The individual wartime journeys of over 330,000 Australian men and women who volunteered to serve overseas in the First World War are revealed for the first time in an ambitious family history project.

Australian War Stories by Memories enables descendants to search for a loved one at australianwarstories.memories.com.au and receive a free online memorial of their wartime journey: from enlistment, to training, embarkation and beyond.

The memorials are delivered via a link sent free-of-charge by email and mobile text. They can be shared among extended family and posted to social media.

An estimated 5 million Australians have a relative who served overseas during the First World War. Many more will wish to honour a local ANZAC hero by registering their details to receive and share an online memorial.

Australian War Stories is a collaboration between leading family memorial platform memories.com.au and media services company Mediality.

You can read more in an article at: https://www.miragenews.com/for-nation-330000-online-memorials-unlock-766147

The National Archives of Australia has ramped up the digitisation of its at-risk records after securing a government funding lifeline last year. The agency has handed out millions in contracts to digitise parts of its collection this year but failed to properly disclose the largest deal.

A $2 million contract for outsourced digitisation services was only published this week, despite work beginning in November and government ministers promoting the supplier’s project earlier this year.

You can read more in an article written by Joseph Brookes and published in the InnovationAus we site at: https://www.innovationaus.com/national-archives-ramps-up-digitisation-of-at-risk-records/.

NOTE: The following article has nothing to do with genealogy. However, I have written about telephone cost reduction methods before, and some people seem to appreciate the articles; so, I'll publish one more.

The following is a Plus Edition article written by and copyright by Dick Eastman. 

Do you need your telephone? Is it worth the price you pay for monthly service? I stopped using a regular telephone 22 years ago, and don't miss it. Even better, I don't miss the monthly bills I used to pay. Still better yet, I have a working telephone with me all the time wherever I am: at home, in the automobile, at the grocery store, at the doctor’s office, and even while walking down a street in Singapore. (Yes, I used the phone a number of times the last time I was in Singapore.) Now it seems that many Americans agree with me.

A survey by the National Institute of Health reports that the majority of US residents still have both a home phone and a mobile phone, but many are increasingly snipping the wires on their traditional home phone service in favor of a cell phone. The NIH survey reports that almost one in six households (15.8 percent) are wireless-only, meaning that the family in the household owns a cell phone, but there is no landline telephone.

COMMENT: I don't think this is a good time to invest in stock issued by your local telephone company. Old-fashioned wired telephone service appears to be going the way of buggy whip manufacturers.

Above and beyond the cell-phone only families, even more Americans are switching to VoIP phones.

NOTE: A VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) phone is a telephone system that places telephone calls over the Internet. A VoIP phone may or may not use your existing computer to place the call, but you do need a broadband Internet connection. VoIP telephone systems include Skype, magicJack, Vonage, and others. I have written about those systems in past newsletters.

In a different study, TeleGeography.com reports that VoIP usage in the US has now reached 16.3 million subscribers. That's 13.8 percent of all US households and 27 percent of all broadband customers.

If we add those percentages up, the studies would indicate that nearly 30% of all American households do not have a standard telephone; they use either a cell phone or VoIP phones or both.

I am one of those 30%. I used to have all three: a standard landline phone supplied by the local phone company, a cell phone, and a VoIP phone that I used mostly for placing long distance calls. (I make a lot of long distance calls in support of this newsletter, including frequent overseas calls.)

One day when paying the landline phone bill, I suddenly realized that I hadn't used the landline phone in months. I use the cell phone daily and did use the VoIP phone occasionally but was not using the traditional landline phone at all. It took a few more months for me to talk myself into removing that phone, but I did so eventually.

The remainder of this article is reserved for Plus Edition subscribers only. If you have a Plus Edition subscription, you may read the full article at: https://eogn.com/(*)-Plus-Edition-News-Articles/12730271.

If you are not yet a Plus Edition subscriber, you can learn more about such subscriptions and even upgrade to a Plus Edition subscription immediately at https://eogn.com/page-18077.

The following announcement was written by MyHeritage:

To make Anzac Day even more meaningful, MyHeritage is pleased to offer free access to our collections of 95 million records from Australia and New Zealand, between 20 April and 26 April 2022 (inclusive).

Search free Australian and New Zealand records on MyHeritage 

MyHeritage can help you discover and preserve the stories of your Australian and New Zealander relatives who fought for freedom, or any of your relatives from the region – so seize this excellent research opportunity when the records are free of charge.

MyHeritage is home to several important historical record collections from Australia and New Zealand, including a number of military collections such as the Anzac Memorial records, the Australian World War II Nominal Roll, 1939–1945, and more. Additional records, such as vital records, newspapers, and government records can help fill in more details to paint a full picture of your relatives’ lives.

