November 2016

Genealogy Gems:

News from the Fort Wayne Library No. 153, November 30, 2016

In this issue:

Lessons Learned, and Lessons to Learn

Aaron Goodwin’s “New York City Municipal Archives”

Huntington Library’s “Early California Population Project”

Technology Tip of the Month--Microsoft Access Relationships and Sub-reports, Part II

Quick-Tip of the Month for Preservation--Care of Glass Plate Negatives

Holiday Gifts PERSI Gems History Tidbits: An American Christmas

Share Your Cubs Memories!

DNA and Genealogy Interest Group

Keep Warm with WinterTech

Staying Informed about Genealogy Center Programming

Area Calendar of Events

Driving Directions to the Library

Parking at the Library

Queries for The Genealogy Center

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Lessons Learned, and Lessons to Learn by Curt B. Witcher

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What a November of learning it has been. Regardless of one’s party affiliation, there were few on election night that weren’t honestly quite surprised by the nature of the results. And no matter which news outlet one chose to watch, almost as much time was spent musing about the question, “Why didn’t we see this coming?” as there was about the actual election results. I believe there is a harbinger here--a harbinger of the challenges we in the historical research arena are facing and will increasingly face. First, we must pay more attention to who is curating our data and how that curation is being done. When it comes to the records that document our heritage, whether the actual artifacts or the digital surrogates, we too often leave the care of those records and the dissemination of the information from those records in the hands of disinterested others. In many respects, we take the information provided as complete and accurate without any checking or analysis. And we assume it will be available forever, and maybe even persistently enhanced and updated. A marquee example of twenty-first century flux in this arena is the Library of Congress’ “American Memory” project . Once heralded as one of the best examples of a public-private partnership, “American Memory” is nowhere to be found directly on the new incarnation of the Library of Congress (LC) website. One can still access the aforementioned web page by conducting a site search across LC or by Googling it. At the aging “American Memory” webpage, among the shrinking number of subject headings and collections linked to those headings, one will find interesting notices such as, "Notice: Some Collections Have Moved” and “We've migrated some of our collections to new presentations. See the list or browse the full array of digital collections at loc.gov/collections.” When one clicks on the list of digital collections, that web space presents another version of the aforementioned notice in the following heading. “These Collections have been migrated to new presentations.” The explanatory information following that heading reads: “As a part of ongoing modernization, we've migrated some of our collections to new presentations. Collections that have been migrated no longer appear in internal American Memory search results and browse lists. To search all Library collections (including American Memory) please visit loc.gov/search, or browse the full array of digitized collections at loc.gov/collections. You can also use the links below to go to the new presentations for single collections.” “Migrated some of our collections to new presentations” is actually code for "we’ve removed these collections from the LC site and given responsibility for them back to partner organizations." For example, clicking on the Edward S. Curtis’s North American Indian collection takes one to the Northwestern University web site. This is not necessarily a good thing or a bad thing--it's just a thing. What it does mean, though, is that researchers no longer have a consistent user interface, and the same type of federated search across all American Memory collections is no longer available. All that happens to our information without much notice on our part and not much willingness to truly be transparent on LC’s part. “Migrated to new presentations . . .”--really? Second, we need to be consistently sober and responsible in our understanding of what we are actually looking at when we’re using any sources, including online sources. From the mid-1990s (yes, I am that old!) I have been telling researchers in The Genealogy Center and those who I meet at conferences and seminars around the country that there is absolutely nothing magic about the Internet, about online data. It is simply a different container for information, a container that is much more easily created, shared, and modified. So many more individuals and organizations can make never-widely-seen-before mountains of data and images available for use. And while the benefits of this not-so-new container or medium are quite numerous and wonderful, and those benefits have brought tens of millions of individuals to the exciting field of family history research, we need to be aware of the challenges. One challenge is being lead to believe that everything is available online, or certainly everything of consequence is available online. Simply, clearly, completely not true. Our children’s children will not live long enough to see everything available online. When one listens to large information aggregators in the genealogy space talk about record sets, you will often hear the term “name rich” when evaluating whether to image a particular record set. That has nothing to do with ensuring everything in a particular archive is digitally captured and everything to do with whether there are enough names per image to provide the proper return on their investment. Again, not a good or bad thing, but a piece of the reality we should understand. Using our recent elections as an example, most of us naively believed that the pollsters knew what they were doing and further, were doing an objective, thorough job. Did that ever turn out not to be the case. I have to wonder what kind of objective and thorough job we are doing in locating all available documents and data for our genealogical research endeavors. One of the newest kinds of “brick wall” situations we handle in The Genealogy Center are forms of “No one has posted a tree on Ancestry for my family, for this collateral line, for my immigrant ancestor--I am at a dead end.” And then we discover the individual has done precious little else than look on Ancestry. That’s not a brick wall at all, but rather a near complete lack of understanding about historical records and their creation as well as just what is available on Ancestry. Some declare after looking in the FamilySearch catalog as well as in their online record and image sets that they have looked at everything and are at a brick wall. “FamilySearch has been to that county and they have filmed everything” is the lament. Rarely does FamilySearch, or any other information aggregator, capture all records when working in a particular archive. Some fuss and wring their hands about there being few to no territorial records available for our research, particularly when that research is further west of the original colonies. Yet skilled researchers who take the time to go to an archive and truly look for records, like what former records manager for the Supreme Court of Indiana, John Newman, is doing find many hundreds (yes hundreds!) of territorial era records for Indiana that are not yet discoverable and not yet available online. Among the biggest challenges for us as genealogists is to maintain the evaluative rigor when we are using data, no matter where we find it. The age-old questions still apply. Where did this information come from? Am I seeing the whole document, or just a part, or just a transcription or translation? Is this the only document that evidences a particular event of interest? Are there other documents that provide context and insight for the original document found and the time period in which the data was gathered and the document created? Let’s learn some lessons from the less-than-rigorous processes we have evidenced of late. Let’s seek out opportunities to increase our knowledge. Further on in this newsletter, my colleague Sara Allen provides a review of the New York Genealogical and Biographic Society’s latest publication, “New York City Municipal Archives: An Authorized Guide for Family Historians.” It’s another fine publication from this great society, following on the heels of another great work they produced, “New York Family History Research Guide and Gazetteer.” If one is doing research in New York, time must be taken to devour these sources to identify records, repositories, and strategies. Another fine example is Helen Leary’s research guide to North Carolina. Her work is so good that studying its contents will help one be successful researching in nearly every state. There are some amazing online learning opportunities. The FamilySearch wiki is nothing short of terrific. If you haven’t used it, you’re not really serious about learning, or about finding all the data possible. There are a number blogs that easily qualify to be part of one’s learning opportunities. Some of the very best are listed below.

