Have You Heard Of Open Library?

OpenLibrary.org Website

Last night I was looking at some military stuff on FamilySearch.org's Research Wiki.  I clicked a link and was taken to The Report of The Adjutant General of the State of Illinois, Volume IV for the years 1861-1866.   This report was on the website Open Library.  I was intrigued and started looking around this website.  I did some genealogy related searches in the search box and came across this amazing find ~

Compiled Genealogy of the Family of
John Webster by Noah Webster
See Footnote

This is a compiled genealogy¹ about the family of Governor John Webster of Connecticut, my 9th great-grandfather.  It was written by Noah Webster, a lexicographer and the author of the Webster's Dictionary.  Noah Webster is my 4th cousin, 6 times removed.  Governor John Webster, our common ancestor, is Noah's 3rd great-grandfather.

Compiled Genealogy of the Family
of John Webster, by Noah Webster - Pg. 1
See Footnote

This is Page 1 from Noah Webster's 8-page book.  I was able to download a PDF copy of the book, which is really awesome!

I highly recommend that you check out the website OpenLibrary.org.  You never know what genealogical treasures you may find there.

Thanks for reading!

Jana

© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

---

1 Webster, Noah. Genealogy - The Family of John Webster. New Haven: New Haven, 1836. Open Library. 5 June 2010. 29 Apr. 2013 .^↩

Follow Friday ~ Fab Finds for April 26, 2013

My Fab Finds for this week are (in no particular order)

1. This RootsTech "grousing" is for the birds by Dear Myrtle
2. RootsTech Official Bloggers Get Critiqued by The Olive Tree Genealogy
3. Dear Diary: It Seems I’ve Been a Bad Official Blogger by GeneaBloggers
4. In My Defense…And Other Thoughts by GenBlog
5. The Posts I Most Wish Official Bloggers Would Write by My Ancestors and Me
6. Other Blog Posts from NERGC by Nutfield Genealogy
7. And in my spare time … by A Worthington Weblog
8. The Goldenstein Trunk AND Swedish Church Records at Ancestry.com Are Not Full-Name Indexed by RootDig.com
9. Two Terrific Free Sites for Online City Directory Research by The Ancestor Hunt
10. Church Record Sunday: Digital Public Library of America by Gena's Genealogy
11. My first look at the Digital Public Library of America by Ancestral Breezes
12. Where Do Questions Fit In At Genealogy Conferences by Desperately Seeking Surnames
13. Sharing Blogging Thoughts by Granite in My Blood
14. My 1st Blogiversary! by Abbie and Eveline
15. Crossing the Pond to Roots in Ireland by GeneaJourneys
16. Don't Just Use the Local Newspaper by Genealogy Tip of the Day
17. The records of death by The Legal Genealogist
18. Blogging Genealogy: Roll Out the Welcome Mat by BloggingGenealogy.com
19. Blogger vs. WordPress.com: A Complete Comparison by Tim Brookes for MakeUseOf.com
20. Piecing Together Their Lives by A Southern Sleuth
21. Story Spark #9: Bond with an Ancestor by Your Story Coach
22. It's Official. Clark Kent and Lois Lane Are On the Job by The Family Curator
23. When Google Reader Goes by My Ancestors and Me
24. Sporting My New FGS Conference Ambassador Badge by A Sense of Family
25. Donald R. Snow: Some Things I Learned at RootsTech 2013 by Renee's Genealogy Blog

New Blog Discoveries

• The Dead Relative Collector
• No Hoof Left Behind
• Australian Genealogy Journeys
• Home of Sherlocks
• Genealogist Journal
• Ellie's Ancestors

In Case You Missed Them….My Contributions to the Genealogy Blogosphere This Week

• Tombstone Tuesday ~ Eunice (Waterman) Crary and James Lewis Crary   Have you checked out the new-to-me tombstone website I shared in this blog post yet?
• Wordless Wednesday (well, almost) ~ Mary Crary Boggess

Thanks for reading!


© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

Wordless Wednesday (well, almost) ~ Mary Crary Boggess

Yesterday I shared photos of James and Eunice (Waterman) Crary's tombstone.  Today I want to share a photo of one of their daughters.

