Discovering Thanksgiving Family History in Newspaper Articles

From the earliest days of the nation our presidents and governors have proclaimed annual days of “publick Thanksgiving and Prayer” in gratitude for their families, lives and success in the New World.Then as now we pause as families gather to give thanks. Lucky for us many of these holiday family gatherings were recorded in... (Read More)

Finding Your “Roots” at Alex Haley Museum Opening

Alex Haley home dedicated as a genealogy library and museum. When 17-year-old violinist Joseph Matthews performed at the dedication of the Alex Haley Museum and Interpretive Center, he had no idea he would discover his family roots. Joseph, a high school senior from Memphis, Tennessee, was among hundreds who participated in two days of... (Read More)

African American Funeral Program Collection Online

Hat’s off to the: East Central Georgia Regional Library. They have put their African American Funeral Program Collection online. This impressive collection has more than 1,000 funeral programs from the greater Augusta, Georgia area. They date from 1933 to 2008, with the bulk of the collection starting from 1960 to 2008. According to the... (Read More)

National Archives Celebrates 75th Anniversary this Friday!

National Archives Celebrates 75th Anniversary on Friday, June 19th. Susan Logue (Voice of America) distributed this commentary on the 75th Anniversary of the National Archives. Before the National Archives was founded, many governmental records were kept in poor conditions. On June 19, 1934, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the legislation creating the National Archives.... (Read More)

Him Mark Lai – 麥禮謙 (1925-2009)

Him Mark Lai – 麥禮謙 (1925-2009), noted Chinese-American genealogist and local historian has passed away. Edition: 5 star Page: B5(c) San Francisco Chronicle 2009. Reprinted here with permission. by Carl Nolte. Him Mark Lai, a noted historian of the Chinese American experience, died at his San Francisco home on May 21 after suffering from... (Read More)

Genealogist, Mary Sue Green Smith (1933-2009)

Prominent Nashville, TN genealogist, Mary Sue Green Smith (1933-2009) has passed away. She was President of the Middle Tennessee Genealogical Society. She published eight books between 1994 and 2006; mostly reference works to be used in tracing one’s roots in Nashville. She indexed tens of thousands of pre-Civil War civil court records, which added... (Read More)

Green-Wood Cemetery – Brooklyn, NY – Honors Civil War Vets

Newspapers are producing more than newsprint – they are adding video news clips. Flickr photo from George K’s Photostream Here is an example from the New York Times – “Green-Wood Remembers Civil War Dead” Click here and watch in depth report about Green-Wood Cemetery’s effort to document the graves of Civil War veterans. It’s... (Read More)