The following announcement was written by the Society of Genealogists and the Halsted Trust:

A convivial and virtual genealogy weekend hosted by the Society of Genealogists and the Halsted Trust.

Known for fun, fascinating and innovative genealogy conferences in the past, notably the 2018 Secret Lives Conference, the Halsted Trust and Society of Genealogists bring family historians together in an online environment in September 2021

The weekend will include talks by established genealogists and speakers new to the British genealogical community. In addition to breakout rooms for discussions and chat the event will conclude each day with a social zoom hangout where we can share a glass or two of wine or any beverage of choice (sadly BYO in this case).

Our speakers this year will focus on tracing women ancestors and wanderers – so often a challenge in our pedigrees and stories. Concentrating on sources and guidance for research we also have examples of studies that researched the lives of formidable women. We will look at how DNA cracked a seemingly impenetrable and confusing case. We will follow a search for itinerant ancestors across the US, China, India and Europe and the sources used to uncover their tangled lives. On the other side of the Pond we can discover the steps of a 17th century migrant from England as part of a transatlantic genealogical collaboration. Finally, we will establish how religious changes in the 16th century cause genealogical challenges for researchers lucky enough to take their family history that far.

You can read all the details, including a detailed list of all the sessions planned in this virtual genealogy conference on 4-5 September 2021, at: https://bit.ly/2SCvGRy.

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

I have written often about the advantages of storing some of your backups off-site in "the cloud." Computer experts will tell you that everyone needs to make backups, and at least one copy of each backup needs to be stored "off site" where it is safe from local disasters such as house fires, burst water pipes, and similar in-home disasters. Storing some of your backups on BackBlaze, Carbonite, Dropbox, Amazon S3, SugarSync, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud, or other backup services is a great idea. However, most of these services provide only a limited amount of free storage space in their cloud (typically 2 to 5 gigabytes) and then charge you if you need more space. If you have a lot of data to back up, the charges can add up quickly. There is a cheaper method of accomplishing the same thing: you create your own off-site backup servers. Luckily, this is easy to do and, with a few pointers, is rather inexpensive. This article will supply those pointers.

Another advantage of this type of backup is that it lets you access your backed up files from anywhere you have an Internet connection. If you need a file from home, you can connect to the Internet from the office, from a hotel room, or from most any public library and retrieve whatever you need from your own server. You can even retrieve files by using an iPhone or an Android smartphone. Likewise, you can also save newly-created files from your laptop to your server in the cloud so that those files are available in the future from anyplace you can access the Internet. If you own multiple computers, you can back up all of them.

Actually, there are several methods of creating your own server(s) in the cloud. Today, I will focus on one method that is simple to accomplish at low expense by anyone with modest technical skills. If you already have an old computer sitting in a closet and gathering dust, the price for creating your own cloud-based server with nearly infinite storage space can be surprisingly low although probably not quite free.

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/10700297.

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.

Police in Tampa say a cold-case arrest was possible because the suspect had entered his DNA into a genealogy database, ultimately allowing detectives to match it to a sexual assault from 14 years ago.

According to police, it was back in January of 2007 when an unknown man initially offered to help the drunk woman get home to her University of Tampa dorm after Gasparilla. But the woman says that's where the stranger raped her in the shower, then fled when her roommate returned home.

DNA evidence collected at the time did not turn up any matches, and the case sat unsolved for years. In 2020, the case was revisited to see if genetic genealogy testing could turn up any matches. Detectives found a possible match after a search of the DNA databases on GEDmatch and FamilyTree, two services often used by people looking to research their ancestry. The lab identified Jared T. Vaughn as the suspect.

You can learn more about how the culprit was identified in a YouTube video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBOuo_eHz8Q.

The following announcement was written by Findmypast:

This week’s Findmypast Friday features new court records that are essential for anyone exploring their Irish heritage. This includes over 2.3 million bill books and court registers that are now available to search for the very first time, only at Findmypast.

These latest new additions join the largest collection of Irish family history records available online. Read on to find learn more about what's new this week.

Ireland, Court of Chancery Bill Books 1627-1884

Uncover family disputes and more in this vast collection of court records spanning over 250 years of Irish legal history.

Containing over 1.2 million new records from the National Archives of Ireland, each transcript will reveal the date and locations of proceedings as well as the names of those involved. Images will provide further information on your ancestors and their dealings with the court.

