Flickr Commons

Flickr Commons can be of great help to genealogists. You may find pictures here of your ancestors and relatives, the house or town where they lived, and more.

Your participation in The Commons on Flickr will make these photos valuable to everyone, everywhere.

Describe the photographs you discover in The Commons on Flickr, either by adding tags or leaving comments.

The Commons was launched on January 16, 2008, when the pilot project was launched in partnership with The Library of Congress. Both Flickr and the Library were overwhelmed by the positive response.

The program has two main objectives:

1--To increase access to publicly-held photography collections, and

2--To provide a way for the general public to contribute information and knowledge. (Then watch what happens when they do!)

Sign in to The Commons at Flickr using your Yahoo email address and password.

Make Sure You Have a Gedcom

GEDCOM is an acronym for GEnealogical Data COMmunication. It is a generic database format designed to let you exchange genealogical data between different genealogy software programs. GEDCOM was developed by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as an aid to genealogical research.

A GEDCOM file contains genealogical information about individuals, and meta data linking these records together. Most genealogy software supports importing from and/or exporting to GEDCOM format.

GEDCOM is a standard, not a program. As such, genealogy programs that are going to use the same data have to be written by the programmers to handle GEDCOM files. and both programs have to support GEDCOM. The instructions for creating or reading GEDCOM files will vary from one program to another.

According to Cyndi Howells of Cyndi's List, here is how you create a GEDCOM: "In most programs, go to "File, Export to GEDCOM" and create a new file with a ".ged" file extension after the name."

Cyndi also says "To read another person's GEDCOM file (in most programs), go to "File, Import from GEDCOM" and create a new database file that can be opened in your genealogy software program. This will not merge with your existing database file unless you indicate that you wish for the two files to be merged."

[from Cyndilist Gedcom Page]

GEDCOM files can easily be shared with others via e-mail attachment or on a disk.

You can create a GEDCOM file using the free genealogical software at FamilySearch.

Get a GEDCOM! start sharing your family history research!

Temporary closure of NARA-Great Lakes Microfilm Room

Due to ongoing renovation projects, the microfilm research room at the National Archives-Great Lakes Region in Chicago will be closed on Wednesday, March 25. The room will re-open on Thursday, March 26. We regret the short notice for this announcement.

In order to bring the Regional Archives into compliance with updated security guidelines, we will need to be closed again in the future to complete several remaining renovation projects. The first phase of this project has been completed, but additional work is continuing, often on short notice. If you are planning to conduct research at the National Archives-Great Lakes Region in the near future, please contact us by phone (773-948-9001) or email (chicago.archives@nara.gov ) prior to your visit to ensure that the research room will be open on the day you will be visiting.

Douglas A. BickneseRegional Archives DirectorNational Archives and Records Administration-Great Lakes Region7358 S. Pulaski Rd.Chicago, IL 60629-5898(773) 948-9009douglas.bicknese@nara.gov

Jewish Genealogical Society of Illinois: March Meeting

JGSI March meeting: March 29th
The Jewish Genealogical Society of Illinois (JGSI) will meet at Temple Beth Israel, 3601 W. Dempster Street in Skokie.

The JGSI library will be open for research at 12:30, and JGSI members will be available to help you with your family research using some of the many internet sites.

The March program, featuring Trudy Barch, will begin at 2:00.
She will speak on "Genealogical Organization Goals & Objectives."

(Save the date: June 14th: JGSI will host nationally acclaimed lecturer and author Beau Sharbrough.)

1897-1920 Michigan Deaths Online

Seeking Michigan currently has about 250,000 digitized death records for 1897 to 1920. There will eventually be about 1 million records.

This Library of Michigan collection of Michigan death certificates features nearly 1 million records. This statewide collection offers researchers critical information in tracking Michigan ancestors during this time period. Information includes the decedent's birth date and place, parents' names and birthplace, cemetery name and

Genealogy Tweets

Twitter can help your genealogy.

Learn which Genealogy Companies and People are on Twitter.

Geneabloggers recommends the Top Ten People, and Top Ten Genealogy Companies. that all genealogists should follow on Twitter.

NSGS Meeting April 11

Computers Are Easy and Fun...until you use one.

1)Did you know you can browse library shelves remotely?

2)Did you know you can search obituaries in the ProQuest Historical Tribune database?

3)Did you know that the secret of “controlled vocabulary” will give you more information online?

Be a guest at the North Suburban Genealogy Society’s monthly meeting and learn to use these online resources and the secret of “controlled vocabulary.” Ginger Frere will present her program using 21st Century data: “Searching Electronic Databases”

When: April 11, 2009:
1 p.m.: Problem Solving
1:50 p.m.: NSGS Meeting;
2 p.m.: Ms. Frere’s Program: "Searching Electronic Databases" (You are invited to all three).

Where: Glenview Library 1930 Glenview Rd., Glenview, IL 60025
Admission: Free
Contact: Jim Boyle 847 401 2579

Ginger Frere is a lifelong Chicagoan who has been involved in family history for 15+ years. For the past 5 years Ginger has worked in the Local and Family History Section of the Newberry Library. Ms. Frere is the principal of Information Diggers which provides multiple research services.

Glenview Library Genealogy Resources

Do you know about the Genealogy Page of our web site?

Links on the Genealogy Page tell you about our books, our genealogy databases, the Digital Past project in which we participate, our favorite genealogy resources around Glenview, our favorite Internet Resources, the genealogy microfilm we own, how to email your genealogy questions, and more.

The New York Times' Immigration Explorer shows historic immigration patterns in the United States. You can see where different ethnic groups settled. The interactive map is an excellent use of aggregate data from U.S. Census and geographic information systems.

Computer Genealogy Meeting

The Computer‑Assisted Genealogy Group of Northern Illinois (CAGG‑NI) meetings are held on the third Saturday of each month at 10:30am at the Schaumburg Township District Library, located at 130 South Roselle Road, Schaumburg, IL. 60193.

The April meeting will discuss "Preserving Family Photos on the Cheap."

It will take place on Saturday, April 18, 2009

The moderator will be Everett Butler.

Do you have slides and prints from years past but do not want to invest several hundred dollars copying them? Then this session is for you! Mr. Butler will demonstrate cheap ways to preserve what you have.

If you have questions, contact Stan Schmidt at (630) 529‑4849