2011

Profile of the Day Profile of the Day: James K. Polk Profile of the Day: Florence Nightingale Profile of the Day: Constantine the Great Profile of the Day: Louis XVI Profile of the Day: Nelson Mandela Interesting Geni Blog Posts Geni Podcast: Memory Keeping Geni At NGS 2011 NGS 2011 with Dear Myrtle and Gordon Clarke From the Genealogy Community Genealogical/Historical Societies Using Social Media War of 1812 Privateers update #NGS2011: AncestorSync and Geni South… Read the full story

Profile of the Day: Joan of Arc http://www.geni.com/people/Joan-of-Arc-d-Arc/6000000000429623932

We’re in full force here at NGS. Take a look at some of the great people we’ve been working with this week. Here is Grant giving the thumbs-up with Gordon Clarke of FamilySearch: Here is Grant high-fiving Dear Myrtle:

Profile of the Day: James K. Polk http://www.geni.com/people/James-K-Polk-11th-President-of-the-USA/6000000002926000992

Hey, everyone! I just wanted to take a second to remind you that we’re out in full force at NGS 2011. If you’re here in Charleston, don’t hesitate to come by, say hi, and get some really nice swag. If you’re not in South Carolina this week, play the home game by checking out our Twitter and Facebook accounts.

Profile of the Day: Florence Nightingale http://www.geni.com/people/Florence-Nightingale-The-Lady-with-the-Lamp/6000000001611627567

Profile of the Day: Constantine the Great http://www.geni.com/people/Constantine-I-the-Great-Roman-Emperor/6000000002119283341

[Download This Episode] [Subscribe in iTunes] [Subscribe in Your Favorite Podcatcher] Show Notes: Memory Keeping As genealogists or family historians, we tend to be the “keeper” of the information and data, we do the research, we write up our finds.  Very often we want to share this information with family members and this is a natural extension of what we do as researchers. However there are some ways in which you can share family history… Read the full story

Profile of the Day: Louis XVI http://www.geni.com/people/Louis-XVI-Roi-de-France/6000000000843362199

Profile of the Day Profile of the Day: Orson Welles Profile of the Day: Alan Shepard, Jr. Profile of the Day: Audrey Hepburn Profile of the Day: Joe DiMaggio Profile of the Day: Leonardo da Vinci Interesting Geni Blog Posts Featured Project: Fast & Furious Come see the Geni Team at NGS 2011 Tracing Your Mexican Heritage Geni Podcast: How Do I Find and Use Records? Family Tree Tuesday – Humphrey Bogart You Could Win… Read the full story

Nelson Mandela http://www.geni.com/people/Nelson-Mandela/6000000008671183222

Today we highlight the Fast & Furious project, which is dedicated to those who have made significant contributions to the automotive industry. The project ranges from entrepreneurs, inventors, prominent race car drivers and many more. If your interested in the history of the auto industry or have a love for fast cars, perhaps you’ll want to join this project and help build the family trees of other significant automotive figures on Geni! Here’s a look at… Read the full story

The National Genealogical Society 2011 Family History Conference (NGS 2011 for short) is right around the corner. From May 11th to 14th, thousands of genealogy businesses, bloggers, and enthusiasts will all be in Charleston, South Carolina for the conference. Pretty exciting, eh? Well, that’s just the tip of the iceberg. There will be panels, booths, and giveaways galore, and Geni will be there in full force. The Geni Booth We’re coming loaded for bear. We’re… Read the full story

Today is Cinco de Mayo, a holiday primarily observed in the United States as a celebration of Mexican heritage and culture. We thought it would be interesting to take a look at some useful resources when tracing your Mexican ancestry. Talk to your relatives The best way to begin your search is by first asking your family questions. Find out as much as you can about the names and relationships of your ancestors, birth/death dates,… Read the full story

Profile of the Day: Alan Shepard, Jr. http://www.geni.com/people/Alan-Shepard/5661722986450058459

Profile of the Day: Audrey Hepburn http://www.geni.com/people/Audrey-Hepburn/6000000003615923316

[Download This Episode] [Subscribe in iTunes] [Subscribe in Your Favorite Podcatcher] Show Notes Genealogy Records Where can I go to find records for my genealogy research? First, start with online databases and repositories to see if you can get access to copies of vital records (birth, marriage and death certificates) or other records. This is the easiest and most economical way to access records. In most cases, these online sites allow you to not only… Read the full story

American actor Humphrey Bogart is considered one of the greatest screen legends in the history of film. During his 30 year career, Bogart appeared in 75 films. He may be best remembered for his role in the classic 1942 film, Casablanca. In 1960, Bogart was posthumously given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Humphrey Bogart was born in New York City to Dr. Belmont DeForest Bogart and Maud Humphrey. His father was a wealthy cardiopulmonary surgeon… Read the full story

