The Genealogy Gems Podcast with Lisa Louise Cooke - Your Family History Show

Published March 22, 2012 Genealogy Gems Book Club: Our featured book is Running Away to Home by Jennifer Wilson. In this book, Jennifer takes us on a once and a lifetime genealogical journey where she walked in her ancestors shoes and lived among their descendants. : and help support the free Genealogy Gems Podcast.    Thank You!   Visit Jennifer Wilson’s website:     About Jennifer: Jennifer Wilson has been writing for 15 years for folks like Esquire, National Geographic Traveler, Better Homes & Gardens, Traditional Home, Budget Travel, AAA Living, Parents, Midwest Living, Iowa Outdoors, the Chicago Tribune, the St. Paul Pioneer-Press, (the dearly departed) Gourmet and many others.   SPECIAL VIDEO CONTENT: watch on   Genealogy Gems App Users will find a special video about the interview as bonus content for episode 129. Get the (Search "Genealogy Gems")   If you enjoyed this episode and the video, please do me a favor and click the thumbs up button for the video at YouTube, you’ll find it right under the video.  And you’ll also find ways there on Youtube to share the video through Facebook and Twitter for all you Tweeters out there. Thank you for sharing!      for more information on Jamboree.

Published March 9, 2011 In this episode we'll talk to Chris van der Kuyl, CEO of brightsolid. By Andrew Martin of the History Repeating Blog Mark Olsen of  MyHeritage / World Vital Records WDYTYA recap at the MyHeritage blog Else Churchill and her team from the Society of Genealogists in the UK really do a brilliant job organizing the classes for Who Do You Think You Are?   NEWS: I’m honored that my Genealogy Podcasts and Blogs 101 class is included in the group. I really enjoyed introducing more people to podcasts and blogs I’ve heard from a lot of folks that this really opened their eyes to a medium they didn’t realize was out there for them to enjoy for free.  Debbie writes: “Wow.  All I can say is Wow.  I am a 52 year old mother of 4 in Bountiful, Utah.  I have been watching the RootsTech Live presentations online and have just finished watching yours.  It was amazing and inspiring.  I consider myself somewhat tech savvy but have veered away from Blogs.  (Just the sound of the word Blog infers something that will weigh you down.)  But after your presentation I am anxious to try iGoogle and add blogs and podcasts tailored to my interests.  I had no idea.  And thanks for pointing out the Google blog search option.  All the genealogy-focused search options now available through Google are exciting. I am hopeful you will add all your RootsTech presentations to your podcasts.  They sound fascinating.” And during that presentation I encouraged viewers to get their own genealogy blog started so that they can get information out there that might help them connect with other genealogists researching the same family line.  And Carol wrote me shortly after the conference to let me know that she did just that! She writes: Marlene also wrote in about RootsTech. She says: “The Rootstech Conference was so awesome.  I learned so much about podcasts, I am willing to try it out. But first I am the craft queen, especially when it comes to crafting my family history.  The last day of the Rootstech I had to leave early.  I didn’t get to your last class that I had waited so long for.  Do you have a podcast of the steps for creating the crafts you make with your family history?? I see the instructions, but I wanted to watch you in action.  p.s. Thanks so much for your signed book on find family through newspapers.  I can’t wait to get started. Marlene” Genealogy Gems YouTube channel: And the 4 part Family History Christmas Wreath series Also, several projects discussed in class are featured in my book "Genealogy Gems" available at my .   MAILBOX: Hi Lisa, I love your podcasts, but I'm still catching up!! Back in 2009. you ran a series of "Name that Tune" challenges, which I absolutely loved, I think I have old time music in my DNA. It took me a day to recognize the "Missouri Waltz," I knew "The Dark Town Strutters Ball" right away; when I was little I named my doll "Honey" and always thought of those first lines "I'll be down to get you in a taxi, Honey...", I knew "I'll see you in my dreams" don't know if you are old enough to recall "Sing along with Mitch" when it was on TV, but we had all Mitch Miller's Sing Along albums and "I'll See you in my dreams" was among them. Okay, so that brings me to the reason for this email. In Episode 56, you celebrated "I'll See you in my dreams" and then played a brief 30 seconds of another tune, it was a violin instrumental. Well as I said I've listened up to 59 and I've never heard the result for that last tune. I think it may be "Thine Alone" by Victor Herbert. It was from the operetta "Eileen". Herbert was born in Ireland and emigrated to America, his more famous songs include "Ah Sweet Mystery of Life" and "The March of the Toys" from "Babes in Toyland" but he seems to have written hundreds of songs.  You had a loyal listener named "Jeannie" who called you with the names of the first 4 songs, I laughed at the similarity in our names, but anyway, I'm going crazy, did anyone else ever recognize that song? If you go to iTunes, there is a good instrumental version of "Thine Alone" on the Album "The Music of Victor Herbert & Sigmund Romberg" performed by George Melchrino. It is a lovely song. I can't tell you how many wonderful memories those songs gave me!! Yes, I am working on my Family History and really enjoy all your podcasts, videos, blogs and advice. I did finish your Family History: Genealogy Made Easypodcast series, got to get to work on the  too!! Thank you so much for all you do! Jean  Sue:    Paula really is amazing and if you’d like to learn more about her and handwriting analysis head over to   GEM: Interview with Chris van der Kuyl, CEO of  brightsolid companies:

Published Feb 21, 2012 In this episode you'll hear from UK presenter and historian Nick Barratt.   GEM: Listener Betty Wynn Betty talks about how she uses my book   GEM: Interview with Nick Barratt   “Dr Nick Barratt obtained a PhD in history from King's College London in 1996, editing the 1225 Exchequer pipe roll and several Exchequer receipt rolls from the 1220s when the National Archives: Public Record Office maintained a site at Chancery Lane. On joining the National Archives: Public Record Office at Kew later the same year as a reader adviser. Nick started work in television whilst working at the BBC as a specialist archive researcher for a number of programmes. His valuable links to the largest archival institutions in the country and expertise helped lay the foundation of the network he has in place today. This network allows Nick and his team of researchers to effectively complete projects in any archive across the country.”

