Genealogy and Genetics - Tuesday, April 6 (7:30 p.m.)

The Durham Region Branch Meeting,  Tuesday, April 6 (7:30 p.m.)

Genealogy and Genetics presented by Ken Ackles

A y-DNA Surname Study Produces Some Completely Unexpected Results. 
Introduction to genetics, y-DNA and Mitochondrial DNA, Why y-DNA is important for genealogy, What is DNA?, Short Tandem Repeats (STRs), Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP), and The Ackles Surname Project, The big surprise, Ancient origins, Suggested reading.

Special location - NOT at Library - CLICK HERE 
Visit our web site CLICK HERE

New SIG for Durham Region Branch OGS - Writing Our Family Histories

Durham Region Branch OGS welcomes a new SIG (Special Interest Group) for members of the Branch who wish to meet informally and share their writing about their family histories and family stories.  The purposes for sharing are to give themselves a regular deadline for writing, and a sympathetic audience who can offer support and encouragement.  Probably there will a variety of writing styles and goals which members can share, adopt and adapt from each other.  It's inaugural meeting is APRIL 14, 2010 at our office at 7p.m. 

Happy St.Patrick's Day

From Lynne Heale at Quinte Branch:

The Famine Relief Commission Papers, 1845-1847 have been digitized in partnership with the National Archives of Ireland (NAI) and Library and Archives Canada (LAC) and are available free at ancestry.ca. Additional Irish content can be found at ancestry.ca/irish.

Take a minute or two to remember our Irish ancestors who survived the Irish Potato Famine and came to Canada. The above papers give you graphic descriptions of the devastation caused by the famine.

Free Access to Footnote.com

From "The Genealogy Insider" Web Log:

Historical records subscription site Footnote is making its US census records free for a limited time.

Footnote spokesperson Justin Schroepfer says there’s not yet a firm ending date, but the records will be free at least through the end of this month. You’ll need to register as a free member to view the records.

Footnote is carrying out plans to host the complete US census back to 1790. Here are the census records on the site so far:

• the complete 1860 census
• 5 percent of 1900
• 3 percent of 1910
• 3 percent of 1920
• 98 percent of 1930

When you find a relative’s record, click the “I’m Related” button for a name on the document to identify yourself as a relative and see others who’ve done the same. You also can see others’ photos, stories and comments related to the record.

Addendum: It may appear as though you need to enter a credit card, but Guy reports that he did get a welcome e-mail even though he did not enter a credit card.

Semaine de généalogie/Genealogy Week, 11-16 July 2010

It is sponsored by Ottawa Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society and la Société de généalogie de l'Outaouais.  The event is modeled after the Toronto Branch OGS' successful Genealogy Summer Camp.

The intent of this program is to bring out-of-town genealogists to Ottawa and Gatineau for a week of tutorials and hands-on research at the many archives and repositories in the area. The group is kept small to allow lots of help from our local members.  Registrants fill out an application form which we then review and determine the logical research facilities.

Registrants arrive on Sunday July 11 and we start with a Meet & Greet, with registrants, volunteers and staff from the various research venues. From Monday to Friday, the registrants will be escorted by a  volunteer to a research facility. The day starts with a lecture on the facility or a research topic, preferably by the staff but, if not, by a qualified volunteer.

The exact schedule will be determined by the needs of the registrants but our tentative plan would be to start at LAC/CGC on Monday morning. The lecture should run about an hour, after which the registrants would be free to research on their own. There may be volunteers available to help them, depending on the expertise that we can get.

At 4pm, a volunteer would be available to escort the registrants back to their residence (travel probably by bus with us supplying the bus tickets) but they could remain to research on their own.

The rest of the week depends on the individual requirements of the registrants but we have included BAnQ, City of Ottawa Archives (including the UC Archives), and the Anglican Archives or back to an earlier location.

See the Genealogy Week Venues web page for MORE DETAILS and a list of research facilities that may be visited.

http://ogsottawa.on.ca/?page_id=829

The groups would likely be fairly small. We finish on Friday evening with a dinner.

The fee for Semaine de généalogie/Genealogy Week is $210 CDN per person. This includes lectures and tutorials, supervised research, all worksheets and handouts and public transportation to the venues. It does NOT include the cost of accommodation or meals, other than the Sunday Meet & Greet.