SCGS09 Post 3

I was up early for the final day of the SCGS 2009 Jamboree. The first session I attended was Leland Meitzler's talk on maps, atlases and gazetteers. I love maps and Meitzler didn't disappoint. I came away with some new places to look at old maps.

The second session for me discussed the ins and outs of GenealogyBank.com. A good speaker is one who can continue when the technical equipment stages a strike. Thomas Jay Kemp didn't miss a beat as three different tech people tried to fix the connection. I learned some new things about the subscription service. I like what Kemp had to say, I like what is coming, and continue to be happy with my subscription to the service. Nobody told me to say that. I'm just a satisfied customer.

I spent the second half of the day socializing, which wasn't as flighty as it sounds. Anybody who has been to a really good conference knows half of the value comes from what you learn outside the sessions. In my case, I had some great face time and friend time with other bloggers. No topic was off limits and I learned a great deal about the state of the business of genealogy, what companies are (and aren't) doing, and what to expect in the future. These are the tidbits that don't get covered in sessions, so when you go to a conference, be sure to get out there and network.

I may have one more post on this subject, but it will have to wait a few days as I make the transition from conference attendee to visiting daughter and finally back to mom at home. Next on the calendar are a ProGen chat next week and a quick family history trip to Cajun country in July.

SCGS09 Post 2

Day 2 was quite busy. I started with an 8:00 am session taught by Lisa Alzo called "Write Your Family History Step by Step." I wasn't planning on writing a book, I just wanted to hear about different techniques. The speaker didn't disappoint. The main point of the session was that family histories are non-fiction based on facts, but fiction techniques will make your work interesting, draw in readers and hold their attention.

The second session I attended was the blogging summit. It was a panel of big-name bloggers. Each person described his or her blog and how it is used. Ideas and names of new tools were exchanged. There was a Q & A. Many of the questions asked indiciated that there were a lot of genealogists who know little about blogs but want to learn. There is a need there and I hope it is filled. The blogging summit could have run all day long. It could have branched off into different topics and levels of expertise. It's the only event of it's kind in the genealogy world and I was glad to be a part of it. If the panel ever needs someone with minimal tech experience and a tendency to ignore rules, I'm the one for the job.

Even lunch was exciting. I broke bread (or in this case fast food) with Ginisology, Little Bytes of Life and Elyse's Genealogy. Great conversation entailed including a discussion on blog writing, life, etc.

In the afternoon, I attended a Roots Magic 4 presentation and hit the exhibit hall. I bought some old NGS Quarterly magazines for a quarter each. Not sure how I'll get them home, but they'll make good reading.

In the early evening, I attended a Facebook meet-up. I did get a couple new friends. I also met Janet Havorka, who is incredibly nice. She has a MLS degree, too, so we talked about how technology has changed the landscape in that field. It was nice to speak librarian for a bit.

The icing on the cake of the day was the Geneablogger dinner, put together by the genius behind Geneabloggers.com. 35 bloggers in the same room, chatting, eating and having a good time. My seatmates included Elyse again and Lisa Louise Cooke. It was such a pleasure to meet the voice behind the podcasts. She's a California girl who remembers old-school Disneyland with the ticketbooks and such. We had a great chat about that.

Dinner went by too fast and all of a sudden the day was over.

Now I have to wake up and do it again.

SCGS09 Post 1

Greetings from Burbank and the 2009 Southern California Genealogy Jamboree! Technically the event just started, but it's been a whirlwind from the get go.

So far today, I've met many geneabloggers. I'm not impressed by movie stars, but I did get excited to meet such prolific bloggers. Everyone is so nice. We've all known each other online, so the formalities are gone and we just click into place. There's a set of couches in the hotel lobby that's officially become the geneabloggers' lounge.

All of the "geneabloggers" got swag bags lovingly put together by The Family Curator. Thank you!

I also went to the SCGS library. I just wanted to see the place, but others did some heavy-duty research there. Still, I found a death date for a Baerecke that likely is my great-great-great grandmother in--of all places-- a city directory.

Later in the afternoon, I went to a presentation by DearMyrtle regarding digital items in the Family History Library catalog. It was a good talk, but there's little I can share here because talks about websites are difficult to describe in a blog. You'll just have to trust me that it was a good show.

Tonight is the History Detective dinner and banquet. Normally I find a table of strangers and chat them up, but I think tonight I'll hunt down the geneabloggers. They're a hoot.

The Invasion Has Begun...

This will be fun.

