22 June 2011

Who is Lloyd Lund? ... the investigation continues

Last time, I wasn't sure which Lloyd Lund was "my" Lloyd. I had two choices...Lloyd W. and Lloyd H.

3. Next, I decided to do a general Ancestry search for Lloyd Lund born 1918 ± 1 yr, born in Utah. The 1920 Census I've already looked at came up, along with the 1930 England Family and Thomas Lund Family Censuses. But...I also got hits for Lloyd Wayne  Lund and Lloyd Harold Lund's Military Records. Now we're on to something! So, I looked at both and found the connection...to Sadie Lund!! BINGO!

So "my" Lloyd is in fact - Lloyd Wayne Lund. Born 7 Oct 1918 to Sadie Lund Lyon. A father isn't listed so that leads me to believe that he was born out of wedlock. Sadie didn't marry George Benjamin Lyon until 1939 - Lloyd would have been nearly 21 years old! I doubt that George was his father and then waited 20 years to marry his mother. To find that, I guess I'd have to find his Birth or Death Certificate...both of which aren't available for free on the Utah Archives website, yet. I could pay to money, but I'll probably just wait.

4. From additional research I found Lloyd's obituary.
Lloyd Wayne Lund
Standard-Examiner (Ogden, UT) - July 10, 2004
Together Again
OGDEN - Lloyd Wayne Lund , 85, passed away Tuesday, July 6, 2004 at the Crestwood Care Center in Ogden, of causes incident to age.
He was born October 7, 1918 in Plain City, to Sadie Bardella Lund. He was raised in Plain City by his uncle and aunt, Peter M. and Elvira L. Folkman. He graduated from Weber High School.
He married Bessie Grow on October 23, 1942 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Their marriage was solemnized in the Salt Lake LDS Temple on September 22, 1943. They loved and cherished each other throughout their lives. They had just celebrated their 61st wedding anniversary before
Bessie passed away October 31, 2003. They lived in Ogden throughout their married life.
Lloyd was a veteran of World War II and was a true patriot.
He was a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and had a strong testimony of the Gospel. He served in many church capacities throughout his life. He was a member of four bishoprics, a high priest leader, and a temple worker. He was very organized and gave his best in all he did.
He was a Rural Letter Carrier for the U.S. Postal Service for 30 years, retiring in 1979. He was a member of the United Rural Letter Carriers Association and was a member of the Veteran of Foreign Wars Association. Lloyd loved his home, yard, and his church responsibilities. He was an exceptionally kind and loving man to all who knew him.
The family would like to thank the wonderful staff at Crestwood Care Center, as well as the Applegate Hospice nurses for their loving care and attention. It was greatly appreciated.
Surviving are several nieces and nephews.
Lloyd was preceded in death by Bessie, his parents, one sister/cousin, Amy Robson, four brothers/cousins, Clair Folkman, Roy Folkman, Cliff Folkman, and Royal Carver.
Funeral services will be held Saturday, July 10, 2004 at 3 p.m. at Lindquists Ogden Mortuary, 3408 Washington Blvd., with Bishop Neil Garner, presiding.
Family and friends may call at the mortuary on Saturday from 2 to 2:45 p.m.
Interment, Lindquists Washington Heights Memorial Park, 4500 Washington Blvd.
Email condolences to the family at lom@lindquistmortuary.com.
Section: Obits
Record Number: 10AE162C8C1FBBD3
Copyright 2004, 2005 Standard-Examiner

It doesn't appear that he and Bessie had any children. His family preceding him in death are listed as sister/cousin or brother/cousin. So according to this he was raised by the Folkman's. So who are the England's? Amy Robson was the reference in the 1930 Census.

It all seems a bit jumbled still but at least now I know that Lloyd Lund is Sadie Lund's son, most likely born out of wedlock. She later married George Lyon and I don't think had any more children. Lloyd was raised by the Folkman's, but at some point was living with the England's and is referenced in connection with Amy Robson. I guess I'm left with more questions than answers, but know more than I started with...which is the goal.