Amy Johnson Crow -- AmyJohnsonCrow.com FamilySearch Blog -- familysearch.org/blog/en/ Judy Russell's Blog -- legalgenealogist.com Kathleen Brandt's a3Genealogy -- blog.a3genealogy.com

Robera Estes’ DNAeXplained -- dna-explained.com The more we understand about the process of research, the more aware we become of how fragile and impermanent records can be. With that understanding, we can all become better curators of the history in our hands.

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Aaron Goodwin’s “New York City Municipal Archives” by Sara Allen

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Family historians seeking New York ancestors have always faced significant challenges due to privacy laws, a fire at the State Capitol in 1911, lack of early vital records, and other complications that impede research. Nevertheless, there are some wonderful resources available for New York genealogists, including but not limited to: the New York Genealogical & Biographical Society (http://newyorkfamilyhistory.org/), Italian Genealogical Group (http://italiangen.org/), German Genealogical Group (http://www.germangenealogygroup.com/), Hank Jones & Arthur Kelly’s Palatine German publications, and the Fulton History newspaper website of digitized New York newspapers (http://fultonhistory.com). We can now add to that list a newly-published guide entitled “New York City Municipal Archives: An Authorized Guide for Family Historians” (GC 974.702 N422GOA) by Aaron Goodwin. This guide details the abundance of genealogical records available at this extensive facility for those studying and researching New York City, its five boroughs, and former historical locations that have been incorporated into the city over the years. It should be noted that the guide does not cover the non-genealogical records found at the Archives, some of which are described on their website at: http://www.nyc.gov/html/records/html/archives/collections.shtml. The New York City Municipal Archives should be the first stop for all family historians researching New York City, with records stretching from the colonial Dutch time period to the present day. The guide breaks down all the different categories of genealogical records found at the Municipal Archives and includes chapters on: Vital Records; Coroner and Medical Examiner Records; City Cemetery Burials; Bodies in Transit; Civil War Soldiers’ Family Aid Fund; Almshouse Records; Assessed Valuation of Real Estate; Department of Buildings; Property Cards; Farm Histories; New Amsterdam Records of the Dutch Colonial Era; Common Council/City Council Records; Court Records; Old Town Records; Richmond County Clerk Records; Censuses; City & Civic Directories; WPA Federal Writers’ Project Records and Photography Collections. Each chapter is further structured with an introduction, description, sample records, suggested citations, analyzing and using the record section, accessing the records instructions, and selected references. Readers from beginners to the most advanced researchers can skip to the sections of the chapter that interest them most. Let’s look more in depth at the chapter about New Amsterdam Records of the Dutch Colonial Era held in this repository. The introduction gives a nice overview of the Dutch period in NYC, roughly from 1642 to 1674. The description is immensely useful, containing a breakdown of the records available at the Archives (mostly in Dutch), whether an English translation is available, and where it can be found. The sample record, presented to give a flavor of the types of records in this collection, is a court case entitled, Joost Goderis vs. Gulyam d’Wys et al. In 1653, the plaintiff brought suit against the defendants for making lewd suggestions about Goderis’s wife. While the case itself is interesting, probably the best part of the chapter is the analysis of the records by the author, where he tells the reader the importance of the case and explains the genealogical conclusions that can be drawn from it. In this case, subtle but significant conclusions can be made that:

1) Goderis was married by 1653;

2) He and all the other named persons in the suit were residing in or around the NYC area at that particular time; and

3) Each of the witnesses in the case would have been at least twenty years old at the time in order to be called as a witness under Dutch law. A beginner can learn much about genealogical research fundamentals by reading these sample records and discussions. Moving on, in the accessing the records section, information is given about which of the New Amsterdam records have been microfilmed, which are available on loan from the Family History Library, and where those can be viewed, as well as efforts to scan the records and make them available online. At the end of the chapter there is an annotated bibliography directing the researcher to additional sources and background reading. Even if the researcher is unable to visit the archives in person, there is still great value in reading this book as a means of becoming familiar with the topic, resources, and availability of the records at a distance. Although it is not emphasized in the book, some of the records housed at the New York City Municipal Archives can be ordered by mail for a fee. Check their website at: http://www.nyc.gov/html/records/html/archives/archives.shtml and review the tabs entitled Genealogy and Collections. Other of their records have been microfilmed and are made available through the Family History Library; check their catalog at https://familysearch.org/catalog/search. This is a very helpful book and recommended for anyone researching a New York City family or location.

