On Granny's Trail

I want to highlight the 10 Million Names project here, for those who have not heard of it. It was launched in 2023 and I first heard of it when it was featured at RootsTech in 2024. I recently looked into it to see how I might volunteer. Here is their mission statement, as found on their website: “10 Million Names is a collaborative project dedicated to recovering the names of the estimated 10…

A friend introduced me to a tool that has become a bit of an obsession for me lately. It is called Geo Hints, and is a creation of the BYU Family History Technology Lab (BYU FHTL). Brigham Young University has an outstanding Family History department and library. If you have not explored the BYU Library Family History website before, it is worth a visit. Along with the many links to online…

NARA’s Genealogy Series – May 21-June 25, 2024

Records held by the National Archives are valuable for Western States researchers. Think about it: beginning with California in 1850 and ending with Arizona and New Mexico in 1912, statehood for Western States meant that territorial records were transferred to the federal government for archiving. After statehood, federal records were created for the region. The variety and scope of territorial…

*NEW* – Portrait trees on FamilySearch

I try to keep you posted on new things happening at FamilySearch Family Tree – at least the things I get excited about and think you will like, too.  Recently they added the option of viewing your tree as a “portrait” tree.  See how spiffy it looks? FamilySearch Portrait Tree for Dayna Jacobs I love it!  The photos make my tree come alive and is easy to navigate.  Click on the “up” arrows to see…

A Few Interesting Timeline and Map sites

I’m posting links to a few animated maps and timelines, and mapping sites with a twist, like the U.S. History Primary Source Timeline, America’s Best History Timeline, World History Timeline, New York Times Immigration Explorer,  History Pin, and Timeline of Events in the West, There are lots of these kinds of timelines out there (just do a search in any browser), so find one you like and put it…

A few Interesting Timelines and Map sites

I’m posting links to a few animated maps and timelines, and mapping sites with a twist, like the New York Times Immigration Explorer,  History Pin, and Timeline of Events in the West, There are lots of these kinds of timelines out there, so find one you like and put it in your genealogy toolkit–handy sites that help you organize and interpret your research. Having a historical timeline in your…

I’ve added a ton of new links to the “California Links” page. There are many resources specific to individual counties and cities, and quite a few immigration records for San Francisco and San Diego. There are a good number of links to newspapers for the state. In addition to all of the digital collections for vital records, I would recommend checking out California, Local government records at…

I’m beginning a project to update and add new links to each of the state resource pages here on the On Granny’s Trail blog. If you are an Arizona researcher you’ll be interested to see what’s been added to the Arizona page. I am pulling in my favorite links from a variety of places, including FamilySearch, state archives and libraries, and digital collections from various academic institutions…

Salt Lake County mining records – a boon to anyone researching miners

Was your ancestor a prospector? If they staked a mining claim in Salt Lake County, Utah 1863-1920 or 1976-2000, you are in luck. But even if they never set foot in Utah, this collection could benefit your research. The Salt Lake County Archives has just digitized a huge collection of mining records for the mining districts located within its boundaries. It includes Assessment Rolls, Index to…

Researching Spanish Families in Early California

Reprinted with permission from a series of articles written by Gary Carlsen for the Monterey County Genealogy Society Newsletter, from 1997-1999.

Monterey History “They Followed Serra” part 8

Researching Spanish families in early California can be difficult at best, but the following can be extremely helpful in locating your ancestors.

Once the ancestor’s family name is located a…

I am sharing an article found on Eastman’s Online Genealogy Newsletter (by Dick Eastman) which I found interesting and thought you might, too. blog.eogn.com/2020/07/28/why-was-the-information-removed-from-online/

Dick Eastman July 28, 2020

NOTE: This is a slightly updated version of an article I published four years ago. The subject arose again recently so I decided to republish this for the…

How I digitized my research and gave it all to you…Part 2: I used my phone!

In a previous post I discussed how I digitized my genealogy files and added them to the FamilySearch Family Tree as a way to share them with relatives and archive them for posterity.   As awe-inspiring as that post was, I am happy to report I’ve found an even easier way to accomplish this!

And if the idea of sharing ALL your files with anyone is too overwhelming to think about, how about an easy…

Looking for Easy Access to Federal Non-Population Census Schedules?

As genealogists we all use the federal population schedules (you know…the censuses).  They are one of the most reliable tools in our research toolboxes when searching for ancestors in the United States—the hammers and duct tape of genealogy.

What are non-population schedules?

But what about those non-population schedules–you know (or maybe you are hearing this for the first time), the schedules…

New Useful Tool on FamilySearch You Will Love

  I just discovered a new tool on Family Search Family Tree that is soooo helpful.  I don’t know how long it has been on the site, but they are adding new things all the time so maybe it hasn’t been long, or I just haven’t noticed it.  But  it is something that allows you to take all the information that has been indexed from a record, copy it to your clipboard, and paste it in whatever word…

RootsTech 2018 – And You Are [Not] There

I was not invited to Prom in 1975.  Not that I am bitter.  But have you ever felt left out?  Sometimes I feel that way when RootsTech rolls around. It’s like Prom for 20,000 genealogists, minus the disco ball and awkward photos (it was the 70s, ya know!)

It seems like everyone is going, and maybe you wish you could be there but it’s not happening for one reason or another.  I hear your *sigh* and…

After five days at SLIG you might want to add some variety to your life by trying out a new lunch spot. Did you know there are some great little places within a block and a half of the Hilton? Just head east on Broadway (300 S.) and cross Main Street to find a cluster of eateries you might not know about. Some I have tried, and some come highly recommended by my son, who worked a few blocks away…