Central WV Genealogy

Hey, I'm Back!

This poor little blog has been so neglected.  I was shocked to see how long it's been since my last post.  The last couple of months have seen me get back into genealogy research and I figured it was time to get this blog updated.

I changed the graphics--don't they look nice?  Thanks to Shabby Miss Jenn Designs for the great digital kit.  I have some more old family photos to scan and get entered into the photo albums, too.  One thing I want to do is write up some family history stories to preserve them for family members.  My storytelling skills are not the greatest and I need some time to work out the details.

There have been lots of new web sites and changes to older sites in recent times.  I will highlight some of my new favorites in future posts.

Roots Television | Where History Meets Heritage

This morning I discovered an interesting new site: Roots Television | Where History Meets Heritage.

I haven't viewed all of the programming yet, but this certainly has some great possibilites.

I try not to blatanly promote affiliate links in my posts, but Ancestry.com is hosting the Ancestral Vacation Sweepstakes. This looks like a chance to win some great prizes. If you start or add to a personal online family tree and upload photographs, you will be entered in the sweepstakes. The grand prize is a trip for two people to vist your ancestral homeland. There are also several smaller prizes offered. Be sure to read the fine print for the rules and restrictions. The contest runs until September 30, 2006 and you can enter up to five photos per day.

Build Your Family Tree

I have been spending quite a bit of time adding and updating my online family tree. Adding sources is very simple and the new photo upload feature should add lots of interest. Having the tree online is also a simple backup device.

CensusTools

Link: CensusTools Is a great site for downloading spreadsheets or PDF files to aid you in your genealogy research. The US Federal Census Tracker will follow your ancestors as they are enumerated in various years.

As you can no doubt tell, my genealogy work has been sadly neglected for several months.  I have a few too many interests and not nearly enough time.  The recent death of my father has sparked that interest again and I am trying to do a bit more here and there.  After the first of the year I want to upload more photos and update a few other things.  Look for more links to West Virginia related web resources to be posted, too.

I have also become a Mac switcher in the past several months.  I am using a Mac Mini and it is great!  Switching to Mac OSX has forced me to change genealogy database programs, too.  Reunion 8 is what I'm using now.  The program is very easy to use, but still a little hard to get used to after using Family Tree Maker for so many years.

West Virginia Archives and History

Thanks to an article in Dick Eastman's newsletter, I have spent quite a bit of time at the West Virginia Archives and History site.  The Vital Records Research database has gone online and allows searching for birth, death and marriage records from specific counties.  Workers on the project spent many hours scanning actual vital record certificates and official register pages. I have had the most succes with the death record search. Birth and marriage records are more limited in scope.

Tribal Pages

I recently discovered an online genealogy service called Tribal Pages.  There are three levels of membership available, inlcuding a besic level that is free.  Setting up your own site is quite simple.  Your pages can include photos and notes about any individual.  Check out my family tree here.

Family Tree Maker 2005

Have seen the ads for the latest update to Family Tree Maker? I received the software a few days ago and have tried out a few of the new features. Installation was simple and created no problems.

The look of the program has been drastically altered. I like the new look, but it does take some time to adjust. Moving between family groups and children is quite easy. The children in each family are listed below the parents and can be accessed there instead of those little tabs to the right on previous versions. The bookmark feature will be a help in locating the people that you use most often.

Not surprisingly, the new Web Search features is just a way to entice users to purchase subscriptions to Ancestry.com. I own a couple of those subscriptions, and find the new search entertaining for now--a major annoyance is the overload of bogus matches that clearly have no relation to the person you are searching.

These are just a few random thoughts after only a couple of days of trying out the program. If I come across any new revelations, you'll be the first to hear the news.

Today, I spent quite a bit of time organizing and scanning some photographs to add to the site. My plan is to have individual albums for each major surname. I have included a link to the first album of Cutright pictures. If you have an interest in receiving a better quality scan for printing, let me know via email.

Getting Started

I have decided to use some of the features in TypePad to set up a blog devoted to my genealogy research. Plans are to include links to family trees, photographs, scanned documents and general genealogy sites.

If you found my site while randomly surfing, I can tell you that most of my family settled in West Virginia. The main counties involved are Ritchie, Upshur, Harrison, Gilmer and a few more. Main surnames include Cutright, Rohrbough, Stewart, Martin, Riddle, Goff, Clevenger, Hyre, Lemmons and ~many~ more.

Feel free to get in touch if you have any questions or comments.