Bucks County
Genealogical Society
July 2017 Newsletter
President's Message
  To all BCGS members and Friends:

Cousins, we have lots and lots of cousins…if we are very lucky. Recently I had a wonderful visit with my cousin Dolly who flew up from Georgia to visit her son in NJ.  My sisters and I traveled to meet her.  Dolly read us letters from her dad and my dad. She gave us another piece of the puzzle of the events surrounding my dad’s decision to leave the seminary (he was studying to be a priest).  Her dad, Uncle Joe, who was still living at home, was given the task by my dad to break the news to their mother that he was leaving the seminary. It explains why he sent many telegrams to his siblings. “Frank leaving the seminary. Mom upset. Come home now,” they said. To Aunt Rose who met my dad at Grand Central: “I tried to break the news to mother. She wants Frank home at once, you come also if you think advisable. With more at home, it will be easier for her.”

 

In another week, I will spend the day with my cousin Chris (1st cousin once removed), his daughter, and her girls arriving from CA and DC. After my son’s death I reminded Chris that we don’t always get unlimited time with our children, and I told him he should take time from his workaholic life style to be with his children and grandchildren. He listened to me.

 

So this summer, remember, that if you are lucky enough to have grown up with cousins, they shared your history and may have fascinating stories to tell. And don’t put off spending time with those cousins. None of us are getting any younger.


Mary C. Butash
Join us at our meeting on 
Saturday, August 5, 2017 
10:00 AM to 12:00 Noon
at the David Library of the American Revolution
1201 River Rd., Washington Crossing, PA
(Park behind the building and use the Conference Center entrance.)
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Using Census Records with Maps
Presented by
Ted Bainbridge, Ph.D.

This program will introduce case studies of how three long-standing brick walls were knocked down using censuses and maps together.  The records used, the methods of analysis, and the discoveries made will be explored.
 About the speaker: 

Ted has been a researcher, teacher, speaker, and writer since 1969. He has taught many beginner and advanced genealogy classes. His genealogical and historical articles are published frequently by several national, state, and county organizations. Ted is the past president of the Longmont Genealogical Society. He is currently on the staff of the Longmont Family History Center. He is a ninth-generation Pennsylvanian. Every immigrant ancestor he has identified settled immediately in Pennsylvania and stayed there for the rest of their lives. Ted was an Army officer during the Viet Nam War, taught math and science in public schools, was a tax accountant and bank auditor, and became Chief Financial Officer in medical corporations. Later he taught accounting, financial management, and regulatory research in colleges. His doctoral dissertation described his pioneering research projects in agency theory and in experimental economics. 

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Come early to enjoy complimentary coffee and snacks while socializing with like-minded genealogists! Our Beginner's Corner is available for genealogy newbies at 9:30 a.m. for consultation. The Bucksgen Store will also be open at 9:30, featuring genealogy buttons and magnets, jewelry, tote bags, front license plates, BCGS shirts, and other societies' publications. 

S pecial sale at the Bucksgen Store: 25% off shopping pass for just $5 -
good at any Boscov’s on Oct. 17th!
Proceeds benefit BCGS
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The meeting is open to the public; cost: $5 Members / $10 Non-Members

Coffee and Refreshments are needed!
  If you are willing to get coffee at the Dunkin' Donuts in Washington Crossing, you will be reimbursed at the meeting. Please contact Roxan Schneider so that we don't have too many folks bringing coffee - and to get directions. 

If you would like to bring cookies, baked goods, munchkins, etc., your meeting fee will be discounted. Please send an email to Roxan so that she knows about the refreshments.  Thank you!

Roxan Schneider may be reached at  rcs57082@verizon.net
THE HIGH-TECH TREK
BY
CATHY IVINS
 It amazes me to think of the difference just four years makes to a genealogist. I remember heading off to a repository carrying bags of paperwork organized in folders and binders, and hoisting a large heavy laptop. In fact, Bucks County Genealogical Society sold hardy tote bags with a sturdy bottom in 2013. It was a great buy at $20 since we all needed to lug around our family history research. 

Due to advances in technology and digitized records, our trips to those repositories have been cut down, and the luggage reduced to a pocket or handbag! My last trip to a Cambria County repository consisted of a small purse containing a smart phone and a folded piece of paper – my research plan checklist. I had all the information I needed to conduct my research.

This surprised some researchers who were not tech-savvy but interested in learning more. For them, and for anyone else curious about “smartphones” and “apps” for genealogy, I hope to shed some light as well as baggage.

