Ancient City Bulletin

Monthly Newsletter of the St. Augustine Genealogical Society

January 2016

January 2016

St. Augustine Genealogical Society

Contents
Happy New Year

Introducing the Bulletin

The Importance of a Research Email Account

Internet Archive

Research Cousins On A Quest

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The Society Page

13

Research Notes

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Society Services

15

Publishing Guidelines

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Ancient City Bulletin by St. Augustine Genealogical Society is licensed under a Creative Commons
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January 2016

St. Augustine Genealogical Society

Happy New Year

The Presidents Line
I hope everyone had a happy holiday season and New Years celebration. This
new year, 2016, brings with it a few changes. First, our meeting time has been
changed to 10:30am rather than 1:00pm, due to new programs at the Southeast
Library. It remains the second Saturday of each month, except for two months on
the third Saturday January 16 and March 19. This month we will be holding our
second annual Show N Tell. Last year, this was a popular event with both our
members and the general public, and it should be again.
Another change is in our publications area. I am happy to announce the
Executive Committee has approved the selection of Denise Olson as our new
Publications Chair. Her ideas for our former newsletter are expansive and
educational, and The Presidents Line that you are reading kicks off the first
edition of the new Ancient City Bulletin.
I am also turning over the reins to the just-formed Writing Group to Denise,
which has its first meeting Monday, January 11th from 5:00 7:00pm in the Main
Library. With her background in publishing, she will be a strong asset to the
group as its leader. We are excited to kick off this new Special Interest Group.
We have about a dozen people who have signed up. As a member, I look
forward to continuing my own family story that I started last summer at the Cape
Cod societys Writing Group SIG. It will give me a target date each month to add
a few more pages.
Our program for the February 8th membership meeting spotlights our existing
Special Interest Groups (SIGs). The Executive Committee is working on how it
will be organized. For those who dont fit into one of our geographical area

St. Augustine Genealogical Society

January 2016

SIGs, we are considering other worthwhile topics. Any suggestions from

members - especially those with prior SIG experience - are always welcome.
By the way, the Executive Committee meets ten days prior to the general
meeting on Wednesdays at the Ameris Bank (4070 U.S. 1 South) just north of
Wildwood Drive. Members are always welcome.
I look forward to seeing, and hearing, you all at 10:30am on Saturday, January
16th, at the Southeast Library for Show N Tell.
Bob Burns

January 2016

St. Augustine Genealogical Society

Introducing the Bulletin

Editoral Notes
The new year is a good time to kick off a new name, new design and new
content for the societys monthly newsletter. Yes, it will still keep us informed on
society news along with interesting events in the area and other opportunities
supporting our research efforts. It will also provide a platform where members
can share the stories their research discovers.
The Ancient City Bulletin is a digital document. This means it is a lot more
affordable to produce. It also means color photos, working hyperlinks and the
ability to search publications. We have created a digital library to make it easy
for members to download copies. Youll find our SAGS Publications Library at
Scribd, an online digital library. This library is open 24/7 so you will have access
to SAGS publications at any time.
Each issue will include a Research Toolbox column discussing the technical tools
that can help you find and organize your family history. And, since online
archives seem to be cropping up everywhere, the In the Archive column visits a
different one each month. Of course wed love to include stories from our
membership. You will find publishing guidelines at the end of each issue.

January 2016

St. Augustine Genealogical Society

The Importance of a Research Email Account

Research Toolbox
Email has all but replaced postal mail as the medium of choice for business and
personal correspondence. For family researchers, email provides a way to
connect and share genealogical data, photos, historical documents and so much
more. Although more and more research - as well as personal and business
information - now resides in our inbox, many of us know little about the email
systems we use and the software available to manage them.
Most of us use the email service provided
by our Internet Service Provider (ISP). This
is not your only email option and,
especially for family research, not the best
option. People move and ISPs come and
go. Each event forces a change in your
email address. In the 15 years we've lived
in our house, our ISP has changed four
times. And, I'm still finding posts on
genealogy bulletin boards from even
older addresses. No wonder I'm not
getting any responses!
A good option for researchers is one of the large portal services like Google,
Yahoo, iCloud or Microsoft. Using one of these services will give you a personal
address that will not change. And, because you are posting your email address
in many "public" locations which could attract spammers - bulletin boards,
online family trees, etc. - it's a good idea to have separate email accounts for
your personal mail and your research mail.
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St. Augustine Genealogical Society

If you are using any Google or Yahoo services (Google Reader, Google Books,
Flickr, Tumblr, etc.), you already have an email account with that service. They,
along with Microsoft's Outlook.com and Apples iCloud, offer free email services
and affordable premium upgrades. For example,Yahoo Mailprovides unlimited
space to store your messages but the free service only works as webmail or with
Yahoo Mail apps. Google's Gmailoffers desktop delivery, but you'll need to pay
for online storage above their limit (7GB).
When you have multiple email accounts, having to visit several different webmail
sites can be tedious. Thats where email client software comes in handy.
Windows users have the Outlook app and Apple users have Mail. Once you set
up your various accounts in your email app, all your mail will be delivered to it.
These apps also offer many features to help organize and manage your
messages. Sure, it will take some effort to learn how to use an email program,
but it will be well worth the time.
From a security perspective, its a good idea to keep your research world
separate from your personal world. Have a separate email account for each. That
way, if some online pirate hacks your research email account they wont find any
details about your private world - like bank accounts, place of work, etc. Use
your research email address to set up online accounts at social networks and
research archives. Make sure all accounts have strong passwords and change
your passwords regularly.
Email graphic courtesy Tamera Clark via Flickr.