The Court of Chancery was an equity court of Ireland, presided over by the Lord Chancellor of Ireland. It existed until abolition as part of the 1877 reform of the court system and was based in Dublin.

The Lord Chancellor was originally considered to be "keeper of the king's conscience", charged with giving relief in any case where common law courts were unable to provide remedy, though over time it developed into a legal system of its own called 'Equity', that stood parallel to common law.

Ireland, Court of Exchequer Bill Books 1627-1884

Did your ancestor have their day in one of Ireland’s busiest courts? Delve into over a million new transcripts and images to find out.

The Court of Exchequer was one of the senior courts of law in Ireland (one of the four royal courts of justice), and served as a mirror of the equivalent court in England, dealing with matters of equity.

As one of Ireland's most senior courts, it mainly dealt with cases concerning equity. As such, you'll find the records full of land holders, business owners, merchants, professionals and farmers with large estates.

Ireland, Petty Sessions Court Registers

Over 62,000 new court records from Donegal County Archives have been added to this important Irish collection.

Digitised and published online for the first time, these new additions cover the courts of Ballyshannon and Newtowncunningham between 1828 and 1855. Often nicknamed 'the forgotten county', Donegal is underrepresented when it comes to genealogical sources, so this latest release could be key for taking your family tree research further.

The Petty Sessions handled the bulk of lesser legal cases, both criminal and civil. The entire collection now contains over 22 million records, making them an essential resource for those with Irish roots.

Each record includes both a transcript and image of the original document. The information contained varies considerably but most transcripts will provide your ancestors name, address, court dates and whether they were a witness, complainant and defendant. Images often provide a great deal of additional information including details of the offence, verdict and sentencing.

Proceedings were usually covered by the local press so searching Findmypast’s unrivalled collection of Irish newspapers may help you uncover the full story.

Scotland, Dumfries and Galloway Census & Population Lists 1792-1821

Discover Scottish ancestors, their birth years and addresses in these early local census documents from Annan and Balmaclellan.

On Findmypast, you'll also find early Scottish census fragments from Ayrshire, Edinburgh, Midlothian and beyond.

Newspapers

This week’s newspaper update includes three new titles as well as updates to six others. Brand new this week are:

• • Croydon Observer covering 1864-1895 and 1898-1904
  • Gorey Correspondent covering 1864-1866, 1870-1872, 1875-1876, 1879-1880 and 1882-1884
  • Larne Reporter and Northern Counties Advertiser covering 1865-1870, 1875, 1877-1881, 1886-1887, 1890, 1892-1898 and 1901-1902

While additional pages have been added to:

• • Evening Irish Times from 1896-1900
  • Fermanagh Times from 1887, 1889-1890 and 1901-1927
  • Irish Independent from 1956
  • Morning Herald (London) from 1823, 1828, 1840-1844, 1846-1852, 1861-1862 and 1864
  • Torquay Times, and South Devon Advertiser from 1950
  • Wells Journal from 1872

With the summer in full swing, now is a great time to learn about the paths your ancestors traveled. MyHeritage is offering free access to all immigration and travel records from June 24–28, 2021. By learning about their journeys, you’ll get to know your ancestors in a more meaningful way. 

Humans have migrated throughout history, but until the last century or two, traveling was dangerous and costly, only undertaken out of absolute necessity — to escape war, famine, or other unrest, or to earn a living. In the 19th century, as new technology made traveling faster and safer, the upper classes began to travel for leisure, and people who would otherwise have spent their whole lives in the same village where their grandparents were born were starting to leave to pursue better fortunes. Many of us are descended from these brave adventurers.

Where did your ancestors come from? Where did they go?

Now is a great opportunity to find out.

The Immigration & Travel category on MyHeritage encompasses 57 collections with 181,280,020 historical records from all over the world. They include passenger arrival records, naturalization records, border crossings, emigration records, passports, and convict transportation records.

These records are often pivotal for genealogists because discovering details on exactly where your ancestors were from can help you understand where to look for additional records on their childhoods and their families in the old country. In the documents in this collection, you might find details on the journey, such as the name of the ship they sailed on and the city where they sailed from, in addition to personal details — such as names and occupations of the travelers themselves and of their family members.

