Fri, 22 May 2009
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Mon, 11 May 2009
Published May 11, 2008 MAILBOX: Lisa reads an email from Mark Winter in Hixson, TN QUESTION: “I have had several relatives ask for book of the family. In a podcast do you discuss considerations in what kind of "book" to produce?” ANSWER: The Genealogy Gems Podcast episode 13 I think these books are great for creating something beautiful and easy to read to share with non-genealogist relatives. They love them because they can read them in one sitting and they can be packed full of wonderful old family photos. Of course there are many different approaches you can take when publishing a family history book and the Kodak books are just one approach. Stay tuned because I plan on covering publishing more in depth in the future on the Family History: Genealogy Made Easy podcast. If you want to share your genealogy stories or have a question do like Mark did and drop me a line. GEM: Profile America - Odometer GEM: Interview with George Morgan The Southern California Genealogical Jamboree Website
The Official Guide to Ancestry.com
How to do Everything Genealogy 2nd Edition
Become a Genealogy Gems Premium Member Today GEM: Profile America - Mother's Day Since this episode is being published on Mother's Day I want to wish all of you mom’s out there a wonderful relaxing day with your family. And I want to send a personal Mother’s Day greeting to my Mom – Ellen Koehn - thank you and I love you very much!
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Sun, 26 April 2009
April 26, 2009 Get a free copy of my e-book 5 Fabulous Google Strategies for the Family Historian as a thankyou for signing up for the free e-newsletter. NEWS: Lisa discusses 9 newspaper databases being launched by Genealogy Bank MAILBOX FOLLOWUP: Russ Worthington's answers to a listener's question on familial relationships in Family Tree Maker. How to Enter Intra-Familial Marriages Listen to Family History: Genealogy Made Easy GEM: Online Downloadable Source Citations The heart of his proposal is this: In order to encourage quality genealogy research among their customers, shouldn't the websites that sell access to genealogical records online also provide a source citation for those records that the user can download and include in their research? As it stands today, when we download let's say a page from a census record or a page from a newspaper, there's often times nothing on the digitized image itself to indicate which database it came from, or even a location or date. Mark emailed me to say âever since our interviews in St. George, I have not stopped thinking of ways to get the message out for simplifying citing sources using Evidence Explained. And he sent me a link to a message board post from Elizabeth Shown Mills. Randy Seaver's comments on the subject at the geneamusings blog This last week I had a chance to sit down and interview genealogy blogger and lecturer Stephen Danko for the Family History: Genealogy Made Easy podcast and I took the opportunity to ask him for his input. We really need to hear from at this point are the genealogy subscription records websites themselves. Itâs their product that we are talking about. And in the end, these digitized genealogy records we are talking about citing sources for are indeed "products." And for companies like Ancestry and World Vital Records / familylink.com this is about business. I contacted both Ancestry and World Vital Records to do brief interviews with their reps about this proposed idea, and how they see it potentially fitting in to their future business plan, and also to hear what they think of this grass roots effort amongst their valued customers - In these tough economic times it must be great to see the interest that their customers have in their product and their willingness to stay engaged with them and provide input as to what elements could be added to their products to add increased value and draw for their customers. I've done many interviews with folks from Ancestry with the help of their very efficient and responsive publicist, as well as interviews with folks at familylink. Most recently I had a great time interviewing the COO of familylink Steve Nickle who gave us a terrific sneak peek at their newest venture called Genseek. And you can listen to that interview in Genealogy Gems Podcast Episode 61. In this episode I will play for you the responses from both Ancestry and familylink / World Vital Records to my inquiry about whether record sites providing source citations for the records they provide to their customers. Yep, you heard it correctly. For the first time in two years of this podcast not only did they not provide a telephone interview, they didn't respond to my inquiry at all. That's never happened before. The silence is deafening! As a genealogy media producer I'm pretty disappointed in both Ancestry and World Vital Records responses because any time they send out a press release or want to talk about a new venture they are launching I have welcomed the information and provided it here on the show and on my blog, as so many of us who podcast and blog do â and that kind of passing the word on has got to help their bottomline. This is the first time that I haven't had a reply within 24 hours of an interview inquiry with Ancestry. And I think that tells us a lot! Elizabeth Shown Mills: "I suspect they'll do that catch-up (and she's referring to how these companies will have to go back and cite sources for the thousands of databases they've built up over the years) only if newer companies adopt Mark's recommendation and the older companies then feel the pressure to compete." So what do you think? This is one of those questions that affects all of us. Send me an email or leave your comment on the Genealogy Gems voice mail line at (925) 272-4021 and I will play it on the next episode. Let your voice be heard! GEM: Google News Timeline
So let's do a search that could possibly help us with our family tree. In my case I'm going to search on the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake.
