Contributed by Donna Bellamy
This is a picture of my father, Lloyd Lowe, and his sister, Thelma Lowe, taken about 1918.

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Contributed by Frances Parker Russell
In this picture back row from left to right: my mother, Thelma Sims Parker, my uncle Jasper A. “Jake” Sims, my little uncle that I never knew, Charles “Jack” Sims, my aunts, Kathleen Sims Kuntz (the baby in the chair) and Grace Sims Riales. The picture was taken in 1914. While the family was hard-working and not at all wealthy, they managed to have several pictures made by a professional photographer.

Ancestry has posted a database containing the British Army WWI Medal Rolls Index Cards, 1914-1920 (2.1 million records). These cards were created by the Army Medal Office (AMO) of the United Kingdom in Droitwich near the close of World War I (WWI). The Medal Index Cards collection is the most complete listing of individuals who fought in the British Army in WWI, containing approximately 90% of soldiers’ names. The Index Cards were created in order to keep in one place details about a soldier’s medal entitlement.

Certain requirements needed to be met in order to qualify for certain medals (see medal descriptions below). However, nearly all soldiers who served abroad were awarded at least one medal.

There is both a front and back side to each card. Cards are arranged alphabetically by soldiers’ surnames. There are a few different card forms that were used, so the amount of information recorded will vary. However, the type of information that may be found on the cards includes:

• Name of soldier
• Regiment
• Corps
• Rank(s)
• Regiment number(s)
• Name of medal(s) received
• Roll and page numbers (references to the original AMO medal rolls)
• Theater of war served in and date of entry
• Date of enlistment
• Date and reason of discharge
• Remarks
• Correspondence notes
• Address Continue reading →

God gave us memories that we might have roses in December.
~ J.M. Barrie

Posted This Week

• Social Security Death Index (Updated through December 2007) 
• A Biographical History of Lancaster County [Pennsylvania] 
• Missouri Birth Records, 1805-1980 (Updated) 
• View a list of all new and updated databases 
• Learn more about what’s new at Ancestry.com 
• Search the Ancestry.com Card Catalog
  
   

Well, it’s mid-February, and by now we have our holiday photographs all printed, labeled, and organized. Did I say “we?” Ok, I probably should have said “some of you.” I am among those whose holiday photographs are still only living in digital format. This week, let’s get those photographs printed, labeled, and into a safe environment (i.e., some type of acid- and lignin-free storage place–whether it is an album, sleeve, or box). And don’t forget to label them. This can be a good family activity on one of these cold winter nights!

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My Mom, Patricia (Hanley) Stuart, passed away on 8 January 2008 while I was teaching at the annual Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy. I remember exactly when I received the call from my sister, Linda. I was eating a hot fudge sundae at JB’s in the Salt Lake Plaza Hotel with a friend while another friend was massaging my neck and shoulders already tight from stress and not enough sleep. Mom always did things on HER own schedule! That night I stayed up ‘til the wee hours of the morning writing Mom’s obituary and a tribute to her.

It got me to thinking. Whether you use paper to record your family history or a software program such as Family Tree Maker, are you up-to-date? I mean, have you entered all recent family data, logged those cute new family additions, added marriages and spouses, checked for your family in the Social Security Death Index, gathered obituaries, funeral cards, and even prepared questions for the next family gathering of any kind? Continue reading →

“I have some cassette tapes of my parents and their siblings and cousins born at and near the beginning of the twentieth century. I would love to be able to have them on CD to preserve them and in computer files to share with other family members via e-mail.”

If you’re like this reader, you have recordings of loved ones. In some cases they were left as deliberate oral histories, but you may also have spontaneous recordings on answering machines. From Edison’s first attempts to record voice to today’s MP3 explosion there are generations of recordings in need of being saved. The Library of Congress has an online article, Cylinder, Disc and Tape Care in a Nutshell with tips on preserving originals. But what should you do if you want to share these recordings with others? Help is out there. Continue reading →

Most genealogists would mistakenly assume that the prestigious genealogy collection of the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., contains only U.S. materials. In fact, the Library of Congress (LOC) has an impressive collection of Hispanic materials in its Hispanic Reading Room. The room also has its own website, available in both English and Español. The site boasts histories, maps, and excellent online collections of Hispanic, Portuguese, and Caribbean materials. The Hispanic Room is open to the public, but a visit to the website will prepare you for maximizing your research visit.

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Google Highlighter
While scrolling down list after list of individuals with the very same name, I discovered a helpful tool. I subscribe to the Google Toolbar, and it has a highlighter as one of its tools. In the search box associated with the toolbar, I place pertinent info, such as, the birth year, death year, maybe the state initials, or any other info I deem helpful. I do not click in the search bar, but instead allow the highlighter to go to work. If it finds any info corresponding to what I have in the search box, it will highlight the info. I would imagine Yahoo has the same arrangement. It truly does help immensely.

Diane Magraw Continue reading →