History Commons^™

Caring For The Family Tree: Helping Patrons Select Genealogy Software, Beth Transue, Rob Lesher

Library Staff Presentations & Publications

Caring for the Family Tree: Helping Patrons Select Genealogy Software

Presentation by: Rob Lesher, PA Library Association PA Forward Manager and Beth Transue, Messiah University Information Literacy Librarian

Presented at the PA Library Association annual conference, October 2023, Kalahari Resort, Poconos, PA

Objectives:

• Help patrons determine genealogy research goals and budget parameters
• Explore genealogy software options
• Assist patrons to select genealogy software options based on research goals and budget parameters

This Civic & Social Literacy focused presentation will help librarians work with patrons to select genealogy software. As the hobby of genealogy grows in popularity, there is a multitude of …

Genealogy Behind Bars: An Update, Kathrine C. Aydelott

Faculty Publications

This brief essay is an update to “Genealogy Behind Bars: Professional Development Through Prisoner Requests: A Case Study,” in Genealogy and the Librarian: Perspectives on Research, Instruction, Outreach and Management, Carol Smallwood and Vera Gubnitskaia, eds. Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 2018, which see for context.

Access Your Ancestors: Introduction To Free Online Genealogy Resources, Sarah Myers

Library Staff Presentations & Publications

Wednesday, March 10, 202110:00 am - 11:00 am

Virtual on Zoom

Are you interested in finding out about your family history and climbing your family tree? This course will be an introduction to online genealogy resources that are free to use and easily accessible to anyone with internet access. Find census, birth, marriage, military, and death records with ease and without spending a dime. This class will energize you to make discoveries on what makes your family unique, special, and downright interesting.

All participants will receive a resource packet to organize and keep track of their findings. In addition to …

My Family, Their History: Using Exploratory Inquiry & Pragmatic Methods To Learn History, Lowellen Sucgang

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

History education is at a crossroads. The availability of information at our fingertips has the potential to change how the non-historian sees history and the other social sciences. This capstone researched ways the non-historian can utilize the changing face of history education by implementing the pragmatic methods of John Dewey’s education philosophy called instrumentalism. Principal issues discussed include the pros and cons of out-of-classroom history education, utilization of exploratory inquiry for research and the usefulness of primary sources for a historiography. To apply instrumentalism ideals and methods, I created a historiography about my ancestors and how their lives intertwined with …

Chain Of Custody: Access And Control Of State Archival Records In Public-Private Partnerships, Sarah E. Carlson

Provenance, Journal of the Society of Georgia Archivists

As I write this, Ancestry.com is a central party in a lawsuit with the organization Reclaim The Records, citing that it, a private corporation, received preferential priority and access to public records before individual patrons of the public in Freedom of Information requests for genealogical records.^[i] Concern that public records may move into private hands demarcates an increasingly digital realm of record-keeping and public history. As companies and the public jockey for access to records in a race for access – one open and the other annexed behind a paywall – the blatant corruption is alarming. Yet, public records …

Recovering Abiquiú’S Lost Church Records, Samuel E. Sisneros

University Libraries & Learning Sciences Faculty and Staff Publications

In early 2016, an elderly couple came into UNM’s Center for Southwest Research & Special Collections determined to donate six hide-covered books to the archives. They confessed they did not know their contents and that even though the books were in the care of the family for many years, they thought UNM would be a suitable place for them to be preserved and studied. I immediately realized that these antique books were the long lost baptismal, marriage and burial registers (1777-1861) from the Mission Church of Santo Tomás Apóstol de Abiquiú and that the rightful repository for them was the …

Jewish Germany: An Enduring Presence From The Fourth To The Twenty-First Century, John A. Drobnicki

Publications and Research

Review of the book Jewish Germany: An enduring presence from the fourth to the twenty-first century.

Dorothy Moser Medlin Papers - Accession 1049, Dorothy Moser Medlin

Manuscript Collection

(The Dorothy Moser Medlin Papers are currently in processing.)

This collection contains most of the records of Dorothy Medlin’s work and correspondence and also includes reference materials, notes, microfilm, photographic negatives related both to her professional and personal life. Additions include a FLES Handbook, co-authored by Dorothy Medlin and a decorative mirror belonging to Dorothy Medlin.