Normally, most of these records are free to search, but can only be fully accessed by MyHeritage users with a Data or Complete plan. From today until June 28, anyone will be able to access them completely free of charge.

Ready for your own adventure to discover the journeys of your ancestors? Click here to start searching Immigration & Travel records on MyHeritage!

The following announcement was written by Vivid-Pix:

Win a Trip to London, New York City, Cash, & Other Prizes Enter at: https://www.vivid-pix.com/unclegeorge/    What Happened to Great-Uncle George? Missing in Family Tree Savannah, GA, June 24, 2021 – Vivid-Pix, www.vivid-pix.com, the leading provider of AI-powered image restoration software and publisher of Reunions magazine, announced today Vivid-Pix Genealogy Whodunit Mystery Game at: https://www.vivid-pix.com/unclegeorge/. The giveaway combines family history research with patented, photo and document restoration software to learn about genealogy and Vivid-Pix RESTORE software. The game is fun and free to play; and those who successfully complete the challenge will be entered to win great prizes, including a weekend in New York City, London, or $1,000 USD, and photo gifts from Vivid-Pix at: https://www.vivid-pix-prints.com/. The Whodunit Mystery Game will be launched online at THE Genealogy Show in the UK, held virtually this year from June 25-26, 2021.    Genealogy/Family History is one of World’s Most Popular Hobbies   Genealogy/family history is one of the world’s most popular hobbies. During the pandemic, many people used their free time at home to clean out and organize closets, attics, and basements; finding shoeboxes and containers full of old photos and documents. “What folks learned when organizing during quarantine and lockdown, is that many of their treasured old photos and documents have faded – with many unrecognizable and illegible after years of age. Vivid-Pix patented software helps remedy this situation, restoring images and memories from the past,” said Rick Voight, CEO, Vivid-Pix.   Vivid-Pix Whodunit Mystery Game Immerses You in the Genealogy Process   The Vivid-Pix Whodunit Mystery Game immerses you into the genealogy process using restored photos and documents to learn about relatives’ past. The game is all about a fictional long-lost Great-Uncle: George Albert Bellamy, who emigrated from the U.K. to the U.S. in the early 1900’s. By collaborating with distant cousin Peter, you will analyze miniscule details in old photos and documents using the restoration tools in Vivid-Pix to discover hidden clues from Great-Uncle George’s past in the U.K. and his mysterious travels overseas to the U.S. Prepare yourself for a journey through Edwardian Britain and beyond, complete with crime, cryptic postcards, and more! The game is open to international participants by downloading a free copy of Vivid-Pix RESTORE and starting the game at: https://www.vivid-pix.com/unclegeorge/.      Clues: Butcher Shop and Passenger List on the White Star Steamship   Vivid-Pix is a premium sponsor of THE Genealogy Show held online this year from June 25-26, 2021. For more info on The Genealogy Show, see: https://thegenealogyshow.uk/. The Vivid-Pix Whodunit Mystery Game starts immediately at: https://www.vivid-pix.com/unclegeorge/, with a deadline to enter by 12:00 AM midnight, Eastern U.S. time, September 30, 2021. For more information on Vivid-Pix, see the website: https://vivid-pix.com/, for a free trial download at:  https://vivid-pix.com/restore/free-trial.html.   About Vivid-Pix Vivid-Pix is the one-stop solution for family historians, genealogists and hobbyists. Vivid-Pix RESTORE patented artificial intelligence software automatically restores old, faded sepia, black and white, and color photographs and documents and provides image organization, editing, and searchable IPTC and EXIF compliant metadata tagging. The U.S. Patent Office has awarded 2 patents to Vivid-Pix for its image processing techniques used to automatically correct faded images. Vivid-Pix RESTORE is available for Mac and Windows for $49.99 at: https://vivid-pix.com/restore/buy.html, with a no-credit-card-required free trial at: https://vivid-pix.com/restore/free-trial.html. For more information, see the website at: https://vivid-pix.com/.   Vivid-Pix was founded by Rick Voight and Randy Fredlund, who have a combined 47 years of experience from Eastman Kodak Co. They brought Kodak’s “You Press the Button, We Do the Rest” philosophy to the design of Vivid-Pix RESTORE. February 2021, Vivid-Pix acquired Reunions magazine, the leading reunions resource to assist family, class alumni, and military reunion participants relive the past and make new memories. For 30 years, Reunions magazine has provided easy access to ideas, features, planning, and education for reunions and reunion planners alike. For more information on Reunions magazine, see https://reunionsmag.com/. For more info, see the website: https://vivid-pix.com/.

