Honoring Our Ancestors Newsletter
February 15, 2010
By Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak
Greetings Fellow Family History Sleuths,
Just a little bit excited! These are great days for genealogy with not one, but two, prime time shows hitting the airwaves – PBS's Faces of America and NBC's Who Do You Think You Are? (WDYTYA). I had the good fortune to work on both series and to write the companion book for WDYTYA, so I'd like to encourage everyone to turn this into a weekly viewing event. If folks can gather to watch Desperate Housewives and Lost, why not break out the popcorn and get together with friends for an evening of roots? We've got almost three solid months to look forward to, so enjoy!
Megan
In this newsletter. . .
- Genealogical Round Up, January 7
- Genealogical Round Up, January 14
- Genealogical Round Up, January 21
- Genealogical Round Up, January 28
- Honoring Our Ancestors Grants
- Upcoming Events
Genealogical Round Up, January 7
Annie's story getting told in Ireland . . .
Face of Cobh icon revealed | Irish Examiner
Researched five of these, but not saying which ones!
Streep, Colbert set for PBS genealogy show - UPI.com
Genealogical Round Up, January 14
Pretty much what I was expecting to see in terms of popularity of the name Megan, but probably an unusual pattern for many.
en.geneanet.org
Megan Smolenyak: A Brief Roots Tribute to Catherine Eugenia "Jean" Finnegan Biden
Very sad to hear about this. Have a soft spot for feisty Irish Catholic mothers, having been raised by one myself. Was charmed by Catherine Eugenia Finnegan Biden. RIP.
Vice President Joe Biden remembers his Irish mother | Irish News | IrishCentral
POW/MIA command hoping digs for soldiers' remains will resume in North Korea | Stars and Stripes
Genealogical Round Up, January 21
"Friends" star Kudrow's new series inspired by a night of TV watching in Ireland | American in Irela
Celebrity genealogy hits prime time: My latest HuffPo post about the upcoming NBC and PBS genealogy series. We're all in for a treat!
Megan Smolenyak: Celebrity Genealogy Hits Prime Time
Stage for McCourt show - Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak's posterous
Love these records! Have used them for a long time, but now they're more easily accessible.
A government genealogy service lets family history leap off the page - latimes.com
Seriously bummed about this. It's official - Ancestry Magazine Discontinues Publication
bit.ly
I see that others are writing about it, so I guess it's OK to 'fess up that I wrote the companion book to the upcoming Who Do You Think You Are? series on NBC! Hope you'll watch the series and snag the book!
www.amazon.com
Am stunned but grateful to be listed by @wefollow as most influential genealogy Twitter user. Must include factors other than # of followers. Seriously, there are folks with thousands and thousands of followers, so not sure what else they're taking into account. Was a big surprise to stumble into this list.
Genealogy Twitter Users : WeFollow
So cool to be included with Cyndi and Dick in this piece by Tara Calishain of ResearchBuzz fame!
ResearchBuzz » Who's Following Who on Twitter? Twiangulate Will Tell You
Who Do You Think You Are?): Premiere day announced: Friday March 5 at 8!
NBC.com - NBC Presents Post-Winter Olympics Primetime Schedule Beginning March 1
Genealogical Round Up, January 28
1st enumeration of the 2010 Census to begin. Dr. Groves blogs from Alaska
2010Census
Genealogy Blog - A Grave Mistake: Ukrainian Caught Using Tombstones To Build A House - GeneaNet
Congrats to our recent grant recipient! Don't forget that you can apply here.
January 2010
Judy Rosella Edwards' weekly newsletter, Greenspace Genealogy, focuses on the genealogical history of private property that is donated to become greenspace. The newsletter is sent to land conservation and preservation agencies hoping to inspire donors, as well as genealogists who are researching families who lived in the greenspace. The grant will help cover the newsletter expenses.
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.
- 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 5, 2010 - Waterloo, IA (delivered live via Skype) - Waterloo Public Library - "Trace Your Roots with DNA
- April 13, 2010 - New York, NY - The New York Public Library - "Trace Your Roots with DNA
- April 14, 2010 - Washington, DC - U.S. National Archives - "Who Do You Think You Are? The Essential Guide to Tracing Your Family History"
- 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"
- June 11-13, 2010 - Burbank, CA - Southern California Genealogical Society - "Cases that Made My Brain Hurt," "Michelle Obama's Roots," "Neglected History" and "Cold Cases: Genealogists, Coroners and the FBI
- 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 - Topics TBD
- April 28-May 1, 2011 - Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada - Saskatchewan Genealogical Society - "Remembering Our Ancestors," "Trace Your Roots with DNA," "Beyond Y-DNA: Your Genetic Genealogy Options" and "Reverse Genealogy: Techniques for Finding Your Lost Loved Ones"
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