"The Genealogy Guys" are two avid genealogists who host a weekly chat. The podcast includes news of the genealogy community, book and software reviews, guest interviews, and a lot of fun chat.
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MyHeritage added 20 million historical records in June.
MyHeritage and Family Tree DNA announced a new partnership to connect DNA tests to family trees.
JewishGen announced a new partnership between its Romania Research Division and the Jewish Federation of Romania to photograph and document Jewish graves.
Drew talks about 19.4 million historical records released by FamilySearch in May 2024.
Book Review
The Guys review the latest book by Nathan Dylan Goodwin, The Deserter’s Tale, a new Morton Farrier genealogical crime mystery.
Listener Email
Sam writes about the new RootsMagic 10 update and the book. Drew warns listeners about some fake book entries in Amazon.
Stacy Cole responds to an earlier email about her strategies in researching the James James family in Georgia.
The Guys discuss their experiences at the South Carolina Genealogical Society's summer workshop at the South Carolina Department of Archives and History.
George shares how Patrick McCawley, the Deputy Director of Archives and Records Management, spent time sharing with him a history of South Carolina’s geopolitical organization from colonial times to the present. From parishes to electoral districts to counties and boundary changes, George now has a deeper understanding of South Carolina for his research there.
Thank you to all our Patreon supporting members for their support. Your Patreon support helps us improve our technology and provide even more podcast content to you! You can join us for as little as $1 a month or as much as you’d like to contribute. Visit https://www.patreon.com/genealogyguys to get started.
And don’t forget to order Drew’s new book, Generation by Generation: A Modern Approach to the Basics of Genealogy, from Genealogical Publishing Company (https://genealogical.com/) or Amazon.com.
MyHeritage added 123 million historical records in April and May.
MyHeritage added millions of Nordic newspaper pages to OldNews.com.
RootsMagic has released Version 10 of its award-winning software.
Listener Email
Jean-Daniel wrote to share an update about his research into Blaise Farny.
Karin educates us about names for Austrian ‘sailors’.
Lisa wrote to compliment Cathleen from New Hampshire’s research of her mother’s paternal grandfather, Georg Sokop. She was inspired to research a friend’s Jewish ancestry using DNA.
Ray has been researching his third great-grandfather, James James, and located two people of that name in close proximity. The county courthouse burned, and he is asking for other records to distinguish between the two men.
Drew discusses the upcoming South Carolina Genealogical Society’s upcoming conference at the South Carolina Department of Archives and History on 12-13 July 2024. He is presenting, and George will be there observing and conducting personal research in the archive.
George shares how he is preparing for his genealogical research at the South Carolina Department of Archives and History, at the Newberry County courthouse, and in the upstate South Carolina environs.
Drew discusses new features of AncestryDNA tools.
Thank you to all our Patreon supporting members for their support. Your Patreon support helps us improve our technology and provide even more podcast content to you! You can join us for as little as $1 a month or as much as you’d like to contribute. Visit https://www.patreon.com/genealogyguys to get started.
And don’t forget to order Drew’s new book, Generation by Generation: A Modern Approach to the Basics of Genealogy, from Genealogical Publishing Company (https://genealogical.com/) or Amazon.com.
The Genealogy Guys Podcast #419
Thursday, August 10, 2023 • Duration 51:57
The Genealogy Guys Podcast, in partnership with MyHeritage.com, is giving away a FREE MyHeritage DNA Kit. Please send an email to genealogyguys@gmail.com with your name and mailing address by no later than midnight U.S. Eastern Time on 31 August 2023 for your chance to win!
News You Can Use and Share
American Ancestors/New England Historic Genealogical Society has announced the 10 Million Names Project. The Project is a collaborative effort dedicated to recovering the names of the estimated 10 million men, women, and children of African descent who were enslaved in pre- and post-colonial America (specifically, the territory that would become the United States) between the 1500s and 1865. Learn more at https://10millionnames.org/.
A great new book written by African-American and Native American expert Angela Walton-Raji has been published by Arcadia Publishing, Inc., titled Oklahoma Freedmen of the Five Tribes. It is now available at Amazon.com.
