I haven’t had a chance to check this out myself just yet. However, I received the following announcement and must say it sounds interesting:

Projectkin is different from platforms, media sites, or blogs. It’s an online community dedicated to helping family historians around the world share their stories by engaging younger generations with creative digital and hybrid-digital projects. Projects are tailored to be easy with step-by-step “recipes,” and each is mindful of preserving archives and protecting privacy.

With Projectkin, the focus is on the challenges of modern storytelling without regard to platforms or tools. Education programs demystify technologies and walk members through strategies to use the right tool for each project. Projectkin is not a platform, nor is it supported by sponsors or affiliate programs. 

It’s structured to be a non-profit so that the programming integrity can be sustained. For now, all programs and materials are entirely free. Even after non-profit formation is complete, the bulk of programming will be free even as some premium programs and benefits are reserved for donors.

Since its formation in May this year, Projectkin has grown to include several types of monthly events including, Kathy’s Corner to focus on members’ digitizing workflow, Technology Tutorials, Project Clinic brainstorming events, plus one or more member-led Project Recipe Events. An added interactive community forum creates a shared space for questions and dialog. 

To learn more and join the community, please visit projectkin.org.

Just in time for Halloween: 

TheGenealogist adds to its Court & Criminal records with a new collection of Quarter Session Registers covering a period from 1590 – 1839.

Search these records to find your miscreant ancestors brought before the local court quarter sessions. They even include those accused of practising witchcraft!

Session House, Clerkenwell c.1810

The Quarter Session Records were produced by the local courts that were traditionally held at four set times each year. These courts, presided over by two or more justices of the peace plus a chairman, would sit with a jury at Epiphany (in January), Easter (March/April), Midsummer (June/July) and then at Michaelmas (September/October). 

• Find the names of indicted persons, witnesses, and the Justices of the Peace

• Search records as far back as 1590, in the reign of Elizabeth I

• Discover indictments including Assaults, Riot, Running Unlicensed Alehouses, Not Going to Church on Sunday and even being a witch!

• Unearth Poor Law matters dealt with by the Justices including Bastardy, Compensation for Maimed Soldiers and Removal of people to their parish of settlement

Extract from the Quarter Sessions in Wiltshire, 19th April 1653

Read TheGenealogist’s featured article: Up before the Justices of the Peace –

Quarter Session records reveal everything from licencing ale houses to dealing with Witches

https://www.thegenealogist.co.uk/featuredarticles/2023/up-before-the-justices-of-the-peace-6816/

About TheGenealogist

TheGenealogist is an award-winning online family history website, which puts a wealth of information at the fingertips of family historians. Their approach is to bring hard to use physical records to life online with easy to use interfaces such as their Tithe and newly released Lloyd George Domesday collections. 

TheGenealogist’s innovative SmartSearch technology links records together to help you find your ancestors more easily. TheGenealogist is one of the leading providers of online family history records. Along with the standard Birth, Marriage, Death and Census records, they also have significant collections of Parish and Nonconformist records, PCC Will Records, Irish Records, Military records, Occupations and Newspaper record collections amongst many others.

TheGenealogist uses the latest technology to help you bring your family history to life. Use TheGenealogist to find your ancestors today!

The following announcement was written by Findmypast:

A huge 25 million brand-new electoral records added for Greater Manchester Plus, new additions for London and Berkshire  

Greater Manchester Electoral Registers 1820-1940 

Over 25 million exclusive records have been added to Findmypast this week. This brand-new collection for Greater Manchester, with images and transcriptions to view, covers 1820-1940. They are ideal for tracing anyone in between census years, plus, as they contain full addresses, they are handy for house history too. You’ll typically find an ancestor’s name, home address, township and ward.  

Greater London Burial Index 

There are 396,992 new burial records for Greater London to explore, covering 1558-1901. You’ll normally spot an ancestor’s name, age at death, burial date, occupation, denomination, address and parish.  