21 June 2011

Who is Lloyd Lund?

If you remember from the 1920 Census for the Mathias Lund Family, I found a new relative...Lloyd Lund. At the time (Jan 1920) he was 1 2/12 years old and listed as "Son". I believe him to be the son of either Sadie or Clyde (so Mathias' grandson). Both were listed as single, so perhaps he was born out of wedlock. Here's what I did and what I found.

1. First, I looked for Sadie and Clyde Lund (Mathias' daughters) in the 1930 Census, on Ancestry. I found them listed as "sister" to Heber C Lund, Mathias' son. So far that all makes sense. They were living in Farr West, Utah which is only a few miles from Plain City. But where is Lloyd?
Source: 1930 U.S. Census, Plain City Precinct, population schedule, Plain City Precinct, enumeration district (ED) 29-5 (SD) 1-Utah, sheet 4A, dwelling 67, family 67, Heber C. Lund Family; digital images, Ancestry (Ancestry.com : downloaded 19 June 2011); NARA.

2. Then I thought I might as well look for Lloyd Lund in the 1930 census, again on Ancestry. I found two...Lloyd W. and Lloyd H. So which, if either, is my Lloyd? Lloyd W. was in Plain City while Lloyd H. was in Salt Lake. Plain City makes more sense, but Salt Lake might work just as well.

Lloyd H. was living with the Thomas Lund Family and listed as son. While his age (10 yrs) made sense I wasn't sure he was the right one...was he maybe adopted by relatives? I hadn't come across Thomas and Clara Lund yet...how (if at all) are they related to Mathias and Pauline?
Source: Ancestry.com. 1930 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2002. Year: 1930; Census Place: Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah; Roll: 2418; Page: 17A; Enumeration District: 4; Image: 1268.0.

Lloyd W. was living with the England family and listed as nephew along with some other notes that I couldn't read. Also, off to the side it says to see Line 119, which is for the Ralph and Amy Robson family. Not sure who they are either.
Source: Ancestry.com. 1930 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2002. Year: 1930; Census Place: Plain City, Weber, Utah; Roll: 2425; Page: 9A; Enumeration District: 37; Image: 429.0.

Here's a zoomed in version...can you tell what it says:
side: see sheet [?] line 119.
relationship: nephew Short S[????]

...the investigation continues...

20 June 2011

Census 1920 - Mathias Lund Family - Plain City, Weber, Utah

Source: 1920 U.S. Census, Weber County, Utah, population schedule, Plain City Precinct, enumeration district (ED) 169 (SD) 1, sheet 1-B, dwelling 16, family 16, Mathias C. Lund Family; digital images, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : downloaded 31 May 2011); NARA microfilm publication T625, 2076 rolls.

Entry: Lines 64-68. Farm. Dwelling #16, Family #16.

Line 64. Lund, Mathias C., Head, Owned, Free. M, W, age 70, Married, immigrated 1869, Naturalized 1874, did not attend school in 1919, can read, can write,  place of birth: Denmark, mother tongue: Danish, father pob: Denmark, mt: Danish, mother pob: Denmark, mt: Danish, can speak English, Farmer, Gen. Farm, employer, farm schedule #16. (“000” written off to the side)

Line 65. ---, Pauline, Wife, F, W, age 65,Married, Immigrated 1869, Naturalized 1874, did not attend school in 1919, cannot read, cannot write, place of birth: Sweden, mother tongue: Swedish, father pob: Sweden, mt: Swedish, mother pob: Sweden, mt. Swedish, can speak English.

Line 66. ---, Sadie, Daughter, F, W, 26, Single, can read, can write, pob: Utah, father pob: Denmark, mother toungue: Danish, mother pob: Sweden, mt: Swedish, speaks English.

Line 66. ---, Clyde, Daughter, F, W, 19, Single, can read, can write, pob: Utah, father pob: Denmark, mother toungue: Danish, mother pob: Sweden, mt: Swedish, speaks English.

