Roots & Branches

With the new television shows that are available now it occurred to me there is only one of the three that I know of that is for the regular person. “Who Do You Think You Are?” and “Finding Your Roots” are great shows and I will be watching every week, but they are based on famous people. We are not a movie star, actor, congress man, famous ball player, etc. What about the everyday person?

Hats off to BYU. TV! I was very pleasantly surprised to find on satellite television BYU.TV and The Generations Project was there. I first ran across the show by accident a while back and decided to start recording the episodes for research for this blog. This past weekend I started watching the show as I was cleaning house. Big mistake! Next thing I knew I was glued to the television and forgot all about the cleaning.

With each episode the person the show is highlighting tells their story and why they are looking to find their roots. Some are adopted, some had a parent that wasn’t very kind and they were looking for a way to move on, others just needed to further their search in honor of a beloved grandparent. No matter what the story was each I found to be very moving. We forget how tangled live can be and by finding our roots many times we are able to heal and help others to complete what always seemed incomplete. To me it does matter where I came from and who I am in all ways.

If you do not have access to BYU.TV with your cable or satellite provider try online at:

http://byutv.org/show/6f62558b-fc6f-49c5-b8c6-2473785a5b44

For many people I have helped to start their genealogy they seem very set on a purpose. They are looking to make a connection to the lost loved one for themselves or a parent. There always seems that drive to discover something about their family that has been missing. Isn’t it interesting to see how many of us feel the need to fill in the blanks. We all want to know just who we really are.
If you are interested in sharing your story with the Generations Project there is a place to ask them to “Feature Your Story”. I am thinking about doing just that. By submitting my story I might finally have the chance to find out if my grandfather was related to the outlaw gang the Younger Brother’s and was the same grandfather’s mother really Native American and the circumstances of her birth.

I love to hear stories of others search and what I call “genealogy serendipity”. These are those times were it just seems you were meant to find information or a person that seemed lost and miraculously was found.
Please feel free to share your stories with me.

If interested please email me at:
mgilmore@sweetwaterlibraries.com

I would love to hear from you!!

Some of us have been doing family history for a long time now and others are just starting out.  Many of us start out working at the kitchen table, packing files from here to there.  File boxes or desk drawers become fuller and fuller.  Maybe it is time to make a designated work space.

When I first started working on my family history I was just this person, files, files, boxes, boxes.  It just kept piling up and I ran out of space.  Back in time everything was done the old way, on paper.  And as you might have quested the boxes stacked up and up.  I always said “One day I will have my own workroom”.

My children have now left home and “one day” is here.  Now the work begins.  I have to clean out the bedroom that will now become “my room”.  I am trying to picture in my mind how I want this to work.  I have a computer desk set in one corner and I will arrange the room around that.  I have a book shelf that is full of genealogy books and bound copies of different family books and I have several photo albums housed there for quick and easy use.  From there I will place a folding worktable and an organizer for all the little things, paper clips, tape, pens, pencils, highlighters, etc.  A must is a comfortable chair to work from.  Once you start working on your genealogy in a regular fashion you will find you are in that area a lot.  Comfort will be your friend.  Make the space work for you.  Arrange your desk and surrounding work area so everything is close and easy to get to.  This will make your life so much easier.

Next I have to sort everything.  This will be the hard part.  I have so much paperwork.  Worksheets, contact information, forms, photos, etc.  I am hoping to scan everything into a digital copy and save it on discs or pen drives.  The great thing is once I have transferred my files to a digital form I will be able to share with others much more easily.  If you do not yet own a scanner,flatbed or otherwise, be sure to add one to your list for future purchases.  A scanner is a must.  I own a flatbed scanner and for me this is the perfect tool.  I am able to scan photos, pages, and books.

I have a filing cabinet full of information.  I am hoping to digitize it all and minimize the space needed.  I will create folders on my computer and as I scan the items file them on the computer.  It helps to think about how you wish to file scans on the computer before you start.  Each family name or line should have it own folder.  In the folder you might add a subfolder for photos, another for documents, etc.  This works well for me and I hope it will for you.  If you ever have a problem finding a file you can use the “Search” task by clicking on Start, Search, what type item you are looking for and enter the file or name. Organizing and having a plan should help you save time and effort along the way.

One word of caution while changing over to digital files is to always backup your work. You now have  choices in this as well.  At any store that sells electronics you can buy a detachable hard drive, pen or thumb drives, or disc that the information can be burned on to.  Also there are online “data banks” that allow you to upload you files as you go.  The online data banks usually charge and you will want to investigate the charges and amount of space allowed.

These are a few suggestions.  Remember the space is yours.  Make it work for you.

Best of Luck!