First of all, a smartphone is simply a cell phone with internet access capability. You don’t need a data plan if there is WiFi available to connect to. Most eateries and hotels have WiFi available, but not repositories. I purchased a data plan with my smartphone so I don’t have to worry. Depending on your service provider, there are several plans to choose from. Many have unlimited text, talk and data available today. I have actually linked my phone to my laptop and used the phone’s data plan to surf the internet on my laptop while on the road. That is called tethering.

Smartphones are made by several companies. The iPhone is an Apple Device. It has some internal storage but you can save anything to the iCloud (an online remote server for storage) that you have downloaded or photographed with your phone.  I use an Android due to the very many photos I take at work. Many Android phones accept micro-sd cards where you can save media, and later transfer by USB or sd-slots to a computer, without using the cloud storage. I also have all of my genealogy documents and photos saved on it that I can access without having to rely solely on internet access.

With your smartphone, as well as an iPad or tablet, you can access the internet through a browser (Chrome, Internet Explorer, Firefox, etc.) just like on a computer. BUT you can also download applications (known as “apps”) that can be easier to use on such a small device.  
There are many apps helpful to genealogists, but great examples are the ancestry apps (shown here). If you have a tree on ancestry.com, you can access it right on your smartphone or tablet. You can view it for information you are researching at a repository, and make additions to it right then and there. Here is an example of what you will see. Just like on a computer, when you click on a person, their profile opens. You can view their life story, facts, sources, family, and gallery!
So, there I was at the archives in Cambria County (actually housed in an old jail!) with my smartphone and research plan checklist. I found a goldmine there of naturalizations for my immigrant family of coal miners from Poland. The photo of myself here is with my grandfather’s documents. I actually didn’t make paper copies of them. It would have cost a lot, not to mention having to wait for someone to do the honors. Then I’d have to scan them at home and upload them, and store the paper copies somewhere. Instead, I used my smartphone. The cameras on them are outstanding, not just for photographs, but for documents! And… ready for this… I used an app called “Shoebox” by Ancestry. It opened my camera, and I was able to take a great photo of the document, crop it, annotate, and upload it directly to my specific ancestor in my tree on ancestry.com! I didn’t have to print or scan it  – I was done! I have even used the Shoebox app on a microfilm reader. It actually came out better in the negative state on the monitor using my phone, than when I printed it out from the reader, and scanned it later at home.
AncestryDNA also has a wonderful app to check your results and matches. All of the ancestry apps require you to log into your account. But if you are not an ancestry user, you can still access a tree created on FamilySearch.org in the same fashion.

I hope I have shed enough light on this subject to lighten your load to conduct research. But if you have any questions, you can pick my brain by email to  publicity@bucksgen.org or see me at an upcoming meeting. In September we will be back at Council Rock for a technology workshop, but in August we will be at the David Library. You can catch me at the Bucksgen store at 9:30. By the way, we have a great sale on tote bags for just $5!! 
COMPREHENSIVE CALENDAR OF EVENTS
The calendar is frequently updated and includes events from all over the country.  Be sure to check it every month to see what is happening.

 Here is the link: Comprehensive Calendar of Events

2017 Bucks County Ancestry Fair
Saturday, November 11, 2017
Some folks have responded to our request for Ancestry Fair volunteers but we still need lots of help for this event.  If you can spare an hour or two on Saturday, November 11, won't you volunteer to help? There are lots of spots to fill: checking in the exhibitors, staffing the attendee check-in tables, helping at the BCGS store and table, distributing lunches, directing parking, and lots more. Your volunteer time will be scheduled around any speaker you want to hear, so you won't miss anything. 

For questions and to sign up,  please contact Peg Felter at  volunteer@bucksgen.org


RESEARCH TIP
Social media can be a big help in your genealogy research. Here is a terrific site by genealogist, Katherine R. Willson, that lists the genealogy sites on Facebook; the list is updated frequently. 


Did your ancestors come to the US legally?
  "Before World War I, we had virtually open borders..." and immigration laws have changed over the years.  Here is an interesting article that appeared on Philly.com:

BCGS Fees for One Year Membership 
Individual  $20     Dual/Household  $35     Lifetime $250     Organization $75

Our membership fees help to pay for speakers, facility rental, website costs, insurance and more.  Membership in BCGS is on a rolling basis and lasts one year from the month you join. 

You don't have to have Bucks County ancestors to enjoy the benefits of membership!  Won't you join and help us continue to grow?

See a list of BCGS Member Benefits on our website:

Join or renew by mail using our membership application/renewal form, on line on the Society's website via PayPal or by paying with cash or check at our next meeting.  

If you have questions and to get access to the discounts, contact Peg Felter, VP-Membership at   membership@bucksgen.org