Line 66. ---, Lloyd, Son, M, W, 1 2/12, Single, pob: Utah, father pob: Denmark, mother toungue: Danish, mother pob: Sweden, mt: Swedish.


I don't know who Lloyd Lund is. He is listed as being 1 2/12, so he was born around Oct/Nov 1918. I don't believe he is Pauline's son because she would have been almost 64 years old when he was born - not very likely his mom! he may be the son of either Sadie or Clyde, so Mathias and Pauline's grandson. I'll have to investigate this more. I don't have a Lloyd Lund in my database right now - mostly from other family research. I think I'll start by looking for Clyde and Sadie in the 1930 census (Mathias and Pauline both pass away before then). Perhaps Lloyd is listed with one of them...as their son. Or, I could look for Lloyd's birth certificate. Because he was born after 1911, his records aren't digitized at the Utah State Archives. I would have to go to the county (I assume Weber County, where Plain City is) and order it for $18. I think I'll check the census' first. Any other ideas?

Also, I'd like to find Farm Schedule #16 which should list more details about the Lund Farm. I'd also like to know what the "000" means - listed after Mathias' Line. Many of the other "heads" have a "000" but some have other numbers. I wonder what they mean...not sure where to find the answer to that one. I'll have to find an expert.

19 June 2011

Week 8: Can Johnny Come Out and Play?

Chapter 2 - Early Life Memories (up to about 12 years old.)

This topic deals with your friends and playmates from your earliest memories up through your elementary school years....approximately age 12.

Who were your friends or special playmates during this time? Did you play a lot with your brothers and sisters or with children from other families? What games or activities were you good at? Which ones were most difficult for you? Tell me about some memorable event that happened during your play...Did you ever "cook up" and/or eat anything out of the ordinary?...Ever get lots?...Break any windows? Did you ever discover anything strange or unusual? As you played, what was special that you made or took apart, buried or dug up, read or listened to, painted decorated, etc? Did you fly any kites? Were they "store bought" or did you make them yourself? Who helped you?

Did you sew or cook anything special or important to you at the time? Did you (or you and a friend) ever make a gift for a parent, brother or sister, friend, teacher, etc?

What was the gift and why do you remember it so clearly? In those early years, did you ever go exploring in the woods, on a construction site, etc.? What else did you do with your friends and playmates that was significant to you? In addition to your real friends, did you also have any imaginary friends? What were their names? What did you do with your imaginary friends? Why were they important to you?

13 June 2011

Mathias Christian Lund - Missionary to Denmark

What a find! The other day I decided to do a Google search for Mathias in all his various names. When I used "Mathias Christan Funk Lund" look what I got -- A book about Scandinavian Missionaries! Apparently, Mathias served an LDS mission back to the motherland. The entire contents of the book are online for all to see. Below is his entry.
Source: Anderson Shauna C., and Susan Easton Black, and Ruth Ellen Maness., Legacy of Sacrifice: Missionaries to Scandinavia, 1872-94 (Provo, Utah: Brigham Young University Press, January 2007), page "K, L"; electronic copy, Brigham Young University, (: accessed 10 June 2011.
Mathias Christian Funk Lund
(Mathias Kristian Funch)
1849–1926
Residence: Plain City, Weber Co., Utah
Arrival date in Copenhagen: 20 June 1888
Missionary labors: Copenhagen Conference
Departure date from Copenhagen: 24 April 1890
Name of departure ship: Cameo

Birth date: 31 August 1849
Birthplace: Arnager, Nylarsker, Bornholm, Denmark
Father: Funch, Didrik Jacobsen
Mother: Hansdatter, Karen (Catherine)
Spouse: Swensson, Pauline Persson
     Marriage date: 11 May 1874
     Marriage place: Salt Lake City, Salt Lake Co., Utah
Death date: 2 March 1926
Death place: Ogden, Weber Co., Utah
Burial place: Plain City Cemetery, Plain City, Weber Co., Utah

On 5 September 1858, Mathias was baptized a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He was endowed on 11 May 1874 in the Endowment House in Salt Lake City (see FamilySearch).

