Help! How do I separate genealogical fact from fiction?
Thu, October 12 2023: 0:00 UTC
We sit at our computer searching for information about our ancestors and … click … we find something new and intriguing. But wait: it contradicts something else we’ve found. Clearly, both pieces of information can’t be true. So which is true and which isn’t? Or are both untrue? HELP! Until recently, most researchers developed their evidence-analysis skills by a process of trial-and-error. Unfortunately, many researchers have erred more than tried and seem to be the ones most prolific in publishing the results of their “research” on the internet. Yet these errors can prove disastrous, gobbling up our precious time and money as we search in the wrong place – or worse, as we pursue the wrong ancestral line. So how do we ensure that our conclusions are accurate? This seminar will show you how to evaluate our ancestral information – that is, how to weight each piece of information to determine its accuracy – using a clear, logical, easy-to-follow system. After learning these skills you’ll easily be able to determine which information is reliable and which is like a virus that can destroy all your hard work.
We sit at our computer searching for information about our ancestors and … click … we find something new and intriguing. But wait: it contradicts something else we’ve found. Clearly, both pieces of information can’t be true. So which is true and which isn’t? Or are both untrue? HELP! Until recently, most researchers developed their evidence-analysis skills by a process of trial-and-error. Unfortunately, many researchers have erred more than tried and seem to be the ones most prolific in publishing the results of their “research” on the internet. Yet these errors can prove disastrous, gobbling up our precious time and money as we search in the wrong place – or worse, as we pursue the wrong ancestral line. So how do we ensure that our conclusions are accurate? This seminar will show you how to evaluate our ancestral information – that is, how to weight each piece of information to determine its accuracy – using a clear, logical, easy-to-follow system. After learning these skills you’ll easily be able to determine which information is reliable and which is like a virus that can destroy all your hard work.
Steamer Kate Explosion: Correlating Indirect Evidence to Identify and Correct an Error
Wed, October 18 2023: 0:00 UTC
What happens when the indirect evidence of a death occurring and a probate record don’t agree? The research begins in earnest! That’s what happened in the case of the death of Antoine/Anthony Lallament of Mobile, Alabama. Who is Antoine and what relationship is he to me? When did he actually die? Which record is correct? What would other available records reveal? How is the explosion of the Steamer Kate involved? We have more questions than answers. This case study provides the research methodology involved in solving this problem.
What happens when the indirect evidence of a death occurring and a probate record don’t agree? The research begins in earnest! That’s what happened in the case of the death of Antoine/Anthony Lallament of Mobile, Alabama. Who is Antoine and what relationship is he to me? When did he actually die? Which record is correct? What would other available records reveal? How is the explosion of the Steamer Kate involved? We have more questions than answers. This case study provides the research methodology involved in solving this problem.
Landowners but legal laymen, America’s early justices of the peace served up ground-level justice and local governance, creating records unparalleled for genealogists.
Landowners but legal laymen, America’s early justices of the peace served up ground-level justice and local governance, creating records unparalleled for genealogists.
Deconstructing Family Stories: Are They Fact, Fiction, or a Little of Both (a 2023 Reisinger Lecture)
Fri, October 20 2023: 15:30 UTC
We all have them—family stories—from Indian princesses and three brothers came to America to “We’re related to Benjamin Franklin.” Some are blatantly false; others wishful thinking. But, others may be true or partly true. Discarding even the most outrageous without research is a mistake. Finding the clues in family stories requires careful and thorough research, but that kernel of truth can be worth it.
This class is presented live at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City as part of the Joy Reisinger Memorial Lecture Series and is being broadcasted by Legacy Family Tree Webinars.
We all have them—family stories—from Indian princesses and three brothers came to America to “We’re related to Benjamin Franklin.” Some are blatantly false; others wishful thinking. But, others may be true or partly true. Discarding even the most outrageous without research is a mistake. Finding the clues in family stories requires careful and thorough research, but that kernel of truth can be worth it.
This class is presented live at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City as part of the Joy Reisinger Memorial Lecture Series and is being broadcasted by Legacy Family Tree Webinars.
Lineage of Land: Tracing Property Without Recorded Deeds (a 2023 Reisinger Lecture)
Fri, October 20 2023: 16:45 UTC
This case study traces a piece of property for two hundred years, from the Native Americans to the Dutch, to the English, and through fourteen members of the Hicks family over five generations. Transfer of title occurs through various instruments, including patents, unrecorded deeds, inheritance, escheatment, private laws, entails, deeds of lease and release, life estates, and coverture. Tracing the lineage of the property elucidates family relationships that were otherwise forgotten.