Berkshire Baptisms 

Lastly, a further 231,375 baptisms have been added to this existing Berkshire collection. Spanning 1538 to 1923, these records contain names, baptism dates, parents’ names, residences, parishes and counties.  

Newspapers 

Did your ancestors make the news? One new title, updates to a further six, and 93,381 new pages make up this week’s newspaper release.  

New titles: 

·         Middlesex & Surrey Gazette, 1877-1878 

Updated titles: 

·         Belfast News-Letter, 1991 

·         Campbeltown Courier, 1876-1879, 1893-1950 

·         Derry Journal, 1975-1977, 1989 

·         Edinburgh Evening News, 1986-1989, 1991 

·         Lurgan Mail, 1989, 1993 

·         South Wales Daily Post, 1989 

Book bans are not going away anytime soon. One of the ways that several major U.S. libraries have elected to push back is to make many, if not all, of the books being targeted across the country available to as many people as possible. This is, of course, not a solution to the underlying problem, and every library on this list would wholeheartedly agree. These are bandaids. 

But like bandaids, they have value. This is especially true for the people most hurt and impacted by book bans: those under the age of 18 who, through no fault of their own, have lost access to a wide swath of books written with them in mind and for them to connect.

This list is as comprehensive a roundup as possible of all the U.S. public libraries offering access to banned books. It includes the name of the library, the people who are being granted access to the collections, materials within the collections, as well as any other pertinent or relevant information. 

The list will be updated as more libraries engage in this kind of access activism. Note that many of these programs operate under the banner of “Books Unbanned.” Though they will be quite similar because laws regarding libraries differ state by state and because every library collection differs from another, the breadth of access and catalogs differs in each variation of the program. Folks who qualify may apply for cards at each of the Books Unbound programs—you’re not limited to just one.

You can read more in an article by Kelly Jensen published in the bookriot web site at: https://bookriot.com/public-libraries-offering-free-access-to-banned-books/ 

World Digital Preservation Day, held annually on the first Thursday of November, celebrates best practices in archiving and storing digitized and born-digital content. Penn State University Libraries is hosting several virtual and University Park in-person events Thursday, Nov. 2.

A detailed schedule is available online. Events are listed in Eastern Time. Participants are encouraged to register online, especially those interested in bringing a physical item to the afternoon’s self-digitization session for consultation or on-site digitization.

October brings more than just pumpkin spice and costumes; it brings a chance to connect with the spirits of our ancestors and uncover their mysterious stories. 

From October 27 to November 1, 2023, MyHeritage is offering free access to all death, burial, cemetery, and obituary records on the site. With 370 collections and 881,738,760 records, this special Halloween treat is sure to delight. 

Search death, burial, cemetery, and obituary records on MyHeritage

Death records are a great start to your genealogical journey, and essential for family history research. They often include birth and death dates, the names of family members, last known addresses, and sometimes even cause of death. They provide a wealth of information, all in one place. They can then act as springboards for further investigations into other areas of your ancestor’s life. 

Beyond names and dates, death records sometimes provide personal anecdotes or obituaries, adding a touch of humanity to the names we find.

To access this invaluable resource visit myheritage.com/halloween, and start searching. If you are not yet a MyHeritage member, you’ll be asked to register in order to access the records. 

So this Halloween, as we revel in tales of ghosts and ghouls, let’s also take a moment to honor the real stories of our ancestors. Thanks to MyHeritage, rediscovering those tales has never been easier.

Nearly 200 rare documents bearing the names of Black and Native American soldiers who served in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War are now accessible online to everyone at no cost, thanks to a partnership between Philadelphia’s Museum of the American Revolution and Ancestry®, the global leader in family history. 

“I am delighted that Ancestry and the Museum of the American Revolution have partnered to make this unique and important archive available to the public,” said Harvard University Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr., an Emmy Award-winning filmmaker and author. “The founding of our great republic was truly a multicultural event, but that aspect hasn’t always been taught. This partnership is an important step toward uncovering and sharing stories of the diverse people who played essential roles in creating this nation, including some 5,000 Black men who served the new nation heroically.” 

