Blog Archives

2/26/2022

Have You Registered for the World’s Largest Family History Conference Yet?

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Have You Registered for the World’s Largest Family History Conference Yet?

RootsTech, by Family Search, starts in four days! Have you registered yet?

Sign up for RootsTech 2022, for FREE, now at rootstech.org for the world's largest family history and genealogy event!

As of this post (2/26/22 7:30am PST), they have over 516,000 people signed up in 195 countries around the world! I’m sure it will topple over the 1,000,000 mark as they did last year!

If you don’t already know, it is 100% virtual and 100% FREE! Always held in Salt Lake City, last year’s event was their first virtual conference, due to Covid, and boy, did their first virtual event churn out more than imagined, so they are doing it again!

Connect with your family, learn about family and cultural traditions, learn from experts in the field with over 1,500 sessions/classes, listen to super inspiring keynote speakers (I’m anxious to see how they top last year’s speakers!), join the Expo Hall that showcases companies from around the world (they also offer freebies and discounts!), participate in activities for all (such as cooking and activities for the kiddos!), chat with experts, get 1-on-1 help, find your relatives that are also attending and chat with them, and so much more!

You also get to save and access your classes for an entire year, by saving them in your RootsTech Playlist and on YouTube!

Are you ready to join the world’s largest family history event in the world from the comfort of your own home and for FREE?!

Connect with your family, explore your heritage, and meet your relatives out there, by signing up for this FREE March 3-5 family history event now!

I hope to see you there!

View Your invitation from the President of RootsTech, Steve Lockwood Here:
https://www.familysearch.org/rootstech/home.

More on RootsTech and other Genealogy Events:
Follow more on the RootsTech 2022 Genealogy Conference below and under the Genealogy Events category, along with under the Genealogy Resources category and on my dedicated Genealogy Resources page!

RootsTech Connect 2022 Registration Open
RootsTech Connect 2022:The Largest Family History Event FREE Again!

Interactive Questions:
What do you think about this fantastic FREE opportunity? Are you already signed up or are going to? Let me know in the comments below. I can’t wait to see how many of you have already signed up! See you there!

←Back to Genealogy Resources Page

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2/23/2022

Genealogy Quick Tip: Fanning Out to Break Down Brick Walls

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Having difficulty with an ancestor? Have you hit a brick wall? Make sure you fan out with all of their siblings and children to help you break down brick walls. :)

Genealogy Brick Wall, Genealogy Tips, Genealogy Research, Descendancy Research, Fan out in Genealogy

More Genealogy Tips:
Find more quick tips under the Genealogy Quick Tips category!

Interactive Questions:
Have you fanned out to help break down brick walls in your research? Let me know of your successful genealogy brick wall busting by fanning out!

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2/20/2022

The 1930 U.S. Census Record in Genealogy: A Closer Look

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Genealogy Records, 1930 U.S. Census, Genealogy Resources, Genealogy Research, A Closer Look at Census Records in Genealogy

Genealogy Records: A Closer Look at the 1930 U.S. Census in Genealogy Research

The 1930 U.S. Census Record in Genealogy: A Closer Look

Did you know that when it comes to genealogy research, census records can give you the most details about a person and their family than any other record? These are fantastic genealogy records that can give you a snapshot of how your ancestors were living at a particular time. After starting with what you know now, the first step in genealogy research, the census records are the best starting point in your next step of research. They offer a tremendous amount of information and details that will start you off, while leading you to many of your next steps. Not only can you find the standard information on your ancestor and their descendants like their name, age, birthplace, and residence; you can find so much more! Depending on the census record, you can also find their address, their occupation, their parents’ birthplaces, their citizenship status, their year of immigration, their marriage info, their military service info, how many children they have, others living in the household and their info, the value of their home and personal belongings, and more!

Continue with me on the 1930 Census in this series that takes a closer look at the 1850 to 1950 U.S. Federal Census Records.