Published Feb 10, 2012 In this episode we cover the latest news from RootsTech 2012, my video interview with Nick Barratt, and an in depth look at Find A Grave with the website's creator, Jim Tipton. NEWS: Watch the recording of my presentation website. It’s part of the Saturday Recap Video. Roots Tech was the public debut of my new book Everything You Need to Know About How to Find Your Family in Newspapers and I just want to thank everyone for the amazing response.  It’s really obvious that a comprehensive book on newspaper research was LONG overdue. Get the book at the   Autographed copies still available a very limited time about and watch my chat with Genealogy Gems Podcast listener and contest winner Carol Genung. GENEALOGY GEMS APP BONUS CONTENT:  Listen to the interview with podcast listener and contest winner Carol Genung.  Watch my chat with television presenter and historian Nick Barratt.   Brightsolid (Now FindMyPast)Now one of the big players in British online records brightsolid made a HUGE splash at RootsTech 2012 not only with it’s huge and colorful display at the front of the Exhibit Hall, but also by announcing while there that they have formally entered the US genealogy market with the launch of a ground-breaking, "pay-as-you-go" website: . Read all about it: Customers of the new site will be able to search all US census records from 1790 to 1930 and it will also house the 1940 US census records, when they are released later this year. My Heritage / World Vital RecordsAlso making news was MyHeritage.com. They have recently acquired World Vital Records.com and now are also making a splash onto the U.S. scene.  I spoke with CEO Gilad Japhet and he told me they have just opened a U.S. office in Provo Utah and will be introducing some exciting new changes in the near future that take advantage of the huge new record collection they have acquired from World Vital Records and will make it easier than ever to build your existing MyHeritage family tree.   FamilySearch Launches Mobile Indexing AppFamilySearch announced a mobile Indexing App at RootsTech that is meant to expand the capability of volunteers to help make the world’s historic records searchable online.  The mobile device app works on Apple iPads, iPhones, and Droid smartphones. MAILBOX: From Pat in New York: “Lisa--Once again I find myself driving along listening to you and mentally adding "To Do" items faster than the speed limit will allow! :)  It's like having tea again with a childhood friend -- your comforting tone is oh-so-soothing at the end of the day for the drive home.” Read Pat’s blog post at      “Lost Goose” newspaper notice which was a particular gem found in old small town newspapers.  From Tina in the UK: “Your new newspaper book: I wondered if the content might be solely to do with US newspapers, or do you cover other countries too?  I'm interested as I haven't had a lot of luck.” The book is first and foremost a newspaper research process.  This applies to newspapers regardless of their location.  It does however include a fairly extensive International newspaper Appendix.  It is of course impossible to make it complete, however it will certainly give you some great leads, and also provide you with a sense of what is out there and other types of similar websites to look for.  While newspaper research starts online, it very often ends offline.  And certainly the worksheets would be applicable to all newspaper research. Sandi wrote: "Just got my signed copy today. Thanks, Lisa! I know I will get lots of GEMS :) I foresee this being a well-used workbook." Nancy wrote: "Got my signed book in the mail today. Well done. Lots of fantastic tips.  and references for all states. I'm reading through it. Thanks, Lisa,  for a great book" Newspaper Lecturer Bret Petersen wrote: "I sure wish that I had had a book like that when I started researching newspapers!” Question from Dave:  “It's funny that I feel like I can call you Lisa although I have never met you in person.  I just renewed my premium membership for the second year So I have been following you for quite a while.  I love your shows; Gems, premium, and family tree magazine! I listen regularly and always can't wait for the next issue to come out!” “On to my question: I was reviewing your hard drive organization videos (fantastic by the way)  and noticed you mentioned Springfield Ohio as an ancestral home.  I too have relatives there. I am currently fascinated by my civil war veteran ancestor Samuel S Cowan…I was wondering where to locate possible obituaries for Springfield?  What News Papers were commonly read there?  Thanks again for all you do to feed mine and others addiction to family history!” of the Jerseyville IL Victorian Days festival.  Lisa Recommends:   Also check out my video on Using Newspapers in Genealogy at     Alison Shares a Grandma Names Followup “I saw this article in The Australian newspaper today & it reminded me of your stories about Davy so I thought you may like to read it. (Click image below to enlarge) From Alan: “I very much enjoy your podcast.  I wanted to share the name my granddaughter uses for me, one that I think any genealogist might love.  We were Skyping one day and my son referred to me as Dad.  This was confusing to my granddaughter, so he explained that I was Old Dad – and that has ever since been my name.”   GEM: Jim Tipton – FindAGrave   GEM: Your Life in 5 Minutes (Part 6) with Sunny Morton  Get Sunny's book "Your Life & TImes: A Guided Journal for Collecting Your Stories by clicking this link:

