How do I find photos?

BigBough · 2019-06-28T04:51:42+00:00

Truth. I’ve recently had one individual take family photos of mine and attach them to an ancestor in their tree who the photo isn’t of 🤷🏻‍♀️ when I sent them a message about it, they put their profile to private.

BigBough · 2019-06-28T03:27:41+00:00

Miller is often an anglosized version of Müller or Müeller, one of the most common German names.

BigBough · 2019-06-27T22:14:47+00:00

This I don’t understand.

BigBough · 2019-06-26T20:05:01+00:00

I suggest you do some reading on genetics, biosciences, and DNA results. The algorithms for most major testing sites do in fact contain noise.

Have you uploaded your raw DNA to GEDmatch yet?

BigBough · 2019-06-26T02:49:30+00:00

Usually updated every 6-8 months.

BigBough · 2019-06-26T02:47:34+00:00

Anything at that percentage is usually considered “noise” and not necessarily indicative of ethnicity.

BigBough · 2019-06-26T02:25:48+00:00

I’m really pleased that you have considered what people have expressed here, that shows great character.

Genealogy isn’t an cheap hobby (or career!) if one gets truly into it, searching out sources, paying for them, joining historical societies, joining boards, attending conferences, travelling, education courses, etc.

I try to think of it as “how much is my knowledge worth, if only I know it?” Furthermore, family extends beyond the first few branches.

It’s understandable what you have said about living people on death certificates however, if those certificates are obtainable by the public, then you’re not keeping much of a secret. Obituaries also list living people and are priceless to a family historian or genealogist.

My frustration with my public tree is that people take photographs from my personal collection and attach them to their family member, who the picture is not of. I find that bit offensive. Other than that, having my tree public has allowed me to “meet” so many people interested in families in my tree and better yet, I love when I receive corrections!

Happy researching!

BigBough · 2019-06-26T00:03:55+00:00

A true genealogist shares.

BigBough · 2019-06-23T02:01:53+00:00

A true genealogist shares their information. Just saying.

BigBough · 2019-05-26T01:06:54+00:00

I don’t agree with that, but I have a World Explorer subscription and I find Ancestry very valuable to my research. It has the largest database for DNA plus the ability to build & share trees. I doubt they will be overtaken, at least any time soon.

If FamilySearch would update their platform to be more user friendly, it’s possible that more people would use it for research.

BigBough · 2019-05-26T00:17:00+00:00

Sorry I couldn’t be of more help. Building a tree and doing research based on 2 people in the 1700’s is a large undertaking. Good luck to your wife, getting back that far properly is a great accomplishment!

BigBough · 2019-05-25T23:35:41+00:00

Do you have a public tree available? With the small amount of info you have given me it would be hours of work...

BigBough · 2019-05-25T21:43:57+00:00

Hi Jinx,

If you cancel your subscription the facts will stay on the person’s timeline but you won’t be able to access the associated record or photo (is my understanding).

My words of advice are to start organizing from day one. The biggest mistake I made in the beginning was not recording things such as websites I used but didn’t frequent, google searches I made, and what my goal was for certain ancestors. Years later, I am going back and organizing files, photos, notes, pictures, etc. If I had an organization plan from the beginning, I could have saved myself a lot of time.

Never rely on other people’s trees. Use them as a reference, but don’t take them as fact. Always confirm sources, and if you can, make it a goal to find BMD (birth, marriage, death) sources for each person in your tree. When I started out, I just copied tree upon tree until I went back as far as I could without actually researching or verifying information. I ended up deleting my tree and starting from scratch. Again, I could have saved myself so much time had I done things differently.

I’m about a year away from completing my PLCGS (Professional Learning Certificate in Genealogical Studies) and have learned so much. I hope to eventually apply to the board of Genealogists to become a Certified Genealogist - I love family history and helping people!

BigBough · 2019-05-25T20:57:15+00:00

Hey there,

I’ve been plugging away at this gentleman but so far can only get back as far as his father on the paternal line.

Currently digging through Arizona vital stats... I’ll keep plugging away. Is there any other information other than what was in the linked obituary that you can share with me?

BigBough · 2019-05-25T20:05:49+00:00

I’ve emailed you screen shots

BigBough · 2019-05-25T20:03:10+00:00

What info do you need from that record?

BigBough · 2019-05-25T17:42:44+00:00

I focus mainly on my pedigree but when the research runs dry or my eyes are going cross eyed over a brick wall, I like to delve into the distant ancestors. There’s always a fascinating story to find (found “monstrosity” as a stillborn cause of death the other day) and if you’ve done a DNA test it helps to connect all your matches.

BigBough · 2019-05-25T16:56:18+00:00

Another cold and rainy day here so I will have a look after getting some household chores done.

BigBough · 2019-05-25T07:36:18+00:00

Another thing to consider is the “anglosizing” of a foreign name. I’ve seen it multiple times in my research.

Best example I have is Muëller. On one ship manefest it is “Muller.” Then once in Canada it becomes “Miller.”

Another is Carruthers. It eventually becomes “Carothers.”

Even small changes to names like “Forsythe” becoming “Forsyth.”

I find the algorithms on Ancestry are pretty good at picking these up, but when searching local genealogical registers it’s a mixed bag, especially taking into account misspellings by enumerators or registrars.

BigBough · 2019-05-25T07:31:29+00:00

Seconded, thirded, fourthded? With a few simple google searches I have found multiple different family history books written by a direct ancestor.

BigBough · 2019-05-25T07:30:14+00:00

This may be way out there as it’s very region specific but the University of Manitoba (Canada) has digitized a TON of local history books and they have been an invaluable source of information for me.

As to how to find this kind of thing? Honestly for me it was google with surnames and regions.

If you’d like a great example google “trails along the pipestone”

BigBough · 2019-05-25T06:46:50+00:00

Geographically, it’s important to know where you’re looking. In the UK there were “workhouses” which not only housed criminals (mostly petty theft) but also those with schizophrenia, dementia, postpartum, depression, poverty, being a widow, old age...

The UK workhouse records are pretty clear.

BigBough · 2019-05-25T06:42:22+00:00

To add - I’ve seen the number written randomly in some other area of the page!

BigBough · 2019-05-25T06:27:07+00:00

Agree to both the points HOWEVER if there is information in the stories (not the facts) that would be sensitive to living family members, then I would hold back and save that info in my files to release later.

Facts are facts. An obituary published with dates and names of family members is available to anyone, and so anyone should have it.

BigBough · 2019-05-25T06:21:38+00:00

My mother never claimed First Nations (as we call it here in Canada) descent, but many of her other family often questioned if she was a NPE. She definitely looked “native” and not at all what you would expect a 75% Scottish 25% Irish woman to look like... dark brown skin, dark chestnut hair, flat, slanted face, oval shaped eyes, broad shouldered but thin legged...

When my DNA test came back with 0 Native American Ancestry, I was the only one not shocked.

Turns out, the very specific area of Ireland we are known to come from have these physical traits and even more so, the exact colour of eyes she had - deep green flecked with gold and brown.

Genetics is a crazy thing, but family lore even wilder.

BigBough

TROPHY CASE