The Timeline then appears and youâll see columns running across the screen from left to write, each column representing a month on the timeline. To edit the columns:
You can also click the SIZE drop down and you can select from small medium or large. GEM: Interview with Maureen Taylor GEM: Profile America Share the Podcast...If you enjoyed what you heard in todayâs show and you find this free podcast helpful then be sure and spread the word. Podcasts are still fairly new to most folks, and your friends, and genealogy society may just need someone like you to introduce them to the wonderful world of free podcasts. So I hope you'll help me get the word out by sharing the website address www.genealogygems.tv |
Sun, 12 April 2009
Published April 12, 2009 SHOW NOTES Family History: Genealogy Made Easy podcast episode 23 The Genealogical Proof Standard is a tool that the pros use and I really want to encourage all researchers professional or not, to follow it as well because it causes you to stop and think before passing on information. In episode 23 I'm providing you with a free downloadable research worksheet that incorporates the elements of the GPS while prompting you to find and even more importantly document those sources. NEWS: In March Ancestry reported that they added or updated more than 775 databases and or book titles on Ancestry.com. That's an average of more than 35 titles each weekday. New and Updated Content and Web Site Improvements at Ancestry are covered. MAILBOX: Listener Question regarding Family Tree Maker 2009 Platinum Edition. "I have at least one instance in my husband's tree where two first cousins married. This, of course means that some of the tree overlaps itself. I can not get the FTM software to recognize that the people are the same-Do you or any of your listeners know if I am just missing something or can it not be done?" If you have an answer to this dilemma please email me at or call in and leave the answer on the voicemail line to be played on the next episode at (925) 272-4021 GEM: Interview with Tukufu Zuberi
Get the HISTORY DETECTIVES book Dr. Tukufu Zuberi is an important academic voice. He is the Lasry Family Professor of Race Relations, Professor and Chair of the Department of Sociology, and the Faculty Associate Director of the Center for Africana Studies at the University of Pennsylvania He is best recognized for his research on African and American society, and for developing and expanding the Africana Studies program at the University of Pennsylvania (Below: A History Detectives episode) Check out the Southern California Genealogical Jamboree Blog for everything you need to know about this exciting upcoming event.
Download the Jamboree brochure today to start planning! Tukufu Zuberi will be the Keynote speaker at the Jamboree's Friday evening Banquet. Friday evening, June 26, 2009 Sign up for the free Genealogy Gems e-newsletter and receive the FREE 20 page downloadable e-book 5 Fabulous Google Research Strategies for the Family Historian |
Sat, 28 March 2009
March 28, 2008 Lisa's interview on the Change Nation podcast.
Genealogy Gems was featured in the March 20, 2009 World Vital Records Newsletter. I recently interviewed Steve Nickle the President and Chief Operating Officer for familylink about their brand new website that will be launched here in the next few months called GenSeek. Genealogy Gems Podcast episode #61. In today's episode it's time to shake off Winter and we're going to do some Genealogical Channel Surfing! GEM: Part 3 of Lisa's Interview with Darby Hinton, Actor and Producer Grab your surf board and get ready to ride the wave of the final segment of my interview with Darby Hinton who played Fess Parker's son for 6 years on the old Daniel Boone series. In today's episode Darby is going to tell us all about his brand new television series that he's working on called Hintons Living History. In Episode 60 Darby Hinton shared what it was like growing up in Hollywood the son of an actor, and a child actor himself.
In Episode 61 I got a chance to share the research that I did on the Hinton Family Tree with Darby & his wife Shan. In this final interview, Darby explains how his background in Hollywood and his interest in his family history have merged together in an exciting new television series that he's producing called Hintons Living History. GEM: Hang Ten with Ken Marks, Executive Producer of Legend Seekers. We spent Episode 22 of my Family History Genealogy Made Easy podcast talking to Ken about this new show that features the discovery and portrayal of real life family history stories.
