Follow Friday ~ Scottish Prisoners of War

I have an ancestor who was a prisoner of war from the Battle of Worcester in 1650.  This was during the English Civil War, when the Puritans were fighting the monarchists for control.  Scots warriors were brought in to fight on the side of the king.  All prisoners were sent into servitude in the New World.  During the battles of Dunbar and Worcester, the prisoners ended up on the ships “Unity” and “John and Sara”.  My ancestor, William Munroe, and his two brothers arrived in Boston, Massachusetts on the “John and Sara”.  William was sold at the docks in Charlestown and served his time in Cambridge before setting in Cambridge Farms (now the town of Lexington).

A new blog has been formed with lots of information on these battles, ships, and “passenger lists”.  I don’t think they were actually listed as passengers, sadly I think cargo is the more accurate term for these lists.  As this blog grows, more and more biographies and information will be added.  It’s a wonderful idea.  If you have an ancestor who arrived as one of the Scots prisoners, or if you are interested in early seventeenth century New England, you will enjoy following this blog by Teresa Rust!

Teresa also told me that there is a Yahoo group on the Scots Prisoners at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/scottish_war_prisoners/

The new blog is Scottish Prisoners of War  http://scottishprisonersofwar.com/

Teresa Rust also has other genealogy blogs, one is John Hamilton, Scottish Prisoner of War (he settled in Concord, Massachusetts) at http://johnhamiltonofscotland.wordpress.com/home/  ,  Grandpa’s Family History at http://grandpasfamilyhistory.com/  and Gran’s Family History at http://gransfamilyhistory.com/    She must be busy writing for all these online sites!

My previous blog post about the "John and Sara" passenger list:

http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2011/08/ship-john-and-sara-prisoners-of-war.html 

A blog post about John Cragin, another passenger on the "John and Sara"

http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2011/01/john-cragin-scots-prisoner-of-war-1651.html 

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Copyright 2013, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Follow Friday - New Hampshire Genealogy Blogs

When I started blogging, I was inspired by Jan Brown’s “Cow Hampshire” blog.  She was the only genealogy blogger in the Granite State.  Now there are many local genealogy bloggers, and you might want to check up on what they are writing.  They offer great advice on researching in New Hampshire and New England.  You also might make a “cousin connection” when you check out the surnames they are related to in their stories.  It’s easy to make a comment or email these bloggers, so you can ask questions, compare family trees and perhaps meet a new cousin. 

 

New Hampshire Blog Roll

 

"Epsom History" by the Epsom, NH Historical Society has great local history, photos and documents that often spill past the borders of Epsom  http://epsomhistory.blogspot.com/

 

Jan Brown “Cow Hampshire” many stories of New Hampshire families and local history:  www.cowhampshireblog.com    
 

June Butka "Dame Gussie" http://damegussie.wordpress.com/ and "Where in the State is Mom" http://home.comcast.net/~mikebutka5a/site/?%2Fhome%2F

J. Dennis Robinson “Seacoast History Blog”   Local history from the New Hampshire and Maine Seacoast region, including the Isles of Shoals from one of New Hampshire's favorite local historians  http://www.seacoastnh.com/Today/Seacoast_History_Blog/

Marcia Gulesian “North Country Chronicles” families from North of the Notches, great photographs, too

 http://north-country-chronicles.blogspot.com/

MarDi “Hoyt Family Genealogy” New England genealogy by a fairly new blogger  http://www.la-famille.mardistudio.com/blog/la-famille-blog-3/

Timothy McQuaid “Forgotten Journeys” Scots Irish Families and more  http://forgottenjourneys.blogspot.com/

Jennifer Shoer “Scrappy Genealogist” A Portsmouth genealogist with Jewish roots

 http://www.scrappygenealogist.com/

Thomas Tufts “Tufts Genealogy” Colonial era New England genealogy from New Hampshire and Massachusetts  http://tuftsgenealogy.blogspot.com/

Here are some other helpful genealogy blogs:

Lucie Consentino “Acadian Genealogy”  http://acadian-ancestral-home.blogspot.com/

