Urbana Free Library local history and genealogy events for October 2014

Urbana Free Library local history and genealogy events for October 2014 

Workshops & Events

Town & Gown Speaker Series: Champaign County on Film

Wednesday, October 15 • 7:00 p.m. - 8:45 p.m.

Join us for a screening of films from the University of Illinois Archives and the Champaign County Historical Archives, which document local history and film-making.

The Town & Gown Speaker Series is sponsored by the Student Life and Culture Archives at the University of the Illinois and the Champaign County Historical Archives. For upcoming events in the series visit: https://publish.illinois.edu/townandgown/

Authors Panel

Thursday, October 23 • 7:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.

Join the Champaign County Historical Archives for an evening of stories as local authors present an informal panel conversation about the discoveries they have made in the Archives. Authors and notables include: Raymond Cunningham, Guy Fraker, Dannel McCollum, Perry Morris, Joseph Muskin, Dennis Roberts, Fred Schlipf, and Audrey Wells.

A light reception will follow the panel conversation. 

Children's Program: Discover Your Family's Story

Saturday, October 25 • 11:00 a.m. - Noon

Join the Champaign County Historical Archives and Children’s Services for a morning of historical sleuthing featuring kid friendly activities to discover and celebrate your family's story.  For children ages 5 and up and their families.

Workshop: Oral History for Genealogy

Saturday, October 25 • 2:00 - 4:00 p.m.

Shows how oral interviews can be used throughout family history research. Topics include using oral history to jump-start research; learning how to ask questions; strategies for scheduling, conducting, and transcribing interviews; producing audio-visual family heirlooms; and preserving oral interviews.

Workshops are FREE and open to the public. To register, please call the Archives at 217-367-4025

Tracing Your Roots on Genlighten!

Very exciting news! Tracing Your Roots now has a professional profile on Genlighten! You can view my storefront here. I offer family history and genealogy research and reporting for an hourly rate of $25.00 per hour. The fee includes PDF copies of records and documents, research time, and report writing. Send me a message or visit the storefront for details.

Indiana Historical Society to host Cyndi's List creator, Cyndi Ingle

When: Saturday, March 22, 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Where: Frank and Katrina Basile Theater of the Eugene and Marilyn Glick Indiana History Center, 450 W. Ohio St., downtown Indianapolis.

The Indiana Historical Society will host Cyndi Ingle, creator of Cyndi’s List, as she leads a workshop covering online genealogy research.

Genealogy Online: Productive, Organized and Successful is a workshop designed to teach individuals about creating a research plan using online tools and services, learning to stay organized and on task and writing effective communications and research notes.

Registration and parking is $40 for the public and $32 for IHS members; box lunch is $12.

For more information, call (317) 232-1882 or visit www.indianahistory.org.

Announcement copied from: http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/ihs-hosts-genealogy-online-workshop-saturday/article_442bef71-38d4-5c91-8224-a501f01977fd.html

How popular is genealogy?

An article in Genealogy In Time Magazine seeks to answer this question. Following is an article abstract: 

At GenealogyInTime Magazine, we like to think outside the box. In this article, we tackle a fundamental issue: How popular is genealogy? The answer, it turns out, depends on the specific question being asked. We examine the evidence and take a hard look at the facts. In the process, we dispel some common myths and misunderstandings about the popularity of genealogy. 

Access the full article here.  

Ahnentafel -- the pedigree chart

Whether you are just starting to research your family history or you have joined your local genealogical society, chances are you have heard of the pedigree chart, specifically the Ahnentafel. The Ahnentafel, German for "ancestral table" is a numerical system used to create a pedigree list of one's direct ancestors. This type of genealogical list has been around since 1590.

How does it work? You, or the subject, is labeled as number 1 in the list. Your father is number 2 and your mother is number 3. Then, your paternal grandparents are numbers 4 and 5 and maternal grandparents are 6 and 7. Using this numbering technique, a person's father is their number multiplied by 2 and a person's mother is their number multiplied by 2 + 1. Consequently, though number 1 can be either male or female, all males have even numbers and all females have odd numbers. Some people choose to use binary representations for their Ahnentafel. You can read more about that practice on the Ahnentafel Wikipedia page.

This chart style is useful because you can create a list in a word processor and make additions and corrections to the document as you find more information. Another good way to utilize this numbering system is an ancestral chart, which you can find at your local history and genealogy center or online. For example, Ancestry.com makes an ancestral chart that follows the Ahnentafel numbering style.

Below is my Ahnentafel through my third great grandparents. For privacy reasons, I've chosen not to list the names and dates associated with persons who are still living, or the names of my grandparents. My chart begins with my father's father's father.

Happy searching!