This is Mary Crary, my 1st cousin 3 times removed.  I absolutely love this photo of Mary!  She was the fourth child of James and Eunice (Waterman) Crary.  This photograph was in the photo album that belonged to my 2nd great-grandmother, Cynthia Maria (Waterman) Webster.

Mary Crary was born on August 3, 1851 in New Brighton, Beaver County, Pennsylvania.  She married Taylor Nimrod Boggess on December 25, 1873 in Meigs County, Ohio.

Taylor and Mary were the parents of four children.

1. Eunice Blanche Boggess (1874-1963)
2. Norman T. Boggess (1877-1901)
3. Frank Crary Boggess (1880-1941)
4. Harry Julien Boggess (1883-1898)

Mary (Crary) Boggess passed away on December 31, 1927 in Huntington, Cabell, West Virginia and was buried at Spring Hill Cemetery in Huntington, Cabell County, West Virginia.

Thanks for reading!

Jana

© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

*Photo of Mary (Crary) Boggess courtesy of Norma Gardiner

Tombstone Tuesday ~ Eunice (Waterman) Crary and James Lewis Crary

Eunice Waterman Crary and James L. Crary Tombstone
Photographer - Willi Anderson
Used With Permission

I recently discovered the tombstone for my 2nd great-grandaunt, Eunice (Waterman) Crary and her husband James Lewis Crary.  It's located at the Middleport Hill Cemetery in Meigs County, Ohio.

Here's a closer look at this tombstone.

Eunice Waterman Crary and James L. Crary Tombstone
Photographer - Willi Anderson
Used With Permission

I know this is difficult to read, so here is the transcription:

James L. Crary

1806 – 1869

Eunice W. Crary

1822 – 1899

The website where I found this tombstone was a new discovery for me.  I want to share this resource for anyone who may have ancestors who were buried in Ohio.  The website is OHIO Gravestones.org.

I contacted the photographer, Willi Anderson, who took these tombstone photos and was given permission to use them as I wish.  Willi even attached copies of the original photos in the email response to me.  I , of course, thanked Willi in my return email, but I will take this opportunity to thank Willi publicly as well.  Thank you Willi for taking the time to photograph these tombstones and for allowing me to use them in my blog.

Now, here's a little bit about Eunice (Waterman) Crary and her husband James Lewis Crary.

Eunice was the fourth of twelve children born to Asher Waterman and Bathsheba (Paulk) Waterman, my maternal 3rd great-grandparents.  Eunice was born in 1822 in Troy, Athens, Ohio and passed away in 1899.

James Lewis Crary was the son of Frederick Crary and Lydia (Updyke) Crary.  He was born in 1806 in Rhode Island and passed away in 1869.

Eunice and James were married on October 27, 1840 in Athens County, Ohio.  They were the parents of five children:

1. Lodowic Updike Crary (1842-1926)
2. Dr. Archibald Crary (1845-Before 1910)
3. Melissa Crary
4. Mary Crary (1851-1927)
5. Cynthia Crary (1859-?)

I'm so glad I found the Ohio Gravestones website and hope you will find it useful in your family history research.

Thanks for reading!

Jana

© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

Follow Friday ~ Fab Finds for April 19, 2013

My Fab Finds for this week are (in no particular order)

1. Things We Don’t Speak Of by i-Descend
2. The Photo Side of History AND Because of One Photo-A Success Story by FamilySearch Blog
3. Clouds That Forebode the Greatest Evil by A Southern Sleuth
4. It's Genea-Musings 7th Blogiversary!!!!!!! by Genea-Musings
5. A 10 Step Plan: Getting Sources & Citations Under Control by The Armchair Genealogist
6. Tuesday Tips: Time with Thomas MacEntee by Nuts From the Family Tree
7. Blogging Genealogy: Make It Easy for Cousins to Contact You by Blogging Genealogy
8. The Astor Fire, Part 1: The Gift of Life by Many Branches, One Tree
9. What about the Kids? Researching Your Family Tree’s Children by Gena Philibert-Ortega for GenealogyBank.com Blog
10. Treasure Chest Thursday (April 19, 2013) -- Mason Freeman's May 1, 1864 U.S. Internal Revenue License by Filiopietism Prism
11. Treasure Chest Thursday - Great Grandpa's Scrapbook by Ancestry Search