Merrimack Valley “Forgotten New England” http://forgottennewengland.com/

Maine genealogy “Digging Down East”  http://diggingdowneast.blogspot.com/

More Maine genealogy "My Maine Ancestry"  http://mymaineancestry.blogspot.com/

Tim Firkowski “Genealogy Detective” is a professional New Hampshire genealogist who specializes in Polish genealogy, his blog describes research overseas in Poland   http://www.firkowski.com/

To search for the perfect genealogy blog for YOU:

GeneaBloggers search page http://geneabloggers.com/search-geneablogger-member-blogs/

The Genealogy Blog Finder http://blogfinder.genealogue.com/

If you have a favorite New Hampshire genealogy blogger I didn't list here, please add their name and a link to their blog in the comments!  

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Copyright 2013, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Follow Friday ~ NHSOG has a new blog!

NHSOG has a new blog! 

Do you have New Hampshire ancestors?  If you do, you'll want to follow this new blog! 

The “New Hampshire Families in 1790 Project” is an ongoing research project by the New Hampshire Society of Genealogists.  In 2007 they published the first volume of a book by the same name, which had sketches for New Hampshire families named in the 1790 census.    The goal is to document all the families living in New Hampshire at the time of the 1790 census.  The NHSOG is now working on a second volume of this book. 

At the 6 April 2013 meeting of NHSOG the new blog was announced and the resources linked on the blog were explained.  There are links to websites, books, and repositories to assist you in researching and writing up a family sketch on your ancestors. The blog will make fascinating reading when some of the sketches are up for perusal online.

Submissions to the project have guidelines which are outlined at the Society webpage and under a “Submissions” tab at the blog.  Submissions for family sketches can be emailed to Diane Gravel or Carol Swaine-Kuzel.   See below for the links.

There is a similar project ongoing in Maine by the Maine Genealogical Society.  There is also a database at the NEHGS website for families enumerated in the 1790 census for the Berkshire and Hampshire Counties in Massachusetts, and a book called Western Massachusetts Families in 1790 by Helen S. Ullmann that covers the area now called Berkshire, Hampden, Hampshire and Franklin counties.

For the New Hampshire Families in 1790 Project blog:

http://nhfams1790.blogspot.com/

For the New Hampshire Society of Genealogists:

http://nhsog.org/

Contacts:

Diane Gravel, CG  email dianeflorencegravel@gmail.com

Carol Swaine-Kuzel, email cskuzel@yahoo.com

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Copyright 2013, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Even More Stars! Follow Friday

I’m up to five!  Thanks for two more stars from Pam Carter, from “My Maine Ancestry”  http://mymaineancestry.blogspot.com/  and also from John Tew at “Filiopietismprism “  http://filiopietismprism.blogspot.com .  Thanks, Pam and John! 

These are stars I was given towards nominations for the Blog of the Year award, click here to read more about that surprise http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2013/01/surprise-ive-been-honored.html 

OK, part of the award fun is passing on the kharma.  I’m finding it hard to nominate more blogs at this point, even though I'd love to nominate several hundred great genealogy blogs.  But just to keep the ball rolling here are a few more for Follow Friday.  I’m getting comments that my nominations are helping some new bloggers find some great new reading, and some veteran bloggers are finding new resources, and so that is my goal.  I covered new genealogy blogs HERE and New England genealogy bloggers HERE.  This is a list of some great new reading (and one new one just for listening!)

1. Nathaniel Lane Taylor “Genealogist’s Sketchbook”  http://nltaylor.net/sketchbook/  Nat Taylor was elected a Fellow of the American Society of Genealogists in 2011.  His well-written posts will introduce you to this prolific author.  This is one of my favorite genealogy blogs.  

 2. Matt B. “…And this is Good Old Boston” http://goodoldboston.blogspot.com/ is a fun blog about some forgotten and not-so forgotten historical trivia about Boston.  Check out his list of great history blog links in the right hand column.

