Podcasts about The Genealogy Roadshow

Send us a textOn this episode of Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, author of The Family Tree Toolkit and host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow remembers the past 75 episodes of her podcast through a retrospective interview - that looks at her favorite guests, as well as examines what she wants for the future of her show. The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. We are dedicated to exploring and discussing various aspects of genealogy, history, culture, and social issues. We aim to shed light on untold stories and perspectives that enrich our understanding of the world. **Please note that some links in our show notes may contain affiliate links, on which Kenyatta receives a small commission.

How did a simple search on Ancestry.com spark a lifelong passion, a stronger mother-daughter bond, and a stint as a host on a popular genealogy television show? Tune in to find out.As we celebrate Independence Day, join me as I chat with Mary Tedesco, the dynamic co-host of PBS's Genealogy Roadshow. Discover how her initial curiosity about her Italian grandparents' immigration story blossomed into a fulfilling genealogy career. From tracing her mother's extensive family across 27 states to uncovering her Revolutionary War patriot ancestor, George Brenner, Mary's journey is a vibrant reflection of America itself—a rich tapestry interweaving past and present.An active member of the Daughters of the American Revolution, Mary also shares her experiences within this iconic organization, highlighting impactful community service projects, particularly during the pandemic.With “America 250” on the horizon, her enthusiasm for commemorative efforts is palpable and infectious, urging us all to preserve our heritage and inspire future generations to cherish our shared American story.Celebrate lineage and liberty this Fourth of July by delving into a story that bridges generations and ignites patriotic spirit.******Mary's Bio:Mary Tedesco is a professional genealogist, speaker and former Co-Host of the PBS television series “Genealogy Roadshow.” She actively volunteers with the Daughters of the American Revolution, currently serving as the National Chair of the Insignia Committee and Massachusetts State Vice Regent. Other volunteer positions include: Councilor of New England Historic Genealogical Society and Texas Genealogical College (TGC) board member and chair of the Scholarship Committee. Mary holds an MBA from the University of Notre Dame, a BA in Mathematics from Boston University and a certificate in Genealogical Research from Boston University's Center for Professional Education. _______________________________________________Please rate and review this podcast and then share it with your family and friends.For ideas on how to connect more deeply with your family through family stories, follow Crista on Instagram @CristaCowan.

Send us a Text Message.In this episode of Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, author of The Family Tree Toolkit and host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow  talks with historian and author Dylan C. Penningroth about his background, upbringing, and his journey towards becoming a historian. Penningroth shares insights from his book Before the Movement: The Hidden History of Black Civil Rights' shedding light on how family stories and court cases inspired his research. They discuss the significance of preserving Black history, the complexities of race in legal contexts, and the critical role genealogical research plays in uncovering hidden narratives. The episode also delves into surprising themes such as Black-owned corporations and the intricate relationship between law and race throughout history.The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. We are dedicated to exploring and discussing various aspects of genealogy, history, culture, and social issues. We aim to shed light on untold stories and perspectives that enrich our understanding of the world. **Please note that some links in our show notes may contain affiliate links, on which Kenyatta receives a small commission.

Send us a Text Message.On this episode of Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow is joined by Daniel Brook, author and Historian.Kenyatta and Daniel explore the unique civil rights histories of Charleston, South Carolina, and New Orleans, Louisiana. The conversation delves into why Charleston and New Orleans diverged from other Southern cities during the Civil Rights Era, attributing it to their long-standing traditions of racial mixing and complex social structures. They also discuss Daniel's work and research with his book The Accident of Color, including a discussion of uncovering lost and expunged records from institutions like the New Orleans public school district and the University of South Carolina, revealing efforts to erase the history of integration and black achievements during Reconstruction.The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. We are dedicated to exploring and discussing various aspects of genealogy, history, culture, and social issues. We aim to shed light on untold stories and perspectives that enrich our understanding of the world. **Please note that some links in our show notes may contain affiliate links, on which Kenyatta receives a small commission.

Send us a Text Message. In this week's episode of Conversations with Kenyatta -Kenyatta D. Berry, host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow and author of The Family Tree Toolkit - is joined by Steve Luxenberg, author and associate Editor of the Washington Post.Steve's story is fascinating - as an adult, he found that his mother had kept a family secret - that she had a sister who was committed to an asylum and then died. He never knew anything about his aunt and delved into finding out more about her in his book Annie's Ghosts: A Journey into a Family Secret.Steve is also known for his second book Separate, which is a narrative of how the United States embraced “separation” and its consequences, and examines the famous Plessy vs. Ferguson case. The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. We are dedicated to exploring and discussing various aspects of genealogy, history, culture, and social issues. We aim to shed light on untold stories and perspectives that enrich our understanding of the world. **Please note that some links in our show notes may contain affiliate links, on which Kenyatta receives a small commission.

In this week's episode of Conversations with Kenyatta - Kenyatta D. Berry, author of The Family Tree Toolkit and host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow is joined by Dr. Manisha Sinha, who shares her journey from India to the United States to study and teach US  history.This interview delves into Dr. Sinha's perspective on slavery, enslaved individuals, and talks about her latest book, published in March 2024 - The Rise and Fall of the Second American Republic: Reconstruction, 1860-1920.Dr. Sinah also discusses the challenges she faces as a woman of color in historiography, as well as her work exploring Reconstruction, enslaved narratives, and her groundbreaking work on abolition as well as a profound exploration of America's historical injustices.The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. We are dedicated to exploring and discussing various aspects of genealogy, history, culture, and social issues. We aim to shed light on untold stories and perspectives that enrich our understanding of the world. **Please note that some links in our show notes may contain affiliate links, on which Kenyatta receives a small commission.

This week on Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry author of The Family Tree Toolkit  and host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow is joined by Victor Luckerson, an author and journalist. Victor and Kenyatta talk about his love of research and his new book Built from the Fire: The Epic Story of Tulsa's Greenwood District, America's Black Wall Street. He also talks about his work as a journalist, including his time at the University of Alabama and calling out racial disparity in his school newspaper. The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. We are dedicated to exploring and discussing various aspects of genealogy, history, culture, and social issues. We aim to shed light on untold stories and perspectives that enrich our understanding of the world. **Please note that some links in our show notes may contain affiliate links, on which Kenyatta receives a small commission.

On this week's episode of Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow, and author of The Family Tree Toolkit is joined by Rachel J. Webster, a professor of creative writing, and author of Benjamin Banneker and Us: Eleven Generations of an American Family. The two discuss what it means to find that you descend from a famous individual in history, what it means to discover Black ancestry in your lineage when you've thought to have a predominately white lineage, and just who the extraordinary man Benjamin Banneker was, and what we should learn about him. The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. We are dedicated to exploring and discussing various aspects of genealogy, history, culture, and social issues. We aim to shed light on untold stories and perspectives that enrich our understanding of the world. **Please note that some links in our show notes may contain affiliate links, on which Kenyatta receives a small commission.

In this week's episode of Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, author of The Family Tree Toolkit and host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow is joined by Pulitzer Prize Winner, author, and historian, Dr. Jefferson Cowie. The two discuss his latest book Freedom's Dominion: A Saga of White Resistance to Federal Power, which won the Pulitzer Prize in History, his research, and so much more.ABOUT DR. JEFFERSON COWIE (as taken from Vanderbilt.edu) Jefferson Cowie's work in social and political history focuses on how class, race, and labor shape American politics and culture. His latest book, Freedom's Dominion, won the Pulitzer Prize for History in 2023.Based on one county's history, Freedom's Dominion: A Saga of White Resistance to Federal Power tells the dramatic tale of generations of local fights against the federal government that prop up a particular version of American freedom: the freedom to oppress others. Advance praise calls it "magisterial," written with "eloquence and with brilliance," and Cowie's "most extraordinary book yet."The Great Exception: The New Deal and the Limits of American Politics was released in early 2016 and attempts to reinterpret a wide swath of American political history in the twentieth century. The Washington Post‘s E.J. Dionne Jr. called it “one of the year's most important political books."Stayin' Alive: The 1970s and the Last Days of the Working Class, draws together labor, politics, and popular culture into a vibrant narrative about the decline of class in American political culture. It received a number of “best book” awards, including the 2011 Francis Parkman Prize for the Best Book in American History and the Merle Curti Award for the Best Book in Social and Intellectual History. Critics said, “Stayin' Alive will long stand as the finest and most sophisticated portrait of politics and culture in the American 1970s, and also as a model for how to talk about both political and cultural transformations without shortchanging either.”Capital Moves: RCA's Seventy Year Quest for Cheap Labor charts the relocation of one firm through four different cities, two countries, and a great deal of social upheaval. It accounts for what made each community attractive for an industrial location and what changed to make the company relocate again. The book received the 2000 Phillip Taft Prize for the Best Book in Labor History.In addition to his scholarship, Cowie's essays and opinion pieces have also appeared in the New York Times, TIME magazine, NPR Music, Foreign Affairs, Chronicle of Higher Ed, American Prospect, Politico, Democracy, The New Republic, Inside Higher Ed, Dissent, and other popular outlets.  The recipient of several fellowships, including the Center for Advanced Studies in Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University, the American Council of Learned Societies and Andrew Mellon Foundation, the Society for the Humanities at Cornell, and the Center for US-Mexican Studies at UC San Diego, he has also appeared in a variety of media outlets including CNN's The Seventies, C‐Span's Booknotes, NPR's Weekend Edition, as well as documentaries, podcasts, and radio broadcasts.The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. We are dedicated to exploring and discussing various aspects of genealogy, history, culture, and social issues. We aim to shed light on untold stories and perspectives that enrich our understanding of the world. **Please note that some links in our show notes may contain affiliate links, on which Kenyatta receives a small commission.

This week on Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow and author of The Family Tree Toolkit is joined by author and historian Gregory May. The two discuss his work and his books and research for his latest - A Madman's Will which tells the story of one of the largest and most controversial private emancipations in United States history. About Gregory May Gregory May is a historian who writes about the early American republic. In his first book, Jefferson's Treasure, he used his knowledge of taxes and tax policy to bring a fresh and vigorous perspective to the new nation's financial history. In A Madman's Will, he draws on his past legal experience to tell the story of one of the largest and most controversial private emancipations in United States history.Greg is a graduate of the College of William and Mary and the Harvard Law School, where he was an editor of the Harvard Law Review. After serving as a law clerk for Justice Lewis Powell on the United States Supreme Court, he practiced law in Washington, DC, and New York for over thirty years. He lives in Virginia.Learn more at his website here. The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. We are dedicated to exploring and discussing various aspects of genealogy, history, culture, and social issues. We aim to shed light on untold stories and perspectives that enrich our understanding of the world. **Please note that some links in our show notes may contain affiliate links, on which Kenyatta receives a small commission.

On today's episode of Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow, and author of The Family Tree Toolkit is joined by Cassandra Newby-Alexander, an author and historian whose contributions to historyhave helped pilot some of the most important research on Black individuals, and the enslaved, as well as extensive work in the state of Virginia.The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. We are dedicated to exploring and discussing various aspects of genealogy, history, culture, and social issues. We aim to shed light on untold stories and perspectives that enrich our understanding of the world. **Please note that some links in our show notes may contain affiliate links, on which Kenyatta receives a small commission.

This week's episode of Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, author of The Family Tree Toolkit and host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow is joined by Sarah Allen, an author, journalist, and executive producer of Showtime's #STAND documentary, where the two met and collaborated. This episode looks at the behind-the-scenes of Sarah's career, and how she has come to be one of the most versatile journalists out there. The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. We are dedicated to exploring and discussing various aspects of genealogy, history, culture, and social issues. We aim to shed light on untold stories and perspectives that enrich our understanding of the world. **Please note that some links in our show notes may contain affiliate links, on which Kenyatta receives a small commission.

This week on Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, author of The Family Tree Toolkit, and host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow is joined by KB Barcomb. The two discuss military records, military history, and how WWI and WII can aid in the lens of discovering family history.ABOUT KB BARCOMB-  KB Barcomb specializes in conducting WWI and WWII research through the lens of family history. A retired Army officer, she focuses on the context of military records so as to more accurately analyze their content.  -  Her sub-specialties include African American personnel; WWII Army Air Forces (aka Air Corps) personnel; and Army personnel of both conflicts.  She is a member of the Society for Military History and the Association of Professional Genealogists.- She has taught an Advanced World War Records & Research Course for the Applied Genealogy Institute and co-taught with Gena Philibert-Ortega a course on Advanced Family History Research: US Ancestors, 1917-1930 for the Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh.- She also facilitates a Military Records & Research SIG for Kinseekers Genealogical Society the 2nd Monday of each month at 1:30 ET. Non-members are welcome. https://kinseekers.org The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. We are dedicated to exploring and discussing various aspects of genealogy, history, culture, and social issues. We aim to shed light on untold stories and perspectives that enrich our understanding of the world. **Please note that some links in our show notes may contain affiliate links, on which Kenyatta receives a small commission.

On this week's episode of Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, author of The Family Tree Toolkit and host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow is joined by Alec Ferretti, professional genealogist and board member of the Association of Professional Genealogists. The two discuss Freedom of Information Act Records, what Alec does for his own family history, and how he came to be a genealogist. The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. We are dedicated to exploring and discussing various aspects of genealogy, history, culture, and social issues. We aim to shed light on untold stories and perspectives that enrich our understanding of the world. **Please note that some links in our show notes may contain affiliate links, on which Kenyatta receives a small commission.

