The Expo Is Coming!

Learn the tech to trace your roots at the California Family History Expo, October 8-9 at the Alameda County Fairgrounds, 4501 Pleasanton Avenue, Pleasanton, California.

“Family History Expos can be a beacon in a dark sea of confusing documents and information,” founder and president Holly Hansen said. “We want to be a guiding light.”

The Expo begins at 8 a.m. on Friday with a keynote address by Beau Sharbrough. Houston native and graduate of Texas A&M, Beau is presently self‐employed, maintains the RootsWorks.com website and is the author of Gene’s Anniversary Scrapbook. He was the founder of the FGS and GENTECH web sites, former president of GENTECH, Product Manager at Ancestry.com and VP of Content at Footnote.com. “He is an amazing speaker and we can’t wait for him to open the show,” Hansen said.

The Expo will feature almost 100 classes and demonstrations on techniques and technology to conduct family history research. The classes and demonstrations are taught by professional genealogists and industry experts from throughout the country. The cost of registration for the event, $75, allows participants to select from a variety of classes being taught throughout the two day Expo. “We have something to offer everyone from those who are just curious about family history to those who are performing genealogy research professionally,” Hansen said.

The exhibit hall, open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Friday and 9a.m. to 4p.m. on Saturday, will feature companies focused on families and family history research. The event is sponsored by FamilySearch, Ancestry.com, RootsMagic, Legacy Family Tree, Generation Maps, Flip Pal, California Genealogy Society, and Criminal Research Press.

Butch and Jean Wilcox Hibben of Sawdust and Strings will be the highlight of the luncheon both days. Hibben plays multiple instruments and is frequently accompanied by her husband, Butch, on the saw. Hibben is a board certified genealogist and president of the Corona Genealogical Society and the Southern California Chapter of APG. Hibben has a doctorate in folklore and an MA in speech communication. She is a national speaker and staff trainer for the Corona California Family History Center.

Our Friday evening event features genealogy podcaster Lisa Louise Cooke who will be chatting with the audience and a captivating line-up of guests including Craig Manson of GeneaBlogie and Sheri Fenley of The Educated Genealogist blog. Attendees can partake in a delicious dessert bar and see first-hand a podcast production in action.

At the door registration for the Expo begins at 7 a.m. on Friday, and 7:30 a.m. on Saturday. Register in advance online at http://www.fhexpos.com/. Contact Family History Expos by telephone at 801-829-3295.

SNGF - It's All In The Blood Line or Why I Get To Be Czarina of Stockton.

It's Saturday Night Genealogy Fun over at Randy Seaver's place. This weeks fun and games allows me a perfect opportunity to show the naysayers why I get to be Czarina of Stockton and they don't. Here is the task for the game this week:

1) Pick one of your ancestral lines - any one - patrilineal, matrilineal, zigzag, from a famous ancestor, etc. Pick a long one if you can.

2) Tell us which position in the birth order that your ancestor was in each generation. For example "third child, first son." Also list how many children were born to these parents.

3) Share your Birth Order work with us on your own blog post, in a comment to this blog post, in a comment on Facebook, etc.


I am going to zigzag through my maternal ancestral lines.


1. Me - 1st child - Only daughter - 6 children

2. My Mother - 1st child - 1st daughter of Darrell Kenneth Skillman & Mary Ellen Harris (3 children)

3. Mary Ellen Harris (1916-1995) - Only child of Hillery T. Harris and Hazel Berry

4. Hillery T. Harris (1894-1959) - 4th child - 4th son of George Wesley Harris and Minda Ellen Wallace (5 children)

5. George Wesley Harris (1864-1949) - 2nd child - 1st son of Hillery Taylor Asbeth Harris and Mary Ann Frances Bess (10 children)

6. Mary Ann Frances Bess (1841-1900) - 1st child - 1st daughter of Peter Bess and Sarah H. Beam (7 children)

7. Sarah H. Beam (1823-1915) - 3rd child - 2nd daughter of David Beam and Mary Ann Wacaster (8 children)

8. David Beam (1797-1852) - 4th child - 3rd son of John Derrick Beam and Mary Hoyle (10 children)

9. John Derrick Beam (1765-1822) - 1st child - 1st son of John Teeter Beam and Rebecca Raynolds (15 children)

10. John Teeter Beam (1732-1807) - 1st child - 1st son of Michael Beam and Sarah Rudolph

11. Michael Beam (1702-1801) - Unknown

Now the explanation of my blue blood. Tradition has it that my 8th great grandmother, Sarah Rudolph, was a daughter of Rudolph, once Emperor of Germany as handed down by S. G. Goodrich, a German writer. Rudolph, once Emperor of Germany, had seven beautiful daughters who contracted alliances that proved to be happy ones. Sarah Rudolph was a member of the ruling family of Germany. Rudolph I of Hapsburg (1218-1291) Emperor of Germany, founder of the Imperial House of Austria, was the eldest son of Albert IV, Count of Hapsburg and Landgrave of Alsace. Elected Emperor in 1273. He defeated Ottokar, king of Bohemia and gave the latter's territories to his sons Albert and Rudolph. (see "Winston's Cumulative Loose-Leaf Encyclopedia" by Thomas E. Finegan, copyright 1926). The Rudolphs ruled Germany until 1830.