Normally, a Complete or Data plan is required to view these records, but for 7 days only, you’ll be able to search and view them for free. To access these free records, you’ll be asked to create a free MyHeritage account.

Search free Australian and New Zealand records on MyHeritage

Who are the heroes in your family? Whether you already remember their names at a dawn service or you have yet to learn their identities, MyHeritage can help you discover and preserve the stories of your Australian and New Zealander relatives who fought for freedom.

Lest we forget.

The following announcement was written by Findmypast:

The following announcement was written by Findmypast:

500,000 new additions to our English Roman Catholic collections this Findmypast Friday 

Findmypast has added brand new additions to their English Catholic baptisms, marriages, and burials, as well as an incredible 118 new and updated newspaper titles.

England Roman Catholic Parish Baptisms

400,000 new parish baptisms from the diocese of Salford are now online. Most transcriptions include birth year and date, baptism year and date, church, parish, and parents’ names.

England Roman Catholic Parish Marriages

We've added 85,988 new parish marriage records to this expanding collection, also from the diocese of Salford. These records offer a combination of details, including marriage date, the church name, parish of both spouses, and father's name of both spouses.

England Roman Catholic Parish Burials

Covering an incredible 92 churches across Lancashire and Greater Manchester, we've added 21,525 new burial records from Salford Diocese to this collection. The records offer an abundance of information, including death date, burial date, and often burial ground. 

Newspapers 

500,000 new pages have been added to Findmypast’s ever-expanding newspaper archives. The latest arrivals include 16 new titles and updates to an incredible 102 existing papers.

New titles: 

• • Bedworth Echo, 1980, 1987-1988, 1992, 1995
  • Billingham & Norton Advertiser, 1987
  • Brecknock Beacon, 1886
  • Cannock Chase Post, 1992
  • Cheltenham News, 1987
  • Evening News (Waterford), 1900-1901, 1905, 1910
  • Glasgow Mercantile Advertiser, 1882
  • Hinckley Herald & Journal, 1988
  • Kensington News and West London Times, 1876, 1882, 1887-1888, 1913, 1917-1918, 1920, 1922, 1925, 1927-1928, 1930-1934, 1938-1939, 1944, 1950, 1952-1954, 1957-1962, 1965, 1967, 1970-1971
  • Llanelli Star, 1990
  • Loughborough Mail, 1989
  • Plymouth Extra, 1987
  • Runcorn & Widnes Herald & Post, 1991
  • Sleaford Target, 1991-1992
  • St. Pancras Gazette, 1873-1939
  • Sydenham, Forest Hill & Penge Gazette, 1875-1881
  • Uxbridge Informer, 1986, 1988

Updated titles: 