Published Jan 24, 2012 In this episode Genealogist Shirley Gage Hodges will share her genealogical wisdom with you as well as talk about her status as "perennial student." NEWS Marilyn attended my class called Inspiring Ways to Captivate the Non-Genealogist in Your Life and wrote in “I attended your class during the Arizona Family History Expo.  I enjoyed it very much!” Hear Me in Persongo to the Genealogy Gems Website at and Seminars in the menu. That’s what I do to be sure I’m in the right place at the right time! Jamboree:The 43rd Annual Southern California Genealogical Society Jamboree is now Burbank, CA  June 8 through the 10 of 2012. My Brand New Book is Available: Here’s what Steve Luxenberg, Washington Post associate editor and author of Annie’s Ghosts: A Journey Into a Family Secret said about the book:   "Read it. Study it. Absorb it. But above all, use Lisa Louise Cooke’s new book as the guide and instructional tool that it is meant to be. As a veteran of research and libraries, I found all sorts of nuggets and new resources. Beginners will find an embarrassment of riches, including an impressive appendix with a comprehensive list of online routes to national, international and local newspapers. This is as close as you’ll get to one-stop shopping for learning about historical newspaper research." And that’s really what I wanted it to be – One stop shopping for everything you need to know about finding your family history in newspapers.  There are some incredible stories out there waiting to be found, and this book is going to get you there!    MAILBOX: Myron from Iowa writes: “I have a Genealogical Gem that I think you would like to hear about. I have a recording of my Great Grandma's voice. My father served in the army 1946-1950, sometime while he was in the service his family took a trip from Nebraska to New York City. While visiting the Empire State Building, at the top there was this coin operated machine that would cut your own record, recording your voice, that you could mail to your friends.  My mom has that record. I recorded the record to a wav file and it sounds really bad.  I don't understand German so I hope they aren't saying anything bad. Enclosed are some photos of it and the wav files from it.”    Is there anyone out there who speaks German who could translate this recording for Myron?  If that’s something you can help with, that would be amazing.  .  I’ll share the results here on the show. there was definitely genealogically serendipity involved in this email from Myron because just before receiving it I had come across a video on YouTube that I thought was absolutely wonderful, and right along the same lines. Video:  No More Questions! from on . GEM: Interview with Genealogist Shirley Gage Hodges, “The Perennial Student” “Everyone has something to learn.” You can read Shirley’s articles on genealogy at the The Immigration Experience Genealogy Gems App users check the Bonus Content for this episode for additional Immigration notes from Shirley!  What keeps Shirley motivated: Finding the stories of her ancestors Learning more about ancestor’s connection with our country The lesson Shirley learned after her search for Grandpa Larkin: “We do have to be so careful!  He was a grand old gentleman, and I would have loved to have him as a Grandfather.”  Alas it turned out the he was someone else’s Grandpa! Shirley Has Her Eye on the Future with These Historical Projects: The Harvey Girls Amazing Women of the West Creating a Family History Christmas Wreath. Learn how to make one for yourself!   s of Family History Christmas Wreath at the Genealogy Gems YouTube channel.   CLOSING: Thanks for the Shout Out I want to say thank you to some bloggers who have given me a shout out lately: The Posted the blog article about my recent speaking engagement at the Sacramento Central Public Library. And Genealogy Blogger and podcast listener Kim Von Aspern invite me to sit down with her a few weeks ago for one on one interview and she is publishing it as a blog series at her Check out her articles:

Published Jan 10, 2012 What’s Black, and White and READ all over?  Your Ancestors in old newspapers! In fact, your ancestors could be anywhere!  Most likely they were mentioned at some point in their own local paper, but they might also show up in a neighboring towns paper, or in a paper located thousands of miles away. Nothing is more exciting than finding information in an old newspaper that adds to your family history!  And I’ve been working feverishly on a new book that I can finally tell you about that is going to finally give you the answers and resources you need to be successful finding your ancestors in the new.  It’s called and that’s exactly what it is.  It’s everything you need to know.  This book is going to change all that. I spell out a step-by-step process and give you a worksheet you can copy and use again and again.  There are tons of websites, search tips, and 3 very Cool Online tools that probably aren’t using but you should be! Stay tuned because we’ll be doing an official launch very soon, and I’m going to have a very special opportunity for you to get a signed copy of the book first.   