The 1930 U.S. Census: This was the ninth U.S. Census that listed EVERY household member by name and had detailed categories, and once again had the enumeration season and date changed. To date, it was the second census having a spring enumeration (the first was the 1910 Census), and it was the first to be enumerated starting on April 1st; this date stuck for all the censuses thereafter. The 1930 U.S. Census would also be the last of the standard censuses that we had come to know; moving forward, there would no longer be questions for veterans, languages spoken, and others, so this was the last census to get any of those clues from. This census introduced the new details of whether you had a radio set (a luxury item) to help study the interest in consumerism and mass communication, age at first marriage, home value or rental amount, and what war they were in if they were a veteran.

Front of 1930 U.S. Census Form, Courtesy of the National Archives Website

Back of 1920 U.S. Census Form, Courtesy of the National Archives Website

This census record had many of the same categories and details that were seen in the 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910 and 1920 censuses such as including ALL household members’ names; their ages, sex, color, and place of birth; occupation information; whether any of the household members attended school or were married; and literacy information, but with a few changes and additions. There were name changes to some of the categories, a few new details added to some of the categories, and a few details taken out. I am not including the 1890 census information that I previously spoke about, as we didn’t get to use it. 😉

Some of the new categories or changed/combined categories for this census, compared to the 1920 Census, were “Home Data”, “Place of Birth”, “Mother Tongue of Foreign Born”, “Employment” and “Veterans”.

New Categories:

Home Data: Took one detail from previous “Tenure” category (“Home Owned or Rented”) and added 3 new details (“Value of Home or Monthly Rental Amount”, “Radio Set”, and if family lives on a farm)
Place of Birth: Took the place of birth details for the person and their parents from the previous “Nativity and Mother Tongue” category and added specifications such as making sure to specify the location of their birth to the area where it was situated at the time of the census, distinguishing between Canada-French and Canada-English, and distinguishing between Irish Free State and Northern Ireland
Mother Tongue/Native Language of Foreign Born: Took just the household person’s native language, not their parents, from the previous “Nativity and Mother Tongue” category.
Employment
Veterans

Category Name Changes:

Home Data: As mentioned above, the previous “Tenure” was changed to “Home Data”, while keeping one detail, leaving one off, and adding 3 new details
Citizenship, etc.: Just a slight name change from the previous “Citizenship” category
Occupation and Industry: Just a slight name change from the previous “Occupation” category
Place of Birth: As mentioned above, took the place of birth details for the person and their parents from the previous “Nativity and Mother Tongue” category.

New Details:

Radio Set
Value of Home or Rental Amount (new "Home Data" category)
If Live on Farm (new "Home Data" category)
Age at First Marriage ("Personal Description" category)
Whether a Veteran of U.S. Military or Naval Forces ("Veterans" category)
What War or Expedition? ("Veterans" category)
Now included the specification of attended college in the attended school within the year detail ("Education" category)
Whether actually at Work Yesterday (new "Employment" category)

Details that Moved to another Category:

Mother Tongue of Foreign Born: Moved to its own category

Whether Able to Speak English (Previous stand-alone detail now added to "Citizenship" category)

Details Eliminated:

If Home Owned, Free or Mortgaged
Mother Tongue of Foreign-Born Parents

Year of Naturalization, if naturalized

Note: A Census of Unemployment was added to this the following year, due to the Great Depression

Research Tips: This census can help you determine if there was a previous marriage for your ancestor by looking at the new detail of “Age at First Marriage”, to find out if any household members received a higher education, to get a feel for their income, to see how the great depression may have affected your ancestors and their family, to help you look for their military records knowing which war they fought in, and so much more! Also, don’t forget to be careful with the place of birth for your ancestors, with the new “give country in which birthplace is now situated” in the “Place of Birth” category; check to see what the area was around the time of their birth. 😉

Remember: Enumerators were not required to get the spelling of names; wrote down the information given to them without any proof; and made their own determination of race based on their own judgement. 😉

As previously mentioned, depending on where and by whom the census was taken, I usually don’t find the census filled out consistently, and some of the categories are underreported, but if they are, then you have a lot of details to help you in your research! EVERY detail/clue helps in genealogy! 😉

Find my other posts on the U.S. Census records below, and under the Genealogy Records category!