• • Abergele & Pensarn Visitor, 1872, 1878, 1890, 1893, 1896, 1898-1899, 1901-1902
  • Accrington Observer and Times, 1989
  • Aldershot News, 1910, 1985
  • Amersham Advertiser, 1990
  • Ashbourne News Telegraph, 1990, 1992
  • Ayrshire Post, 1990
  • Birkenhead News, 1988
  • Birmingham Daily Gazette, 1897
  • Birmingham Daily Post, 1898
  • Birmingham Journal, 1830, 1844, 1846-1847, 1850, 1852-1853, 1855-1859
  • Birmingham News, 1989
  • Blairgowrie Advertiser, 1990, 1992
  • Bootle Times, 1988-1989
  • Brentwood Gazette, 1970, 1987
  • Bridge of Allan Gazette, 1952
  • Buckinghamshire Examiner, 1971, 1984, 1994-1995
  • Burton Daily Mail, 1990
  • Burton Trader, 1989
  • Caernarvon & Denbigh Herald, 1988
  • Cambria Daily Leader, 1909
  • Cambridge Town Crier, 1991
  • Cambridge Weekly News, 1989
  • Caterham Mirror, 1990
  • Central Somerset Gazette, 1888
  • Chatham News, 1989
  • Cheshunt and Waltham Mercury, 1992-1993
  • Chester Chronicle, 1987
  • Clevedon Mercury, 1988
  • Crewe Chronicle, 1975, 1993
  • Crosby Herald, 1987-1989
  • Daily Record, 1992
  • Dover Express, 1987
  • East Grinstead Observer, 1989
  • East Kent Gazette, 1888, 1895, 1902-1904, 1988
  • Ellesmere Port Pioneer, 1993-1995
  • Folkestone, Hythe, Sandgate & Cheriton Herald, 1986, 1989
  • Formby Times, 1990-1991
  • Fulham Chronicle, 1993-1994
  • Galloway News and Kirkcudbrightshire Advertiser, 1992
  • Gateshead Post, 1988
  • Gloucester Citizen, 1965
  • Gloucestershire Echo, 1992
  • Harrow Gazette, 1870
  • Harrow Informer, 1987
  • Harrow Observer, 1965, 1981, 1993, 1995
  • Herald Cymraeg, 1988, 1992
  • Hertford Mercury and Reformer, 1993
  • Herts and Essex Observer, 1986
  • Hinckley Times, 1985, 1994
  • Hoddesdon and Broxbourne Mercury, 1995
  • Horley & Gatwick Mirror, 1989-1990
  • Huddersfield Daily Examiner, 1910, 1990
  • Huntingdon Town Crier, 1986, 1995
  • Ilfracombe Chronicle, 1878, 1881, 1884-1885, 1887, 1890, 1952
  • Ireland’s Saturday Night, 1894
  • Irvine Herald, 1988
  • Isle of Thanet Gazette and Thanet Times, 1876, 1988, 1990
  • Kilmarnock Standard, 1982, 1984, 1990, 1994
  • Liverpool Daily Post, 1891, 1893
  • Long Eaton Advertiser, 1990, 1995
  • Loughborough Echo, 1952, 1986, 1994-1995
  • Macclesfield Express, 1994
  • Middlesex County Times, 1987
  • Newcastle Chronicle, 1898
  • North Devon Herald, 1877
  • North Star (Darlington), 1915
  • Nottingham Evening Post, 1953-1954
  • Ormskirk Advertiser, 1880, 1882-1883, 1903, 1905, 1910, 1950, 1952-1953, 1961
  • Paisley Daily Express, 1882, 1887-1888, 1890-1893, 1989
  • Perthshire Advertiser, 1948-1952
  • Port Talbot Guardian, 1988-1989
  • Retford, Gainsborough & Worksop Times, 1877, 1964-1966, 1968, 1971
  • Ruislip & Northwood Gazette, 1986, 1989-1990
  • Runcorn Guardian, 1903
  • Runcorn Weekly News, 1988, 1991-1994
  • Rutherglen Reformer and Cambuslang Journal, 1886
  • Saffron Walden Weekly News, 1898, 1915, 1926, 1930, 1935, 1957-1958
  • Sevenoaks Chronicle and Kentish Advertiser, 1987
  • Sevenoaks Focus, 1986
  • Shepton Mallet Journal, 1954, 1958, 1963, 1966, 1972-1973, 1975
  • Southall Gazette, 1994
  • Stafford Post, 1990
  • Staines & Ashford News, 1988
  • Stapleford & Sandiacre News, 1990-1991
  • Stirling Observer, 1987, 1990
  • Stockport Advertiser and Guardian, 1863
  • Stockport Express Advertiser, 1991
  • Sunday Sun (Newcastle), 1947, 1950-1951, 1958-1959
  • Surrey-Hants Star, 1989
  • Sutton Coldfield News, 1904, 1907, 1910, 1988
  • Taunton Courier, and Western Advertiser, 1883, 1886-1888, 1890, 1893-1894
  • Uttoxeter New Era, 1863, 1873, 1875, 1877
  • Uttoxeter Newsletter, 1987, 1989
  • Uxbridge Leader, 1989-1990
  • Walton & Weybridge Informer, 1987
  • West Surrey Times, 1875
  • Western Evening Herald, 1986
  • Western Morning News, 1912
  • Westminster & Pimlico News, 1994
  • Winsford Chronicle, 1967, 1974
  • Wishaw Press, 1986
  • Yorkshire Factory Times, 1889-1895, 1897-1904

One of the fundamentals of genealogy is the various numbering systems used to make quick and easily-read lists of ancestors. Perhaps the most common method of listing ancestors is to create an ahnentafel. Yet I suspect that word confuses most newcomers. Here is a (hopefully) simple explanation.

An ahnentafel is a list of one's ancestors with each one numbered in a sequential manner that makes it easy to calculate relationships. The ahnentafel method is the most common method of numbering ancestors

Ahnentafel is a German word that translates as “ancestor table” or, literally, a list of one’s ancestors. The same numbering system is sometimes called the Sosa-Stradonitz System, named after the Spanish genealogist Hieronymus/Jerome de Sosa, who first used it in 1676, and after the German genealogist Stephan Kekulé von Stradonitz [1863-1933], who popularized it in his 1896 Ahnentafel Atlas.

