2019

Who are the adventurers in your family tree? On this day in 1899, Norwegian explorer and adventurer Helge Ingstad was born in Meråker, Norway. Ingstad and his wife, archaeologist Anne Stine, were the first to prove the Vikings had reached North America 500 years before Christopher Columbus. Image: Oslo Museum, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) In 1960, Ingstad and Stine found the remnants of a Viking settlement in L’Anse aux Meadows in Newfoundland, Canada.The settlement dated… Read the full story

As 2019 comes to a close, we take a look back at all the wonderful things we have been able to accomplish in the past year. Over 10 million profiles have been added to the World Family Tree this year, meaning we’ll close out 2019 with nearly 140 million profiles connected to the World Family Tree! This year our team worked hard to provide the Geni community with new and better tools to help build the family tree faster… Read the full story

Happy birthday to Steven Spielberg! Today the legendary director turns 73. Image: Steven Spielberg / Gage Skidmore, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0) Spielberg was born on December 18, 1946 in Cincinnati, Ohio to Leah Posner, a concert pianist and restauranteur, and Arnold Spielberg, an electrical engineer. He developed an interest in filmmaking as a child after earning his Boy Scout photography merit badge with a nine-minute 8mm film entitled The Last Gunfight. In the late 1960s, Spielberg began… Read the full story

The following post was written by Ian Stone from Perth, Western Australia. A Geni user since 2010, Ian discovered his passion for genealogy after starting his family tree on the site nearly a decade ago. After sharing his submission for Geni’s Family History Month Giveaway, Ian asked for the opportunity to expand on his answer to the question, “If you could go back in time, which ancestor would you visit and why?” Ian had said that he would love to visit… Read the full story

Happy Wright Brothers’ Day! On December 17, 1903, the Wright brothers, Orville and Wilbur Wright, made history by making the world’s first sustained, man-powered, heavier-than-air flight. Image: The Wright Brothers / San Diego Air and Space Museum Archive The brothers were two of seven children born to Milton Wright, a bishop in the Church of the United Brethren in Christ, and Susan Catherine Koerner. From a young age, they were encouraged to pursue their intellectual interests… Read the full story

On this day in 1775, English novelist Jane Austen was born. Austen was born on December 16, 1775 in Stevenson, Hampshire, England to Reverend George Austen and Cassandra Leigh. One of eight children, Austen had a close relationship with her sister, Cassandra. Growing up, the sisters were encouraged to read from their father’s extensive library. Austen would often write poems, stories, and plays to amuse her family. Although she began writing as a teen, it was not until she was in… Read the full story

Happy birthday to Taylor Swift! Today the music superstar turns 30. Swift was born on December 13, 1989 in Reading, Pennsylvania and was named after the Grammy-winning singer-songwriter James Taylor. Many years later in 2011, Swift would have the chance to perform on stage with Taylor during one of her concerts in Madison Square Garden. Music had always been a part of Swift’s life from an early age. Her maternal grandmother was a former opera singer and performed around the world as a member of… Read the full story

Have you seen the painting The Scream? Today we remember Norwegian artist Edvard Munch, who was born on this day in 1863. Image: Edvard Munch / National Library of Norway Munch was born in a farmhouse in Løten, Norway on December 12, 1863. After his mother died in 1868, Edvard and his siblings were raised by his father, who often entertained the children with vivid ghost-stories and tales of Edgar Allan Poe. These stories and the loss of… Read the full story

Save the date! MyHeritage, Geni’s parent company, has announced that MyHeritage LIVE 2020 will take place on October 25-26, 2020 in Tel Aviv, Israel. This one-of-a-kind conference brings together attendees from around the world and international genealogy and DNA experts for a full two days of fun and education. Read our recaps of MyHeritage LIVE 2019 in Amsterdam, the Netherlands and MyHeritage LIVE 2018 in Oslo, Norway. The third annual MyHeritage user conference will be held at the Hilton Tel Aviv,… Read the full story

Happy birthday to Kirk Douglas! Can you believe the legendary actor turns 103 today? Image: Kirk Douglas / Wikimedia Commons He was born Issur Danielovitch on December 9, 1916 in Amsterdam, New York. His parents were Russian-Jewish immigrants and the family adopted the surname Demsky in the United States. Growing up, Douglas went by the name Izzy Demsky until he legally changed it to Kirk Douglas shortly before entering the Navy during World War II. After the war,… Read the full story