So that about says it all, no? I more than qualify for the Czarina seeing as how I have Emperor blood running through my veins. Thanks Seaver for the opportunity to clear this issue up.

How I Overcame Writer's Block In Less Than 24 Hours

So. Yesterday I could not write my own name, much less a sentence or the 3 client reports that I need to have done by Saturday. I tried my usual block breakers. Mood music such as Stevie Ray Vaughn, Buddy Guy and old Motown did nothing for me. I extended my ice cream breaks from 5 minutes to 20 minutes - Nada.

Then it occurred to me that what I needed was an instant gratification fix. Now I know what you're thinking and I am not "that" kind of girl. Not on a weekday anyway. No, I am talking about seeing the results of one's hard work immediately. A job worth doing, is worth doing well and I am ever so pleased with myself when I work hard and the end result is better than expected.

My youngest son recently moved out (again) and I have the room for my office (again). I decided to pull up the nasty carpet and low and behold, there is a beautiful wood floor beneath 5 layers of old varnish and shellac. Aha! this could be my project - refinish the wood floor in my office. I run down the hall and open the door and Gasped! OMG the walls are PURPLE!

I forgot that right after son moved out, I painted the room purple. My thought at the time was - surely son will never move back home again and live in a purple room.

[note: I have since been medicated and realize how silly that thought was. Hah, the room has to be purple AND paint the trim fuchsia pink in order for son not to move back home. ]

[note to self: need to buy fuchsia pink paint ASAP]

So I figure a couple of hours and I will have the floor done in no time at all! Hahahaha.

Heee, Haahaahaa. The photo above is the fruit of six hours of my labor. Instant gratification FAIL.

Not. Even. Close.

This little diversion will now set me back at least another month before I can move my office in.

Oh well, I mustn't worry my pretty little head about such things. I will think about it another day and with that, I closed the door to the purple room. And then POOF! Just like that - like magic - I am ready to write again.

Oh and an unexpected bonus? Completely by accident, I made this scientific discovery - Jasco brand wood floor stripper works better than Nair at removing the hair from your legs. Awesome.

Hey Seaver! Here I Am.

Randy Seaver over at GeneaMusings is having his regular Saturday Night Genealogy Fun party. He really means to have fun this week. I don't want to spoil it so head on over and check it out yourself.

Seaver also asks where I've been lately. How nice to be missed. Not missed enough to call out the National Guard or put my face on milk cartons though. What's up with that?

I haven't blogged in some time and I feel just awful about it. The reason, I am thrilled to say, is that business has picked up and I have been working my tail off. I will share what a typical day has been like for me in a future post. The post I wrote about starting a new genealogy business was so well received so I have more on the way.

I also took a week (an entire 7 days) and went to Rio del Mar. For those who are not familiar with California, Rio del Mar is a little town on the northern California coast about 8 miles south of Santa Cruz and about 40 miles south of San Francisco.

I spent 7 days doing absolutely NOTHING! It was heaven.

I am also participating in what I feel is a very worthwhile and interesting project. LowCountry Africana has partnered with Footnote.com to index estate inventories from South Carolina for the years 1732 to 1872. This database is a free one at Footnote. Some of the inventories are so detailed it makes you feel like you are there. They have put out a call for volunteers to index just 10 pages. If enough people did 10 pages each, the project would be finished in no time at all. AND there is a reward! On top of feeling good for giving back to the genealogical community you will get this groovy badge to place on your blog.

And finally, here is someone who is truly showing me some love!

The Graveyard Rabbit Doth Hath Charm

If I had one word to describe Terry Thornton it would have to be CHARMING. He was a true Southern Gentleman and Scholar. It was almost two years ago that Terry first approached me with the notion of The Graveyard Rabbit Association. I was flattered beyond belief that he thought me worthy to be a charter member.