Texas Genealogy Events: Week of June 22-28, 2009

Straight from the Texas Genealogy Events calendar, here's what is happening in Texas for the week of June 22-28, 2009:

Tuesday, June 23:

Austin Genealogical Society Meeting, 7pm
Location: Highland Park Baptist Church,
5206 Balcones, Austin, Texas
Topic: Having Fun with Our Ancestors
Presenter: Teri E. Flack

Thursday, June 25

East Texas Genealogical Society
Get Acquainted Luncheon, 11:30am
Heartland Ham Co.
3400-A South Broadway,
Tyler 75701. (903) 581-2802
These meetings are a chance to meet other members of the society in a relaxed, informal, social atmosphere -- all while enjoying a delicious lunch.
We talk about all sorts of subjects: genealogy, computers, kids, grand-kids, etc.
Come and enjoy yourself!

Saturday, June 27

Austin Genealogical Society Saturday Series, 10am
Genealogy Potpourri...Internet Lessons, Practicing, and Brick Wall Solving 10:00 bring your laptop, or observe. 11:00 bring your brickwall question for discussion
Cost: Free
Location: Austin History Center, 810 Guadalupe, 78701

Clayton Library Session: Social Networking, 10am
Come and discover websites where you can create your family tree and share it with others. Three sites will be compared, giving advantages and disadvantages of each.
Reservations required.
Call 832-393-2600.
Adults/Teens.

Fort Worth Genealogical Society
Beginners Workshop, 10:30am
Getting started for novice and intermediate genealogists.
Fort Worth Central Library (Downtown)
500 West 3rd Street
Fort Worth, Texas
Chappell Meeting Room

Van Zandt County Genealogical Society Meeting, 2pm
Van Zandt County Library
317 First Monday Lane
Canton, TX 75103-1052
903-567-4276


For further details on these events, see the Texas Genealogy Events Calendar. Please confirm all dates and locations with the host societies and organizations.

Do you have an event you'd like to see on the calendar? Contact me using the email address at the right side of this blog. Events should occur in Texas or be of interest to Texans (neighboring states welcome). Speakers are encouraged to publicize their presentations.

Tombstone Tuesday: Grasshopper Edition

I took this March 2009n photo of a Ludemann marker in the Masonic Cemetery in Las Vegas, New Mexico. I wanted to get closer, but grasshoppers were everywhere and kept hitting me in the face. I finally got the hint and left before I could get the details.

Texas Genealogy Events: Week of June 15-21, 2009

Straight from the Texas Genealogy Events calendar, here's what is happening in Texas for the week of June 15-21, 2009:

Monday, June 15

Angelina County Genealogical Society Meeting, 5pm
Kurth Memorial Library
706 S. Raguet Street, Lufkin, TX 75904
Meeting times and places may be changed. Confirm with genealogical society.

Brazos Genealogical Society Monthly Meeting, 7pm
Meets the third Monday of each month from 7:00 pm to 8:45 pm in the second floor auditorium of the Bryan Public Library located in downtown Bryan at 201 East 26th Street.

Saturday, June 20

Clayton Library Scrapbooking Event, 9am-5pm
Come join us for a fabulous day of scrapbooking! It's a potluck crop,so bring snacks, desserts, and sodas to share. Clayton staff member Cary Hall will present a class on scrapbooking your family history. Please bring your cutting pad. For more information, call 832-393-2600 or pick up a flyer at the Information Desk at Clayton.
$10 donation requested. All donations are tax deductible and will beused to purchase material for the library. Reservations required. Call library for details on how to register.

Fort Worth Genealogical Society Board Meeting, 10am
Southwest Regional Library
4001 Library Lane at Hulen St.
Fort Worth, Texas

Genealogy Friends of Plano Libraries, 10 am
Free Saturday Seminar
James Deen will speak on Land Records Research
W.O. Haggard, Jr. Library,
2501 Coit Rd., Plano, Texas,
in the first floor Program Room

Clayton Library Orientation, 11am
Discussion of the resources available at Clayton Library. Orientation lasts approximately one hour. No reservations needed, meet at the Information Desk in the library. 3rd Saturday of each month.
Clayton Library Center for Genealogical Research
5300 Caroline
Houston, TX 77004-6896
832-393-2600

Rains County Genealogical Society Meeting, 1pm
Rains County Library
150 Doris Briggs Parkway
Emory, Texas 75440
Phone: (903)473-5000 ext 283



For further details on these events, please see the Texas Genealogy Events Calendar. Please confirm all dates and locations with the host societies and organizations.

Do you have an event you'd like to see on the calendar? Contact me using the email address at the right side of this blog. Events should occur in Texas or be of interest to Texans (neighboring states welcome). Speakers are encouraged to publicize their presentations.