The Patriots of Color Archive was acquired by the Museum in 2022 from a private collector, following the generous contributions of several donors. The collection of original muster rolls, pay vouchers, enlistment papers, discharge forms, and other documents was assembled from auctions, rare manuscript dealers, and other collectors over the past two decades. 

As part of their commitment to preserving history that is at risk of being forgotten, Ancestry has digitized the collection and made it available online at no cost. Now, everyone has the opportunity to explore the lives of hundreds of veterans of color and better understand their often-complex relationship to the American Revolution by visiting Ancestry.com/AmericanRevolutionBlackandIndigenousSoldiers. 

"So often the story of the American Revolution is told from a vantage point that excludes the many people whose bravery and sacrifice helped to make it happen,” said Ancestry family historian Nicka Sewell-Smith, who specializes in African American genealogy. “From the Indigenous to free people of color and from the enslaved to women and children, our patriots made up the kaleidoscope that is reflected in their living descendants today." 

“At least 5,000 men of color fought in the Continental Army, but their stories aren’t as known as they should be,” said Dr. R. Scott Stephenson, Museum President and CEO. “The free online availability of the archive allows everyone to explore the extraordinary lives of these men who helped to secure independence, yet who have not received the recognition they deserve as American Founders. We are grateful to partner with Ancestry to share these rich human stories with the world.” 

Several documents from the Patriots of Color Archive are currently on display in the Museum’s groundbreaking special exhibition Black Founders: The Forten Family of Philadelphia, which closes Nov. 26, 2023. The exhibit explores the life and legacy of free Black Philadelphian James Forten and his family’s tireless pursuit of liberty and equality for all, from the Revolutionary era through the Civil War and Reconstruction. 

Within the collection – alongside discharge paperwork signed by General George Washington for an African American soldier – there is documentation of some of the underrepresented soldiers of Indigenous and African heritage who served in the American Revolution. These documents tell important stories, like that of Jabez Pottage, a member of the Nipmuc nation who enlisted in the army in 1775 and served for seven years. After his capture by the British, he was exchanged after four months in captivity. Another story brought to light is that of Jonas Sunsaman, a member of the Pequot nation who enlisted in the Connecticut 4th Regiment in 1777 and died on January 31, 1778, at Valley Forge. 

View the collection at: Ancestry.com/AmericanRevolutionBlackandIndigenousSoldiers.

The following announcement was written by the University of Strathclyde: 

Two leading branches of the Clan Campbell have been found to be unrelated to each other in research carried out by Alasdair Macdonald and Graham Holton at CLL’s Strathclyde Institute for Genealogical Studies (SIGS). 

The genealogists at the Institute have identified the genetic profile of the Campbells of Glenorchy, a family descended from Sir Duncan Campbell, 2nd Lord of Glenorchy, who died at the Battle of Flodden in 1513.

The research used DNA evidence to conclude that the family dates back to the 13th century and is a separate line to the Campbells of Argyll, whose descent is from the first Lord Campbell, also Sir Duncan Campbell, who died in 1453.

The Campbells have one of the largest number of cadet families, descended from the sons of clan chiefs, of any clan in Scotland.

The study is ongoing, and is likely to take some time to develop solid conclusions on the earlier history of the Glenorchy lineage, but the researchers have proposed several possibilities.

You can read the full story on our website.

Anyone who may be able to assist the research project by having a documented descent, or by commenting on the current findings, is invited to contact Graham Holton or Alasdair Macdonald by emailing cll-sigs@strath.ac.uk

This article is not about any of the "normal" topics of this newsletter: genealogy, history, current affairs, DNA, and related topics. However, it discusses the future use of “how to use the Internet” so I will suggest everyone who uses the Internet should be aware of this information.