While a resident of Plain City, Weber County, Utah, he accepted a mission call to Scandinavia in 1888. He arrived in Copenhagen on 20 June 1888 and was assigned to labor in the Copenhagen Conference. After completing this mission, he departed from Copenhagen on 24 April 1890 aboard the steamer Cameo with 116 emigrating Latter-day Saints and six other missionaries. The voyage across the North Sea was marked with considerable seasickness and stormy weather. The Cameo arrived at Hull, England, on 27 April 1890 (see Jenson, History of the Scandinavian Mission, 307, 313).

Mathias returned to Weber County, where he worked as a farmer in Plain City. He died from pneumonia at the Ogden Hospital at age seventy-six. His funeral was held in the Plain City chapel (see “Plain City Resident’s Funeral Set for Thursday,” Deseret News, 3 March 1926).



Not only did this entry provide me with lots of new information like mission dates/locations, ship names, and other sources to look for, when combined with everything else I know, I learn more about his wife. Mathias left for his mission in June of 1888 at the age of 38, leaving Pauline at home with 4 young children (ages 11, 6, 3, 1) and 6 months pregnant with her fifth! Wow!

12 June 2011

Week 7: My Home

Now that we have the basics out of the way, we'll spend the next few weeks focusing on your early life memories...until about 12 years old. Remember back to the old days...
From the time of your birth up until you were approximately 12 years old, where did you live? Do you have any pictures of this house? Where are they? Label them.

Was it a big house or an apartment? What color was it? Was it in a city or in a rural area? Do you know if that house still exists? What happened to it? Did you have a room all to yourself or did you share a room with someone else? Did anyone live with you and your family? Was there a room or a particular piece of furniture that had a special significance to you? Someplace you would go to feel secure?...a chair that was your dad's favorite?...a couch you used to jump on?...A dresser that you marked on, nailed on, or scratched and got you in trouble? Did you have a television? How big was your first TV set? What were your feelings as you watched those first historic shows? Do you remember the first TV program that you ever watched? What was it? Did your family have a radio? Describe it. What are your special memories regarding that radio and the program(s) that you and your family listed to? What about outside the house? Did you have a big or small yard? Did you have a garden? Did you ever try to plant/eat anything unusual from that garden? What games did you play out there? In the future, I will ask more questions about the homes you lived in later in life.

As always, you can respond to these questions or ignore them or focus only some of the questions. Perhaps these questions aren't relevant to you but spark other topics...feel free to write about those as well!

10 June 2011

Census 1910 - Mathias Lund Family - Plain City, Weber, Utah

Moving forward in time, let's check in on the Mathias Lund family in 1910.

Mathias and Pauline are still in Plain City and have 5 of their 10 children living with them. Their oldest four must have married and moved on (?) and their other son died young. I did find his name in newFamilySearch but need to find sources to support it. I may need to make a trip to the Family History Library...I'll post more details when I find them.

Source: 1910 Census, Plain City, Weber, Utah, population schedule, Plain City Precinct, enumeration district (ED) 236, sheet 3A, dwelling 44, family 45, Mathias Lund Family; digital images, Ancestry (Ancestry.com : downloaded 3 May 2011); T624, 1178 rolls.