 3. Donna Segar “Streets of Salem”  http://streetsofsalem.com/  Donna Segar is a history professor at Salem State College.  Her blog has fantastic stories and photos of Salem, Massachusetts, and she specializes in the architectural history of the city.

 4. Stephanie Ann “World Turn’d Upside Down” http://worldturndupsidedown.blogspot.com/  Stephanie is only a college student but she has wonderful posts about being a Civil War re-enactor.  She is a knitter and a history buff, and her blog posts will amaze you with her knowledge of American history.

 5. Christy K. Robinson “William & Mary Barrett Dyer” http://marybarrettdyer.blogspot.com/  Christy’s blog specializes in the history and genealogy of 17^th-century New England, especially the Quakers, and the story of William and Mary Dyer, one of the first Massachusetts Quaker martyrs.

6. Randall Stephens, editor of “Historical Society”, a group blog with many writers at http://histsociety.blogspot.com/   This is a project of Boston University’s history department, which also has a website www.bu.edu/historic with several journals, a biennial conference and lectures and seminars.  The posts are wonderful bits of American history.

 7. Jane Sweetland “AncestryInk”  http://ancestryink.blogspot.com/   Jane is a graduate of the BU Creative Writing program AND the BU Genealogy course.  She writes about coastal Maine and Massachusetts.  This is a fairly new genealogy blog (since 2011) but is very well done.

This blog was started in 2013 and has only one post, but deserves some mention today for Follow Friday:

8. Marian Pierre Louis “On-Site Research New England” http://www.researchnewengland.com/ has only one post so far, but looks like it will be a fantastic series.  Marian will be touring New England and posting her interviews with genealogists, librarians and archivists.  The first podcast (you can listen or download) is of an interview with Rhonda McClure at NEHGS.  Fantastic!

Happy blog reading (and listening!)

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Copyright 2013, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Follow Friday ~Recommended blogs for the New Year

These are blogs I’ve enjoyed this year, and you might want to check them out in 2013… all come highly recommended!   Maybe some will become your favorites, too.

 

History Blogs:

Boston 1775 by J. L. Bell  http://boston1775.blogspot.com/ This blog concentrates on stories concerning the start of the American Revolution, especially in Boston in Massachusetts

Nupepa  http://boston1775.blogspot.com/   translations of vintage  Hawaiian Language Newspapers

The Historical Society edited by Randall Stephens http://histsociety.blogspot.com/  a group blog by the Boston University Journal of the Historical Society

Two Nerdy History Girls by Isabella Bradford and Susan Holloway Scott http://twonerdyhistorygirls.blogspot.com/ observations on American History by two historical fiction authors

William & Mary Barrett Dyer by Christy K Robinson http://marybarrettdyer.blogspot.com/  observations on 17^th century New England culture as it might have been seen by Mary Barrett Dyer, a Quaker martyr

Blog, or Die by Michael Aubrecht  http://www.pinstripepress.net/PPBlog/  “this site deals specifically with the politics, rebellion, and military affairs that guided our nation’s path toward securing liberty and freedom”

PastIsPresent by the American Antiquarian Society http://pastispresent.org/   stories about objects and documents found in the AAS archives in Worcester, Massachusetts

Early American Crime by Anthony Vaver  http://pastispresent.org/   “an exploration of crime, criminals, and punishments from America’s past”

Around the Mall by the Smithsonian Museums  http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/aroundthemall/

New England Blogs:

Boatbuilding with Burnham by Laurie Fullerton  http://boatbuildingwithburnham.blogspot.com/ “stories, advice and information about wooden shipbuilding”  especially about Harold Burnham boatbuilders of Essex, Massachusetts

New England Folklore by Peter Muise  http://newenglandfolklore.blogspot.com/  posts about New England myths, legends, folklore and traditions

Historic Buildings of Massachusetts by Daniel  http://mass.historicbuildingsct.com/   and also Historic Buildings of Connecticut http://historicbuildingsct.com/

Epsom, NH by the Epsom, New Hampshire Historical Society  http://epsomhistory.blogspot.com/   daily photos, stories, documents and history from the small town of Epsom, New Hampshire

