Weekly Genealogy Picks

Weekly Genealogy Picks -- January 10 to January 16
from genealogy blogs, newspaper articles and elsewhere

Miriam at Ancestories is running a series: 52 Weeks of Online American Digital Archives and Databases. This week she wrote on Alaska. (Note: she appears to be posting them on Sunday, and this list runs Sunday to Saturday, so when you read this, Arizona's post will be on the site.)

Chery Kinnick at Nordic Blue writes The Best Laid Genealogical Plans - where she begins to tell the tale of how she 'discovered' her birth father 'after nearly fifty years of wondering.' I look forward to reading the continuation of her story.

Wendy Littrell at All My Branches Genealogy begins to catalog all the organization Membership Lists her family and ancestors appeared on - civic, professional, and fraternal. I hesitate to imagine how long the list for my family would be, even if I limited it to recent generations. But I think it might be a worthwhile endeavor.

Matt Quinn at PoemBlaze Blog, in a post entitled, Genealogy Has its Limits shares a poem he wrote about his grandfather, Matthew T. Ryan. He started this blog about a week ago, and is trying to post a poem every day. Not only are he and I members of the same local writer's group, he is partially responsible for my genealogical obsession.

In time for the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday, History Man has an entry on The Doctrine of Non-Violence.

Katrina McQuarrie at Kick-Ass Genealogy provides suggestions on Dealing with Roadblocks when Interviewing Relatives.

Olive Tree Genealogy begins a 12-part series on 'less obvious' genealogy records, with a discussion about medical records.

James Tanner at Genealogy's Star questions the accuracy of family trees that 'go back to Adam.' He's not questioning the Biblical material, which is a matter of faith, but the accuracy of first millennium and medieval records.

The Daily Riverfront Times reports about What Happens When you Run a Meth Lab at a Cemetery:

"...So you can imagine what would happen if someone who operates a meth lab was also in charge of running an entire cemetery. Oh wait, you don't have to imagine. It actually (allegedly) happened in Wood River, Illinois."

The first issue of Digital Content Quarterly was released:

"Whether your background is cultural heritage, education and research, health or public service broadcasting, you face many of the same opportunities and challenges when it comes to digital content. In this fast-paced, ever-changing environment the Strategic Content Alliance’s Digital Content Quarterly (DCQ) provides a news round-up of digital content issues from around the world, thought-provoking features highlighting key debates in the field and regular columns from experts in areas that have most traction in terms of digital content provision: intellectual property rights and business modelling and sustainability."

For those readers who read few other genealogy blogs, the following may be news to you:

Ancestry Magazine is Discontinuing Publication

Who Do You Think You Are - the US version of the British show - is scheduled to premiere on NBC Friday March 5th at 7 pm central, 8 pm eastern.

In each episode of Who Do You Think You Are?, a celebrity embarks on a journey of self-discovery and unearths his or her family tree - revealing surprising, inspiring and sometimes tragic stories that are often linked to events in American history. We share intimate moments with the stars as they learn about their past, and how the struggles of their ancestors have shaped today's world. Stars include Lisa Kudrow, Sarah Jessica Parker and Susan Sarandon.

Faces of America - a 4-part series hosted by Henry Louis Gates, Jr. - premieres on PBS Wednesday, Feb 10th, at 7 pm central, 8 pm eastern. (Follow the link for a video preview.)

For other weekly lists visit:

• Randy Seaver's Best of the Genea-Blogs at Genea-Musings
• Apple's Weekly Rewind at Apple's Tree
• Donna Pointkouski's Donna's Picks at What's Past is Prologue
• Julie Cahill Tarr's Friday Finds at GenBlog