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Huntington Library’s “Early California Population Project” by John D. Beatty, CG (sm)*

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“Alta California” was a political entity within the Spanish colony of New Spain in what is now southern California. Founded in 1769, it became independent from Spain in 1822 after the Mexican War for Independence and was considered the northernmost province of Mexico until it was ceded to the United States by the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848. While never extensively colonized north of the modern city of Sonoma, the area’s population comprised a mixture of both indigenous Native Americans, Mexicans, and Spanish settlers, including former Spanish and Mexican soldiers who received large land grants (called “ranchos”). Franciscan missionary priests and monks established a series of Catholic mission churches throughout the region to record the baptisms, marriages and burials of its residents. These original registers are, in most cases, still owned by various dioceses and archives. Some have been microfilmed by the Family History Library, but the handwriting of the original registers is often very difficult to translate. Realizing the value of these mission registers both to genealogists and social historians, the Huntington Library of San Marino, California, with the help of the National Endowment for the Humanities, has launched the “Early California Population Project (ECPP),” an online searchable index to these registers from both Alta California and Baja California dating from 1769 to 1850. http://www.huntington.org/information/ecppmain.htm. The index is difficult to use, and for the uninitiated, it may prove challenging when searching it for the first time. The website requires the user to login initially with a name and email address. After doing so, the website will then take you to a page with a large search box that may not seem genealogy-friendly. You may select either the “Basic” or “Advanced” search option. In the Basic option, first, choose the type of record you wish to search from the box at the top. The choices are Baptismal, Marriage, Death, Godparent, Witness, and Relative. After making a selection, then choose a search “criterion” from the box at the far left. A search box will appear with a number of different variables. The term “ego” (a search term not at all intuitive to genealogists) applies to the name of the person who is the subject of the search. You may choose a given name, a surname, a father or mother’s Spanish or Native name, the mission, place of origin, and other variables. In the second box marked “value,” enter the search term, usually a given name or surname. The box at the far right allows for Boolean searching of as many as nine search variables, and one may also truncate. Performing a simple search for a common Hispanic surname such as Martinez brings up 110 hits. Clicking on “view” brings up abstracted records, including the name of the child, the full names of the father and mother, their ethnicity, their mission of origin (if known), and an abbreviation of the mission record being extracted. Each record is assigned a number, and in some cases, the parents have been identified in other records and linked to them with identification numbers. There are many challenges with these abstracts, since the original mission records often listed variant names for the same individuals and families. The Advanced search allows the user to combine searches for multiple records for the same name. By clicking on “Data Sources,” you can combine a search for baptism and death, and search for year ranges. The search interface is not intuitive, and the user is strongly advised to read the “Sample Search,” the “Search Tips,” and the “User Guide,” all available from the opening page. Since the database contains no images, the user is also advised to seek out a microfilm copy of the original record using the Family History Library catalog (www.familysearch.org). The Familysearch Wiki for California Church Records (https://familysearch.org/wiki/en/California_Church_Records) also offers strategies for locating specific missions, though strangely, it doesn’t mention the ECPP as a resource. If you have Catholic ancestors (Spanish, Mexican, or Native American) in California before 1850, these mission records are essential research sources. The ECPP, in spite of its challenges, deserves to be used more widely by genealogists, but its interface could be improved and made more user-friendly.