Articles about Family Tree Magazine's Top 40 Genealogy Blogs

1. Top 40 Genealogy Blogs in 2013 by David A. Fryxell for Family Tree Magazine
2. Introducing the 2013 Family Tree 40 Genealogy Blogs! by Diane Haddad – Genealogy Insider
3. Family Tree Magazine’s 40 Best Genealogy Blogs 2013 by GeneaBlogger
4. Family Tree Magazine's 40 Best Genealogy Blogs for 2013 by Genea-Musings
5. The Cake is a Little Sweeter! by The Armchair Genealogist
6. Olive Tree Genealogy Blog in Top 40 for 2013 in Family Tree Magazine by The Olive Tree Genealogy
7. Family Tree Magazine’s Hit Parade by Moultrie Creek Gazette
8. Family Tree Magazine Top 40 Genealogy Blog by Digital Cemetery Walk
9. FTM's Top 40 Genealogy Blogs in 2013 by Genealogy Canada
10. TOP 40! THANK YOU, FAMILY TREE MAGAZINE! by HELP!  The Faerie Folk Hid My Ancestors!
11. Family Tree Magazine 40 Best Genealogy Blogs In 2013 by How Did I Get Here?  My Amazing Genealogy Journey
12. Thank You, Family Tree Magazine by Kinexxions
13. Thank You to Family Tree Magazine! by Nutfield Genealogy
14. Honored by St. Vincent Memories

New Blog Discovery

• Civil War History

In Case You Missed It….My Contribution to the Genealogy Blogosphere This Week

• Wordless Wednesday (well, almost) ~ Nathan B. Chase – Civil War Surgeon  - By the way…he's not one of my ancestors.  Could he be one of yours?

Thanks for reading!


© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

Wordless Wednesday (well, almost) ~ Nathan B. Chase – Civil War Surgeon

This photograph of Nathan B. Chase was found inside the photo album that belonged to my 2nd great-grandfather, Ebenezer Perry Carlisle Webster.  Ebenezer served in the Civil War.

From what I can tell, the writing on the photo is as follows:

My Dr in The Army

Nathan B. Chase
Surg. U.S. Army

Nathan B. Chase is not an ancestor of mine.  Hopefully, one of his descendants will find this blog post so they can see this photo of Nathan.

Thanks for reading!

Jana

© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

*Photo courtesy of Norma Gardiner

Follow Friday ~ Fab Finds for April 12, 2013

My Fab Finds for this week are (in no particular order)

1. The Best Ways to Be Sure You’re Legally Using Online Photos by Sara Hawkins for lifehacker
2. Aunt Grace by GeneaJourneys
3. Letters from Germany - 1920 - Philipp and Karl Go To Prison for 2 1/2 Years by Braunhart Mania
4. Friday Fotos (April 5, 2013) -- Breaking Ground for the Lonsdale Masonic Temple, Lonsdale, Rhode Island by Filiopietism Prism
5. New! Something About Me Saturday by How Did I Get Here?  My Amazing Genealogy Journey
6. Library Thing - Online Book Catalog and Social Media Website by Find Your Folks
7. A Virtual Gallery of Civil War Photographs by A Sense of Family
8. Breakthrough for medical genealogy AND And one step back… by The Legal Genealogist
9. Monday Morning Mentions Says Goodbye! by The Armchair Genealogist
10. 5 Websites for Preserving Memories & Sharing Stories by Your Story Coach
11. My Ancestors Were Calling by I remember you…
12. GOTTA LOVE THE GENEABLOGGER COMMUNITY by Lonetester HQ
13. The Genealogist's Muse: Asking Why AND Reverend John Leighton Wilson Returns from West Africa to South Carolina by Into the Briar Patch: A Family Memoir
14. RootsTech Ketchup by The Ancestry Insider
15. Dead People, Dead People, Dead People, SQUIRREL! by Clue Wagon
16. It all went up in smoke...well, almost all by Always Anxiously Engaged
17. What happened after my WARNING blog post AND New Hampshire Pronunciation by Nutfield Genealogy
18. A Patronymic Primer by Sally Searches
19. Online timelines for your genealogy by Kinfolk News
20. Barry Ewell's Family Treasures eBook is Available for FREE by Genea-Musings
21. RootsTech 2014 has the potential to break all records because... by Dear Myrtle
22. A message from Cyndi Ingle Howells, founder of Cyndi's List by Cyndi's List