On this day in 1782, Martin Van Buren, the 8th President of the United States, was born in Kinderhook, New York. Did you know that he was the first President to be born a U.S. citizen? All previous presidents were born in the British colonies before the American Revolution and were therefore British subjects. Image: Martin Van Buren / Library of Congress Van Buren was the son of Dutch parents, and although the Van Buren family had been in America… Read the full story

On this day in 1852, Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte took the French throne as Napoleon III. Image: Napoleon III / Wikimedia Commons The nephew and only heir to Napoleon Bonaparte, Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte was born in Paris, France on April 20, 1808. After Napoleon was removed from power in 1815, the entire Bonaparte family was forced into exile. Determined to reclaim the French crown, Louis-Napoléon attempted a failed coup. Undeterred, he continued to assert his views in political writings… Read the full story

Today we remember Bruce Lee on what would have been his 79th birthday! Image: Bruce Lee / Wikimedia Commons Born on November 27, 1940 in San Francisco, California, Lee grew up in Hong Kong before moving back to the United Staes at the age of 18. His father was one of the leading Cantonese opera and film actors of the time. Like his father, Lee had a knack for performing and appeared in several films… Read the full story

On this day in 1832, abolitionist and surgeon Mary Edwards Walker was born. Walker was awarded the Medal of Honor for her efforts to treat the wounded during the American Civil War. Today, she remains the only woman to receive the honor. Image: Mary Edwards Walker / U.S. National Archives and Records Administration Walker was born on November 26, 1832 in Oswego, New York to Alvah Walker and Vesta Whitcomb. From a young age, Walker’s… Read the full story

Baseball legend Joe DiMaggio was born on this day 105 years ago. Image: Joe DiMaggio / Library of Congress Joseph Paul DiMaggio was born on November 25, 1914 in Martinez, California. He was the eighth of nine children born to Sicilian immigrants Giuseppe DiMaggio and Rosalia Mercurio. His father had come from a long line of fisherman and had hoped that his son would follow in his footsteps. However, Joe’s talent in baseball set his path… Read the full story

This weekend the movie, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, hits theaters nationwide. The film stars Tom Hanks as Fred Rogers, the host of the beloved children’s television show Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. The film was inspired by the 1998 article “Can You Say…Hero?” by Tom Junod for Esquire. The film follows journalist Lloyd Vogel, who is assigned to profile the television icon for Esquire magazine. Recently on the red carpet, Hanks learned of his own personal connection to Rogers – they are… Read the full story

On this day in 1694, French Enlightenment philosopher Voltaire was born. Considered one of France’s greatest writers, Voltaire’s advocacy of civil liberties and social reform would go on to influence the thinkers of both the American and French Revolutions. Image: Voltaire / New York Public Library François-Marie Arouet was the youngest of five children born to François Arouet and Marie Marguerite Daumard. In 1718, he adopted the name “Voltaire,” which was an anagram of Arovet Li, the Latinized… Read the full story

On this day in 1889, astronomer Edwin Hubble was born in Marshfield, Missouri. Regarded as one of the most important astronomers in history, Hubble was the first to discover the existence of other galaxies in the universe beyond the Milky Way. Image: Edwin Hubble / The Huntington Library, Wikimedia Commons Hubble was born to Virginia Lee James and John Powell Hubble on November 20, 1889. Growing up, he was known for his athletic abilities and participated… Read the full story

Happy birthday to Jodie Foster! Today the actress turns 57. Image; Jodie Foster / Franz Richter, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 1.0) Foster was born Alicia Christian Foster on November 19, 1962 in Los Angeles, California. She was the youngest child born to Lucius Fisher Foster III and Evelyn Almond. Through her father’s branch of the family, Foster is a direct descendant of Mayflower passenger John Alden, who is her 9th great grandfather. Foster got her start… Read the full story

Happy birthday to Ed Asner! Today the actor turns 90. Image: Ed Asner / Department of Defense, William D. Moss Asner was born on November 15, 1929 in Kansas, City, Nebraska. He is one of five children born to Morris David Asner and Elizabeth Seliger and was raised in an Orthodox Jewish family. After serving in the U.S. Army Signal Corps, Asner moved to New York to pursue a career in acting. In 1970, Asner landed the… Read the full story

