March 22 DIRT Meeting:

Link to Research Log page (docx) shared by Michelle Weiner: Click here

The Value of Keeping A Research Log

I know I harp on this all the time - but I just can't say it enough.  If you are going to spend all that time on your family history research, keep a log so you don't duplicate your efforts over and over again.

Janine Adams recently published a post on her "Organize Your Family History" blog entitled, Why Keep A Genealogy Research Log.  Hope you will take a few minutes to take a look!  For those of you who are still struggling with this research tool, Janine has started a Facebook group  called "Genealogy Research Loggers".  Might be worth checking out!

TEST POST

Having problems with the service that sends email notifications - testing to see if this is working.

March 15 - DIRT Evening Session - USGS Maps and NewspaperArchive.com

Gave demo on free US Geological Survey maps and overlaying onto Goggle Maps. 
Tutorial on using NationalMaps.gov - click here
Opening NationalMaps.org - click here
Written instructions on use of USGS maps (thank you to Charlie Black) - click here
Migration map (provided by Debbe Finkelstein) - click here

Gave demo on NewspaperArchive.com, doing research for DIRT members.  You can get a 7 day free trial subscription and/or go to the Family History Center (on Sam Rittenberg road) for free access.
Here are some tutorials (older, use browse instead of archives) on using this database:
#1 Browse and Search - Introduction to Archives - click here
#2 Profile page, Treasure Box - click here
#3 Saved Search - Introduction to Archives - click here

March 1 DIRT Evening Meeting on Newspapers and Evernote

Covered Newspapers.com and Evernote.  Here are the links to the two videos shown.

Video tutorial on newspapers and newspaperarchives - click here

Video on evernote introduction - click here

For newspapers, the following information is for your awareness:

- America's Historical Newspapers - found at the Charleston County Public Library for free with ccpl library card

- Heritagequest - found at the Charleston County Public Library for free with ccpl library card

- newspaperarchive.com - found at the Family History Center, LDS for free

Don't Forget To Tell Your Story

All of us are busy working on our family history research.  Each of us is in a different place. Some of us have been doing this for YEARS, and others are just starting out. Regardless of what we plan to DO with all this work, the goal is to satisfy our own curiosity and leave a legacy for our descendants.  

We are told, over and over again, not to forget to interview our parents, grand parents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and any other person who has traveled through the lives of our family in order to gather as much information as possible. The one person you know the most about - yourself - is probably the one source of information you are totally ignoring in your search to leave behind a substantive record for generations yet to be born.

I have always kept a journal and as a result, all through my family history quest, I have kept notes, thoughts, recorded and written, about the journey. It is my record of how I am creating what I am creating. I have also started a folder in Evernote where I am stashing ideas, photos, things that pop into my head when I least expect them, notes and memories that I will, eventually, incorporate into a personal memoir of MY life.  Because who knows more about me than me!

There are a number of resources out there that can help you tell your story.  One of them is Legacy Tale. If you are interested in exploring the possibilities for telling your story, I recommend you check them out.  

Don't let your story get lost among all the hard work you are doing digging up the tales of your ancestors. You may not think you have anything much to tell, but generations from now, your story could be an inspiration to someone you will never have the opportunity to meet. How exciting would be it if you could locate a book written by your great-great-grandmother about her life? Don't forget to leave something of yourself among the bits and pieces of your past.