New Blog Discoveries

• i-Descend
• I *think* we're related!
• Coelho Magno Familia
• Ruth's Ancestors
• foxkellar: Ancestors from the Attic

In Case You Missed Them….My Contributions to the Genealogy Blogosphere This Week

• Military Monday ~ Richard Engle - A Civil War Veteran Admitted to the Battle Mountain Sanitarium – A record from the "U.S. National Homes for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers" Collection
• We Have A Winner!!

Thanks for reading!


© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

We Have A Winner!!

On April 3 I wrote a review of the book 13 Ways To Tell Your Ancestor Stories by Dr. Bill (William L.) Smith.  I also hosted a giveway for a PDF version of Dr. Bill's book.  Today, using Random.org, I've selected a winner.




And the winner is…drumroll please…Sue at The Anderson's POL (Pad of Love).

Congratulations Sue!!  I will be emailing a PDF version of Dr. Bill's book to you today!

Thanks for reading!

Jana

© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

Military Monday ~ Richard Engle - A Civil War Veteran Admitted to the Battle Mountain Sanitarium

Just what is Battle Mountain Sanitarium and why was Richard Engle admitted to this place?  Battle Mountain Sanitarium is now part of the Veterans Affairs Black Hills Health Care System. But in 1907 it opened its doors as a branch of The National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers. It's located in Hot Springs, South Dakota. I've included a photo of the sanitarium below (photo by Alexander Daubert at Wikimedia Commons).

As to why Richard Engle was admitted here, it appears from the document below, that he was suffering from several health problems.

This document (below) from the U.S. National Homes for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers, 1866-1938 Collection¹ which I found on Ancestry.com is full of interesting and valuable genealogical information.  If you don't have an Ancestry.com subscription, don't worry.  I discovered that the U.S. National Homes for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers, 1866-1938 Collection is also available on FamilySearch.org as well.

This document is separated into four different sections - Military History, Domestic History, Home History, and General Remarks.

Let's take a look at the information contained within each section of Richard's record.

Military History

• Time and Place of Each Enlistment -
  • First Enlistment
    • Time and Place of Enlistment – September, 1861 at Plymouth, Ohio
    • Rank – Private
    • Company and Regiment – Company G, 63rd Ohio Infantry
    • Time and Place of Discharge – June 18, 1864 at Washington D.C. [33 mos.]
    • Cause of Discharge - by reenlistment
  • Second Enlistment
    • Time and Place of Enlistment – June 18, 1864 at Washington D.C.
    • Rank – Private
    • Company and Regiment – 7th Volunteer Reserves
    • Time and Place of Discharge – November 16, 1865 at Washington D.C.
    • Cause of Discharge – G. O. 155
• Disabilities When Admitted to the Home
  • Incontinence of Bowels
  • Arterial Sclerosis
  • Hemorrhoids with small Fistula
  • Cataract in Left Eye
  • Epileptic Attacks

Domestic History

• Where Born – Ohio
• Age – 77
• Height – 5'6"
• Complexion – Fair
• Color of Eyes – Blue
• Color of Hair – Gray
• Read and Write – Yes
• Religion – Prot. (I Assume that means Protestant)
• Occupation – None
• Residence Subsequent to Discharge – South Dakota
• Married or Single – Married
• Name and Address of Nearest Relative – Sarah A. Engle, Sioux Falls, South Dakota

Home History

• Rate of Pension – $20.00
• Date of Admission, Re-Admission and Transfer – ad B.M.S. 3-12-08 (March 12, 1908, not sure what those initials stand for)
• Date of Discharge and Transfer – 4-8-09 (April 8, 1909)
• Cause of Discharge – OR (not sure what this means either)

General Remarks

• Papers
  • Admission Paper – 1
  • Certificate of Service – 1
  • Pension Certificate – #202.972

Isn't this an amazing amount of information gleaned from a one-page document?  I already have the full Civil War pension file for Richard Engle, the husband of my 2nd great-grandaunt, Sarah Amanda (Waterman) Engle.  But this document is still an amazingly interesting and valuable find.  And if I wasn't already in possession of Richard's pension file, this document provided the pension certificate number.  How cool is that?

