Six Facts About Harry Houdini’s Wife, Bess Houdini

Introduction: Gena Philibert-Ortega is a genealogist and author of the book “From the Family Kitchen.” In this blog article, Gena searches old newspapers to discover interesting stories about the life of Wilhelmina Beatrice Rahner, a.k.a. Mrs. Houdini – the wife of the famous magician. Even if you have no interest in magic, chances are... (Read More)

Pearls of Life Wisdom from Pink Mullaney’s Obituary

Introduction: Duncan Kuehn is a professional genealogist with over eight years of client experience. She has worked on several well-known projects, such as “Who Do You Think You Are?” and researching President Barack Obama’s ancestry. In this blog post, Duncan shares some of the funny and at times insightful comments from the obituary of... (Read More)

BOGO: Search for One Relative & Find Another One as a Bonus

I was searching for newspaper articles about my cousin Cyrus Lane (1824-1911) from Sanbornton, New Hampshire, and quickly found an announcement of his marriage But wait – there’s more. Here was an added bonus. Following the report of Cyrus’s marriage to Sarah H. Plummer on 25 October 1848, there is this next announcement: “also,... (Read More)

Legendary Lives: Car Manufacturer Henry Ford

Introduction: Gena Philibert-Ortega is a genealogist and author of the book “From the Family Kitchen.” In this blog article, Gena searches old newspapers to discover more about the life and accomplishments of automobile magnate Henry Ford. For many Americans who are familiar with the Ford Motor Company, the name Henry Ford (1863-1947) is synonymous... (Read More)

Native American Newspapers for Genealogy Research

When births, marriages and deaths occur, Native American families make sure that they are written up and documented in their local newspapers. Family and tribal historians want to data mine GenealogyBank’s entire Historical Newspaper Archives looking for these events by searching on the names of the individuals – but also by searching on the... (Read More)

Why I Subscribe to GenealogyBank: Family Stories

I am a subscriber to GenealogyBank and use it all the time because it has the stories of my family – millions of stories I can’t find anywhere else. I want to find these stories and make sure they are preserved and passed down in the family. I want them remembered. I have been... (Read More)

The Bible: It Just Might Save Your Life – Literally

The Word of God has been known to save the lives of many on a daily basis. And then there is John Brotherton, 1729-1809 (MD4H-4T5). The Bible saved his life – literally. In the mid-1700s Brotherton was in fierce hand-to-hand combat when a bayonet pierced through his belt, several layers of clothing, and 52... (Read More)

Remembering Genealogists Charles & Edna Townsend

I thought about Charles and Edna Townsend today – they were pillars of the genealogical community. I first met them in the 1960s when they stopped by the library where I worked. Charles Delmar Townsend (1911-2009) and his wife Edna Carolyn Waugh (1908-1989) were prolific genealogists, writers and publishers. They were good people dedicated... (Read More)