 Date: 3/11/2017
Time: 10:30AM - 2:30PM Age Group: adults, teens ages 13-18 years Join us for guest speaker Kelvin Meyers, forensic genealogist and author. After being employed for ten years in the Genealogy Department of the Dallas Public Library, Mr. Meyers now has a solo practice as a forensic genealogist serving clients that include probate attorneys, trust department of banks, the U.S. Immigration Service, and energy companies. Reservations required, please call 832-393-2600. Who Cares Who Their Neighbors Were? You Do! That’s Who! | 10:30 AM – 11:30 AM Your ancestors did not live solitary lives. They lived, loved, hated, sued, and died all within a particular group of people. Examining this cluster of people may be the only way to get to your ancestors and the questions concerning them. The Hand that Rocked the Cradle Could Rule the World | 11:45 AM – 12:45 PM Half of the people on your pedigree chart are female, and may be the most difficult to identify. With a basic knowledge of sources created about and by women, and how to locate these sources, finding the females in your family may not be so hard after all. Brown Bag Lunch Break | 12:45 PM – 1:30 PM Probate: More Than a Will | 1:30 PM – 2:30 PM Most persons in the U.S. who lived to adulthood left some type of an estate to be administered. The records of probate can be some of the most fruitful records for genealogists. Wills, distributions, administrations, and inventories are all vital parts of the probate process and full of genealogical information.
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 If you could travel back in time and ask one question to one ancestor, whom would you choose and what would you ask? I answered this question during RoostTech, on video for a colleague's web series. I have lots of questions for lots of ancestors, but I chose a particular person for a particular research problem I've had for years. My great-great grandmother, Marie Magdalena "Molly" Schmitz (or Schmidt depending on the record), born September 2, 1865, was a bit of a mystery. I was able to track her from her 1947 death back to her first marriage in the 1880's, but then I was stuck. I didn't know who her parents were. The documents I had for her listed four separate birth places: London, Belgium, Prussia, and Alsace-Lorraine. Plus, she was a Schmitz in the Chicago/Milwaukee area in the 1880s, along with a gazillion others with the same name. Molly was widowed in 1896 after a few years of marriage. With a small child in tow (my great-grandmother), Molly left Milwaukee for Las Vegas, New Mexico. Now, I've been to Las Vegas, New Mexico and I can tell you it's nothing like the Las Vegas everyone else knows. This Las Vegas is small and dry. In 1896, it would have been the same. Why did she go to New Mexico? She had to have known someone there. A lady doesn't just pick up and move to the middle of nowhere. I studied the other folks in Las Vegas and tried to find a connection, a common surname, ANYTHING, but nothing stuck out. I gave up and moved on to something else, then something else, until the issue faded. Fast forward to this week, where I was asked to answer by brick-wall question on camera. I told the same story you're reading here, with the challenges of working with Schmitz/Schmidt and no solid birthplace evidence. Just discussing the issue again piqued my curiosity. I decided to visit my Schmitz/Schmidt problem briefly with a fresh set of eyes. Molly's death certificate said her father was Joseph Schmitz/Schmidt and her mother was "Reichsdorfe." These were the only possible clues I had regarding the identity of her parents. I started digging for people named Joseph Schmitz/Schmidt in the Illinois/Wisconsin area in the 1880's since that was where my Molly trail ended. I found one record that seemed promising for Joseph and Elizabeth Schmitz and family in Dublin, Indiana.  1880; Census Place: Dublin, Wayne, Indiana; Roll: 322; Family History Film: 1254322; Page: 136C; Enumeration District: 062; Image: 0035 I zeroed in on Amelia. Molly had a record or two where that name was referenced. This Amelia was the correct age. Was this my great-great grandmother and her family? I was supposed to be covering events at a genealogy conference, yet here I was in the corner of the media section, sneaking in a little personal research. This problem has plagued me for years and now the genealogy spirits were teasing me. I poked around the records and online information for this Joseph and Elizabeth. Someone online had uploaded an old newspaper clipping about their 50th wedding anniversary in the early 1900's. The article listed their adult children including a daughter named "Mary Hayworth" in New Mexico. Sure sounded a lot like my Marie Hayward (her second marriage) who was there at the same time. More poking around led me to discover a death record for Elizabeth Schmitz. Her maiden name was Reisdorf. Sure sounded a lot like the maternal "Reichsdorfe" reference on Molly's death certificate. The similarities were strong, but I didn't have the one holy grail of a record that would tell me for sure if these were Molly's parents, my great-great-great grandparents. I kept stealthily searching online, trying to make it look like I was conference-focused even when I wasn't. This 1880 census above listed Amelia and Victoria's birthplace as "Aachen." I decided to search the FamilySearch database Deutschland Geburten und Taufen, 1558-1898 (Germany Births and Baptisms) for people born in Aachen with the surname Schmitz. This was the first result:  "Deutschland Geburten und Taufen, 1558-1898," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NNTY-KW5 : 28 November 2014), Amalia Schmitz, 23 Jun 1803; citing ; FHL microfilm 176,245. It was my Molly, born on September 2, 1865 to my new-to-me great-great-great grandparents.  My Molly mystery was solved less than 24 hours after I said she was who I'd travel back in time to see. Coincidence? I think not. Our ancestors want to be found. Go out and discover them.