“CG” and “Certified Genealogist” are service marks from the Board for Certification of Genealogists® and are used by authorized associates following periodic, peer-reviewed competency evaluations. Certificate no. 1050, awarded 8 August 2014, expires 8 August 2019.

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Technology Tip of the Month--Microsoft Access Relationships and Sub-reports, Part II by Kay Spears

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Welcome back. We are on the road to creating a Sub-report form. Last time we created a second table for our database. Along with the first table, this second table will be part of our Sub-report form. Just why are we creating a Sub-report form? In this case, our Sub-report will allow us to enter and retrieve information from two tables using only one form. How can you get information from two tables using one form? Well, you need to establish a relationship between the two tables we have created. Here’s how you connect two tables. Open the database that we have been working on. In the Tool Bar to the left there should be two tables. In my case I named the one “KaysAddress,” and the other table I cleverly named “One.” We are going to create a relationship for those two tables. In the Access Ribbon, click on the “Database Tool Tab.” Locate the “Relationship” section. You will see two options: “Relationships” and “Object Dependencies.” Click on Relationships. A blank Relationship workspace opens up. Because you have opened Relationships, the relationship tools are now available to you. They are the “Tools” and “Relationships” sections. In the Relationships section you should see “Show Table,” “Hide Table,” “Direct Table,” “All Relationships,” and “Close.” Click on “Show Table.” A Show Table dialog box opens. This dialog box shows everything you have created in your database to this point. You should be able to see both of the tables that you have created. In the bottom right hand side of your Show Table dialog box are the “Add” and “Close” buttons. Highlight both tables and then click on the “Add” button. Close your dialog box. Your two tables now appear on your Relationships workspace. All of the fields that were created in each of the tables appear. In this case I am going to use my ID fields to connect my two tables. Remember that we created a primary field in “KaysAddress” named ID and we created a field in “One” called ID (that field was not a primary key). Here’s how you connect them. Select the ID in the “One” table; drag and drop it over the ID in “KaysAddress” table. When you release your mouse clicker, an “Edit Relationship” dialog box opens. Remember, we are going to keep this relationship simple, so all we are going to do is click the “Create” button. When you do this, the dialog box disappears, but look at the two tables in your relationship workspace – there is a bold black line running from one ID to the other ID. Congratulations, your tables are now connected. Save the changes. Now what? Ta-ta-da, it’s time to create our Sub-report. Next month: Relationships and Sub-reports, Part III

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Quick-Tip of the Month for Preservation--Care of Glass Plate Negatives

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While many do not have glass negatives, the question of how to care for them was presented to Genealogy Center staff this month. The National Archives has a very solid treatment of the matter on its website. www.archives.gov/preservation/storage/glass-plate-negatives.html

