Matrayback at 19:33, 7 April 2010

Matrayback — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 19:33:05 GMT

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	The [http://www.gravestonestudies.org Association for Gravestone Studies] sells software created for recording gravestone information. There are additional programs, created by companies and individuals, to help you create time lines, plan family reunions, organize photographs, generate alternate spellings for names, and much more.		The [http://www.gravestonestudies.org Association for Gravestone Studies] sells software created for recording gravestone information. There are additional programs, created by companies and individuals, to help you create time lines, plan family reunions, organize photographs, generate alternate spellings for names, and much more.
		+
		+	=Related Software and Online Products=
		+
		+	Software programs created for purposes other than family history can also be useful. In addition to tasks such as writing letters of correspondence and histories, word processors can also be used to create your own chronology and have the advantage that they allow for the flexibility needed to include as much or as little information needed.
		+
		+	'''Step 1''':
		+	Gather all the records available for a specific family group or individual ancestor and assemble them by date.
		+
		+	'''Step 2''':
		+	Create an entry for each record, including pertinent information from the record and the source description. (Abstracts, extracts, or in some cases, transcriptions of the record can also be included if desired.)
		+
		+	Some typical record entries might look like these:
		+
		+	:17 March 1850
		+	:Catherine Kelly’s death
		+	:TOBIN, Catharine; d Mar 17, 1850; bur Mar 19; age 26;
		+	:d of consumption; res: 44 N. Water St.
		+	:(Website: Known burials at St. Patrick’s Cemetery, Rochester, NY, by Richard T. Halsey, August 2001.)
		+
		+	:3 June 1880
		+	:1880 US Census, Brooklyn, Kings Co., NY
		+	:Kelly, Elizabeth, White, Female, 54, boarder
		+	:(Hotel Branting, Madison Ave/58th St.), Single, NY, IRE, IRE
		+	:(Source Information: NARA film T9-895, E.D. 584, Page 31, SD 1, 466C. At Ancestry.com: Image 31 of 33. Copy of image at C:\Genealogy\Kelly\Elizabeth\1880 Census.jpeg)
		+
		+	:1 April 1883
		+	:Kelly, Elizabeth died
		+	:(Death notice, and death ctf.)
		+	:[Transcriptions edited]
		+
		+	:Also, from The Sisters of Charity of New York, 1809–1959, Vol. III by Sister Marie de Lourdes Walsh (New York City: Fordham University Press) Chapter 11, pages 225–226:
		+	:“. . . Meanwhile the home had been incorporated in 1870 under the legal title of St. Joseph’s Home for the Aged, with the following Board of Managers:
		+	:Mother Mary Jerome Ely
		+	:Sister Mary Regina Lawless
		+	:Sister Ann Borromeo Obermeyer
		+	:Sister Mary Francis Wallace
		+	:Sister Maria Dodge
		+	:Sister Francis Borgia Taylor
		+	:Miss Elizabeth Kelly
		+	:Mrs. Daniel Devlin
		+	:. . . Miss Kelly continued on the Board until her death in 1883 . . .”)
		+
		+	:1888–1890
		+	:Brooklyn Directory listing
		+	:James Kelly, 155 Huntington, Brooklyn, NY, 1889–1890 (Lain’s Directory —Ancestry.com database)
		+
		+	'''Step 3''':
		+
		+	Go back through the records and analyze them, looking for more dates that can be filled in. Some examples include the following:
		+
		+	:1814–1815
		+	:Kelly, James—born
		+	:(Estimated from 1880 U.S. Census data)
		+
		+	:6 Jun 1819
		+	:Kelly, Jane—born
		+	:(Death ctf. 10 January 1882 she was 62 years, 7 months, 4 days)
		+
		+	:ca. 1821
		+	:Kelly family immigrates from Ireland
		+	:(Estimated from birth dates and places of James and Catherine found on U.S. Census entries for James and Catherine’s daughter Ann Eliza. Also from James Kelly death certificate in 1896—been in country for 75 years = 1821.)
		+
		+	:1821 or before
		+	:Kelly, Mary A.—born
		+	:(1880 Census—daughter Kate’s enumeration lists mother born Ireland)
		+
		+	:ca. 1823–24
		+	:Kelly, Catherine—born
		+	:(Estimated from data on Known burials at St. Patrick’s Cemetery, Rochester, NY—See 1850)
		+
		+	:1866
		+	:James Kelly moves to Brooklyn (per death ctf. in 1896—living in city 30 years)
		+
		+	Formatting, sizing, and color-coding can help to make dates stand out, sources easy to pick out, and delineation between individuals simple. It is helpful to also include sources. As entries are added, there may be conflicting information. Having the sources included makes it easier to find where these problems arise, and thus weigh the evidence. In addition, knowing what records have already been found is helpful in planning future research.
		+
		+	To keep the chronology current, make a habit of updating the time line whenever new data is added to your genealogical software program.
		+
		+	==Relational Databases and Spreadsheets==
		+
		+	Spreadsheets and databases can also be helpful tools for family historians trying to sort out the records of their ancestors, particularly when tracking families over the years through censuses and directories. They are best used in records with consistent formatting; where information can be entered and sorted by consistent fields.
		+
		+	Database search results presented in tabular format can be copied or imported into a spreadsheet and can be customized for further sorting. For example, if you were searching for a common surname in a large city, using various records that include addresses it would be possible to sort throughout by name, address, and year to note patterns and movement.