Major series in this collection include: some original 18th century writings and ephemera and primary source material of André Morellet, extensive collection of secondary material on André Morellet's writings and translations, Winthrop related files, literary manuscripts and notes by Dorothy Medlin (1966-2011), copies …

Portraits, Preservation & Pedigrees: An Introduction To Photographic Portraiture, Photographs As A Means Of Genealogical Research, And A Preservation Case Study Of The Howard D. Beach Studio Collection Of Glass Plate Negatives, Kirsten Feigel

Museum Studies Theses

Photography is an established art form that combines the knowledge of chemistry, light, and optics to render an image. Initially, the image is captured on a flat surface coated with emulsion and combined with an exposure to sunlight or another illuminating source. Today, images are captured by digital methods. Artistically, the photograph may reveal sceneries of landscapes, of treasured belongings and of people, as they are seen to the human eye. Photographic portraiture is the oldest style of photography next to landscape imagery, due to commercial photographers setting up studios and experimenting with photography’s many cameras, plates, and emulsions. In …

Review Of The Book German Census Records 1816-1916: The When, Where, And How Of A Valuable Genealogical Resource, John A. Drobnicki

Publications and Research

Review of the book German census records 1816-1916: The when, where, and how of a valuable genealogical resource.

Review Of The Book Guide To Reference In Genealogy And Biography, John A. Drobnicki

Publications and Research

Review of the book Guide to reference in genealogy and biography.

Review Of The Book Polish Roots: Korzenie Polskie, 2nd Ed., John A. Drobnicki

Publications and Research

Review of the book Polish roots: Korzenie Polskie, 2nd ed.

Using The Illinois Digital Archives As A Genealogical Research Tool, Eric Willey

Faculty and Staff Publications – Milner Library

A brief, informative article describing how to use the Illinois Digital Archives as a resource for genealogical research.

Old News - The Louisville Leader's Genealogical Gems., Rachel Howard

Faculty Scholarship

The Louisville Leader African-American community newspaper, published weekly in Louisville from 1917 to 1950, offers a perspective on local and national events not available in the mainstream media at the time. The newspaper's columns highlighting community members’ life events and activities may be of great interest to social historians and genealogists.

Ancestry.Com Database: Ins Subject Index, James Gross

James Gross

Brief review of a new database available from (Ancestry.com). The database, "INS Subject index," is now available to subscribers of (Ancestry.com). This is an index of records held by the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Services.

Three Presentations At The Boston Conference That Taught Me New Approaches, Immigration And Naturalization Service Citizen Records: Beyond The Basics, James Gross

James Gross

Brief review of a talk by staff employee, Mr. Wilske, of the US Immigration and Naturalization Service. Lecture was held during the annual Jewish Genealogy Conference held in Boston, Mass.

Cloud Based Storage: A Brief Look At Dropbox, James Gross

James Gross

Brief review of dropbox, a cloud based service for digital file storage.

Review Of The Database Fold3 History And Genealogy Archives Plus, John A. Drobnicki

Publications and Research

Review of the database Fold3 history and genealogy archives plus.

Helm, Margie May, 1894-1991 (Sc 2439), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

MSS Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Small Collection 2439. Correspondence, clippings, and miscellaneous items of Margie May Helm, Bowling Green, Kentucky, chiefly related to public library work in Kentucky and bookmobiles.

Review Of The Website The Usgenweb Project, John A. Drobnicki

Publications and Research

Review of the website The USGenWeb project.

Review Of The Book Census Substitutes & State Census Records, John A. Drobnicki

Publications and Research

Review of the book Census Substitutes & State Census Records.

Review Of The Book The Source: A Guidebook To American Genealogy, 3rd Ed., John A. Drobnicki

Publications and Research

Review of the book The source: A guidebook to American genealogy, 3rd ed.

Review Of The Website Cyndi’S List Of Genealogy Sites On The Internet, John A. Drobnicki

Publications and Research

Review of the website Cyndi’s list of genealogy sites on the internet.

Review Of The Database Proquest Obituaries, John A. Drobnicki

Publications and Research

Review of the database ProQuest obituaries.

Review Of The Book Ancestral Trails: The Complete Guide To British Genealogy And Family History, 2nd Ed., John A. Drobnicki

Publications and Research

Review of the book Ancestral trails: The complete guide to British genealogy and family history, 2nd ed.

Review Of The Website Online Searchable Death Indexes & Records: A Genealogy Guide, John A. Drobnicki

Publications and Research

Review of the website Online searchable death indexes & records: A genealogy guide.

Review Of The Website City Directories Of The United States Of America, John A. Drobnicki

Publications and Research

Review of the website City Directories of the United States of America.

Review Of The Book Genealogical Research On The Web, John A. Drobnicki

Publications and Research

Review of the book Genealogical Research on the Web.

Review Of The Book Professional Genealogy: A Manual For Researchers, Writers, Editors, Lecturers, And Librarians, John A. Drobnicki

Publications and Research

Review of the book Professional Genealogy: A Manual For Researchers, Writers, Editors, Lecturers, and Librarians.

Review Of The Book Guide To Genealogical Research In The National Archives Of The United States, 3rd Ed., John A. Drobnicki

Publications and Research

Review of the book Guide to Genealogical Research in the National Archives of the United States, 3rd ed., ed. Anne Bruner Eales and Robert M. Kvasnicak.