By
By
Webinar Library
Best of ESM Webinar Shorts

Genealogy’s Biggest Challenge: Identity!

Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL
Jan 18, 2024
1.7K views
CC
Free
Want to watch the full webinar?
Join now to access all 2,318 webinars and unlock all features.
Join now
Join now

Content

Play. Playing.
Interview
13m 19s

About this webinar

Elizabeth Shown Mills and Geoff Rasmussen preview the second year of “The Best of Elizabeth Shown Mills: Genealogy Problem Solving” webinar series. Elizabeth discusses what she hopes genealogists will gain from the series, what brings her back for another year, and what advice she has for genealogists of all expertise levels. She also reveals genealogy’s biggest challenge—identity—and how we will overcome it through this year’s classes.

About the speakers

About the speakers

Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL
Across a long career, Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL, FASG, FUGA, FNGS, has been an innovator of research methods and strategies. Published widely by academic and popular presses, she edited a national-level scholarly journal for 16 years, taught
Learn more...

Geoff Rasmussen
Geoffrey D. Rasmussen is the father of four budding genealogists. He graduated with a degree in Genealogy and Family History from Brigham Young University and has served as director and vice-president of the Utah Genealogical Association. He is th
Learn more...

Comments (8)

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

1000 characters remaining
Cancel Submit

Sort by Newest
Sort by Close.
  • Newest
  • Oldest
  • Likes
  1. CC
    Cathy Cline
    11 months ago

    So looking forward to this series! I have an identity question about a Norwegian great-grandfather with the oh so popular surname of Anderson!

    Reply
  2. CL
    Celia Lewis
    11 months ago

    She helps us so much in our research methodology, analysis, and proofs! Along with other webinars, Legacy Webinars is a one-stop-shop for genealogy education, with ESM at the head!! So glad to see she’s back again, and I love her theme of Identity!

    Reply
  3. MG
    Marjorie Geiser
    11 months ago

    It’s always great to see ESM’s face in a live interview, and I’m THRILLED that she’s back for another year. And thank you Legacy for creating a members-only perk of membership.
    I still need to go back and re-watch all of last year’s classes and start working on some of my brick walls.

    Reply
  4. CZ
    catherine zahn
    11 months ago

    So true! My brother went to school with a classmate who had the same name as him. The difference was their middle name…his was Edwin; the other boy’s was Edward. My grandfather went to pick him up from school and they sent the other boy! Fortunately we moved after that. But the genealogist in me always wondered if the other boy was related to us…I may never know!

    Reply
  5. DL
    Dana Leeds
    11 months ago

    Excited to have ESM teach us more about establishing identities this year!

    Reply
  6. ED
    Elaine Drury
    11 months ago

    We are so blessed to have another year of ESM

    Reply
  7. LD
    Lene Draeby Kottal
    11 months ago

    Great News – thanks!

    Reply
  8. PD
    Patricia D Marinelli
    11 months ago

    Looking forward to the new series with Elizabeth Shown Mills.

