Hints with 177,150 to be resolved, but I work on them several times a week.  

8) Wrote 15 Genea-Musings blog posts last week (Monday through Sunday), of which one was a press release. The most viewed post last week was 
Added and Updated Ancestry.com Record Collections - Week of 22 to 28 April 2023 with over 102 views.  Genea-Musings had about 11,200 views last week.  

9)  Real life:  This is week 164 (over three years!) since COVID restrictions started.   I stayed home except for visiting Linda every day at the skilled nursing/memory care facility. Went grocery shopping on Monday and Friday.   Went to the library on Tuesday and spent time with John and Karen in the small room talking genealogy and CVGS.  I'm still sorting out stuff from the closet - save, toss or donate.  The backyard weedwacking is about 60% done now.  I finished reading Dark Hours by Michael Connelly, nnd started Three Days to Live by James Patterson.  The Padres season continued, and I watched all of the games this past week.  They are 15-14 so far (3-2 this past week) and in third place. 

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The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2023/05/genealogy-pot-pourri-week-ending-30.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, or Pinterest using the icons below. Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Amanuensis Monday -- 1862 Will of Abram Seaver (1807-1881) of Keene, New Hampshire

 This week's document for transcription is the 1862 Will of Abram  Seaver (1807-1881) of  Keene, Cheshire County, New Hampshire.

1) Cheshire County, New Hampshire Probate Records - Probate File 1138 - Images 1411-1413 of 1475:

The transcription of this will is:

I Abram Seaver of Keene in the County of
Cheshire and State of New Hampshire, being
sensible of my liableness to sudden death
and being at the same time in my own
apprehension of sound mind, do judge it
best to make and accordingly do hereby
make this my last will and testament.

It is my will that all my just debts and
the charges of my funeral be paid and dis-
charged by my executrix herein after named
and appointed out of my estate as soon
as conveniently may be after my decease
and I leave the charges of my funeral
to the discretion of my said executrix.

I give and bequeath to my son, William
T. Seaver give dollars to be paid as soon
as convenient after my decease by my
said executrix to the said William.

I give and bequeath to my son Edwin
S. Seaver five dollars to be paid to the
said Edwin as soon as convenient after
my decease by my said executrix.

I give, bequeath and devise to my
beloved wife Direxa Seaver all my real
estate, tenements and hereditaments where-
soever situate, and after paying the
legacies, charges and expenses as here-
in before mentioned I also give and
bequeath to my said wife the residue
of all my personal estate hereby meaning
to include those in active rights and
claims, all my goods and chattels of
any and every nature whatsoever, to have
and to hold the said real estate, tenements
and hereditaments and said personal
property to the said Direxa Seaver, her 
heirs and assigns to her own use and
benefit forever.

I do hereby appoint my said wife Di-
rexa Seaver Executrix of this my last
will and testament.

Witness my hand and seal this the
thirtieth day of January AD 1862.
 
                                Abram Seaver  {seal}

Signed, sealed, published and declared
to be the last will and testament of the
said Abram Seaver by the said Abram
Seaver in the presence of us who at his
request in his presence and in the presence
of each other have subscribed our names
as witnesses thereof.

                                H D Randall
                                Stephen Barker
                                Don H. Woodward
                                                                 
The source citation for this probate case file is:

"New Hampshire, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1643-1982," indexed database with record images, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com), Cheshire County, Estate Files S1068-S1140, 1878-1881, File 1138 (images 1402-1419 of  1475), Abram Seaver of Keene, 1881; original data: New Hampshire County, District and Probate Courts.

Abraham "Abram" Seaver (1807-1881) was born 3 November 1807 in Swanzey, New Hampahire, the son of William Hyde and Polly (Pierce) Seaver.  He married Direxa Verry (1810-1884), born 22 March 1810 in Swanzey, New Hampshire, the daughter of Daniel and Rebecca (Cleveland) Verry,  on 16 October 1832 in Winchester, New Hampshire.  Abraham "Abram" Seaver died 9 December 1881 in Keene, New Hampshire.  They had two children:

*  William Taylor Seaver (1833-1904), married 1862 Minnie Melvina Knight (1841-1918).  No children.
*  Edwin Snow Seaver (1838-1884), married 1861 Lydia Bradford Brown (1836-????).  They had one child, Charlotte Maria (Lottie) Seaver (1863-1946), who married 1891 Henry Albert Derby (1868-1945).

The will of Abram Seaver was written on 30 January 1862. His wife, Direxa, was named as the executor of Abram's will.  The will was proved on the third Friday of December 1881.  The inventory was filed on 14 February 1882, and totaled $2000 in real estate and $262.00 in personal estate.  The two sons signed receipts for their $5.00 legacy on 27 November 1882.

Abraham Seaver (1807-1881) is my 4th cousin five times removed.  Our common Seaver ancestor is my 8th great-grandfather Shubael Seaver (1640-1731).

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NOTE: Genea-blogger John Newmark (who writes the excellent TransylvanianDutch blog) started a Monday blog theme years ago called "Amanuensis Monday." John offers this definition for "amanuensis:"

"A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another."

