Friday, October 23, 2009

Preparing for ISGS Conference

It’s a dreary afternoon after a dreary morning. Since napping isn’t really an option, I’ll spend some time preparing to attend tomorrow’s Illinois State Genealogical Society’s annual conference. There’s paper and pencils/pens to pack and, of course, I don’t want to forget to bring my program or my registration receipt confirmation.

The day promises some excellent topics and speakers. Michael John Neill, Craig Pfannkuche, Ann Wells to name a few; and, of course, our own Larry Pepper will be presenting on digital restoration of photographs. In addition, who doesn’t love perusing the vendors’ tables? (Oh, that reminds me, I must remember my check book and credit card.)

I’m sure many of our members will be attending and I’m looking forward to spending lunch and breaks with them. Hopefully, we’ll spread out to various presentations so we can share new-found knowledge with each other.

That’s it for now. I’ll post a follow-up after the conference and let you know how it went.

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Playing the Game

My dad would be 99 this year so divided by 4 and rounded up gives me #25 which translates to my great great grandmother, Elizabeth Simpson. At least I have information on her which is more than I can say if I had hit #26 or #27 or #28.

Elizabeth Simpson was born 8 Dec 1815 in Scotland, the daughter of John and Jane (Wilson) Simpson

She (and her husband Adam Russell) came to NY aboard the American Congress (1855) and then moved to Chicago sometime before the 1860 census as they both appear on that census (Chicago, Cook Co., IL)

Elizabeth died in the home of her son John in South Bend, Pacific Co., WA. She is suppose to be buried in Lake Forest Cemetery in Lot 78 but I haven't found her yet.

Sara

Sunday, September 20, 2009

Genealogy Game

Hi all,

I’m a little bit late but, I guess, better late than never. It is Sunday afternoon and I came across the “Saturday Night Genealogy Fun” from Randy Seaver's blog found at http://www.geneamusings.com. Last nights game is called “Genealogy Roulette and as it turns out was quite fun.

“Here are the instructions, look below for my answer.

1) How old is your father now, or how old would he be if he had lived? Divide this number by 4 and round the number off to a whole number. This is your “roulette number.”

2) Use your pedigree charts or your family tree genealogy software program to find the person with that number in your ahnentafel. Who is that person?

3) Tell us three facts about that person with the “roulette number.”

4) Write about it in a blog post on your own blog, in a Facebook note or comment, or as a comment on this blog post.

5) If you do not have a person’s name for your “roulette number” then spin the wheel again – pick your mother, or yourself, a favorite aunt or cousin, or even your children!”

Here's my answer:

My father would be 94 is he had lived. 94 divided by 4 is 27. That number relates to my 2nd great-grandmother Malvina Laura (Revelee) Blue.

1. Malvina was born in 18 Feb 1833 probably in Butler County, Ohio.


2. She married Burwell Spurlock Blue in Butler County, Ohio on 15 Jan 1849. Because his father disapproved of Burwell (of Dutch descent) marrying an Irish girl, the couple was disowned by the Blue family.


3. Malvina bore 12 children. Due to terrible financial problems after the death of Burwell in 1877 she had to place at least 3 of her children in the Indiana Soldier’s and Seamen’s Orphans Home.

I have much more research to do on this family but have certainly found them very interesting.

Give this game a try. I’m sure you’ll find it educational and fun!!

Thursday, August 27, 2009

Good Bye Summer

I think I have received my last sunburn for 2009. Now I am on an academic calendar with an elementary school schedule. I have reached a brick wall with my North Carolina research and when cold weather sets in I will change surnames and geographic locations. Seems like a good plan anyway. Dont forget to wish the Tuttles a happy anniversary. Jewel Shop and Share dates in November are 16, 17, & 18. Print out the coupon and make copies for friends and neighbors ( it all helps). Membership renewal forms for 2010 are available and we encourage new members. Do you know anyone who might like to visit or join EGS? We always welcome visitors and new members. Do you have any ideas for programs? Is there anything you need help with? We have a very knowledgeable group, an excellent library, and a computer interest group ready to help you out with suggestions for your research. You dont have to be a genealogist to have fun at EGS. Even if you are a casual researcher or just want to know who are your ancestors someone at EGS can help you. The change in seasons or schedule can be a good time to renew or revise your goals. Perhaps you can help with newspaper indexing, ( we need a chairperson ). Perhaps you can help with Hospitality. Maybe you have a story to write for the newsletter. Try it. You might like it. And others will learn and enjoy also. from Ann Braasch

Saturday, August 15, 2009

August Computer Interest Group

It was practically standing room only at the Computer Interest Group last Thursday morning. How nice it is to see that enthusiasm and support remains high for this endeavor.

Our topic for the day was the use of US Genweb and, I think, we all learned something along the way. Of course, US Genweb is a volunteer site which means that some locations are better represented than others; however, it is free and is extremely helpful to many genealogists. Even if a viewer doesn’t find information about the specific person or family being researched, the general information provided, such as the history of the location, look-up volunteers and other resource locations, may send him/her in the right direction.

Please remember there will be no CIG meeting is September. We will resume our meetings on October 8 with discussion of Facebook and its possible application to genealogists. I hope to see you there.

Becky

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Update

Hello Everyone,
Here is a belated update from me. We had our August morning meeting today but this meeting was a bit different than most of our meetings.
The difference was that our speaker failed to attend.
As our starting time drew near I became more concerned and quickly called 411 info for the speaker's telephone number, after several attempts I finally got the number and contacted the speaker's spouse, only to be told he was at an appointment at least 30 minutes away.
So we had to "wing it" for a presentation.
We had our usual business meeting with an extra item of my apology for my assumption that the speaker would remember out date and show up.
What we did for our presentation was have a group share of some success's and experiences we have been having with our genealogical researches.
We had a good meeting with many people sharing, the strong possibility of a volunteer for the position of Program Chair (Which is Fantastic!!), updates on some member medical situations and a 60th Wedding anniversary announcement.
After our meeting a couple of people told me they thought we had a great meeting.
I want to say thanks; but it is the members that make this group and our meetings great.

Monday, July 13, 2009

Hi all,
I haven't posted for awhile so I thought I should share a little about my summer so far.

One of the highlights so far was attending a reunion for my Leisure side of the family. It was held just outside Fairmount, Indiana which is the birth place of actor James Dean. Fairmount is a small town in rural Indiana and if you look hard enough you'll usually find a relationship with almost every longtime resident. At the last reunion, I learned that I am very distantly related to James Dean. That knowledge pleased me as his was the only poster I hung on my wall as a teenager:)

The majority of the Leisures that attend the reunion today (this was the 88th) are descended from my 2nd great-grandfather's (Joseph Leisure) brother, Nathan. However, in the beginning the reunions were attended by some 200 family members primarily from line coming from Rush and Grant counties. My line remained in Rush county and Nathan took his family to Grant county. Of course, these brothers had 4 other siblings which must have accounted for some the the attendees.

This year there were only 45 of us altogether and of those about 10 were from the Rush county Leisures. We all enjoyed some great food, good times and wonderful stories of our ancestors. The event was well worth the time and drive.

Of course, I couldn't get so close to Rush county without going home for a bit. My husband and I spent the night in Rushville where I was born. We had the good fortune to be in town for the County Fair so between that and a lovely walk through the beautiful park we were well entertained for the evening.

I guess that's it for this post. I'll have to share more later.