This week on the podcast, Kenyatta D. Berry, host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow and author of The Family Tree Toolkit is joined by her first repeat guest - Gail Lukaisk.Gail and Kenyatta met on PBS' Genealogy Roadshow where Kenyatta revealed to Gail that a member of her family had been passing as white, and Gail actually had Black ancestry. Gail went on to write the book White Like Her, which featured a foreword by Kenyatta. Well, now Gail is back with a new book - a fictional gothic mystery called The Darkness Surrounds Us . She and Kenyatta discuss the book, her writing process, as well as what Gail has been up to, and gives us a glimpse into her next book - coming out in 2024! The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. We are dedicated to exploring and discussing various aspects of genealogy, history, culture, and social issues. We aim to shed light on untold stories and perspectives that enrich our understanding of the world. **Please note that some links in our show notes may contain affiliate links, on which Kenyatta receives a small commission.

In this episode of Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow and author of The Family Tree Toolkit is joined by Catherine Wiest Desmarais, CG.The two discuss Catherine's work with genealogy as well as her specialty in forensic genealogy, and what it means to be in the field, as well as some of her work with military repatriation.  Catherine holds a pivotal role in the world of genealogy, and this is a fascinating look into her work!  ABOUT CATHERINE WIEST DESMARAIAS Board-certified since 2011, Catherine is a full-time professional genealogist specializing in researching Vermont and Irish ancestors, as well as forensic cases for attorneys and U.S. Army military repatriation cases. From 2014 – 2017 she served as the Vice-President of the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG). Catherine holds a Masters Degree in Education from the University of Vermont, and has taught at the Genealogical Institute of Pittsburgh, the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy, and the Forensic Genealogy Institute. She can be reached through her website: www.stonehouseresearch.The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. We are dedicated to exploring and discussing various aspects of genealogy, history, culture, and social issues. We aim to shed light on untold stories and perspectives that enrich our understanding of the world.

This week on Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow, and author of The Family Tree Toolkit, is joined by Thomas A. Guglielmo, who is Department Chair and Professor of American Studies at The George Washington University, and the author of Divisions: A New History of Racism and Resistance in America's World War II Military.The two discuss military records, immigration, and so much more. The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. We are dedicated to exploring and discussing various aspects of genealogy, history, culture, and social issues. We aim to shed light on untold stories and perspectives that enrich our understanding of the world.

This week on Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, author of The Family Tree Toolkit and host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow is joined by Chris Haley.Chris is an actor, author, and is the Director of the  Study of the Legacy of Slavery in Maryland, as well as the Utopia Film Festival. He and Kenyatta discuss his work, how he got into genealogy, and how being related to Alex Haley, author of Roots has inspired him to do other genealogy work in his life. Please learn more about Chris by visiting his website at https://www.chrishaleyspeaks.com/.Please note that in this episode, Chris Haley says that Arthur Hailey was the author of Airplane, but it is actually Airport!. The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. We are dedicated to exploring and discussing various aspects of genealogy, history, culture, and social issues. We aim to shed light on untold stories and perspectives that enrich our understanding of the world.

This week on Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow and author of The Family Tree Toolkit is joined by certified genealogist and professor Mark A. Wentling.The two discuss forensic genealogy, genealogy graduate studies in genealogy, and discuss more the academic side of the profession, as well as examine Mark's career and some of his tips for genealogists. More about Mark: Mark A. Wentling, MLS, CG, of Massachusetts, owner of Ancestor Introductions, LLC, is a full-time, professional genealogist with more than 25 years of research experience.  He holds the Certified Genealogist credential from the Board for Certification of Genealogists.  In addition to his own practice, he is an adjunct professor of genealogy in the Graduate Certificate in Forensic Genetic Genealogy program at the University of New Haven.  He has also served as a facilitator for the Genealogy Principles course at Boston University, a Mentor for ProGen Study Group, a case study instructor for the Advanced Evidence Analysis Practicum at the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy, and an expert consultant for the New York Genealogical & Biographical Society's Empire State Exploration guided research program.He has specialized in forensic genealogy since 2017.  His forensic specialties include heir searching for attorneys and military repatriation research for the U.S. Department of Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, for which he has located next of kin and DNA donors for over 100 WWII and Korean War servicemembers.  His other specialities include New York and New England family history, Mayflower and U.S. Revolutionary War lineages, and lighthouse keepers.  His research has been published in The New England Historical & Genealogical Register, and recognized by the New York State Assembly and New York State Office of Historic Preservation. In addition to a Certificate in Genealogical Research from Boston University, he holds a Master of Library Science degree with archives concentration from University of Maryland at College Park, and a B.A. in Sociology.He currently serves on the board of directors of the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG) and the Association of Genealogy Educators & Schools (AGES).  He previously served as the first Vice President of APG's Forensic Genealogy Special Interest Group from 2020 to 2021.  He was the Vice President of APG's New England Chapter from 2018 to 2020, where he developed its peer-mentoring program.Mark can be reached via his website at https://ancestorintroductions.com or directly by email at mark@ancestorintroductions.com.The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. We are dedicated to exploring and discussing various aspects of genealogy, history, culture, and social issues. We aim to shed light on untold stories and perspectives that enrich our understanding of the world.

This week on Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, author of The Family Tree Toolkit, and host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow is joined by Andre Kearns.Andre is the current director-at-large for the National Genealogical Society(NGS), as well as chair of their Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion committee. The two discuss Andre's background in genealogy, as well as the recent apology that NGS released regarding racist and discriminatory actions in their past. You can read the full apology from NGS here.As well as an article on the apology covered by The Washington Post here. You can also learn more about the NGS DEI committee here.The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. We are dedicated to exploring and discussing various aspects of genealogy, history, culture, and social issues. We aim to shed light on untold stories and perspectives that enrich our understanding of the world.

This week, Kenyatta D. Berry, author of The Family Tree Toolkit and host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow is joined by author and certified genealogist Mary Penner.Kenyatta and Mary discuss genealogy and writing, and how to find a creative spark when writing - for family history - and in general. This is an incredibly inspiring conversation that will have you wanting to create your next family history story immediately. The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. We are dedicated to exploring and discussing various aspects of genealogy, history, culture, and social issues. We aim to shed light on untold stories and perspectives that enrich our understanding of the world.

This week on Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, host of Genealogy Roadshow and author of The Family Tree Toolkit, breaks format - just slightly. Kenyatta is interviewed by her podcast producer Caitlin Howle, who delves into Kenyatta's career, her goals for the podcast, and why she started Conversations with Kenyatta. The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. History Nerds UnitedLet's make history fun again! Come listen to interviews with today's best authors.Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

This week on Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, author of The Family Tree Toolkit, and host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow is joined by narrative biographer and author Jenifer Kahn Bakkala. The two discuss writing, how professional genealogy spawns storytelling, and how family history is key. Learn more about Jenifer's work here: http://www.jkbgenealogy.com/The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe," by Ketsa.History Nerds UnitedLet's make history fun again! Come listen to interviews with today's best authors.Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

This week on Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, PBS' Genealogy Roadshow host, and author of The Family Tree Toolkit, is joined by Dr. Ned Benton and Dr. Judy-Lynne Peters of John Jay College,  and are the co-directors of the  Northeast Slavery Records Index.The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. 

This week on Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow and author of The Family Tree Toolkit is joined by Vincent Leggett, the founder, and president of the Blacks of the Chesapeake Foundation.This is a wonderful conversation that discusses history, genealogy, and the work Vincent has been doing.As always, the music for this episode is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. 

In this week's episode of Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, host of Genealogy Roadshow and author of The Family Tree Toolkit, is joined by Dr. Andrea Douglas, current Executive Director of the Jefferson School Heritage Center.The two discuss Dr. Douglas' work, her career, and how she has been a champion for Black history in the Virginia area. The music for this episode, as always, was "Good Vibe" by Ketsa.

In this week's episode of Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, host of Genealogy Roadshow and author of The Family Tree Toolkit, is joined by James French, Chairman of the Montpelier Foundation Board of Directors.The two discuss the history of America in its entirety, and how our founding fathers may have been aware of changes that were needed - but did not participate in them. James also examines his own family research, how Montpelier has been working with descendants of the enslaved, and what more can be learned from ancestral homes. Please note that in this episode Kenyatta refers to the “Colors of Distinction” exhibit but in actuality, the name is “Mere Distinction of Colour".  More information can be found at this link.The music for this episode, as always, was "Good Vibe" by Ketsa.TRIGGER WARNING: This episode mentions sexual assault. 

In this week's episode of Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow is joined by Dr. Matthew Delmont. The two discuss Black and African American history, as well as what his book-writing process was like, and how he goes about doing his research.  Find out more about Dr. Delmont here: https://history.dartmouth.edu/people/matthew-f-delmontThe music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa.

On this week's episode of Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta is joined by her Genealogy Roadshow co-host and president of the NYG&B - D. Joshua Taylor. The two give some behind-the-scenes glances into their work, and Kenyatta finds out what Josh is up to now.Find out more about D. Joshua Taylor on his website, here: https://djoshuataylor.com/And, as always, the music for this episode is "Good Vibe," by Ketsa.

In this week's episode of Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta (host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow and author of The Family Tree Toolkit) is joined by Dr. Sharon M. Leon, a digital humanities professor at Michigan State University.Sharon is also behind The Jesuit Plantation Project: An Examination of the Enslaved persons Owned (and Sold) by the Maryland Province Jesuits, 1717-1838 and has done critical work in advancing how we store our records, as well as how we communicate about the past.Find out more about her at her website here: https://history.msu.edu/people/faculty/sharon-leon/The music for this episode, as always was "Good Vibe" by Ketsa.

On this episode of Conversations with Kenyatta,  Kenyatta D. Berry, author of The Family Tree Toolkit, and host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow is joined by Dr. Christy Clark-Pujara, who is not only a professor of history, but also the author of Dark Work: The Business of Slavery in Rhode Island .They speak about a topic not often talked about in history or genealogy: slavery in the north. It's a fascinating conversation about what Dr. Clark-Pujara has learned, and how our historical misconceptions need to be addressed. The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. 

In this episode, Kenyatta D. Berry, host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow, author of The Family Tree Toolkit, and motivational speaker, is joined by Bessida Cauthorne White. Bessida is a former attorney, who is known for her activism, and her work as a professional genealogist. The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe," by Ketsa.The Optimized MindHosted by Dr. Kate Lund, The Optimized Mind explores how we can define our own unique...Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

This week Maureen Taylor, The Photo Detective, is joined by Kenyatta D. Berry, author of The Family History Toolkit, and host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow.The two discuss professional genealogy, and how stories that have been forgotten in history are often the ones that can teach us the most. They also delve into what it means to have your family history, and why you should share it. Related Episodes:Episode 190: Writing Genealogical Crime Mysteries with Nathan Dylan GoodwinEpisode 176: Ancestor Trouble with Author Maud NewtonLinks:Kenyatta D. BerrySign up for my newsletter.Watch my YouTube Channel.Like the Photo Detective Facebook Page so you get notified of my Facebook Live videos.Need help organizing your photos? Check out the Essential Photo Organizing Video Course.Need help identifying family photos? Check out the Identifying Family Photographs Online Course.Have a photo you need help identifying? Sign up for photo consultation.About My Guest:Kenyatta D. Berry is the author of The Family Tree Toolkit and a Contributor to the groundbreaking “1619 Project” published by The New York Times. She was the 2019 Honorary Chair for Preservation Week and was named a “Newsmaker” in American Libraries magazine a publication of the American Library Association. Kenyatta is an author, attorney, lecturer, professional genealogist, and television personality. She ignites the genealogy world with a bigger-than-life personality and an illustrious career spanning over 20 years.About Maureen Taylor:Maureen is a frequent keynote speaker on photo identification, photograph preservation, and family history at historical and genealogical societies, museums, conferences, libraries, and other organizations across the U.S., London, and Canada.  She's the author of several books and hundreds of articles and her television appearances include The View and The Today Show (where she researched and presented a complete family tree for host Meredith Vieira).  She's been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Better Homes and Gardens, The Boston Globe, Martha Stewart Living, Germany's top newspaper Der Spiegel, American Spirit, and The New York Times. Maureen was recently a spokesperson and photograph expert for MyHeritage.com, an internationally known family history website, and also writes guidebooks, scholarly articles, and online columns for such media as Smithsonian.com. Learn more at I wanted to remind you all that I run one-on-one Photo Consultations, that help identify photo clues that you may have missed, in order to help you better understand your family history. Not many people realize that the saying is true - and that a photo can tell a million stories. All sessions are recorded, and there's a discount for bulk image sessions. Find out more on my website at https://maureentaylor.com. Support the show

This week on Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow, and author of The Family Tree Toolkit features Heather Smith, who is the Co-Founder and Chief Visionary Officer for StoryFile.Heather's company is on a mission to record over 100 million stories - to help preserve our history in a new way. It's a fascinating conversation.Heather and StoryFile were also gracious enough to offer my listeners a coupon code for StoryFile - if you use the code KENYATTA you will receive 20% off their product. .......#enslavedancestors #enslavedancestry #genealogy #genealogytrauma #ancestralhealing #familyhistory #familyhistoryresearch #familyhistoryresearcher #podcastersofinstagram #podcast #historypodcast #genealogypodcast #genealogyrecords #findingmyfamily #kenyattaberry

This week Kenyatta D. Berry, author of The Family Tree Toolkit, and host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow  speaks with Data Historian and author Dan Bouk. The two discuss a critical part of all genealogy research - census records. Items discussed in this episode: Bureau of the Census, Negro Population 1790-1915 (1918)  https://hdl.handle.net/2027/uiug.30112004120298?urlappend=%3Bseq=8Kelly Miller, “Enumeration Errors in Negro Population,” Scientific Monthly 14, no. 2 (1922): 168-177 https://www.jstor.org/stable/6436#metadata_info_tab_contentsLangston Hughes, "Madam and the Census Man" performed by Margaret Walker: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40GyoFE6GAgTammy Hepps, "When Henry Silverstein Got Cold: Fraud in the 1920 Census," https://homesteadhebrews.com/articles/when-henry-silverstein-got-cold/And as always, the music for this episode was "Good Vibe," by Ketsa.