Entry:
Line 1. Lund, Mathias C. Head, M, W, age 60, 1st Marriage for 36 years, place of birth and language: Den. Danish, father’s pob/lang: Den. Danish, mother’s pob/lang: Den. Danish, immigrated 1869, Naturalized, speaks English, Farmer, General Farm, Employer, can read, can write, Owns property, mortgages, Farm, on farm schedule #33.
Line 2. -----, Pauline. Wife, F, W, age 55, 1st Marriage for 36 years, 10 children born, 9 children living,  pob/lang: Swed. Swedish, father’s pob/lang: Swed. Swedish, mothers pob/lang: Swed. Swedish, immigrated 1863, speaks English, can read, can write.
Line 3. -----, Victor E. Son, M, W, 21, Single, pob: Utah, father’s pob/lang: Den. Danish, mother’s pob/lang: Swed. Swedish, speaks English, Farm Laborer, Farm, working on own account, not out of work on 15 Apr 1910, 5 weeks out of work during 1909, can read, can write.
Line 4. -----, Heber C. Son, M, W, 17, Single, pob: Utah, father’s pob/lang: Den. Danish, mother’s pob/lang: Swed. Swedish, speaks English, Farm Laborer, Farm, working on own account, out of work on 15 Apr 1910, 5 weeks out of work during 1909, can read, can write.
Line 5. -----, Sabie B. Daughter, F, W, 16, Single, pob: Utah, father’s pob/lang: Den. Danish, mother’s pob/lang: Swed. Swedish, speaks English, can read, can write.
Line 6. -----, Zella L. Daughter, F, W, 13, Single, pob: Utah, father’s pob/lang: Den. Danish, mother’s pob/lang: Swed. Swedish, speaks English, can read, can write.
Line 7. -----, Clyde E. Daughter, F, W, 10, Single, pob: Utah, father’s pob/lang: Den. Danish, mother’s pob/lang: Swed. Swedish, speaks English, can read, can write.

08 June 2011

Mathias Christian Lund - Christening Record

Source: Danish State Archives, "Kirkebøger," digital images, Statens Arkivers Arkivalieronline (www.sa.dk/ao/ : downloaded 3 June 2011), Mathias Kristian Funch, Christening Record, 1849; Nylarskar Parish.

Transcription/Translation: I was able to translate most of this on my own (with the help of GoogleTranslate). I did get some additional help and insights from the Family Search Forum for Denmark. I've included the Danish and English versions below:

1849

No.
9

Aar og Datum
Year and Date
31 Aug
1849

Barnets fulde Navn
Child’s full name
Mathias Kristian
Funch

Daabens Datum enten i Kirken eller hjemme
Christening Date either in the church or at home
7 Oct.
1849 i
Kirken
7 Oct.
1849 at
the church

Forældres Navn, Stand, Haandtering og Opholdsted
Parents’ Name, Social Position, Occupation and Residence
Didrich F. Funk
Karen K. Hansd
i Arnager
Didrich F. Funk
Karen K. Hansd[atter]
in Arnager


Faddernes Navne, Stand og Opholdsted
Witnesses’ Names, Social Position and Residence
Lars Pouls H.[ustru] Stine Hansd.[atter]
Karen M Kofod - Hans
Marker Jens P. Jacobsen
Lars Pouls' Wife Stine Hansdatter
Karen M Kofod - Hans
Marker. Jens P. Jacobsen

Hvor anført i jevnfø relsesRegistret.
Where posted in the Index Register
no. 128

Anmærkninger
Remarks.
vac: af Grove d 11 Sept
1851
vaccinated by Grove on 11 September
1851

JensenJN, a member of the forum, gave me some additional insights into some of the information.
Re: Witnesses Names -- Kofod is a name uniquely originating at Bornholm, and it was fiercely defended by the family. It did not allow anyone outside the family to take it.
There were different spellings of the name: Kofod, Koefod, Kofoed, and Koefoed.
I went back and asked for some clarification about the vaccinations. I wondered what it was for and who "Grove" may have been - a person or maybe organization? He responded:
The short answer is that the vaccination was against smallpox. Denmark had had some epidemics and it became mandatory to be vaccinated against it. The Danish word for "smallpox" is "Kopper". You will in some marriage entries find a remark like "har haft de naturlige kopper" ("has had the natural smallpox"). At times it just abbreviated to "Nat. Kopper." Such people were exempt from the vaccination.

TO INVESTIGATE: This record was really interesting and gave me lots of new information. It also brought up questions about Mathias' last name. At birth he was Funch, when he immigrated he was Funk, and in all US records he's Lund. Interestingly, in the US 1880 Census he is Mathias C Lund but his father is listed (on another page) as Dedrick Funk. All his siblings (in the US) took the name as well. Why the name change? When? Where did the name Lund come from?

