More Shelter in Place Genealogy Ideas

Part 2 

Last week my blog was a whole lot longer than usual but I figured now that you’re housebound, you’ve got time to read.  I have seven additional ideas to work on since you can’t run down to your local archive or call a library to access a record.  Now is a wonderful opportunity to…

1.      Review what you have on that brick wall ancestor.  Take every scrap of evidence and spread it out on your workspace.  Now arrange it in chronological order and study it.  Next arrange it by connections, such as every document that has the spouse’s name, too.  Do you see any missing time frames?  Maybe there was a marriage certificate for 1842, a deed in the same county for 1852 but one of the individuals isn’t mentioned in the 1860 U.S. Federal census but shows up again in 1870. That’s a clue to figure out where the individual was in 1860 – maybe they were ill and placed in a sanitarium, perhaps they were visiting an adult child in another area, the person may have had to find work elsewhere or attend the funeral of a family member.  Not sure where the person might have been?  I recommend reading my last blog article and doing item 3.  After you do that …

2.      Take your time to synthesize the information.  Don’t rush – we aren’t going anywhere for awhile.  Let the information just percolate in your brain.  Write down what you find odd or missing.  Now it’s time to…

3.      Do some exercise.  Hubby and I now start our day with a beginner yoga video we found on youtube.  Stretching and breathing will help your brain process the information so give it a try.  The workout may have made you hungry so now think about…

4.      Family recipes.  My hubby’s birthday is coming up and I may have to dig up the family Depression Cake recipe because I don’t know what ingredients will be available at the grocery.  That recipe makes me think of other recipes that got my family through difficult times.  When my grandparents were quarantined with their young family because of a scarlet fever outbreak, she practiced social distancing by speaking with her neighbors through their open windows.  Reminds me of the people singing together on the balconies in Italy or exercising in Spain.  In my family’s case, grandma got a great spaghetti sauce recipe from the Italian neighbor and what we call corn meal mush, from the southern neighbor on the other side of her home.  That was nearly 100 years ago.  Think about the legacy you’re leaving your descendants…

5.      Write down your experiences. I realize how spoiled and privileged we are.  I miss going to restaurants the most.  I only recall both sets of my grandparents going to a restaurant once.  My maternal grandparents, my mother and I went with a neighbor to the Beach Café in Miller, Indiana when I was about 6 years old to get perch on a Friday night during Lent.  Mr. Bauer had just become a widow and missed going to the café with his wife so my family joined him.  I didn’t know then that he had been a character witness 20 years earlier for my grandparents so they could become citizens.  My paternal grandparents, my parents and I went to a diner in Hobart, Indiana when I was about 3 years old.  I have no idea why we only went once or why we went there but I recall there were other people with us so I suspect visiting relatives must have come to town.  They ordered a large pizza and to me, it looked disgusting so I refused to eat it.  I ended up getting the chicken drumstick child’s dinner.  My dad bought me a plastic rocket that came apart in three pieces – it was the Cold War and we were going to beat those Russians.  That was 60 years ago.  Those are my memories of dining out – now write yours and if you get stuck…

6.      Ask an older relative about their recollections.  Now is the time to connect so give them a call, email, Skype or even write a snail mail letter.  I wish I had thought to ask my grandparents about the 1919 Influenza pandemic.  I know my grandfather and great grandfather both got it in January; my grandmother blamed their resistance being shot to working the night shift at U.S. Steel and riding their bikes home in the cold rain.  My grandfather got over it quickly; my great grandfather died.  He had been known to have asthma and epilepsy and the flu turned into pneumonia.  I have the funeral photo with no social distancing practiced.  I know how the family coped – my grandmother took in borders to help pay the bills now that half the money was gone.  What I don’t know is how they prepared for the epidemic.  Perhaps they never did.  The family raised chickens and rabbits and canned their garden vegetables.  I really wish I had asked more questions.  If you aren’t able to connect with an older generation because you are the older generation then…

7.      Reach out to those your DNA says are family.  Sure, you tried that before but they didn’t respond.  Well, try, try again because they’re probably home now, too, and just might have time to respond to you.

Remember, Shakespeare and Newton did their best work during a pandemic.  Keep up your spirits by thinking about how your ancestors handled adversity.  Let them serve as a model for you.

Alternative Spring Break Genealogy Ideas

Like the rest of the world, my Spring Break plans have come undone.  Flexibility is a great trait for genealogists so I’m looking at this bump in the road as a way to help me grow.  Seriously!  Stick with me and I’ll give you some ideas.

First, I’d like to apologize for my last blog being posted late. I didn’t realize until Wednesday it hadn’t been published.  Typically, I write on Saturday mornings and post immediately.  The week prior, I thought I would be working on Saturday so I wrote two blogs with the intent of publishing the second before I left for work the next weekend.  Except, my weekend gig was cancelled.  I decided Saturday to alter my routine.  After the crazy week of trying to wrap up client requests in the event that my local archives closed (and they have) and making plans to relocate my educational job to home (which also came to be), along with trying to prepare our home for shelter in place, I decided to take Saturday to spend outdoors all day.  Our yard looks fantastic! On Sunday, fired up by all we had accomplished the day before, I got the brilliant idea to clean the garage which consumed most of the day.  Then Monday, what should have been the start of my spring break, I spent posting to groups on my school district’s platform to reach out to parents and students.  That took up most of Monday and Tuesday.  By Wednesday, I was in a routine for our new normal and was ready to pick back up with genealogy. 