Read other transcriptions of records of my ancestors at Amanuensis Monday Posts.

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, or Pinterest using the icons below. Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Sunday, April 30, 2023

Best of the Genea-Blogs - Week of 23 to 29 April 2023

 Scores of genealogy and family history bloggers write hundreds of posts every week about their research, their families, and their interests. I appreciate each one of them and their efforts.

My criteria for "Best of ..." are pretty simple - I pick posts that advance knowledge about genealogy and family history, address current genealogy issues, provide personal family history, are funny or are poignant. I don't list posts destined for daily blog prompts or meme submissions (but I do include summaries of them), or my own posts.

Here are my picks for great reads from the genealogy blogs for this past week:

*  The Joy of Tithe Records – Finding an Ancestor’s Home and More by Judith Bachelor on Genealogy Jude.

*  Make Ancestry Find the Relationship by Kitty Cooper on Kitty Cooper's Blog.

*  What My DNA Ethnicity Estimates Show & Do Not Show by Lisa S. Gorrell on My Trails Into the Past.

*  Genealogy Information in Funeral and Memorial Books by Kenneth Marks on The Ancestor Hunt.

*   19 Things You Can Do to Enhance Your Family Research by Marie Cooke Beckman on MareB's Genealogy Blog - Southeastern USA.

*  What Is a Sibling Anyway? Full, Half, Three-Quarters, Step, Adopted, Donor-Conceived & Twins by Roberta Estes on DNAeXplained - Genetic Genealogy.

*  5 Reason You MUST Look at Original Records by Lisa Louise Cooke on Lisa Louise Cooke.

*  Verify by Marcia C. Philbrick on Heartland Genealogy.

*  Turning the FAN Club into the FANI Club by Marian B. Wood on Climbing My Family Tree.

*  What Really Happens to Your DNA Sample After You Swab? by Jim Brewster on FamilyTreeDNA Blog.

*  Using AI Effectively for Genealogy Research by the writer on Family Tree Genealogists.

*  Where to Find Property Deeds in Pennsylvania for Family History Research by Denys Allen on PA Research.

Here are pick posts by other geneabloggers this week:

*  Friday's Family History Finds by Linda Stufflebean on Empty Branches on the Family Tree.

*  Friday Fossicking 28th April 2023 by Crissouli on That Moment In Time.

*  This Week's Creme de la  Creme - April 29, 2023 by Gail Dever on Genealogy a la Carte.

Readers are encouraged to go to the blogs listed above and  read their articles, and add the blogs to your Favorites, Feedly, another RSS feed, or email if you like what you read. Please make a comment to them also - all bloggers appreciate feedback on what they write.

Did I miss a great genealogy blog post? Tell me! I currently am reading posts from over 900 genealogy bloggers using Feedly, but I still miss quite a few it seems.

Read past Best of the Genea-Blogs posts here.

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The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2023/04/best-of-genea-blogs-week-of-23-to-29.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, or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.  

RootsMagic Releases Version 9.0.3

 RootsMagic 9, one of the major genealogy software family tree programs, was updated to Version 9.0.3 on 24 April 2023.  In a Facebook post, Bruce Buzbee, the owner of RootsMagic, listed the changes made to the latest version of the program:

New RootsMagic Update (9.0.3)
  • Fixed: WebSearch for Ancestry
  • Fixed: Opening (and closing) a modal form on Mac would often leave the program unresponsive until you clicked on a control first
  • New: Right click on Association View offers option to Delete Association
  • Fixed: Places used only by Associations were showing on the "Unused Places" list
  • Fixed: Mac note editor now uses Cmd+Key for edit commands (Cut, Copy, Paste, etc.)
  • Fixed: Custom reports were lost when importing from RM7 to RM9
  • Fixed: Leading spaces could disappear when saving notes
  • Fixed: HTML website descendant books were displaying family sentences twice
  • Fixed: Customize sentence on relative events in Edit Person was showing the wrong person
  • Fixed: BIC wasn't showing right on FamilySearch ordinances screen or Edit Person
  • Fixed: Crash in FamilySearch compare relations screen when choosing to match with FamilySearch
  • Fixed: Media attached to primary name wasn't showing in Edit Person media album
  • Fixed: Show alternate names wasn't working on select person screen (Relate calc, set relationships, etc.)
  • Fixed: Numerous report issues
  • Fixed: Several FamilySearch issues
  • Fixed: Several Ancestry issues
  • Fixed: Minor bugs
  • Fixed: Cosmetic issues

I immediately downloaded it, but saved a Backup file before doing so.

I'm glad that the Ancestry WebSearch was fixed, an that Ancestry and FamilySearch "issues" were fixed.

My biggest concern before this latest version was that some of the Windows text shortcuts (like dragging text to cut, delete or copy text) did not work well in the Person Notes.  In this latest version, it appears that this was fixed, which will save me time and frustration.

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Disclosure:  I have been a happy RootsMagic user since 2006, and have purchased every new version.  I have not received material considerations from RootsMagic.

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, or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.