07 June 2011

Census 1880 - Mathias Lund Family - Plain City, Weber, Utah

I continue my research into the Mathias Lund Family. Here is his first U.S. Census record. He is now married and living in Plain City, Weber Co., Utah with his wife Pauline and young daughter Emma.
Source: 1900 U.S. Census, Plain City, Weber, Utah, population schedule, Plain City Precinct, enumeration district (ED) 194, sheet 3A, family 54, Mathias Lund Family; digital images, Ancestry (Ancestry.com : downloaded 3 May 2011); T623, 1854 rolls.

Entry:
line 12 - Lund, Mathias, W, M, 30, [head], married, farmer, 4 mo. unemployed, place of birth: Denmark, father pob: Denmark, mother pob: Denmark
line 13 -  ..., Pauline, W, F, 25, Wife, married, keeping house, cannot read, cannot write, pob: Sweden, father pob: Sweden, mother pob: Sweden
line 14 -  ..., Emma, W, F, 3, Daughter, pob: Utah, father pob: Denmark, mother pob: Sweden

06 June 2011

Mathias Christian Lund - Death Certificate

Amanuensis Monday: Amanuensis Monday is a popular ongoing series created by John Newmark at Transylvanian Dutch...and I'm joining the bandwagon! Each Monday, I'll post a new transcription of a historical document I've found.
Source: Weber, Utah, Utah Death Certificates, 1904-1956, film no. 2259754, digital gs no. 4121334, image no. 1516, certificate no. 142, Mathias Christian Lund, 2 March 1926; digital images, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Family Search (FamilySearch.com : downloaded 4 May 2011).

I've gone ahead and transcribed all the information and added it to my database. You can see the transcription below. I've italicized what was written/typed on the certificate.

Mathias Christian Lund – Death Certificate - Transcription
1 Place of Death
County or
Precinct or
City  /  no.  /  ward

Weber

Ogden  /  Dee Hospital
2 Full Name
Residence No. / St.
Length of residence in city or town where death occurred (yrs. mos. ds)
How long in U.S., if foreign birth?
Mathias Christian Lund
Plain City, Utah
14 days

58 years
3 Sex
Male
4 Color or Race
White
5 Single, Married, Widowed, or Divorced
If Married, Widowed, or divorced, Husband of (or) wife of
Widowed

Pauline Swensen
6 Date of Birth
September 1, 1849
7 Age
76 yrs. 6 mos. 1 ds.
8 Occupation
Farmer
9 Birthplace (City or town)
Bornholm
     (State or Country)
Denmark
10 Name of Father
Dedrick Lund
11 Birthplace of Father (State or Country)
Denmark
12 Maiden Name of Mother
Karen X
13 Birthplace of Mother (State or Country)
Denmark
14 Informant
Victor E. Lund
     Address
Plain City, Utah
15 Filed / Registrar
Mar 3 1926  /  N.H.J.
16 Date of Death
March 2, 1926
17 I hereby Certify, That I attended deceased from Feb 1926 to Mar 2, 1926 that I last saw him alive on Mar 1, 1926 and that death occurred, on the date stated above, at 1:55 AM.
The Cause of Death was as follows: Pneumonia following a prostectomy. Duration: 7 ds. Contributory: Prostectomy Duration: 7 ds.
18 Where was the disease contracted if not at place of death?
Did an operation precede death?
Was there an autopsy?
What was the confirmed diagnosis?
(Signed), M.D.
Date/Address
---x

Yes, Feb 24
No
--
(signed)E.R. Dumke
Mar 2, 1926 / Ogden, Utah
19 Place of Burial, Cremation or Removal
     Date of Burial
Plain City Cemetary, Plain City, Utah
Mch 5, 1926
20 Undertaker
     Address
[Ija] Lindquist
Ogden, Utah
21 Registered No.
B153
22 no of Burial or Removal Permit
15311

Source: Weber, Utah, Utah Death Certificates, 1904-1956, film no. 2259754, digital gs no. 4121334, image no. 1516, certificate no. 142, Mathias Christian Lund, 2 March 1926; digital images, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Family Search (FamilySearch.com : downloaded 4 May 2011).

