Good Reads #1

I’ve been mulling over this post for a while, partly as to if I should even post it, and partly as to what I would call it, if I did. Anyone who knows me, knows that I read a lot. Excluding books for this purpose, I also read lots of interesting articles and blog posts. And it’s these that form the content of this post. It’s kind of an extension of a previous reiteration of “Inspiring Posts” that I had on a different blog – but I didn’t just want to copy that, so instead this is kind of a mix of interesting articles I’ve read, inspiring ones too, as well as educational posts. So that’s how my “Good Reads” theme has started. So if you’re after some good reading, get yourself a coffee, and make yourself comfy as I promise you there’s lots of good reads here for you. INTERESTING STUFF – Covers off the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery’s hidden treasures that don’t often see the light of day – Oldest tartan found to date back to 16th Century – Cartographer and artist Alex Pescud creates hand-drawn aerial map of Wollongong – South Australia’s oldest known colonial-built fishing boat, the 19th century Rambler, could still be saved – Household Dust Harbors Forensic DNA Info – Scientists scan York cemetery in Western Australia for old, unmarked burial sites dating back to the 1850s – Who Do You Think You Are? UK returns to BBC One this June with a nine-part star-studded line-up – ‘We’re Not All Ikea-Loving Minimalists’: The Resurgence of Young Antique Collectors – Long time no see: Freemasons uncover vault of century-old photo – How FamilySearch is using the future to discover the past with AI...

The 24-Hour Genealogy Webinar Marathon is on Next Week...

The 4th annual 24-Hour Genealogy Webinar Marathon is coming, and it’s on NEXT WEEK, for those in the northern hemisphere is on 13-14 April, for us down south, it’s on 14-15 April! Pop in for a session or two, or stick around for the full 24 hours – it’s completely up to you. And thanks to MyHeritage and Legacy Family Tree Webinars, the entire event is free. It begins on Thursday, 13 April, at 5pm EST (US time), which translates to Friday, 14 April, 7am (Sydney time), and runs for 24 hours. Over that period there are 25 presentations from so many well-known genie presenters, including some Aussies and New Zealanders, and the talks cover a wide range of topics. To make life easy for you, I’ve put the whole schedule below, with both the US time, and the Australian (Sydney) time. But if you’re in a different timezone, use a timezone converter tool, such as Time and Date, or others similar. Legacy Family Tree Webinars writes … Just like every year, the entire event is completely free and open to all. You can attend just a few of the webinars that interest you most, or challenge yourself to attend all 25 lectures back to back! Live Q&As will take place during the lectures and there will be door prizes available as well.Can’t make it in real time? No worries: all sessions will be recorded and made available for free during the week after the event. Beyond that, you can always find them and view them anytime when you purchase a membership to Legacy Family Tree Webinars. Eastern Time (US)Sydney Time (Aus)SpeakerTitleThu, 5.00pmFri, 7.00amMichelle LeonardSolving Unknown Parentage Mysteries with MyHeritage DNAThu, 6.00pmFri, 8.00amDaniel HorowitzSpanish & Latin American Records on MyHeritageThu,...

Activities for the Genealogist While Self-Isolating...

Are you currently in lockdown, quarantined or self-isolating at home? Looking for some ideas to fill the day? I know that I could simply write “research” here and you’d all be happy (I would be), but for those of you who may need a break from just “research” on occasions, or don’t have the longer spurts of time required for researching, there’s plenty of useful genealogy-related activities that you can still do. Here’s a few ideas… ————————– WATCH – Webinars & Videos Webinars and videos are a fantastic way to learn in your own time, and from the comfort of your own home. There literally thousands available to watch, and that’s without going to YouTube and searching for more, and most of them are free. – Ancestry Academy – Short tutorial videos, covering Ancestry, DNA, methodology and more. – FamilySearch Webinars – Watch webinars on researching in different countries, as well a numerous general topics (organisation, DNA etc.), as well as how to master the FamilySearch website. – Legacy Family Tree Webinars – This one is a pay site, but at less than US$50/year, and access to over 1000 tutorial videos, it is SOOO worth it. But just so you know all newly added videos are free for 7 days, before they then go behind the paywall, and you will then need to pay or subscribe. – MyHeritage Education – There are a heap of webinars available covering how to use the MyHeritage website to advantage, as well as how to build a family tree, general research basics, well as DNA and health tutorials. – The National Archives (UK) – From using Discovery, to workhouse records, emigration, musters and militia, King Henry VIII, and a whole heap more. – National Library of Australia – Watch videos...

Listen and Learn With Genealogy Podcasts...

So you’re doing genealogy, and you’d like to learn more about history and family history, but you don’t have a lot of spare time, right? Have you discovered podcasts? I’m guessing a few hands went up, but most of you are saying “no” as you read this. Some of you might not even know what they are (stick with me as I’ll explain). Anyway podcasts are a fabulous way to learn – not just for genealogy, but any topic. They are simply audio recordings that you can listen to on your computer, iPad or Smartphone, and there are literally thousands of them – all history and genealogy related – and waiting for you to listen to whenever you choose. With podcasts you can listen interviews with genealogy peeps, information on coming events, reports on past events, reviews on products, and hear plenty of general genealogy news. Below are just a few of the more well-known genealogy-related podcasts. Note, they are all free to listen to. And no you don’t need a subscription. Just click on the ‘listen’ or ‘play’ button, and start listening. If you have a iPad, or iPhone, most you can download from iTunes. ——————————- Extreme Genes Extreme Genes is a weekly radio show and podcast about family history. Host Scott Fisher keeps you informed on the latest in family history research around the world, and talks to people about amazing things that have happened while they were doing family history research.   Family Tree Magazine Podcast Hear about the best genealogy tools and tips directly from Family Tree Magazine’s editors and experts! Each month you are taken behind the scenes to learn more about genealogy topics from the Family Tree magazine, books, courses and more. Each episode features interviews with genealogy...