Email Services
Yahoo! Mail
Gmail
iCloud
outlook.com

January 2016

St. Augustine Genealogical Society

Internet Archive
In the Archives
Have you discovered the Internet Archive yet? If not, you are in for a real treat.
The Internet Archive (https://archive.org) is a non-profit organization that is
building a free, online library. Its goal is to offer everyone permanent access to
historical collections. Its doing this by digitizing just about anything.
Their collections include documents, books, music, movies, images, software
and more. The Genealogy Collection contains more than 122,000 text items
from a number of impressive sources. Here is their description of this collection:
The Archive's ever-expanding collection of genealogy resources includes
items from the Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center in Fort
Wayne, Indiana; Robarts Library at the University of Toronto; the
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Library; Brigham Young
University in Provo, Utah; the National Library of Scotland, the
Indianapolis City Library's Indianapolis City Directory and Yearbooks
Collection, The Leo Baeck Institute Archives of German-speaking Jewry,
and the Boston Public Library.
Resources include books on surname origins, vital statistics, parish
records, census records, passenger lists of vessels, and other historical
and biographical documents.
It costs you nothing to use Internet Archive. You dont have to create an account
to use the archive or download items, but having an account allows you to build
your own library. Log in and start favoriting things you like. They not only show
up in your library, but Internet Archive even indexes all the things youve

January 2016

St. Augustine Genealogical Society

collected so you can easily find them when you need them. See a view of a
personal library in the example below. The topic index is on the right.

An example of a personal library.

For text items, you can read the item online or download a copy in the format
you prefer. The example on the next page shows the 1884 edition of
Bloomfields Illustrated Historical Guide. The quality of any document depends
on a number of factors including the condition of the original publication and
the scanning process used. Often a downloaded PDF copy is the best reading
option. One big advantage of the online reader is its seach feature. Click the
magnifying glass icon to build and activate your search. Once the search is
complete, a timeline appears at the bottom of the reader with bookmarks for
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January 2016

each find matching your search. Hover your mouse over a bookmark to display
the found text.

A sample book page with reader and download options.

The genealogy collections include a surprising number of local and regimental

histories along with periodicals from genealogical and historical societies.
The Internet Archive is enormous, but dont let that intimidate you. Start by
visiting the Genealogy Collection. The Help section offers lots of useful tips. It
wont take long to learn how to take advantage of this amazing resource. And,
its not just for research either. Internet Archive also hosts the Open Library of
free public domain ebooks.

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January 2016

St. Augustine Genealogical Society

Research Cousins On A Quest

Bob Burns
Quite a few years ago, my father called me to say that a man called him about
our family tree and that he had referred him to me since I was our family
historian. Bill, who lives outside of Atlanta, did indeed call me to discuss our
respective families and our connection. His maternal great grandmother was a
Burns, who married an Acree, and the Burns family had taken in some Acree
children when both parents died.
I sent him a 10-page genealogy report created from my Family Tree Maker data,
and he sent me some 31 pages, quite a trade. While I needed to confirm his
info, it provided at good roadmap.
We were both using Rootsweb to post messages on their electronic bulletin
boards in search of kin who were researching our families. From Rootsweb I
learned of my second great grandfathers siblings through an internet cousin
and ultimately my third great grandfathers name from a land division document
which listed all the heirs.
Bill did even better. His attempt to find anyone connected to our second great
grandmother, Elizabeth Burns (nee Brown), was met with a reply three years
later. A producer had purchased an old Bible at an Orlando flea market to be
used as a prop. She chose it because she just liked the look of it. Fortunately,
when she was through with it, she wanted to find a descendant to whom she
could give it. After confirming some of the entries, Bill gave her my name and
address, and in 2013, I received the Bible. It had been published in 1860 and
was given to Elizabeth by her father in 1866. The interior records gave us her full
birthdate (we only had month and year from a census). In addition we
discovered three children we knew nothing about because they all died young
and never appeared in any census records.

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St. Augustine Genealogical Society

In 1910, Elizabeth died in Thomasville, Georgia, at her daughters home. She

was buried next to her husband in Camilla, Georgia, where they had resided for
about 50 years. Bill and I visited the cemetery separately and discovered there
was no marker for her grave. Bill (whom I have yet to meet) and I decided to
share the cost of a marker, especially now that we had found her full birthdate.
We are all kin after all. Funny how events play out.
This is an expansion of a eureka that I described last year. With so many new members, and others missing the
meeting, it may not be recalled by everyone.

