$75 off the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy

I received the following announcement regarding the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy:

The Utah Genealogical Association would like to offer a Cyber Monday deal!! Now through Tuesday, November 30th  registrants for the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy will also receive free UGA membership ($35 value) and the UGA member discount ($40 discount) for a total value of $75 off the current price!! Classes are filling fast and will fill even faster with this deal. Register at www.ugagenealogy.com with the coupon code “SLIG2011”.

The Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy will be January 10-14, 2011 at the Salt Lake Radisson. Instructors are the best in the nation and cover topics from advanced methodology to writing a family narrative, to technology. We are also offering location-specific courses in French and Irish research this year—don’t wait, we’re not sure when they will be offered again.

Questions? Contact Christy Fillerup at christy.fillerup@gmail.com

The courses offered for 2011 include:

• American Records and Research: Focusing on Localities (Paula Stuart-Warren, CG)
• New England Research Series Part 1 (D. Josh Taylor)
• Ireland Research (David Ouimette, CG)
• French Research (Earl Charvet)
• Washington DC in Salt Lake (Pamela Sayre, CG and Rick Sayre, CG)
• Professional Paths and Income in Genealogy (Kory Meyerink, AG)
• Computers and Technology (Barbara Rennick)
• Producing a Quality Family Narrative (John Colletta, Ph.D.)
• Advanced Methodology (Tom Jones, Ph.D., CG) SOLD OUT
• Accreditation and Certification (Apryl Cox, AG and Connie Lenzen, CG)
• Problem Solving (Judith Hansen, AG)

New "Genealogical Problem Analysis" Quicksheet

There is a new Quicksheet available from Elizabeth Shown Mills entitled Genealogical Problem Analysis: A Strategic Plan. One side of the laminated sheet contains the basic premise that tough research problems can be solved with "thorough research, careful documentation, and sound analysis." The information found in sources needs to be analyzed and correlated with other evidence to reach a genealogical conclusion. Mills suggests "10 Steps to a Solution" and shares instructions on how to complete each step. The other side of the Quicksheet contains a "Life Stages Worksheet" listing the typical activities in a persons' life, from birth to burial. There is room to fill in the records found for each activity, and the potential records that could also be searched and correlated. For more information on each of the ten steps, and additional worksheets to complete the analysis process, consider taking Elizabeth Shown Mills' on Advanced Methodology and Evidence Analysis course at the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research at Samford University.

The new Quicksheet can be ordered from Genealogical Publishing Company or from the Board for Certification of Genealogists

The publisher's web site describes the new Quicksheet:
Offering a 10-step solution to genealogical problems, this new QuickSheet will help you leap the proverbial brick wall and save you hours of frustration. The outgrowth of a lifetime of professional experience, the 10 steps provide a systematic basis for problem solving unique to genealogy. When faced with an elusive person or missing or contradictory information, these steps will be your lifeline, helping you to resolve tricky problems related to sources, evidence, and proof.


The following QuickSheets were also created by Elizabeth Shown Mills:
QuickSheet: Citing Online Historical Resources Evidence! Style
QuickSheet: Citing Ancestry.com Databases & Images

Wish List Recommendations

It is the time of year when we think about creating a holiday "wish list" and what a perfect time to get some of the genealogy resources you have been wanting. These are gifts you could use to further your genealogical education. Here are some of my recommendations:

• Genealogy books (see my list below).
  
• Membership in the National Genealogical Society which includes subscriptions to the National Genealogical Society Quarterly and the NGS Magazine.
• Membership in your local or state genealogy society.
• Registration for a national or local genealogy conference.
• Registration for an online genealogy course.
• Genealogy lectures on CD(available from JAMB, Inc.)
• Subscription to a genealogical journal or magazine.
  

These genealogy books would be on my wish list if they were not already on my shelf:

The Source: A Guidebook to American Genealogy
Edited by Loretto Dennis Szucs & Sandra Hargreaves Luebking. Provo, Utah: Ancestry, 2006.

The Researcher's Guide to American Genealogy
Val D. Greenwood. Baltimore, Maryland: Genealogical Publishing Company, 2000.