8. Harry E. Martin (6 January 1898 - June 1972)
9. Thelma C. Sayles (26 June 1906 - 1973)
10. Floyd Jack Davis (21 February 1911 - 26 March 1992)
11. Goldie Marie Guthrie (15 January 1919 - 15 September 2004)
12. Herbert Reynolds (24 September 1898 - 13 April 1950)
13. Anna Walker (1905 - January 1942)
14. Hulon Miller (6 March 1911 - February 1985)
15. Cora Hazel West (1917 - 1974)
16. Perry Newton Martin (December 1874 - 1956)
17. Mary Olive Keltner (23 September 1875 - 11 May 1965)
18. Arthur Sayles (8 January 1887 - 30 March 1927)
19. Mary Jane Woodruff (7 July 1887 - 30 October 1918)
20. Claude Davis (9 March 1878 - 13 June 1956)
21. Della Louisa Ruyle (22 March 1890 - 22 October 1954)
22. William Hugh Guthrie (29 April 1886 - 19 November 1967)
23. Elsie Alice Walton (22 May 1895 - 23 April 1933)
24. Lindsey Reynolds (October 1871 - 11 December 1955)
25. Margaret Stinnett (3 October 1872 - 29 May 1944)
26. Nathan Walker (1868 - 13 March 1963)
27. Mattie L. Lowery (11 April 1884 - 13 February 1956)
28. Cyrus Elmor Miller (13 September 1883 - 24 April 1968)
29. Fannie Elizabeth Smith (20 August 1891 - 9 April 1968)
30. James B. West (7 November 1862 - 20 November 1932)
31. Jinsey Carroll (28 April 1878 - 2 July 1952)
32. Valerian I. Martin (21 November 1851 - September 1931)
33. Mary Jane Corn (September 1850 - 23 December 1928)
34. Jacob Keltner (23 November 1843 - after 1930)
35. Margaret Cain (1845 - ?)
36. Tillman Sayles (1863 - 27 February 1933)
37. Florence May Baker (20 June 1862 - 1911)
38. Cornelius C. Woodruff (15 January 1842 - 21 February 1926)
39. Cinderella VanKirk (1852 - ?)
40. John Payton Davis (7 January 1836 - 2 November 1905)
41. Elizabeth Davis (30 July 1838 - 18 March 1904)
42. John P. Ruyle (28 September 1852 - 17 January 1937)
43. Caroline Elizabeth Cummings (10 May 1860 - 5 June 1929)
44. John Adam Guthrie (23 September 1843 - 19 April 1929)
45. Mary Catherine Kent (17 October 1856 - 10 July 1934)
46. Adolph Robert Walton (21 June 1861 - 8 May 1925)
47. Bertha Catherine Borst (25 October 1876 - 15 December 1906)
48. Absalom Reynolds (22 May 1839 - 26 June 1903)
49. Martha Jane Walker (15 August 1836 - 19 June 1909)
50. John William Stinnett (11 June 1843 - 13 August 1913)
51. Samantha "Panthy" Cobb (1845 - ?)
52. Unknown
53. Unknown
54. William Lowry (28 May 1842 - 1 August 1924)
55. Mary Jane Stinnett (July 1850 - 1 January 1926)
56. Unknown
57. Mary T. ? (1854 - ?)
58. James Hayden Smith (9 March 1858 - 12 February 1929)
59. Margaret Ann Adams  (January 1856 - 22 May 1926)
60. Barney West ( 27 December 1927 - 16 September 1914)
61. Elizabeth Carroll (1823 - 1885)
62. Barney Carroll
63. Francis Stephens

Champaign County (Illinois) Workshops

The Champaign County Historical Archives of the Urbana Free Library in Urbana, Illinois will host a number of genealogy workshops this spring. 

Information for the first workshop is located below: 

Ancestry.com: Beyond the Basics

Saturday, March 29   10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Instructor:  Steve Szabados

Ancestry.com is one of the largest and most important Genealogy websites. Its major databases are well known, however, it has many databases that are just as important but are rarely used. Steve Szabados will draw upon his experience to describe how you can find and unlock these databases. He will also review his techniques to simplify your research on Ancestry.com and make it more efficient.

Call the archives (217) 367- 4025 or stop by to register (it's free!)

Click here to download a PDF list of workshops available this spring. 

For more information visit their site: http://urbanafreelibrary.org/local-history-genealogy/workshops-events

New Page! Genealogy Websites (U.S.)

As you may have already seen, I have added a new page to the blog. This page is called Genealogy Websites (U.S.) and contains an annotated list of both free and fee based genealogy websites that I have used. Only a few descriptions are up, but I will add to the page periodically. Suggestions/reviews are welcome, just leave me a message using the contact form. Thanks!