February 2021

On this day in 1802, French poet and novelist Victor Hugo was born. A leading figure of the Romantic movement in literature, today Hugo is considered to be one of the greatest French writers in history. Image: Victor Hugo / Library of Congress Hugo was born in Besançon, France on February 26, 1802 to Sophie Trébuchet and Joseph Léopold Sigisbert Hugo, a French general during the Napoleonic Wars. A well regarded figure during his lifetime, Hugo is perhaps… Read the full story

Do you have a favorite Beatles song? Today we remember George Harrison, who was born on February 25, 1943 in Liverpool, England. Image: George Harrison / Wikimedia Commons The youngest of four children, much of Harrison’s early life was filled with music. He first joined Paul McCartney and John Lennon at the age of 14 when the group was still called the Quarrymen. Forming the Beatles with the addition of drummer, Ringo Starr, the rock… Read the full story

Did you enjoy reading fairy tales growing up? On this day in 1786, German author Wilhelm Grimm was born. Image: Wilhelm Grimm / Wikimedia Commons Wilhelm Carl Grimm was born on February 24, 1786 in Hanau, Germany. The younger half of the famous Brothers Grimm, Grimm began his professional career studying law at the University of Marburg alongside his brother Jacob. The brothers remained close throughout their lives and dedicated many years collecting and documenting German… Read the full story

Today we remember astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus, who was born on this day in 1473. Before Copernicus, the world believed the Earth was the center of the universe. Copernicus’s revelation that planets actually revolved around the sun, transformed scientific thought throughout the world. Image: Nicolaus Copernicus / Wikimedia Commons Copernicus was born in Toruń in northern Poland into a wealthy merchant family. With a keen interest in astrology and astronomy, Copernicus began to studied under astronomer… Read the full story

We’re excited to participate in the first virtual RootsTech conference! This year the world’s largest genealogy conference will be entirely virtual and completely FREE. From February 25-27, people all around the world will have the opportunity to learn and enjoy the wonders of RootsTech from the comfort of their own homes. Class Sessions With hundreds of classes on various subjects and celebrity speakers, attendees can create their own viewing schedule to suit their own interests…. Read the full story

Happy birthday to John Travolta! Today the star turns 67. Image: John Travolta / Georges Biard, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 John Joseph Travolta was born on February 18, 1954 in Englewood, New Jersey. He was the youngest of six children born to Salvatore Travolta and Helen Cecilia Burke. He grew up in a family of entertainers and at 16, dropped out of high school to pursue an acting career in New York. He got… Read the full story

It’s Darwin Day! Each year on the anniversary of Charles Darwin’s birth, the world of science highlights Darwin’s enormous contributions to the field. Image: Charles Darwin / Library of Congress Charles Darwin was born February 12, 1809 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England in his family home, The Mount. He was born into a prominent English family, his father was a wealthy society doctor and financier and his grandfather was Erasmus Darwin, a renowned botanist. In 1831,… Read the full story

Properly documenting your family tree is vital to practicing good genealogy. Sources are incredibly important to ensuring the quality and accuracy of Geni’s World Family Tree. Today we are very excited to announce major new improvements to sources on Geni! Our team has been hard at work to make sources even more powerful, easier to understand, and more helpful to your tree building. On Geni, when you add a document to a profile, you can… Read the full story

Today we remember inventor Thomas Edison, who was born on this day in 1847. Image: Thomas Edison / Library of Congress Edison was born on February 11, 1847 in Milan, Ohio and was the youngest of seven children born to Samuel Ogden Edison, Jr. and Nancy Matthews Elliot. His father was an exiled political activist from Canada who had participated in the Mackenzie Rebellion of 1837. Edison received little formal education growing up, but spent… Read the full story

“What one man can imagine, another will someday be able to achieve.” On this day in 1828, the “Father of Science Fiction” Jules Verne, was born in Nantes, France. Image: Jules Verne / Bibliothèque nationale de France The son of bourgeois parents, it was intended that Verne would follow in his father’s footsteps to become a lawyer. However, it was during his studies that Verne discovered his passion for literature and theater. He earned his… Read the full story

On this day in 1804, Finnish poet Johan Ludvig Runeberg was born. Considered the national poet of Finland, Runeberg wrote in the Swedish language and had a significant impact on Swedish literature. Image: Johan Ludvig Runeberg / The Society of Swedish Literature in Finland, Flickr Runeberg was born on February 5, 1804 in what is now Pietarsaari, Finland to a Swedish-speaking family. He was the eldest of six children born to Lorenz Ulrik Runeberg and… Read the full story

On this day in 1913, civil rights icon Rosa Parks was born. Image: Rosa Parks / Library of Congress Parks was born Rosa Louise McCauley on February 4, 1913 in Tuskegee, Alabama to James McCauley, a carpenter, and Leona Edwards, a teacher. In 1932, she married Raymond Parks, a barber and active member of the NAACP. Parks would join the Montgomery chapter of the NAACP in 1943 and serve as the chapter secretary. On December… Read the full story

Today marks the 62nd anniversary of the tragic plane crash that took the lives of rock musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and J.P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson. The day has become known as “The Day the Music Died,” popularized by a lyric in the song “American Pie.” Image: Buddy Holly / Wikimedia Commons Born Charles Hardin Holley in Lubbock, Texas, Buddy Holly learned to play a variety of instruments at a young age. He began performing with… Read the full story