Beyond 2022 is an all-island and international collaborative research project working to create a virtual reconstruction of the Public Record Office of Ireland, which was destroyed in the opening engagement of the Civil War on June 30th, 1922.

The ‘Record Treasury’ at the Public Record Office of Ireland stored seven centuries of Irish records dating back to the time of the Normans. Together with our 5 Core Archival Partners and over 40 other Participating Institutions in Ireland, Britain and the USA, we are working to recover what was lost in that terrible fire one hundred years ago.

On the centenary of the Four Courts blaze next year (30 June 2022), we will launch the Virtual Record Treasury of Ireland online. Many millions of words from destroyed documents will be linked and reassembled from copies, transcripts and other records scattered among the collections of our archival partners. We will bring together this rich array of replacement items within an immersive 3-D reconstruction of the destroyed building.

The Virtual Record Treasury of Ireland will be an open-access resource, freely available online to all those interested in Irish history at home and abroad. Many of the most important memory institutions worldwide are joining us in this shared mission to reconstruct Ireland’s lost history. The Virtual Record Treasury will serve as a living and growing legacy from the Decade of Centenaries.

Collaborations

https://beyond2022.ie/?page_id=2Beyond 2022 is funded by the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht under Project Ireland 2040. We are proud to have inspired a unique collaboration between our Core Partners and a growing list of Participating Institutions in Ireland, the United Kingdom and the United States.

• The National Archives (Ireland)
• The National Archives (UK)
• The Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (Belfast)
• The Irish Manuscripts Commission
• The Library, Trinity College Dublin

You can read more at: https://beyond2022.ie/?page_id=2.

An interesting article by Lizzie O’Leary can be found in the Slate.com web site:

"In April 2018, Sacramento County’s district attorney announced that after more than 40 years, investigators had found the Golden State Killer. And they’d done it by putting his DNA profile on genetic genealogy websites.

"Joseph James DeAngelo was arrested, pleaded guilty, and is serving 26 life sentences. His case marked a seismic shift in how investigators use DNA in cold cases. And yet, lurking in the background were concerns over the lack of regulation regarding police use of genetic genealogy. When cops want to peek inside your family tree, should anything stop them?

"On Friday’s episode of What Next: TBD, I spoke with Nila Bala, a senior attorney at the Policing Project at NYU Law School, about law enforcement and genetic genealogy technology—and what’s being done to regulate it. Our conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity."

The full article my be found at: https://bit.ly/3gRCQKY.

The following announcement was written by AmaWaterways:

CALABASAS, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Luxury river cruise innovator AmaWaterways today announced a new partnership with the global leader in family history and consumer genomics, Ancestry^®. The groundbreaking collaboration provides a unique opportunity for guests to discover details pertaining to their specific family history while enjoying the incomparable river cruise experience that AmaWaterways is known for. With an uptick in consumers embracing heritage travel, the special Ancestry^® Experience  package allows travelers to further personalize and enrich their river cruise experience through pre-cruise private consultation and family history research, onboard presentations and curated excursions accompanied by an expert genealogist throughout the cruise.

“Having grown up along the legendary Elbe River in Germany, I am personally overjoyed by this new collaboration that provides our guests with a unique opportunity to connect with their European roots, through personalized research and specially curated experiences,” said Kristin Karst, executive vice president and co-founder of AmaWaterways. “Maintaining or creating cherished family connections is more important than ever, and this partnership with the industry-leading team at Ancestry^® provides the perfect setting to bring our guests’ treasured family stories to life.”

The first cruise in the series, Heritage on the River: Your Personalized Ancestry® Experience, will depart July 30, 2022, on board the 156-guest AmaStella. Guests will embark in Amsterdam on an unforgettable seven-night river cruise along the Rhine River, visiting Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, France and Switzerland while tracing their roots and following along in their ancestors’ footsteps.

“At its core, Ancestry is a family history company, and we are constantly looking for new ways to help others uncover their own personal stories and to bring deeper meaning to their findings through genealogical research and heritage travel,” said Jon Lambert, director of global client relations for Ancestry. “We found this same passion for creating enriching life-changing experiences with AmaWaterways Co-founders Rudi Schreiner and Kristin Karst. Their European heritage and appreciation of cultural diversity fit perfectly with Ancestry’s mission to empower journeys of self-discovery to change lives.”