This class is presented live at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City as part of the Joy Reisinger Memorial Lecture Series and is being broadcasted by Legacy Family Tree Webinars.
This case study traces a piece of property for two hundred years, from the Native Americans to the Dutch, to the English, and through fourteen members of the Hicks family over five generations. Transfer of title occurs through various instruments, including patents, unrecorded deeds, inheritance, escheatment, private laws, entails, deeds of lease and release, life estates, and coverture. Tracing the lineage of the property elucidates family relationships that were otherwise forgotten.
This class is presented live at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City as part of the Joy Reisinger Memorial Lecture Series and is being broadcasted by Legacy Family Tree Webinars.
The Many Wives of Howard William Lowe: Working with Social History to Glean Genealogical Insights (a 2023 Reisinger Lecture)
Fri, October 20 2023: 19:30 UTC
Genealogists are expected to conduct research not just reasonably exhaustively but also broadly. Understanding the social milieu of the specific time and place within which an individual lived is an essential element of broad research. A case study focusing on an early twentieth-century blue-collar worker in western Minnesota and his several wives illustrates how social history provides insights illuminating their lives.
This class is presented live at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City as part of the Joy Reisinger Memorial Lecture Series and is being broadcasted by Legacy Family Tree Webinars.
Genealogists are expected to conduct research not just reasonably exhaustively but also broadly. Understanding the social milieu of the specific time and place within which an individual lived is an essential element of broad research. A case study focusing on an early twentieth-century blue-collar worker in western Minnesota and his several wives illustrates how social history provides insights illuminating their lives.
This class is presented live at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City as part of the Joy Reisinger Memorial Lecture Series and is being broadcasted by Legacy Family Tree Webinars.
Assumptions: Problem-Solving Friend or Foe? (a 2023 Reisinger Lecture)
Fri, October 20 2023: 20:45 UTC
Do you have an unsolved research problem? Have you critically examined assumptions made during the research process? Some assumptions are valid, or even fundamental, but incorrect or misguided assumptions can act as mortar for genealogical brick walls. Learn to recognize, categorize, and address various types of assumptions to form sound genealogical conclusions.
This class is presented live at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City as part of the Joy Reisinger Memorial Lecture Series and is being broadcasted by Legacy Family Tree Webinars.
Do you have an unsolved research problem? Have you critically examined assumptions made during the research process? Some assumptions are valid, or even fundamental, but incorrect or misguided assumptions can act as mortar for genealogical brick walls. Learn to recognize, categorize, and address various types of assumptions to form sound genealogical conclusions.
This class is presented live at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City as part of the Joy Reisinger Memorial Lecture Series and is being broadcasted by Legacy Family Tree Webinars.
DNA Analysis Methodology: Defeat the Genealogy Gremlin with Pedigree Evaluation, Mitigation, and Reasoning (a 2023 Reisinger Lecture)
Fri, October 20 2023: 22:00 UTC
Learn the tried-and-true methodology to defeat the Genealogy Gremlin and achieve accurate results using DNA for genealogy. This lecture discusses the evaluation of match pedigrees to identify potential snafus and demonstrates mitigation strategies to address the problem. Don’t let researcher confirmation bias pollute your family trees!
This class is presented live at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City as part of the Joy Reisinger Memorial Lecture Series and is being broadcasted by Legacy Family Tree Webinars.
Learn the tried-and-true methodology to defeat the Genealogy Gremlin and achieve accurate results using DNA for genealogy. This lecture discusses the evaluation of match pedigrees to identify potential snafus and demonstrates mitigation strategies to address the problem. Don’t let researcher confirmation bias pollute your family trees!
This class is presented live at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City as part of the Joy Reisinger Memorial Lecture Series and is being broadcasted by Legacy Family Tree Webinars.
“She Came From Nowhere…” – A Case Study Approach to a Difficult Genealogical Problem
Wed, October 25 2023: 18:00 UTC
This lecture illustrates the joys and pitfalls of Virginia research as well as a employing a problem-solving approach utilizing social history, female research, and family analysis to identify the parents of Elizabeth Stith, the ancestor “from nowhere.” One need not have Virginia ancestors to see the Genealogical Proof Standard at work!
This lecture illustrates the joys and pitfalls of Virginia research as well as a employing a problem-solving approach utilizing social history, female research, and family analysis to identify the parents of Elizabeth Stith, the ancestor “from nowhere.” One need not have Virginia ancestors to see the Genealogical Proof Standard at work!