In an Ahnentafel numbering system, the base person is assigned the number one. The father of each person is assigned a number equal to double the child’s number. The mother of each person is assigned a number equal to double the child’s number plus one. As a result, the number of any child is one-half that of their parent, ignoring any remainder. For the first four generations, the numbers assigned a given person and their ancestors reflect the following relationships:

1. person

2. father

3. mother

4. paternal grandfather

5. paternal grandmother

6. maternal grandfather

7. maternal grandmother

8. great-grandfather

9. great-grandmother

10. great-grandfather

11. great-grandmother

12. great-grandfather

13. great-grandmother

14. great-grandfather

15. great-grandmother

Translating this to a real person, here is an excerpt from the Ahnentafel of one well-known American, complete with Ahnentafel numbers:

1. George Walker Bush, b. New Haven, Conn., 6 July 1946, m. 5 Nov. 1977, Laura Lane Welch

2. George Herbert Walker Bush, b. Milton, Mass., 12 June 1924, m. Rye, N.Y., 6 Jan. 1945

3. Barbara Pierce

4. Prescott Sheldon Bush, b. Columbus, Ohio, 15 May 1895, m. Kennebunkport, Maine, 6 Aug. 1921, d. New York, N.Y., 8 Oct. 1972

5. Dorothy Walker, b. near Walker's Point, York Co., Me., 1 July 1901, d. Greenwich, Conn., 19 Nov. 1992

6. Marvin Pierce, b. Sharpsville, Pa., 17 June 1893, m. Aug. 1918, d. Rye, N.Y., 17 July 1969

7. Pauline Robinson, b. Ohio, April 1896, d. Rye, N.Y., 23 Sept. 1949

8. Samuel Prescott Bush, b. Brick Church, N.J., 4 Oct. 1863, m. Columbus, Ohio, 20 June 1894, d. Columbus, Ohio, 8 Feb. 1948

9. Flora Sheldon, b. Franklin Co., Ohio, 17 Mar. 1872, d. "Watch Hill", R.I., 4 Sept. 1920

10. George Herbert Walker, b. St. Louis, Mo., 11 June 1875, m. St. Louis, Mo., 17 Jan. 1899, d. New York, N.Y., 24 June 1953

11. Lucretia [Loulie] Wear, b. St. Louis, Mo., 17 Sept. 1874, d. Biddeford, Me., 28 Aug. 1961

12. Scott Pierce, b. Sparkville, Pa., 18 Jan. [or June?] 1866, m. 26 Nov. 1891

13. Mabel Marvin, b. Cincinnati, Ohio, 4 June 1869

14. James Edgar Robinson, b. near Marysville, Oh., 15 Aug. 1868, m. Marion Co., Ohio, 31 March 1895, d. 1931

15. Lula Dell Flickinger, b. Byhalia, Ohio, March 1875

The primary disadvantage of Ahnentafel numbers is that the size of each number when going back many generations becomes quite large. Someone with a documented line of descent from Charlemagne may be using Ahnentafel numbers in the billions.

Ahnentafel numbers are the only commonly-used numbers for ancestor lists. However, several systems exist for numbering descendants in a list.

Ah yes, the good old' days. Life was simpler back then... and smellier. Of course, that was before the days of sanitation laws, underarm deodorants, breath mints, and other modern marvels.

A.J. Jacobs has written an article that reminds us that perhaps the good ol' days perhaps were not quite as good as some of us may have imagined:

"It is my contention that the past stunk—both metaphorically and literally. It’s true: The past was a putrid place. The nostrils of our ancestors were constantly assaulted by unimaginable odors. It was like living your entire life in the men’s room at New York City’s Penn Station. Here are six reasons that you should be happy you and your nose live in modern times."

To read his article, hold your nose and then go to https://www.mentalfloss.com/posts/how-the-past-was-stinky.

As part of a $17,980 grant from the R. J. Taylor, Jr. Foundation, the Digital Library of Georgia has digitized over 77,000 pages of Georgia newspaper titles in partnership with the Atlanta History Center. 

The newly-released collection includes rare nineteenth-century titles from north Georgia and previously unavailable titles from larger cities across the state. 

The project creates full-text searchable versions of the newspapers. It presents them online for free in its Georgia Historic Newspapers database at https://gahistoricnewspapers.galileo.usg.edu/.

Users will be able to search the database for geographic, corporate, family, and personal names.

Henry Louis Gates Jr., the renowned historian, author, teacher, and genealogist met with the three survivors of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre last week and pledged to trace their family trees on his popular PBS show, Finding Your Roots.

According to the Oklahoma Eagle, Gates’ meeting with Viola Ford Fletcher, 107, Hughes Van Ellis, 101, and Lessie Benningfield Randle, 107 came during a visit in Tulsa on April 8.

Gates would visit other landmarks in the city and offered insights into his impactful work in genealogy. He also stressed the importance of tracing one’s roots.

Henry Louis Gates, Jr. comes with instant credibility.

Gates, a top American intellectual, is a professor of African American Studies and director of the Hutchins Center for African & African American Research at Harvard University, author of 21 books, recipient of 50 honorary degrees, and creator of over 15 documentary films.

You can read more in an article written by Ezekiel J. Walker and published in the Black Wall Street Times web site at: https://theblackwallsttimes.com/2022/04/19/henry-louis-gates-jr-to-trace-family-lineage-of-tulsa-massacre-survivors/.