10 Practical Uses of AI for Family History with Andrew Redfern -AI series webinar this Friday. This is a members-only series. Login or join to register.

10 Practical Uses of AI for Family History with Andrew Redfern -AI series webinar this Friday. This is a members-only series. Login or join to register.

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Speakers

J. H. (“Jay”) Fonkert, CG

BCG Bonus webinars Historical Records Census Records Methodology and Skills Board for Certification of Genealogists, Brick Walls, Evidence

J. H. (“Jay”) Fonkert researches Dutch Zorgdragers, English Tidballs, and Kentucky Fawkners from his home in Roseville, Minnesota. He is past-president of the Minnesota Genealogical Society and served fifteen years as managing editor of Generations (formerly Minnesota Genealogist). He has published more than 80 research and teaching articles.

J.'s Upcoming Live Webinars (1)

Historical Records
Ten Tantalizing Sources and the Lessons They Teach
J. H. (“Jay”) Fonkert, C...
Fri, October 3 2025: 18:00 UTC
Register for free
Ten Tantalizing Sources and the Lessons They Teach
Fri, October 3 2025: 18:00 UTC
The more research you do, the more unusual records you find, and the more you learn about possibilities for solving seemingly difficult genealogical problems. Enjoy ten favorite sources and learn how they helped solve mysteries. After this webinar, you will be primed to get beyond censuses, vital records, and passenger manifests!
Historical Records
Ten Tantalizing Sources and the Lessons They Teach
J. H. (“Jay”) Fonkert, CG
The more research you do, the more unusual records you find, and the more you learn about possibilities for solving seemingly difficult genealogical problems. Enjoy ten favorite sources and learn how they helped solve mysteries. After this webinar, you will be primed to get beyond censuses, vital records, and passenger manifests!
Fri, October 3 2025: 18:00 UTC
Register for free

J.'s Webinars (4)

48:19
Methodology and SkillsHistorical Records
Deconstructing a Conflicted Census Enumeration: Carrie Peterson aka Clara Moore
J. H. (“Jay”) Fonkert, C...
878 views
CC
Deconstructing a Conflicted Census Enumeration: Carrie Peterson aka Clara Moore
Census enumerations offer invaluable snapshots of families, but like any record, can lead researchers astray. Names may be mangled, ages fudged, or individuals or families be enumerated twice – or not at all. This entertaining presentation follows a Norwegian immigrant family forward and backward in time to untangle the makeup of a 1910 Minnesota family.
Methodology and SkillsHistorical Records
Deconstructing a Conflicted Census Enumeration: Carrie Peterson aka Clara Moore
CC
J. H. (“Jay”) Fonkert, CG
878 views
Census enumerations offer invaluable snapshots of families, but like any record, can lead researchers astray. Names may be mangled, ages fudged, or individuals or families be enumerated twice – or not at all. This entertaining presentation follows a Norwegian immigrant family forward and backward in time to untangle the makeup of a 1910 Minnesota family.
Fri, December 23 2022: 0:30 UTC
Register for free
1:26:45
BCGMethodology and Skills
Turning Raw Information into Evidence: Tips for Drawing and Explaining Conclusions
J. H. (“Jay”) Fonkert, C...
7.3K views
CC
Turning Raw Information into Evidence: Tips for Drawing and Explaining Conclusions
Brush up on your evidence analysis skills. Grasp the difference between direct and indirect evidence. Understand how to logically weave indirect evidence to answer a research question. Learn how to craft a proof statement, a proof summary, or a more complex proof argument.
BCGMethodology and Skills
Turning Raw Information into Evidence: Tips for Drawing and Explaining Conclusions
CC
J. H. (“Jay”) Fonkert, CG
7.3K views
Brush up on your evidence analysis skills. Grasp the difference between direct and indirect evidence. Understand how to logically weave indirect evidence to answer a research question. Learn how to craft a proof statement, a proof summary, or a more complex proof argument.
Tue, April 20 2021: 0:00 UTC
Register for free
1:01:41
BCG
Geo-Genealogy as a Problem-Solving Tool: The Case of a 19th-Century Female Teenage Immigrant
J. H. (“Jay”) Fonkert, C...
5.0K views
CC
Geo-Genealogy as a Problem-Solving Tool: The Case of a 19th-Century Female Teenage Immigrant
Evidence for the home-country origins of 19th-century immigrants can be hard to find. This lecture illustrates how 3-D genealogy (associations, geography, and time), including an expansive geographical search in American records can produce a tight geographical focus in home-county records, leading to the birth family of a single, teenage girl…
BCG
Geo-Genealogy as a Problem-Solving Tool: The Case of a 19th-Century Female Teenage Immigrant
CC
J. H. (“Jay”) Fonkert, CG
5.0K views
Evidence for the home-country origins of 19th-century immigrants can be hard to find. This lecture illustrates how 3-D genealogy (associations, geography, and time), including an expansive geographical search in American records can produce a tight geographical focus in home-county records, leading to the birth family of a single, teenage girl…
Thu, October 8 2020: 0:00 UTC
Register for free
1:10:58
BCGMethodology and SkillsBonus webinars
Genealogical Fingerprints: Merging and Separating Identities in Family History Research
J. H. (“Jay”) Fonkert, C...
1.8K views
Genealogical Fingerprints: Merging and Separating Identities in Family History Research
Merging or separating identities is a core genealogical problem. Sometimes we find a person of the same name in several different places over time. Other times, we find two easily confounded people in the same place and time. A series of short case studies illustrates the importance of certain identity.
BCGMethodology and SkillsBonus webinars
Genealogical Fingerprints: Merging and Separating Identities in Family History Research
J. H. (“Jay”) Fonkert, CG
1.8K views
Merging or separating identities is a core genealogical problem. Sometimes we find a person of the same name in several different places over time. Other times, we find two easily confounded people in the same place and time. A series of short case studies illustrates the importance of certain identity.
Tue, March 15 2016: 0:00 UTC
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