You Had Me At Haluski – For my fellow Slavs …

Hamilton’s Mandy Gonzalez Blends Family History & Activism in ‘Fearless’ Music Video – Perhaps because my father also served in Vietnam, this song got to me. Family history portion begins about half-way into the video. And oh, yeah, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Mandy Gonzalez!

Wow, a soldier I researched a decade ago has been identified. Welcome home, S/Sgt. Michael Aiello.

Family welcomes home WWII veteran 73-years after his death – Lovely memorial service footage for S/Sgt. Michael Aiello, a soldier I researched about a decade ago. Thanks for sharing, Patrick M. Tavenner.

Ellis Island Reverie – Well done, anonymous park ranger.

Looking for History, Bill Sebring Finds a Daughter – Bachelor town historian accidentally finds a daughter.

Red Famine: Stalin’s War on Ukraine – Both sides of my family – Irish and Rusyn – have experienced famine, but you never hear about the so-called “Harvest of Despair,” the famine that killed (depending on which figures you accept) 4 to 10 million Ukrainians in the 1930s (most 1932-33). It’s like a quiet genocide. Here’s hoping this book makes it more widely known.

It’s All Relative: Adventures Up and Down the World’s Family Tree – I had a chance to read “It’s All Relative,” the new book that will be coming out shortly from A.J. Jacobs, and have a few thoughts to share.

Family reunited with heirloom hidden in mirror frame for years – Hadn’t occurred to me that framers sometimes trip across our forgotten family heirlooms. Lovely that this one troubled to track down the family!

Neighbors put out chairs for walking WWII veteran – If I lived here, I would totally put a chair out for Harvey.

Young man who married his 91-year-old great aunt fighting legal battle to claim her pension – This will create confusion for future genealogists

Glitter, Glamour, and Graveyards: Meet the Members of New Zealand’s Original ‘Coffin Club’

Watch the heart-warming final trailer for ‘Coco’ (VIDEO) – Yet another movie with an ancestral theme.

So I’m obviously biased, but this is a lovely and thought-provoking video about the importance of tradition in the modern world, and it’s set in Osturna, hometown to all Smolenyaks. Please watch to the end! Thanks so much to Michal Glevaňák for bringing it to my attention. Jan Timko wrote the song.

The post Genealogy Roundup, November 8 appeared first on Megan Smolenyak.

Charming video from The Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation, Inc. – 93-year-old goes to Ellis Island to learn more about her mother’s journey to America.

Simultaneously heart-breaking and heart-warming. Portrait Takes Unlikely Float Back To Family Member.

If you’re into genetic genealogy, you might enjoy this video. Just click through to the article. Thanks!

DNA Stories: Did She Marry Her Cousin?

Hey, if you’re near Pensacola, FL on Nov 9th, come join us for a day of genealogy! To register, go here and click on Nov 9 entry. Hope to see you there!

The post Genealogy Round Up, September 23 appeared first on Megan Smolenyak.

This week, I decided to share one of our classics – Unclaimed Persons. In case you’re not familiar with this concept, it’s essentially “lost and found,” but for human beings instead of gloves and umbrellas. It’s a quiet but disturbing epidemic. People are going to their graves with no family to claim them. Medical examiners and coroners’ offices — frequently overstretched with burgeoning case loads — are turning to an unexpected resource for help: genealogists.

This video shows me tackling cases from Lackawanna County, PA (heads-up – the Finch case mentioned has been solved!) and San Bernardino County, CA. I started assisting coroners and medical examiners back around 2005, and several years later, we figured that this would make an interesting topic for RTV to cover, so we produced this video. When we shared it, I was inundated with requests from fellow genealogists saying that they wanted to help,and that’s how the volunteer organization organization known as Unclaimed Persons was born.

If you like this video, please tell your friends and keep your eyes open for more!

The post Unclaimed Persons (video) appeared first on Megan Smolenyak.