I recently found a picture and a short article on the Fairview Mausoleum formerly in Milwaukee. I hadn’t realized it was a community mausoleum.
The article can be seen at Links To the Past The article was published in the Wisconsin Cemetery and Cremation Reporter.
Originally posted by Dick Eastman:
20 April 2011
140 Free Online Genealogy Research Courses
Growing Course Catalog Makes It Easier to Expand Family History Skills
Family Search Genealogy Research Lessons Online
SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH—Ever found yourself researching your family tree and discovering a new branch that extended to another country—and you are not familiar with that country’s records or language? Or perhaps you are a fan of the popular reality show Who Do You Think You Are? and wonder, “How do the producers know what public records to search to find all of those cool stories about that celebrity’s ancestors?” Maybe you’d like to learn more about how to do your family history research but don’t think you can afford to take a class. Thousands of individuals are now satisfying many of those needs through FamilySearch’s growing collection of free online genealogy courses. In just one year, the number of free FamilySearch courses has grown to over 140—and new courses are added monthly. Most recently, over 25 courses were added for Australia, England, Germany, and the U.S. Additional courses were added that focus on basic tools and techniques for anyone just getting started in family history research, as well as courses for intermediate and advanced researchers.
“The goal of the initiative is to educate more people worldwide about how to find their ancestors. We do it by filming the experts teaching a particular class of interest and then offering free access to that presentation online—complete with the PowerPoint used and any electronic handouts that the user can download or print for future reference,” said Candace Turpan, FamilySearch instructional designer.
Turpan’s team films presentations made by its staff from the FamilySearch Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah, as well as special guests (the library is frequented by accredited researchers from all over the world). They also travel to industry conferences or other venues where record and research specialists gather. There they film specialists’ presentations and make them available online.
Of course, you don’t have to be into genealogy to find presentations of interest. Fans of The Da Vinci Code or National Treasure might find the Cemetery Art course by Ellen Miller of the Mid-Continent Public Library System in Independence, Missouri, very intriguing and enlightening. Miller’s course teaches about funerary traditions and cemetery iconography. “[Tombstone] practices differ from country to country, culture to culture, and religion to religion. As funeral ceremonies differ, so do the burial practices,” said Miller. Those elements often influence the types of funeral markers and symbols used on headstones, footstones, and tablet stones and can therefore tell important facts about the person they help identify. The key is in understanding the messages behind the symbolism.
FamilySearch uses viewing software that splits the viewing screen (sort of like the picture-in-picture features on some televisions) so the user can watch the video of the presenter while also seeing the PowerPoint presentation. Most courses are 30 minutes in length. You can also fast forward through the presentation or presentation slides or stop and pick up later where you left off—a luxury you don’t get in the live presentation.
“Maybe you enjoy the thrill of deciphering or reading old records in other languages. FamilySearch also has free courses to help genealogy students understand key words and terms of older foreign alphabets and handwriting, including Gothic,” added Turpin. The intent behind all of these courses is to give people the keys they need to successfully find their elusive ancestors in historic records. “Sometimes they just need a new sleuthing skill or resource. These genealogy courses are perfect for those personal development needs,” concluded Turpin.
Whatever your motivation or objective, bookmark and make regular visits to the growing catalog of free courses at FamilySearch.org.
And if you or someone you know currently teaches a class that would be of value to the genealogy community and wants to share it, find out how online at FamilySearch’s genealogy classes online.
Latest Course Additions:
Australia
Australia BDM Civil Registration Index
New South Wales Early Church Records 1788–1886
Using the New South Wales Birth, Death, Marriage Index
England
Getting the Most from the National Archives Website
Researching in the British Isles
What Is Britain?
Germany
My Experiences in German Family Research
Research Principles and Tools
Cemetery Art
Finding Your Way: Locating and Using Maps in Your Research
How to Find More at a Genealogy Library
If I’d Only Known: Beginner Genealogy Mistakes
Managing Your Family Records on the Internet
United States of America
Basic U.S. Military Records with Tiff
Beginning Census Research and Record Keeping
Colonial Immigration
Colonial Land
County Histories and Your Family
Finding the Slave Generation
Locating Ancestors on the Final Rolls of the Five Civilized Tribes
See You on Sunday! Church Records in Genealogy
Some Underused Online Resources
U.S. Courthouse Research
Welcome to the World of Periodicals
ICAPGen The International Commission for the Accreditation of Professional Genealogists
Mentoring Class: Introduction to ICAPGen
Mentoring Class: Research Binder
Mentoring Class: Evidence Analysis Part II
Mentoring Class: Written Exam and Oral Review
FamilySearch International is the largest genealogy organization in the world. FamilySearch is a nonprofit, volunteer–driven organization sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter–day Saints. Millions of people use FamilySearch records, resources, and services to learn more about their family history. To help in this great pursuit, FamilySearch has been actively gathering, preserving, and sharing genealogical records worldwide for over 100 years. Patrons may access FamilySearch services and resources free online at FamilySearch.org or through over 4,600 family history centers in 132 countries, including the main Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Thanks to Angela we have a few more Washington County WI naturalizations online. Thanks Angela for transcribing!
Armstrong
Arndt
Arnemann
Arnet
Arnet
Arnet
Arnet
Arnet
Arnold
Arzbacher
The next part of the organizational process is to sort the box. I always take the box with the least in. It is less intimidating.
Find a clean table to work on and empty the contents of the box into piles on the table. If I have a lot of siblings in the family I organize first by family group, Charlie’s family, Bernice’s family, John’s family, etc. If I have a small amount of things to sort through, I usually sort by what vital fact they pertain to most, birth, marriage, death, or miscellaneous. If I have photos that are from the baptism of Suzie, then I put those in the birth pile. If pictures were taken at a wedding, they go in a wedding pile. If I have an obituary or funeral card, that goes into the death stack. After I have them in piles I put all but one stack back into the storage container so they are out of the way.
