Jana's Genealogy and Family History Blog

Friday, October 30, 2015

Follow Friday ~ Fab Finds for October 30, 2015

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

rootstech 2016: so many chances to win by Tami Osmer Mize, author of Relatively Curious
Would You Like to Contribute to the Honor Roll Project for Veteran's Day, 2015? by Heather Wilkinson Rojo, author of Nutfield Genealogy
International Tracing Service Came Through! Paul Diamond's Displaced Persons Records by Lara Diamond, author of Lara's Family Search
Soldiers of the Queen by Dianne Nolin, author of Genealogy: Beyond the BMD
Do you have any genealogy documents hiding in your home? by Janine Adams, author of Organize Your Family History
The Care and Preservation of Family Bibles by Melissa Barker, author of A Genealogist In The Archives
Genealogy Weekly: Ancestry Mexico, North Carolina Newspapers and More by Amy Johnson Crow, author of Amy Johnson Crow Blog
Ancestry Mexico Launches with More than 220 Million Searchable Mexican Historical Records by Ancestry Team for Ancestry.com Blog
AncestryDNA Kit Giveaway! by Sarah O'Connor, author of Geneartistry
Join Us in November for Family History Writing Month! AND Contest: Win a Flip-Pal® Mobile Scanner by Thomas MacEntee, author of GeneaBloggers
Fiction, Nonfiction or Memoir…What Will You Write in November? by Lisa A. Alzo, author of The Accidental Genealogist
Two Sisters, Two Stories by Michelle Ganus Taggart, author of A Southern Sleuth
Understanding Spanish Naming Conventions by Julie Cordero, author of Oak Grove Genealogy
6 Tips for Telling a Better Genealogy Story by Joanne Cowden, author of Researching Relatives
Not driving horses by Debi Austen, author of Who Knew?
How Did I Miss This Before? Ancestry.com Shows Others Researching a Person by Randy Seaver, author of Genea-Musings
Next Generation from Legacy Family Tree Webinars by Cheri Hudson Passey, author of Carolina Girl Genealogy
What Kind of Genealogist Are You? by Lorine McGinnis Schulze for Legacy News Blog
Do You Have a Skeleton in your Family History Closet? by Diana Elder for Family Locket

The 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge by Amy Johnson Crow, author of No Story Too Small -

52 Ancestors Challenge 2015: Week 42 Recap

This week's "May I Introduce To You" Interview on GeneaBloggers.com

May I Introduce to You . . . Cathy Meder-Dempsey

New Blog Discoveries

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

Jana's Genealogy and Family History Blog

Jana's Place

The Monte L. Bean Life Science Museum ~ Part 1

Thanks for reading!

Jana

Thursday, October 29, 2015

RootsTech 2016 Opening Day Keynote Speakers Announced

The following is from RootsTech

SALT LAKE CITY, October 27, 2015—RootsTech, the largest family history conference in the world, announced today the first three keynote speakers in its all-star lineup for RootsTech 2016. The first general session (Thursday, February 4, 2016) will feature three inspiring speakers, which include New York Times bestselling author Bruce Feiler, award-winning journalist Paula Williams Madison, and the president and CEO of FamilySearch International, Stephen Rockwood.

Bruce Feiler is a bestselling author and columnist for The New York Times, where he writes the “This Life” column about today’s families. He is also the writer and presenter of the PBS Series Walking the Bible and Sacred Journeys with Bruce Feiler.

His latest book, The Secrets of Happy Families, reviews best practices for modern-day parents from some of the country’s most creative minds, including top designers in Silicon Valley, elite peace negotiators, and the Green Berets.

“RootsTech is the premier event for people who care about family history,” Feiler said. “I've become a passionate believer in the importance of telling your family history as a foundational tool for having a happy family. I can't think of a better audience to share my own story with.”

Paula Williams Madison is an award-winning journalist who is a former NBC executive. Currently, Madison serves as chairman and CEO of Madison Media Management LLC, a media consultancy company based in Los Angeles with global reach. She’s been named one of the “75 Most Powerful African Americans in Corporate America” by Black Enterprise Magazine and was recently honored by the East West Players and AARP with their Visionary Award.