Drew recaps the highlights of the newest records releases at FamilySearch.
Listener Email
Lisa sent a follow-up about her census mystery searching for her ancestor Felice Giuseppe Maturo and his brother, Liberato Maturo, in the 1910 U.S. Federal Census in New Haven, Connecticut.
Mell wrote to ask for suggestions to research her ancestor Felix White in the area around Columbus, Muskogee County, Oklahoma.
Lisa wrote about the Ancestry Hints, what they are and aren’t. This includes the “Family Data Collection” and “Geneanet Community Trees”.
Nicole is researching her Dulaney ancestral line from Virginia, supposedly back to Ireland. Drew shares some insights.
Thank you to all our Patreon supporting members for their support. Your Patreon support helps us improve our technology and provide even more podcast content to you! You can join us for as little as $1 a month or as much as you’d like to contribute. Visit https://www.patreon.com/genealogyguys to get started.
The Genealogy Guys Podcast #418
Tuesday, July 18, 2023 • Duration 01:01:14
News You Can Use and Share!
The International African American Museum (IAAM) has officially opened in Charleston, South Carolina, and is partnering with Vivid-Pix with the installation of Vivid-Pix Memory Stations that allow visitors to scan, restore, save, and share their precious photos, documents, and stories.
The Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI) has been gifted a new index containing 3.2 million searchable names to mark the centenary of PRONI. These are related to Valuation records between 1864 and 1933.
The General Register Office for England and Wales (GRO) now allows you to order instant-access images of birth records from 1837 to 1922 and death records from 1837 to 1887. The digital images cost £2.50 each and can be downloaded, and then printed. (The records are images of the details from the certificate but not the certificate itself.)
Drew recaps the newest records releases at FamilySearch.
Listener Email
Lisa wrote about her census mystery searching for her ancestor Felice Giuseppe Maturo and his brother, Liberato Maturo, in the 1910 U.S. Federal Census in New Haven, Connecticut. The Guys researched and Drew shares our findings.
Tom wrote about his ancestor who served in the Revolutionary War and who he just discovered was a enslaver in Kentucky.
The Guys discuss U.S. patents. For both of them, one of their great-grandfathers filed two patents for inventions. The Guys were able to search the USPTO (United States Patents and Trademarks Office) patent database at https://www.uspto.gov/patents/search or Google's Patent database, and quickly located the patent files. Each file contained a schematic diagram of the invention and text pages with detailed descriptions. (Trademarks can be searched in the trademarks database at https://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/search.) Please listen to the podcast for details about disconnects and reloading pages in the databases.
Drew recommended acquiring a small glass desktop whiteboard that can sit between the keyboard and display and provide additional storage. An example (the one that Drew bought) can be found on Amazon at , but many companies sell them in a variety of colors.
The Genealogy Guys Podcast #417
Tuesday, June 20, 2023 • Duration 56:51
News You Can Use and Share!
SUMMER SALE CONTINUES! The Genealogy Guys Learn subscription website is on sale for $64.00 per year – a 35% saving! We have scores of videos and written courses, and new content is added each month. Visit https://genealogyguyslearn.com/, click the Enroll Now button, and complete the subscription form. Be sure to click on the Add Coupon link and use coupon code Summer2023. This deal is for new subscriptions only and is in effect until midnight ET on 30 June 2023.
Library and Archives Canada (LAC) has announced the release of the 1931 Census of Canada. They are also collaborating with Ancestry and FamilySearch to make images and indexes available.
MyHeritage has released ReImagine, a new photo scanning and editing tool for iOS and Android mobile phones.
MyHeritage announced a recap of the release of 46 million historical records collections in May 2023. George recaps those collections.
The Texas State Library and Archives Commission (TSLAC) is pleased to announce a new partnership with the University of North Texas (UNT) Libraries. The TSLAC Newspaper Collection is now live and available for free online. More than 4,500 issues of historical Texas newspapers from TSLAC’s collection, published from 1855 to 1930, are available online through UNT’s Portal to Texas History.