NEWS: Polish Genealogy Podcast by Dave Newman New Website:  . Also now in iTunes Keynote Workshop at Who Do You Think You Are? Live in London I’ll be on the . is FINALLY published! My Classes at RootsTech: Thurs. Feb 2 at 11:00 am a hands on Google Workshop Friday Feb. 3 at 9:45 am Genealogy Blogs and Podcasts Saturday Feb. 4 at 1:45 Inspiring Ways to Captivate the Non-Genealogists in Your Life Improved Blog Search from Google Now you can search for blogs specifically focused on the family history topics that mean the most to you! New Google Search Option: 1. Go to Google.com 2. Search on specific keywords (ex. County Cork Ireland Genealogy) 3. Click “More” in the Search Options Column on the left side of the page 4. Click “Blogs” 5. Click “Homepages” or “blog Homepages” 6. Now your search results are for blogs focused on those keywords and not just individual articles 7. Click the RSS or “Google” button to add the blog to your Homepage in a Gadget (Learn more about transforming Google.com into your own Genealogy Research Dashboard by )   MAILBOX: Timothy wrote: “I want to thank you for having Steve Luxenberg on podcast episodes #120 and #121 to discuss his book Annie's Ghosts.” PBS documentary “Triumph at Carville: A Tale of Leprosy in America”    “Your interview with Steve also spurred me on to conduct further research into two other folks that I have been researching, both of whom died in the South Carolina State Hospital. The following brief history is from the South Carolina Department of Archives and    History, "The State Dept. of Mental Health has undergone several name changes in its history. The original name was the South Carolina Lunatic Asylum (1821-1895) which was followed by the South Carolina State Hospital for the Insane (1896-1919), the South Carolina State Hospital (1920-1963), and finally the State Dept. of Mental Health (1964 to the present)." I am now currently awaiting to hear back from the archives.” Book Reviews Have a Voice:  Post positive reviews on Goodreads, Amazon and Lulu for genealogy books you enjoy! Richard Needs Your HelpAs I was going back over some items I have in my Aunt’s photo collection, I found two items that I can’t seem to find out anything about. Maybe you or your listeners can help. They are called “Foto Folds" and are raised pictures in a foldable container. I’ve attached three photos: 1)      Foto Fold – Closed image shows the two closed. One is the back and the other the front which is die cut. 2)      Foto Fold – Opened image shows both opened. One is a single picture and the other my Aunt, Her Brother and their Mother. 3)      Foto Fold – Side View shows that the item is not flat but raised. The raised part fits into the cut out piece on the right which then closes to the foldable container. They are most likely dated between the late 1940s and early 1950s.   What do you think our descendants will wish they had of ours 100 years in the future? Chris in Norwalk, CT chimed in with “Voice recordings (or, to go a bit further, video).  My family has had a touch of music for a few generations now.  My great-grandfather was a musical performer & my great-grandmother played piano. In fact I had recorded him singing shortly before he died.  Unfortunately, the tape was lost long ago.  In another branch of my family, I had a great-grandfather who was a bandleader in Providence, RI.  He played cornet & years later my father took it up as well…I play as well, but can't hold a candle to him.  I wish I thought to record him as well.” Google Earth Sharon in White Lake, MI   “I watched your webinar on the Roots Magic  It was fantastic.  In October, I went with my elderly parents and my husband to the Rives, Michigan cemetery where my great great grandparents were buried.  With the information I picked up in your webinar, I discovered that the original homestead was on the same road less than a mile north of where they were buried.  It was so neat being able to see where my family first located.  Thank you very much!” Kevin Writes to Share a Success Story“I have you to thank.  If not for your podcast about Familysearch.org and Family History Centers, I may not have found my great grandfather, Emanuel Babiuk's birth record from Ukraine…Your podcast (even though it was published several years ago) pointed me in the right direction to help me find, order and view the film at the local FHC.  If not for you, I may have had to wait for the film to be digitized and indexed.  P.S.  I subscribe to anything Lisa Louise Cooke and have 66 Gems and 13 Premium Gems to entertain me.” From Dan in North Carolina“I have been listening to you podcast for a while now and have gotten a lot from it…I decided to write a book about my father. I spent the summer collecting stories and photos. I decided to use the web site . This way anyone that wanted a book could order one. I finished about a month ago and had a lot of fun in the process.  I know most of the stories if not all but when you put them all down in a book it takes on a new life.  Again thank you for the motivation I need. Next? Maybe my grandparents.”  GEM: Interview with Tom Kemp, Director of Genealogy Products at GenealogyBank Click here to search   GEM: Your Life in 5 Minutes with Sunny Morton Part 4 Get Sunny's book "Your Life & Times: A Guided Journal for Collecting Your Stories by clicking this link:

