Great Databases, Part 6

Here’s Part 6 in the Great Databases series of articles, highlighting cool and useful family history databases you can access online for free. See also the previous blog articles in the series for more databases to explore. China My China Roots, Zupus—Search for family tree books (Zupus) of ancestors in China, by first and last name. Global Archives Portal Europe—”The Archives...

A New Look to the Home Page

The Home page for The Family History Guide doesn’t change often, but it now has an updated look that especially helps those who may be new to the site. Let’s take a look at what has changed in the Home page, and what hasn’t. Top (or Side) Menu Those who have been using The Family History Guide for a while will...

Two New Activities Videos

Recently we added two new Activities videos to our YouTube Channel: Weekly Family History Activities, and Supercharge Your Family Reunion with Family History Activities. Both were featured at RootsTech Connect 2022 and were well-received. The Weekly Family History Activities video explains how to use the same-named section in The Family History Guide, and the Supercharge Your Family Reunion video has...

Changes to Ancestry.com: More than Cosmetic

Note: This article appeared previously in the Genealogy’s Star blog site.   Around the time of RootsTech 2022, Ancestry.com introduced some substantial changes to their website without much publicity. Here is an article that gives an overview of the changes. “The New Look and Feel of the Ancestry® Website.” One improvement includes putting a link to your family tree right at the...

A Wealth of RootsTech 2022 Videos

RootsTech 2022 Connect concluded on March 5, but the fun continues! There are over 3,700 videos posted on the RootsTech site, all free to watch at any time. Scroll down to the Sessions area on the home page and then click Explore. To find videos of interest, you can choose search filters such as Getting Started, Content Type, and Topic....

The Healing Power of Family History Work

Note: This article was published previously on the Granite Family History Center blog site. Several years ago, before we got our Family History Center, I was asked to head up a family history class on a ward level. I tried to interest the members to attend. I had little success. As I tried to recruit members, I approached a sister...

FamilySearch’s Use of Artificial Intelligence and Handwriting Recognition

Note: This article was published previously on the Genealogy’s Star blog site.   https://www.familysearch.org/en/newsroom/familysearch-get-involved-online-volunteer-experience I have been involved with learning about and reporting about handwriting recognition for genealogical research for a long time. I always thought about it being something distant in the future. Well, apparently, the future is now. In the past few years, organizations such as the Brigham...

The Family History Guide: The Inside Story

The Family History Guide Association just wrapped up a successful RootsTech 2022 Connect conference. We welcomed visitors to our online booth, shared over 20 videos and assorted handouts, and had several team members participate in live discussion sessions on family history participation. One of our highlights was the opportunity to share a 10-minute video on the RootsTech Main Stage on...

New: QRB Video Links

There are now 50 videos in our QRB (Quick Research Basics) playlist on YouTube. These cover a wide range of topics, including U.S. and international research, presented by genealogy experts such as James Tanner, Miles Meyer, and Kathryn Grant. You may have noticed that in many of these videos there are helpful links to external websites. To make it easier...