Carnival of Genealogy 74: Swimsuit Edition

The 74th Carnival of Genealogy is back in town. This time it's the Swimsuit Edition! Here's the challenge as it was issued to us bathing beauties:

Why should Sports Illustrated have all the fun? This is your chance to show off the bathing beauties in your family. Pull out the old photos of Grandma Moses in her seaside bloomers, Auntie Mae in her pin-up girl suit from the 1940s or 50s, cousin Paula in her psychedelic bikini from the 1970s, or even yourself in your Speedo! Let's have some fun here! Memorial Weekend is behind us and that means the start of the summer sun, sand, and lakeside season so let's get in the mood with summer fun photos.

For my entry, I present my great-grandmother. Sometimes she was known as Gertrude. Sometimes Eleanor. Occasionally, I find a Genevieve in one of her records.

She's a mystery to me. She died on Christmas Eve, 1935 at just 43 years old. Her only child, my grandfather, never spoke of her. All I have are a handful of photos. In each, she has a subtle smile that gives few hints of her life or personality. We just have to guess. Heck, I don't even know her given birth name. Maybe it's Gertrude. Maybe Eleanor. Maybe Genevieve. I've seen 'em all. In the few records of her life, she never tells. She just smiles that smile and makes us wonder.

I can only guess about the bathing beauty modeling below. These pictures were taken on a beach in Los Angeles, likely in the early 1930's. My great-grandmother lived in Oklahoma at the time. She (and probably her son / my grandfather) would have visited her half-sister or sister-in-law in Los Angeles.

Would she have been mad to know she's now on the Internet in her bathing suit? I don't know...

...but she seems very happy here.

Gertrude Eleanor Baerecke Lenertz (1892-1935).

Grandpa Jack At Camp

This picture is titled Grandpa Jack at Camp. That's my grandpa. He was born in June 1914, so date the photo as you will. I guessing late 1920's. My grandmother circled a person in the picture, but I am of the opinion it's the wrong one. The middle boy looks more like he belongs in our family. Besides, my grandmother didn't know my grandfather at that age. She did all the picture circling later. I dig Mr. Ranger in the background.

[Note to my family: What say you? The circled boy has a different smile. The middle boy looks kind of like little John, and he's wearing a jumpsuit! Case closed in my book. The clothes seal it.]

Why No Email

Quick note: if you've emailed me in the past few days and haven't had a reponse, be patient. I am on blog vacation and will return shortly. Thanks!

Wordless Wednesday: Fine Feathered Friends Edition

Tombstone Tuesday: Bayou Edition

Last year while visiting New Orleans, we went off the map for an alligator tour complete with airboat and headphones. On the way back to the dock, the guide casually mentioned this cemetery to the side:


I don't know the name. Heck, I didn't even know where we were in the backwoods swamp maze.

I really would have loved to exit the boat and check out the grounds...

...but homeboy here said no:

Texas Genealogy Events: Week of June 8-14, 2009

Straight from the Texas Genealogy Events calendar, here's what is happening in Texas for the week of June 8-14, 2009:

Tuesday, June 9:

Fort Worth Genealogical Society
Computer Users Group
Fort Worth Central Library (Downtown)
500 West 3rd Street
Fort Worth, Texas
Intel Computer Lab

Wednesday, June 10:

Collin County Genealogical Society Annual Social 7pm
W.O. Haggard, Jr. Library
2501 Coit Road, Plano, Texas

Thursday, June 11:

Clayton Library Session: Social Networking, 2pm
Come and discover websites where you can create your family tree andshare it with others. Three sites will be compared, giving advantagesand disadvantages of each. Reservations required. Call 832-393-2600. Adults/Teens.

Saturday, June 13:

East Texas Genealogical Society Meeting, 2pm
Presenter: Billie Fogarty:
"Finding and using Historical Newspapers in Genealogical Research"
Tyler Public Library
201 S. College Avenue
Tyler, TX 75702
903-593-1329

For further details on these events, please see the Texas Genealogy Events Calendar. Please confirm all dates and locations with the host societies and organizations.

Do you have an event you'd like to see on the calendar? Contact me using the email address at the right side of this blog. Events should occur in Texas or be of interest to Texans (neighboring states welcome). Speakers are encouraged to publicize their presentations.

Even Blogs Need a Vacation

This blog and it's brilliant writer are taking a break for a bit. The good news is that there will still be posts released during the specified chill period. Many will have a vacation theme. The bad news is that I cannot approve comments or answer emails during this time. You can still email me, I just won't answer until my exile period is up.