The 1950 U.S. Census: A Post War Snapshot into the Lives of Our Ancestors!
The 1940 U.S. Census Record in Genealogy: Reflecting on the Great Depression
The 1920 U.S. Census Record in Genealogy: A Closer Look
The 1910 U.S. Census Record in Genealogy: A Closer Look
A Closer Look at the 1900 U.S. Census in Genealogy Research
The 1890 U.S. Census: A Tragic and Sad Loss!
The 1880 U.S. Census: A Closer Look at the Even Better Census!
The 1870 U.S. Census: A Closer Look
The 1860 U.S. Census: A Closer Look
The 1850 U.S. Census: One of the Golden Genealogy Records

Check out more information about the U.S. Census on the United States Census Bureau website and the National Archives and Records Administration website!

Let me know what you think of this fantastic genealogy research tool below in the comments!

P.S. My older site theme does not support the "Leave a Reply" field labels; if you'd like to leave a comment on a blog, the fields are: Name, Email, Site (if you'd like), and Comment, the standard fields 😉

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2/16/2022

Genealogy Quick Tip: Question EVERYTHING to Break Down Brick Walls

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Hit a break wall? Question EVERYTHING including names changes, family secrets, a different parent than who you know, if they were running from something...don't keep yourself in a box with your research. :)

Genealogy Brick Wall, Genealogy Tips, Question Everything in Genealogy, Genealogy Research

More Genealogy Tips:
Find more quick tips under the Genealogy Quick Tips category!

Interactive Questions:
Have you hit a genealogy brick wall that you were able to break down because you had an ancestor that changed their name or had a different parent than who was known?

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2/13/2022

Your Grandparents Said What? Sayings Passed Down in Genealogy!

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Sayings in Genealogy, Social History and Genealogy, Old School Sayings, Social Genealogy, Grandparent Sayings

Sayings Handed Down in Social History and Genealogy

Your Grandparents Said What?! Sayings Passed Down in Genealogy!

Social history is a very important part of our genealogy and leaves us with more than just names and dates; it’s how our family lived and who they were. Our grandparents (or other ancestors) had sayings for anything and everything under the sun! There were sayings for advice, for protection, to show you were in a heap of trouble, for encouragement, just to gossip and many more! In a way, you could consider the old school sayings handed down through the generations of your family as sort of a family heirloom, haha!

Do you remember an old school saying from your grandparents that's still stuck in your head?

Have you ever thought of this social genealogy question and how old school sayings passed down through the generations help to shape us into who we are, or just give us special memories of our loved ones? Well, I did! That’s why I decided to ask this social genealogy question on social media! I wanted to see how many others remember the sayings their grandparents used so much, that they’re still stuck in their heads, haha! Of course, this is just a very small sample, with only about 150 comments, but still very fun and interesting!

Here are some of the responses I had to this question:

