Roots Television | Og Blog

New Roots Tuesday, July 22

2008-07-22T22:51:28Z

This week, we've added two SCGS Jamboree interviews with representatives of the New England Historic Genealogical Society. First, D. Brenton Simons, Executive Director of NEHGS, talks to Matthew Poe about the launch of a new website, www.newyorkancestors.org. The extensive collection of New York genealogical resources includes probate records, newspapers and periodicals, vital records, and New York genealogies and biographies. You also won't want to miss Brenton’s new book, Boston Beheld: Antique Town and Country Views. Then, Matthew Poe interviews Chris Child about his research into the ancestry of our presidential candidates...and the surprises he uncovered! And finally, Eric Basir from Photo Graphix, shows us how to scan and photograph original photos and documents for optimum quality. If you want to polish your skills, make sure you catch the two-part series! Og from RootsTelevision.com

New Roots Tuesday, July 15

2008-07-15T21:18:32Z

Og has some great videos for all our genies this week! We're featuring two interviews by Dick Eastman -- one at the 2008 SCGS Jamboree with Ron Arons, author of The Jews of Sing Sing, and another with JoAnne Rockower of Geni.com at the 2008 WDYTYA Live! event in London. And you won't want to miss this three-part series of CBC's Who Do You Think You Are? featuring Chantal Kreviazuk. An internationally respected, Juno award-winning singer, songwriter and musician, Chantal was born in Winnipeg, originally from a Manitoba farming community. This series highlights her journey back to her prairie heritage, and also reveals the source of her musical and creative spirit. You won't want to miss it! Another great video highlighted this week is Arlene Sachs' talk with Sonia Rosa-Velez and Eliud Bonilla about what happened when their families had their DNA tested. And to round out this week, we included a touching nostalgic montage that celebrates families. Og hopes you enjoy this edition of New Roots Tuesday!

We made the list…again!

2008-07-11T11:54:07Z

Og is simply ecstatic! For the second year in a row, Family Tree Magazine has named RootsTelevision to its annual 101 Best Web Sites for genealogy list for 2008. Being listed with remarkable sites like Ancestry.com, Eastman’s Online Genealogy Newsletter, and Cyndi’s List is just thrilling!

A synopsis of each winning site appears in the September 2008 Family Tree Magazine, which goes on sale at newsstands nationwide July 15. Be sure to grab a copy!

New Roots Tuesday, July 8

2008-07-08T03:08:51Z

At the Southern California Genealogical Society’s 2008 Jamboree we asked a new member of the Society, Matthew Poe, to do some interviewing (and represent a whole new generation of genies!). Matthew did a great job interviewing JoAnne Rockower, Director of Community Outreach for Geni.com. We’ve also included a segment from African American Lives 2 that ran earlier this year on PBS. It features Skip Gates (Henry Louis Gates, Jr.) and Kathleen Henderson, who was the winner of a nationwide contest that was held for a non-celebrity to participate in the show. RootsTelevision.com’s own Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak did the sleuthing that led to an unexpected discovery for both Skip and Kathleen! This week, we’re also featuring a video on Hungarian Family History Centers. Og admits that this isn’t the finest footage he’s seen, but still it’s interesting -- who knew there were so many Family History Centers in Hungary?? Lastly, Denise Olson of the Family Matters blog, provided this video tutorial that demonstrates Firefox search tools. Family researchers can take advantage of these tools to make their search efforts easier. And don’t miss the bonus Firefox Search Tools Fact Sheet [PDF 1.2MB] that provides step-by-step instructions for the tasks covered in the tutorial!

Jamboree '08

2008-07-03T15:42:28Z

We've started posting interviews from last weekend's Genealogy Jamboree, hosted by the Southern California Genealogical Society. Check out Dick Eastman's introduction to the event. We also met an up and coming genealogist named Matthew Poe at this year's event. So we thought we'd turn the tables on our good friend Dick and interview him for a change! Stay tuned for more videos to come! Og from RootsTelevision.com

New Roots Tuesday, July 1

2008-07-02T06:19:30Z

It's a feel-good genealogy week at Roots Television. First, in honor of the upcoming Fourth of July holiday, we're excited to feature a tribute to Old Glory in pictures, created an narrated by the Photo Detective (aka Maureen Taylor). We're also proud to present Giving Back - Genealogy Style. In the video, 19-year-old Elyse shares her thoughts and tips about giving back through genealogy:

As you have probably figured out by now, alot of genealogy is through sharing of information - usually for free of cost. People share information out of the kindness of their hearts. (And if you havent experienced this just yet - don't worry - you will). So in this video I give suggestions on ways to give back. This is by no means includes all the things you could do - but it gives some suggestions.

And finally, learn more about the U.K.'s largest genealogy company, S&N Genealogy, in Dick Eastman's interview with Nigel Bayley at the 2008 WDYTYA? Live! show in London.