Today we are excited to introduce the new Consistency Checker to Geni’s World Family Tree. The Consistency Checker will constantly monitor changes to profiles in the family tree to detect common errors or inconsistencies and bring them to your attention so that you can make the necessary changes to improve the quality and accuracy of the family tree. This helpful tool checks for 28 types of inconsistencies, ranging from obvious issues, such as a child… Read the full story

On this day in 1867, renowned physicist Marie Curie was born in Warsaw, Poland. Thanks to her pioneering research on radioactivity, Curie became the first woman to win a Nobel Prize and the first person to win twice in different fields, Physics and Chemistry. Image: Marie Curie / Library of Congress Curie was the fifth and youngest child born to Bronisława Boguska and Władyslaw Sklodowski, both teachers. Her paternal grandfather was also a well known teacher… Read the full story

In celebration of Family History Month, we ran a contest throughout the month of October for a chance for one lucky winner to receive a free year of Geni Pro. To enter, you simply needed to submit your answer to the question: If you could go back in time, which ancestor would you visit and why? We received lots of entries submitted through Facebook, Twitter, and email. One lucky winner was chosen at random from the list of entries…. Read the full story

Have you seen any old photos with ghostly images? Chances are you may be looking at an old spirit photograph. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, spirit photography became incredibly popular. Many people came to believe that spirit photographers could capture the image of a deceased loved one in a photograph. Check out these 7 facts about the history of spirit photography: Preus Museum, Flickr 1. Spirit photography was discovered by accident by William H. Mumler… Read the full story

Happy birthday to Henry Winkler! Today the actor turns 74. Image: Henry Winkler / Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Wikimedia Commons (OGL v1.0) Born on October 30, 1945 in Manhattan, New York, Winkler is the son of Ilse Anna Maria and Harry Irving Winkler, a lumbar company president. His parents were Jewish and emigrated from Germany to the United States in 1939 on the eve of World War II. Winkler discovered a love for performing at an early age. A… Read the full story

Happy birthday to Winona Ryder! Today the actress turns 48. Image: Winona Ryder / Karon Liu, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0) Ryder was born Winona Laura Horowitz on October 29, 1971 in Winona, Minnesota. Her parents named her after the city she was born in and gave her the middle name “Laura” after their friend, Laura Huxley, the wife of author Aldous Huxley. Her father worked as an archivist for Timothy Leary, a psychologists who advocated… Read the full story

On this day in 1838, American school teacher Annie Edson Taylor was born. Taylor is remembered for her death-defying stunt on her 63rd birthday when she became the first person to survive a trip over Niagara Falls in a barrel. Image: Annie Edson Taylor / Library of Congress Taylor was born in Auburn, New York and was one of eight children. Before marrying at the age of 17, she studied to become a school teacher. After her husband’s death,… Read the full story

Do you remember watching The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson? Today we remember legendary talk show host Johnny Carson on what would have been his 94th birthday. Image: Johnny Carson / State Library and Archives of Florida, Flickr Carson was born on October 23, 1925 in Corning, Iowa to Homer Lloyd “Kit” Carson and Ruth Hook. In 1943, he joined the U.S. Navy and served as a communications officer in charge of decoding encrypted messages. Carson took… Read the full story

On this day in 1931, prolific inventor Thomas Edison died at the age of 84. At the time of his death, Edison held over 1,000 patents and saw many of his inventions make a significant impact on the world. Image: Thomas Edison / Library of Congress Thomas Alva Edison was born on February 11, 1847 in Milan, Ohio. He was the seventh child of Samuel Ogden Edison, Jr. and Nancy Matthews Elliott. At 16, he… Read the full story

Irish writer and poet Oscar Wilde was born 165 years ago today. Known for his intellect and wit, Wilde was one of London’s most popular playwrights in the early 1890s. Image: Oscar Wilde / Library of Congress He was born Oscar Fingal O’Flahertie Wills Wilde on October 16, 1854 in Dublin, Ireland. His parents were successful intellectuals. His father, William Wilde, was a doctor and an accomplished author and his mother, Jane Francesca, was a poet. In… Read the full story

MyHeritage’s Chief Science Officer, Dr. Yaniv Erlich, recently gave a talk at TEDMED to share what he and his team have discovered analyzing data from Geni’s World Family Tree as well as other exciting developments in the world of biomedical research and genealogy. In his talk, Dr. Erlich explains the fascinating patterns that have emerged from his work, including new insights into the last couple of centuries of marriage and migration in Europe and North America, and the… Read the full story