The National Home for Disabled Veteran Soldiers didn't only care for Civil War veterans.  It also cared for veterans of other conflicts as well.  So, if you have a military ancestor, I would encourage you to check out this awesome record collection on Ancestry.com or FamilySearch.org.

Thanks for reading!

Jana

© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

---

1 Ancestry.com. U.S. National Homes for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers, 1866-1938[database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007. Original data: Historical Register of National Homes for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers, 1866-1938; (National Archives Microfilm Publication M1749, 282 rolls); Records of the Department of Veterans Affairs, Record Group 15; National Archives, Washington, D.C.^↩

Follow Friday–Fab Finds for April 5, 2013

My Fab Finds for this week are (in no particular order)

1. Dear Randy - Why Does LDS Church Exert So Much Control over Genealogy? by Genea-Musings
2. Life Happens, Tangents, Social Media, and Genealogy Wow! by Family Stories
3. Chasing that pension file by The Legal Genealogist
4. Obits not in the Obit Section of the Newspaper by Genealogy Decoded
5. Genealogy Today: Knowing family history cuts kids’ stress by Betty Malesky for Green Valley News and Sun
6. Wills at Family Search by I remember you…
7. DIY Historical Map Overlays in Google Earth by Kimberly Powell for About.com Genealogy
8. Transitioning to Blogger, and getting organized by Sifting Through The Past
9. RootsTech: Ancestry.com Search Tools AND Land That I Love: RootsTech Tabernacle Choir Mini-Concert by The Ancestry Insider
10. A to Z April Challenge: B is for Bessie by Jollett Etc.
11. FamilySearch’s Family Tree by Ancestoring's Ask A Genealogist
12. Early Women Occupations, Jobs & Avocations by Mary Harrell-Sesniak for GenealogyBank Blog
13. Ohio Soldiers in the War of Rebellion by Family History with the Lineagekeeper
14. Injury by Barley Beard? by Corduroy & Silk Genes
15. Tombstone Tuesday - He's Hilarious by Sally Searches
16. RootsTech 2013 - Personal Reflections on a Pendulum Ride by Granite Genealogy
17. Talented Tuesday: The Fiddlin' Farmer by Celebrating Family Stories
18. The Digital Public Library of America will Launch on April 18 and 19 by Eastman's Online Genealogy Newsletter

In Case You Missed Them….My Contributions to the Genealogy Blogosphere This Week

• Happy Easter
• 13 Ways To Tell Your Ancestor Stories ~ A Book Review and Giveaway
• It's My 1st Blogiversary!

Note:  The 13 Ways To Tell Your Ancestor Stories Book Giveaway closes at midnight on April 9, 2013.  The winner will be chosen on April 10, 2013, so there's still time to enter.


Thanks for reading!


© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

It's My 1st Blogiversary!

It's time to celebrate!  Let's bring out the cake and ice cream and light the birthday candle!  My blog is turning one year old tomorrow, April 5, 2013. I would have posted this one-year anniversary post on my actual blogiversary, but I already have my weekly Fab Finds post scheduled for that day. So, I'll just celebrate a day early!

Has it really been one year since I started this blog? I can't believe it! Where did the time go?

First of all, I want to thank all of you, my wonderful readers and fellow genealogy bloggers, for your kindness and support.  It can be a scary and intimidating thing to start a blog and "put yourself out there" on the web.  But you've been so very welcoming and supportive and I want to thank you for that.

And I would be remiss if I didn't give a huge thank-you to Thomas MacEntee at GeneaBloggers.  He is a wonderful mentor and advocate for genealogy bloggers everywhere.  Thank you Thomas for creating GeneaBloggers.  It's such a friendly, supportive and welcoming community.

