Monday, July 31, 2017

Website Focuses on Attempts to Unite Families After Slavery

This site is a project of the Graduate Program of the Department of History at Villanova University in collaboration with Mother Bethel AME Church. A group of graduate students search microfilmed post Civil War newspapers for instances of people who were separated from their families reaching out through newspaper ads to make contact.

You can browse the more than 1200 items (ads) or browse the 70 collections (newspapers). At the bottom of the left panel of the landing page is a search bar where you can search by name in those articles that have been indexed.

Check it out at:  Last Seen · Last Seen: Finding Family After Slavery:

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Friday, July 28, 2017

PGS Educational Events for the Week of 30 July to 6 August 2017

Tuesday, 1 Aug 2017 at 10:00 AM--City Directories in Genealogy Research--City directories are a valuable genealogy resource. They can give information on household composition, residence and business location, and insights into the lives our ancestors led. They can also be used as a substitute for the US Federal Census, or used in conjunction with the census to locate hard-to-find ancestors. This class explores the history of this resource, the research value of the information they provide, and where to find the records. Summers, Local History Room, Largo Library.

Names of 8000 American Revolutionary War Prisoners Aboard the Old Jersey Prison ship

The Jersey was one of several ships used as prison and hospital ships during the Revolutionary War. This site lists those used in Wallabout Bay. After April 1780, the Jersey was the receiving ship where names were entered into records.

As states on the website: "This list of names was copied from the papers of the British War Department. There is nothing to indicate what became of any of these prisoners, whether they died, escaped, or were exchanged. The list seems to have been carelessly kept, and is full of obvious mistakes in spelling the names. Yet it shall be given just as it is, except that the names are arranged differently, for easier reference. This list of prisoners is the only one that could be found in the British War Department. What became of the lists of prisoners on the many other prison ships, and prisons, used by the English in America, we do not know."

Check it out at:
American Prisoners of the Revolution Names of 8000 Men Aboard the Old Jersey Prison ship:

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Tuesday, July 25, 2017

Civil War Era Newspapers Online

This site offers selected articles from four Civil War era newspapers from Augusta, Virginia and Franklin, Pennsylvania. You can search the newspapers, browse by date, or  see the articles listed by topic. The articles themselves are transcriptions rather than digitized images.

It may be worth while checking out the link (left had side of the landing page) the the "Valley of the Shadow Home." That takes you to the full archive to explore.

Newspapers:

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Saturday, July 22, 2017

Starksboro, Vermont Cemetery Listings

Thanks to the Starksboro Historical Society of Starksboro, Vermont for their online listing of burials in 13 cemeteries.

Cemetery Page of the Starksboro Historical Society - Starksboro, Vermont (SHS in VT):

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Friday, July 21, 2017

PGS Educational Events for the Week of 23-29 July 2017

Tuesday, 25-Jul-2017 at 11:30 AM--DNA Basics, Manning, Jenkins A, Largo Library.
Tuesday, 25-Jul-2017at 1:00 PM--DNA Interest Group--Share your DNA knowledge and discuss your results with others interested in making DNA Connections.  This is a group for DNA novices to learn together. Manning, Jenkins A, Largo Library.

Wednesday, July 19, 2017

What the Cemetery Can Tell You

Diane Haddad, writing in the Blog Genealogy Insider, gives us an article outlining "9 Things You Can Learn About Your Ancestors From the Cemetery." As familiar as you think you may be about cemetery research, this article is worth looking over...you never know when you can use a refresher.

The article is filled with links that may be helpful, such as one to photos and interpretations of gravestone symbols.

Genealogy Insider - 9 Things You Can Learn About Your Ancestors From the Cemetery:

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Sunday, July 16, 2017

Karen Fortin is Featured Speaker at 19 August 2017 PGS Meeting


Births, Marriages, Deaths Indexes & Census Transcriptions Online for UK Family History and Genealogy

If you have United Kingdom ancestors, you may be interested in the UKBMD website. According to the site: "This site provides 2556 links to websites that offer on-line transcriptions of UK births, marriages, deaths and censuses. A wide range of other indexes and transcriptions are also available for most counties, these may include parish records, wills, monumental inscriptions etc.

Use the menu buttons on the left of the landing page to navigate to the various list of links.

Check it out at:
UKBMD - Births, Marriages, Deaths Indexes & Census Transcriptions Online for UK Family History and Genealogy:

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Friday, July 14, 2017

PGS Events for the Week of 16-22 July 2017

Tuesday, 18-Jul-2017 at 6:00 PM--Familysearch.org—the class will demonstrate how to search the vast databases available on this rapidly-expanding site made available from the LDS (Mormon) genealogy collection. Bryan, Local History Room, Largo Library.
Saturday, 22-Jul-2017 at 10:00 AM--RootsMagic User Group--Questions and answers and demonstrations of how to use the RootsMagic genealogy database software program. Summers, Local History Room, Largo Library.

Thursday, July 13, 2017

The New York City Marriage Index is Free to Search Online

This index is free to access, and contains over 3 million marriage licenses filed in New York City between 1950 and 1995. To start searching, click on the "Start Your Free Search Online" button on the landing page.

You can search by name for either spouse, the license year, or the borough in which the license was filed. Some search tips and tricks are offered as well as a list of frequently asked questions.

The New York City Marriage Index - Reclaim The Records:

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Monday, July 10, 2017

Newburyport, Massachusetts Public Library Provides Historical Newspapers Online

This database from the Newburyport Public Library in Massachusetts allows you to search a collection of historical newspapers by keyword or name, browse by title of the papers, or browse by year of publication.

The years of publication run from 1799 through 1901, and some of the titles include Daily Herald, Newburyport Daily News, and Newburyport Herald Commercial and Country Gazette, to name a few.

Check them out at:
Digital Archives of the Newburyport Public Library :::

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Friday, July 7, 2017

Staten Island Historical Newspapers Online

This link takes you to several online historical newspapers concerning Staten Island, New York. A few of those papers include Staten Island Independent (1894-1895), Richmond County Gazette (1859-1889), and The Staten Island Leader (1866-1928).

The landing page provides a unique timeline that places each of the papers into historical perspective.

Staten Island Historical Newspapers nypl.org/sinewspapers:

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PGS Educational Events for the Week 9-15 July 2017

Tuesday, 11-Jul-2017 at 10:00 AM--Ancestry.com--basic search techniques for getting the most from this huge collection of databases. Bryan, Local History Room, Largo Library.
​Saturday, 15 July 2017--Field Trip to John F. Germany Library in Tampa in lieu of the regular program meeting at Largo Public Library. No Computers in Genealogy meeting this month. Be sure to let Debbie Schuler ( deborah.e.schuler@hotmail.com 
​) know if you can attend this field trip. Meet at
 Largo Library at 9:00 to carpool. Another reminder email to follow.​

Thursday, July 6, 2017

Lee County Genealogical Society to Hold Workshop on 20 July 2017

This news release was just received from our friends at Lee County Genealogical Society, located in Fort Myers:


Monday, July 3, 2017

Fire Insurance Maps Revealed on Cyndi's List

Most of you, I suspect, are familiar with Cyndi's List: the extremely large and wonderfully helpful index of online genealogy websites. In this case I have zeroed in one what she has to offer concerning Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps.

Sanborn's maps reveal detailed information about buildings and neighborhoods where our ancestors many have lived. If you have not explored those maps, you are in for a treat. This listing at Cyndi's List is a good place to start.

Cyndi's List - Maps & Geography - Fire Insurance Maps:

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