On this day in 1861, Norwegian explorer, scientist, and humanitarian Fridtjof Nansen was born. In 1922, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his work helping displaced refugees after World War I. Image: Fridtjof Nansen / National Library of Norway Nansen was born on October 10, 1861 in Oslo, Norway to Baldur Fridtjof Nansen and Adelaide Johanne Thekla Isidore Bølling Wedel-Jarlsberg. His mother was the niece of Norwegian statesman Herman Wedel Jarlsberg, who had an… Read the full story

It’s Leif Erikson Day! The 11th-century Norse explorer is believed to have led the first Europeans to North America, 500 years before Christopher Columbus set sail to the New World. Image: Wikimedia Commons Leif Erikson was the son of Erik the Red and Thjodhild and was likely born in Iceland around 970. He grew up in Greenland, where his father had established the first Norse settlements. Around 1000, Erikson sailed to Norway where he was converted to Christianity by King Olaf… Read the full story

Happy 70th birthday to actress Sigourney Weaver! Image: Sigourney Weaver / Gage Skidmore, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0) She was born Susan Alexandra Weaver on October 8, 1949 in Manhattan, New York. The only child of actress Elizabeth Inglis and former NBC president Sylvester “Pat” Weaver, Weaver chose to follow her parents into the entertainment industry. At the age of 14, she began going by the name “Sigourney” after a character in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby. In the early… Read the full story

October is finally here and that means Family History Month is once again upon us. In celebration of Family History Month, we’re giving away a free 1-Year subscription of Geni Pro! This Family History Month you can take your genealogy research on Geni to the next level with a chance to win a Geni Pro subscription. How to enter To enter our giveaway, simply answer the following question: If you could go back in time, which ancestor would you visit… Read the full story

On this day in 1452, Richard III of England was born. With his death at the age of 32, Richard III became the last king of the Plantagenet dynasty. Richard was the fourth son born to Richard, Duke of York, and Cecily Neville. After the death of his brother, Edward IV, in 1483, Edward’s twelve-year old son, Edward V, succeeded him and Richard was named Lord Protector of the Realm. However, after Richard succeeded in declaring his brother’s marriage invalid, his nephew was declared illegitimate and his… Read the full story

Happy birthday to Jimmy Carter! Today the former President of the United States turns 95, making him the first president to reach that milestone. Image: Jimmy Carter / Photo by Lauren Gerson, LBJ Presidential Library Carter was born on October 1, 1924 in Plains, Georgia to Bessie Lilian Gordie, a nurse, and James Earl Carter, Sr., a peanut farmer and businessman. In 1977, Carter was sworn in as the 39th President of the United States. Carter’s… Read the full story

On this day in 1774, the real Johnny Appleseed, John Chapman, was born. The American folk hero became known as “Johnny Appleseed” for planting apple trees across 1,200 acres of land. Image: Harper’s New Monthly Magazine, 1871 / Internet Archives Chapman was born on September 26, 1774 in Leominster, Massachusetts. He was the eldest son of Nathaniel Chapman and Elizabeth Simonds, who died while giving birth to a second son. During the American Revolutionary War, his father was… Read the full story

If you were unable to attend MyHeritage LIVE 2019 in Amsterdam and missed the live streams, you’re in luck! All MyHeritage LIVE 2019 lectures are now available to view for free! All recordings can be viewed from the comfort of your own home on MyHeritage Education, MyHeritage’s newly launched education center. The second annual MyHeritage user conference was a big success with over 450 people in attendance from 30 countries all around the world. Attendees… Read the full story

Happy birthday to Michael Douglas! Today the actor turns 75. Image: Michael Douglas / David Shankbone, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0) Douglas was born on September 25, 1944 in New Brunswick, New Jersey to acclaimed actor Kirk Douglas and Diana Dill. His mother came from a prominent family in Bermuda, where Douglas’s maternal grandfather, Thomas Melville Dill, served as Attorney General of Bermuda and as a member of the Parliament of Bermuda. As the son of actors, it… Read the full story