05 June 2011

Week 6: Religion


Did you receive a name and a blessing? When? By Whom? Who was present at this event? Do you have a copy of this blessing? Why not include it here? Has this blessing played a significant part in your life? Is there a family tradition followed at the time of blessings? A certain dress that is worn? A family dinner or gathering? Tell me about it.

Were you baptized as a baby?

Were you confirmed?

Was there religious tradition and/or ceremony involved? When and where did these events take place? In a church, a home, a hospital? Tell me about the circumstances of these events in your life.

04 June 2011

Embedding Source Info in the Metadata

So what to do about all the digital files that I've organized? First, remember that I gave everything a title that makes sense and is easy to search for. Now, I thought I might like to include the source information with the digital file. Instead of typing on the photo file, I wanted to use the metadata.

What is metadata you ask? Why, it's data about data. Metadata describes how and when and by whom a particular set of data was collected, and how the data is formatted. What does that really mean? Well, it is a listing of information about the item. For example if it's a photograph your metadata might include the name of the camera, the day and time the image was taken, the image name or number, etc.

So, what I want to do is add a title and the source citation to the metadata so it will follow the image around wherever it goes. Basically, this is the modern way to write on the back of the picture. The information will stay with the image.

Here's one of my source files for Troy's g-g-grandparents Mathias and Pauline Lund. I have a few records for them including census' and death certificates which are jpg files and a city history which I've saved in word and pdf versions.
The titles are crafted to make the file easy to find. If you look at the contents of this folder as a list (above) you can tell right away what each file is.
I could also view the images as thumbnails. Still, the titles really help me know what's what because the images are so small. This way I don't have to open every image.

There are multiple ways to edit the metadata. You could use something as robust as Photoshop or as basic as just right-clicking the file, choose "Properties" and then the "Details" tab. You can change the data there.
I wanted to be able to print my image with the source on the same page, like a caption. I chose to use Picasa, a free image editing software from Google. So, here's what I did.

Open the source screen in Roots Magic 4. I used the "footnote" version of the source citation (on the right). I just highlighted it and copied it so I could paste it later.
Then, when I open the image in Picasa's edit window I add the citation under the comments area. That's the grey bar at the bottom under the image.
Now when I select File>Print I have the option under "Border and Text Options" to add the comment below the image when it prints.
I also added the citation in the windows properties dialog because I want to be sure that it will travel with the image if I ever send it to someone.

Now, another thing I can do with this file is save it as a pdf. This makes it really easy to share without having to print. I use cutePDF as the "printer". If you install this program, then cutePDF shows up as a printer option. Then save your file with whatever name you want. Here's the example of Mathias Lund's 1880 Census for you to check out.

This makes it really easy to share documents and make sure the sources go with them.

03 June 2011

Utah State Archives

Wow! Have you used this site yet? It's amazing! I was looking for Death Certificates for ancestors from Plain City, Weber Co., Utah, United States so I checked out the Weber County Health Dept. They only have records from the last 50 years and they cost $16 each! But, they told me that the older records were at the Utah State Archives...and guess what...they have an amazing website!

There are a ton of records online! For Death Certificates they have 1904-1958 indexed online with images. Some older ones are in microfilm, indexed online, but you have to go to the archives to see them...I'll plan on doing that later. For now, I decided to find all the online images. Here's how I found 53 Death Certificates in about 1 hour!

Step 1. Generate report. In Roots Magic this is really easy. I created a list of Deaths in Utah between 1904 and 1958. I made sure to include spouses because the female's Death Certificates are under their married name.

Step 2. Search. In the right menu from the home page select "Research" then "Research Guides". Choose the link to the Death Index for 1904-1958. You can search by name or Date. The date search was really helpful if the spelling was off. Using these search options I was able to find all but 5 records. I'll have to do some more digging to see if the names or dates are wrong...or maybe they didn't die in Utah!