Profile of the Day: Joe DiMaggio http://www.geni.com/people/Joseph-Joe-DiMaggio/6000000005395891848

Profile of the Day Profiles of the Day: Prince William and Kate Middleton Profile of the Day: James Monroe Profile of the Day: Samuel Morse Profile of the Day: John James Audubon Profile of the Day: William Shakespeare Interesting Geni Blog Posts Featured Project: The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Using Patents as a Genealogy Resource The Genealogy of the Royal Family Geni Podcast: Digitizing your Photos and Records Family Tree Tuesday – Jesse… Read the full story

This Contest is closed. Today we’re proud to announce that we are partnering with Family Tree Magazine to have a really great joint-giveaway. Here is all the info you need: How to Enter: On either the Geni Facebook wall or the Family Tree Magazine Facebook wall, write a post that describes how you first became interested in the world of genealogy. Prizes: One person who posts will be randomly chosen to win a one-year subscription… Read the full story

Profile of the Day: Leonardo da Vinci http://www.geni.com/people/Leonardo-da-Vinci/6000000010762979987

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame was established in 1986 to record the history of the most influential musical artists in the world. These artists include individual performers, bands and producers who have made significant impacts in the music industry. This project aims to add the family trees all the members of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame to Geni. Are you interested in the genealogy of some of the greatest musicians in… Read the full story

Profiles of the Day: Prince William and Kate Middleton

Have you discovered that your ancestor was an inventor? Did you know that their patent records can provide you with some great genealogical information?  Let’s take a look at how patents can be an excellent genealogy resource! Genealogical information found in patent records include: First and last name of the inventor Each patent in the U.S. must contain the first and last name of the inventor or co-inventors and their address. You may be able… Read the full story

Profile of the Day: James Monroe http://www.geni.com/people/James-Monroe-5th-President-of-the-USA/4239120304610034677

With the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton this week, it is a good time to discuss the genealogy of the royal family. Of course, the House of Windsor‘s history is very well known, so we can easily find how they’re related to over fifty million people on the big tree. Let’s step back a second, and just look at some interesting data we’ve found regarding the royal couple.     William’s Family Princess… Read the full story

[Download This Episode] [Subscribe in iTunes] [Subscribe in Your Favorite Podcatcher] Podcast Topics: • Why is it important to Digitize Photos and Scanning Document? • What tools are good for processing those scanned images? • Sharing them online with Geni. • Tagging, descriptions, etc. Find out more about A.C. Ivory.

Profile of the Day: Samuel Morse http://www.geni.com/people/Prof-Samuel-Morse-inventor-of-the-code/6000000010908940959

Jesse James was an infamous American outlaw of the Wild West. He is portrayed in American folklore as a Robin Hood-like figure, stealing from the rich and giving to the poor. During the Civil War, Jesse and his brother Frank fought as Confederate guerrilla soldiers. After the war, they joined up with Cole Younger and his brothers to form the James-Younger Gang. The gang carried out a string of robberies, robbing banks, stagecoaches and trains…. Read the full story

Today, we present a guest post about the possibilities of genetic genealogy by Andrea Badger. A while back, I briefly wrote about Relative Finder, a service offered by the DNA company 23andme. This program is able to search for segments of DNA that you share with other customers in the database. These shared segments of DNA imply a common ancestor – these people are your genetic relatives. When I first got my 23andme results over… Read the full story

Profile of the Day: John James Audubon http://www.geni.com/people/John-James-Audubon/6000000012366233513

Profile of the Day: William Shakespeare http://www.geni.com/people/William-Shakespeare/6000000003051311313

Profile of the Day Al Gore Queen Elizabeth II Marie Curie Grace Kelly Paul Revere Interesting Geni Blog Posts Geni Podcast: Starting Genealogy the Right Way Featured Project: Freemasons of America Geni Podcast: Engaging with the Genealogy Community Fraternal Organization Records and Genealogy Geni Podcast: A User’s Perspective with Don Otvos Family Tree Tuesday – Anthony Perkins How To: Use Revisions on Profiles Guest Post: Collaboration, A Lost Butcher, and Family History The Historical Significance… Read the full story

[Download This Episode] [Subscribe in iTunes] [Subscribe in Your Favorite Podcatcher] Today, we sit down with A.C. Ivory of Find My Ancesor to talk about doing genealogy the right way. Topics: • Getting people excited about genealogy • Why should we care about genealogy? • What benefits are there for my parents, siblings, children? • Tools for transcribing family history (Dictation, OCR, video, audio) Products we discussed: • Dragon Dictation Don’t forget that you can… Read the full story

