1940 Census Coordinated Indexing

1940 United States Federal Census

On April 2, 2012, NARA will provide access to the images of the 1940 United
States Federal Census for the first time. Unlike previous census years, images of the 1940 U.S. Federal Census will be made available as free digital images. BUT NOT indexed.

Genealogy Seremdipity Moment - Ridgefield, Connecticut Post Office Ledger Books

When I began working in the Sherwood Historic Center, in their collection of Post Office Ledger Books for the town, the wealth of information for genealogical research astounded me. Lately, I have been reading the book, "Ridgefield in Review" by The Ridgefield 250th Anniversary Committee, Inc., published in 1958, 396 pages; about Ridgefield, Connecticut. I am about halfway through the book, as I am occupied with other projects. Imagine my surprise when, on page 206, I came across the following paragraphs in relation to their post office.

The Rewards of Military Pension Files and Bounty Land Warrants

Well, you have finally found a military pension file for one of your ancestors, now what do you do with it? In the past year I have utilized pension files from the Revolutionary War (all accessible at fold3), War of 1812, Mexican War, and Civil War, all of which may eventually be found at fold3. Fold3 is accessible at your local family history center or you may subscribe from home.

Genealogy Serendipity Moments - new.familysearch.org and the Gates Family

This week I am working on several projects. The first one completed was incorporating the information from new.familysearch.org for the Gates family. This came about because when I was working on the War of 1812 article about Ardil Gates, I borrowed two books from the GFO, Frederick J. Seaver, Historical Sketches Of Franklin County and Its Several Towns, and Silvio A. Bedini, Ridgefield in Review (Connecticut). Both are fantastic works, which provide information about the locality and the people who lived in the vicinity.

A Love Story - Mel and Eleanor Lofton

                          Mel and Eleanor Lofton 1979, with my first child.

For over twenty years our family lived next door to Mel and Eleanor Lofton. They loved children and yet were never able to have their own. They literally became close friends to many of the children and families in our neighborhood. In their home were a number of dogs, cats, birds and other animals. This is a story of their great love for each other, the people of our neighborhood and their animals. As our lives went on, we shared many memorable events with them, but she was most happy when we brought by our newborn babies.

Genealogy Serendipity Moment - Neppl Family Treasure

Back on 2 September 2011, I wrote a blog post about the Neppl Family. At the time I was working on a power point presentation about German Research. In the process I spent some time working on this line of my family, which has been put off for a long time. About three weeks ago I was contacted by Lee, who is a distant cousin of ours. This has been a connection creating many serendipity moments. It is directly the result of sharing my story on this blog.

RootsTech - As Seen From Oregon

For three days last week I attended the RootsTech conference while sitting in my office at home. I am not a Techie person, so this conference did not compel me to go to Utah. But, when it was offered to view fifteen of the sessions online for free, I felt it was too good a deal to pass up. To the sponsors and those involved in putting on the conference I want to express my heart-felt appreciation.

RootsTech, PMC and FamilySearch Orders

For those currently working in the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah, you might want to press forward in your efforts as the cost of ordering microfilm and microfiche from the local Family History Center is increasing. When I go to the FHL I like to keep a count of how many microfilm and microfiche I use and calculate the money I saved in the process. This figure usually covers the expenses of my trip. With the increased prices it makes the trip to SLC to do research even more economical. The increase in costs to provide the service is understandable. Posted at the end of the blog are the upcoming changes.