Plimoth Plantation, a loving history museum,  has several blogs at  http://www.plimoth.org/stay-connected/blogs - these are my favorite three

    1)      The Riven Word http://blogs.plimoth.org/rivenword/ the artisans department at Plimoth Plantation
 

    2)      They knew they were Pilgrims http://blogs.plimoth.org/pilgrim-blog/  what it is like to be a re-enactor at the 17^th century English village at Plimoth Plantation museum

     3)      Pilgrim Seasonings http://blogs.plimoth.org/pilgrimseasonings/ stories from the culinary research department at Plimoth Plantation

“New to Me” Genealogy Blogs: 
      (I read many genealogy blogs, these are just the new ones I've enjoyed lately)

Past-Present-Future by smadar Belkind Gerson  http://the-past-to-the-present.blogspot.com/

Drewmeister http://drewmeister13.blogspot.com/

Reflections by Kathryn Smith Lockhard  http://www.kathrynsmithlockhard.blogspot.com/

The Legal Genealogist by Judy Russell   http://www.legalgenealogist.com/

The Pye Plate by Bette Wing http://thepyeplate.blogspot.com/

Tufts Family History by Tom Tufts http://tuftsgenealogy.blogspot.com/

The Family Connection by Jeanie Roberts  http://www.jeaniesgenealogy.com/

La Zarza Pumareda by Francisca Martin http://lazarzapumareda.blogspot.com/

Massachusetts and More by Chris http://massandmoregenealogy.blogspot.com/

My Maine Ancestry by Pam Carter  http://mymaineancestry.blogspot.com/

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Copyright 2012, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Follow Friday ~ Another Day with Donna

Donna Wendt showing us Mauanalua Bay

The last time I spent a day with genealogy blogger Donna Wendt, it was at the 2011 Southern California Genealogy Society’s Jamboree in Burbank, California.  We had known each other online, since we had a few common ancestors and I had written about genealogy in Hawaii, where Donna resides.  We continued to correspond online, and when I learned I was going to Hawaii I contacted Donna about a meet up.  I was hoping to attend one of the Honolulu County Genealogy Society’s meetings while I was on Oahu, and Donna is the webmaster of their blog.  She also has her own blog.  But, even better than a society meeting, we decided to get together for lunch and tour of her end of Oahu, known as Hawaii Kai.

Donna shows Mom the Koko Crater, and the steep hike up the slope
on a former cog railroad track.  Donna is an avid hiker in Hawaii.

Donna was a great tour guide.  We saw fantastic scenery at Koko Head and Mauanalua Bay, near her home, and drove as far as the lighthouse as Makapu’u Head to see the other side of the island.  She showed us an ancient heiau (sacred site) and a place where kids jumped off the cliffs into the waves .  We saw funky  sites such as the home of Dog the Bounty Hunter, Duane Chapman,  and beautiful scenes such as the canals and waterways of the marina at Hawaii Kai.  She is not only a terrific genealogist, but a very accomplished tour director, too!

Donna and I, and the kids were jumping off the rocks behind us! 

My Mom, Hubby and I had a terrific time.  It was fun spending “Another Day with Donna”.  She shared a lot of her genealogy research with us all, including her New Hampshire and New England lines, and showed me her thick notebook of research for her DAR application (her application had been accepted, and she received her notification only the day before we arrived!)   I hope she will be returning to New England soon, so we can reciprocate with a tour of our own backyard for Donna.

Donna's blog is full of genealogy and stories of her adventures around the world as an operating room nurse with "Operation Smile".  This terrific volunteer organization repairs children's cleft palates, and Donna has traveled to China, the Middle East and South America.  She is a retired Army nurse who has chosen to live in Hawaii, and who could blame her for such a wonderful place to retire!