Evidence Explained: Citing History Sources from Artifacts to Cyberspace
Elizabeth Shown Mills. Baltimore, Maryland: Genealogical Publishing Company, 2007.

The Family Tree Problem Solver: Proven Methods for Scaling the Inevitable Brick Wall
Marsha Hoffman Rising. Cincinnati, Ohio: Family Tree Books, 2005.

Professional Genealogy: A Manual for Researchers, Writers, Editors, Lecturers and Librarians
Edited by Elizabeth Shown Mills. Baltimore, Maryland: Genealogical Publishing Company, 2001. 

The BCG Genealogical Standards Manual
The Board for Certification of Genealogists. Orem, Utah: Ancestry, 2000.

Guide to Genealogical Research in the National Archives of the United States
Edited by Anne Bruner Eales and Robert M. Kvasnicka. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2000. 

Redbook: American State, County, and Town Sources
Edited by Alice Eichholz.  Provo, Utah: Ancestry, 2004.

Jean Thomason Scholarship for IGHR

I received the following announcement from Beth Ashmore at Samford University Library. If you are employed by a library and would like to attend the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research then this is a great opportunity to have your tuition paid by scholarship.

Applications for the Jean Thomason Scholarship for IGHR are due by December 1, 2010 and will be reviewed by a Samford University Library committee. The winner will be announced in January.

Please include the following in your application:

   * Name
   * Address
   * Email
   * Phone
   * The name of the Library where you are employed
   * The length of time you have worked in a library
   * The average number of hours (monthly) spent working with patrons
   * The name of the course you plan to attend
   * In 500 words or less (1 printed page), a description of how participation in this course will benefit your patrons
   * A letter of support from a supervisor or colleague

Please send your application to:

   Thomason Scholarship
   Samford University Library
   800 Lakeshore Drive
   Birmingham, AL 35229

Or email it to jszurek@samford.edu with the subject line "IGHR Scholarship"

For more information or to submit your application via email, visit the IGHR website at http://www4.samford.edu/schools/ighr/IGHR_scholarship.html.

Military Courses Featured for Veterans Day

In honor of Veterans Day I am highlighting online educational options for military records. Learning more about ancestors who served in the military is a way to honor them, and also a way to find valuable genealogical information. Military pension files from the Revolutionary War to the Civil War are among my favorite genealogical records.

There are several lectures on military records that have been recorded and are available to view as free online presentations. For a more in-depth study, there are also two online courses available. While I have viewed several of the video presentations, I have not taken the courses.  

FREE lectures, videos and webinars:

Sponsored by FamilySearch
Military Records: Revolutionary War
Military Records: Pre-WWI Pension Applications
Military Records: Civil War

Sponsored by the Midwest Genealogy Center
Revolutionary War Genealogy Research
Civil War Genealogical Research

Available on Roots Television:

There is a Military channel on Roots Television that has video lectures, documentaries, and 15different interviews on military topics. There are brief ads on this site, but it is worth it to get to the videos. The two lectures are divided into four parts for easy viewing. Click military channel and then "military lectures" to see:

Researching Civil War Ancestors Online by Amy Johnson Crow, CG

Online Revolutionary War Research by Curt Witcher

Webinar from Ancestry.com:

Military Records on Ancestry.com 

Courses available for a fee:

Family Tree University

US Military Records: Trace Your Ancestors’ Service  $99 (4 week)

With so many military conflicts throughout America’s history, it’s likely your ancestors were involved. Finding records of their service will help you round out the portraits of their lives and honor their memory. Military files also can reveal information about widows and children—and even ancestors who didn’t serve might have left behind draft records. This course will teach you what to look for and how to locate the records you seek.

National Institute for Genealogical Studies 

US: Military Records  $89 (8 weeks)

Within this course there is discussion of the various types of records created by military service, such as service records, muster rolls, pension records, and draft registration. The content of the records and their usefulness for genealogy and immigration research is described. Records of conflicts of the United States and colonial America from the early colonial wars of the seventeenth century to the Second World War are included. The Army, Navy, and other branches of service are detailed. History of military action in America as it relates to records is also included.