GEM: Profile America GEM: Who Do You Think You Are TV Series Scheduled Bloggers are reporting that the new Who Do You Think You Are TV series which is coming to America from the UK has won it's spot back on the Spring calendar. It's great to see this wave of genealogy shows hitting the airwaves, and my hope is that it will bring genealogy to the forefront of the television viewers minds as a fun and challenging endeavor. Sign up for the free Genealogy Gems e-Newsletter
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Sat, 14 March 2009
Published March 14, 2009 I am just back from attending the Family History Expo in St. George Utah. And once again my Google classes were packed! In fact I got word that both my Google: A Goldmine of Genealogy Gems Parts 1 and 2 classes broke attendance records. Here are some of the folks you're going to hear from on today's show- We talked about how to set up a genealogy iGoogle page, Google Alerts, Site Search and a wide range of brand new Google tools that can be used to move your research forward. MAILBOX: I got an email from Tina Kelly who lives in the United Kingdom and she has a question about obtaining vital records here in the U.S. and since I have lots of listeners outside the U.S. I thought this would be worth sharing. GEM: Interview with Steve Nickle, President of Familylink.com Steve Nickle, President of Familylink.com shares some exciting news about a new website they are preparing to launch called GenSeek.
GEM: Part 2 Interview with Darby Hinton of Daniel Boone Fame In our last episode #60 we got to spend some time with Darby Hinton who was a child star back in the 1960s, and for six of those years he played Isreal the son of Daniel Boone played by Fess Parker in the hit TV series Daniel Boone. In part 2 of my interview with Darby and his wife Shan I get to share what I found on the Hinton Family History. (Above: Darby's grandfather Edward L. Hinton holding Darby's father) Listen to Family History: Genealogy Made Easy Episode 21
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Mon, 2 March 2009
Published March 2, 2009 In this 60th episode we celebrate the two year birthday of the Genealogy Gems Podcast. And Lisa's very special guest is Darby Hinton who played the son of Daniel Boone on the hit TV series Daniel Boone that ran from 1964 to 1970. Darby is currently working on a television pilot for a new series called Hinton Living History. In today's episode is part one of Lisa's interview with Darby, who talks about his TV career which started before he could even walk. Darby has appeared in in movies like the Son of Flubber, and classic TV shows like Mr. Ed, Wagon Train, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, and The Big Valley. But of course we all know him as Isreal the son of Daniel Boone, played by the wonderful Fess Parker. He had a fascinating childhood meeting the likes of Walt Disney and having Charleton Heston for a godfather. GEN CLASS WINNER: Linda Scham of Illinois is the winner of the two free genealogy classes courtesy of GenClass.com Congratulations Linda! MAILBOX: Listener Teresa Redway emailed a brickway about her ancestor Isaac Lovell born in 1844 in Bristol, England. Lisa recommends investigating both Isaac and Alfred further in England. Look in church records for Alfred as a witness to the events of others in the church. Locate birth records in Allegheny County, PA: Start with the US GenWeb site to find out more about the records available in that county as well as the history of county. Allegheny County US Gen Web site Another option is the vitalrec.com website. Click through to Pennsylvania and Allegheny County to find more information on the vital records for the county. Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh in Allegheny County, PA hold birth records for Pittsburg from 1870 to 1905. Fee: $5 US which is a non-refundable fee for search and copy of a Birth record. For Historical Context, Teresa can check out what was going on in Pennsylvania from 1869-1874 at the Explore PA History website. About.com website has a timeline on Pittsburgh history. The Carnegie Library of Pittsburg also has a chronology of the cityâs history and lots of other great info. The March 2009 issue of Family Tree Magazine article called "Hard Times" by Fern Glazer on page 29. GEM: Interview with Darby Hinton of Daniel Boone Fame Darby Hinton was just seven years old when he signed on to play Isreal, the son of Daniel Boone which ran from Sept 24, 1964 to September 10, 1970 on NBC. And over 165 episodes he worked and played alongside the 6 foot 6" actor Fess Parker on the film sets in California and Utah. In this episode you'll hear part 1 of my three part interview with Darby Hinton and his lovely wife Shan. Today we're going to start back at the beginning as Darby shares his memories of how he broke into the TV business, and what it was like to be working on the set of Daniel Boone. Watch The TV Legends 7 part interview with Fess Parker on YouTube Here's an excerpt from the first episode of Daniel Boone...
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Sun, 15 February 2009
Published Feb 15, 2008 Family Reunions I'd love to hear from you if you've held a family reunion. What kinds of activities did you plan, and what kinds of things did you wish you had thought of back in the planning stage? I've been toying with the idea of having a family reunion on my mom's side of the family, but I could really use some good advice on the subject. So drop me a line if you've organized a family reunion before and tell me about your experiences.