Published Dec 10, 2011 This Sha Sha has been busily working to finish making Davy’s birthday present since his big birthday number 2 is coming up on Dec. 15.   In Genealogy Gems Podcast I told how I decided to make Davy a Blues Clues card table playhouse.  You remember throwing a blanket over a card table when you were a kid and it became a play house on a rainy day, right?  Well this one was a bit challenging because there is no pattern for a Blue’s Clues playhouse so I just made it up as I went along.  But thanks to the Internet and my trusty iPad I was able to come up with something that looks pretty close to the real deal. Here are a few snapshots of the playhouse.  And it doesn’t just look like Blue’s house from the outside, but I lined the panels with fabric that looks like the wallpaper in her house, and even sewed some features in felt like the table and telephone and the framed picture of the felt people on the wall. You know to me what we are doing today with our kids and grand kids and in some cases great grand kids is just as important as researching our family history – in fact it’s more important!  Creating memories with our loved ones is creating family history right now.  And to me there’s nothing more important than that.  Get your free audio book and over 40,000 audio book titles to choose from at Audible:     NEWS: Genealogy Gems Premium Members have been enjoying episodes on the lately covering how to use the iPad and other tablets out there in the marketplace for our family history.    New Ancestry App UpdatesAncestry.com has a popular free app that lets you take your Ancestry.com family tree with you on your iPad.  The newest version of the app now includes the shakey Leaf Hints that you also see on their website.  Plus there is a simple merge tool that helps you quickly add new relatives and information to your family tree.  It also allows you to automatically adds information to photos, allows you to change your tree privacy settings, adds an integrated user feedback support feature, and is faster and more stable than previous versions.  New Free Podcasts by National Archives Records Administration in iTunes U features WWII news reels     Irish Records:  FindMyPast.ie has recently announced that they have launched exclusive access to the Irish Prison Registers 1790-1920. The collection is made up of over 3.5 million entries across 130,000 pages. Provides useful tips and recommend tools to help you discover your documentary heritage and navigate the LAC website.   Lisa’s Book Featured in Online Magazine was featured in the most recent issue of  (p.40) A big thank you to all of you who have bought the book because those purchases I think helped bring it to the attention of a non-genealogy publication!   My Presentation Schedule for 2012 Feb 2 – 4 , Salt Lake City, UT We’ll be celebrating the 5 year anniversary of The Genealogy Gems Podcast!    FamilySearch has just announced that the RootsTech 2012 . RootsTech will reward developers who introduce the most innovative new concepts to family history with $10,000 in cash rewards and increased visibility.    Feb 24-26 - Who Do You Think You Are Live! In London. Presenting Harness the Power of Google Earth for Your Family History and Google Search Strategies for the Family Historian. And I am very excited to have been invited to be part of a very special panel discussion on using technology for genealogy as well.   March 3  in Bountiful, Utah   March 10  Phoenix, AZ   April 12 – 14  Cleveland, OH   April 28  San Mateo, CA   May 5 , San Luis Obispo, CA   May 9 – 12 , Cincinnati, OH I’ll be there not only debuting some brand new presentations, but you will also find me at my booth in the exhibit hall so be sure and come on by and say hi. June 1 – 3 in Kinston, Ontario Canada. The new version 5 of RootsMagic now offers us a Timeline view.  Now we can really put a person’s life in context with events from their own life and from the lives of family members. But the awesomeness doesn’t stop there. They have added even more customer requested features: a research manager which lets you create and track unlimited research logs, the ability to filter the people view, as well as enhancements to multimedia, sources, to-do lists, and much more.  There's a little something for everyone! See the free demo of the new features in RootsMagic 5 at RootsMagic Webinar page called .   MAILBOX: A Genealogy Newbies: It’s amazing to me that the podcast is about to celebrate it’s 5th birthday, and I know many of you have been listening for almost that long.  But it’s also so rewarding to know that there are new folks coming on board all the time.  Not just to the podcast, but also just discovering the joy of family history. Newbies Eric and David wrote in about their experience. Eric says “I'm still fairly new to genealogy, only getting started after last New Years and have to say your podcasts have helped a lot (and are always entertaining). Thank you! Your newest premium member, Eric” David in Australia writes: “Thank you for making this kind of information available to everyone, it shows a truly kind nature in a person who wants to share their experiences and I have found this the trait of most people I encounter who are into genealogy. You have done a wonderful job and I love it all.” Dan in North Carolina wrote in to say he is also Enjoying the Show . "have been enjoying your podcasts for a while now. This summer I took on a project to write a ." Linda in Sweden and Line in Denmark wrote in about a Swedish TV show Everything for Sweden on the webiste Guy Interview on a Swedish Morning Program   Line says: “I recently stumbled over one of your Podcasts, and after listening to just a few episodes I was hooked. I listen to them every day at work. Some times even twice. Extra benefit: I´m shaping up my english! While waiting for the next episode, I always listen to older episodes.” Jennifer in Napa, CA wrote in about the new ordering system at the Family History Center branch libraries.  “As of August 23, the U.S. West and Northwest have been added to the areas already using this system.  You can now place an order for films online, instead of having to make a trip to the library just to place an order.” (blog post)    GEM:  Taking Family History to Young and Old in the Community Interview with Merv Scott, Project Director, Victoria Genealogical Society Ask Granny Fore more information Visit the VGS Programs page at the Victoria BC Genealogical Society “Ask Granny”© founders Judy Russell and Greg Crane are pleased to announce that the Victoria Genealogical Society of Victoria, BC, Canada, has been named “Ask Granny”© chapter of the year.   The project group, led by Merv Scott, has not only worked to revise our “Ask Granny”©materials for Canadian spelling and usage, he has graciously offered to share those files with others in Canada.  Merv  reports that their calendar is filled up through Spring of 2012 with “Granny” session in local retirement facilities.     Your Life in 5 Minutes (Part 3) with Sunny Morton  Get Sunny's book Your Life & Times: A Guided Journal for Collecting Your Stories by clicking this link:  Profile America: Christmas Lights

Published Nov 27, 2011 In this episode you are going to hear from Forensic Genealogist Leslie Lawson.   Genealogy News   Return of Who Do You think You Are? NBC has just announced that the TV series Who Do You Think You Are? will be returning to television screens here in the U.S on Friday, February 3 at 8pm.  Since this falls at the same time as the RootsTech conference I wouldn’t be surprised if they plan a group screening for attendees.   RootsTech 2012 The winner of the free RootsTech 2012 registration is Carol Genung.   So I look forward to seeing Carol there and hopefully many of you listening – there’s still plenty of time to register for the conference at rootstech.org.  And for those of you unable to attend I’ll have videos that bring the experience to via your computer in the comfort of your own home.   New Records at FamilySearch They’ve added a wde range of new records from 20 countries, including  Australia, Austria, Canada, Chile, England, Dominican Republic, Germany, Italy, Philippines, and the U.S. The U.S. additions include records from California, Illinois, Indiana, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin.   RootsMagic Update RootsMagic has released a minor update  (4.1.2.1) which fixes a few issues.  Read more at the   Google Milestones   Google Earth has now had more than 1 billion downloads!    Google celebrated it’s 15th birthday in September 2011.   1000Memories Shoebox App 1000Mempories has launched a new free iPhone app called  "Shoebox" that they say is like putting a scanner in your pocket.    S   Watch a   Listen to Lisa’s interview with Michael Katchn of 1000Memories in     MAILBOX   I had the pleasure of being invited up to Victoria British Columbia in October 2011 to give a full day seminar on using Google for Genealogy at the Victoria Genealogical Society. I had a marvelous time and I’ve had the pleasure of hearing from several who were in attendance that day including this email from Mike who wrote in to say.   “I couldn't make the seminar, sadly, but my better half -- Kate -- went and she came home brimming over with ideas, two books, a couple of DVDs and a ton of excitement!  We've been putting some of your ideas to great use, and having some walls get knocked down. Outstanding stuff!  I've also started listening to the GenealogyGems podcasts starting with #21, and in the first episode I already found some great hints on how to get US Naval records for my great-grandfather. Where have you been all my life?!  Thank you again for everything you do for the Genealogical community. You ARE one of the Genealogy Gems!! “     Feedback on Steve Luxenberg Interview A topic causing my mailbox to overflow was my interview with Steve Luxenberg and his wonderful book Annie’s Ghost       Maureen posted on my Facebook Wall” “Genealogy Gems episodes 120 and 121 are, by far, two of the best family history research podcasts that I've ever heard. Steve Luxenberg author of Annie's Ghost was full of great research ideas. These podcasts are keepers!"   Brandt posted: "Thanks for the interviews with Steve Luxenberg and the recommendation for Annie's Ghosts. I LOVED the book, and the interviews added a lot to it. Hope he writes another one soon!"   Larraine posted: "Annie's Ghost by Steve Luxenberg is excellent. I can't put it down! It's thanks to you Lisa that I discovered the book after listening to your podcasts."   Julie M. emailed: “I just had to tell you how enjoyable your interview with Steve Luxenberg was! After the first part, I immediately ordered his book for Kindle (through your site, of course) and started it right away. It is compelling reading and I'm hooked on it.  What a great story told by a quality story-teller! I find it hard to put it down and look forward to getting back to it as quickly as possible. Perhaps you need to start a "good reads" section in your podcasts or newsletters. Hooked on your podcasts and trying to catch up on all of them.” I think that’s an excellent idea! or leave a voice mail and tell me if you would be interested in a Genealogy Gems Book Club.    