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Blog Entries: 1 to 25 of 1414
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WDYTYA returning to NBC
The award-winning TV series "Who Do You Think You Are?" is returning to NBC with 19 new episodes.
Newspaper announcements about the network change don't include the new day/time or a list of the celebrities whose family trees will be featured. |
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Beware obituary "facts"
I recently posted about the passing of my last-surviving aunt. We’ve now returned from traveling to her funeral. It was a joy to see family and friends and celebrate her long life. However her obituary gave me pause.
I’ve always placed great confidence in obituaries as a reliable source for facts about a person’s life. Before this weekend, I would have given a published obituary more credence than most other references.
I assume my aunt’s obit was written by her two children, my cousins, who have always lived near her. They are well-educated, professional people. My aunt would have celebrated her 96th birthday in a few months so her death was not unanticipated, nor the funeral arrangements rushed. The service was scheduled eight days after her death to allow time for grandchildren to travel from neighboring states—plenty of time to double-check the facts in her obituary.
Didn’t anyone else recognize that she and my uncle married in 1942, not 1947 as stated in the obituary? I was present when they celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary—in 1982! If they’d truly married in 1947, their two children would be illegitimate. Didn’t anyone see the glaring mistake?
And my uncle died in 1994, not 1993 as the obit stated. I attended his funeral, too, and I clearly remember the timing because of other events that year.
Maybe these were just typographical errors, I theorized, and I waited for the minister to clarify the correct dates when the obituary was read verbatim during the funeral. No, again I heard 1947 and 1993. The obituary on the funeral home’s website still reflects the bad information.
Cemeteries have moved up in importance based on this experience. I’m happy to report my aunt and uncle’s joint headstone records correct dates including their marriage.
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Passing of the Greatest Generation
My last-surviving aunt passed away last week. Phyllis was 95 ½ years old and had lived life as fully as her physical frailty allowed. She was an avid PBR fan.
I didn’t know what those initials stood for until she told me a few years ago: Professional Bull Riders. Phyllis never missed PBR action on TV and gloried in attending live bull-riding events when her family arranged to take her. She followed the stats and cheered favorite riders. I’ll miss her and the both-sides-of-the-family stories she shared.
Phyllis was the widow of my mother’s brother; she was also my father’s first cousin. We family historians have learned how frequently someone married another person on the same page of the census. That wasn’t precisely the case in this instance, but the two families lived in the same sparsely-populated community in South Dakota.
“Double-cousins” (e.g., the children of two brothers marrying two sisters) weren’t all that unusual in rural areas, even in the mid-20th century. While we kids of the next generation didn’t qualify as double cousins, we were always close.
Tom Brokaw, also a South Dakota native, is credited with coining the phrase “the greatest generation,” to describe those who grew up during the Great Depression and experienced World War II. Aunt Phyllis was my last relative from the greatest generation, which makes her passing even sadder.
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IGSI Classes for 2019
Have some holes in your Irish family tree or some brick walls that you just can’t scale? Consider one or more of the genealogy classes IGSI is offering starting in May.
Taught by highly respected experts and professional genealogists, classes will be held at the Minnesota Genealogy Society (MGS) in Mendota Heights on Irish Saturdays (2nd Saturday) and Celtic Junction Arts Center (CJAC) in St. Paul (3rd Saturday).
Topics include:
* May 11: Using Civil and Church Vital Records to Learn More About Your Irish Ancestors (MGS)
* May 18: So Where Is That? Irish Places and Jurisdictions (CJAC)
* June 8: Tips for Using Ancestry.com to Find Your Irish Ancestors (MGS)
* June 15: On-Site Genealogy Research in Ireland (CJAC)
* July 13: Using Library Resources for Genealogy Research (MGS)
* July 20: Tips for Using Ancestry.com to Find Your Irish Ancestors (CJAC)
* September 14: Magic: Using Griffiths Valuation and Google Earth to Locate Irish Origins and Locations (MGS)
* September 21: Irish Genealogy 101 – Let’s Start at the Beginning (CJAC)
* October 12: Brick Walls (MGS)
* October 19: Irish Census Alternatives: The Information Was Not All Destroyed! (CJAC)
* November 9: Finding an Irish Immigrant’s Place of Origin (MGS)
* November 16: Finding Overseas Ancestors (CJAC)
IGSI members can read full class descriptions and information about the instructors in the April-May edition of the IGSI Ginealas eNewsletter at Ginealas.
Cost: $15 for IGSI members; $20 for non-members.
Put the classes on your calendar now and plan to attend! To register click on "Store" at left. (Login to receive the Member Rate.) |
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Celtic Junction 10th anniversary hooley
Ten years have passed since Celtic Junctions Arts Center (CJAC) opened its doors!
In 2018, Irish Central declared CJAC the best cultural center in North America.