Do you remember watching The Muppet Show? Today we remember Muppet creator Jim Henson, who was born on this day in 1936. Image: Jim Henson / Library of Congress He was born James Maury Henson on September 24, 1936 in Greenville, Mississippi to Betty Marcella and Paul Ransom Henson, an agronomist for the U.S. Department of Agriculture. While in college, he began working as a puppeteer for a local television station. It was there that he first… Read the full story

Over the years, many users have requested the ability to add marriage and divorce dates and locations while adding new profiles to the family tree. Today we are excited to finally fulfill this request! New marriage and divorce sections in the add profile form Previously, a spouse had to be added to the tree first before marriage or divorce information could be entered. After the spouse was added, you were required to edit the profile again to update the marriage and/or… Read the full story

On this day in 1905, screen legend Greta Garbo was born. Regarded as one of the top performers of Hollywood’s Gold Age, Garbo was one of the highest paid stars of her time. Image: Greta Garbo / Library of Congress Garbo was born Greta Lovisa Gustafsson on September 18, 1905 in Stockholm, Sweden. She grew up in poverty and when her father became ill and lost his job, Garbo dropped out of school at 13 to take… Read the full story

Today we remember legendary journalist Cokie Roberts, who has passed away at the age of 75. Image: LBJ Library photo by Jay Godwin, Public Domain She was born Mary Martha Corinne Morrison Claiborne Boggs on December 27, 1943 in New Orleans, Louisiana. She received the nickname “Cokie” from her brother, who could not pronounce her given name, “Corinne,” as a child. Roberts was born into a political family. Her father, Hale Boggs, served as a member of… Read the full story

Today we celebrate the 200th birthday of German pianist and composer Clara Schumann! She regarded as one of the most distinguished pianists of the Romantic Era. Image: Clara Schumann / Bergen Public Library, Flickr Schumann was born Clara Josephine Wieck on September 13, 1819 to Friedrich Wieck, a prominent piano teacher, and Marianne Tromlitz, a singer. She was raised under the strict guidance of her father after her parents separated. A child prodigy, Schumann began performing… Read the full story

On this day in 1897, Nobel Prize-winning scientist Irène Joliot-Curie was born in Paris, France. Image: Irène Joliot-Curie / Smithsonian Institution, Flickr The eldest daughter of renowned scientists Marie and Pierre Curie, it was almost inevitable that Joliot-Curie would follow in her parents’ footsteps. After her father’s death in 1906, Joliot-Curie was raised by her mother, who emphasized the importance of education in the home. She developed an early interest in science, but the outbreak of World War I interrupted… Read the full story

Geni’s parent company, MyHeritage, partnered with the Backstreet Boys to dive into their DNA to discover their ancestral origins. One of the most successful musical groups in history, the Backstreet Boys recently released their ninth studio album DNA and are in the midst of their DNA World Tour. In promotion of their latest album, the entire group (AJ McLean, Howie Dorough, Nick Carter, Kevin Richardson, and Brian Littrell) took a MyHeritage DNA test to learn more about where their families come from. Watch the Backstreet… Read the full story

On this day in 1862, short story author William Sydney Porter, better known by his pen name O. Henry, was born. A prolific writer, Porter’s clever wordplay and twist endings made him one of the most popular American short story writers of his time. Image: O. Henry / Wikimedia Commons Porter was born on September 11, 1862 in Greensboro, North Carolina. As a child, he enjoyed reading  everything from the classics to dime novels. Porter worked at his uncle’s… Read the full story

Happy birthday to Hugh Grant! Today the actor turns 59. Image: Hugh Grant / Tine Hemeryck, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0) He was born Hugh John Mungo Grant on September 9, 1960 in Hammersmith, England to a military family. His father, James Murray Grant, was a Captain and served with the Seaforth Highlanders for eight years. His paternal grandfather, Colonel James Murray Grant, was decorated for bravery and leadership at Saint-Valery-en-Caux during World War II. In 1994, Grant achieved… Read the full story

Unable to make it to MyHeritage LIVE 2019 in Amsterdam September 6-8? MyHeritage has announced that all lectures on the genealogy and DNA tracks will be live streamed throughout the conference! Now everyone will have the opportunity to learn from MyHeritage’s fantastic international lineup of genealogy and DNA experts. The live stream will be available directly on the MyHeritage LIVE website and the MyHeritage Facebook page to watch via Facebook Live for free. From there, you will have the opportunity to… Read the full story