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Holiday Gifts

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As we gather with loved ones this holiday season to share memories, photographs, and family research we give one another the precious gift of history in ways that will live on for generations to come. Just as you share this gift with family members, The Genealogy Center welcomes your gifts of organized research and compiled family histories, copies of family record pages in your ancestors’ Bibles you are so carefully preserving for your children and grandchildren, and copies of databases of cemeteries and court records you have inventoried as well as GedCom files from programs like Reunion and Roots Magic. By sharing your family’s history with us your memories are preserved and shared around the globe. As you complete your planned-giving for the year, please remember the Allen County Public Library and The Genealogy Center. Even the most modest monetary gift bears fruit many times over as we both curate and present increasingly larger collections of electronic data and physical resources each year. To make a contribution visit www.GenealogyCenter.org/Donate.aspx.

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PERSI Gems by Adam Barrone and Michael Hudson

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Santa Claus makes his presence known in many ways this time of year. On Fort Wayne’s Main Street, Santa and his reindeer appear emblazoned in an epic 155-foot-long display of lights. This child’s dream and electrician’s nightmare contains 24,000 bulbs and has twinkled its way into our hearts. It was commissioned by the Wolf & Dessauer department store which displayed it from 1940 to 1958. Fort Wayne National Bank, now PNC Bank, has played host to Santa annually since 1980. Holiday traditions like visiting a Santa light display have become part of our written and oral history. A grandmother wrapped a hand-knitted scarf for her grandson in a vintage box marked W&D. The logo of the long-closed department store was not familiar to the boy, so she paused to describe a Christmas scene at Wolf & Dessauer with spectacular lights, delightful animatronic window displays, the smell of pie from the tea room, and the hustle and bustle of happy shoppers. What do your relatives recall from the holiday seasons of years past? The Periodical Source Index (PERSI) documents memories of all sorts and cites articles filled with ideas for further research. Try a search at: http://search.findmypast.com/search/periodical-source-index Here are some of the Santa citations we found, but beware... What Persi Gems list would be complete without some naughty-listers? Driver and children ride the L.S. Ayres Santa Claus Express, photo circa 1958, n.p. Expectations (Indiana State Museum), Win. 2008 Eswick Best murdered Sam Johnson for scaring his family while dressed in a Santa Claus suit, 1907 Pamteco Tracings (Beaufort County Gen. Soc., NC), v.27, n.1, Jun. 2011 James Lamont Haven Gillespie, Covington's famed Santa Claus is Coming to Town songwriter, 1888- 1975 Kenton County (KY) Historical Society Bulletin, Jul. 2007 Letters to Santa Claus can be a genealogical research tool Association of Professional Genealogists Quarterly, v.19, n.4, Dec. 2004 Santa Claus Bank robbery, 1927 Texas Historian, v.46, n.4, Mar. 1986 Santa Claus entre le commerce et la magie Cap-aux-Diamants(Societe Historique de Quebec), Win. 1995 Santa Claus Seabourne makes 681st parachute drop, 1939, La Harpe, IL La Harpe Historical and Genealogical Society Newsletter, n.73, Win. 2005

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History Tidbits: An American Christmas by Allison DePrey Singleton