New Roots Tuesday-ish, June 25

2008-06-25T22:00:00Z

Okay, Og's a bit behind posting his New Roots Tuesday lineup this week. To be honest, he's been caught up in Unclaimed Persons land. But as promised, here are this week's New and Featured Videos. First, we have a short snippet about Alfred/Albert Crazy Buffalo, an Unclaimed Persons case that has puzzled coroner Joe Brennan since 1994. It was the first unclaimed persons case he encountered after being elected Coroner. Every coroner we've talked to has a case (or two or three!) that stands out, for various reasons. This is the one Joe Brennan keeps coming back to. It's a John Doe/Unclaimed Persons combo, but maybe someone out there will have a fresh approach! We're also running a video featuring Miriam Midkiff, a teacher and writer of genealogy who uses Google Book Search in her personal research to put more context into the lives of her ancestors - including one relative who once trained a roller-skating bear. And if you're wondering when Roots Central will be updated, just give Og another hour or two and he'll have that ready, too! Og from RootsTelevision.com

New Roots Tuesday, June 17

2008-06-18T08:46:51Z

This Tuesday, we have two new videos from this year's Who Do You Think You Are? Live! event in London. First, Dick Eastman interviews Paul Blake, Event Coordinator for the Federation of Family History Societies. The FFHS "The Federation of family History Societies (FFHS) is an educational charity which exists to represent, advise and support its membership of family history societies and other genealogical organisations world-wide." And if you've ever wondered what life was like for an RAF pilot during WWI, don't miss Ravell's First Flight, a comedy re-enactment performed at the conference. Og from RootsTelevision.com

Guidelines for Unclaimed Persons Research

2008-06-12T07:54:55Z

The response to the Unclaimed Persons project has been extraordinary. In the first two days of being an active group on Facebook, group members have solved two cases that had been sitting unsolved for years. If you'd like to participate, you can check out the Unclaimed Person's group for more information. We post our new cases on the Discussion Board in Facebook, where volunteers are free to collaborate with one another as they research these mysteries. To make sure the process flows as smoothly as possible, our group members have helped us brainstorm a few guidelines for working with the project: 1. We'll create a separate discussion board topic for each case, titled with the case number and the name of the deceased. Please post all research findings here and not as comments on the case-related photos or The Wall. Hopefully, this will help us avoid duplicating efforts. 2. If you'd like to email Megan or other Unclaimed Persons administrators about a case, please use the email address at unclaimedpersons@rootstelevision.com This will help us make sure your questions and/or tips don't get buried in our inboxes. 3. Please do not post contact details and other private information about living persons, such as likely next of kin, in the public forum. Once you have those details, email them to unclaimedpersons@rootstelevision.com 4. Please do NOT contact coroner's offices directly, unless it's specified in a case that they have requested this. We're not trying to be control freaks here, but several coroner's offices have requested that we act as a point of contact and forward them the compiled information. We want to make sure that we don't overwhelm them with our enthusiasm! 5. NEVER contact possible relatives. Instead, provide the information to the relevant coroner's office via this Facebook site and/or unclaimedpersons@rootstelevision.com All researchers are welcome. Even if you're new to genealogy, this might be a perfect place for you to see top researchers at work and learn a few tips and tricks. Og from RootsTelevision.com

Unclaimed Persons Bringing Generations Together

2008-06-11T22:30:34Z

No one was more excited than Og when Unclaimed Persons cracked the Joseph Higgs case. But now it seems, the project has not only helped a lost brother come home, it's broken down a brick wall in one of our viewer's research.

This is amazing! I received an email invite to join Megan's Unclaimed Persons group an hour ago and after I signed up, I watched her research video on Joseph Higgs on Roots TV. My husband's grandmother was Melvira Higgs. To our amazement, we found out Alpha Higgs, Joseph's father, was Melvira's first cousin. We had no information on Alpha's descendants, but now thanks to Megan and Roots TV, we can fill in the gaps. Thank you so much for the work you're doing! We'll be sure to share this video with the rest of the family.

Her story just highlights why this project is so important. Bringing these unclaimed persons homes reunites families in more ways than we may ever know. If you'd like to help solve more Unclaimed Persons mysteries, join the Unclaimed Persons group and check the discussion board to see our active cases. Og from RootsTelevision.com

Come to the Jamboree!

2008-06-11T15:04:16Z

Looking for an excuse to take a Southern California vacation? Maybe you should watch how you can solve your family history puzzle at the 2008 SoCal Jamboree. The 39th Annual Southern California Genealogical Jamboree is coming Friday through Sunday, June 27-29 to Burbank, California. From DNA to Southern roots to German genealogy and even witchcraft, there's something for everybody at this year's Jamboree. Our very own Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak will give a "Welcome to Roots Television" presentation, along with lectures on Annie Moore, DNA, and Eastern European research.

