FamilySearch Completes Microfilm Digitization

Today FamilySearch International announced the completion of a massive project to digitize its collection of millions of rolls of microfilm containing billions of family history records from around the world. The archive containing information on more than 11.5 billion individuals is now freely available to the public on FamilySearch.org.

"We hope that all those who contributed to this milestone in the last 80 years feel a sense of humble accomplishment today,” said Steve Rockwood, the CEO of FamilySearch International. “And we hope the millions of individuals who will discover, gather, and connect generation upon generation of their family members for years to come because of these efforts will have a deep sense of gratitude for the many unheralded contributors who made those discoveries possible."

“It's a game-changer for everybody in the world. So, instead of having to come to the library, people can start accessing these records from home,” said Becky Adamson, a research consultant at the FamilySearch Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Over 200 countries and principalities and more than 100 languages are represented in the digitized documents. Completion of the project makes it much easier for individuals to make more personal and family discoveries.

To explore FamilySearch’s free collections of indexed records and images, go to FamilySearch.org and search both “Records” and “Images”. The Images feature enables users to peruse digitized images from the microfilm collection and more. A free FamilySearch account will be required to access the service.

So take a look at the new information available on this wonderful free database and see what it can add to your family history research.

Ancestry Updates DNA Results

Ancestry has just updated their ethnicity estimates for those who have done a DNA test with them, and like me there are many who are logging in to see what changes have occurred.

For most, there will be few surprises and no really major changes.  These adjustments take into account all the recent data added to the DNA database held by Ancestry, and uses them to (hopefully) give slightly more accurate ethnicity estimates for those who have tested their DNA.  For many who have been researching their family history for a while, their ethnicity estimates will be a rough reflection of what they already know about their ancestry.

The key is to remember that these numbers are estimates only.  DNA ethnicity is by no means an exact science.  These estimates are pretty good at the continental level, distinguishing between Europe, Asia and Africa, for example, in their estimates. Once they get below the continental level, to a regional or country level, all of them start to run into issues: country boundaries have changed; entire populations have moved; people from one area have invaded and intermarried with people from another.  All this makes accurate ethnicity estimates a challenge.

For me, once again my ethnicity estimates have changed slightly,  and, once again, they seem to have shifted a little further away from what I would expect.  My Germanic heritage has now disappeared completely.  I seem to have swapped it for a totally unexpected 9% Norwegian heritage - to date I have exactly 0 Norwegian ancestors in my tree.  At the same time, 33% Scottish seems rather high for the one great great grandparent who is the basis of the only Scottish line in my ancestry, while my Irish great grandparent only shows 2%.  My English ancestry was always high, as my father's entire family comes from Essex and Suffolk for generations back, and my mother's family has significant English heritage as well, so I would probable expect a higher number than the 54% I have now.

Ultimately, we need to remember that these numbers are estimates only, and can still be quite inaccurate.  More important to most who are actively researching are their cousin matches, people whom the DNA tests show are being related.  That is what I, and many other family history researchers, are truly interested in.

Family Tree UK Magazine

The latest issue of Family Tree UK magazine is now available free online for Campaspe Library members via our subscription to Libby eMagazines.

Inside this month's issue

• What are the stories of your ancestors’ homes?
• NEWS • Rachel Bellerby reports on the latest genealogy news.
• MyHeritage acquire French genealogy company Filae
• US and Canada newspaper removed from FindMyPast
• Oldest Stonehenge family photo discovered in collection of Queen rock legend Dr Brian May
• New online tree design at MyHeritage
• 1.1M English family history records added to FamilySearch
• 3 million Ireland prison records added to FamilySearch
• Israel Genealogy Association reaches 2 million records landmark
• 1M pages of historical British newspaper free to explore online
• 300,000+ individuals added to parish records collection at TheGenealogist
• 4.7 million New Zealand records added to MyHeritage
• Discover the Freedmen’s Bureau record collection
• Four new counties added to Map Explorer at The Genealogist
• New documentary explores the photography of ordinary life
• Redemption Song : the transformative nature if Caribbean genealogy
• A House Through Time : behind the scenes
  
• How to keep your House History organised
• Dear Paul 

WDYTYA Magazine

The latest issue of Who Do You Think You Are magazine is now available free online for Campaspe Library members via our subscription to Libby eMagazines. 