In this episode, Kenyatta D. Berry, author of The Family Tree Toolkit, and host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow is joined by Stacy Ashmore Cole, who is the creator and curator of “They Had Names: African Americans in Early Liberty County, Georgia, Records,” an online compilation of antebellum Liberty County probate, deed, church and other records with more than 37,000 references to African Americans, enslaved and free. She and Kenyatta discuss different records, as well as the necessity of those who have information on the enslaved to share it. It is an empowering conversation that will leave listeners wanting to dig right back into their research.In addition, Stacy provided the following links for those looking for help with their ancestry in Georgia, and on the coast:  They Had Names: African Americans in Early Records of Liberty County, Georgia: https://theyhadnames.net/Liberty County Historical Society: https://www.libertyhistory.net/Midway Museum: https://www.themidwaymuseum.org/ (located next to the Midway Congregational Church, which was founded in 1754. Although a Church dominated by White planter families, it has had documented Black members since 1756. The current Church building dates from 1792 and no longer operates as a Church. The Midway Museum tells its story and the history of the surrounding area.)Dorchester Academy (historic African American School that has a wonderful African American Museum about antebellum Midway history and also a Civil Rights exhibit -- Martin Luther King spent quite a bit of time there): HomeCoastal Georgia Genealogy links: GlynnGen.com: http://www.glynngen.com/: founded by Amy Hedrick, who has been researching coastal Georgia since her late teens (over 20 years now). Includes many African American genealogy resources. Ujima Genealogy of Coastal Georgia: focused on African American genealogy of coastal Georgia: https://ujimagen.org/ (great videos)Coastal Georgia Genealogical Society: https://coastalgagensociety.org/Burning of Darien Museum (no longer has a physical space but has enthusiastic volunteers who focus on African American history and genealogy of McIntosh County): https://www.facebook.com/TheBurnOfDarienThe music for this episode, as always, was "Good Vibe" by Ketsa. 

This week on the podcast, Kenyatta D. Berry, host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow and author of The FamilyTree Toolkit, debuts a new segment for Conversations with Kenyatta. These bite-sized episodes tackle forgotten individuals in history, whose stories need to be told. In this episode, Kenyatta examines Florence B. Price, an American composer whose work was thought to be lost in time - until one fateful day in 2009. 

This week on Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry,  author of The Family Tree Toolkit, and host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow is joined by Lynne Jackson, President, and Founder of The Dred Scott Heritage Foundation, and descendant of Dred Scott. The two discuss the foundation, who Dred Scott was, and why his case is pivotal to many. SHOW NOTES AND IMPORTANT LINKS: Website  www.dredscottlives.org (2016 - Present)Archived website www.thedredscottfoundation.org (2006-2016)Join us for the closing of FACES OF DRED SCOTT exhibit on Friday evening, Sept 30th from 4:30 - 7:30 p.m.and for the Opening of the 4th Exhibit this Fall sharing history on millionaire entrepreneur and philanthropist  Annie Malone at the Dred Scott Office Center in Chesterfield, MO beginning Oct 15 4:30 p.m.December 1st DSHF is collaborating with the Missouri History Museum and others in Celebrating Music Education in the Ville"  Honoring music legends Alleda Ward Wells and Kenneth Brown Billups. 

On this episode of Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D.  Berry, author of The Family Tree Toolkit, and host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow  sits down with Regina Mason, who is a direct descendant of William Grimes. The two discuss what genealogy means, especially to those who were enslaved, or who have African Roots, and why that's been taboo to discuss in the past, and even today. They also dive into Gina's Journey, a film about Regina's experiences with her genealogy, as well as her book, which focuses on her ancestor, William Grimes.The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe," by Ketsa.

Fisher opens this Classic Rewind from 2016 with Family Histoire News talking about the upcoming season of Genealogy Roadshow. He discloses which cities the Roadshow team will visit this year. He then talks about the amazing discovery of the remains of a Roman villa underneath a barn in England. Here how it was discovered and what is happening to the site now. Fisher then shares the sad tale of the 1838 sale of over 230 African slaves by Jesuit priests in Washington DC. Here why they were sold, and which well known university exists today because its debts were paid by the sale. Also hear about why major efforts are being made to find their descendants.   In segment two, Fisher visits with actor Sam Roukin who plays Captain John Graves Simcoe in the AMC series “TURN: Washington's Spies.” Sam talks about his development of this despicable character, based on a real historic figure. Sam also talks about his immersion in the history of the Revolution.   In segment three, Fisher continues his conversation with Sam Roukin. Sam talks about what responsibility he feels to the real man and how he squares the character he portrays with the man who did some very good things after the Revolution. Sam also reveals that, despite being very British and portraying a brutal British officer in the Revolution, he is likely to do something in the not so distant future that will please many Americans.   Tom Perry then returns, the Preservation Authority, to talk about some special programs he is analyzing for personal use in editing video and digitized home movies. Some of the things these programs can do could only have been done in Hollywood just a few years ago!  

Kim Chakanetsa meets two genealogists passionate about uncovering the forgotten stories of their clients' female ancestors. Kenyatta D Berry is a lawyer and genealogist from the USA. She is the author of The Family Tree Toolkit and the co-host of The Genealogy Roadshow on PBS. She caught the genealogy bug by chance, when she started looking into her ex-boyfriend's family history. She is an expert on African American ancestry and on the specific challenges people who descend from enslaved individuals face when looking into their families' past. At the age of 15, Belgian Marie Cappart started looking into her country's national archives to find out more about her great-aunt, Maggie Nicholls. During WWII, Maggie helped three Canadian pilots survive in Nazi-occupied Belgium. She was later arrested and killed because of that. Marie went on to graduate in history and wrote several books, including Guide to Genealogy in Belgium. She is also the country manager for the online genealogy platform MyHeritage and she helps other people track down their ancestors. Produced by Alice Gioia (Image: (L), Marie Cappart, courtesy Marie Cappart. (R), Kenyatta D Berry, courtesy Kenyatta D Berry.)

In this episode, Kenyatta D. Berry, host of Genealogy Roadshow and author of The Family Tree Toolkit speaks with Richard Cox, who is the consultant and project manager for the Digital Library on American Slavery, as well as the People not Property Project. He and Kenyatta talk about what it means to use records, how digitizing records helps everyone, and, about beer, and its liberating properties. Really! Find the Digital Library on American Slavery here: http://dlas.uncg.edu/The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe," by Ketsa. 

This week Kenyatta D. Berry, host of The Genealogy Roadshow, and author of The Family Tree Toolkit, is joined by Oliver Franklin, who is potentially one of her most interesting guests. From being a diplomat to special credentials given to him by the Queen herself, his life is a fascinating glimpse into the history of diplomacy, as well as how Black ancestors were regarded in different countries. 

This week, Kenyatta D. Berry, host of The Genealogy Roadshow, and author of The Family Tree Toolkit is joined by Jen Baldwin, the North American Content Manager and Global Ambassador Program Lead for Findmypast. The two dive into a myriad of topics, discussing Irish and British ancestry, how the Spanish Flu affected records, and how to use FindmyPast in your research - including big news on their latest collection - the 1921 census.  Join FindMyPast here: www.findmypast.comFind out more about the 1921 Census: https://www.findmypast.com/1921-censusUse their free records here: https://www.findmypast.com/page/free-ancestry-recordsABOUT JEN BALDWINJen Baldwin has been working in the realm of professional genealogy since 2010 but has been pursuing her family history since she was ten years old, enjoying her grandmother's stories - and her cookies. She is currently the North American Content Manager and Global Ambassador Program Lead for Findmypast. Jen lectures, writes, and consults on a variety of genealogy related topics, and was part of the research team for Genealogy Roadshow, season two on PBS. She is the author of course materials for the National Institute of Genealogical Studies. She is excited to discover unique resources that allow for a different perspective in genealogical research, including the vast research opportunities for family historians around the world to take advantage of UK collections, such as newspapers and the upcoming 1921 Census of England and Wales.

On this episode of Conversations with Kenyatta, Kenyatta D. Berry, host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow, and author of The Family Tree Toolkit is joined by Maureen Taylor, also known as The Photo Detective. Maureen uses photos to dig into clues about our genealogy and family history that you may have missed and even gives an example as she and Kenyatta dive into how one photo clue can change the course of your research.Find Maureen Taylor at her website at https://maureentaylor.com/, on Facebook at MaureenPhotoDetective, and on Instagram and Twitter at photodetective.The music for this episode is, as always, "Good Vibe," by Ketsa. 

On this week's episode, Kenyatta D. Berry, author of The Family Tree Toolkit and host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow is joined by J. Mark Lowe, a professional genealogist, and educator. The two discuss his journey to genealogy and why professional genealogists are needed now more than ever before, as well as what it looks like when you work with a professional genealogist. Find J. Mark Lowe on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.Please use the following links for websites of those mentioned in the show: Institute of Genealogical and Historical Research (IGHR) – University of Georgiahttps://ighr.gagensociety.org/ighr-2022/Texas Institute of Genealogy  (TIGR) Texas State Genealogical Societyhttps://www.txsgs.org/featured-events/tigr-2021/Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy (SLIG)https://www.slig.ugagenealogy.org/Legacy Family Tree Webinars by J. Mark Lowehttps://familytreewebinars.com/speaker/mark-lowe/The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe," by Ketsa.

This week Kenyatta D. Berry, host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow is joined by Frazine Taylor, a professional genealogist, who specializes in records and research of enslaved and freed individuals in Alabama. She is the author of Researching African American Genealogy in Alabama: A Resource Guide, which is currently being updated to a second edition.She has worked with numerous organizations, including serving time in the Peace Corps, and speaks to what it means to be a member of genealogical societies, and how she has worked as an advocate to promote Black voices in the genealogy community.  Frazine is also a co-founder of Beyond Kin (https://beyondkin.org/), which works to help redefine the roles of family, and help make space for individuals who have roles outside of their relationships through DNA, as well as aid in crowd-sourcing help for record research, and finding ancestors. 

This week, Kenyatta D. Berry, host of Genealogy Roadshow and author of The Family Tree Toolkit, is joined by Kelvin Meyers, a forensic genealogist. Kelvin tells Kenyatta was a forensic genealogist does, along with examples of how he does his research, as well as how he got started as a forensic genealogist. Find out more about Kelvin and his work by clicking here.TRIGGER WARNING: This episode contains conversations on sexual assault and incest, please be advised. The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe," by Ketsa. 

In this episode, Kenyatta D. Berry, author and host of The Genealogy Roadshow, is joined by author, professional genealogist, and current president of The Board for Certification for Genealogists (BCG), LaBrenda Garrett-Nelson.LaBrenda and Kenyatta discuss not only LaBrenda's career, but also what is required to become a board-certified genealogist. She outlines the process and gives some behind-the-scenes glimpses into BCG's work. They also discuss the lineage association Sons & Daughters of the U.S.. mIddle Passage and what it means to find a community in those whose ancestors had been enslaved.LaBrenda also talks about her book A Guide to Researching African American Ancestors in Laurens County, South Carolina, and how her work can help you, too, no matter what state you live in.You can visit LaBrenda's website here: https://www.labgarrettgenealogy.com/Purchase her book here: https://amzn.to/2X9Fncr And find her on Twitter, and on Facebook. The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe," by Ketsa.Please note that link clicks to Amazon.com may contain an affiliate referral, which may earn Kenyatta a referral commission. 

This week Kenyatta D. Berry, author, and host of The Genealogy Roadshow is joined by James R. Morgan III. James is a fascinating individual and has many accolades under his belt: historian, genealogist, and award-winning author of The Lost Empire: Black Freemasonry in the Old West. James is also a Prince Hall Freemason, and  Honorary Fellow and Life Member of the Phylaxis Research Society. James has worked to bring awareness to forgotten Black stories, as well as working through his own family history. In this episode, James and Kenyatta discuss what being a Prince Hall Freemason means, how he works as a historian, and his current dedication to working to find headstones and bring respect to a Black cemetery that was desecrated. Find out more about James on his website, here: https://jamesrmorgan.com/ or on his Twitter.You can purchase his book here: https://amzn.to/3oiM6vR

Kenyatta D. Berry, host of The Genealogy Roadshow and author of The Family Tree Toolkit, is joined by author and house historian Betsy J. Green.The two talk about Betsy's work as a Writer and Editor, as well as her work as a House Historian, which involves her researching and evaluating properties to submit for historical preservation. Betsy shares some "war stories," about how difficult research items have led to major discoveries and beautiful stories about homes. She also provides tips and tricks for working on your own house history, as well as a ghost story or two.Find out more about Betsy at her website, here: betsyjgreen.comRead her newspaper column here: www.independent.com/category/real-estate/the-great-house-detective/ Purchase her book, Discovering the History of Your House by clicking here or see her Way Back When series by clicking here. The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe," by Ketsa.Please note that link clicks to Amazon.com may contain an affiliate referral, which may earn Kenyatta a referral commission. 