Another Day in Paradise with Donna
Off Portlock Road on Mauanalua Bay

Note:  Donna beat me to the publication of a blog post about our meet up on 14 October 2012.  You can read it at her blog at this link: http://anotherdaywithdonna.blogspot.com/2012/10/heather-wilkinson-rojo-in-hawaii-kai.html

The URL for “Another Day with Donna” www.anotherdaywithdonna.blogspot.com

Honolulu County Genealogical Society blog  http://honolulucountygenealogicalsociety.blogspot.com/

Honolulu County Genealogical Society website www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~hihcgs

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Copyright 2012, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Follow Friday – some favorite websites

Here is a list of blogs I have enjoyed this past year.  I tried to list ones that are not genealogy websites, but still of interest to genealogists or historians.

http://boatbuildingwithburnham.blogspot.com/   Harold Burnham, wooden ship builder in Essex, Massachusetts. If you have ancestry from Essex, someone in your family tree probably built ships!

http://boston1775.blogspot.com/   J. L. Bell, author and historian, writes about Boston on the eve of the American Revolutionary War.

http://www.earlyamericancrime.com/     Anthony Vaver, author and blogger writes about crime and punishment in Colonial and Early America.

http://heritagepaperdolls.blogspot.com/   Melinda Bowers, this one is just for fun!

http://newenglandfolklore.blogspot.com/   Peter M,  writes about the weird and interesting folklore from New England.

A blog from the American Antiquarian Society in Worcester, Massachusetts http://pastispresent.org/   Very interesting stories based on "stuff" from their collections.  This is the archive where I first discovered genealogy research when I was a teenager, because it was within bike riding distance from my house! 

http://rockynook.blogspot.com/    Every summer there is an archeological dig at the homestead of the Howland family (of the Mayflower) in Duxbury, Massachusetts.  Follow the dig, or read past posts about what they have discovered.

http://www.womenhistoryblog.com/  each post is a full biography of a woman in history, including wives of Founding Fathers, wives of Patriots, and women who were famous on their own (inventors, writers, spies, etc.)

 

an assortment of New England genealogy websites new to me:

Bloodlines of Salem, a collection of information and links pertaining to Salem, Massachusetts circa 1692, the year of the witchcraft hysteria   http://bloodlinesofsalem.org/index.htm

Digital Commonwealth  a collection of links to materials held by Massachusetts libraries, museums, historical societies and archives  http://www.digitalcommonwealth.org/

The Italian Genealogical Society of America  http://www.italianroots.org/

My Kennebunks, the history of the Kennebunks, Maine by Sharon Cummins http://www.mykennebunks.com/

Nashua, NH  History 1900 – 1950 http://www.nashuahistory.com/site/nashuahistory_1900.htm

Seacoast New Hampshire   history, news, arts, tourist information and even a blog-  all hosted by Portsmouth, NH historian J. Dennis Robinson  http://www.seacoastnh.com/

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Copyright 2011, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Follow Friday ~ North Country Chronicles

Londonderry's Civil War Monument

I recently received some email from Marcia Gulesian.  She was researching Lorenzo Wight, a Londonderry resident who served in the Civil War.  While searching for more information on him, she saw his name on my post about the names on the Londonderry Civil War Memorial on the town common.  She contacted the through the Londonderry Historical Society, not knowing that all genealogy queries are forwarded to me!  I was on vacation at the time and referred her to the town librarian for a look up.  Later I was able to find Lorenzo in the town vital records, listed as Lorenzo White, who died in St. Augustine, Florida during the Civil War.  After a few emails back and forth we realized that we were both genealogy bloggers in New Hampshire.  Serendipity!

On 15 December 2011 Marcia posted a story on her blog about the Wight family at this link http://north-country-chronicles.blogspot.com/2011/12/wights-of-gilead-maine.html   I invite you to read the story, and to check out her whole blog.  She did a great job explaining how she pieced together all the members of the Wight family.  It has been fun to find a new genealogy blogger, especially one with Londonderry connections!

Lorenzo Wight's name
on the honor roll on the
Londonderry Civil War Monument

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The North Country Chronicles Blog
http://north-country-chronicles.blogspot.com/

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Copyright 2011, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Follow Friday: New Blogs I’m Following, How about You?