Inside this month's issue 

• Experts' tips The best family history tutors in the UK share their essential advice to help you bust brick walls and grow your family tree
• Family names Harry Parkin, the editor of The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain, explains where your surname comes from
• Helping Germans How Quakers reached out to Britain's persecuted German community during the First World War
• Reader story Richard Nichols reveals how he discovered his long-lost cousins
• Best websites Where to start tracing Welsh ancestry
• Plus: Uncover Merchant Navy ancestors, the lives of governesses, how to create a timeline of your ancestor's life and much more...

 

Who Do You Think You Are UK Series 18

 The 2021 series of Who Do You Think You Are? has been announced – with Series 18 due to start broadcasting on BBC One in October.

Executive producer Colette Flight said: “Who Do You Think You Are? is back with another line-up of Britain’s best-loved celebrities exploring their family histories across the UK, Ireland, Denmark and Jamaica.

“The incredible personal stories they unearth of their ancestors’ lives – from royal love triangles to labourers fighting for their rights, from Victorian child sweeps to battling fascists in London’s East end – reflect and illuminate all our collective history.”

The complete celebrity line-up for Who Do You Think You Are? 2021 includes :

Josh Widdicombe

Comedian Josh Widdicombe is best known for co-hosting Channel 4’s The Last Leg. He won the first series of Taskmaster in 2015.

Dame Judi Dench

Dame Judi Dench is one of Britain’s best-loved actresses, with eight decades of acting on stage and screen and accolades including one Oscar win and six nominations.

Alex Scott

Alex Scott is a former professional footballer who played for the England women’s national football team. She is now a football pundit for BBC Sport and Sky Sports.

Joe Lycett

Joe Lycett is a comedian and TV presenter. He’s best known for standing up for consumer rights on Channel 4 show Joe Lycett’s Got Your Back.

Pixie Lott

Singer-songwriter Pixie Lott has released three albums, spawning six Top 10 singles. She was also a contestant on the 2014 series of Strictly Come Dancing.

Joe Sugg
Joe Sugg is the YouTuber behind the hit channel ThatcherJoe, and was also a finalist on the 2018 series of Strictly Come Dancing.

Ed Ball

Ed Balls served as a Labour MP from 2005 to 2015 and as shadow chancellor from 2011 to 2015.

Memories of September 11

I find it hard to believe that we have just passed the 20th anniversary of the September 11 attacks in the United States.  How can it be 20 years since that dreadful day?

I doubt anyone will ever forget the events of that morning, where they were and what they were doing when they heard the news:

• At 8:46 a.m., AA 11 slammed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center.
• At 9:03 a.m., UA175 slammed into the South Tower.
• At 9:37 a.m., AA77 crashed into the Pentagon’s west side.
• At 9:59 a.m., the South Tower imploded and fell, raining debris and ash on the city.
• At 10:03 a.m., UA93 crashed into a field in the Pennsylvania countryside.
• And at 10:29 a.m., the North Tower collapsed from the top down. A cloud of ash turned day to night in the narrow streets of lower Manhattan.

In those terrible moments between 8:46 a.m. and 10:29 a.m., nearly 3,000 men, women and children lost their lives.  The youngest was two. The oldest was 85. 

Where I live in Australia, the clock is 14 hours ahead of New York.  So at the time of the first attack, it was 10:46pm my time.  I was already asleep.  Like much of the rest of Australia, I woke up to the news of the attacks on the morning of September 12. 

My family heard the news on the radio at 7:00am - there had been a terrorist attack in the US and the World Trade Centre in New York had been hit by a hijacked plane.  We rushed to turn on our TV.  As the picture came on, the first thing we saw was a replay of the second plane hitting the south tower.  For several minutes we weren't sure if this was live, or had happened several hours ago.

I was late for work that day.

In the library where I work, we dug out an old TV from our storeroom and set it up out in the public area of the building, keeping the news on all day.  People spoke in more hushed voices than usual.  Everyone was shocked.

While cleaning out the family home after my parents passed away, I found an thick notepad filled with writing.  It belonged to my mother, and in it she had recorded the entire first Gulf War, starting with the September 11 attacks.  It is her record of those events and another important document in my family history.  

It reminds me that we are all living through history, and how important it is to record the major events we have lived through, and pass our memories on to those who come after.  Because come events should always be remembered.