Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Start a Facebook Research Community

FamilySearch.com is asking you to start a Facebook Research Community!

They say that "We are excited to announce the creation of several online research communities powered by FamilySearch, and would like to take this opportunity to invite you to join! These communities are being created to help you and others researching in the same area to:

collaborate on your research,

ask questions of each other, and

share knowledge you have gained as you've done your own research in that area".

There isn't any for Canada right at the moment.

If you would like to start one for a region of Canada, the instructions are at https://wiki.familysearch.org/en/Join_a_Facebook_Research_Community#Questions.3F

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

GeneaBloggers Radio - Family Reunions and Genealogy

"Until We Meet Again! – Family Reunions and Genealogy" will be the topic on GeneaBloggers Radio http://www.geneabloggers.com/ on July 22. One of the guests will be Canadian blogger Lorine McGinnis Schulze of the Olive Tree Genealogy Website at http://olivetreegenealogy.blogspot.com/.

Thomas MacEntee says that the show will be a discussion about "how to plan your next family reunion, how to include fun activities for all ages, and how to include your genealogy research to share with family reunion participants".

The show will start at at 10pm EDT, 9pm CDT, 8pm MDT, and 7pm PDT.

Toronto Public Library

Just had an email from Brenda Dougall Merriman on the OCAPG mailing list saying that Marian Press just forwarded the following notice to the Toronto Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society.

The message reads -

"If you love the Toronto Public Library, you need to come to her defense right now!

The cost cutting agenda of Toronto City Council could target the TPL within weeks. Local branches could be closed and some or all of the Library’s operation could be privatized, unless we act now.

I have just signed a petition at http://ourpubliclibrary.to/. I hope you will sign the petition too and forward it to your friends".

Royal Navy Burying Ground - Halifax

CBC News had a story on their website http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/story/2011/07/18/ns-royal-navy-burying-ground.html yesterday of a Royal Navy Burying Ground in Halifax in CFB Stadacona. It appears it has been there since 1759.

The news that caught my eye was that "Underneath another marker lie five sailors who served aboard the HMS Shannon — the British ship that captured the American frigate, Chesapeake, during the War of 1812".

It reminded me to spend some time doing the research of Henry BLADES, a United Empire Loyalist who was supposedly pressed into naval service by the British, and served on the HMS Shannon.

He had come from Long Island in 1784,and settled in Barrington, Shelburne County, Nova Scotia. He is the maternal ancestor of mine, but I have yet to do much work on this side of the family.

It is also interesting to note that the Americans gave as one of their reasons that they went to war with Britain was because they accused the British of pressing 10,000 Americans into naval service.

Monday, July 18, 2011

New Canadian Blog

Kate Tivoli is a Canadian librarian who has started a blog called Genealogical Resource Reviews at http://ktivoli.blogspot.com/2011/07/welcome.html.

She says in her first post on July 10th that "I will be reviewing resources for genealogical research.Over the past few years, I have been researching family history, using different resources, many of which may be found online. The scope of content, technological ease of use and accessibility of these tools will be examined, along with specific examples of queries they may help to answer".

I am really excited, and interested to see what resources she will list, and review.

Gene-O-Rama 2012 Cancelled

The Ottawa Genealogical Society has put a note on it's site at http://ogsottawa.on.ca/ that they will not hold a Gene-O-Rama in 2012. The reason is because the Ottawa Branch will be co-hosting the annual OGS Conference 2012 in Kingston on 1-3 June 2012.

They also say that "Ottawa Branch will also be hosting the 2012 Region VIII Genealogy Day. It’s on a smaller scale with three lectures, the Regional Annual General Meeting and a small Marketplace on a Saturday in March or April 2012. We’ll start planning it later this year and details will be available on the website."

The Conference 2012 site is at http://www.ogs.on.ca/seminar/conference2012.php

Sunday, July 17, 2011

"Janet the Researcher" Blog

Another Canadian blog is celebrating a birthday. The name of the blog is "Janet the Researcher" and it is 4 years old today! Congratulations, Janet!

Go to her blog at http://researchergal.blogspot.com/

Janet is a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists and the Ontario Chapter, Markham Berczy Settlers Association, Grey County Historical Society, the Ontario Genealogical Society and the National Genealogical Society.

She is a busy lady!

Among other topics of interest, she writes about the Billy Bishop Home and Museum, several blogs on Bruce County, the Johnston Family, and the Marham Berszy Settlers Association.