Earlier this year there was a lot of activity on the Facebook group “Descendants of John Howland” led by a young college student, David Larsson. He posted many photos and stories about some of his ancestors.  Finally I asked him “Why don’t you start your own genealogy blog?”  He didn’t take much more prompting, because before I knew it he had several posts up at the "McRae and Anderson Blog". http://mcraeandersongenealogy.blogspot.com/   I’m impressed that as a busy young person he has some great information on his family, many followers, and is still blogging even though I’m sure college classes have started up already. David Larsson’s blog follows his family tree all around southern Massachusetts. He recently deserted Facebook, and all his photos and stories on the Howland group disappeared with him. Be sure to follow him on his blog to keep up!

A Google alert for the words “Londonderry” and “Genealogy” led me to another new blog "Forgotten Journeys" by T. T. McQuaid at this link http://forgottenjourneys.blogspot.com/     I left him a comment, and we ended up as Facebook friends.   Serendipity!  He is my Londonderry neighbor, and started blogging in March, although I only recently discovered his website.   I hope to bump into Tim somewhere around Londonderry - in person, not just in cyberspace!  He was listed on the Geneablogger website in August. 

Another Google alert for the word "Londonderry" helped me to find “Uncontained Multitudes” by Robert Burnett at http://robtsfamily.blogspot.com/.    The name of his blog was inspired by one of Walt Whitman’s poems, “Song of Myself”.   He was recently listed on the Geneablogger website.  He has an ancestor from the Revolutionary War,  Captain Samuel Cherry, born in Londonderry, New Hampshire.

And I want to wish a special "Thanks!" to Nancy Loe for mentioning me on her own Follow Friday post last week at her blog “Sassy Jane Genealogy” at this post http://sassyjanegenealogy.blogspot.com/2011/09/follow-friday-nutfield-genealogy.html   I’m so flattered!   I met Nancy briefly at the Southern California Genealogy Society's Jamboree earlier this year.

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Copyright 2011, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Follow Friday - The Streets of Salem

A screenshot of the "Streets of Salem" homepage

Here is a “new to me” blog recommended by my first cousin.  I haven’t written many Follow Friday blog posts, but I was so impressed with this blog I wanted to share it with everyone.  “Streets of Salem”  isn’t even a year old, but the author Donna Vinson Segar presents a website that shares architecture,  history, stunning photography and local flavor in such a beautiful way you can’t help but spend time meandering through her blog.   I’ve spent many hours looking through her posts for ancestors, familiar local spots, and some great historical facts.

With a little help from Google I was able to find that Donna Seger is a member of the faculty of Salem State University, teaching history.  She is a graduate of Goucher College and holds a Ph.D. from Brandeis University.   Since Salem is a city with almost 400 years of history, she has done a wonderful job of showing the world the story of the changing architecture of the city with her posts and photographs.   Occasionally she will write about other locations in New England, but with all the great blog fodder in her home city, she has (and will have) plenty of Salem stories.

http://streetsofsalem.com

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Copyright 2011, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Follow Friday- A Very Grave Matter

My ancestor, George Jacobs,
his gravestone is listed on A Very Grave Matter
with a nice history of George and the graveyard

 One of my very favorite websites is “A Very Grave Matter” by Jenn Marcelais. I discovered it years ago, before blogging, before joining RAOGK, and before FindAGrave.com If you have colonial ancestors in Northern New England this is THE site for not only finding a photo of a gravestone, but the pertinent genealogical information behind it.

This is an entirely volunteer effort by Jenn. She doesn’t have a staff, nor scores of volunteers helping her, but over ten years she has documented over 15,000 gravestones across New Hampshire, Massachusetts Maine and Vermont. I can tell you I’ve found dozens of my ancestors in her database, and use it frequently to find information on distant cousins and allied lineages.

However, Jenn is badly in need of new camera equipment to continue her project. When I think of all the gas, time, trips to cemeteries and archives that she has saved me, it is well worthwhile donating to her cause. Just a few bucks, or maybe the cost of a tank of gas would help preserve this project and keep this website going for a few more years.