Find out more about the book at . Click on "Behind the Book," to view documents not part of the print edition.     More Terms of Endearment for Grandparents: And there’s another topic that we’ve discussed here on the show that you’ve been continuing to write me about and that is terms of endearment for our Grandparents.   Sharon’s cute quip: “When my son was born, my father would lean over him and put his hand on his belly and shake him a little bit saying "You little bum, you little bum!".  Well guess what my son started calling Grandpa from the moment he could form the word, "Bum!…As always Lisa, thanks for informative and entertaining podcasts!”   What Will Our Descendents Covet? In this next email, long time listener Pat poses an interesting question: What do you think our descendants will wish they had of ours 100 years in the future?   What comes to my mind I there is one thing that is becoming more rare today but has been around forever - our own handwriting. Everyone used to write letters and yet today we call, text and email. And yet handwriting is so personal. I think perhaps our descendants will be yearning for those rare handwriting examples.   I’d love to hear from the rest of you listening.    or leave a voicemail comment at 925-272-4021.   Laurie asks: “If I become a premium member, how do I listen on my iPod?  Is that only available on the computer?”   As a you can add our custom Premium Membership iTunes feed to your iTunes to subscribe to the premium podcasts. All the instructions are included in the show notes for the Welcome episode.  You can also download the mp3 files from the website and manually add them to your iPod if you wish.   Family Health History: Lisa wrote in recently with some questions around family health histories.  She writes: ”I was recently told that I have breast cancer and that got me thinking about what other medical issues I should be aware of...I was wondering if you could point me in the right direction to finding out my family medical history.”   Lisa I'm so sorry to hear about the diagnosis and I hope that it is early and very treatable.   I think Google Books would be a great place to start as they have all of the Ancestry magazines digitized and online. A quick search of medical history brought up several promising articles. here are some to get you started: Building a Tree of Prevention (article) article in Ancestry Magazine (section of article) has a health history focus I wish you a speedy recovery and I hope these resources are helpful to you. Take care!   Feedback from Kari on one of her favorite Genealogy Gems episodes: “I love your podcasts.  I have learned so many things from you and your guests.           was one of my favorites.  Your story about the barbie clothes and the sewing box brought back memories for me!   Kari asked about possible resources for creating a family calendar.  Lisa’s suggestions:   Family Chartmasters (for more custom 1 sheet work) Click image below:   Costco (for more quick and traditional calendars)    (for good quality, fast service and variety of sizes)         Get your free audio book and over 40,000 audio book titles to choose from at Audible:     Audiobook tItles mentioned in this episode: The View from Castle Rock by Alice Munro Finding Oprah's Roots: Finding Your Own by Henry Louis Gates   GEM: A Forensic Genealogist Interview with Forensic Genealogist Leslie Lawson.  Leslie specializes in missing heirs, and kinship determination. Visit Leslie's website:  Lawson Reserach Services, LLC at     GEM: Your Life in 5 Minutes with Sunny Morton Visit Sunny online at Get Sunny's book "Your Life & Times: A Guided Journal for Collecting Your Stories by clicking this link:    Lisa’s “iPad for Genealogy” article will appear in Family Tree Magazine Jan 2012 issue and it starts mailing to subscribers 11/8

Published Nov 3, 2010 In this Genealogy Gems Podcast Episode 121 and part 2 of my interview with Washington Post editor Steve Luxenberg, author fo Annie’s Ghosts.  From the emails, Tweets and Facebook posts I’ve received from so many of you, it sure looks like you enjoyed part 1 of the interview in episode 120 as much as I enjoyed doing it.  Jenna at the Seeking Surnames blog tweeted “the Annie’s Ghost podcast was great!  It’s a close runner up to the Sha Na Na Guy as my favorite!” Jenna is referring to Dr. Robert Leonard who I interviewed in episode 89 and 90 about the topic of Forensic Linguistics.  I have to agree that Dr. Leonard is one of my all time favorite guests, and Steve is certainly up there with him! And you’ll remember that I introduced Part 1 by reading the email from Jay in New York. Well after listening to episode 121 Jay sent me a follow up email saying, “Awesome interview with Steve Luxenberg about his book "Annie’s Ghosts". It hit the nail right on the head. Thank you!” Steve is such a riveting writer and speaker, and it’s fascinating to hear how someone who is not a genealogist, but rather a journalist approached his family history search in an effort to find the answers to mysteries in his families. I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed reading Annies Ghosts.  This book inspired me, gave me concrete ideas for pursuing my own family history research, AND kept me on the edge of my chair.  What could be better?   GEM SERIES: My Life & Times with Sunny Morton (Use the above link to purchase the book at Shop Family Tree and you'll get free shipping and you'll be supporting this free podcast. Thank you!)