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This month we conclude our three-part series on holiday customs. For our third article, we will do a brief examination of the history of Christmas and look at the celebration customs of the holiday in the United States. Christmas was chosen for this article due to its widespread celebration in the United States. Christmas brings visions of family gathered around the crackling fire with steaming mugs of hot chocolate, snow falling softly while children glide swiftly over the glistening white land with a new sled, carolers huddled around the garlanded front door, singing timeless Christmas melodies that our ancestors sang, and gifts given out on a brisk December morning while coffee is savored in the background. Do any of these narratives sound like your family home on Christmas? What about your ancestors in America? How did they celebrate Christmas? To answer these questions, one needs to look at the time period in which one’s ancestors moved to the United States and where they lived. The Puritans in the northeastern colonies did not celebrate Christmas. They considered the day to have morphed into a secular celebration, and it fell against their religious beliefs. In the southern colonies, Christmas was celebrated with a feast and a few trinkets for the young. The traditions we currently ascribe to the holiday were not yet American traditions. There were no Christmas trees, holiday cards, or stories of Santa Claus coming down the chimney. It was a simple holiday for friends and family to spend time together. Washington Irving attempted to interest Americans in Christmas with a series of tales in his book, The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent., published in installments between 1819 and 1820. While the book included such famous sketches as “Rip Van Winkle” and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” less well known were his “Christmas Eve,” “Christmas Day,” “Christmas Dinner,” and “The Stage-Coach,” all of which captured the public’s imagination for Yule celebrations. Since his book was both a commercial and critical success in America and England, his stories helped to bring the observance of Christmas into more homes. Another author we need to thank for bringing us more Christmas cheer is Clement Clarke Moore and his poem, A Visit from St. Nicholas. Originally written by Moore for his children, a friend sent it to the Troy Sentinel to be published anonymously in 1823. Moore claimed ownership of the poem in 1844 by including it in a published book of poetry under his name, though he had already received attribution from the original publisher of the poem and many others. Decades later, the family of the deceased Henry Livingston, Jr, claimed that he was the actual author of the poem. While the style is complementary to Livingston’s, the poem is generally still attributed to Moore. It was not until the Victorian Era that Christmas truly became the holiday we know and love today. The image of Queen Victoria with her family gathered around an opulent Christmas tree inspired the rest of the world to emulate that scene. It is important to note that the first time Queen Victoria sat for a drawing with her Christmas tree was in 1848, a time that corresponds with Americans purchasing Christmas trees. The year 1843 saw the advent of the Christmas card with Henry Cole commissioning the first one. Soon, families across England and then the world were sending and receiving both purchased and homemade Christmas cards. Santa Claus became the jolly man in red in 1863 when cartoonist Thomas Nast drew “Old Saint Nick” for Harper’s Weekly. Not until 1870, however, was Christmas even declared a federal holiday in the United States. Previously, decorating the home at Christmas was minimal at best. During the Victorian Era, it grew into an art form, with evergreens, holly, and ribbons. Publications offered directions so that the lady of the house did not make a mistake in her Christmas décor. The centerpiece of the table became turkey during the Victorian Era. Previously it would be any type of meat available, but wealthier families began to use turkeys. Eventually this tradition drifted down to the middle classes and beyond, when turkeys became easier to obtain. Caroling had been a part of gatherings for decades as a source of entertainment. Not until the Victorian Era did the words of the songs begin to reflect the holiday, and a collection of carols were published. Charles Dickens played an integral part in solidifying Christmas as an important holiday with his book, A Christmas Carol, first published in 1843. Tiny Tim and Scrooge reminded readers to be good, giving people, and that Christmas was a holiday to celebrate with friends and family. While the book was slow to be accepted in the United States, Americans could not hold out for long from loving this Christmas tradition. A Christmas Carol has never been out of print. We have had 173 years to enjoy this story, and it will continue to be for generations to come. While we have only touched upon a few of the age-old traditions that take a place in our Christmas-time hearts, it might inspire us to learn more about how our ancestors celebrated (or did not celebrate) the holiday. Perhaps this is a fun holiday project to do with your children, grandchildren, nieces, or nephews. Gather your loved ones around and take a look at how grandparents, great-grandparents, and other family members would have celebrated the day in their respective eras. You might be surprised and find a new tradition to add to your family experience. Above all, "Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!" Further Reading and Sources: Bowler, Gerald. The World Encyclopedia of Christmas. Toronto: M & S, 2000. "Clement Moore Revisited" by Peter Christoph." "Clement Moore Revisited" by Peter Christoph. Accessed November 22, 2016. http://www.iment.com/maida/familytree/henry/sources/christoph1982.htm. Collins, Ace, and Clint Hansen. Stories behind the Great Traditions of Christmas. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2003. Federer, William J. There Really Is a Santa Claus: The History of Saint Nicholas & Christmas Holiday Traditions. St. Louis, MO: Ameriserch, 2002. Forbes, Bruce David. Christmas: A Candid History. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2007. Gulevich, Tanya. Encyclopedia of Christmas and New Year's Celebrations: Over 240 Alphabetically Arranged Entries Covering Christmas, New Year's, and Related Days of Observance, including Folk and Religious Customs, History, Legends, and Symbols from around the World ; Supplemented by a Bibliography and Lists of Christmas Web Sites and Associations, as Well as an Index. Detroit, MI: Omnigraphics, 2003. Irving, Washington, and Haskell S. Springer. The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. Boston: Twayne Publishers, 1978. Kelly, Joseph F. The Feast of Christmas. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2010. Kelly, Joseph F. The Origins of Christmas. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2004. Krensky, Stephen, Dean Morrissey, and Charles Dickens. A Christmas Carol. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 2001. Miles, Clement A. Christmas Customs and Traditions, Their History and Significance. New York: Dover Publications, 1976. Moore, Clement Clarke, and T. C. Boyd. A Visit from St. Nicholas. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1971. Nast, Thomas, and William Glover. The Christmas Drawings of Thomas Nast. New York: World Pub., 1970. Restad, Penne L. Christmas in America: A History. New York: Oxford University Press, 1995. "Seth Kaller, Inc." The Authorship of The Night Before Christmas. Accessed November 22, 2016. https://www.sethkaller.com/about/educational/tnbc/. Standiford, Les. The Man Who Invented Christmas: How Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol Rescued His Career and Revived Our Holiday Spirits. New York: Crown Publishers, 2008.