Please click on http://www.gofundme.com/gravematter  to support Jenn Marcelais’s efforts to purchase new camera equipment. There is a running gauge to tell you how close she is to her goal of $1,6000.

http://www.gravematter.com/ A Very Grave Matter

https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/A-Very-Grave-Matter/283947800098   A Very Grave Matter at Facebook, the best way to get updates on the latest photographs, documentation and news.

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Copyright 2011, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Follow Friday - Genealogy Queries in Yankee Magazine

When I was a child we summered on Lake Balch, which straddles the Maine and New Hampshire border. On rainy days at the camp there were jigsaw puzzles, a bookcase full of musty old books, and a basket full of  old Yankee magazines. Most of the issues of Yankee dated from the 1950s and 60s, and I had fun looking at the (to me!) old fashioned advertisements and stories. The funniest things were the classified advertisements in the back of the magazine, for psychics, patent medicine and farm equipment. Somewhere near the classified ads, there was a swap column and genealogy queries. I must have been a odd little girl, but I found these columns fascinating!

Maybe this is where my mind started to become “genealogically inclined”?

You can still peruse the genealogy queries in today’s issues of Yankee, and they have joined the 21st century by posting the queries on their website. According to the webpage the “swopper’s Column first appeared in 1935 and remains today as a feature on our Web site. In addition to general swops we also offer specific to family reunions and genealogy.”

This is the most "out of the box" genealogy website you may have ever used!

http://www.yankeemagazine.com/genies/index.php

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Copyright 2011, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Follow Friday- A list of good stuff on the Internet!

I usually don’t do a post for “Follow Friday” but here goes a whole list of non-genealogy resources perfect for the genealogist….


J. Dennis Robinson’s Seacoast History Blog, “Living With the Past”. It’s New Hampshire, it’s history, it’s about the seacoast region- a triple good time! http://www.seacoastnh.com/Today/Seacoast_History_Blog/

The American Antiquarian Society has a blog. This archive located in Worcester, Massachusetts is the first library I ever used for genealogy research, back in the dark ages before computers, before cell phones, before GPS. I used to ride my bike to get there. Now they have a blog- welcome to the 21st century! http://pastispresent.org/

The Massachusetts Foundation for the Humanities sponsors http://www.massmoments.org/ a “what happened on this day in Massachusetts history?” sort of website. It’s the sort of website that I check every morning before writing or reading other blogs. Sometimes it has even inspired a blog from me.

Anthony Vaver’s blog “Early American Crime” is described as “An exploration of the social and cultural history of crime and punishment in colonial America and the early United States”. It is also a fun website about our blacksheep ancestors. http://www.earlyamericancrime.com/

J. L Bell is a historian who writes a daily blog on Massachusetts history. "Boston 1775" is full of good posts that sometimes are week long (or longer) serials as he explores some subjects in great detail. Bell is a professional, too, having consulted for the National Park service and the PBS series History Detectives. http://boston1775.blogspot.com/

“The History of American Women Blog” by Maggie MacLean has a right column index of all the women she has profiled in categories like Loyalist Women, Quaker Women, Wives of Signers of the Declaration, etc. She has written great biographies on hundreds of women at http://www.womenhistoryblog.com/ complete with photographs, sources and links to other websites.

“Your Great Grandmother’s Table: Scotch Irish Foodways” by M. M. Drymon is not only fun for those with Scots Irish ancestry, but fun for anyone interested in early American life. http://scotchirishfood.blogspot.com/

And…

Not everything I read is related to New England…

“The Iolani Palace Insider” is a fascinating blog by the staff at Iolani Palace in Honolulu. Photos and stories document the ongoing restoration of the palace that was stripped of its grandeur. Now, artifacts that were once auctioned off or thrown out are slowly being returned to the Palace, and others are being re-created from antique photographs and documentation. Currently drapes for the music room are being painstakingly handmade by experts brought over from the mainland. http://iolanipalaceinsider.blogspot.com/

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Copyright 2011, Heather Wilkinson Rojo