What's the deal with the house with legs, you ask? In March 2007, I went to Seaside, Texas. There were several houses in various conditions of disrepair along the beach. This house stood fine, but had no stairs. From what I can gather, these houses used to be on private land, but erosion took that away and then they were on public beach. Some people moved their houses. Some just abandoned them. Of course, it's a non-issue now thanks to Hurricane Ike. I doubt the House with Legs is still there. Luckily, it lives on here.

Researching Acadia Parish

I haven't had much spare time this week, but the few minutes I did collect went to gathering the names of ancestors born in Acadia Parish, Louisiana, or somehow connected to the area.

I'm hoping to take a quick trip there in July, and I'd like to determine the cemetery sites of anyone who may be buried there.

My group is about 70 people. These are the names (so far) that occur in my family tree:

Arcenaux
Bourgaux
Brewer (an interesting case, indeed)
Eldridge
Guidry (part of the interesting case, indeed)
Leger
Matt / Matte
McGee
Menou
Petitjean
Scanlan
Taylor (guy that killed a Thibodeaux)
Thibodeaux (guy that was killed by a Taylor)

Based on what I've seen so far, I am probably related to any Bourgaux or Menou folks in Rayne, Iota or that general area of Acadia Parish. Those families rolled in to the country in the 1870's/1880's. The Thibodeaux's are the Cajun version of Smith. What a mess. I haven't sorted that out yet.

With the list done, I'll start consulting online resources, like Find-a-Grave and the local society-related web pages. Then I will move on to my local libraries here. I feel confident I'll have burial places for most of these folks by then.

I'd also love to find the court records of a murder case that occured in Acadia Parish in 1889. Advice? I've done zero searching. I'm just being lazy and fishing for an easy answer.

So that's what I've been doing this week. Fun stuff.

73rd Carnival of Genealogy is in Town

The 73rd Carnival of Genealogy, titled "The Good Earth," is up. I like when the Carnival comes to town because it's fun to read what everyone brings to the blog table. Thank's to Apple's Tree for hosting.

In the Good Old Summertime

School's out. Kids and grandkids are in your midst. How does one satisfy his or her genealogical pursuits while supervising and entertaining children? If they share your interest in genealogy, you are very fortunate! For the rest of us, here are some ideas for getting children to buy into your genealogy fix:

The Helper
Turn your children into helpers. Young kiddos probably can't do much, but you can give them paper and pens to "write notes" while you're busy copying what you need. Put your older grade-school readers to work looking for surnames in books, or even headstones if you're at a snake-free well-manicured cemetery. Technically savvy tweens and teens may be willing to help you digitize your work, create spreadsheets or websites.

The Bribe
Find out what your kids like and buy yourself a little genealogy time by making them an offer they can't refuse. When it comes to my toddler niece, stickers are like money and money talks. With a few packages of stickers, we know we can get 20 minutes of free time while she places stickers on the floor, the cat and her own legs. For my son who is older, the promise of a lunch at the location of his choice buys me some time at a library in the next county. For longer road trips, I've found that a hotel with a pool reduces a lot of complaints from my peanut gallery. We spend the a.m. doing boring genealogy and the later hours at the pool.

The Barter
I use this approach often with my son and it's become my favorite. I like genealogy. He likes train signals. On brief half-day trips, he waits patiently while I retrieve whatever I came for. After that is over, I take him to nearby railroad crossings so he can take pictures of the signals. This is a good bonding time as we share each other's interests--and by that I mean he tolerates my genealogy and I get an earful about the history of railroad signal technology.

The Education in Disguise
If you know your family's history and have a knack for storytelling, you can get kids interested in the places to which you are dragging them. The boring field is suddenly the location where their great-great-great-great grandfather perished in the Civil War. This little nowhere town is where your ancestor ran the only movie house for miles. Ask the kids to imagine living in a time and place with only one little movie theater and NO TELEVISION! They may pretend they don't care, but it will resonate.

Increased child care duties in the summer shouldn't force you to table your genealogy until school starts again. With an understanding of your children's or grandchildren's interests and a little creativity, you can include them in your genalogical pursuits and expose them to their family history.

Please note that some of your genealogical destinations--such as library research rooms--may not admit children, so check before you make plans. With that out of the way, get your kids of their butts and get out there this summer for some good genealogy-themed bonding time.

Lonesome Dove: Tombstone Tuesday

Masonic Cemetery, Las Vegas, New Mexico.

March 2009:

EMMA LORINE

TULLY

DIED AUG 13, 1899

AGED 7MS 21 DS