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Share Your Cubs Memories!

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After so many years of waiting, the Cubs WON the World Series! We are still interested in YOUR tales of excitement, wonder, frustration and victory. Stories could include your first game at Wrigley Field, the time Grandpa caught that foul ball, when you met Ernie Banks, seeing Ron Santo clicking his heels together, listening to Harry Caray’s play-by-play of the game, or the game you attended that was called on account of rain. Your family’s moments and memories, including audio or video memories, are just as special. Please send your stories, photos and scans of souvenirs, and digital audio as well as digital video files to: Genealogy@ACPL.Info Instagram @GenealogyCenter www.facebook.com/GenealogyCenter

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DNA and Genealogy Interest Group

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Have you done a DNA test for genealogical purposes? Do you completely understand the results you received? Do you need advice in interpreting your results? Are you interested and wonder what the best test is for you? Come to the DNA & Genealogy Interest Group Meeting on the 1st Thursday of the month from 6:30pm-7:30pm to share and learn from each other! The next meeting is Thursday, December 1, 2016! Come on and share!

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Keep Warm with WinterTech

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WinterTech 2016-2017 continues in December with “Finding Maps Online,” presented by Allison DePrey Singleton on Wednesday, December 14, 2016, at 2:30 p.m. in the Discovery Center. Are you trying to find your family’s location while doing genealogy? Have street names and house numbers changed? Did the neighborhood get razed for new builds? Did your ancestors live in a county that changed boundaries? Allison’s presentation will help you to fully explore and maximize the clues you have to tap into information available in online maps. Researching maps often helps to solve difficulties posed by changing land boundaries and street names. Come learn about the maps you can find online for free to help find where your ancestors lived. And since we offer WinterTech on Wednesday afternoon at 2:30 p.m., on the same day as the monthly meeting of the Allen County Genealogical Society of Indiana (ACGSI), come to WinterTech, then stay for the ACGSI program at 7 p.m. The series will continue with “Using Third-Party Tools to Analyze Your DNA Results,” presented by Sara Allen on Wednesday, January 11, 2017; and Melissa Tennant with “Where Art Thou, PERSI?” on Wednesday, February 8, 2017. All of these will also be at 2:30 p.m. in the Discovery Center. For more information, see our brochure at http://genealogycenter.org/docs/wintertech20162017 . To register for any or all of these events, call 260-421-1225 or email Genealogy@ACPL.Info.

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Staying Informed about Genealogy Center Programming

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Do you want to know what we’ve got planned? Are you interested in one of our events, but forget? We are now offering email updates for The Genealogy Center’s programming schedule. Don’t miss out! Sign up at http://goo.gl/forms/THcV0wAabB.

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Area Calendar of Events

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Allen County Genealogical Society of Indiana, Inc. Monthly Program December 14, 2016 - Allen County Public Library, 900 Library Plaza, Fort Wayne, Indiana, Refreshments at 6:30 p.m., program at 7 p.m. John J. Newman will present: “Understanding and Using Indiana Courthouse Records.” ACGSI Genealogy Technology Group December 21, 2016 – Allen County Public Library, 900 Library Plaza, Fort Wayne, Indiana, 7 p.m. Mary Penrose Wayne DAR Chapter Library Help Day for Prospective Members December 7, 2016 - Allen County Public Library, The Genealogy Center, 900 Library Plaza, Fort Wayne, Indiana, 10 - 4 p.m. The George R. Mather Lecture Series January 8, 2017 – The History Center, 302 East Berry Street, Fort Wayne, Indiana, 2 p.m. Don Orban will present: “Three Rivers: A Brief History.”