In the past, I've seen other genealogy bloggers share their blog stats on their own blogiversaries.  I thought I'd do that as well.  It's interesting to analyze the blog stats, although I don't know just how accurate they really are when I take into account possible spam hits to my blog posts.

Nevertheless, the stats will hopefully give a pretty good overall picture about my blog and what my readers have enjoyed reading.

I compared my Blogger stats with my Feedburner stats and they are not the same.  And I'm not sure why.

According to Blogger, my top ten most popular posts are as follows:

1. Follow Friday–Fab Finds for December 28, 2012
2. Follow Friday–Fab Finds for January 18, 2013
3. Follow Friday–Fab Finds for September 14, 2012
4. Follow Friday–Fab Finds for March 29, 2013
5. Thanks for Traveling Frederick! - U.S. Consular Registration Application ~ 1917
6. Tech Tuesday - OneNote For Genealogy ~ Research Bookmarks
7. Follow Friday–Fab Finds for February 1, 2013
8. Follow Friday–Fab Finds for March 22, 2013
9. Ancestor Landing Page ~ Debs Webster Family Immigration Story
10. Treasure Chest Thursday–The Big Reveal ~ What's In The Old Metal Tube?

According to Feedburner, these are my top ten posts:

1. Follow Friday–Fab Finds for March 22, 2013
2. Will You Be Watching?
3. My 4th Great-Grandfather's Signature on a Revolutionary War Document ~ Dated August 23, 1776
4. I've Changed My Mind
5. Tech Tuesday - OneNote For Genealogy ~ Research Bookmarks
6. Tuesday’s Tip ~ Three Awesome Websites for Genealogy…Found on Pinterest!
7. Follow Friday–Fab Finds for January 4, 2013
8. Military Monday ~ Revolutionary War Surgeon: Luther Waterman
9. Tech Tuesday ~ Watermarked Photos
10. Follow Friday–Fab Finds for November 23, 2012

In the Blogger stats, my Fab Finds posts dominate the top 10 spots, but in Feedburner, they don't.  I wonder which one is more accurate.

Something else I found to be quite interesting were the referrals.  Here's a sample from Feedburner:





See what's at the top of the list?  Yep, RebelMouse!  What a surprise!  And RebelMouse was the #1 referrer in eight of my top ten popular posts in Feedburner's list.  RebelMouse was the #3 referrer for the other two posts.  Wow!  I have to admit to being quite shocked at this finding, especially since I've only been using RebelMouse for a short time.

Here's what Blogger shows as my top ten referring URLs and referring sites:




Again, I don't know why these are different from Feedburner.

It looks like GeneaBloggers, Sepia Saturday, Genea-Musings, Twitter, and Facebook are in the top ten list of my referring URLs and referring sites in Blogger's list.  Thank you Thomas MacEntee at GeneaBloggers, Randy Seaver at Genea-Musings, Sepia Saturday bloggers, and all of those who have used Facebook or Twitter to access my blog!

Okay, enough with the stats…let's have some cake!  But, before we dig in, I want to thank you all again for taking the time to read my blog this past year.  And thank you to those who've left comments, "liked" my blog posts on Facebook, "+1'd" them on Google+, retweeted them on Twitter, or shared them through any other social media platform.  You guys are awesome!

Thanks for reading!

Jana

© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

13 Ways To Tell Your Ancestor Stories ~ A Book Review and Giveaway

"Once upon a time…"

Such a magical phrase!  It has the power to immediately draw you in.  You want to know more.  Just what did happen "Once upon a time?"  This is the power of storytelling.  And really, when you think about it, we are surrounded by stories in our everyday lives.  Movies, books, television shows, songs we listen to—these are really mediums for storytelling.

Did you know that you can make your family history as magical and powerful as the phrase "Once upon a time?"  How?  Through the power of stories.  The importance of including ancestor stories in your family history cannot be overemphasized.  Sharing the stories of your ancestors with your family members is vitally important in helping them become interested in and excited about their own family history.

But you may ask, "Where do I begin and what storytelling methods should I use?"

In the second edition of Dr. Bill (William L.) Smith's book 13 Ways To Tell Your Ancestor Stories, Dr. Bill shares 13 successful, creative, and fun ways to share the stories of your ancestors.