Elizabeths Bible

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January 2016

St. Augustine Genealogical Society

The Society Page

While monthly meetings will continue to be held on the second Saturday of the
month (with a few exceptions), meeting time has changed to 10:30 am.
The January meeting will be held on Saturday, January 16th, beginning at
10:30am, at the Southeast Branch Library, 6670 US 1 South. Our members are
the program for this months Show n Tell! Each member is encouraged to share
a research success story, show off a heritage photo album or spotlight an
interesting ancestor as we enjoy our own Heritage Fair.
SAGS kicked off a new special interest group at the December meeting. The
Writers Group offers members support, encouragement and resources to help
them tell the stories their research discovers. Denise Olson is the group leader.
She has been blogging her family history at Moultrie Creek for more than a
dozen years and has been recognized multiple times by Family Tree Magazine as
one of the top Geneabloggers.
Mark your calendar now for the North Florida Genealogy Conference. It will be
held on Saturday, March 19th at the Orange Park Family History Center on
Blanding Boulevard. Registration begins in January. Visit the conference site for
details.
NGS is bringing their annual conference to Florida in May. The theme is
Exploring the Centuries: Footprints in Time and the place is the convention
center in Ft. Lauderdale. Registration is open now and hotel rooms are going
fast. See the conference site for registration and session information.

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January 2016

St. Augustine Genealogical Society

Research Notes
By now just about everyone has heard that Ancestry.com is discontinuing sales
of their Family Tree Maker desktop software. Sales ended as of December 31st,
but the software will be supported throughout 2016. It will still sync with
Ancestrys family trees and the company will continue to provide compatibility
updates and fix bugs. They will also continue to provide user support during this
period.
What should FTM users do now? Relax. First of all, youve got plenty of time so
take advantage of it to check out and test drive the alternatives. You can bet that
they will go out of their way to help you make the transition as painless as
possible. Roots Magic (Win) has already announced discounts and transition
support. Heredis (Win, Mac & iOS) is offering a 50% discount along with a free
mobile app that is fully functional and syncs with the desktop version. Watch the
SAGS Facebook group and The Bulletin for updates on the latest deals and
options.
The Southern California Genealogical Society has announced its schedule for
the 2016 Jamboree Extension Webinar Series. These webinars are open to
anyone at no charge, but you must register to attend. Visit the SCGS webinar
page for schedule and registration information. Registration is now open.
SCGS isnt the only source for useful webinars. Check out the online calendar of
GeneaWebinars, Hangouts and other online events at GeneaWebinars.com.

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January 2016

St. Augustine Genealogical Society

Society Services
The Research Help Desk supports our members with research assistance either
at meetings or via email. Members can complete a research help request form at
any meeting or email your request to Sue Gill at suecarl@aol.com. The Research
Committee will respond with suggestions on search options and sources.
Members with research experience are encouraged to volunteer on the Research
Committee.
There are a number of ways SAGS members can connect online. These include:
SAGS Online - The societys public web site and records archive.
SAGS Facebook Group - This is a public group and once you join, you can
set it to notify you when items are posted to the group. Its a great place to
share useful research resources, ask questions or share a success story.
SAGS Mailing List - The mailing list is used to keep members informed on
upcoming meetings, announcement and other activities. To join, send an
email message to SAGS-L-request@rootsweb.com with the word
subscribe in the subject line and in the message body. You will receive a
return message asking you to confirm your subscription. Follow the link
included in the message. Once you confirm you will receive a welcome
message providing instructions for using it.
SAGS Publications Library - This online library is open 24/7. Here you will
find current and past issues of the Ancient City Bulletin along with other
society publications.
SAGS Writers Group - This blog supports our writers group.

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January 2016

St. Augustine Genealogical Society

Publishing Guidelines
We accept articles related to genealogy, family history and research
methodology from our members for publication in the Ancient City Bulletin.
Submissions should be sent as an electronic file in either rich text format (.rtf) or
MS Word (.docx) format via email to sags.publications@gmail.com. Please keep
formatting to a minimum as the article will need to be styled to match the
Bulletins design. The article title should be on a separate line at the top of the
page with the authors name listed immediately below. Photos included as part
of the article are welcome, but please also send a copy of each photo as a
separate file. Captions are always welcome and please include the
photographers name for proper credit. Including a list of sources is also
encouraged.
Articles will be edited for grammar and style and any edits will be reviewed with
the author prior to publication.
The Ancient City Bulletin is licensed using the Creative Commons AttributionNoncommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Ownership of individual
articles remains with the author. Please note that if you prefer a different license
for your submission, include your licensing option at the end of your submitted
article. Learn more about your licensing options at Creative Commons.

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