Celebrate their 10th anniversary with a (free) hooley this Saturday, May 4, 6-10 pm.
"What's a hooley?" you ask. An Irish party with music. Sounds like great fun!
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May 11 class on Irish Vital Records
The second Saturday of the month is Irish Saturday with experienced volunteers on hand to help you, plus a class to jump-start your research.
Click on "Activities" at left and you'll see a detailed description of the May 11 offering. Tom Rice will make a presentation on "Using Civil and Church Vital Records to Learn More About Your Irish Ancestors."
Plan now to attend the class at the Library & Research Center, 1385 Mendota Heights Rd, from 10:30 am to 12 noon.
If you're an IGSI member, the cost is only $15. The cost for non-members is just $20. You can pre-register (at left) or pay at the door on May 11.
Plan to stay afterward and take advantage of IGSI's library collection, research websites and volunteer assisters. |
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FTDNA sale extended
Just one more posting about DNA Day: FamilyTreeDNA has extended their 30% off sale on DNA kits to April 28th.
Procrastinators, click here. |
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Happy DNA Day!
DNA Day commemorates the moment 66 years ago when DNA's double helix was discovered. There have been many new developments since 1953, to say the least, including a plethora of DNA test kits.
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Bad spellers of the world, UNTIE!
Many years ago I purchased a small sign proclaiming the title of today's blog, "Bad spellers of the world, untie!"
My mother made every effort to raise children who were good spellers. Starting when I was about 10 years old, she spent at least an hour every evening quizzing me from the True Blue Speller. I vividly recall words that caused me to lose or win spelling contests, i.e., "reveille" in seventh grade and "ptomaine" in eighth grade, respectively.
So I was much amused to read Dick Eastman's blog posting about "Genealogy's Often-Misspelled Words," as well as his readers' perceptive comments about both spelling and usage. Eastman is right: when a person's spelling is incorrect, it's like shouting, "I don't know what I'm doing!"
One of my genealogy-spelling pet peeves is improper use of the words descendant vs. decedent, which can really mess up the meaning of a statement. And apostrophes! Many people apparently missed school the day teachers were addressing contractions and possessives.
If you're feeling even a tiny bit uncomfortable about your spelling prowess, I encourage you to read Eastman's April 18th posting. |
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Social media helps solve family mystery
If you replace a "c" with an "r", Iceland becomes Ireland.
Both are beautifully scenic countries where visitors often post photos on social media.
Here's a story about how that action could unlock a genealogy mystery. |
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Another DNA Day sale
Ancestry is also offering their DNA kit at a reduced price, $69, through April 25th (DNA Day). Order your kit here.
If you've already tested with AncestryDNA, you might want to consider purchasing their new AncestryDNATraits, to "discover 18 fascinating traits your genes influence." No additional test needed. (While the results may be interesting, they won't help you find any new cousins.) |
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DNA Day Sale
Every year FamilyTreeDNA celebrates DNA Day with a special sale.
The discounts are available through Thursday, April 25th (DNA Day). View FamilyTreeDNA's special prices here.
If you're confused about the different types of DNA and how they can help with your genealogy research, this explanation from dna-explained would be a good read. |
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Census Substitutes
The latest issue of "Irish Genealogy Matters," newsletter of www.rootsireland.ie and the Irish Family History Foundation (IFHF), includes a feature article that's good for us to review.
"Census Substitutes" is the source of focus in this newsletter. Here it is, with our thanks to IFHF:
"Many parishes in Ireland have no church registers before 1800 and, therefore, it may not be possible to link with any degree of certainty family connections back through the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.
There are a number of sources referred to as census substitutes that can be searched for the eighteenth century and earlier which might list a name and address of an ancestor, for example:
- Flax Growers' Lists 1796 (list of farmers who grew flax, the raw material of the linen industry);
- Religious Census 1766;
- Protestant Householders Lists 1740;
- Hearth Money Rolls 1663 (tax raised for every hearth or fireplace in a house).
These sources (where they exist) list heads of household only. As no information is provided on family members within each household or relationship between householders, it is not possible to confirm the nature of linkages between named people in these sources. However, these sources are very useful in confirming the presence of a family name in a particular area and in providing some insight into the frequency and distribution of surnames..."
For more infomration about census substitutes available through the Laois/Offaly Centre -- and to read the other newsletter articles -- click here. |
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Moved, left a forwarding address
At the end of 2018 Donna Moughty's blog and website moved to a new address, where she continues to share sage advice about Irish family history research.