This enriching Ancestry experience begins as soon as the river cruise reservation is made with AmaWaterways. Each guest who signs up will be matched with an expert from AncestryProGenealogists^®, Ancestry’s professional research division, who will conduct a one-hour welcome call to discuss aspects of their family that are of particular interest. From there, the genealogist will conduct a five-hour consultation and research phase delving into family background and identifying places of interest that the guest may visit or pass by during their river cruise.

Once on board, an expert genealogist will offer presentations to provide insight into what life was like for guests’ ancestors and highlight the types of records that are available for them to learn more. As guests travel through different regions where their ancestors lived, the genealogist will explain the history behind those areas, providing an unparalleled understanding of the past and a glimpse of their ancestors’ everyday lives.

Rounding out this enriching experience, each guest will also receive a private onboard consultation with the expert genealogist to review their own family tree. They will also have the opportunity to enjoy an Ancestry-specific group excursion with their expert genealogist. In certain cases, travelers can delve even deeper with an optional add-on of an Ancestral Home Visit accompanied by an expert genealogist.

Taking guests into the heart of Europe, the elegantly appointed AmaStella, with her exceptional crew, offers the opportunity for guests to be pampered in spacious staterooms; indulge in delicious cuisine from a choice of dining venues including the intimate Chef’s Table Restaurant; and when not participating in one of the 23 included shore excursion choices, relax on an expansive sun deck, featuring a walking track and swimming pool with a swim-up bar. Active travelers will enjoy the onboard Wellness Program, which includes expertly guided fitness classes, as well as hiking and biking tours.

Reservations for the July 30, 2022, Heritage on the River: Your Personalized Ancestry^® Experience are now open, with prices starting from $5,399*. Reserve any AmaWaterways river cruise through Europe and customize your personalized heritage experience with Ancestry, from a pre-journey consultation with your expert genealogist to an Ancestral Home Visit for an additional fee.

*Per person prices (air and port charges not included). Visit AmaWaterways.com/ancestry for full details.

The following announcement was written by Victoria Macchi and published in the National Archives News:

 Local 1810 census records from Massachusetts, long missing from the collection of census records of the time, are finally in Washington, DC, after a 211-year delay, thanks to a social media post. 

A National Archives employee scrolling through Instagram saw a February post from the Peabody Essex Museum (PEM) Library that connected archives, genealogy, and Black history, using the 1810 Essex County census record book.

Family researchers and history scholars can now view the digitized version through the National Archives Catalog. 

Jack Kabrel, an archives specialist with the Permanent Records Capture team and based at the National Archives at Boston, originally saw the post and reported it.

"The Permanent Records Capture team strives to work across various units to fulfill NARA's mission,” Kabrel said. “The 1810 census recovery was a perfect example of those units communicating and taking action to secure and protect an important part of America's past. This is a moment we can all be proud of."

Suspecting the records might be federal property and belong in the National Archives, the archives specialist flagged the post for supervisors. This set in motion the protocols the agency’s Holdings Protection and Recovery team and General Counsel use to address cases of records that may need to be reclaimed.

Researchers, collectors, or dealers often flag cases of missing federal property. In this and other instances, National Archives staff verify the origin of the records and decide whether they should be in the care of the National Archives.

Two long-time National Archives archivists determined that the marbled indigo notebook used by Assistant Marshal Ebenezer Burrell during the enumeration of Salem, Essex County, Massachusetts, between August 6, 1810, and August 29, 1810, indeed was an official record that belonged in the National Archives.

Gary M. Stern, National Archives General Counsel, alerted the Peabody Essex Museum Library that this ledger, which they obtained between 1810 and the 1940s, would need to be handed over to the federal agency.

“I think the history was that the censuses would accumulate for 20 or 30 years before being sent to Washington. These never made it here,” Stern said. In this case, the Boston-area museum staff “was willing to cooperate right away,” he added.

With facilities shuttered due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Alfie Paul, Director of Archival Operations at National Archives at Boston, drove 30 minutes from his home to the PEM facility in Rowley, MA, to take custody of the records.

You can read the full story at: https://www.archives.gov/news/articles/1810-census-massachusetts.