Meet Derek, one of Legacy Tree Genealogists talented project managers! Derek brings decades of project management experience to our team. Derek has a depth of experience in project management from a nearly 30-year military career managing linguists and intelligence professionals. The skills Colonel (Ret) Tolman developed serving the intelligence community transfer over nicely to the family history and genealogy community. As he says, “It’s nice to transition from looking for the bad guys as … [Read more...]
Meet Kim, Project Manager for Legacy Tree Genealogists
Meet Kim, Project Manager for Legacy Tree Genealogists. Kim has a extensive knowledge of family history, and has enjoyed working at Legacy Tree Genealogists since she was an intern! Kim Running’s love of family history began as a child while listening to her great-grandmother tell stories of her uncle who, as a boy, ran down the streets of Springfield, Illinois dragging sticks along white picket fences with Abraham Lincoln’s son, Tad. Her desire to learn about her Italian immigrant ancestors … [Read more...]
8 Ways to Celebrate Family History Month!
October is such a great month. The first autumn chill, the beauty of the changing leaves, college football, the excitement of Halloween, and the prelude to the holidays are just a few reasons to love this time of year. For genealogists, however, there's one more reason: October is also National Family History Month in the United States! Many of our readers have used the research services of Legacy Tree Genealogists and/or have spent countless hours themselves uncovering their family’s history. … [Read more...]
Hidden in Plain Sight: A Guide to Image-Only Record Collections
For the countless hours spent looking for records to prove or provide a family relationship, Image-Only Records collections that have not yet been indexed may hold the hidden answer to century-old questions. Here is how to use these records, and tips on maximizing your time. If you’ve plugged your family names into the search databases of the major genealogical websites and didn’t find the answer you needed, consider that your search is not done! Did you know that there are millions of pages … [Read more...]
Legacy Tree Onsite: A Look at the National Archives of South Africa
Legacy Tree Genealogists works with researchers all over the world to access records for our clients. We asked one of our researchers in South Africa to talk about the National Archives and Record Service in Cape Town. When the Dutch East India Company arrived at the Cape in 1652, they left a legacy of fine record keeping. From the moment Jan Van Riebeeck left Holland, he began his diary recording every event of his journey. These diaries continued for some years and this is where the history … [Read more...]
How Are We Related? Navigating the Terminology
Relationship terminology can be confusing, but we've compiled a guide to explain how you are related to that cousin three times removed. How are we related? That’s a question that we have been asked quite a bit lately, and sometimes determining that exact familial connection with someone else can be confusing. What is the difference between a second cousin and a first cousin, once removed? What does the “removed” mean, anyway? If my mom has a cousin, how is he related to me? … [Read more...]
Meet Carolyn, Project Manager for Legacy Tree Genealogists
Meet Carolyn, a passionate Project Manager for Legacy Tree Genealogists. Carolyn has an extensive family history of genealogy work and has been involved in various research opportunities around the country. Learn more about Carolyn! Carolyn Tolman comes from “one of those” families whose pedigree goes way back, thanks to diligent great-grandmothers who were passionate genealogists. She grew up hearing stories of her ancestors’ immigrations from Northern Europe and settlement in the untamed … [Read more...]
Does Our Family Have a Coat of Arms?
Are you curious if your family has a coat of arms that you may be entitled to use? A coat of arms can be a neat thing to display on a wall or at a family reunion, and many people wonder if their family has one. Although selling coats of arms by surname has become a popular business, coats of arms in most countries were originally granted to individuals and were not inherited exactly as they were granted. They could be transmitted from father to son (and also to wives and daughters in some … [Read more...]
Genealogy by the Numbers
In a world where genealogy is increasing in popularity, we thought you'd be interested in a breakdown of genealogy by the numbers! Genealogy by the Numbers You have two parents, four grandparents, and eight great-grandparents. If you count just the direct line ancestors, by the time you go back ten generations, you have 1,024 ancestors. Assuming that a generation is about 25 years, ten generations means going back 250 years to 1761. Then, if you figure that each family had an average of two … [Read more...]