New Roots Tuesday, June 10

2008-06-10T17:09:35Z

This Tuesday we're featuring a new short film called The Bootmaker's Footprints. It's a story of reclaimed Irish ancestry, giving hope to those who may have given up tracing the Irish roots of family who migrated to England. We're also pleased to share two public service announcements from the Allen County Public Library, highlighting their Military Symposium to be held this September. Og from RootsTelevision.com

Nine-Year-Old Unclaimed Persons Case Solved in Six Days!

2008-06-05T21:45:41Z

When RootsTelevision.com launched Unclaimed Persons a week ago, the hope was to bring attention to a virtually unknown epidemic, but also offer a potential solution. The epidemic? Literally unclaimed persons. Many of us are familiar with John and Jane Does, but very few are aware of the struggles of coroners' offices across the country to find the next of kin for the ever-growing number of people who are identified, but have no one to claim them. The solution? An unlikely teaming of coroners and genealogists working together to find the families of the unclaimed. Tripping across a newspaper article about this little known problem, genealogist Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak realized that she and fellow family history sleuths were perfectly equipped to help. Offering her assistance to coroners' offices in Scranton, Pennsylvania and San Bernardino, California, she quickly located next of kin for cases that had remained unresolved for months or even years. Two such cases are highlighted in Unclaimed Persons. A supplemental video, Unclaimed Persons Research: Joseph Higgs, allows the viewer to watch over Megan's shoulder as she surfs her way to a solution in one of the cases. From the day the show launched, sympathetic and skilled genealogists started to tackle the unsolved case of John Finch that ended the Unclaimed Persons episode. One of them was well-known professional genealogist and author, Kimberly Powell. Eagle-eyed Kimberly spotted a particularly important clue – a brief snippet in the St. Joseph News-Press about a likely niece of the deceased. Apparently, her car had been broken into just a week earlier. Piggy-backing off of information provided, several possible addresses for the niece were found and passed on to the Lackawanna Coroner's Office, which then wrote to each of them. Yesterday, the coroner's office received a call from John Finch's brother. Thanks to Kimberly's genealogical detective skills, a case that had been open since 1999 was solved in just six days. John Finch is no longer an unclaimed person. "We realized that almost everything about this was experimental," said Marcy Brown, co-founder of RootsTelevision.com. "Not only the pairing of coroners and genealogists, but also the use of online video to bring attention to a serious, but hidden problem of national scope. We hope that this is just the beginning and are trying to figure out the best way to facilitate the resolution of additional cases. As a first step, we invite people to join the Unclaimed Persons group we've just launched on Facebook" (those who are new to Facebook will need to register).

Unclaimed Persons

2008-05-28T17:01:42Z

What happens to people when they die with no next of kin to claim their bodies? Our newest show, Unclaimed Persons, brings attention to this largely unknown epidemic. Coroners’ offices across the country are struggling to cope with thousands of unclaimed people whose identities are known, but for whom no family can be found. "I knew about John and Jane Does," said genealogist Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak, "but I had no idea about all these unclaimed people who are usually cremated and buried in unmarked graves, and that's often after several months on a shelf in a morgue. We hear about abandoned pets, but you never hear about these abandoned bodies." Accidentally stumbling across an article about one such case is what prompted Smolenyak Smolenyak to cold call a couple of coroners’ offices and offer her sleuthing skills for tracking down family members. Unclaimed Persons features cases -- one involving a man who was found in his jeep in the desert and had been lost to his family for more than 50 years -- from Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania and San Bernardino County, California. Says RootsTelevision.com co-founder Marcy Brown, "We hope this show will create awareness, and that viewers will help with unsolved cases. But most of all, we hope it will motivate folks to pick up the phone and call that brother they haven’t spoken with in decades. I think it will make people ask themselves if maybe it’s time to call home." You can watch the first episode of Unclaimed Persons here. If you have any questions or informations about these cases, feel free to contact us at unclaimedpersons@rootstelevision.com. Og from RootsTelevision.com

Memorial Day Roots

2008-05-27T08:37:50Z

Og hopes you've had a sunny, or at least restful, holiday weekend. In honor of the day, here are a few of Og's favorite military-themed videos: War Letters Andrew Carroll is the best-selling author of War Letters, and founder of The Legacy Project. Founded in 1998, the Legacy Project is a national, all-volunteer initiative that encourages Americans to seek out and preserve the personal correspondence of our nation’s veterans, active-duty troops, and their loved ones. No one can tell the stories of these men and women better than they can, and the Legacy Project believes that their sacrifices, humanity, and experiences are best recorded in their own words—the letters and e-mails they have written in times of war. Memorial Day, 1920 Peer back in time at the Memorial Day festivities of Cornwall, New York in 1920. Complete with a tour of the town, spectators, military parade, and the gift of a captured German gun presented by the Republic of France. Reveille Screen veterans David Huddleston and James McEachin, director and producer of Old Glory, star in this humorous and touching look at the rivalry between two branches of the U.S. Armed Forces. Wartime Pen Pal An Arkansas Pastor reflects on the many letters he wrote as a pen pal to soldiers serving in World War II. Produced by United Methodist Communications. Og from RootsTelevision.com