Join Kenyatta D. Berry, author and host of The Genealogy Roadshow as she's joined by Bernice Bennett. Bernice is a professional genealogist with two books under her belt, who has won numerous awards for her work. Bernice hosts her own podcast on genealogy (though it is being retired) and her work ranges from tracing her own family history in South Carolina, all the way to her work with African American homesteaders. Listen to Bernice's podcast here: https://www.blogtalkradio.com/bernicebennett Purchase "Tracing Their Steps: A Memoir" here: https://amzn.to/3DDYonKPurchase "Our Ancestors, Our Stories," here: https://amzn.to/3DBIYQFAnd visit Bernice's website here: http://geniebroots.com/The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe," by Ketsa.Please note that link clicks to Amazon.com may contain an affiliate referral, which may earn Kenyatta a referral commission. 

Kenyatta D. Berry, author of The Family Tree Toolkit and former host of The Genealogy Roadshow is joined by author Lori Erickson, whose new book, "The Soul of the Family Tree" releases on Amazon on August 24 (be sure to order it by clicking here). In this episode, Lori discusses multiple topics, including how to cultivate a writing practice within your genealogy work, what travel looks like when it's travel versus a pilgrimage to where your ancestors lived, or other important places in your life. Lori also shares her feeling on spiritual ancestry and how sometimes we can be connected to someone, without being related to them genetically. You can find Lori Erickson on her website at https://lorierickson.net/, or on Facebook with the handle @LoriEricksonAuthor.The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe," by Ketsa.Please note that link clicks to Amazon.com may contain an affiliate referral, which may earn Kenyatta a referral commission. 

Kenyatta D. Berry, author of The Family Tree Toolkit and former host of The Genealogy Roadshow is joined by professional genealogist Renée Carl, who not only works with ancestry but has been at the forefront for keeping records accessible to all populations and has taken the fight to Washington, D.C.In this episode, she discusses how records are threatened, what it means to possess those records, and how we as individuals can help. She also dives into discussing with Kenyatta how those who hold public records can be held more accountable. You can find Renée Carl on her website easterneuropeanmutt.com and her social handles for Twitter and Instagram are easteuromutt.If you are interested in the links mentioned in this podcast, or to find out more on how you can help in the fight for fair records, check out these links:https://www.recordsnotrevenue.comhttps://www.archives.gov/nhprc/projects/indexhttps://www.archives.gov/nhprc/projects/states-territoriesAs Renée mentioned, the most direct way of helping is to contact your Representative and Senators and:Tell them you want the records of the USCIS Genealogy Program, and the accompanying index, transferred to the National Archives. Ask them to support increased funding for the National Archives. We support the request made by the National Coalition for History and the National Humanities Alliance to provide NARA with an operating budget of $433 million. The Humanities Alliance provides this tool to contact Congress about funding for NARA: https://p2a.co/sG53z3A .The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe," by Ketsa.Please note that link clicks to Amazon.com may contain an affiliate referral, which may earn Kenyatta a referral commission. 

In this episode, former Genealogy Roadshow host and author of The Family Tree Toolkit, has a conversation with Dr. Shelley Viola Murphy,  Descendant Project Researcher at the University of Virginia, to discuss the role and responsibilities that higher education and academia plays in acknowledging being founded on slave ownership, and institutions that were built with slave labor. Dr. Murphy shares her work with the University of Virginia, and she and Kenyatta discuss what it's like to work with their own enslaved ancestors and how they have navigated finding records in the past. Dr. Murphy can be found on Twitter with the handle @familytreegirl and her website is familytreegirl.com.The music for this episode, as always, is "Good Vibe," by Ketsa.Please note that link clicks to Amazon.com may contain an affiliate referral, which may earn Kenyatta a referral commission. 

What is modern genealogy? In this conversation with Kenyatta D. Berry, host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow, we cover technology, motivations for starting (and continuing) family history, accessibility, the challenges of enslaved ancestor research, and diversity in the field of genealogy.  It's an episode full of insight, as well as practical takeaways for everyday genealogists, professional researchers, and societies.  You can find the show notes at AmyJohnsonCrow.com/60.

In this episode, Kenyatta D. Berry, host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow, and author of The Family Tree Toolkit  discusses what led her to genealogy, and what her research has led her to find about her own family. The music for this episode is "Good Vibe," by Ketsa. 

Genealogy helps us understand the voices of epistolary history and the missing voices too. Kenyatta D Berry is a professional genealogist, attorney, author, lecturer and TV host. She has extensive knowledge of African American Genealogy and enslaved ancestral research. Her book, The Family Tree Toolkit: A Comprehensive Guide to Uncovering Your Ancestry and Researching Genealogy, is a valuable resource for anyone interested in learning more about their genealogy. It's a wonderful resource guide and also provides helpful steps for how to get started. Kenyatta is a host on PBS' Genealogy Roadshow, where I first saw her. She's a contributor to The New York Time's groundbreaking “1619 project” which commemorates the 400th anniversary of the arrival of enslaved Africans in the colonies. She's also been featured in leading publications, including Black Enterprise, Good Housekeeping, Spartan Magazine, Real Simple, Wall Street Journal and Woman's World. Kenyatta's Contact Info: https://kenyattaberry.com https://kenyattaberry.com/resources http://instagram.com/kenyatta.berry https://m.facebook.com/kenyattadb/

Joshua Taylor, President of the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society (NYG&B) and co-host of Genealogy Roadshow, has had a rich and rewarding career. As one of the younger professionals in the field of genealogy it feels like he's just getting started. View the show notes at: https://www.thegenealogyprofessional.com/d-joshua-taylor   hMlncs4fpWDdMv8SYx2M

You probably know Mary Tedesco from The Genealogy Roadshow, a popular PBS genealogy based program that aired from 2013 to 2016.  But did you know that Mary is also very involved with the Daughters of the American Revolution and is passionate to get more women patriots recognized by the organization.  Women patriots? You're probably wondering if that's possible. It is. One woman, Elizabeth Caldwell Gillam of South Carolina Her photo appears in my Last Muster Series. I talked about her in episode 47  You'll find the link in the show notes.  We discussed how our female ancestors can become recognized patriots. How to prove their contributions and how Mary was able to organize the Hannah Winthrop Chapter of the DAR. About My Guest: Mary Tedesco is a professional genealogist, speaker, author, and co-Host on the PBS television series “Genealogy Roadshow.” She is the Founder of ORIGINS ITALY, a genealogical reseating company specializing in Italian genealogy and heritage travel to Italy. Mary is a proud member of the Daughters of the America Revolution (DAR) and serves as the National Chair of the Service to America Committee, Massachusetts State Organizing Secretary, and Organizing Regent of the Hannah Winthrop Chapter in Boston, MA. Mary can be contacted at www.originsitaly.com. Related Episodes: Episode 47: Women of the Revolution Links and Resources: Information about becoming a DAR member The DAR's Genealogical Research System Diary Sheds Light On Deborah Sampson The Last Muster: Images of the American Revolution Watch my YouTube Channel Like the Facebook Page so you get notified of my Facebook Live videos. Sign up for my newsletter. Need help organizing your photos? Check out the Essential Photo Organizing Video Course. Need help identifying family photos? Check out the Identifying Family Photographs online course. Have a photo you need help identifying? Sign up for photo consultation. About Maureen Taylor: Maureen is a frequent keynote speaker on photo identification, photograph preservation, and family history at historical and genealogical societies, museums, conferences, libraries, and other organizations across the U.S., London and Canada. She's the author of several books and hundreds of articles and her television appearances include The View and The Today Show (where she researched and presented a complete family tree for host Meredith Vieira). She's been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Better Homes and Gardens, The Boston Globe, Martha Stewart Living, Germany's top newspaper Der Spiegel, American Spirit, and The New York Times. Maureen was recently a spokesperson and photograph expert for MyHeritage.com, an internationally known family history website and also writes guidebooks, scholarly articles and online columns for such media as Smithsonian.com. Learn more at Maureentaylor.com

"Recreational Genetics" are a thing. Apparently, an estimated 26 million people worldwide have dug into their ancestry with the help of at-home DNA kits such as Ancestry or 23andMe . But finding your family story requires more than learning ethnic percentages from a DNA swab. That's where genealogist Kenyatta Berry comes in. She's a lawyer and co-host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow. Berry visited On Second Thought to talk about her new book, The Family Tree Toolkit: A Comprehensive Guide to Uncovering Your Ancestry and Researching Genealogy.

If you are a fan of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow, you know who Kenyatta Berry is. If you are on Genie Twitter, you know who Kenyatta Berry is. If you have been to, or seen talks from, SLIG or RootsTech, you know who Kenyatta Berry is. And if you're one of the many people who've bought The Family Tree Toolkit, you know who Kenyatta Berry is. But if you don't, this interview is a great chance to get to know her - she's an author, a researcher, a speaker, and a TV host. She's also very funny and candid. Listen and enjoy as she discusses her relationship with FTDNA, her writing process, her ongoing book tour, and whether or not Genealogy Roadshow will be returning for another season on PBS in the United States (you can watch it with subscription on Amazon Prime, or for $1.99 USD per episode on YouTube, iTunes and Google Play, as well). SPOILER ALERT: in this episode, audience participation is required!!! Please rate and review the podcast on your podcast provider, at https://apple.co/2MLZW4H, at facebook.com/AncestorsAliveGenealogy, or at Thumbtack.com. Hire me for American genealogical research, teaching, and forensic genealogy at ancestorsalivegenealogy.com. Only $50/hr, with a free consultation! If you want to be on the podcast from ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD using the Zoom platform and a good mic and earphones (how about that Family Cookbook series??), you can contact me at https://bit.ly/2Kxb6rm. Stop by the website at ancestorsalivegenealogy.com, IG @ancestorsalivegenealogy and Twitter @ancestorsalive Sponsor the podcast at patreon.com/AncestorsAlive for super-fantastic rewards, including SWAG for different levels of sponsorship. Subscribe to the YouTube channel at https://bit.ly/2lmhYha and the newsletter at paper.li/AncestorsAlive/1557599531. Check out my Zazzle shop at zazzle.com/store/fppppodcast for the aforementioned swag. Subscribe: RSS | Acast | Apple Podcasts | iHeartRADIO | Listen Notes | Soundcloud | Spotify | Spreaker| Stitcher| YouTube | TuneIn | Deezer

with Lisa Louise Cooke GEM: A Conversation with Kenyatta D. Berry (Genealogy Roadshow) Get ready for a fun and inspiring start to your new genealogy year. I'm not going to lecture you about how to get organized and all that – you get enough of that New Year banter other places. Today I'm going to bring you a talented lady who's a sharp genealogist and just happens to be one of the hosts of the television series Genealogy Road show., Kenyatta Berry. I had the pleasure of working with Kenyatta Berry last summer when we filmed a webinar together at the FGS national conference. She was beaming from ear to ear about the book she was working on, and I encouraged her get in touch with me when it was done so we could talk about it here on the show. Well, the book turned out to be a beauty: it's called The Family Tree Toolkit. It's a great overview for those new to genealogy, and  a quick reference manual for more experienced genealogists with all of its charts and resource lists. Kenyatta asked me to moderate her Dallas book tour event. In December of 2018 we met up at the Dallas main library in downtown Dallas for An Evening with Kenyatta. This was a wonderful opportunity to not only spend the evening with her and a room full of dedicated genealogists, but also to record it all and bring it you! In today's episode, Kenyatta Berry shares how she caught the genealogy bug, busting brick walls, her thoughts on DNA, and of course some of the most memorable experiences on the Genealogy Roadshow. Kenyatta Berry's book If you enjoyed this episode and want to get a copy of Kenyatta's book, we appreciate when you use our link (above). This financially supports us at no extra cost to you, helping us to bring this free podcast to you each month. Thank you! GEM: A Family History Discovery in Home Movies I made an amazing discovery this week thanks to my guest Dr. David Haas from . As you'll recall David shared his family's history of making home movies, and the hours of old film footage dating all the way back to the 1920s that he had restored and digitized. His story inspired me to start digging through my closets and I found the cannisters of 8mm film that I had converted to VHS back in the 1990s.  The problem with that first conversion is that 1) VHS is completely obsolete. And 2) the film which dated back to the 1960s was converted in its deteriorated state. It was washed out and grainy making it hard to see everything. So, in December I sent those original films off to the same company that David used – in Chandler, AZ. Right after the new year the fully restored and digitized files arrived on my doorstep along with the original films. The results are jaw-dropping. The film is gorgeous color just like David's were, clear as the first day they were taken back in the ‘60s, and now finally in a digital format that I can use for all kinds of projects and sharing. But here's the kicker, in reviewing them I made a startling discovery. About 20 minutes into the film my great grandfather came on the screen. This is the only known film of him in existence, and I was floored that I hadn't spotted him before. But the VHS was so washed out it wasn't obvious. Now I see him smiling and standing with his son (my grandfather) and his son (my uncle). Three generations of Burkett men, the oldest having been born in 1880 – and all there on film for me to see. Left to right: My uncle, my great grandfather, and my grandfather c. 1962. View the restored video on I love finding genealogical documents but I would take moving images of my ancestors any day of the week over a document. It just goes to prove that you can never say never, that at any given moment something can surface that you never thought possible. Thank you to Video Conversion Experts! They did a phenomenal job, but that's not surprising because they are one of the top labs in the country. They restore video for the movie and TV industry too. They offer varying levels of restoration. It's not cheap, but if you need professional restoration it's an investment you won't regret. I certainly don't. We don't have a promo code with Video Conversion Experts but be sure and tell them you heard about them here on the podcast and sign up for their sale emails. In fact, we received this comment on the episode from Jodi. She writes: The episode about home movies and David Haas was wonderful. I had also found some old film footage when my parents moved back in 2011. I debated about getting them transferred to digital because of the price. But my father was just diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. I am SO glad that I spent the money to get the project done. He was able to see the old films of his family and explain to me who some of the people were. What a gift! Thank you for encouraging people to do this and sharing all of your knowledge with us so graciously. Here's a link to her old family videos:  I took a look at Jodi's videos, and they're wonderful. She did a tremendous job with the documentation in the video descriptions. Absolutely brilliant the way she included the linked time stamps to the various videos that she had posted to YouTube. She really took to heart our follow up conversation in about how to share the videos once you digitize them. Larsen Digital Saves Money and Handles a Variety of Media Yesterday I received a batch of VHS tapes that converted for me. I've known Kristen Larsen for several years. They offer an excellent affordable option that is safe, reliable and great quality. They also really stand out because they can pretty much convert anything you have. I sent them VHS, Mini DVs and even a reel of audio tape and some cassettes of family interviews. They handled all of it affordably and Kristin and her team communicate with you along the way, so you can rest easy that all your precious memories is in good hands. I have about a zillion family history projects I want to do now that I have these audio interviews in an mp3 digital format. My first plan is to create some Animoto videos where I can drag and drop the audio in with the scanned photos that they describe. You can contact Larsen Digital at   Use the promo code GENGEM so you can get 15% off your order. View My Video Find on InstagramHead to (image right) to see the restored video of my great grandfather. Instagram is my favorite social media platform and one that I post to personally nearly every day. You can download the app to your phone for free from your app store and then just search for Lisa Louise Cooke in the app and tap follow. I post genealogy tips and ideas, behind the scenes and stuff about me and my family. It's a lot of fun!   More with Kenyatta Berry We're going to have a lot of fun this year! In the next Genealogy Gems Premium podcast episode (#167). Premium members will hear the Q&A we did with Kenyatta after the interview was over. If you're not a member yet, you can fix that today at

