2021

On this day in 1873, Norwegian ski campion and polar explorer Olav Bjaaland was born. Image: Olav Bjaaland / Wikimedia Commons Bjaaland was born on March 5, 1873 on the Søndre Bjaaland farm at Morgedal in Telemark, Norway. The small village of Morgedal is known as the cradle of skiing. One of its most famous residents was Sondre Norheim, who is known as the father of modern skiing. Known at the time as one of… Read the full story

Today we remember singer Karen Carpenter, who was born on this day in 1950. Along with her older brother Richard, Carpenter was part of the famous duo the Carpenters. Image: Karen Carpenter / Robert L. Knudsen, White House photo Carpenter was born on March 2, 1950 in New Haven, Connecticut to Agnes Reuwer Tatum and Harold Bertram Carpenter. Her older brother, Richard, developed an interest in music at an early age and was a gifted… 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 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

Today we remember legendary actress Cicely Tyson, who passed away yesterday at the age of 96. An acting pioneer, Tyson’s trailblazing career spanned more than seven decades. Image: Cicely Tyson / Nationaal Archief Tyson was born on December 19, 1924 in Harlem, New York City, New York. Her parents, William Augustine Tyson and Fredricka Theodosia Huggins, were immigrants from Nevis in the West Indies. She first got her start in the 1950s when was discovered… Read the full story

Today we remember actress Cloris Leachman, who has passed away at the age of 94. A comedy legend, Leachman is perhaps best remembered as Phyllis Lindstrom on The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Image: Cloris Leachman / Wikimedia Commons Leachman was born on April 30, 1926 in Des Moines, Iowa to Berkeley Claiborne Leachman and Cloris Wallace. The eldest of three daughters, Leachman first entered the spotlight after competing in Miss America in 1946. After winning… Read the full story

On this day in 1925, actor Paul Newman was born. Image: Paul Newman / Wikimedia Commons Newman was born on January 26, 1925 in Cleveland, Ohio to Arthur Sigmund Newman, Sr. and Theresa Fetzko. His father owned a sporting-goods store and was the son of Jewish emigrants from Hungary and Poland. His mother was born in what is today Humenné, Slovakia and was a homemaker with a love for the theater. As a child, Newman… Read the full story

On this day in 1901, Queen Victoria died at the age of 81. At the time of her death, the Queen had reigned for 63 years, 7 months and 2 days, making her the longest reigning British monarch. It wasn’t until 2015 that her second great granddaughter, Queen Elizabeth II, surpassed her record as the longest reigning monarch in British history. Image: Queen Victoria / Wikimedia Commons At the time of her birth on May 24, 1819,… Read the full story

On this day in 1793, Louis XVI was executed for treason by guillotine. Image: Louis XVI / New York Public Library Louis XVI was born on August 23, 1754 in the Palace of Versailles. He was the second son of Louis, the Dauphin of France, and thus the grandson of Louis XV. When his brother died at the age of nine, followed by the death of his father in 1765, a young Louis became the next… Read the full story

Happy birthday to Dolly Parton! Today the music icon turns 75. Image: Dolly Parton / Wikimedia Commons Parton was born on January 19, 1946 in a one-room cabin in Pittman Center, Tennessee. The fourth of twelve children, Parton has described her family as dirt poor. From a young age, she showed a passion for music and by the age of 10, she was performing professionally. As soon as she graduated from high school, Parton set… Read the full story

“The time is always right to do what is right.” – Martin Luther King, Jr. Today the U.S. celebrates Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in honor of civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr., who was born on January 15, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia. Image: Martin Luther King, Jr. / Library of Congress An icon of the American Civil Rights movement, King worked to end racial discrimination and inequality through non-violent protest and civil disobedience…. Read the full story

On this day in 1892, physical education teacher and inventor James Naismith published the rules of basketball for the first time. The sport is now played in over 200 countries around the world. James Naismith with the “first team” / U.S. National Archives and Records Administration Naismith was born on November 6, 1861 in what is today Mississippi Mills, Ontario, Canada. An athlete himself, Naismith played football, lacrosse, rugby, soccer, and gymnastics while at McGill… Read the full story

On this day in 1957, actor Humphrey Bogart died at the age of 57. Image: Humphrey Bogart / Wikimedia Commons Bogart was born on December 25, 1899 in New York City, New York to Belmont DeForest Bogart, a doctor, and Maud Humphrey, an illustrator and suffragist. Through his father’s branch, Bogart can trace his ancestry to the early Dutch settlers of New Amsterdam. He is a direct descendant of Sarah Rapelje, who is said to… Read the full story

As we start off the new year, we’re excited to release a fun new addition to our virtual gifts – your own photos! Now when you send a greeting to a relative, you can add a photo of your own as a virtual gift. Enjoy using your imagination to personalize your birthday, anniversary, or “just because” greetings to those you care about most. Adding a Virtual Photo Gift When you receive an upcoming birthday or… Read the full story

Happy birthday, Elvis! 86 years ago today, Elvis Presley was born. Known as the King of Rock and Roll, Presley is remembered as one of the most successful and iconic musicians in history. Image: Elvis Presley / Wikimedia Commons Presley was born on January 8, 1935 in Tupelo, Mississippi in a two-room shotgun house built by his father, Vernon Presley. Sadly, Presley’s identical twin brother was delivered stillborn 35 minutes before his birth. Presley grew up as… Read the full story

On this day in 1943, inventor Nikola Tesla died at the age of 86. He is remembered for his groundbreaking discoveries in the production, transmission, and application of electric power. Image: Nikola Tesla / Library of Congress Tesla was born on July 10, 1856 in the village of Smiljan in the Austro-Hungarian Empire (what is today Croatia). His father, Milutin Telsa, was an Eastern Orthodox priest, and his mother, Đuka Mandić, whose father was also an… Read the full story

Happy birthday to Diane Keaton! Today the actress turns 75. Image: Diane Keaton / Firooz Zahedi, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0) Keaton was born January 5, 1946 in Los Angeles, California to Dorothy Keaton, a homemaker, and John Newton Ignatius Hall, a civil engineer. With an early interest in acting, Keaton moved to New York City to study at the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theater. She took her mother’s maiden name “Keaton” to avoid… Read the full story

Today we remember physicist and mathematician Isaac Newton, who was born on January 4, 1643. Newton was a key figure of the 17th century Scientific Revolution and considered to be one of the greatest minds of the era. Image: Isaac Newton / Wikimedia Commons Newton was born prematurely at Woolstrhope Manor in Lincolnshire, England, just three months after the death of his father. A gifted student, Newton excelled in mathematics. Newton would go on to become… Read the full story