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Genealogy Research Services |
Combining more than 25 years of experience in family history research with an advanced
understanding of technology to connect you with your past and preserve it for the future. |
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Genealogy Programs & Workshops
The following topics are among those available for speaking engagements and genealogy workshops. If you're interested in a topic listed, or another topic not mentioned, contact me to discuss timing, format, and availability.
· Ellis Island Online and On-site :: Finding Your Ellis Island Ancestors
· Getting Started in Genealogy :: An Introduction
· Genealogy Research :: Beyond the Basics
· Genealogy WWW :: Using the Internet Effectively
· Using Microsoft Word, Excel, and Windows as Powerful Genealogy Tools
· Vital Records :: Obituaries :: City Directories
· Ancestry.com :: HeritageQuest.com :: FamilySearch.org
Ellis Island Online and On-Site :: Finding Your Ellis Island Ancestors
You may be one of millions to have used the web site www.ellisisland.org, but have you harnessed all the power the site has to offer? How many ancestors did you search for? Did you consider that many immigrants made more than one trip? Have you searched for female ancestors under their married and maiden name? What should you do if you don't know anything else besides the passenger name? This workshop is an in-depth discussion of all the site features with a special emphasis on tips and tricks for finding those elusive immigrant arrivals. Once you understand how the data are structured, you'll find it easier to adapt your search strategies to match your situation.
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Getting Started in Genealogy :: An Introduction
The best time to start your search is yesterday, so don't delay! This session is a comprehensive overview taking you step-by-step through the process of researching and recording your family tree. Designed for the beginner, we will discuss a variety of record types and why they are important to you. We will discuss how to 'mine' data from a range of common documents and also how to read between the lines to begin forming assumptions that you will attempt to prove through further research. Computers and the Internet will be discussed, but will not be the central focus of the discussion since they are simply tools at your disposal, not the answers to all your genealogical prayers. At the conclusion of this session, you'll have a specific plan of attack and will be well on your way.
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Genealogy Research :: Beyond the Basics
Once you've become familiar with pedigree charts, family group sheets, and the basic record types, it becomes important to develop a more detailed understanding of the research process and how to methodically piece together your family puzzle. 'Stone walls' are part of the challenge of genealogy, but you need to adapt different strategies for breaking through this barrier to the past. This session will discuss a variety of record types in detail, especially vital records (birth, marriage, and death records), census records, and probate records, enabling you to more carefully evaluate the contents of a record source within the context of how it was originally created. This session will also discuss how technology can and should be used as a tool for your genealogy work (e.g. - computers, digital cameras, scanners, GPS devices, etc.)
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Genealogy WWW :: Using the Internet Effectively
On the Internet, www may stand for world wide web, but in genealogy research, it should always stand for Who, When, and Where. Who are you looking for? When did they live? Where were they at a certain point in their life? These are the key questions you are always trying to answer in genealogy and the Internet can be a tremendous time-saving tool if used correctly. We will review a number of Search Engines and using specific examples, show how advanced search techniques can help you sort through the clutter to help you find just what you're looking for. This session will also review a number of web sites that are often overlooked as online destinations for genealogists. The audience attending this session is expected to have a general familiarity with computers and browsing the Internet.
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Using Microsoft Word, Excel, and Windows as Powerful Genealogy Tools
If you're using a computer to help with your genealogy, chances are good that you already have Windows, Word, and Excel. No disrespect to the Mac loyalists, but the market share statistics show that the overwhelming majority of computer users are running Microsoft Windows and are likely to have Microsoft Office as well. We'll take a fresh look at these overlooked tools and demonstrate how they can be easily adapted for use as powerful tools for the family historian. Participants will receive customized templates to help organize their research in a number of different areas.
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Vital Records :: Obituaries :: City Directories
These sources serve as a foundation for much of our genealogy research and are easily accessible in most every part of the United States. We'll conduct an in-depth review of birth, marriage, and death records and how they can and should be used in conjunction with Obituaries and City Directories. If your ancestors settled in an area for any length of time, chances are they left valuable clues in each of these primary record sources. We'll discuss the importance of expanding your search beyond direct-line ancestors and how the records for siblings can help unravel many genealogical mysteries.
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Ancestry.com :: HeritageQuest.com :: FamilySearch.org
Some Internet sites are free, others require a paid subscription. So, how can you tell if and when you should subscribe? What types of data can I expect to find and how easy are these sites to use? Do they all have the same information? These are just some of the questions that we'll answer in this session where we'll take a detailed look at three of the most popular sites for conducting online genealogy. We'll compare and contrast sites, as well as highlight how you can prioritize your searching to exhaust free sources before you open your wallet. Participants should have a general familiarity with computers and surfing the Internet.
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For the topics noted above, the materials can be adapted to fit a 60 minute presentation or a half-day workshop format, depending upon your needs and the anticipated size of the audience in attendance. Some can be combined into an all-day session, giving you the option to mix and match. In addition to the topics listed, Dan has also covered closely related topics including basic and advanced computer skills, working with photos (traditional and digital), and Microsoft Windows.
Featured on ABC's Good Morning America [ read more on the APG Web site ]
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