Published Oct 20, 2011 Fire up your Kindle!  In this episode I'm going to introduce you to the author or a riveting book full of secrets, family history, and discoveries!   GEM: Interview with Steve Luxenberg, author of Annie's Ghosts We’re going to mix things up a bit in this episode, and I want to start off with an email I received recently from Jay in New York who writes:   “I have been catching up with all of your family history podcasts. Over the years I have collected a wealth of information on the family. Some good, some not-so-good, some out in-the-open, some hidden.   How do you deal with revealing "forgotten" items about family members to other family members? I had an uncle who had a marriage at a very young age, and would like to have forgotten about it. My mother told me about it. I put it on the tree. While showing off the fruits of my labor to his family this "forgotten" marriage was revealed with not happy responses.   The things we find in our tree may not always be "good", How does a person deal with that? and revealing it to others?”   This is a great questions, and it’s sort of a cooincidence that this episode’s publish date coincides with Family history Month and Halloween because we’re going to explore ghosts and skeletons in the closet.   But actually there’s nothing really spooky here, but rather these are things that can be found in many family.  Secrets, small and large.  Skeletons in the closet that are often closely guarded by others in our family.   It’s a tricky business navigating your way through the shakier branches of the family tree, so I’ve invited a special guest to the show who has done an incredible job of climbing those branches in his own family.   Steve Luxenberg is a Washington Post associate editor and award-winning author. In his 25 years at The Post, he has headed the newspaper’s investigative staff and its Sunday section of commentary and opinion.  Steve is going to join me for the full episode to talk about investigating and dealing with family secrets as he did in  his book Annie’s Ghost.  It’s a riveting tale that kept me feverishly tapping the “Next Page” key on my kindle.    is about a family secret that Steve stumbled upon in the late 1990s.  His mother, who had always claimed to be an only child, had a sister, Annie.  And while that was a big surprise all by itself, it was just the beginning of a series of secrets and revelations that Steve unearthed by tapping into his long career as an investigative journalist, and employing newly found genealogy techniques and strategies.  In this interview we talk about being aware of what’s missing in records and stories, rather than just focusing on what is on the page.  For those of you who are Premium Members this discussion is a great follow up to Premium Episode #77 where we talked about being more keenly aware during our research. Steve’s also going to share he thoughts on storytelling, which he truly masters in this book.    And then we get into some of the genealogical techniques he used.  How to avoid Tainting Memories in Interviews, and how to balance the give and take as well as win trust with the person you are interviewing.  And speaking of trust Steve describes how he was able to be incredibly successful in obtaining sensitive documents and getting cooperation from various government agencies and other repositories.   He’s also going to tell us about a little known legal maneuver that he made that really made the difference for him in obtaining some of the most closely held documents and how you can use it too!   And finally he’ll share his personal feelings about what it was like to get a add a new member to his family, his long lost Aunt Annie.   Resources Mentioned: Dillingham Commission's report on immigration, in digitized form, courtesy of the Stanford U. library. Vol. 4 describes immigration conditions in Europe (much of it focusing on Italy, if I remember correctly), and Vol 37 examines voyage conditions, focusing on steerage.       Quotes from Annie’s Ghosts:  “What I didn’t expect, as the week wore on, was that the family would expand to take in a new member.  But that’s what happened.  As people dipped in and out of the records, as the debates flew about what we knew and what we didn’t and whether we should be digging around in the past, Annie gradually became a part of the family consciousness.  She was no longer just a name on a hospital record.  She was no longer just a secret.”   “I stopped thinking like a son and started thinking like a journalist.”   “I offer to send her the letters; it’s an unexpected present for her, and I’m glad to be able to make the offer, because it allows me to give as well as take, something reporters can’t often do. It’s also a good way to win trust.”    “I want to make sure that if she knows about Annie, she tells me before I tell her, so that I capture her spontaneious memory first.”   Stay tune - Episode 121 wil feature part 2 of this interview.  App users: check out the Behind the Scenes Steve and Lisa video!