Dissection & Analysis of Research Problems: 10 Steps to a Solution
Fri, October 27 2023: 18:00 UTC
Solutions to tough problems are not just “found.” They are analytically constructed. This session explains how to break down problems into their most-critical elements. It summarizes the types of questions and tests that should be applied to each. Then it demonstrates how to analyze, rank, and assemble the resulting answers into an effective research plan. In this process you’ll walk through ten steps, learning how to apply micro and macro analysis, evaluate prior conclusions, argue with their evidence, develop targeted worksheets, and complete a plan of action that can be pursued as time permits.
*** This class requires a password and an active webinar membership to attend. On the day of the webinar, obtain the password (located at the top of FamilyTreeWebinars.com when logged in as a member). Then click the Join Webinar link in your confirmation/reminder email, and enter the password when prompted. ***
Solutions to tough problems are not just “found.” They are analytically constructed. This session explains how to break down problems into their most-critical elements. It summarizes the types of questions and tests that should be applied to each. Then it demonstrates how to analyze, rank, and assemble the resulting answers into an effective research plan. In this process you’ll walk through ten steps, learning how to apply micro and macro analysis, evaluate prior conclusions, argue with their evidence, develop targeted worksheets, and complete a plan of action that can be pursued as time permits.
*** This class requires a password and an active webinar membership to attend. On the day of the webinar, obtain the password (located at the top of FamilyTreeWebinars.com when logged in as a member). Then click the Join Webinar link in your confirmation/reminder email, and enter the password when prompted. ***
Finding Females in US Naturalization Records, 1790-1945
Wed, November 1 2023: 18:00 UTC
Whether you’re missing a naturalization record or finding an unexpected one, this session helps you discover how female ancestors — both foreign-born and birthright — gained, lost, or regained citizenship in the United States between 1790 and 1945. US citizenship and attendant rights for women could be fragile, depending on marital status, prevailing laws, social norms, and other shifting factors. Examples of US naturalization and citizenship records, and search strategies for finding these records are featured in this presentation.
Whether you’re missing a naturalization record or finding an unexpected one, this session helps you discover how female ancestors — both foreign-born and birthright — gained, lost, or regained citizenship in the United States between 1790 and 1945. US citizenship and attendant rights for women could be fragile, depending on marital status, prevailing laws, social norms, and other shifting factors. Examples of US naturalization and citizenship records, and search strategies for finding these records are featured in this presentation.
Adherence to standards is imperative for anyone who endeavors to reach credible genealogical conclusions. The Board for Certification of Genealogists (BCG)publishes the field’s only comprehensive set of criteria(standards)for evaluating genealogical work products. Significantly, application of the standards set forth in BCG’s publication is not limited to those who aspire to obtain the Certified Genealogist® credential—they are community wide standards used in producing family histories, client reports ,blogs, and other offerings.
Adherence to standards is imperative for anyone who endeavors to reach credible genealogical conclusions. The Board for Certification of Genealogists (BCG)publishes the field’s only comprehensive set of criteria(standards)for evaluating genealogical work products. Significantly, application of the standards set forth in BCG’s publication is not limited to those who aspire to obtain the Certified Genealogist® credential—they are community wide standards used in producing family histories, client reports ,blogs, and other offerings.
Examine migration patterns from Wales to the US and Canada, looking at the push and pull factors. An understanding of the group migration and historical processes can help in determining the place of origin. We will examine all the Welsh settlements in the US and Canada.
Examine migration patterns from Wales to the US and Canada, looking at the push and pull factors. An understanding of the group migration and historical processes can help in determining the place of origin. We will examine all the Welsh settlements in the US and Canada.
Mini Case Studies Demonstrate Finding a Town of Origin
Finding your immigrant ancestor’s town of origin is an essential piece of information. With it, the family line can be extended across the ocean. Trips to visit the homeland may be planned. Have you spent years searching for this elusive piece of information? This lecture uses mini case studies to demonstrate strategies for finding a village of origin.
Finding your immigrant ancestor’s town of origin is an essential piece of information. With it, the family line can be extended across the ocean. Trips to visit the homeland may be planned. Have you spent years searching for this elusive piece of information? This lecture uses mini case studies to demonstrate strategies for finding a village of origin.
Using Negative Evidence: The Power of Silence in the Records
Can genealogists take a negative (the absence of something) and develop it into a positive (proof of something)? Yes! If we understand what we’re working with and how to develop it. Negative evidence is a tool used by many investigative fields; but its definition varies between disciplines. This session defines the concept used by genealogists and historians: contextually suggestive silence. In layman’s language, Mills clearly separates negative evidence from concepts that are often confused with it: negative searches, negative findings, negative arguments, and negative conclusions. Case studies using autosomal and Y-DNA, censuses, church records, death certificates, land deeds and grants, topo maps, and other source types to demonstrate how to recognize contextually suggestive silence and develop it into solutions for situations in which no document explicitly answers our research question.