In September 2008, one of the best blogging memes by far was created by Terry - "Getting To Know You, Getting To Know All About ____". Genealogy bloggers were growing in numbers very quickly and Terry felt that if we all got to know one another a little better it would help solidify us as a community. We were to showcase 3 of you best posts: The Brightest, The Breeziest and the Most Beautiful. It was in writing that post I felt that I was becoming a better writer. Not the best, but better and it finally gave me the confidence in myself to keep writing.

I will never forget Terry's own post to the meme. He opened it with an audio file. He sang (a Capella no less!) "Getting To Know You" from musical "The King and I." What I wouldn't give to hear it one more time.



The world is a better and more beautiful place because of Terry Thornton. I am thankful he touched my life.

But I Feel So Much Older Than 2!

HAPPY BLOGAVERSARY TO ME !

I am 2 years old! My children tell me I act like a 2 years old as well. Those mean boys are constantly telling me to "Grow Up."

Well I think that I have done alot of growing in the last 2 years. I have a network of absolutely the grooviest people who encourage and support me in everything I do. I am speaking of course of the group of humans called the "Geneabloggers."

You people have given me the cajones (that's Spanish for courage y'all) to accomplish anything I set my mind to do.

So celebrate with me - take a few minutes and just do something silly. Like next time you are in the frozen food section of the grocery store, do a little dance. Or get out that lawn mower, put on your bathing suit and rock on. Whatever you do, I want to hear about it. "Get Out of Hell Free" cards will be sent upon request - no questions asked.

I am a genealogist, a historical researcher and I do spend alot of time being serious. But I always reward myself with moments like this:

The Genie is in the house!
(that just cost me 5 "Get Out of Hell Free" cards.)

I Just Indexed The President of the United States!

So here it is, 1:00 AM. I cannot sleep so I decide to put in some time at one of many volunteer jobs I do indexing and transcribing. This morning's choice was the San Francisco funeral home records over at sfgenealogy. The funeral homes we are doing this time are: D.I. Kenny (1906-1929), Ganter Felder Kenny (1895-1906), Ganter Maison Domergue (1916-1975) and N. Gray & Co. (1921-1932). I had done about 50 of them and decided to do just 1 more then call it a night.

Does the name: WARREN GAMALIEL HARDING ring a bell? It should, he was our 29th President. I may be a little more intimate with President Harding since I wrote about him back in September 2009 for "Shades of the Departed Magazine."

I have to tell you, it felt a little creepy, yet a little exciting to see his name pop up like that. Especially in a funeral home record. Especially after I wrote an article about him. Especially since is was 1:00 AM and it was dark and quiet. Bwahahahaha!

So have you gotten around to volunteering for one of the many indexing projects that are going on? Even if all you can do is 1 entry per day, that is 1 more record than before.

Free Slurpee Day!

That's right, I said FREE SLURPEE DAY! We have been overlooking a very important holiday that is celebrated every year - 7-Eleven Day. This is the day that 7-Eleven stores across the country have a gift for you - free Slurpees. From their website:

"Happy 7-Eleven Day! Real holiday or not, you're getting a present! Stop by a participating 7-Eleven store today for a free 7.11 oz Slurpee drink. It's the official way to celebrate 7-Eleven Day. It's easier than getting a costume, and way less weird."

So take a break from your research and get yourself to a 7-Eleven for a Slurpee. Me? You should know by now, I never miss an opportunity to celebrate. Even though a costume is not required I believe that I will don the genie outfit anyway. It will make the day all the more special to me.

Perhaps I Can Join The Circus In My Next Life

A reader of this blog asked me recently if I would share some of my experiences I have had in starting a new business as a genealogist and historical researcher.

Hanging out my shingle and taking on clients. I have worked long and hard to be prepared for this transition in my life. However, no amount of time in the classroom or attending conferences, seminars and week-long institutes can teach you how to be your own boss until you experience it in real time. Self-discipline is torture for the procrastinator in me. Staying within the time limit set by the client is something I really need to work on if I ever want to see black in my accounting ledger.

When we do research for ourselves, we really do not think about time. How many times have you found yourself at your computer and all the sudden looked up at the clock and thought "Jeez Loueeze, is it really 3:00 AM?" We will write and rewrite our findings, print out records and documents and put them on the ever growing stack we already have to file away. Jot down a citation on a sticky note to enter into your database later.

When you are working on a client project, you simply do not have the time to be unorganized. I can tell you from experience that having to go back and locate a source for a page that you copied

(from a book that you neglected to copy the title page for or even make a notation of the title of the book) can eat up half of your billable hours by the time you finally locate the damn thing.

If you are researching for 2 or 3 clients at the same time in the same repository, it is so easy to get papers mixed up. I always have separate folders, each a different color. I have sticky notes in the same colors as the folders. This comes in handy when I am at the copy machine. This works well for me and is so simple.