From the Back Cover:

Dr. Bill enjoys telling and sharing ancestor stories and related family history social context. He has published four family histories, to date, with more in progress.

For the latest on Dr. Bill, his writings and stories, see his complementary blog at:  drbilltellsancestorstories.blogspot.com

Do you have family history and ancestor stories collected and researched?

Do you want to share them and tell your stories, but don't know how or what venue to use?

This book has your answer.

Preservation and interpretation of your ancestor stories will occur most effectively if you use multiple approaches to telling your ancestor stories to your family and interested others. Showing you how to do this is the purpose of this book.

The content of our telling of ancestor stories includes your life as well as the lives of your two parents, four grandparents, eight great-grandparents, sixteen great-great grandparents, etc., and their siblings, aunts, uncles and cousins. Ancestor stories include the social context in which these folks lived, their clothes, their farms or ranches, their religion (or not), their occupations, their loves and antagonisms, their education (or not), their friends and neighbors, and the mundane details of their daily lives.

13 sections suggest a variety of ways to tell your ancestor stories; each section has a Planning Worksheet to assist you in doing it most effectively.

"Telling a story about an ancestor can be a gift to oneself and to one's family. It is powerful to have your stories heard.  Judy Shintani http://judykitsune.wordpress.com/"

Review

13 Ways to Tell Your Ancestor Stories contains 13 easy-to-read and informative sections under the heading "Potential Story Sharing Activities."

1. Blog
2. Book
3. Newsletter
4. Website
5. Podcasts
6. Videos
7. Wikis
8. Scrapbooking
9. Brochures
10. Posters
11. Art and Artifacts
12. Oral Performance
13. Other

At the end of each section, Dr. Bill has included a "Pros and Cons" list as well as a handy "Planning Worksheet" for that particular Story Sharing Activity.

One of the story sharing activities mentioned in this book is scrapbooking.  I know many people already love scrapbooking.  It's a wonderful way to share ancestor stories.  But what if that's not something you're interested in.  Not to worry!  That's the beauty of this book.  Dr. Bill provides a variety of different ideas for sharing the stories of your ancestors.

Oral performance is another very effective way to share ancestor stories.  I have first-hand experience about it's effectiveness.  Just the other day at church, two of my friends added simple costume accessories (a shawl and gloves for her and a flat cap from England for him) to what they were already wearing, and played the parts of my 2nd great-grandaunt, Sarah Amanda Waterman Engle and her husband Richard Engle.  My two friends were helping me with a presentation to children aged 7-11.  My friends introduced themselves as Richard and Sarah Engle and told the kids a little about their lives.  Two of Sarah and Richard's children died when they were babies.  Near the end of my presentation, one of the little girls asked how one of the babies had died.  To me this shows that this little girl had been touched by this story of my ancestors.

I also love the idea of artifacts being used as a way to tell ancestor stories, and as a catalyst for conversations about our ancestors.  We have several photos of our ancestors displayed in our home.  When I saw our youngest son stop in front of some of these photos and show them to his friends, that was definitely a heartwarming moment for me.

13 Ways To Tell Your Ancestor Stories is a helpful resource for anyone who wants ideas about how to share their ancestor stories.  It's available for purchase on Amazon.com and Lulu.com.

Giveaway

Dr. Bill has graciously allowed those of us on his blog book tour to give away a PDF version of 13 Ways To Tell Your Ancestor Stories to one of our lucky readers.  If you'd like a chance to win a PDF version of Dr. Bill's book, please leave a comment, along with your email address, in the comments below.

At midnight on Tuesday, April 9, 2013, the giveaway will close and I will randomly select a winner on Wednesday, April 10, 2013.  The lucky winner will be contacted by email, so don't forget to include your email address in the comments below for a chance to win Dr. Bill's book.

Note:  If you prefer that your email address remain private, just leave a comment below to enter the contest, and then email me (see my Contact Me tab above) and include your name and email address.

Thanks for reading and good luck with the giveaway contest!

Jana

© 2013 Copyright by Jana Last

Disclaimer:  As part of this blog book tour, I was given a PDF copy of Dr. Bill's book 13 Ways To Tell Your Ancestor Stories.