My advice if, like me, you’re stuck at home - DO NOT SIT ALL DAY IN FRONT OF YOUR COMPUTER!  You will get lulled into a stupor, miss clues and follow a path down a rabbit hole that won’t help you find what you’re seeking. Instead, this is a wonderful opportunity to reflect on your practice and do the things that you’ve been meaning to do but put off.   Here’s some ideas:

1.       Clean your work area.  You might uncover a note to self of a document you wanted to investigate, an email you wanted to send or copies of research you meant to review but didn’t get around to it.  I found some great ideas for future blog posts which leads me to recommending…

2.      Start your own blog.  It’s easy, it’s fun to connect to others who are as passionate as you are and it can be free.  I post in two places – Google’s Blogger and on my own website (which I do pay to maintain).  Not sure what to write about?  Whatever you’re interested in is fine. You’d be surprised at how many far-flung family members will find you if you post about a surname, especially an uncommon one.  The thought of surnames leads me to realize…

3.      We aren’t the only generation that’s experienced working from home.  I bet, like me, you have a sizeable number of ancestors who were farmers.  They lived on the place they worked.  My husband’s side had a number of mariners who lived on their boats and retailers who lived above their stores.  I’ve also had tavernkeepers who lived on site.  Travel, back in the day, was often difficult which explains why deeds weren’t presented in a timely manner, obits weren’t noticed in the nearest city’s newspaper and children learned at home.  If you’re getting claustrophobic, take your electronic device outside, Google a location, select “more” from the ribbon and click “Books.”  Now pick an old book from your selected location and read about what life was like when your ancestor was homebound.  Highlight or take notes on anything that gives you an idea for further research.  Some ideas are the name of the church denomination that was there in 1809, the old cemetery that isn’t listed on Find-A-Grave or Billion Graves, or where the courthouse was located.  You can email the local genealogy society for more information on where those records may be housed and then take that info and turn it into a…

4.      Research Question.  This is a wonderful opportunity to up your genealogy practices and truly write down what you want answered.  Every genealogy software program has somewhere you can record your question, be it notes or comments.  I sometimes even use stickees to keep me on track.  Post it right on your screen to stay focused.  Research shows that we need to give our brains a break from intense focusing so…

5.      Get up and move for a bit.  Walk around your house and put labels on the bottom of family heirlooms.  Sure, you know who owned what but that doesn’t mean your descendants will remember.  Stand and sort that pile of papers you meant to file or reorganize your files entirely.  I like sorting by surname and then alphabetically by first name but whatever works for you is fine.  Now stand and scan the info, saving to your external hard drive, cloud or other device.  Wow, you just got some exercise, rested your brain and accomplished a task you’ve been putting off for awhile.  Good for you!   Part 2 with more ideas coming soon.

Colorizing Old Photos

You may have tried the new MyHeritage tool that allows you to upload a black and white photo that will be transformed into color.  I spoke with a colleague at a genealogy conference last month who gushed about the magic of the results.
I finally got around to trying it and decided the true test would be with one of the photos in my collection that were of a known relative so I could compare results with memory.
I selected a photo of my great grandmother, Anna Grdenic Kos[s]:

I recall this photo was taken Christmas 1961 or 1962.  I remember the dress and that my grandmother, Mary Violet Kos Koss, purchased the corsage and it was worn to the church service.  I even recall where they attended, St. Joseph's Croatian [Roman] Catholic Church in Glen Park, Gary, Lake, Indiana.  I didn't go with them because the mass was in Croatian; instead, my mother and I walked a block to attend services at St. Mark's [Roman] Catholic Church.

Here's what the colorization looks like:

This was not my great grandmother's skin tone in winter; she was quiet pale. Actually, it wasn't even her tone in the summer as she didn't go out in the sun.  The dress was green and white.  The corsage was silver with red balls and a green ribbon.  I know this because I was there.  I also played with the corsage and tried to affix it to my cat's collar after the holidays.  I thought that corsage was just awesome!

So, if you'd like to colorize your photos you can do so at MyHeritage.  You can sign in through Google or Facebook and if you have a MyHeritage account, just enter your password.  Then, just drop and drag the photo you'd like colorized in the box.  It just takes a few seconds to get the finished image.

Know that MyHeritage retains the rights to the photo.  Know, from my personal experience, the colors you get aren't necessary true.  Personally, I like my black and whites and sepias.

The U.S. National Archives Update

I love researching at NARA!  Sure, some of the records are available online but holding that original document in my hands and knowing that my ancestor once touched it is a feeling like no other.  The staff has always been accommodating and when I get all teary eyed when I've made a new discovery, many have patiently listened and shared in my joy.

It's time for us to step up and see to it that the agency gets the funding they need to continue to do the job for us.  The tentative budget provides less than the amount allocated in 2010 yet the demands for archiving have risen.  We must contact our Congressional representative by Tuesday, March 11th, to make them aware of the importance of adequate funding.

Dear Readers, I've only asked you once before to contact your representatives when the 500% proposal to raise the fee by the U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Service in December was announced.  I try very hard to not be political in my blogs.  I don't care what side of the aisle you're on.  I do care that you are able to access the records you need.  I do believe records need to be preserved for future generations.  I hope you see the value in getting NARA the funding it needs to do the job correctly.  All it takes is 5 minutes from you to call your Congressional rep at 202-224-3121 or send an email.  The few minutes from your busy day to make your wishes known might just result in your brick wall break through down the road. 

Need more info?  You can read about the budget needs here.