As far back as 2,000 years ago there were lighthouses, with the earliest known in Egypt. As Europeans made their new homes in British America they also needed beacons to protect the craggy shores of this new land and the inland waters.

Imagine you are trapped in an archive and the only way out is to solve a series of genealogy research puzzles. Are you up to the challenge? Are you ready for Genealogy Escape Room™? Based on the popular escape room concept, Genealogy Escape Room™ turns the typical webinar format upside down! Each registrant will receive a Case Review File used to solve a series of online research tasks BEFORE the live webinar takes place. The webinar is the “reveal” where a step-by-step review of each puzzle, task, and clue all the way to the final “key” to open the door. Genealogy methodology concepts will be summarized before announcing who escaped first! The Case of Frank Woodhull: The Only Name Change at Ellis Island. You may have heard in a family story that a family’s surname or even a person’s given name was changed upon arrival in the United States at Ellis Island. This “urban legend” has been discussed and debunked for decades in the genealogy community. Since an immigrant’s name MUST match the ship’s manifesto, most name changes took place AFTER the person was successfully admitted. The change could have been done simply by adopting a new name or by selecting a new name during the citizenship process. But … there is ONE case of a name change of an immigrant at Ellis Island and that person is Frank Woodhull who arrived at New York City on October 4th, 1908. Follow an amazing research journey with twists and turns and you’ll find out how Woodhull lived under an assumed name in the United States for almost 15 years before his fateful return to the US from a holiday in England.

This lecture explores a variety of tools and resources for tracking sea faring ancestors along with examples from research, including: maritime primary sources and collections, vessel types, tracing captains and crews through newspaper reports, following their journeys by plotting ships logs’ latitude and longitude records, and adding context to their lives through historic events affecting mariners. The focus is on nineteenth century records and events.

Family history interviews are invaluable sources for our genealogy research that can also be converted into meaningful keepsake gifts for family. Explore tips and free or inexpensive tools to use with your smartphone, tablet, or laptop to capture family interviews in-person or from afar via Zoom. Learn best practices for planning and directing your interviews.

What began as an experiment has revolutionized genealogy education. Join us as we celebrate 2,000 webinars. We’ll look backwards and peek ahead, plus we’ll give you 10 actionable tips you can use today, taught by 10 different speakers.

Examines the practice of indentured servitude in the Mid-Atlantic states prior to the Revolutionary War.

Our ancestors had to deal with time–time of day, day of the month, the year and how they recorded each. As countries changed from the Julian to the Gregorian calendars, countries implemented those changes differently. Dates were different and the identification of the date of the recorded Moveable Feast Days makes for challenges for the family historian. Multiple methods for determining the date when it is entered as a feast day will be illustrated.

Trivia contests seem to be all the rage now. But if you were ever a fan of the television show Jeopardy or the game Trivial Pursuit, here’s a way to test your genealogy knowledge. With genealogy expert Thomas MacEntee as presenter, you can participate in a fun, fast paced, and educational genealogy trivia game. Every participant will receive a handout at the END of the adventure complete with genealogy trivia questions and answers!

Famine and Family History will look at the parameters of famine, how to recognize whether famine conditions existed in areas where our ancestors lived and what the direct impact of famine was on communities and families.