Honoring Our Ancestors Newsletter
January 15, 2009
By Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak
Greetings Fellow Family History Sleuths,
Happy 2010! Seems just yesterday we were in Y2K territory, and it's amazing to think of all that's changed in the genealogical world since then. There weren't even any DNA testing companies back in the dark ages of 2000! Wonder what the 20-teens will bring! Well, maybe I should focus on February first, eh? Best wishes to you and yours for a terrific start to 2010!
Megan
In this newsletter. . .
- Genealogical Round Up, December 3
- Genealogical Round Up, December 17
- The Story of Annie Moore Continues
- Genealogical Round Up, December 31
- Honoring Our Ancestors Grants
- Upcoming Events
Genealogical Round Up, December 3
Can't wait to see the latest Vanishing #Ireland book by Turtle Bunbury!
Faces Full Of Stories - The Irish Times - Sat, Nov 28, 2009
First Larry David, now Jessica Alba. Am concerned they're using unreliable #DNA test & misleading folks
Jessica Alba - Alba Learns She's European - Contactmusic News
Huh???
Tendulkar Opus, a biography with a difference - CRICKETNDTV.com
Wow! One block (Eldridge) in NYC from 1795 to 1991. Amazing! (Click where it says "the block")
NYConvergence - A digest of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut digital media technology news: Ani
Sheriff's office searches for owners of stolen urns - News - Local - The Plattsmouth Journal - Platt
Too little, too late?
DNA test shows woman declared man's heir isn't his daughter - washingtonpost.com
Genealogical Round Up, December 17
If only we could do this in the U.S. as well! Well, plenty with UK roots around the planet stand to benefit!
Bristol UWE - News
Ellis Island ferry: 100 year old sunken ferry pulled out of the water:
Ellis Island ferry's boiler and engine
Check out the video! (not going to say which, but worked on half of these)
Faces of America | PBS
Amazing stuff from @tracingthetribe: 41 generations from Mt. Everest.
Tracing the Tribe: The Jewish Genealogy Blog: UK: 41 generations from Mt. Everest
Yummy! DNA cookies! Well, Gel Electrophoresis cookies to be slightly more accurate, but that doesn't sound quite as tasty.
Not So Humble Pie: Science Cookies: Gel Electrophoresis
The Story of Annie Moore Continues
In 2006, the true story of Annie Moore, the first immigrant to arrive at Ellis Island, was brought to light. An article was published in The New York Times and then a press conference was held where the exciting details of the mystery were revealed.
Now, nearly 118 years after the opening of Ellis Island, another mystery is waiting to be solved. Full details are available over at the Huffington Post, but suffice it to say that history detectives have a bit of a challenge on their hands, and what a wonderful experience it could be to solve it!
If you are interested in learning more about Annie and her historic journey from County Cork, Ireland to become the first immigrant through Ellis Island, Og has a list of videos for you to check out over at his blog.
Genealogical Round Up, December 31
Radio interview with Annie Moore's great-granddaughter, Maureen Peterson!
Annie Moore | PRI's The World
A Sunday in the life of a 105-year-old Acadian. She likes lobster and cards, wants to go to the moon, and when she was younger, wished she was a man because she felt they didn't have to work so hard.
Un dimanche à 105 ans
It's Annie!
Kin Say Photos Show Annie Moore, First Ellis Island Immigrant - NYTimes.com
More on photos of Ellis Island's Annie Moore
Megan Smolenyak: Photos of Annie Moore, First Ellis Island Immigrant: Help Solve a History Mystery
This is the kind of story I enjoy! Hope y'all do too!
70-year-old letter to Santa found in County Donegal | Irish News | IrishCentral
Sounds as if Philadelphia's going to get a new Family History Center within the next few years.
Mormons pick new site for Phila. temple | Philadelphia Inquirer | 12/24/2009
More fun names from Randy!
Genea-Musings: Megan's List
My latest article on HuffPo about wild names I've encountered in my research. If you like it, please RT it, post it to Facebook, make a comment on the blog or -- and this feels weird to me -- but click the "become a fan" button to follow my future articles. Since this is a broad publication that covers many topics, I'd... really like to let folks know there are tons of genealogists out there! Thanks
Megan Smolenyak: Name Game: Celebrities Have Nothing on the Rest of Us
Interesting use of demographic & surname data from U.S. Census Bureau applied to Facebook
Number of African-Americans on Facebook Mirrors US Makeup « Black Web 2.0
Congrats to our recent grant recipient! Don't forget that you can apply here.
December 2009
Anthony Vermandois has been researching families from several towns in Campania, Italy, and set up a website to share what he's learning. His goal is to gather basic data on individuals from each family to create a mini-biography for these individuals. The grant award will fund website and equipment costs for the project.
If you plan to be near any of the events where I'll be speaking, I would love to meet you. It's always a kick for me when folks mention that they read this newsletter, my blog, Ancestry Daily News or whatever, so don't be shy about introducing yourself!
For more information on these events, please see my Events Calendar. And if you're interested in scheduling me, just click here.
- February 6, 2010 - San Luis Obispo, CA - San Luis Obispo County Genealogical Society - "Reverse Genealogy: Techniques for Finding Your Lost Loved Ones," "Online Newspaper Research," "Trace Your Roots with DNA" and "Right Annie, Wrong Annie"
- March 20, 2010 - Round Rock, TX - Williamson County Genealogical Society - "Trace your Roots with DNA," "Beyond Y-DNA: Your Genetic Genealogy Options," "Remembering Our Ancestors" and "Cases that Made My Brain Hurt"
- April 13, 2010 - New York, NY - The New York Public Library - "Trace Your Roots with DNA"
- May 15, 2010 - Spartanburg, SC - Spartanburg County Public Libraries - "Trace Your Roots with DNA," "Reverse Genealogy: Techniques for Finding Your Lost Loved Ones," "Remembering Our Ancestors" and "Michelle Obama's Roots"
- July 8, 2010 - Toms River, NJ - Ocean County Library "Cases That Made My Brain Hurt"
- October 16, 2010 - Louisville, KY - Louisville Genealogical Society - Topics TBD
- November 6, 2010 - Grand Rapids, MI - Western Michigan Genealogical Society - Details TBD
- April 28-May 1, 2011 - Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada - Saskatchewan Genealogical Society - Topics TBD
Please forward this newsletter to your family and friends who are interested in genealogy -- thank you!
Wishing you an abundance of genealogical serendipity!
Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak
www.honoringourancestors.com
www.rootstelevision.com
Note: You are receiving this because you have demonstrated an interest (e.g., you have a story in one of my books, applied for a grant, attended previous events, etc.) or subscribed via my website, but please let me know if you do not want to receive any further emails, and I will promptly remove you from my list. And rest assured, this is my personal list and not shared with anyone else! Thanks, Megan