    Reply

Related Webinars

9:38
Best of ESMWebinar Shorts
Elizabeth Shown Mills reveals her secret to success in genealogy
Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL
5.2K views
CC
Free
Elizabeth Shown Mills reveals her secret to success in genealogy
As the genealogy world anxiously awaits the January 27, 2023 return of Elizabeth Shown Mills, Geoff Rasmussen had the pleasure to interview Elizabeth about her new webinar series. She talks about why she's returning from retirement, what the webinar series is all about, and gives advice for both beginning and experienced genealogists. She also reveals her secret to success in genealogy.
Best of ESMWebinar Shorts
Elizabeth Shown Mills reveals her secret to success in genealogy
CC
Free
Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL
5.2K views
As the genealogy world anxiously awaits the January 27, 2023 return of Elizabeth Shown Mills, Geoff Rasmussen had the pleasure to interview Elizabeth about her new webinar series. She talks about why she's returning from retirement, what the webinar series is all about, and gives advice for both beginning and experienced genealogists. She also reveals her secret to success in genealogy.
Fri, January 20 2023: 17:00 UTC
Register for free
Advanced
1:11:30
Best of ESMMethodology and Skills
Elusive Ancestors: Never Too Poor to Trace
Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL
4.6K views
CC
Elusive Ancestors: Never Too Poor to Trace
Everyone has ancestors who seem to mysteriously appear and then dissolve into the ether, existing nowhere except a family story, a census, or a Bible entry. When deeds, wills, and other standard records fail to yield more information, “too poor to trace!” is a common conclusion—but a wrong one. Many neglected sources include propertyless men, women, and children. This class explores those sources and defines strategies we can use to develop clues, even from records that do not specifically name our ancestors.
Best of ESMMethodology and Skills
Elusive Ancestors: Never Too Poor to Trace
CC
Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL
4.6K views
Everyone has ancestors who seem to mysteriously appear and then dissolve into the ether, existing nowhere except a family story, a census, or a Bible entry. When deeds, wills, and other standard records fail to yield more information, “too poor to trace!” is a common conclusion—but a wrong one. Many neglected sources include propertyless men, women, and children. This class explores those sources and defines strategies we can use to develop clues, even from records that do not specifically name our ancestors.
Fri, April 14 2023: 21:00 UTC
Register for free
Advanced
1:21:34
Best of ESMMethodology and Skills
Trousers, Black Domestic, Tacks & Housekeeping Bills: Problem-Solving with “Trivial Details”
Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL
3.2K views
CC
Trousers, Black Domestic, Tacks & Housekeeping Bills: Problem-Solving with “Trivial Details”
The records we use are filled with “trivia,” bits and pieces of information that seem to have no “genealogical” value—at least not until we become more innovative in our research and analysis. Each piece of trivia in every document is an opportunity waiting to be connected to something else. Our ability to resolve problems depends upon our ability to make those connections. This class explores eighteen types of records and the kind of hidden clues each offers to help us resolve problems of identity, kinship, and origin. *** This class requires an active webinar membership to attend. ***
Best of ESMMethodology and Skills
Trousers, Black Domestic, Tacks & Housekeeping Bills: Problem-Solving with “Trivial Details”
CC
Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL
3.2K views
The records we use are filled with “trivia,” bits and pieces of information that seem to have no “genealogical” value—at least not until we become more innovative in our research and analysis. Each piece of trivia in every document is an opportunity waiting to be connected to something else. Our ability to resolve problems depends upon our ability to make those connections. This class explores eighteen types of records and the kind of hidden clues each offers to help us resolve problems of identity, kinship, and origin. *** This class requires an active webinar membership to attend. ***
Fri, January 27 2023: 19:00 UTC
Register for free
Advanced
1:19:53
Best of ESMMethodology and Skills
Smiths & Joneses: Success with Families of Common Name
Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL
3.1K views
CC
Smiths & Joneses: Success with Families of Common Name
“Identity theft” happens easily with common-name families. This session uses two case studies from two different societies—a Jones family from the Northern U.S. and a Smith family from the South—to demonstrate how to work safely with common-name families. The first ten minutes ground the audience in four problem-solving models. On that foundation, Mills then walks her class through sources and strategies that are often overlooked amid today’s reliance upon database searches, provider hints, and crowd-sourcing. *** This class requires an active webinar membership to attend. ***
Best of ESMMethodology and Skills
Smiths & Joneses: Success with Families of Common Name
CC
Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL
3.1K views
“Identity theft” happens easily with common-name families. This session uses two case studies from two different societies—a Jones family from the Northern U.S. and a Smith family from the South—to demonstrate how to work safely with common-name families. The first ten minutes ground the audience in four problem-solving models. On that foundation, Mills then walks her class through sources and strategies that are often overlooked amid today’s reliance upon database searches, provider hints, and crowd-sourcing. *** This class requires an active webinar membership to attend. ***
Fri, February 24 2023: 19:00 UTC
Login to register (for webinar members)
Login to register (for webinar members)
1:18:24
Best of ESMMethodology and Skills
Finding Fathers: Tracking Males Who “Disappeared” or “Just Showed Up”
Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL
3.0K views
CC
Finding Fathers: Tracking Males Who “Disappeared” or “Just Showed Up”