*** This class requires a password and an active webinar membership to attend. On the day of the webinar, obtain the password (located at the top of FamilyTreeWebinars.com when logged in as a member). Then click the Join Webinar link in your confirmation/reminder email, and enter the password when prompted. ***
Can genealogists take a negative (the absence of something) and develop it into a positive (proof of something)? Yes! If we understand what we’re working with and how to develop it. Negative evidence is a tool used by many investigative fields; but its definition varies between disciplines. This session defines the concept used by genealogists and historians: contextually suggestive silence. In layman’s language, Mills clearly separates negative evidence from concepts that are often confused with it: negative searches, negative findings, negative arguments, and negative conclusions. Case studies using autosomal and Y-DNA, censuses, church records, death certificates, land deeds and grants, topo maps, and other source types to demonstrate how to recognize contextually suggestive silence and develop it into solutions for situations in which no document explicitly answers our research question.
*** This class requires a password and an active webinar membership to attend. On the day of the webinar, obtain the password (located at the top of FamilyTreeWebinars.com when logged in as a member). Then click the Join Webinar link in your confirmation/reminder email, and enter the password when prompted. ***
10 Things To Do Before Leaving a Library or Archives
Have you ever gotten home from a genealogy research trip or left a genealogy website and said to yourself “I forgot to do that!”. Learn the 10 vital things every genealogist should do before leaving a library or archives building or website to make your next research trip to an archives physical building or visit to an archive’s website successful.
Have you ever gotten home from a genealogy research trip or left a genealogy website and said to yourself “I forgot to do that!”. Learn the 10 vital things every genealogist should do before leaving a library or archives building or website to make your next research trip to an archives physical building or visit to an archive’s website successful.
Life Cycle of a Record: From Clerks and Clerics to You, The Digital User
What are you looking at? Where did it come from? Why was it created? How did it get online? Records from the past didn’t just show up digitally one day as if by magic. From record creation to storage to archiving and (hopefully) preservation, records made their way through various formats and institutions before showing up online. Understanding the history of a source, its life before the Internet, and the context in which it exists online today can help you discover more about the genealogical information it contains and the quality of that information, propelling your research forward.
What are you looking at? Where did it come from? Why was it created? How did it get online? Records from the past didn’t just show up digitally one day as if by magic. From record creation to storage to archiving and (hopefully) preservation, records made their way through various formats and institutions before showing up online. Understanding the history of a source, its life before the Internet, and the context in which it exists online today can help you discover more about the genealogical information it contains and the quality of that information, propelling your research forward.
Witnesses are not afterthoughts tacked onto the end of documents. Although they filled a routine role for our ancestors, they are significant informants for us—once we learn how to use those names to develop evidence. This session approaches the topic in two ways: theory and application. It explores record types that offer witnesses, ways in which witnesses were used, situations that affected the choice of witnesses, signals that indicate whether a witness would be important to our research, and methods to apply in our development of the clues they offer. A challenging case study presents an unmarried freedwoman, never named in any census, who died about 1817—and applies key strategies to determine her death and burial sites.
Witnesses are not afterthoughts tacked onto the end of documents. Although they filled a routine role for our ancestors, they are significant informants for us—once we learn how to use those names to develop evidence. This session approaches the topic in two ways: theory and application. It explores record types that offer witnesses, ways in which witnesses were used, situations that affected the choice of witnesses, signals that indicate whether a witness would be important to our research, and methods to apply in our development of the clues they offer. A challenging case study presents an unmarried freedwoman, never named in any census, who died about 1817—and applies key strategies to determine her death and burial sites.
What Happened to Uncle Walter? Evidence Analysis and Correlation Uncover a Man’s Dual Identities
Walter’s family lost touch with him after his 1920 arrest. Learn how collaboration, evidence correlation, and predictive research solved the mystery of Walter’s fate more than a century later.
Walter’s family lost touch with him after his 1920 arrest. Learn how collaboration, evidence correlation, and predictive research solved the mystery of Walter’s fate more than a century later.
Discover online records for German-speaking ancestors from Brandenburg, East Prussia, Pomerania, Posen, Silesia, and West Prussia. Despite some record loss for these geographic areas, hundreds of years of church and civil records can be found in archives in Poland, Germany, and the US, using the search strategies in this presentation.
Discover online records for German-speaking ancestors from Brandenburg, East Prussia, Pomerania, Posen, Silesia, and West Prussia. Despite some record loss for these geographic areas, hundreds of years of church and civil records can be found in archives in Poland, Germany, and the US, using the search strategies in this presentation.
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