“For crying in two buckets...”
“The hurrieder you go, the behinder you get”
“Outen z lights”
“Remember who you are, what you are, and conduct yourself accordingly”
“Aye, Aye, Aye”
“Don't step on a crack, you’ll break your mothers back!”
“Straighten up and fly right!”
“Spit in one hand and wish in the other and see which one gets full first”
“If wishes were horses beggars could ride”
“Ach du liebe zeit! Niemand hat mehr fur die liebe zeit!” (Oh dear time! Nobody has time for love anymore!)
“My stars”
“Put the corn in the poke!”
“Waste not, want not”
“Something wrong somewhere”
“Can’t get blood from a turnip”
“Goodness gracious, sakes alive”
“Good night sleep tight. Don’t let the bedbugs bite!”
“Now you’re cooking with gas”
“The greener the winter the fuller the graveyard!”
“Best invention since sliced bread”
“By golly”
“That’s a humdinger”
“When children are small they tug on your apron strings and when grown they tug on your heart!”
“It'll feel better when it quits hurting” (Haha!)
“It doesn’t matter if you’re a ditch digger. Just be the best darned ditch digger you can be” (Love it!)
“See ya in the funny papers! "
"If ya can't drive it, put it in the barn!"
“Keep making that face, and it will stick that way”
“Waste not want not”
“6 to 1, 1/2 a dozen to the other”
"Got plenty of room to get glad"
“That's a time”
“If you don't know what to do, mildew” (Haha, love it!)
“If you don’t have anything nice to say don’t say it at all”
“Once on the lips, twice on the hips!”
“Must’ve gone down your Sunday throat”
“Make do with what you've got”
“If a task is once begun never leave it till it’s done. Be the labor great or small, do it right or not at all”
“Home again, home again jiggity jig. If you don't stop crying, I'll give you something to cry about! I'll just whip you both and then I'll know I got the right one !..........”
“Fair to middlin”
One person responded: “The first one I thought of is not suitable for public consumption!” (Haha!)
“You didn't have to run all around Katey's barn”
“Panty Waste” (Pantywaiste)
“I cried because I had no shoes, until I met a girl who had no feet”
“You get a sty in your eye from peeing in the road”
“If I swallowed a watermelon seed, it would grow in my stomach”
“My grandpa told me I was going to have a prune tree grow out of the top of my head when I accidentally swallowed a pit”
“A bird in the hand is worth 2 in the bush”
“Now sir”
“I see said the blind man that couldn’t speak”
“I see said the blind man to the man who couldn’t hear”
"What's that got to do with the price of eggs?"
"What's that have to do with the price of tea in China?"
"atall"-e.g., "Well, that won't do atall"
“The Apple doesn’t fall far from the tree”
“It’s good for what ails you”
“Don't get into a pissing match with a skunk. You'll never win.”
“Don't go to a gun fight with a knife”
“Pretty is as Pretty does”
“Suck it up, buttercup”
“Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth”
“You’re a stave of the ol' barrel”
"..more than Carter has liver pills."
“What is all this who struck John?"
"Who do you think you are Lord and Lady Aster?”
“Pert near”
“Sick abed two chairs”
“A hat was always a ‘lid’”
"Slower than molasses in January!"
"Let's write it in the dust, and let the wind settle it!"
“Whatever blows your skirt up.”
"It don't take me long to waste an hour."
"Hotdog! Oh Corn."
"6 of 1, half a dozen of another"
"Crying over it won’t make it clean"
"From your mouth to Gods ears"
"Wish in one hand, $h!t in the other…"
"You don’t have the sense God (gave you)"
"Watch your penny’s and your dollars watch themselves"
"Shanks ponies"
(your feet) "Colder than a witches tit"
"Get off your high horse"
(They) "Don't even own a bucket to piss in"
"Don't have a cow"
"Party 'till the cows come home"
"May as well; (it's) too wet to plow"
"Are you a sheep? If everyone jumped off the bridge would you follow?"
"Don't be a queer duck"
“You’ll burn a hole in daylight!”
“ Pig knows better cow knows worse, stick your head in the coffee pot "

There were anywhere from the classic to the unheard of. Some of these were super old school, and many had been passed down through the generations, with some of the responders catching themselves using them with their own children now! What is with Katy’s Barn, haha! There were a couple of sayings using Katy’s Barn; must have been a popular barn, haha! It was a fun question to ask, and it was fun to see all the different old school sayings that people have heard from their grandparents and still use through the generations!

Interactive Questions:
What do you think of the sayings on this list? Have you heard any of these from your own grandparents or any other ancestors? Do you catch yourself using any of these in this day and age? What is (or was) an old school saying that you heard from your grandparents while growing up or that has been passed down through the generations of your family? Would you like to know some of the meanings behind these responses? I’d love to read your questions or comments!

More Social Genealogy and Family History:
Come read more of my social genealogy questions and their results under the Social Genealogy and Family History category.

This post is a participant in the Genealogy Blog Party: School Days (and September Holidays and Events), for Grandparent's Day!