I had the opportunity to tour the RootsTech exhibit hall a few hours before the official opening. I like doing this each year so I can get good photos before the crowds descend. Below are some of those photos. You'll notice the convention center crew was still setting up, so don't mind the mess. This photo was taken at 7:15 a.m. It is the line of people waiting to get in to the General Session that started at 8:30 a.m. I've never seen such a crowd so early. I'm guessing the Property Brothers as keynote speakers had something to do with it.  This is the main entrance. There's a RootsTech logo in the carpet under that white square. This portion of the exhibit hall is referred to as Innovators Alley.  MyHeritage is really plugging their new DNA testing service. They also have a dedicated seating area for presentations. Several larger exhibitors has similar meeting areas.  Another example of a vendor seating area.  This is the Demo Theater. Vendors give 20-minute presentations on their products. It's RootsTech Lite. I enjoy this format because I can learn about several new items in a short amount of time.  Yep. Those are phone booths and you really can call your relatives. There's a real push to record family stories, so this is one easy way to do it.  New at RootsTech this year is "Heirloom Show and Tell." Experts are on hand to assist you in determining an heirloom's value and other information.  That's it for my report from the exhibit hall. After the tour, it was on to the general session to kick off RootsTech 2017.   I had the pleasure of attending the RootsTech Media Dinner. This is an annual event held before RootsTech for Ambassadors and media types to get briefed on what to expect at this week's events. Here's a brief lowdown: Innovator Summit maxed out at 1,400 attendees. The RootsTech registrations are at about 12,000. When you factor in Family Day on Saturday, there will be 30,000 attendees! FamilySearch is still promoting their mission of capturing family stories. Now they're encouraging us to explore our family stories through our recipes. See more at FamilySearch.org/recipes. One thing you'll notice about RootsTech is more signage around town. Magenta banners decorate the lightposts and there's even a lovely lady greeting those arriving at the Salt Palace.  A view of about one quarter of the room during the media dinner.  My favorite swag of the evening: family tree cookie cutters!  They had a caricature artist at the dinner. Mine is great: giant head on a toothpick neck.  FamilySearch also made available the contestants for the Innovator Showdown. It was a great opportunity to see the products and their developers up close.
RootsTech is off to a great start. Stay tuned for more... Disclaimer: My admission to RootsTech was provided by RootsTech. The opinions posted here, however, are my own...as are my credit card charges for the flight and hotel.  The Discovery Center is free and open to the public. It is a fun way to share family history with the whole family. Today I had the opportunity to tour the Family History Library's Discovery Experience, which is set to open to the public February 8, 2017. The Discovery Center is the first thing you'll notice when entering the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. The interactive exploration space is over 10,000 square feet, complete computers and touch screens that invite family history exploration. Visitors are given personal tablets to facilitate the Discovery Center experience. Users log on to their FamilySearch accounts to start the adventure. If you don't have a FamilySearch account, there are volunteers to help you create one and climb your family's tree. It's free. There are seven interactive stations where you dock your tablet to access the data in your own family tree. The stations are: What About Me? What is special about my birth year? Where I Come From: How in the world did you get here? My Time Machine: What was life like for my family a century ago? Record My Story: What are my most prized memories? Picture My Story: How would you look dressed like your ancestor? Picture Our Heritage: Why is our world culture so important? My Famous Relatives: Am I related to someone who made history? Interactive exploration is at the heart of the Discovery Center. Children are encouraged to utilize the touchscreens. They can input their birth years and see special events that happened at that time. During my visit, I saw a French-speaking family accessing family history information in their native language.  Personal tablet that Discovery Center visitors borrow for the duration.  Interactive station where you learn what life was like for your ancestors. Notice the pink squares below the monitors. Those are the users' docked tablets, each telling the story of one's ancestors.  Station where you're photographed in another time and place. The white docking station on the right is how the experience is tailored to your own ancestral heritage. The Discovery Center is free and open to the public. It is a fun way to share family history with the whole family.
 Saturday, February 25, 2017 | 10:30 AM – 3:45 PM
Join us at the Clayton Library for a day of research sources and methods celebrating African American heritage. Reservations required, please call 832-393-2600. Adults/Teens. Guest speaker Ari Wilkins is a genealogist, a library associate in the Genealogy Section of the Dallas Public Library, lecturer, and family historian. She has concentrated her interests in North Carolina and Louisiana research and specializes in African American genealogy and research. Ms. Wilkins consults for the Afrigeneas website and Proquest’s African American Heritage database. She has lectured nationally at FGS societies, Samford’s Institute of Genealogical and Historical Research, and Alabama State University Genealogical Colloquium. Apprentice Records for Free People of Color | 10:30 AM – 11:30 AM Explore apprentice records, laws, and circumstances surrounding free children of color. Learn how to find, use, and analyze these documents. Presented by guest speaker Ari Wilkins. Using Southern Ante Bellum Plantation Records | 11:45 AM – 12:45 PM Learn about the value of these records, how they are organized, and how to search this major collection. Presented by guest speaker Ari Wilkins. Brown Bag Lunch Break | 12:45 PM – 1:30 PM Mining the Slave Narratives: A Genealogical Goldmine | 1:30 PM – 2:30 PM For African-Americans the Slave Narratives are not just a rich historical resource but a genealogical goldmine of family history. Join us as staff member Franklin Smith covers tips and strategies, including DNA research, for mining the precious gems of information these documents might contain about your ancestors and their communities. African-American Resources at HPL’s Houston Metropolitan Research Center and the African American Library at the Gregory School | 2:45 PM – 3:45 PM This presentation will highlight the types of records found in archival collections for African-American research that are housed at the sister Special Collections units to Clayton Library. |
AuthorAmy Lenertz, MLIS is the founder of Raincross Information Services. 
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