After a successful career in news journalism, Madison retired in 2011 and embarked on a search for her grandfather Samuel Lowe, who returned to his native China after living in Jamaica. Madison produced a documentary film on the topic, Finding Samuel Lowe: From Harlem to China. In April of this year, HarperCollins published a memoir of the journey Finding Samuel Lowe: China, Jamaica, Harlem.

Attendees can expect to hear about Madison’s compelling journey, including the resources that helped her. “I used FamilySearch.org to research and try to locate my family in China. This system will help people like me find their families,” said Madison. “Family to me means bloodline—past, present, and future. You have to honor the past as you live in the present so that you can guarantee a future for your family.”

Stephen Rockwood is the new president and CEO of FamilySearch International and managing director for the Family History Department of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Prior to joining FamilySearch, Rockwood was a successful entrepreneur, creating unique service offerings for worldwide customers and building several businesses from the ground up.

“We look forward to another great RootsTech conference as we invite attendees to discover their families in a world-class setting. We are thrilled to welcome Bruce Feiler and Paula Williams Madison,” Rockwood said. “Their personal experiences will be highly inspiring for many as we kick off this exciting conference.

Visit RootsTech.org to reserve your seat now to hear Bruce Feiler, Paula Williams Madison, and Stephen Rockwood at the Thursday morning general session on February 4, 2016. Passes start at just $29.

RootsTech 2016 will be held on February 3–6 in Salt Lake City, Utah.

###

About RootsTech

RootsTech, hosted by FamilySearch International, is a global conference celebrating families across generations, where people of all ages are inspired to discover and share their memories and connections. This annual event has become the largest of its kind in the world, attracting tens of thousands of participants worldwide.

And the Winner of the RootsTech 2016 3-Day Pass is...

The time to enter my RootsTech 2016 3-Day Pass giveaway has ended and it's time to announce the winner.

But, before I announce the winner, I'd like to thank everyone who entered my giveaway, which included entrants from the United States, France, and New Zealand.

PromoSimple, the website I used for my giveaway, randomly selected the winner.

Okay, the time has come to announce the winner. Drum roll please...the winner of the RootsTech 2016 3-Day Pass is Mariah Hudson!

I've already contacted Mariah to tell her the great news. She sounded so excited in her reply email. And I've also sent her the RootsTech 2016 Winner Certificate.

Again, thank you to all who entered my RootsTech 2016 3-Day Pass giveaway. And congratulations Mariah!

Thanks for reading!

Jana

Tuesday, October 27, 2015

Petition to Sell Land

In a previous post I shared a probate record concerning William Wesley Rardin. It was a Petition to Sell Real Estate and was dated 24 December 1858.

Today I have another probate record to share with you that also concerns William Wesley Rardin. This document is a Petition to Sell Land and is dated 4 February 1859.¹

Transcript of Petition to Sell Land

Probate Court Athens County Feby 4 1859

In the Matter of D. B. Webster }
Guardian of Wm Welsey Rardin } Petition to Sell Land
vs }
Wm Wesley Rardin }

D. B. Webster Guardian as aforesaid having made a Return of the sale of the premises in said petition described and the said Return & proceedings in the sale having been by the Court examined and the Court being satisfied that the sale has in all respects been made according to Law. It is ordered that the same be approved and confirmed: and that said Guardian execute and deliver to said purchaser a Deed in fee Simple for said Real Estate so sold as aforesaid; on the purchaser complying with the terms of said sale.

Calvary Morris Prob Judge

From this document, it appears that William's land had indeed been sold. Unfortunately, the document doesn't mention the name of the person who bought William's land.

I have another probate record regarding William Wesley Rardin that I will be sharing in a future post.

Thanks for reading!

Jana

1 "Ohio, Probate Records, 1789-1996," database with images, FamilySearch (www.familysearch.org : accessed 1 October 2015), Athens > Probate journals 1852-1871 vol 1-2 > image 229 of 597; county courthouses, Ohio.^↩

Friday, October 23, 2015

Follow Friday ~ Fab Finds for October 23, 2015