Oh, and that research report advice seasoned pros give about "writing as you go?" The best advice EVER. When you are finished with the research portion of the project and start on the report, you will find that if you write as you go, the report is almost finished. The conclusion of a report has always been difficult for me to write for some reason. I used to think that a conclusion is simply the place where I got tired of thinking. If you write as you go, the conclusion is really a summary of your findings. And that part of the report you have already done by writing as you go.

Recently I had three different client projects going on at the same time. Two of those projects took me into geographic areas I had never done any actual research in. It ended up taking me longer to locate resources in unfamiliar territory than I had anticipated so I basically had to eat the "overtime."

One project involved several counties in southeast Texas - Coryell, Bell, Milam, Robertson, and Madison, then a little south to Fort Bend County and then east to Jefferson and Hardin Counties. Yipee Ki Yeah. The other project had me in Rapides Parish and Grant Parish Louisiana.

Eating that lost time really left a bad taste in my mouth so in case I ever find myself in those places again, as I went along, I created my own personal finding aids and a separate resource notebook for each state which I have divided by counties. It really is not very time consuming to do this and it has been one of the best presents I have ever given myself.

One last piece of advice I can give you is like the saying "What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas."

When you have your office at home, you have to separate it as much as possible from the rest of the house. I have started setting the timer on my oven in the kitchen to go off when it is quitting time. When it buzzes, I make myself step away from the desk and leave the room, shutting the door firmly behind me. The "Genie" has left the building.

So there you have it. Some of the mind games I play on myself to get the job done. Some of you may think my ways are a little strange, but my motto is - "Whatever it takes to make it work"

I have just now realized that in my next life, I could join the circus with the new skills I am acquiring. I have become a quick study in the art of juggling. Dealing with clowns don't scare me anymore and I am finally learning to balance my professional life with my home life. Once I have the balancing act fine-tuned I will more than qualify for the "The Queen of the Wheel" act.

Awesome. I love happy endings.

In Which She Attempts To Get Caught Up

So, long time no blogging. I am here to tell you people that taking on paying clients is NOT for sissies! I am sure that each report I write will come easier as time goes by. I am sure that I will get a handle on time management as time goes by. I am sure that I will not be so nervous as time goes by. I wish that time would come soon.

El Toyon Chapter NSDAR, of which I am registrar, goes "dark" for the summer. Except for me. I scheduled 4 workshops for prospective members over the summer - 2 in July and 2 in August.

San Joaquin Genealogical Society, of which I am the editor of the newsletter, goes "dark" for the summer also. Except for me. I have a newsletter to get out by the end of July.

I am a member of the Northern California Chapter of the APG (Association of Professional Genealogists) and we meet quarterly in different cities in Northern California for field trips. On June 27th we met for lunch and then had a behind the scenes tour of the San Mateo Historical Museum Archives. We were a small group, three of which are extreme brain-ee-acks and for some reason don't mind me hanging out with them! On the tour were: Carolyn Ybarra, PhD (in cultural anthropology from Stanford University), Cath Madden Trindle, CG who Kathryn Doyle featured in a post over at the California Genealogical Society Blog and Jeffrey Vaillant who is among other things a board member of the Marin County Genealogical Society and also sits on the Board of Directors for the California Genealogical Society.

And . . . a special guest! None other than Becky Wiseman who authors the blog kinexxions. That's right, Becky couldn't resist stopping in Stockton for a couple of days to visit with me.
Becky took the photo below. But she used my camera. So do we share the credit?

Carolyn Ybarra, Cath Trindle, Sheri Fenley and Jeff Vaillant

on the steps of the San Mateo Historical Museum

Yes, I know you recognize that dress I am wearing. It is my

"I've put on alot of weight and nothing else fits,but I am going to lose the weight so I refuse to buy any more clothes in a larger size"

dress. I swear by all that is holy, one wisecrack from you people and I'll un-friend you on Facebook!

Close-up of the museum




Inside the dome of the museum

I performed quite a gymnastic maneuver to get this photo and the one below

Me and Becky taking a farewell photo of ourselves at an un-godly hour of the AM

I do believe that I have covered everything and I am up to date. If not, please let me know. Take and number and have a seat, it may be awhile before I can get to you!

It appears that I left out a wee bit of information- The San Mateo County Historical Museum is located in Redwood City, California just a little bit south of San Francisco. Check out their website HERE. Also Cat Neilsen who is everything California Genealogy joined us in the archives. Sorry, I truly did not mean to leave you out Cat!