The legendary Choctaw Chief Pushmataha swore that he sprang full grown from Mother Earth. As genealogists, we sometimes wonder whether our ancestors did the same. Most elusive men do have traceable origins, once we learn to deal with the issues that thwart us—migration, high mortality rates, and illegitimacy being not the least of them. This hour offers practical suggestions and strategies for extending paternal lines, focusing upon the pre-1850 period when censuses don’t identify children in parental households.
Best of ESMMethodology and Skills
Finding Fathers: Tracking Males Who “Disappeared” or “Just Showed Up”
CC
Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL
3.0K views
The legendary Choctaw Chief Pushmataha swore that he sprang full grown from Mother Earth. As genealogists, we sometimes wonder whether our ancestors did the same. Most elusive men do have traceable origins, once we learn to deal with the issues that thwart us—migration, high mortality rates, and illegitimacy being not the least of them. This hour offers practical suggestions and strategies for extending paternal lines, focusing upon the pre-1850 period when censuses don’t identify children in parental households.
Fri, January 26 2024: 19:00 UTC
Register for free
Advanced
1:16:38
Best of ESMMethodology and Skills
Okay, I ‘Got the Neighbors’—Now What Do I Do with Them?!
Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL
2.5K views
CC
Okay, I ‘Got the Neighbors’—Now What Do I Do with Them?!
We’ve all heard the mantra Get the Neighbors! But exactly how do we use “other people’s” information to solve problems of identity, kinship, and origin for our own ancestors? This session teaches critical skills for building networks around problem ancestors, methods for analyzing and prioritizing associations, and strategies for milking clues from the records those neighbors created. All can be developed into solutions for our toughest research problems.
Best of ESMMethodology and Skills
Okay, I ‘Got the Neighbors’—Now What Do I Do with Them?!
CC
Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL
2.5K views
We’ve all heard the mantra Get the Neighbors! But exactly how do we use “other people’s” information to solve problems of identity, kinship, and origin for our own ancestors? This session teaches critical skills for building networks around problem ancestors, methods for analyzing and prioritizing associations, and strategies for milking clues from the records those neighbors created. All can be developed into solutions for our toughest research problems.
Fri, April 28 2023: 18:00 UTC
Login to register (for webinar members)
Login to register (for webinar members)
Advanced
1:17:52
Best of ESMMethodology and Skills
What’s the Evidence? How to Probe Documents Beyond the Obvious
Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL
2.5K views
CC
What’s the Evidence? How to Probe Documents Beyond the Obvious
Whatever our research dilemma, a correct solution depends upon a reliable evaluation of the evidence we are using. Evidence is not concrete. It is not definitive. It is not a source. It is not a fact. It is not “proof.” It is, instead, our interpretation of what a piece of information means. Evidence is both singular and collective. We analyze it piece by piece. We correlate each piece with everything else discoverable, and then we analyze the whole to reach conclusions that are reliable. This session walks us through the three levels at which each piece of information should be evaluated, in order to draw a reliable conclusion from it. The principles are then illustrated with a common but thorny problem: a Revolutionary War–era case study that might be called: How to Identify Someone Who’s Been Mangled by ‘Facts.’ *** This class requires an active webinar membership to attend. ***
Best of ESMMethodology and Skills
What’s the Evidence? How to Probe Documents Beyond the Obvious
CC
Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL
2.5K views
Whatever our research dilemma, a correct solution depends upon a reliable evaluation of the evidence we are using. Evidence is not concrete. It is not definitive. It is not a source. It is not a fact. It is not “proof.” It is, instead, our interpretation of what a piece of information means. Evidence is both singular and collective. We analyze it piece by piece. We correlate each piece with everything else discoverable, and then we analyze the whole to reach conclusions that are reliable. This session walks us through the three levels at which each piece of information should be evaluated, in order to draw a reliable conclusion from it. The principles are then illustrated with a common but thorny problem: a Revolutionary War–era case study that might be called: How to Identify Someone Who’s Been Mangled by ‘Facts.’ *** This class requires an active webinar membership to attend. ***
Fri, June 23 2023: 18:00 UTC
Login to register (for webinar members)
Login to register (for webinar members)
Advanced
1:17:07
Best of ESMMethodology and Skills
Dissection & Analysis of Research Problems: 10 Steps to a Solution
Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL
2.3K views
CC
Dissection & Analysis of Research Problems: 10 Steps to a Solution
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 an active webinar membership to attend. ***
Best of ESMMethodology and Skills
Dissection & Analysis of Research Problems: 10 Steps to a Solution
CC
Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL
2.3K views
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 an active webinar membership to attend. ***
Fri, October 27 2023: 18:00 UTC
Login to register (for webinar members)
Login to register (for webinar members)
Advanced
1:14:30
Places and EthnicitiesBest of ESMMethodology and SkillsWebtember
Using Negative Evidence: The Power of Silence in the Records
Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL
2.7K views
CC
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. ***
Places and EthnicitiesBest of ESMMethodology and SkillsWebtember
Using Negative Evidence: The Power of Silence in the Records
CC
Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL
2.7K views
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. ***
Fri, September 22 2023: 19:30 UTC
Register for free