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Finding family
Irish Genealogical Society International (IGSI) is always pleased to hear stories about how our resources have been helpful. Here's the text of a recent email message we received:
"Several years ago, I posted on your message board about James CARLIN. That very same day a cousin from Toronto contacted me and we shared info on the Carlins. I have since been to the Carlin farm in Grenville although it is at least 45 minutes from the town of Grenville. Through his persistence and mine we have found many more cousins. I visited the original farm in 2016 having taken a cruise from Boston to Montreal. In this last week another second cousin has sent me a written history of dates and names and places of the Carlin family and how they originated in BELDERIG, COUNTY MAYO, Ireland! This story was written about 1908, but it gave me so much information that I now am thinking another trip to Mayo will be coming up in September. THANK YOU all for helping me. Beth Mullinax was the best."
Our new website doesn't have a message board. However our Surname Interests database now contains nearly 500 surnames which can be researched whether you're an IGSI member or not. Click on the Surname Interests tab at left and see what you can find. Note you do have to be logged in as a member to post information about your family surnames.
For readers who may be new to IGSI, Beth Mullinax was our long-time librarian and volunteer researcher. She has helped many of us break through brick walls and make family connections. To honor Beth's dedicated service, IGSI created the "Beth Mullinax Award," the highest recognition an IGSI volunteer can receive. |
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Lots of news
FINALLY, the source of my Internet problem has been resolved and I'm back blogging!
My sincere thanks to Mary W, IGSI's hard-working webmaster, for helping me get to the bottom of the issue and fixing it.
So many new developments. Here are just a few:
1) The fifth edition of John Grenham's Tracing Your Irish Ancestors has been published. It's grown from 580 pages to 690, which is an indication of how much has changed in Irish genealogy since his 4th edition was published in 2012. I find the book available for $26.65 (with free worldwide shipping) at the Book Depository.
2) The Spring 2019 issue of Irish Lives Remembered is packed with interesting articles, as usual, and is free online!
3) IGSI's new calendar of classes for May, June and July can be viewed here. You now have a choice of two locations, either the MGS Library and Research Center at 1385 Mendota Heights Road (Mendota Heights) or the Celtic Junction Arts Center at 836 Prior Avenue (St Paul).
4) The April-May 2019 Ginealas, IGSI's eNewsletter, is available to members. Check your e-mailbox for the link. Not a member? Join now (click on JOIN at left) so you don't miss receiving the latest news.
Thank you, readers, for your patience and for checking back. |
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Say Nothing...
Today we have a treat, a book review written by an IGSI member and loyal blog-reader. Enjoy:
"This September I am returning to Ireland for two weeks with three friends, none of whom have previously been to Ireland. A few months ago, I decided to re-read Ireland by Frank Delaney. What a delightful way to brush up on Irish history. (OK, historical fiction as told by an itinerant story teller.) I mentioned this book to the three women who will be joining me on this fabulous adventure and they decided to read it too. All thumbs up! I highly recommend Ireland if you have not read it.
I love to read. I can’t sing or play a musical instrument, but I am a very good reader. And I love books by Irish authors. Nuala O’Faolain, Seamus Heaney, James Joyce, W.B. Yeats, Colm Tóibín, Colum McCann, Frank McCourt, George Bernard Shaw, Samuel Beckett, OSCAR WILDE!!! And, of course, our own F. Scott Fitzgerald.
In recent weeks I have been too busy with family and miscellaneous daily tasks to read. But a few days ago I received email notice that a book I reserved was waiting for me in the library. Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland by Patrick Radden Keefe, non-fiction.
I really don’t have time to read, so I am reading this well-written, heart-breaking, but fascinating book from bedtime until midnight. I don’t put the book down until it drops on my face when I fall asleep.
Say Nothing is equal parts mystery and the complicated history of the “Troubles” between Republican Catholics and Loyalist Protestants which Mr. Keefe skillfully weaves together. The book opens with a short prologue, “The Treasure Room”. I don’t want to give anything away so the rest of this is quote from the book’s back cover. “In December 1972, Jean McConville, a widowed mother of ten children, was dragged from her Belfast home by masked intruders, her children clinging to her legs. They never saw her again. Her abduction was one of the most notorious episodes of the vicious conflict known as the Troubles. Everyone in the neighborhood knew the IRA was responsible. But in a climate of fear and paranoia no one would speak of it. In 2003, five years after an accord brought an uneasy peace to Northern Ireland, a set of human bones was discovered on a beach. McConville’s children knew it was their mother when they were told a blue safety pin was attached to the garments – with so many kids, she had always kept it handy for diapers or ripped clothes.”
I highly recommend Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland."
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Hail the conquering hero!
John Grenham has completed the gargantuan project of reviewing 100,000+ recommendations to correct Irish census records submitted by researchers.
What an incredible undertaking! Can you imagine "grinding through 250 emails a day" for 18 months?
We are thankful the National Archives engaged him to complete this work.
Read Grenham's entertaining commentary on the experience here.