		+
		+	Relational databases can contain several sets of records, called tables, which can be linked together through common fields. For example, you could catalog all your books, photographs, documents, heirlooms, and so forth, with each catalog in a separate table, but with each entry noting the ancestor or family to which it pertains. This data could then be sorted and you can create reports of all the items you have collected for a particular person or family. Microsoft Access is a commonly used program and there are reference books like Microsoft Office Access 2003 for Dummies that can help you learn to use the program.1
		+
		+	Other uses include making charts that calculate ages throughout the years, inventories of located records, and research logs.
		+
		+	==Downloadable Forms==
		+
		+	Government agencies and other institutions have found it expeditious to make downloadable records or information request forms available on the Web. Not only does this save these agencies in terms of paper and other associated costs, it benefits researchers as well, in terms of saving time and sometimes postage.
		+
		+	There are also a number of websites that offer free utility forms to genealogists. Many commercial sites, like Ancestry.com and Genealogy.com offer free downloadable charts and forms, such as blank pedigree charts and family group sheets, blank census forms for recording information found on U.S. federal censuses, research and correspondence logs, forms for extractions and abstractions, source summaries, and form request letters (some in various languages).
		+
		+	==Computer Organization==
		+
		+	Your family history will eventually creep in to most areas of your computer. You will have word processing files, image files, GEDCOM files, e-mails, lists of favorite websites, and possibly audio and video files. Organizing them for easy retrieval can be a challenge.
		+
		+	Most of the computer files we work with are organized using a series of folders. As the number of files increases, so does the number of folders. If you are not careful, the number of files and folders can get to a point where it is hard to find anything. For this reason, it’s a good idea to come up with a standard filing system that can be used across the board, so it will be easier to locate the materials you need.
		+
		+	As family historians, we tend to file information by name, record type, and/or geographically, or a combination thereof. This tendency can be reflected in an electronic filing scheme similar to the one outlined below and illustrated in the attached image.
		+
		+	:My Family History
		+
		+	*Surnames
		+	**Individual folders for surnames filed alphabetically.
		+	**Folders for each individual and one for information on the family as a whole.
		+	**Documents, photographs, time lines, etc. that reference individuals filed under the appropriate individual or family.
		+	*Ancestral Geographic Locations
		+	**Individual folders for countries, states, and/or counties filed alphabetically.
		+	**Information or documents pertaining to this geographic location, such as where to find vital records, what census records are available, websites of local societies, maps, etc.
		+
		+	==Contact Information==
		+
		+	E-mail clients (computer programs used to read and send e-mail) are constantly expanding their capabilities for use in the business world. Many of these capabilities can be modified to suit the business of family historians.
		+
		+	As connections are made with other family historians sharing surname interests, it can be difficult to keep track of who is researching what surname. Try using the contact list in your e-mail client. For each family history contact, include a list of surname and family interests in the notes section. When a piece of information is found for a particular surname, use the Find or Search function to locate a list of all the contacts that are researching that surname.
		+
		+	Another solution is to set up a mailing distribution lists for each surname. Then when there is information to share or a question to be asked, simply address the message to that distribution list.

	=References=		=References=

Matrayback at 19:19, 7 April 2010

Matrayback — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 19:19:42 GMT

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Matrayback: Created page with 'Category:The Source: A Guidebook to American Genealogy {{Template:Computer series (The Source)}} '''This article originally appeared in "Computers and Technology" by [[Julian…'

Matrayback — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 19:19:14 GMT

Created page with 'Category:The Source: A Guidebook to American Genealogy {{Template:Computer series (The Source)}} '''This article originally appeared in "Computers and Technology" by [[Julian…'

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[[Category:The Source: A Guidebook to American Genealogy]]
{{Template:Computer series (The Source)}}
'''This article originally appeared in "Computers and Technology" by [[Juliana Smith]] in ''[[The Source: A Guidebook to American Genealogy]]'''''

=References=

Coming soon...

=External Links=

Family History Software - Revision history

Matrayback at 19:33, 7 April 2010

Matrayback at 19:19, 7 April 2010

Matrayback: Created page with 'Category:The Source: A Guidebook to American Genealogy {{Template:Computer series (The Source)}} '''This article originally appeared in "Computers and Technology" by [[Julian…'