Drew recaps the newest records releases at FamilySearch.
Listener Email
Judy in Avon, Ohio, wrote again to state that she had not fully explored the RootsMagic tutorial videos. She is now much more comfortable with RM9 and fully endorses it.
The Genealogy Guys Podcast #416
Tuesday, May 30, 2023 • Duration 01:07:08
News You Can Use and Share!
SUMMER SALE! The Genealogy Guys Learn subscription website is on sale for $64.00 per year – a 35% saving! We have scores of videos and written courses, and new content is added each month. Visit https://genealogyguyslearn.com/, click the Enroll Now button, and complete the subscription form. Be sure to click on the Add Coupon link and use coupon code Summer2023. This deal is for new subscriptions only and is in effect until midnight ET on 30 June 2023.
MyHeritage has released a new update to the data in its Theory of Family RelativityTM. The number of matches has increased by 78% to 136,713,021!
MyHeritage announced the release of 20 million historical records collections in April 2023. George recaps those collections.
MyHeritage recently added the 1910 Norway Census Collection. It now announces the addition of high-quality images for the collection.
Ancestry and the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) announced the resumption of the digitization of the War of 1812 Pension Files project. The indexed images will be available for free at Fold3 forever. Listen for updates about this important project.
Drew recaps the newest record releases at FamilySearch.
Listener Email
Jennifer in Oberlin, Ohio, responded to the email from Judy in Avon, Ohio, that we discussed in Episode 415. Judy wanted help with learning to use RootsMagic more effectively. Jennifer suggested attending the weekly drop-in genealogy group at the Oberlin Public Library.
Missi wrote a long email asking for The Guys’ suggestions for how to restart her genealogy, what methodology to employ, how far to research collateral lines (siblings, in-laws, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc.) There are lots of things discussed and some good suggestions provided.
Eric responded to Cindy from Episode 412 and her search for a Swedish immigrant. He suggested obtaining and reviewing naturalization records, which include the name of the person, country, and place of origin, name of the ship, port of arrival, and arrival date. The Petition for Naturalization form (second papers) required the name of the person now applying the name under which the person arrived at the port. (They could be different.) The Swedish Household Examination Records are accessible at MyHeritage and can help in tracing the person back to birth, and the names of family members in the household.
The Genealogy Guys Podcast #415
Thursday, April 27, 2023 • Duration 01:04:21
News You Can Use and Share!
Drew's new book, Generation by Generation: A Modern Approach to the Basics of Genealogy, has been published by Genealogical Publishing Company. It is being acclaimed as the best new book for beginning genealogists. You can order it at https://genealogical.com/store/generation-by-generation/ or at Amazon.com. A color ebook version will be available soon.
MyHeritage announced the release of 38 million historical records collections in March 2023. George recaps those collections.
FamilySearch has named Debbie Gurtler as the new Assistant Director of the FamilySearch Library.
Findmypast has released two important collections: Ireland, Diocese of Dublin Marriage Licenses, 1638-1858, and Ireland, Diocese of Dublin Wills and Grants, 1270-1858.
Listener Email
Jean wrote to announce that she has purchased Drew's new book for the West Hempstead Library in New York.
Laura in Connecticut wrote about researching the Smith surname in Ireland.
Judy in Ohio wrote to ask about getting help with learning how to use RootsMagic more effectively. The Guys suggested watching the scores of recorded videos at the RootsMagic site. (Visit https://www.rootsmagic.com/ and click the Learn dropdown list. There also are short videos on RootsMagic TV on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/user/RootsMagicTV.
D. A. wrote about the print quality of images in the new RootsMagic 9 book.
Donna Moughty responded to address Gabriel's Irish research request for suggestions in researching his ancestor James Thomas Donoghue. Donna's thoughtful comments will be helpful to all Irish researchers.
Rick in Wisconsin wrote concerning reporting formats that he can use for use in documenting his family's Benedict Arnold, who was not the infamous Benedict Arnold.