An interview with Kenyatta D. Berry, cohost of Genealogy Roadshow. Discussion of Kenyatta's new book, "The Family Tree Toolkit, a Comprehensive Guide to Uncovering Your Ancestry and Researching Genealogy." You can find her book on Amazon here https://amzn.to/2LiI5ll

Host Scott Fisher opens the show with David Allen Lambert, Chief Genealogist of the New England Historic Genealogical Society and AmericanAncestors.com. The guys start by talking about the strange way in which David received his names. Then, the guys talk about the controversy of using DNA to help solve cold cases, and a great article on genetic genealogy from Bloomberg. How many different types of discoveries have been made from DNA? David maps out a diverse hodgepodge of discoveries. DNA testing is now moving on to animals and plants. David has the details. David then shares great news for Irish researchers. David’s Blogger Spotlight shines on the UK’s Caryn Cummings at ProfessionalFamilyHistory.co.uk/blog. Karen blogs about “demystifying DNA.”   Next, Fisher catches up with Kenyatta Berry, well known for her time on “Genealogy Roadshow” on PBS. Kenyatta is one of America’s foremost experts on African-American and slave research. She has just come out with a new book, though, for everyone. It’s called “The FamilyTree Toolkit: A Comprehensive Guide To Uncovering Your Ancestry And Researching Genealogy.” Kenyatta shares her genealogical journey and explains some of the concepts you’ll find in her book that you won’t find anywhere else.   Then, the director of the Family History Center in Phoenix, Arizona, visits with Fisher about a certain suitcase that made itself known to the staff at the Center. And what was in that suitcase led them on quite a genealogical adventure.   Tom Perry takes the week off this week as we talk preservation. Filling in is Randy Fredlund from Vivid-Pix. Randy is a long standing photo expert and former employee of Kodak. He explains some of the reasons your photos change colors, fade, or lose contrast. And some of those things you can actually do something about.   That’s all this week on Extreme Genes, America’s Family History Show!      

Libertyville local mystery author Gail Lukasik discovered a family secret that led her on an extraordinary personal journey through America’s complicated racial history. After appearing on PBS’s Genealogy Roadshow, Lukasik began recounting her memories and compiling her research into a book. White Like Her was published last week and Gail stopped by our Digital Studios to…

The Genealogy Gems Podcast Episode 207 with Lisa Louise Cooke In this episode, Lisa welcomes Mary Tedesco, a co-host of PBS' Genealogy Roadshow. Mary shares stories and tips about tracing Italian and Italian-American roots. Also: FamilySearch updates since the end of microfilm lending (and how YOU helped make the last days of lending more effective); A listener uses Google to find her mysterious great-grandmother, with a success story she calls a “game-changer” for her genealogy research. GET THE APP If you haven't downloaded the Genealogy Gems app for easier listening on your mobile device, consider doing so now. If you're listening through the Genealogy Gems app, your bonus content for this episode is…. The and is only $2.99 for Windows, iPhone and iPad users.   NEWS: FAMILYSEARCH RECORDS ACCESS UPDATE ALL of the microfilmed records that have been rented in the past 5 years have now been digitized, over 1.5 million films. From now on, if you need a film that hasn't been digitized yet, you can call FamilySearch Support toll-free (866-406-1830) and request it for the priority digitization list. They continue to digitally scan about 1000 films per day. (That sounds like a lot, but at this rate it will still take them until 2020 to be done.) New digital images are being put in the FamilySearch Catalog as soon as possible. This is not the main digital record search area! It will take collections a while to appear here. Instead, under the Search tab, select Catalog, and then search by place and record type or other categories. This is a master catalog of all the Family History Library's collections, online and offline, and when you click on an item's individual description, you'll be able to see a link to its digitized version if it's available. If you or anyone else had any films on loan in family history centers and FamilySearch affiliate libraries when the lending program ended, those automatically have extended loan status, which means they can stay there indefinitely unless the management decides to send them back. If all else fails, you can still go to the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, UT and order microfilmed records to view, or you can hire someone to do it for you. FamilySearch Affiliate libraries now have access to nearly all of the restricted image collections as family history centers. to read or listen to Lisa's special interview with Diane Loosle of FamilySearch. It goes into much more detail about accessing records on the site, at affiliate libraries and more. to read the August 30, 2017 update from FamilySearch. To save 30% off a Care.com Premium membership, visit  when you subscribe.   I had so much fun opening the box. They even sent me an apron! Visit and use promo code gems30 to save $30 off your first week of deliveries.   NEWS: FREE WEBINAR 9/23 LIVE FROM NYC Lisa Louise Cooke's Genealogy Gems presents: Reveal Your Unique Story through DNA & Family History Sponsored by Animoto Saturday, September 23, 2017 11:00 AM EST Register now Turn DNA results into your family history Turn your family history into a compelling story Turn your compelling story into a video! Learn from Lisa Louise Cooke, Diahan Southard and Animoto's Beth Forester: - Your DNA testing options (there are more than you think), and possible outcomes - The best free resources for going beyond DNA, back several generations in your family (quickly!) - Creative ideas for filling in the story gaps - How to expand your story in ways you never expected by finding DNA connections - Share the story you've uncovered with the world through riveting video Can't attend live? to receive the slides and the video recording afterward. Lisa chat with Hannah about Hurricane Harvey Keep your family history research, photos, tree software files, videos and all other computer files safely backed up with Backblaze, the official cloud-based computer backup system for Lisa Louise Cooke's Genealogy Gems. Learn more at .   MAILBOX: KRISTIN'S SUCCESS STORY “Among the handful of mystery photographs of my grandmother as a child and the strangers who sat beside her, was a brief article from a newspaper. It was a lesson in manners, titled ‘Silence is Golden' and it was written by Merton Markert, a student of the Modern Classics. A photo of a young woman with a disheveled Gibson hairdo was attached.” by Lisa Louise Cooke teaches the search strategies you need to do searches like these. Try ! Lisa found a listing for a commencement program from 1902, old post cards of the school, and other yearbooks from Lancaster High School. Sign up for a free Ebay account, run a search, and then click to Follow the search. You will then be alerted to future auctions that match your criteria. for tips on finding yearbooks and other school records. Genealogy Gems Premium member perk: has great tips for using Ebay to find family history treasures. to learn more about Premium membership.     INTERVIEW: MARY TEDESCO MARY M. Tedesco is a professional genealogist, speaker, and author. She is a host and genealogist on PBS' Genealogy Roadshow” and Founder of . Mary speaks fluent Italian and travels often to Italy to conduct client genealogical research and visit family. She is co-author of .             to watch a free interview with Mary Tedesco with more tips on doing Italian genealogy research.   GENEALOGY GEMS BOOK CLUB by Helene Stapinski tells the story of the author's journey to Italy to learn the truth behind the family stories about her Italian ancestors. Tune in to later this month to hear an excerpt from a conversation with Helene Stapinski. (The entire interview will play in .)    MILITARY MINUTES: DRAFT REGISTRATIONS INTRODUCING MICHAEL STRAUSS Michael Strauss, AG is the principal owner of and an Accredited Genealogist since 1995. He is a native of Pennsylvania and a resident of Utah and has been an avid genealogist for more than 30 years. Strauss holds a BA in History and is a United States Coast Guard veteran. BONUS handout to celebrate this new segment: for a 4-page handout on U.S. draft registration records by Michael L. Strauss. FREE NEWSLETTER: Enter your email & get my Google Research e-bookas a thank you gift! to receive a free weekly e-mail newsletter, with tips, inspiration and money-saving deals.    

The Genealogy Gems Podcast Episode #205 with Lisa Louise Cooke This episode breaks two huge pieces of genealogy news and shares two great conversations: FamilySearch ends microfilm lending:  how you can get the records you need; RootsMagic adds Ancestry.com compatibility: sync your Ancestry.com tree to your master RootsMagic file and search Ancestry.com from within the software; Melissa Barker, the Archive Lady, talks about visiting archives to explore original manuscript record treasures; Nicole Dyer shares a fun family history activity idea to do with kids—do you have a family gathering coming up that could use this inspiration? A SURPRISE IN MY MAILBOX! NEWS NEW PREMIUM VIDEO! Lisa Louise Cooke shows you how to use the free Google Earth Pro software to create your own historic map collection customized for your genealogy and family history research. By the end of this class you'll have a permanent collection of hundreds of gorgeous historic and vintage maps from around the world, organized and ready to use for family history. to watch a free preview of this full-length video class. Genealogy Gems Premium website members can watch the whole thing: to learn more. LISA: I thought the resolution of the jpg version wasn't good, so I just left this ad as text. The 4th Annual Northwest Genealogy Conference This episode today is brought to you by the 4rd Annual Northwest Genealogy Conference, hosted by the Stillaguamish Valley Genealogical Society, north of Seattle in Arlington, WA. Centering on the theme, “Where Does Your Story Begin?” it's four days PACKED full of genealogy. There will be well-known and respected keynote speakers, including our friend and genetic genealogist Diahan Southard, speaking on DNA; Kenyatta Berry of Genealogy Roadshow fame, speaking on Caribbean research and using slave schedules in research; and Daniel Earl speaking on Putting History in Your Family History. Starting off with the Free Day Wednesday afternoon, Speaker Peggy Lauritzen will address beginner's issues in her Genealogy 101 presentation, which is also a good refresher for the more seasoned genealogists.  There will be such great genealogical information for all levels, AND it'll be lot of fun! Between classes take a chance to meet a distant cousin with the “Cousin Wall”. Participate in the genealogy-related scavenger hunt, the Wednesday evening meet and greet and the Friday dress-as-your-ancestor day, and much, much more! Go to  for details and to register. Check it out now -- registrations are limited, so it's good to get in early. It's August 16-19, 2017. It'll be a great show: don't miss it! INTERVIEW: MELISSA BARKER, THE ARCHIVE LADY Melissa Barker is a Certified Archives Records Manager, the Houston County, Tennessee Archivist and author of the popular blog and bi-weekly advice column . She has been researching her own family history for the past 27 years. Preserve your own family archive: Items in danger: Original items in attics, basements What to preserve first: The most precious and original items you have! Restoration tips: Clean documents and photos with archival sponges. Lay the item perfectly flat. Gently place a finger or hand to hold it steady. Work with the sponge from the center outward, in small sections. Keep two-dimensional items as flat as possible. Encase fragile items in Mylar sleeves (buy from archival supply companies). Visiting an archive: Call ahead! Don't trust the operational hours from the website. Ask about parking – it's often very limited. Ask ahead about access to archival items of interest. Archive etiquette: Follow the rules. Be courteous when working with staff. Museums, societies, archives, and libraries may all have collections in back rooms you can't see—but you can ask for them. Vertical Files – in folders in cabinets Manuscript Collections – underused in genealogy! Ask for finding aid. Loose Records – the working papers of a court case, for example Unprocessed Records – not yet incorporated into the official collection Tips for using your mobile devices in archives: Ask for procedures for taking photos with your own device. There may be rules against this or a use fee. Capture the source information by photographs: cover page, page number, folder, box number, manuscript collection name, etc. BONUS CONTENT for Genealogy Gems App Users If you're listening through the Genealogy Gems app, your bonus audio content for this episode comes from Melissa Barker, the Archive Lady,  with more about finding and using original manuscript records in your genealogy research. The and is only $2.99 for . Lisa Louise Cooke uses and recommends family history software. From within RootsMagic, you can search historical records on FamilySearch.org, Findmypast.com and MyHeritage.com. RootsMagic is now fully integrated with Ancestry.com, too: you can sync your RootsMagic trees with your Ancestry.com trees and search records on the site. Learn more about Keep your family history research, photos, tree software files, videos and all other computer files safely backed up with , the official cloud-based computer backup system for Lisa Louise Cooke's Genealogy Gems. Learn more at .   INTERVIEW: NICOLE DYER Nicole has been researching her ancestors and delighting in their stories for the past 15 years. Nicole volunteers at the Tucson Family History Center teaching a family history story time group for young children.    Lisa suggested the free program Jing for video screen capturing: (Full disclosure: this podcast blog contains affiliate links. We will be compensated if you make a purchase through our link. Isn't that an awesome way to help keep the free podcast free?!) and start a free trial Start creating fabulous, irresistible videos about your family history with Animoto.com. You don't need special video-editing skills: just drag and drop your photos and videos, pick a layout and music, add a little text and voila! You've got an awesome video! Try this out for yourself at .  is the place to make connections with relatives overseas, particularly with those who may still live in your ancestral homeland. : it's free to get started. GENEALOGY GEMS BOOK CLUB: A FAMILY HISTORY MURDER MYSTERY! Journalist Helene Stapinski's new family history memoir:   A story of poverty and power, love, tragic decisions, and a courageous and desperate woman's leap for a new life across the ocean continues to unravel a past Helene explored in her fantastic first family history memoir, . Find a whole list of fabulous family history-inspired reading at the   PRODUCTION CREDITS Lisa Louise Cooke, Host and Producer Sunny Morton, Editor Vienna Thomas, Associate Producer Lacey Cooke, Service "Happiness" Manager

Mary Tedesco is best known for her appearances as one of the hosts on Genealogy Roadshow.  She specializes in Italian and immigration research. To learn more about Mary, visit originsitaly.com.