Yesterday we gave you tips on using fraternal organization records in genealogy. Today we highlight the Freemasons in America project. The Freemasons have played an integral part in the early history of America. Some of the most prominent members of this fraternal organization include U.S. presidents, CEOs and actors.  If you’re interested in learning more about Freemasons in America, check out this project. Perhaps you may want to join the project’s contributers and add more… Read the full story

Profile of the Day: Al Gore http://www.geni.com/people/Albert-A-Gore-Jr-45th-Vice-President-of-the-USA/6000000003626809721

[Download This Episode] [Subscribe in iTunes] [Subscribe in Your Favorite Podcatcher] Show Notes: Interacting with the Genealogy Community How I get started with genealogy blogging? First, you need to realize that there are really two entry points to the world of genealogy blogging. One entry point is using genealogy blogs for research.  This means you are a reader of genealogy blogs and like any resource you access them via Google or other search engines.  Google… Read the full story

While researching your family history, you wonder what an acronym in your ancestors’ records or a symbol on their tombstone signifies. It’s possible that your ancestor was a member of a fraternal organization. While the practices and ceremonies of these types of organizations are secretive, you will find that many people will identify themselves in some way that they are a member of an exclusive organization. These membership organizations have been around throughout history and… Read the full story

Profile of the Day: Queen Elizabeth II http://www.geni.com/people/Queen-Elizabeth-II/6000000003075071669

[Download This Episode] [Subscribe in iTunes] [Subscribe in Your Favorite Podcatcher] Today we sit down with Don Otvos to talk about why Geni is so compelling to him. He tells a great story about connecting with long lost relatives, and how Geni helped them collaborate with each other. If you’re interested in learning more about what you can do with Geni, take a moment to listen to what Don has to say. I think you’ll… Read the full story

Profile of Day: Marie Curie http://www.geni.com/people/Maria-Sk%C5%82odowska-Curie/4754071530090030120

Anthony Perkins (1932-1992) was an American actor best known for his role as Norman Bates in Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho. In 1957, Perkins received an Academy Award nomination for best supporting actor for is role in the film, Friendly Persuasion. In recognition of his contributions to the film industry, Perkins received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Perkins was born in New York City to Janet Esselstyn Rane and Osgood Perkins. His father was a prominent American… Read the full story

Profile revisions are a vital part of the Geni experience. When you collaborate on the world family tree, you’ll be editing the information other people entered. Just the same, other family members and collaborators will be working on data you put into the tree. Keeping track of the revision history will make it clear what was changed, and who changed it. To look at the revisions on any given profile, go to the Revisions tab…. Read the full story

Profile of the Day: Grace Kelly http://www.geni.com/people/Grace-Kelly/5163142858250067644

This is a guest post from Neil O’Callaghan. He generously takes a moment to explain why collaborative genealogy has so positively affected him. The Benefit of Collaborative Genealogy Ok, my cousin Randy is a very interesting guy. He lives in LA, fabled city of the world’s most powerful medium, film, since the 1920s, home to the music megastars like Neil Young and Steely Dan that populated my dreams since I was a teenager, not to… Read the full story

Profile of the Day Jackie Robinson John Steinbeck Tiger Woods Harry S. Truman Winston Churchill Interesting Geni Blog Posts Featured Project: Great Aviators How To: Print Your Tree Geni Podcast: Mobile Genealogy Cit Directories New Geni Feature: New Marriage and Birth Reordering Interface New Geni Feature: Disable Automatically Generated Last Names How To: Use Tree Matches Family Tree Tuesday – Abraham Lincoln Geni Podcast: Interview with Pierre Clouthier of Progeny Genealogy Geni Podcast: Interview with… Read the full story

The third Monday of April is Patriots’ Day — a holiday in Massachusetts and Maine that marks the beginning of the American Revolutionary War. 236 years ago, the shot heard ’round the world was fired, and that started the battles of Lexington and Concord. Today, we commemorate all of the people who risked everything for the freedom of all Americans. If you’re interested in learning more about the people that took part in the American… Read the full story

Profile of the Day: Paul Revere http://www.geni.com/people/Paul-Revere/6000000003938177401

[Download This Episode] [Subscribe in iTunes] [Subscribe in Your Favorite Podcatcher] Show Notes: Why should I involved my family in my genealogy research? While many families enjoy working with each other to discover their ancestry and trace their heritage, very often it takes some convincing to get started on the journey. Here are some reasons why you might want to involve a variety of family members on your research: Family members are good sources of… Read the full story