Conferences: The Southern California Genealogical Society is well into their planning for their 40th Annual Genealogy Jamboree which will be held June 26-28, 2009, at the Burbank Airport Marriott Hotel and Convention Center, in Burbank, California They just announced their list of speakers which you will find on The Genealogy Gems News Blog I'll be there teaching my Google: A Goldmine of Genealogy Gems Seminars, Parts I and II as well as participating in the Son of a Blogger Summit. The Official Jamboree blog Who Do You Think You Are TV Update I wrote about Amazon.com's recent announcement that the New Kindle 2 is ready for pre-order. I would really like to hear from you if you have or have used a Kindle. So check out the Kindle and the improvements that have been made. Any time you go to Amazon from one of our website links and purchase something you help keep this genealogy podcast free. Thank you very much for your support! Lincoln's Birthday: 8 Civil War Era Records Coming Online in Feb. 2009 Ancestry has just announced that they have posted five of those databases: 1. Abraham Lincoln Papers (from the Library of Congress) 2. The New Orleans Slave Manifests, covering 1807 3. The Confederate Pension Applications from Georgia 4. The Confederate Applications for Presidential Pardons 5. The U.S. Civil War Soldier Records and Ancestry's Civil War Collection Family History: Genealogy Made Easy Episode 16: The Family History Library including catalog research tips that will help you get even better search results!
GEM: Profile America - The First U.S. Presidential Picture Become a Genealogy Gems Premium Member GEM: Interview with Holly Hansen - Family History Expos Watch videos at The Family History Expos TV channel at YouTube Feb 27 & 28, 2009: St. George, UT More information and registration GEM: GenClass with Lisa Alzo One lucky listener is going to win not one but TWO free classes from Gen Class! Lisa Alzo and the folks at GenClass have been gracious enough to provide me with 2 classes to give away FREE, which is a great educational opportunity. And education is a big part of what I want to provide here on the show as well. So hereâs what you need to do to have a chance to win: Send an email with your name, state, and email address and the topic you would most like to learn about in 2009 on an upcoming podcast episode by midnight on Sunday Feb. 21, 2009 I will draw one lucky winner from all of the email entries. The winner will get their choice of any of the two classes provided by GenClass. Iâll be announcing the winner on the Genealogy Gems News Blog and Episode 60 of the Genealogy Gems Podcast. Thanks to the folks at GenClass, and good luck! GEM: Profile America - Number Please? Sign up for the FREE Genealogy Gems e-newsletter |
Sat, 31 January 2009
Published Jan 31, 2009 #1 Diane Haddad's Family Tree Magazine Genealogy Insider Blog New and Next at Ancestry.com #2. From Paper (or Film) to the Web #3 Online Searching: It's Complicated #4 Inside Ancestry.com's Top-Secret Data Center #5 Diane reveals the secret identity of the mysterious Ancestry Genealogy Blogger. Or does she? You'll have to check that one out for yourself. In fact if you're an Ancestry user or are considering a subscription I highly recommend Diane's blog series at the Genealogy Insider. The latest edition of the Carnival of Irish Heritage & Culture has been published over at Small-leaved Shamrock http://www.small-leavedshamrock.blogspot.com The next edition of the Carnival of Irish Heritage and Culture will be a St. Patrick's Day "virtual parade" online. Anyone who would like to particiate is welcome, whether or not they have Irish roots. For more information on how to participate or to check out the latest carnival head over to http://www.irishheritagecarnival.blogspot.com. Recent Genealogy Gems News Blog postings: I wrapped up my ten genealogy strategies for the new year on Jan 21, 2009 I also posted about the new American version of the television show Who Do You Think You Are? Set your recorders to Monday nights at 8PM on NBC starting April 20. Subscribe for free to the Genealogy Gems News Blog There are some milestones going on these days as well. The Library of Congress just crossed the 25,000 mark for books digitized. A good article appeared about that on the Voice of America website: Scanning Project Digitizes 25,000 US Library of Congress Book
On January 16, 2009 we started in on Online Family Trees. Read more The more I explore them the more I become convinced that they are a powerful research tool that I predict in the next few years will become an absolute necessity for family historians. Episode 12: I you a comprehensive overview of online family trees. And then we go straight to the source with an in depth interview with Kenny Freestone, Senior Product Manager at Ancestry.com whose primary responsibility is their online family tree tool. Episode 13: We continue exploring our tree options with Scott Huskey of Photoloom.com. They offer an incredible online visual approach to trees and research that centers around your own personal family photos. Then I talk to Sasha Masick of GeneTree, who spices up their family tree tool with a DNA testing component. Episode 14: You've got to tune in