Tom posed a research conundrum he has encountered in researching his family in the 1910 U.S. Federal census in Cranesville, Erie County, Pennsylvania. He cannot locate the enumeration district (ED) for that place. The Guys spent some time replicating his research and delving into EDs in that area and, using people living in Cranesville in 1920 and locating them at the same residences in 1910, narrowed the ED down to #66. We've asked for specific names and will recheck those as well. Listener suggestions are also very welcome.
The Genealogy Guys Podcast #414
Tuesday, March 21, 2023 • Duration 01:01:41
News You Can Use and Share!
Drew Smith’s new book, Generation by Generation: A Modern Approach to the Basics of Genealogy, has been published by Genealogical Publishing Company. It is being acclaimed as the best new book for beginning genealogists. You can order it at https://genealogical.com/store/generation-by-generation/ or at Amazon.com. A new Kindle version will be available soon.
RootsMagic has released RootsMagic 9 for both PC and macOS with the addition of new tools. There is a new book, Getting the Most Out of RootsMagic 9, that describes how to use the new version. As always, there are new videos about all the operations of the software. Learn more at http://blog.rootsmagic.com/?p=3635.
Drew Smith's new book, Generation by Generation: A Modern Approach to the Basics of Genealogy, has been published by Genealogical Publishing Company. You can order it at https://genealogical.com/store/generation-by-generation/.
On January 4, 2023, the United States Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) proposed substantial increases to the fees required to access historical records held by the USCIS Genealogy Program. The proposed hikes are especially infuriating, given that many of these records should already be publicly and readily available at the National Archives. They have proposed a fee as high as $340 for a single document. Send your comments by Monday, March 6, 2023. Visit the "Records, Not Revenue" website at https://www.recordsnotrevenue.com/ to learn more about how to make your voice heard.
RootsTech, the FamilySearch annual genealogical mega-conference, will be held March 3-5. There's still time to enroll for in-person attendance or virtual participation at https://www.familysearch.org/rootstech/event/rt2023.
MyHeritage added 41 million historical records in January 2023. George details each collection.
Genealogical Publishing Company (https://genealogical.com/) has announced the “My GPC Library” subscription service that provides access to nearly 800 titles spanning 70 years of publishing. A 15% introductory discount is currently available for 6-month and 1-year subscriptions at https://genealogical.com/subscriptions/. More titles will be added over time.
Listener Email
Curt and Lisa both wrote to offer suggestions for Cindy's questions in Episode 412 regarding Swedish research.
Nancy responded to Donna's inquiry in Episode 412 concerning suggestions about methods for how to pay for foreign genealogical research.
The Genealogy Guys Podcast #412
Sunday, January 29, 2023 • Duration 59:24
News You Can Use and Share!
MyHeritage announces a new, free, searchable collection, Israel Immigration Lists, consisting of 1.7 million records from 1919 onwards, transcribed by MyHeritage from images stored at the Israel Archive.
Dr. Wanda Wyporska, Chief Executive Officer of the Society of Genealogists, is stepping down in March 2023 to accept a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity at another organization.
World Archives has rebranded as Storied and has launched a new, next-generation family history platform at https://storied.com/.
The Family History Library has been renamed the FamilySearch Library, and Family History Centers have been renamed FamilySearch Centers.
Drew recaps the vast new and expanded collections at FamilySearch from January 2023.
Listener Email
Dave asks for suggestions about the thousands of genealogy research tasks he has entered into his Family Tree Maker software. He would like suggestions for how to view these tasks on his iPhone and iPad.
Donna wants suggestions about methods for how to pay for international genealogical research, and The Guys ask listeners for input.
Irene provides tips for Drew on his upcoming Irish research trip.
Cindy is researching a friend’s Swedish grandfather who emigrated from Sweden to the U.S. She is looking for his origins in Sweden, and has performed extensive research but without success. George suggested MyHeritage’s collection of Swedish Household Examination Books and asks listeners for other suggestions.
Drew’s Upcoming Research Trip
Drew discusses a genealogy research trip that he and his brother are making to Ireland in October 2023. He continues to talk about the preparations he is making and will provide more over the coming months. And you can be sure he will report back about how well his preparations served him on the trip.
