A guide to key Canadian genealogy resources, coast to coast! East to west, Canadian genealogy resources offer an abundance of delights for family history! The record landscape begins with the first non-indigenous early 16th century settlement by the French in present-day Quebec, and although things didn’t really start rolling in terms of nation-wide settlement until Confederation in 1867 — the birth of the Dominion of Canada — the tantalizing opportunity for many families to be traced in … [Read more...]
Solutions for a Weed-Free Yard, Genealogy-Style: Genealogy Podcasts
I don’t know about you, but there are just some chores that I loathe to do, like weeding. Right now, with spring in full swing, my yard is growing a healthy crop of weeds. My solution to making it more enjoyable? Listening to genealogy podcasts! Here are five of my favorite genealogy podcasts that make the time fly when doing any mundane task: Genealogy Gems is hosted by Lisa Louise Cooke, and her podcast “helps you make the most of your family history research time by providing quick and … [Read more...]
Genealogical Giggles – Finding Humor in Genealogy Documents
As genealogists, we occasionally encounter funny genealogy records that makes us giggle. Here's a collection of some of our favorites! Most researchers have felt the thrill of discovering a little-known document that connects the dots on a family tree, but generally a lot of time is spent slogging through pages of records with little to show for the effort. However, researchers who spend copious amounts of time in censuses, wills, and land records are often rewarded with a few giggles to make … [Read more...]
Windmills, Tulips, and Wooden Shoes: A Guide to Dutch Surnames
Exploring your Dutch ancestry and family history is made easier with an understanding of Dutch surnames and their origins. The Netherlands: a small country with enormous cultural and historical impact. Located in the heart of northern Europe, the Netherlands produced some of the most renowned contributors to science, philosophy, and the arts during the Renaissance, and was known as a haven of relative tolerance during historical periods of persecution. A founding member of the EU, today it is … [Read more...]
Top 3 Online Resources for Researching Your French-Canadian Ancestry
Legacy Tree works with researchers all over the world to access records for our clients. We asked one of our onsite researchers, located in Québec, Canada to share his top online resources for researching your French-Canadian ancestry in Québec. Québec has a vibrant cultural heritage that reflects on its family history records. Thanks to records preservation and the efforts of many individuals and organizations, a large number of documents are available and well organized. With technological … [Read more...]
Legacy Tree Top 10: Most Popular Family History Blog Articles from 2019
A countdown of our most popular family history blog articles from 2019 Another year has come and gone! Before we usher 2019 out the door, we want to share our countdown of the most popular family history blog articles from the past year. Did your favorite make the list? 10. Genealogy Sleuthing: How to Date Old Family Photos - Part I 9. Using AncestryDNA's ThruLines to Further Your Genealogy Research 8. "Why Don't I Share Any DNA with My Known Relative?" 7. Third Cousins Twice … [Read more...]
Who Was Your Journey Taker?
Family historian Leslie Albrecht Huber wrote a book called The Journey Takers, a story about her search for information about her German, Swedish and English ancestors who left their homes behind and sailed for a new life in a new land. After reading her work, I developed a great need to know who the journey takers were in my family tree. The actions of one such individual can affect hundreds or even thousands of his or her progeny, as a journey taker determines where future generations will … [Read more...]
Jewish Research Part 2: Tips and Resources
Learning about your immigrant Jewish ancestry can be rewarding. Here are a few tips and tricks that can help you overcome common obstacles in Jewish genealogy research. In a previous post, we covered an introduction to Jewish immigrant research, focusing on historical context, migration patterns, and determining the European hometown. Once you've made the connection across the pond, however, there is still work to be done. Maps and Gazetteers Once you have found a record that names your … [Read more...]
10 Ways to Tell That…You Might Be a Genealogist!
Genealogy may not appeal to everyone, but those who catch the "bug" tend to get it bad! Do any of these 10 things sound familiar? * If you carry a “relationship calculator” card around in your wallet, you might be a genealogist. (Second cousin twice-removed, great-grandniece...) * If your Google home page displays the home pages to MyHeritage.com, FamilySearch.org, Ancestry.com, or FindaGrave.com, you might be a genealogist. * If every time someone mentions a major U.S. city, you … [Read more...]
Biological vs. Cultural Heritage
Biological vs. cultural heritage, also known as nature vs. nurture, is a question withstanding the test of time. If DNA testing reveals surprises in your family tree, consider what "family" means to you. Genealogy is full of surprises. As I was wrapping up a large pedigree project for one of our clients recently, a couple of birth records that had been lost in the mail finally arrived. They revealed that the man the client had always known as her paternal grandfather was not actually … [Read more...]