to hear how to go from one name and birth year, to three generations of family in 1 hour or less. It's absolutely possible, and I'll show you how in this episode. Then as we finish up with online family trees, I thought it was important to go over the techniques for following up on all those great connections you can make by posting your family tree online. We'll get started in Episode 14 talking about how to locate telephone numbers online, the prep work you need to do before you start to dial, breaking the ice and conducting the interview. Then we'll finish up in Episode 15 on Feb 6 with what we as the interviewer should be doing during the call, what to do if No Answers, we'll cover the "Must Ask" Questions, and how to wrap up the call. NEW RECORDS ONLINE The folks over at the 1911census.co.uk officially launched their website this month. And they have added many of the counties that were unavailable during beta testing including Lancashire, Essex, Kent, Yorkshire (West Riding), Nottinghamshire and Herefordshire so you can now access those British census records from 1911. World Vital Records recently added 20 newspaper databases from Mexico and Canada ranging from 1833-1994: Agricultor Mexicano y Hogar (Ciudad JuÃrez, Chihuahua, Mexico) MAILBOX: Subscribe to GENEALOGY GEMS PREMIUM today and save 20% by using this coupon code: SAVE20 FAMILY HISTORY: Genealogy Made Easy GEM: Profile America Gem: Family History Valentine The gem was called Christmas in July and I showed you how to make cover a store bought candy bar with a home made Christmas Label that would evoke genealogical memories. The candy bar made a great stocking stuffer. Well, I'm up for chocolate any time of year, and Valentines day is a perfect time I think to take a new twist on that idea. This time we have a new theme to inspire us - the theme of Valentines Day and love. I'm guessing thereâs a romantic couple or two in your family tree. Perhaps your bar could pay tribute to one of them or to a few couples. You could give these candy bars celebrating the love of the past to your family of today. Your kids and their spouses, grandkids, you get the idea. Think how surprised and thrilled an elderly aunt or uncle would be to be remembered on Valentines day with a small package in the mail containing a family history candy bar.
If your feeling a little more grand than a simple candy bar, consider buying a heart shaped box of candy, tracing the lid, and creating a label that could cover the entire label with a custom message of ancestral love. Use heavy weight or photo paper and attach it with a light coat of rubber cement or use double sided tape. If the box is just a bit bigger than a piece of printer paper you could put the digital file you create on your computer of the label onto a flash drive and take it into your local copy store to print out in the correct size. Here again is your chance to share some of your family's heritage with your family today. Kindle their interest in the familyâs history while showing them that you care with a sweet memories candy bar or valentine box. If you do create some sweet memory candy bars this Valentine's day be sure and snap a photo and email it to me. I really enjoy seeing what you guys come up with! GEM: Profile America
REGISTER TODAY FOR CONFERENCE I'll be there teaching 4 classes, as well as conducting lots of new video interviews for Family History Expos TV channel on YouTube. And of course be sure and stop by the Genealogy Gems Booth in the Exhibit Hall and say Hi! If you'd like more information or you'd like to register for the 2 day conference go to www.familyhistoryexpos.com |
Sun, 11 January 2009
GEM: Profile America Richard Knerr (right) and Arthur Melin, founders of Wham-O
GEM: Southern California Genealogical Society Jamboree Paula Hinkle, Co-Chair June 26 - 28, 2009 I will be there teaching classes and at a booth in the Exhibit Hall. Website GEM: Profile America Red Skelton as The Fuller Brush Man
GEM: Interview with Sally Jacobs, The Practical Archivist PHOTO Family History: Genealogy Made Easy podcast
The Genealogy Gems TV Channel at YouTube |
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The Genealogy Gems Podcast with Lisa Louise Cooke - Your Family History Show (podcasts) The Genealogy Gems Podcast with Lisa Louise Cooke. The #1 family history show.
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The show is all about making improvements and changes in your life and I got a chance to share what genealogy has meant in my life and how it can be a positive journey for everyone regardless of their background. 
Jim Mowatt over at the Historyzine podcast invited Lisa to be a part of the show. Jim has always been a macro history guy, but he has finally caught the genealogy bug and he invited me to come on and give a pitch to his listeners about why researching their own family history can be fascinating and actually dove tail into their love of world history. Historyzine Episode 14. 
In today's interview, Ken is going to give us a personal look at their brand new website that just launched this week, and how YOU can submit your own family stories for inclusion in the series! So grab your remote and get ready to channel surf the genealogy wave! 
