The history of Valentine’s Day has quite a few twists and turns so I will include a couple of links if you would like to learn more about this day. I was wondering if our ancestors paid any heed to this day or not. I suspect for many it was a saint’s day rather than the commercial day that we experienced today. However, I did find some postcards that could double for valentines among my great-grandparents papers from the 1910s so there was a nod to the holiday back then.  Do you have any clues about this day from your ancestors? Perhaps you have a family story or a letter or valentine that would give you a clue. Our family stories come from all aspects of our ancestors’ lives, not just dates. Explore your Valentine history, even your own for your children and grandchildren. Happy Valentine’s Day! (And Happy President’s Day for those of you in the United States.)
Valentine's Day - Wikipedia
The history of Valentine's Day: From its pagan origins to a billion-dollar holiday
Valentine’s Day 2024 Facts ‑ Fun, Interesting, Candy | HISTORY

If you’re like most of us, once we start researching a specific group of records, we get immersed in the euphoria of finding the records of our ancestors without stopping translating the actual documents until much later. It is common to want to find and save those records first but without writing down a plan, it is easy “loose” or misplace those records. If we’d only taken the time to  transcribe and translate our finds, we probably would be further ahead of the game. Let’s look.

If you’re like me, you’ve inherited family heirlooms and wonder how to create records of them. We have all taken pictures of items so that we can pass on to the next generation why this particular bowl or snippet of a wedding dress is important. (If you haven’t, add that to your 2025 goals.)  I have recently seen flat lay photography as a way to capture three-dimensional objects in a creative way. Let’s look.

​You’ve probably been hearing more about AI (Artificial Intelligence) and have wondered about using it in your genealogy research. I have just started experimenting with AI and am not an expert. Instead, I thought I’d share a few reference articles and some thoughts from my own experience. Let’s look.

You may have seen this on the nightly news, but I wanted to remind you that that National Archives and Records Administration has invited the public to be part of the digitizing effort of the organization. To learn more about how you can help, you can view more information here: Citizen Archivist | National Archives. I would recommend reading more details about the opportunities by Register and Get Started | National Archives which explains more about how you can dig in and help with transcribing records and providing tags to make these records more discoverable.
The first step is to set up an account with NARA—they use login.gov as their login mechanism. Initial reading indicates that you can create an account for use with NARA using a different email from your existing login.gov account. It also appears that you can choose to focus on the transcription work that needs to be accomplished or focus on tagging key words to make documents more discoverable. Fellow family historians will be thankful to have documents available online that were otherwise only found onsite.
If you would like more detail on how the transcribing process works, you can view step by step details: Get Started Transcribing | National Archives. This section is quite detailed and includes information on finding a document to transcribe, using the transcription tool and how to handle unusual items such as crossed-out text or other notes.
The good news is that you can transcribe as your schedule allows so if you only have one day a week or once a month, you can still make a difference. Happy transcribing!

Maps are an interesting way to learn more about your ancestors and their community. For those of us with farm ancestors, we love to find the plat map records that tie us to the family farmland. Just as interesting are the Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps that can be found of nearby towns and villages. I especially like to compare the businesses that existed in the late 1800s to those that exist in more modern times. What was once a livery stable has been replaced with a car dealership. The local church is likely still there but with modifications. What if your city doesn’t have a Sanborn Fire Insurance Map? There are some other companies that also provided fire insurance. Let’s look.

My Heritage released a site that contains old newspapers called OldNews.com: Historical Newspapers Online Archive. I’m always interested in new ways to find newspaper clippings about my ancestors or where they lived. Those tidbits can often help layer our family history, putting us in the time and place where they lived.
The Old News site has a collection of newspapers across the United States, Canada and much of the world. You can search by name, event or keyword, publication year and publication date from the main page. A feature that I like is looking at publications by location. You can find this option on the toolbar across the top of the site “Browse by location.” I think you can save yourself some time by using this model to see what publications are available for Germany, as an example. You can view the summary of your searches but if you decide you want to view an article, you have the option to join a 7-day trial or sign up for a free account on My Heritage or if you are already a member of My Heritage, then log in.
I especially like that there are newspapers from countries that we don’t typically see on other sites including Poland, Spain, Austria, Australia as well as others such as France and Germany. Are some of these newspapers replicated on other sites? Possibly. It is fun to explore new possibilities. Have fun checking out these newspapers.

​Happy New Year 2025!  I hope this year brings you health, happiness and great family stories to share with your loved ones.

​Wishing you all a peaceful, joyous Christmas with time well spent with your family and friends this Christmas 2024.

As we head into the Christmas season (or are in the midst of the season), it’s a suitable time to think about the past and ways that we can better connect to our ancestors and those who came before us. As family historians we probably have a bit of an obsession with cemeteries and obituaries that tell us more about those people. We are fascinated with the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future from A Christmas Carol.
 
All in keeping with this, I thought I’d share an interesting book that I found in the fiction/mystery section of my local bookstore. It was misplaced on the shelf but it was fortuitous because I would not have found it otherwise. Over My Dead Body, Unearthing the Hidden History of America’s Cemeteries by Greg Melville is an interesting read which explores how we in America have treated our dead across the centuries. He explores this topic by crossing America from the Jamestown settlement to prairie cemeteries to the impact of the Civil War on burials. I think after you read this book, you’ll have a new appreciation of the past and perhaps a better understanding of how your ancestors may have been influenced or impacted by the changes over the years.
I’ve written past blogs related to death records, cemeteries and headstones.
DEATH RECORDS
Remembrance - Herding Cats Genealogy
Passing - Herding Cats Genealogy
Death and Taxes - Herding Cats Genealogy
Obituaries and Family History - Herding Cats Genealogy
Death Records and Genealogy - Herding Cats Genealogy
Death Records and Family Research - Herding Cats Genealogy
Happy reading!