1930's and 1940's

Recently Yale released 170,000 pictures from the 1930's and 1940's. These images provide a wealth of information about what life was like during this tumultuous time in American history. 

Take a look at your family tree and find which ancestors lived during the 30's and 40's then head over to this site for the link to find the website. 

This development from Yale University is exciting but it also shows how our work is never done! New information is always coming forward to help us in our family history work. 

Happy Hunting! 

The Invention of a Plain White T

T-shirts here! T-shirts there! T-shirts EVERYWHERE!

Have you ever thought about the t-shirt? I mean, they're everywhere. Hot Topic is basically shirt city. Seriously. We can get them with any phrase or picture we want. 

We even shoot them out of guns at sporting events and concerts. 

But where did t-shirts come from? And what do they have to do with family history?

Well....

My first thought when I read this was "aww!!" I can just picture these adorable bachelors, working hard in the city, trying to impress a lady friend. 

Now that you have this useful little bit of info compare the date 1904 to your family tree and see which of your ancestors may have been the first to wear that snappy new invention *cue exciting ragtime music* the t-shirt! 

Happy Hunting!

Indexing Be Like

Winnie the Pooh's got the idea! Indexing can be an enjoyable experience but it can also be tough to pick out the names and words amongst the various handwritings. 

Indexing is a vital step in the Family History process. 

Did you know that each month one million names are added to Family Search mostly because of indexing? 

WOW! That's a lot of names! That's also a lot of raw material to look through and make connections with. 

My Indexing Story For the Week:

So, despite my best efforts I haven't been able to locate my maternal grandfather's parents information. Not their names, or birth dates- nothing. I was telling a friend about this issue when she pulled out her phone and asked for my grandfather's full name, birth and death dates. In less than three minutes she had found my grandfather and his parents on the 1930 census. I hadn't been able to find it because it hadn't been indexed yet. (I would also give credit to her amazing internet skills.) The record only recently became available and now I can continue working. 

This excited cat understands me. This is how it feels when new information becomes available. 

I'll never know who the person was that indexed the 1930 census but it was pivotal in my heritage hunt. 

If I know who they were I would give them these beautiful flower cupcakes, just as I would give them to all indexers. 

Even when we don't see it the work we do makes a difference. Keep working, keep hunting, keep squinting (Oh Pooh Bear). This work matters. 

Happy Hunting Indexers!