(Yes, I'm at the library. No progress on my ISP problem.) |
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We Were Rich and We Didn't Know It
In talking about our growing-up years, many of us probably remember our parents pinching pennies. We couldn't (or wouldn't) say, "We were rich and didn't know it."
But that's the message in Tom Phelan's memoir about growing up poor and working hard on a County Laois farm in the 1940s and 1950s.
Book reviewer Tom Zelman describes the book and its 42 brief chapters as "exceptional...with rich detail and sensitivity." Zelman's positive comments can be read in this StarTribune article.
I will add the book to my reading list, both for the stories and for the example of how to write a memoir.
(And yes, I'm back at the library to write this posting. The snow is melting considerably faster than our ISP's work on the help ticket.) |
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Updated Irish resources
Just in time for St Patrick's Day, Claire Santry at Irish Genealogy News (IGN) has released New Irish Genealogy Resources 2019.
Don't miss reading about this well-organized research aid at the Irish Genealogy Toolkit website.
A free 7-page sample of the 2011-2015 e-book is available, to help you decide if you want to purchase the updated 2019 e-book. All of the collections featured were the subject of Santry's IGN blog when initially released.
You can also check out all genealogy-related discounts for St Patrick's Day weekend here.
(And yes, I'm back at the library to post this.)
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Sporadic postings
Have you been wondering why blog postings on this site have been so sporadic recently, especially when there are so many Irish happenings in the weeks coming up to St Patrick's Day?
Be advised: this is a "poor me" message. Starting almost exactly one month ago, I haven't been able to access this website (irishgenealogical.org) from home. Except for one lucky instance, my queries have "timed out" with no connection. In order to post on the blog, I have to drive to a public library, which is where I am now.
I started to recount here all the diagnostic steps taken (to no avail) but decided not to bore you (any more than I already am) with details. We even temporarily took down the fire wall! I've concluded the source of the problem is our internet service provider (ISP). In the meantime I've identified at least five other ".org" websites related to genealogy that I'm unable to access--except from the library. For three days our ISP technicians have had an open ticket.
You can continue to follow important developments through Claire Santry's Irishgenealogynews. But don't forget about us, and please keep checking back. |
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She'll be coming 'round the mountain...
Commemorating March as Irish American Heritage Month, the Ancient Order of Hibernians' (AOH) website posted an entertaining story about a "feisty little Irish lady" who was once called the most dangerous woman in America.
She was born in County Cork, Ireland, and emigrated during the famine years to Canada and then the U.S. After losing her husband and children to yellow fever and later her home and dressmaker shop to the great Chicago fire, Mary Harris Jones started a new career as a labor organizer among mine workers. She called them "her boys"; they called her "Mother Jones." She became known as the "miner's angel," a fiery agitator for the United Mine Workers. It was this role that led authorities to consider her a dangerous woman. Mother Jones was also a proponent of child labor laws and founder of the Social Democratic Party and later, the Industrial Workers of the World.
Although she died in 1930, Mother Jones' name is still prominent in labor history. Many musical tributes were written for her, but the lyrics of one famous song refer to her travels to mining camps in the Appalachian mountains promoting unionization. The AOH article ends like this:
Think of Mother Jones - one of the Irish who helped make America great - when next you sing, 'She'll be coming 'round the mountain when she comes...'
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March 9 is Irish Saturday
The second Saturday of most months is "Irish Saturday," when the library is staffed by IGSI members. These are good times to come in for Irish research.
10:00 am to 4:00 pm
Minnesota Genealogy Center, 1385 Mendota Heights Road, Mendota Heights, Minnesota
The library may close if driving conditions are poor. If weather is questionable, please check our website or the Minnesota Genealogical Society's website (www.mngs.org) before you get in the car.
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"She has a name"
"The gift was her original idea, and she has a name: TABITHA KING."
I trust you read about the generous $1.25 million donation to the New England Historic Genealogical Society.
When I read Tabitha King's response to the news story about the donors, referred to as "Stephen King and his wife," I thought about all the women I've struggled to research in my family tree. Centuries of nameless women, identified in records only as "Mrs. X," or "wife of X."
Apparently we haven't made much progress. In 2019, the news media referred to an accomplished author and philanthropist as someone's wife, like she has no other identity.
Admittedly Tabitha King's husband, Stephen King, has a higher profile after authoring 60+ books and selling 350 million copies, but it's a sad reflection on how far our society hasn't come. The news outlets reporting the gift deserve the criticism they're receiving, and we can only hope the incident raises our universal consciousness. |
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MyHeritage DNA kits $69 thru March 4
Let's hope MyHeritage is correct when they run an "End of Winter" DNA sale. We in Minnesota are more than ready for the end of winter!
MyHeritage autosomal DNA test kits are $69 through tomorrow, Monday, March 4. If you order two or more kits, you get free shipping.
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