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2/6/2022

Family Recipes in Genealogy, the Forgotten Family Heirloom

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Family Recipes in Genealogy, Social Genealogy, Social Family History, Ancestor Recipes, Family Heirlooms, Vintage Recipes, Heirloom Recipes

Family Recipes in Social Genealogy and Family History

Family Recipes in Genealogy, the Forgotten Family Heirloom

Family recipes and meals were, and still are, a huge part of our family history and genealogy! It brought families together through the generations and continues doing so with the recipes passed down to us. It brought and continues to bring families together, whether it be through the special moments of cooking with a parent, grandparent or maybe even a great grandparent to the joys of gathering around and enjoying the company of loved ones while preparing or consuming that meal! Handed down family recipes can bring back a nostalgic time from one’s past and is also a great family heirloom to pass down through the generations, while honoring your ancestors!

What is (or was) a family recipe that has been passed down through the generations of your family?

Have you ever thought of this social genealogy question and how photos and tangible items passed down through the generations are not the only family heirlooms one can inherit, but recipes are as well? Well, I did! That’s why I decided to ask this social genealogy question on social media! I wanted to see how many others are still using family recipes that have been passed down through the generations or have started their only family tradition of passing down a family recipe for future generations! Of course, this is just a very small sample, with only about 120 comments, but still very fun and interesting!

Here are some of the responses I had to this question:

Potato based turkey stuffing/dressing for the holidays- Irish
German Potato Salad and streudel
Dinner rolls; scalloped oyster casserole; Thanksgiving staples! - Virginia and New England ancestors ( at least 4 generations)
Ableskiver with jam and glogg - Traditional Danish dessert
German slaw and English walnut bars
Apple pie, stuffing, potato salad, funeral potatoes (at least 3 generations), chilli, and meatloaf (generations-forever haha!)
Potato pancakes (at least 6 generations), Chocolate gravy (Arkansas/Kentucky) and homemade bread
Dutch Pork Chops (5 generations)
Scalloped potatoes and ham every Christmas Eve (4 generations)
Homemade kraut & sausages all from the garden and from home grown pigs
One pot meal of cooked kale mashed into rough mashed potatoes or sauerkraut or carrots or French cut style green beans, Metwurst and the grease it was fried in
Stamp pot- Dutch (2 responses)
Homemade waffles and dumplings
Szarma- Hungarian
Meatloaf ,potato soup,chicken and dumplings,.chicken noodle soup,beef ,barley veggie soup and several more (4 or more generations)
Honey Pumpkin pie from 1943 (when sugar was rationed during the Depression)
Tourtière, a French-Canadian Meat Pie, with the loose meat served at Thanksgiving as a side dish (dressing) or the neck cavity stuffed with it (at least 4 generations)
Chili with diced potatoes in it and thick!!!! (5 generations and many friends!)
Chicken pot pie, PA Dutch-style (5 generations)
Potica (nut roll)- Slovenian (at least 4 generations)
Baked beans with heirloom marrowfat beans
Bean soup, cabbage soup, pickled beets and eggs, and potato salad (at least 4 generations)
"Aunt Helen's chocolate cake", a must for our family at every birthday celebration
German Chocolate cake (a new family recipe)
Suet pudding (at least 4 generations)
Vegetable soup with a little sauerkraut for flavor and Cranberry salad (at least 5 generations)
Vegetable soup (4 generations)
Suet pudding (9 generations or longer)
Mincemeat,cabbage rolls
Potato salad, real baked beans with Boetje’s Dutch Mustard, and meatloaf

There were handed down recipes (and a few new ones) anywhere from the common to some that were quite different! It was a fun question to ask, and it was fun to see all the different recipes that people have received from their ancestors and still use through the generations!

Interactive Questions:
What do you think of the recipes on this list? Do you use any of these? What is (or was) a family recipe that has been passed down through the generations of your family? I’d love to read your comments!

More Social Genealogy and Family History Questions:
Come read more of my social genealogy questions and their results under the Social Genealogy and Family History category. (More coming very soon)

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