MARY M. TEDESCO is a professional genealogist, speaker, and author. She is a Host / Genealogist on the PBS TV series “Genealogy Roadshow” (season 2 & season 3) as well as the Founder of ORIGINS ITALY. Mary speaks fluent Italian and travels often to Italy to conduct client genealogical research and visit family. Mary is the co-author of “Tracing Your Italian Ancestors” an 84-page Italian research guide published by Moorshead Magazines. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics from Boston University and a Certificate in Genealogical Research from Boston University’s Center for Professional Education. In addition to her Italian ancestry (Calabria, Trentino-Alto Adige, and Tuscany) on her father’s side, she also has deep American roots (German, Irish, Danish & English) on her mother’s side and is a proud member of the Daughters of the American Revolution. Mary is a member of a number of local and national genealogical societies.  She holds a BA, Mathematics from Boston University and a Certificate in Genealogical Research from Boston University’s Center for Professional Education. She is a member of many local and national genealogical societies.

 Join Host Pam Kroskie and her guest CeCe Moore on Tuesday August 16th @ 7 pm EST. CeCe Moore is the genetic genealogy consultant for the PBS television series “Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates, Jr.” Her work has also been featured on "20/20", "Genealogy Roadshow", "Nightline", "Good Morning America", "Crime Watch Daily", "Nancy Grace", "CBS This Morning" and "The Doctors", as well as being quoted in many online and print publications.  Her primary focus is promoting genetic genealogy education and sharing positive stories about the power of genetic genealogy through the media

Mary Tedesco Mary Tedesco is a professional genealogist, speaker, and author. She is a Host / Genealogist on the PBS TV series “Genealogy Roadshow” (season 2 & season 3) as well as the Founder of ORIGINS ITALY. Mary speaks fluent Italian and travels often to Italy to conduct client genealogical research and visit family. Mary is the co-author of “Tracing Your Italian Ancestors” an 84-page Italian research guide published by Moorshead Magazines. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics from Boston University and a Certificate in Genealogical Research from Boston University's Center for Professional Education. In addition to her Italian ancestry (Calabria, Trentino-Alto Adige, and Tuscany) on her father's side, she also has deep American roots (German, Irish, Danish & English) on her mother's side and is a proud member of the Daughters of the American Revolution. Mary is a member of a number of local and national genealogical societies. Contact Links Website – ORIGINS ITALY Facebook – Mary Tedesco Twitter –  @originsitaly Instagram – @originsitaly LinkedIn – Mary Tedesco Other Links Genealogy Roadshow Boston University Center for Professional Education Online Certificate in Genealogical Research National Genealogy Society Family History Conference One Action Genealogists Can Take Right Now “Education, education, education. Sign up for a seminar or a conference tonight.” Recommended Book Genealogy as Pastime and Profession by Donald L. Jacobus Productivity Tool Excel to sort client and personal data Advice “Never give up. Your dreams are achievable. Make big dreams, big goals, and go for it.” Action Item One of the most important things that Mary said was to figure out what is unique about you. That is a critical part of owning a business. What separates you from everyone else that provides the same service. If you're a Massachusetts researcher, what separates you from the next Massachusetts researcher? Is it that you focus on Colonial research? Or perhaps you focus on people with Irish heritage in Massachusetts. Or maybe your specialty is Massachusetts military records. Figure out the thing that makes you unique. ACTION: Your action item this week is to figure out what is unique about you. How are you different from everyone else in your broad niche? And then take it a step further by determining how you can communicate that uniqueness either on your website or your professional profile or your social media profiles. Because it won't do you any good to keep your uniqueness to yourself! Direct link to this post: http://www.thegenealogyprofessional.com/mary-tedesco/ NEWS The APG Professional Management Conference September 22-24, 2016 in Fort Wayne, Indiana at the Allen County Public Library www.apgen.org/conference New TGP Class: “Who Really Visits My Blog and Website: A close look at web analytics and tracking” Tuesday, May 31, 2016 at 12pm noon New York time Most of you have heard of Google Analytics. Did you know that you can use Google Analytics to track your Blogger blog and even your YouTube channel? In addition to all the great information that Google Analytics provides you can take it one step further using a tool called utm tracking. It's free just like Google Analytics and I'm going to show you how to get started and why it's so powerful to use. And it's not just for professionals. Anyone with a blog, website or YouTube channel that wants more information about who is visiting their site will be able to make use of this.  This is not a free webinar, the cost is $24.99 but it will take you to the next level. And if you can't watch it live you can still sign up to get the replay and handout.

The Total Tutor Neil Haley will interview PBS "Genealogy Roadshow" Stars  Joshua Taylor  &  Mary Tedesco. Premieres May 17 at 8 p.m. ET on PBS ARLINGTON, VA; APRIL 19, 2016 – From possible links to the accused in the Salem Witch Trials to heroes of the Wild West, PBS' GENEALOGY ROADSHOW uncovers more family secrets in the series' third season, which premieres Tuesday, May 17, 2016, at 8:00 p.m. ET and airs Tuesdays through June 28 (check local listings). Part detective story, part emotional journey, GENEALOGY ROADSHOW combines history and science to uncover fascinating stories of diverse Americans this season in and around Albuquerque, Miami, Houston, Boston, Providence and Los Angeles. Each story links to the larger regional (and often, national) history, to become part of America's rich cultural tapestry.  See a season three clip here. GENEALOGY ROADSHOW's professional genealogists Kenyatta D. Berry, Joshua Taylor and Mary Tedesco are matched with everyday people whose unique family claims are explored in each episode. Among this season's mysteries: A man seeks to find out if he is descended from Boston's key founders; a woman explores connections to an ancestor's participation in the Manhattan Project; a couple hopes to recover the true story of their family pharmacy during Hollywood's Golden Age; and a woman learns of her family's involvement in the Trail of Tears.    

Fisher opens the show with David Allen Lambert, Chief Genealogist of the New England Historic and Genealogical Society and AmericanAncestors.org.  Their "Family Histoire News" starts with the story of a World War II vet in his 90s who had a reunion with a man he rescued from Dachau concentration camp at the end of World War II.  You'll want to hear their story.  Then it's talk about hair... long, beautiful HAIR!  It was Thomas Jefferson's.  And it has sold at auction.  How many strands?  What did it go for?  We'll tell you!  America's oldest veteran has turned 110.  Who is he and where did he serve?  Listen to the podcast.  David's Tip of the Week concerns school photographs, but wait til you hear what Fisher did with some of his father's.  And of course David shares another NEHGS Tip of the Week. Mary Tedesco of the PBS series "Genealogy Roadshow" then joins Fisher to talk about their third season!  Mary will tell you about what they're up to on the show this year, and give you a little history of how she came to be one of the hosts.  She'll also share some tips on Italian genealogy and a great story about her Italian grandmother. Next, Fisher shares a genealogy breakthrough he just had after decades of effort.  It was capped off with a DNA match to a sixth great grandparent couple.  But Fisher is concerned that a match from that far back is something less than a confirmation.  Enter Paul Woodbury, DNA analyst from LegacyTree.com.  Paul and Fisher discuss the math behind when a match is most significant and when it's not so much.  How significant is Fisher's match?  Don't miss this segment. Then Tom Perry, the Preservation Authority, visits talking about the importance of knowing who your end users are going to be when deciding how to digitize your materials.  He'll explain why it can affect how you choose to format your materials, and how much money it's going to cost you! That's all this week on Extreme Genes, America's Family History Show!

Join Genealogist Judy Riffel and Patricia Bayonne-Johnson- a descendant of one of the Georgetown slaves for a discussion of the Georgetown Memory project. The Georgetown slaves were unusual in two ways, according to Georgetown Memory Project Founder Richard Cellini. First, they were baptized by Jesuits and kept the faith; second, they had both first and last names, whereas most slaves only had one name. During her search, the last name Butler stood out to Bayonne-Johnson. Judy Riffel is a professional genealogist with over thirty-five years experience. Based in Baton Rouge, she specializes in Louisiana records and research. Judy has done genealogical and historical research for numerous television shows and documentaries. Her work has appeared on Who Do You Think You Are?, Finding Your Roots, Genealogy Roadshow, The Dead Files, and Killer Profile. She is the lead genealogist in the Georgetown Memory Project Patricia Bayonne-Johnson, a 75-year-old retired biology teacher lives in Spokane, Wash., after growing up in New Orleans and living for 40 years in the San Francisco Bay Area. Today, she volunteers and travels — and in her spare time, researches her past.  

Fisher opens the show with Family Histoire News talking about the upcoming season of Genealogy Roadshow. He discloses which cities the Roadshow team will visit this year. He then talks about the amazing discovery of the remains of a Roman villa underneath a barn in England. Here how it was discovered and what is happening to the site now. Fisher then shares the sad tale of the 1838 sale of over 230 African slaves by Jesuit priests in Washington DC. Here why they were sold, and which well known university exists today because its debts were paid by the sale. Also hear about why major efforts are being made to find their descendants.   In segment two, Fisher visits with actor Sam Roukin who plays Captain John Graves Simcoe in the AMC series “TURN: Washington’s Spies.” Sam talks about his development of this despicable character, based on a real historic figure. Sam also talks about his immersion in the history of the Revolution.   In segment three, Fisher continues his conversation with Sam Roukin. Sam talks about what responsibility he feels to the real man and how he squares the character he portrays with the man who did some very good things after the Revolution. Sam also reveals that, despite being very British and portraying a brutal British officer in the Revolution, he is likely to do something in the not so distant future that will please many Americans.   Tom Perry then returns, the Preservation Authority, to talk about some special programs he is analyzing for personal use in editing video and digitized home movies. Some of the things these programs can do could only have been done in Hollywood just a few years ago!   That’s all this week on Extreme Genes, America’s Family History Show!

You can listen to the episode by clicking the player above or clicking here to subscribe on iTunes. Have you ever wanted to research your Italian American Genealogy? Well, in this episode, we interview Mary Tedesco, an Italian Genealogy expert on how to get started in researching your Italian Genealogy. Episode Guest: Here’s an introduction to this episode’s guest Mary Tedesco. She is: A professional genealogist, speaker, and author. Host and Genealogist on the PBS TV series “Genealogy Roadshow” (seasons 2 and 3) as well as the Founder of ORIGINS ITALY. Fluent in Italian and travels often to Italy to conduct client genealogical research and visit family. The co-author of Tracing Your Italian Ancestors an 84-page Italian research guide published by Moorshead Magazines. Holds a Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics from Boston University and a Certificate in Genealogical Research from Boston University’s Center for Professional Education. In addition to her Italian ancestry (Calabria, Trentino-Alto Adige, and Tuscany) on her father’s side, she also has deep American roots (German, Irish, Danish & English) on her mother’s side and is a proud member of the Daughters of the American Revolution. Mary is a member of a number of local and national genealogical societies. She can be contacted at www.originsitaly.com.