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Driving Directions to the Library

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Wondering how to get to the library? Our location is 900 Library Plaza, Fort Wayne, Indiana, in the block bordered on the south by Washington Boulevard, the west by Ewing Street, the north by Wayne Street, and the east by the Library Plaza, formerly Webster Street. We would enjoy having you visit the Genealogy Center. To get directions from your exact location to 900 Library Plaza, Fort Wayne, Indiana, visit this link at MapQuest: http://www.mapquest.com/maps/map.adp?formtype=address&addtohistory=&address=900%20Web ster%20St&city=Fort%20Wayne&state=IN&zipcode=46802%2d3602&country=US&geodiff=1 >From the South Exit Interstate 69 at exit 302. Drive east on Jefferson Boulevard into downtown. Turn left on Ewing Street. The Library is one block north, at Ewing Street and Washington Boulevard. Using US 27: US 27 turns into Lafayette Street. Drive north into downtown. Turn left at Washington Boulevard and go five blocks. The Library will be on the right. >From the North Exit Interstate 69 at exit 312. Drive south on Coldwater Road, which merges into Clinton Street. Continue south on Clinton to Washington Boulevard. Turn right on Washington and go three blocks. The Library will be on the right. >From the West Using US 30: Drive into town on US 30. US 30 turns into Goshen Ave. which dead-ends at West State Blvd. Make an angled left turn onto West State Blvd. Turn right on Wells Street. Go south on Wells to Wayne Street. Turn left on Wayne Street. The Library will be in the second block on the right. Using US 24: After crossing under Interstate 69, follow the same directions as from the South. >From the East Follow US 30/then 930 into and through New Haven, under an overpass into downtown Fort Wayne. You will be on Washington Blvd. when you get into downtown. Library Plaza will be on the right.

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Parking at the Library

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At the Library, underground parking can be accessed from Wayne Street. Other library parking lots are at Washington and Webster, and Wayne and Webster. Hourly parking is $1 per hour with a $7 maximum. ACPL library card holders may use their cards to validate the parking ticket at the west end of the Great Hall of the Library. Out of county residents may purchase a subscription card with proof of identification and residence. The current fee for an Individual Subscription Card is $70. Public lots are located at the corner of Ewing and Wayne Streets ($1 each for the first two halfhours, $1 per hour after, with a $4 per day maximum) and the corner of Jefferson Boulevard and Harrison Street ($3 per day). Street (metered) parking on Ewing and Wayne Streets. On the street you plug the meters 8am – 5pm, weekdays only. It is free to park on the street after 5pm and on the weekends. Visitor center/Grand Wayne Center garage at Washington and Clinton Streets. This is the Hilton Hotel parking lot that also serves as a day parking garage. For hourly parking, 7am – 11 pm, charges are .50 for the first 45 minutes, then $1.00 per hour. There is a flat $2.00 fee between 5pm and 11pm.

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Genealogy Center Queries

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The Genealogy Center hopes you find this newsletter interesting. Thank you for subscribing. We cannot, however, answer personal research emails written to the e-zine address. The department houses a Research Center that makes photocopies and conducts research for a fee. If you have a general question about our collection, or are interested in the Research Center, please telephone the library and speak to a librarian who will be glad to answer your general questions or send you a research center form. Our telephone number is 260-421-1225. If you’d like to email a general information question about the department, please email: Genealogy@ACPL.Info.

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Publishing Note:

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This electronic newsletter is published by the Allen County Public Library's Genealogy Center, and is intended to enlighten readers about genealogical research methods as well as inform them about the vast resources of the Allen County Public Library. We welcome the wide distribution of this newsletter and encourage readers to forward it to their friends and societies. All precautions have been made to avoid errors. However, the publisher does not assume any liability to any party for any loss or damage caused by errors or omissions, no matter the cause. To subscribe to “Genealogy Gems,” simply use your browser to go to the website: www.GenealogyCenter.org. Scroll to the bottom, click on E-zine, and fill out the form. You will be notified with a confirmation email. If you do not want to receive this e-zine, please follow the link at the very bottom of the issue of Genealogy Gems you just received or send an email to kspears@acpl.lib.in.us with "unsubscribe e-zine" in the subject line. Curt B. Witcher and John D. Beatty, CG, co-editors