Episode 164 - The Ancestry Wiki, Searching for Google Earth Maps and Files

Genealogy Gems Podcast
Episode 164 with Lisa Louise Cooke

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In this episode you'll hear what you've been missing and how to get it from the Ancestry Wiki. Also how to do a very specialized type of Google search you may have never tried, a French-Canadian genealogy resource, and more.

Top 10 Reasons I Moved to Texas:

10. They have something here, it's called weather

9. I live on an acre now so my neighbors don't complain that they hear me over here talking to myself

8. There's a Soft Surroundings store in Southlake! And a Pottery Barn, and a Coach purse store.

7. Genealogy Bloggers Amy Coffin and Caroline Pointer. If you know them, you understand

6. Wise County has just launched a new genealogy society and they wanted a speaker who lived less than three hours away

5. It's been almost 10 years since I filmed a reality TV show out here, so I figure they've moved on.

4. My cat Ginger is from Texas and what she meows goes

3. After 18 years in California I finally get to have a pool in my backyard

2. They don't have chicken fried steak in California

1. My Grandsons - Davy and Joey!

The Piece of Family History that Miraculously Made Its Way Back to This Indianapolis Woman

A few years ago while attending a genealogy conference, I decided to conduct some on-the-fly interviews for The Genealogy Gems Podcast. I asked folks to tell me about the most prized family heirloom that they possessed. I heard about everything from the door knob of a woman's parent's bridal suite, to the bedazzling flapper dress worn by a great grandmother.

All were interesting, but I was stopped in my tracks when one woman looked at me with pain in her eyes and declared I have nothing. Not a thing. My cousins destroyed everything.

It was a difficult concept to digest. As the acknowledged keeper of the family history flame in my family, I've been fortunate enough to have inherited an abundance of family heirlooms from both sides of my parent's families. How sad it would be to have nothing concrete to hold in your hand; nothing to help you feel the generations that held the item before.

Since that day I've remained inspired to help people find ways to track down information and artifacts that make up their family history. Time and time again, I've found that just when you thought there was nothing left to find, an item will resurface. The Galaxy Quest movie quote (surely based on the famous words uttered by Winston Churchill in 1940) is one I cling to when it comes to genealogy: Never give up! Never surrender!

This motto has never been so gloriously justified as it was recently when a woman from Indianapolis, Indiana received the surprise of a lifetime this Christmas. The Purple Heart awarded to Pat Davis father, (a father she never met) was found recently and returned to her. Watch the compelling video below where the daughter holds the unearthed piece of family history in the palm of her hand.

Kyla wrote: "I had old photos and letters returned to me by a woman who found me on a genealogy message board. Her father had obtained them from my brothers who were throwing them away. It was like a miracle."

NEWS:

RootsTech 2014 may have come to an end, but SCGS Jamboree is just around the corner

I'm pleased to return this year to speak at the 45th Annual Southern California Genealogy Jamboree. This popular conference, hosted by The Southern California Genealogical Society, runs June 6 to 8, 2014 in Burbank, California, USA.

The theme of the 2014 Jamboree is Golden Memories: Discovering Your Family History. It promises to pack tons of fun into a long weekend, as it always does.

My classes on Friday and Saturday include:

Who Needs Google Reader? Flip Out Over Genealogy Content with Flipboard! Learn how to use the free Flipboard app to turn your favorite genealogy web content into your own free customized digital magazine. You will flip over how fun and easy they are to create and share. Perfect for genealogists and societies!

Ultimate Google Search Strategies for Genealogists Learn Google search techniques, tricks and tips to achieve better genealogical search results, and then elevate your search to a strategic level. Finally, see how all of this applies across the spectrum of free Google Tools.

How to Create an Exciting Interactive Family History Tour with Google Earth. Learn to tell your ancestor's story in a captivating multi-media way in Google Earth. Incorporate images, videos, genealogical documents, and historic maps and bring it all together in a virtual family history tour for sharing and research analysis.

SCGS Jamboree 2014 welcomes 55 speakers, over 60 exhibitors, 134 class sessions for a variety of experience levels,...