Episode 178 Lisa Louise Cooke Niche record collections that might just be what you are looking for. Interview with genetic genealogist CeCe Moore about using DNA for genealogy research, adoption, and the Finding Your Roots TV show. Announcement of the Genealogy Gems Book Club book for the 2nd quarter of 2015. A listener shares an update on adoption records in Ohio.   NEWS: RECORDS CANADIAN MENNONITE PHOTO ARCHIVE: is now online with over 80,000 images of Mennonite life from across Canada and dating back to 1860s. says that the archive “is a project of the Mennonite Historical Society of Canada  and includes Mennonite archival partners in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Ontario.” An online ordering system allows visitors to order image copies for noncommercial use. GEORGIA NEWSPAPERS: The Digital Library of Georgia  “The North Georgia Historic Newspapers Archive provides online access to six newspaper titles published in three north Georgia cities (Dalton, Gainesville, and Rome) from 1850 to 1922. Consisting of over 33,000 newspaper pages, the archive provides historical images that are both full-text searchable and can be browsed by date. The site is compatible with all current browsers and the newspaper page images can be viewed without the use of plug-ins or additional software downloads. The archive includes the following north Georgia newspaper titles: Gainesville News (1902-1922), Georgia Cracker (Gainesville) (1894-1902), North Georgia Citizen (Dalton) (1868-1921), Rome Courier (1850-1855), Rome Tri-Weekly Courier (1860-1880), Rome Weekly Courier (1860-1878). The Digital Library of Georgia will add additional titles from the region over time. OHIO GENEALOGY INDEX. The Western Reserve Historical Society in Cleveland, OH has created an online to some of its most valuable and unique genealogical records, including original funeral home and Bible records. Also in the index are Jewish marriages and death notices, an index of names in a significant African-American manuscript collection, a 1907 Cleveland voter registration index, a photo database of Cleveland military personnel from WWII and the Korean War and a biographical sketch name index. Currently, there are about 320,000 records in the index; more are being added on an ongoing basis. The Society primarily archives records relating to Cleveland and northeast Ohio. Soon to be added are indexes to the 1870 mortality census for Ashtabula, Ohio and indexes to several church records collections. WWII CADET NURSING CORPS (US): The , new on Fold3, contain membership cards of women who joined. According to Fold3, the cards “are organized by state, nursing school, and cadet name. Some cards include the date of admission to the school, date of admission to the corps, and date of graduation (or date of other reason for termination from the school). Others contain details like the woman's marital status, father's/husband's name and profession, years of college completed, place of residence, and how they heard about the corps. Still others also record the woman's age in addition to the previously mentioned information.” MICHIGAN DEATHS. Images of Michigan death certificates from 1921-1939 are now available for free at . “The index for records from 1940-1952 will be made available in the next few weeks, with additional certificate images to be released each year as privacy restrictions are lifted (1940 images will be released in January 2016),” says a press release. NEW ZEALAND ORAL HISTORIES. A new  is now available. “The aim of this website is to capture this rich history and create a resource that nurses, students, academics and family members can access in order to gain a better understanding of nursing history in New Zealand,” says the site's home page. The site contains a “large collection of oral histories including abstracts, recordings, photos and other information. These histories have been collected from nurses who trained during the 1950s and 1960s and capture both the everyday elements of nursing practice along with some of the more unusual. Here you are able to listen to stories, read brief abstracts, and view photos of the nurses.” Got a story to tell? They are accepting new interviews. There's also a section on hospitals and one on nursing uniforms. WWI WOMEN. FindMyPast has posted over 9,500 UK records that illustrate the various roles played by woman during the Frist World War. These include: §  . It's a relatively small collection but rich in material on each woman. §   (ADM 318) details the service history of women who served as officers in the Women's Royal Naval Service during the First World War. §    contains the details of nearly 7,000 enlisted women who served as Wrens during the First World War. §   is an index of 31,090 Women's Royal Air Force service records held by The National Archives.                 MAILBOX: Adoption: Recently Genealogy Gems Premium member Katharine wrote in this with newsworthy gem: “Recent adoption records are being released in Ohio. Such an exciting time for those adoptees yearning to connect with their bloodlines! Before the bill took effect, they allowed birth mothers to redact their names. Out of 400,000 only around 110 took them up on that.  There's also a preference form with the birth records where the mother can request not to be contacted. I wonder how often that might not be respected.  It's such an interesting situation for someone to be in.” Thanks for the news, Katharine. She sent us this link to a local news story that covers the story. Want to learn more about accessing adoption records in any state? Check out the  at the FamilySearch wiki for a terrific overview and helpful links. Also, try running a Google search for the name of the state and  the keywords adoption and genealogy. You'll find lots of great resources, like  on adoption records at the Pennsylvania state library or  from the State Historical Society of Missouri. The right Google search can shorten your search for the records you want! This tip brought to you by the newly-published, fully-revised and updated 2nd edition of by Lisa Louise Cooke.                 GEM: CeCe Moore on DNA CeCe writes the popular award-winning blog “Your Genetic Genealogist” and is a well-known speaker. Currently she is working as the genetic genealogy consultant for two PBS television shows “Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates, Jr.” and “Genealogy Roadshow”. She serves as the lead “Ancestry Advisor” to 23andMe and is the Co-Director of the Global Adoptee Genealogy Project. She is frequently consulted by and quoted in the press in regard to the emerging personal genomics industry.   GEM: Genealogy Gems Book Club We got excellent response from readers and listeners about Orphan Train, our first quarter book. Book Club member and listener Karen  said, “I just finished "Orphan Train" and thought it was very good. It's hard to believe that children were treated like that. I've often thought while doing my own genealogy research that it's amazing any of us are here at all given the difficult lives many of our ancestors lived.” But now it's time to talk about our next Genealogy Gems Book Club selection. Our next book is , the most recent book in a mystery series by British author .     In , we meet the hero of the series, Morton Farrier. He's a forensic genealogist whose cases are usually quite tame, but occasionally he takes on a job that leads him into dark and dangerous corners of the past and the present. He reminds me a bit of that famous fictional British detective, Sid Halley in Dick Francis' books, because Morton takes at least a punch or a bullet and threats to his personal life in just about every episode. Fortunately his girlfriend is a police officer in training, so she doesn't mind these occupational hazards so much. Morton is hired to find out what happened to his client's great-aunt Mary, who disappeared without a trace a century ago. A tame enough premise, but then we get to the historical setting of her life story: a grand English estate where she's a maid who's thinking above her status. This is a drama that will speak to Downtown Abbey lovers for sure. With her proximity to a grand family comes proximity to money and power, which have a definite effect on how Mary's story unfolds. We follow Morton to his favorite research haunts—where he scuffles with his nemesis, a grumpy librarian and envy his budget, which allows him to order vital records at will by express mail. Maybe we don't envy the lumps and risks he takes, but they're fun to read. The Lost Ancestor has a different feel than our previous two books, best-sellers that were a little more literary. I hope you will find it a welcome change of pace. This is a genealogy-specific find and a great choice for both men and women. It's an excellent pick for holidays, weekend relaxing, or curling up indoors or outdoors, whatever the weather permits in your corner of the world. My hammock just went up, and it's still hanging there empty and hopeful for it to warm up just a little more.   CLOSING Visit the Genealogy Gems YouTube Channel             Please SUBSCRIBE while you're there. Check out our new video son Evernote and DNA.    

  Problem Solving in Genealogical Research (Strategies / ideas for breaking through your genealogy brick walls.) MARY M. TEDESCO is a professional genealogist, speaker, and author. She is a Host / Genealogist on the PBS TV series Genealogy Roadshow (season 2) and the Founder of ORIGINS ITALY. Mary speaks Italian and travels often to Italy to conduct client genealogical research and visit family. Mary is the co-author of Tracing Your Italian Ancestors an 84-page Italian research guide published by Moorshead Magazines. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics from Boston University and a Certificate in Genealogical Research from Boston University’s Center for Professional Education. In addition to her Italian ancestry (Calabria, Trentino-Alto Adige, and Tuscany) on her father’s side, she also has deep American roots (German, Irish, Danish & English) on her mother’s side and is proud member of the Daughters of the American Revolution. Mary is a member of a number of local and national genealogical societies and serves on the Board of Directors of the Massachusetts Genealogical Council. She can be contacted at www.originsitaly.com  

  I'm pretty excited  about this episode because it's just jammed back with all kinds of fun stuff! (image right: my Grandson Joey excited about his new wagon!) First, Genealogy Gems Contributing Editor Sunny Morton will be here to announce our new Book Club read for this first quarter of 2015.  And it is fantastic! Even better, the nationally acclaimed author who wrote it will be joining us on a future episode to give us the back story. Then, since it is January that means that a lot of television shows are ramping back up, and one of those is the Genealogy Roadshow on PBS. And not only will it be back with new episodes, it will also feature a new addition to the panel of hosts. Professional genealogist Mary Tedesco is joining Genealogy Roadshow and she will join me a little later in this episode to talk about her experience on the show and also about her specialty which is Italian research, which I couldn't be happier about since we haven't had a chance to delve into Italian genealogy until now. Our Genealogy Gems DNA Guide will also be here. And I have a very special announcement for you at the end of the show.   MAILBOX: Read: Epitaphs from Genealogy Gems listeners on Facebook: From Cindy:"One of the most fascinating epitaphs I've ever seen is in Monticello, Florida. It reads, "Remember reader as you pass by, as you are now so once was I, as I am now so you shall be, prepare for death and come with me." The date of death was in the 1880s. The tombstone is made of metal instead of stone." From Jan: "Most memorable epitaph to date: In Memory of Elizabeth Palmer who should have been the wife of Simeon Palmer who died Aug 1776. This in the Old Commons Cemetery, Rhode Island." Jillian writes in about the story of Mary Ann Munns Cooke's untimely death "What an amazing, heartbreaking - yet somewhat uplifting - story. I feel compelled to share a similar struggle on my family tree - it is a bit long (for all of the details, I would advise reading my blog at ), but the shorthand version involves my great-great grandmother being widowed by the Spanish Influenza, and her children being taken from her by a corrupt politician, who uses his connections to incarcerate her in an insane asylum to gain control of her late husband's property and mineral rights. She survived it, miraculously, and went on to live a happy life, even getting to see her great grandchildren being born. My grandmother told me that her father was forever changed by what his mother endured, but he was the most forgiving man she'd ever met. It reaffirms your statement that bad things may happen, but you don't have to let it determine your outlook, your path. Much love to you and your family for overcoming and living out a legacy that recognizes the struggle, and the acts involved in overcoming."   GEM: Book Club with Lisa and Sunny Morton Our last featured book, She Left Me the Gun, was a memoir by a woman raised in England who researched her South African past. This time, we fly across the pond to the new world, to a bestselling U.S. novel, by Christina Baker Kline (image right). is one of my favorite books. I've read it twice and recommended it more times than I can count. I thought a lot about whether a genealogy book club, which is based on researching real history, should incorporate novels. But genealogists are three dimensional people; we're not all fact and no fun, right? I have loved historical fiction from the time I read A Proud Taste for Scarlet and Miniver by EL Konisburg. It's a kid's chapter book about the life of Eleanor of Aquitaine told from her point of view as she and the cast of characters from her life were sitting on a cloud in heaven waiting for her husband King Henry II to get into heaven. That novel bred in me this love for re-imagined history, in which the stories and lessons from past lives are repackaged in a way that's meaningful to us, in a way that we're willing to listen to. But back to Orphan Train. I'm guessing that many of you have already read it and loved it—if you have, raise your hands on the Genealogy Gems Facebook page and tell us so! If not, here's a teaser for you. Orphan Train follows the story of Vivian, who as an Irish girl immigrant with another name entirely loses her family and is forced to ride the orphan train. What was the orphan train? It was an early, special urban brand of foster care in which homeless or neglected children were gathered up and put on trains out to the country. They advertised ahead of time their stops in little rural railroad depots, where essentially the children were lined up and local residents could come pick up kids and take them home. Essentially the children were advertised as free labor sources for farm families. So, Vivian rides the orphan train and we follow her childhood through some challenging placements with a few families and then into young adulthood when she is still trying to pin down an identity for herself. Then we move ahead in time. As a 91-year old woman, Vivian meets Molly, a teenager in today's foster care system. Molly comes to Vivian's home to help her clean out her attic because she's gotten in trouble and needs community service hours. Molly thinks this old lady has nothing in common with her, not knowing anything about Vivian's own trials as an orphan rider. So what makes this a good read for family history lovers? The core of the story is about family identity. Both these girls were separated from their families at a young age—they were told their past wasn't good enough and they were re-booting their lives from scratch. You can't do that to a person without serious consequences to their psyches. This book reminds me how important it is that each of us has a storyline from the past that existed before we were born, and brought us to who we are today. It's perilous to break that story up or to be ignorant of it. The author spent a lot of time with the real stories of people who have lived in foster care or who rode the orphan trains, so the feel of the book would be authentic and real even though it's not wholly factual. The orphan train history is so fascinating itself and this is a great way to be introduced to that chapter in history—which I have read is not limited to the U.S. I have read that about 100k children rode orphan trains in Canada, too. Read the Genealogy Gems Book Club Book for 1st Quarter 2015: by Christina Baker Kline. Next month Sunny will be back with a few more suggestions for fun things to read and a teaser from the book, and then in March we'll have an interview with Christina Baker Kline. Please visit our wonderful sponsors:     Profile America: Ellis Island Opens Thursday, January 1st. The place where many of our ancestors first stepped ashore when they came to America seeking a new life opened on this date in 1892 — Ellis Island in New York Harbor. The very first immigrant processed at the new facility was a 15-year-old Irish girl named Annie Moore. Over the course of more than 60 years, some 12 million people flowed through the center. Some sources say the number is considerably higher. The peak year was 1907, when just over a million immigrants came to Ellis Island. The complex now belongs to the National Park Service and is visited by several million people a year. In 1910, the foreign-born represented nearly 15 percent of America's population. Now, after falling through 1970, that figures sits at 12.9 percent.   GEM: Mary Tedesco on Genealogy Roadshow and Italian Genealogy Mary M. Tedesco is also the founder of ORIGINS ITALY at originsitaly.com, which is a firm specializing in Italian and Italian-American genealogical and family history research. She speaks fluent Italian and travels often to Italy where she conducts genealogical research and visits family. Watch the new season of the Read about it on the Genealogy Gems Blog: Visit Mary at Origins Italy at Mary's favorite websites for Italian research: Things to know about Italy: Italy is subdivided into 20 regions Records are at the town level   Your DNA Guide with Diahan SouthardI am a huge proponent of the Chromosome Browser as an essential tool in genetic genealogy. I do agree that it should be a part of any genetic genealogy experience.  I have been in meetings with Ancestry and they do have their reasons for not providing one, with privacy being paramount in their minds.  The idea that we can have quick and relatively inexpensive access to our ENTIRE genome is a daunting thought.  We can't possibly know what will lie ahead in the many industries implementing this amazing scientific advancement.  Ancestry is just trying to be forward thinking. I too feel that this makes them seem like an overprotective parent that keeps their child in the house at all times behind two padlocked, steel-enforced doors, just so they won't wander out into the street and get hurt. And it is very frustrating.  But on some level I do understand their perspective.  They have a VERY long term perspective.  They are planning and thinking about where this technology will be in 5, 10, 15, 20 years.  At that time will will surely have moved away from the SNP testing we are doing now to full genome sequencing.  At that very high level of comparison there will be many things that a chromosome browser could reveal about our health.   I think with the implementation of DNA circles Ancestry is trying to implement tools in the areas where they are comfortable, and actually capable.  Yes, they are making mistakes.  But so are the other testing companies.  Yes the trees are flawed. They did release the DNA circles as Beta. I too have ready many concrete accounts of how this tool is making mistakes.  But they are in uncharted territory here.  No other company is trying to so fully integrate traditional genealogy with genetic genealogy, and there is something to be said for that.  And, you will probably agree that one of the biggest frustrations with any testing company is getting people to post their family trees and/or respond to your inquiries about their family trees.  By making inclusion in the Circles contingent upon having and linking your sample to a family tree (even a flawed one) it does encourage more people to post public trees.  Of course, it does completely ignore anyone without a family tree- again, frustrating. Learn how with my series of quick guides ( or the for the best deal); ;   Lisa's Announcement:Pre-Order the 2nd edition of at a very special price. Reg. $24.95  Pre-order Sale Price: $19.95 Completely updated with loads of new content! Everything you need to know to stay up to date on using Google for your family history.