Google, Microsoft and others boast that generative artificial intelligence tools like ChatGPT will make searching the internet better than ever for users. For example, rather than having to wade through a sea of URLs, users will be able to just get an answer combed from the entire internet. 

There are also some concerns with the rise of AI-fueled search engines, such as the opacity over where information comes from, the potential for “hallucinated” answers and copyright issues.

But one other consequence is that I believe it may destroy the US$68 billion search engine optimization industry that companies like Google helped create. 

For the past 25 years or so, websites, news outlets, blogs and many others with a URL that wanted to get attention have used search engine optimization, or SEO, to “convince” search engines to share their content as high as possible in the results they provide to readers. This has helped drive traffic to their sites and has also spawned an industry of consultants and marketers who advise on how best to do that.

As an associate professor of information and operations management, I study the economics of e-commerce. I believe the growing use of generative AI will likely make all of that obsolete. 

How online search works

Someone seeking information online opens her browser, goes to a search engine and types in the relevant keywords. The search engine displays the results, and the user browses through the links displayed in the result listings until she finds the relevant information. 

To attract the user’s attentions, online content providers use various search engine marketing strategies, such as search engine optimization, paid placements and banner displays. 

For instance, a news website might hire a consultant to help it highlight key words in headlines and in metadata so that Google and Bing elevate its content when a user searches for the latest information on a flood or political crisis.

How generative AI changes search process

You can read the full article at: https://tinyurl.com/2vb7v4d3https://tinyurl.com/2vb7v4d3

The Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society (AAHGS) is excited to announce their 2023 National Awardees.

This year the awardees are as follows; Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. (James Dent Walker Award), Clevlyn Bankhead-Anderson (Paul Edward Sluby, Sr/Jean Sampson-Scott Meritorious Achievement Award), Stephen E. Hammond (Paul Edward Sluby, Sr/Jean Sampson-Scott Meritorious Achievement Award), Carol Austin (On-The-Spot Award), Mary Crosby (On-The-Spot Award), Taneya Koonce (On-The-Spot Award), Metro Atlanta Chapter (Chapter of the Year Award), Jacqueline Mary Tillman-Lewis (Certificate of Appreciation), Judy Rose Weaver (Certificate of Appreciation) and Chapters Committee (Certificate of Appreciation).

As the recipient of the James Dent Walker Award, Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr., is now a Life Member of AAHGS. Stephen E. Hammond, Carol Austin, Mary Crosby, Taneya Koonce, Jacqueline Mary Tillman-Lewis and Judy Rose Weaver are all current AAHGS members.

The James Dent Walker Award is the highest award that can be bestowed by AAHGS upon a person who has exhibited distinguished accomplishments through a significant and measurable contribution to the research, documentation, and/or preservation of African American history.

The Paul Edward Sluby, Sr./Jean Sampson-Scott Meritorious Achievement Awards is the second highest award that can be bestowed by AAHGS upon an organization(s) or person(s) who has exhibited distinguished performance through a significant and measurable contribution to African American history and/or genealogy within the past two years.

The On-The-Spot Award is presented to a Chapter member for a recent, specific, measurable accomplishment that impacts or contributes to AAHGS's mission and goals.

This Chapter of the Year Award is bestowed on an AAHGS chapter that has made outstanding contributions to the AAHGS mission to preserve African American history and genealogy through sponsorship of quality chapter programs, activities, and services over the past year.

The Certificate of Appreciation is presented to an individual or team who has contributed to AAHGS or its principles and deserves a token of thanks. The Certificate will result from an act(s) performed within two years of its presentation.

Congratulations to this year’s awardees.

About AAHGS

The Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society, Inc. is a non-profit membership organization that strives to preserve African ancestral family history, genealogy, and cultural diversity by teaching research techniques and disseminating information throughout the community. Our primary goals are to promote scholarly research, provide resources for historical and genealogical studies, create a network of persons with similar interests, and assist members in documenting their histories.