I get color coded binders, photo boxes, or file folders to match the family color (or you can use plain binders with color coded labels). As I am sorting through things I put them in the appropriate photo album, binder (with plastic sheet protectors), etc. In a matching notebook, I jot down anything that might be interesting or I might need later.
With first stack in hand, first label everyone in the photos that you know. do not write on the photo. You can get markers at the local craft store that are acid free and suitable for writing on the back of the photo. Make note of anyone unidentified. If you record who the people are now, there is less trouble years from now when someone comes across the photo and wonders who the people are.
If you have newsclippings, be sure to identify the newspaper that it was published in and the date.
You can now use the organized information to fill in the empty portions of your family tree (either on paper or in computer software).
Thanks to Maxine, I have added some more of the 1881 Biographies from History of Milwaukee. Be sure to check out the Index page to see if your biography is now online. If it is not, send a request to Maxine and she will get it to you.
Part 2 Avoiding Information Overload
For some people organizing is the most difficult part of the research process. Don’t let it scare you. The first step of organizing your ancestry is determining your goals. If you don’t know where you are headed, then how can you get there? Determining your goals will help you focus on what is important.
Now with a goal in mind, you can start the actual organization process. Some people prefer to organize the old fashion way (paper and pencil) and others prefer to organize using software or other technology. I like to use both and will get into different recording techniques in a later article.
The next thing I do when I start a family tree is create a pedigree chart. A pedigree chart is an outline of the direct family members. You can get some preprinted pedigree charts online by doing a search. Cyndi’s List has some listed on her website. Fill out the chart as best you can. You may not know a lot of the information. That is okay. I like to have this chart so I can quickly see who the major players are in the family at a glance.
I then color code my families. I assign a color to an individual or a particular surname. You can use a highlighter, marker, crayon or colored pencil to give that family a color.
I have divided my information as follows:
Almost everyone has some sort of document or photos or something they want to keep in a physical form. I then invest in some water tight plastic storage bins. Good sturdy ones are worth the investment. They will help protect your paper copies and photos from damage. Also, get some colored tape or labels and label the storage container with the family color. Masking tape and markers works okay too. If your budget permits, you may also want to invest in matching colored file folders and/or binders.
Next put all the notes, photos, family trees, documents, bibles etc. that you have on that surname or person and place it in a storage container. Don’t take the time to organize it within the bin, just put it in and put on the lid.
As time permits, you can take out a bin, one at a time, and deal with its contents. It should be less intimidating when you take out the box, because it will be focusing on only one family tree topic. If you still have too much, you may need to divide it once more.
Organizing the contents of the bin will be the topic of a later article.
Part 1
People have been researching their past for many generations, but only recently has it become so easy to climb your family tree and if you aren’t careful, someone else’s tree. Television shows like “Who Do You Think You Are?” brings to light some of the techniques necessary to find the facts. It isn’t necessary to pay a fee to subscription based services such as Ancestry.com in order to start your research. There are many sources out there that can get you much of the same information for free.
The first resource most everyone has available to them is living relatives. Start out by asking questions to people who might know, parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, aunts, uncles, even siblings. Sometimes you will be surprised by what people already know. Your goal when asking the questions is to get as much information as you can. Key questions to ask are:
1) Do you know the maiden name?
2) Do you remember any people who frequently visited? Sometimes a Mrs. Jahn could actually be your great grandmother’s cousin. Don’t dismiss information just because you don’t think it is relevant. You never know when that information will come in handy.
3) Do you remember any places that were visited? Vacation locations?
4) Ask if anyone has any photo albums. Sometimes there are names or places written on old pictures that can be helpful.
5) Does anyone have a family bible? Names, dates and places are often written in the family bible.
6) Does anyone have any funeral cards they have saved from years ago. Funeral cards can give you hints as to the religion the family may have practiced or the cemetery family members preferred to be buried.
7) Does any of the elder members of the family have their birth certificate?, baptism certificate? their parents death certificate? Often these documents can give you a clue to where to go next.
After you have gathered all you can from living relatives, it becomes time to organize and sort your materials and notes. The subject for next Wednesdays article.
Have any questions about this article? Please leave your questions below.
Hello all,
Thanks to Maxine I have been adding biographies to the website from the book The History of Milwaukee 1881. If you haven’t checked the page out lately, please be sure to check it out.
http://linkstothepast.com/milwaukee/1881historyindex.php
I added a few names to the surname registry.
Magestro or Magistro and Loveall.
Moved Birner from Cem X to Cavalry Cemetery #036
Added Aldrich to Cemetery X
This weekend I was busy updating Milwaukee Genealogy information as sent in by researchers. Thank you for your submissions!
Updated the spelling of the name Grueber that appeared on the Lutheran Church page.
Moved Herman Auger from Cemetery X to Forest Home cemetery.
Added 1881 History bios scanned by Maxine.
Winkler death information to cemetery 50 Wanderers Rest.
Added a section of Wisconsin Artists sent in by a contributor. The link to it is on the Milwaukee Family page.
Here is the direct link.
Added to Marriages:
Koopman, Phillips, Tenner, Essers, Seifried, Krause
This week I worked on the following files at the courthouse. I have added the deaths to following cemeteries:
Cemetery X
Lena O’Brien
Leonard Fielder
Summit Cemetery
Adelia Parks Leavitt
Prairie Home
Samper A Perkins
Oconomowoc Cemetery
Mary Machus
Wisconsin Memorial park
W H Rintelman