We live in a brave new world.  You may not have questioned your parents, but science has made an indelible impact on our ability to understand our origins.  Today on Home Front we discuss the major breakthrough genetic testing is becoming for all of us. With the advent of the Information age, we have the ability to acquire more facts than ever before.  Today we have a special guest, CeCe Moore who is an independent professional genetic genealogist currently working on two different TV shows: Finding Your Roots and Genealogy Roadshow. CeCe is also the Lead Ancestry Ambassador for 23andMe and has close working relationships with all of the major genetic genealogy testing companies.  Her area of expertise lies in assisting others in understanding DNA testing products such as 23andMe’s Relative Finder and Ancestry.com’s program called AncestryDNA. On this episode, we talk with CeCe Moore who is the consultant on the TV show, “Finding Your Roots” and a genetic geneologist.  CeCe discusses how much people can learn about themselves and their origins just by having their DNA analyzed. The post DNA Databases appeared first on Home Front with Cynthia Davis.

CeCe Moore and Shannon Christmas will discuss strategies for using autosomal DNA to resolve your genealogical problems. CeCe Moore is a professional genetic genealogist and writes the popular blog Your Genetic Genealogist, where she covers the developments in the field of DNA genealogy as an independent, unbiased authority. She is the Southern California Regional Coordinator for the International Society of Genetic Genealogy and the administrator of the organization’s DNA Newbie Mailing List.  CeCe is also the genetic genealogy consultant for Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates Jr. Season Two and Genealogy Roadshow and she also ls the administrator of the Hemings-Jefferson Autosomal DNA Project. Shannon Christmas is an experienced genealogist specializing in genetic, colonial American, and African-American genealogy in Virginia and the Carolinas. He serves as a 23andMe Ancestry Ambassador, an Ancestry.com Ace, administrator of The Captain Thomas Graves of Jamestown Autosomal DNA Project, and a co-administrator of The Hemings-Jefferson-Wayles-Eppes Autosomal DNA Project. 

Come along as we solve a family history mystery with high-tech and low-tech tools, discuss who to begin African-American research, explore newly available Canadian records, and contemplate the value of work as well as the values we want to pass on to our kids and grandkids.   NEWS: Canadian Genealogical Records Now Available If you have Canadian kin, you'll be pleased to hear that the 1825 census of Lower Canada is now searchable online. The 1825 census of Lower Canada counted nearly half a million people. Heads of household were actually named, with other members of the household counted by category. You can search by household name or geographic location. The 1921 census counted 8.8 million people in thousands of communities across Canada. According to the Library and Archives Canada Blog, the population questionnaire had 35 questions. The census also collected data on “agriculture; animals, animal products, fruits not on farms; manufacturing and trading establishments; and [a] supplemental questionnaire for persons who were blind and deaf. This represents a total of 565 questions.” The census was released this past June 1 from the national Statistics office to the Library and Archives. That office is processing and scanning the nearly 200,000 images for public use. It hopes to have them posted soon. You can start looking for your Canadian ancestors in the at which include that 1825 census and a new version of the 1891 census, too. If your family arrived in Canada after the 1921 census, check out the website for The Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21, where a million immigrants landed between 1928-1971. The much-anticipated (but little-publicized) 1921 Canadian census is now online and available for browsing at  They anticipate releasing an index later this year. When you click on the first link above, you'll see that Ancestry.ca's collection of Canadian census data goes back to 1851. Check out my post above to learn about online data back to 1825. It's getting easier all the time to find your Canadian ancestors online! Genealogy Roadshow on PBS: More Genealogy TV Lovers of Who Do You Think You Are! and other genealogy TV favorites will be pleased to know that Genealogy Roadshow is filming for airing this fall on PBS. This has already been a popular series in Ireland, where Genealogy Roadshow is in its second season. The series premieres in the U.S. on KQED on Monday September 23.   MAILBOX: Death Certificate Confusion  Scott writes: “I wanted to send this death certificate to you and maybe you could talk about it on your podcast.  It's a reminder we can't take what we see at face value even from a primary source created at the time of the event.  On one line it says he died Jan 17, 1937 and another it says the attending doctor saw him alive on February 17 of the same year.  But then he was buried on Jan 20th.  It's really not all that clear whether the events took place in January or February from just this document.”    Lisa's Reply: What is really fascinating about this document is how the slight variation in handwriting gives away the problem. The doctor was very detailed with the variety of dates he entered as Feb. when events took place. His “3” generally stands up or even tips forward a bit. But the Registrar, Mr. Popeland, distinctly tilts his “3” and “7” back a bit. And his hand is also heavier. Very quickly you see that Dr. Brallier completed his portion of the form and then, I would guess later, Mr. Popeland completed the remainder of the form and filed it. The big question is who made the mistake: was Mr. Popeland correct that it was January, or was Dr. Brallier correct that is was February? I searched Ancestry and MyHeritage because I was anxious to know the answer. After an initial search neither Dempsey nor his wife Ruby Lee appeared, which is rather curious. After trying all types of name variations, I finally went to our old friend, . I search on his wife "Ruby Lee Danner" in quotation marks and up popped one result - . Searching “Dempsey Danner” in quotation marks resulted in 7 hits, 3 of which were him, including an obituary at the Dr. Braillier has been vindicated. Perhaps Mr. Popeland had filed one too many certificates that day, or had his mind on something else as he entered January in the remaining blanks. And once again, the case is made that the person who was there at the time of the event in person got it right, and the one recording the event later did not. Kate shares some old time photo resources:  “…Old Time DC on Facebook.  It's brilliant.  It's a collection of DC photos from the past.  It's not owned by anyone and anyone can post.    I love looking at old photos trying to figure out what the world was like before…It would be so wonderful if people in various cities starting compiling things like this Old TIme DC Facebook page.  Many families have shared interest in various places and streets but most people didn't think to take photos of those things.” Lisa's Tip: Try searching for names of towns and keywords like “photos” and “history” to see if there are similar groups on Facebook that can benefit your research. My example: I found a similar Facebook page for Margate Kent . It's a terrific use of social media!   GEM:  Interview with Dr. Deborah Abbott Genealogy Gems contributor Sunny Morton interviews Dr. Deborah Abbott, Ph.D., an adjunct faculty member at the Institute of Genealogy & Historical Research (IGHR) at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama and currently serves as a Trustee on the Board of the Ohio Genealogical Society (OGS).   Dr. Abbott specializes in African American genealogy, slavery, court records as well as methodology. Her genealogical research project about an African American Family from Kentucky entitled "From Slavery to Freedom to Antioch" was highlighted in the Cleveland Plain Dealer (Ohio) Newspaper under the title "Six-Volumes to Amplify a Family History" in 2008.   In this Gem Dr. Abbott shares her strategies for Starting the Search for African American Roots: Interview your family (both blood and non-blood!) Ask open ended questions Generate feelings Get an entire social history if you can. Try asking a question to frame the question. Like “who was the president when you were 12?” Debbie's Favorite Resources: Ancestry.com and Familysearch.org. Opened at the same time! Go back and forth between the two. Think of Ancestry as “the index” and FamilySearch as the “images.”  Example: Ohio Death Index 1908-2007   Slave Research: Follow the Census Research slave holder Pay attention to who is in the house, and who lives around them. Sometimes slave holders and former slaves share first names in addition to last names. “Once we get into the slave era African-America are no longer people, they are property.” You are looking for people as you would other property like land. You must look at the people making the transactions, all the way through their death.   Ohio had laws that governed the movements of African-Americans in the early years. Understand the history and the laws in the location and timeframe you are researching. In Ohio –African-Americans had to register.   Sat. Sept. 28, 2013 Detroit Public Library – Main Branch Debbie will be teaching on techniques for tracing African-American Roots Lisa will be teaching on Ultimate Google Search Strategies and Tips and Get the Scoop on Your Ancestors with Newspapers.   on the Value of Work, Looking to Ancestors for Values, and Passing on our Family's Values to our Kids and Grandkids.    

This week's news includes: Cyndi's List at www.cyndislist.com has launched a new website with a new look, new organization, and improved navigation. MyHeritage.com has acquired Bliscy.pl from Poland's Internet publishing company, Wirtualna Polska, expanding its presence in the Polish family history market. Anthony Ray, a junior majoring in Music at West Coast Bible College in Lancaster, California, was introduced at the 2011 Southern California Genealogical Society Jamboree in Burbank as this year's recipient of the Suzanne Winsor Freeman Memorial Student Genealogy Grant. The Guild of One-Name Studies will be at the Colorado Family History Expo on June 24-25 in Loveland, Colorado, and will offer extended membership to people joining for the first time. The offer is also good at www.one-name.org/colorado-offer.html. The "Genealogy Roadshow" currently filming in Ireland will make its debut on RTE later this summer, and it should also be accessible online at http://www.rte.ie/player. This week's email includes: Linda, listening to Episode #222, where George talked about the 1880 U.S. federal census and the Defective, Dependent, and Delinquent schedules, tells us that there is a "Statewide Index to Indiana's 1880 DDD Schedules" available on CD-ROM from the Indiana Genealogical Society. The society also offfers a "Statewide Index to Indiana's 1890 Soldiers Enrollment Lists". Margie thanks Bill for suggestions about where to locate more information about the WPA. Brandt has questions about source citations for some land records he has come across. Charleen asked for advice about very early birth records in New York State. The Guys review three new books: Complete Delaware Roll of 1898, transcribed by Jeff Bowen. (Clearfield Company and Genealogical Publishing Co., 2011) Finding the Civil War in Your Family Album by Maureen A. Taylor (Picture Perfect Press, 2011) NGS Research in the States Series: South Carolina by Janis Walker Gilmore (National Genealogical Society, 2011) Drew interviewed Lisa Louise Cooke, host of the Genealogy Gems Podcast, at the Southern California Genealogical Society Jamboree in Burbank, California, June 2011.  Lisa talks about some of her Google-related presentations and products.

The news includes: The Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy opened registration on June 4th for its annual institute in Salt Lake City on January 23-27, 2012. More information is available at www.infouga.org. Real-Time Collaboration announces AncestorSync, which allows you to seamlessly download, upload, or synchronize your family tree from your online pedigree to your personal computer and back again. Learn more at www.ancestorsync.com. FamilySearch has recently added millions of records about the U.S. Civil War, and plans much more. See more at familysearch.org/civilwar. The Guild of One-Name Studies is offering a special extended membership offer to new members. The offer is available from June 24th through June 26th only at www.one-name.org/yorkoffer.html. Big Mountain Productions is currently filming "The Genealogy Roadshow" in Ireland, with host Derek Mooney, and it will begin broadcasting in mid- to late-August. The United States Holocaust Museum and Ancestry.com have partnered to launch the World Memory Project at www.worldmemoryproject.org to build the world's largest online resource on Jewish victims and non-Jews who were targeted for persecution by Nazi Germany and its collaborators. The British Library has announced that it will digitize 40 million pages of its newspaper collection at Collindale. ProQuest has updated its list of impressive databases that provide genealogists with a wealth of online data. The New England Historic Genealogical Society has announced upcoming events, programs, and tours for June through September 2011. Listener email includes: Beverly asks for information about the RSS download address for the podcast. Linda made a breakthrough on her great-grandfather's first wife in Kentucky based on a link George provided at the recent NEHGS seminar. Look at "Kentucky Genealogy and History Guide" at http://kentuckygenealogysearch.com. Mike advised The Guys that George's book How to Do Everything: Genealogy appears in the movie Little Fockers. Chris asks for ideas about what to save and what not to save. Karen responded to Drew's challenge about locaing his father's family in the 1920 Newark, NJ census. David advises The Guys that The Civil Registration Act (Northern Ireland) 2011 has recently received royal assent. It will allow access to the Civil Registration registers. More information is available at http://www.legislation.gov.uk/nia/2011/20/contents/enacted. Sheri wrote about the terrible tornadoes in the U.S., and she wants to know if there are resources available online to help people be reunited with photographs, Bibles, documents, and other materials. Listeners are encouraged to email The Guys with their ideas and information. Patti asks George about U.S. federal censuses and the Agricultural Schedules. Lynda tells about visiting SW Virginia and making contact with Mary Kegley, the author of a number of books about the area. Lynda encourages people to make contact with historical and genealogical societies because they often have unique content that may help your research. Ed asks about genealogy software that might work on a desktop computer, a laptop, and on an iPad2.