Here's my search for Anderson, Oscar. His name is actually Oscar Alfred Anderson, but I didn't know if the middle name would be on the certificate. There he is:

Then select the name and you'll get to the List of names that match.
Be sure to write down the Entry and Series number for citation purposes. The series for all these records was 81448, but each entry had a different number. I wrote those on my printed report.

Step 3. Download and Name the File. When you select the name from the list you'll go to the specific document page. I just right-clicked on the image and selected "save link as..." {Note: DO NOT CHOOSE "save image as..." that saves the teeny tiny image on this page. You want to save the BIG image. You could also open the image and save it from there.} I saved mine as "Death Certificate - LastName, FirstName". That way it was ready to be filed in my source folders.

Step 4. Add to Database and File. At some point I will go through each file and add the information and citations to my database. That will be a longer process. For now, I'll just add them to my "to file" folder and let them hang out there for a while.

Additional Awesomeness:
At the top of the windows there is a "Name Search" box. If you use this instead you'll see ALL THE RECORDS for that name! Awesome! In this case I found a Brand book that included Elijah Swainston's brand for his cattle. Amazing! I'll have to go back and check that out later.

Finally, here's what I accomplished in about 1 hour:
That's right - 53 Death Certificates, one Brand Book page, and 1 citation file (with the basic info so I can cite all these files later, when I'm ready to it later).

Check out the Utah State Archives for yourself. You won't be disappointed!

02 June 2011

Organization and Filing - Soft Copy

 I'm really trying to go as digital as possible with my genealogy research, for various reasons. First, it will save a tree. Second, Although its easy to find my hard copy files now that they are organized, I think its faster to search for digital files on my hard drive. Third, I don't have to keep going back to the original documents and risk damaging them. I can just deal with my digital copy. So, how do I organize them?

First, I use Dropbox. This is great to use because it not only stores all the files on my hard drive (the "My Dropbox" file is under "My Documents") but also in the "cloud". This means I can access this file from anywhere in the world if I have internet access. So, I could take my laptop to the Family History Library and add files right into my system from there...awesome!
Also, I can sync it with other computers so it will automatically update when I make changes. For example, I've synced my entire dropbox on my laptop. I've also shared my genealogy folders with my Mother-in-law so she can look at them too. Okay, lets talk folder structure:

First, create a Genealogy folder.
  Within that folder create a Database folder, General folder, and Sources folder.

I use my database folder to store backups of my Roots Magic database, Gedcom files I've received or created, and reports I've created.

I use my general folder for exactly that - general genealogy stuff that isn't specific to one person or family. So this is where I put my research logs, videos, and info about researching in Brazil and Denmark. Create as many folders as you need - remember, digital folders are free and don't take up any space (just the documents inside them do).

Now lets talk sources...this is where it gets good.
In my sources folder I create a folder for my tree and Troy's tree. Within each of those folders I create a folder for each Surname (last name) that appears in the respective family trees. I have a lot more names in Troy's tree but that is okay. Now let's take a look at one of those Surname folders.


We have a lot of Lund families in our tree so here's the Lund surname folder. I've named them by last name first then by the husband/wife name. Now, I add any information about these families within the respective folders. Remember from the hard copy filing post to file in the family the doc was created in. For example, my Birth Certificate is in my parent's folder, but my marriage licence is in my husband and my file...because that took place when we were a new family.
 Here's a look inside Troy's G-G-grandparents' folder - Mathias and Pauline Lund. As you can see by the document titles, I can tell exactly what each document is without having to open each one. I've chosen to follow the following naming order:

   Document Type - Person(s) Name - Date - additional info

That way, all like documents bunch together. Some other folders have picture files, so one way I would name it would be:
   Photograph - deMacedo, Deolinda - 1983 - s1
or
   Photograph - deMacedo, Deolinda - 1854 - Identification Card - s2

You could also look at thumbnails of the documents in the file -
 As you can see, it is still important to have the name in order to know what you're looking at. The great thing about this system is that you can find any person's records quickly and easily. You can also search for items based on the title and find it super fast. Try it for yourself.