Thank you to all our Patreon supporting members for their support. Your Patreon support helps us improve our technology and provide even more podcast content to you! You can join us for as little as $1 a month or as much as you’d like to contribute. Visit to get started.
Please also tell your friends and your genealogical society about our free podcasts, our blog, and our Genealogy Guys Learn subscription education website.
And don’t forget to order Drew’s new book, Generation by Generation: A Modern Approach to the Basics of Genealogy, from Genealogical Publishing Company (https://genealogical.com/) or Amazon.com.
Don’t forget to order Drew’s new book, Generation by Generation: A Modern Approach to the Basics of Genealogy, from Genealogical Publishing Company (https://genealogical.com/) or Amazon.com.
Thank you to all our Patreon supporting members for their support. Your Patreon support helps us improve our technology and provide even more podcast content to you! You can join us for as little as $1 a month or as much as you’d like to contribute. Visit https://www.patreon.com/genealogyguys to get started.
Please also tell your friends and your genealogical society about our free podcasts, blog, and our Genealogy Guys Learn subscription education website.
Judy also wrote that she has tested DNA with Ancestry and discovered one match that has taken her research back another generation. Drew provides some guidance about how to proceed.
Michael wrote to reinforce the idea of focusing research on one’s great-grandparents and setting goals for what you want to learn about them.
Cindy wrote again concerning her Swedish conundrum. She thanked The Guys for their advice. She has also done more research without success and asks listeners to share suggestions.
Jerry wrote to reference our Episode #407 and a link http://www.ancestrallines.net/overview/, a page that presents a new pedigree numbering system that has been developed for the family history and genealogy community as an alternative that visibly displays ancestral lines and generations in multiple presentation formats. He had trouble accessing the site, but The Guys confirmed that the .net site is still available.
Drew will be presenting this weekend, June 23-24, at the Barbara J. Brown Family History Seminar being held at the Archives of Michigan in Lansing. This annual event is a hybrid event. Participants can attend sessions either online or onsite. Registration details are available at https://www.michigan.gov/mhc/archives/family-history-seminar#RegistrationDetails.
Drew is busy preparing for his Irish research trip in early October with Donna Moughty and accompanied by his brother. He stresses that, before you make any research trip, prepare as much as possible in advance so you don’t lose valuable onsite time having to do that preliminary work there.
Don’t forget to order Drew’s new book, Generation by Generation: A Modern Approach to the Basics of Genealogy, from Genealogical Publishing Company (https://genealogical.com/) or Amazon.com.
Thank you to all our Patreon supporting members for their support. Your Patreon support helps us improve our technology and provide even more podcast content to you! You can join us for as little as $1 a month or as much as you’d like to contribute. Visit https://www.patreon.com/genealogyguys to get started.
Please also tell your friends and your genealogical society about our free podcasts, blog, and our Genealogy Guys Learn subscription education website. And the Genealogy Guys Learn site is on sale through 30 June 2023. (See above.)
The Guys responded to Tom in Episode 415 who was searching the 1910 U.S census records in Cranesville, Erie County, Pennsylvania, to locate ancestors. The Guys did a great deal of research, and then asked Tom to provide names. Drew researched again and unfortunately could not find the people in any of the townships or precincts in the county. He concluded that the family was away or missed by the enumerator.
Kathleen also responded to Judy in Avon, Ohio, offering supportive comments about learning basic tasks and then expanding her range, using RootsMagic’ videos, its online help, and maybe the new RootsMagic book.
Ashley wrote with a question about ancestors’ passport application records. The Guys suggested using Ancestry’s or MyHeritage’s collections: U.S., Passport Applications, 1795-1925.
Don’t forget to order Drew’s new book, Generation by Generation: A Modern Approach to the Basics of Genealogy, from Genealogical Publishing Company (https://genealogical.com/) or Amazon.com.
Thank you to all our Patreon supporting members for their support. Your Patreon support helps us improve our technology and provide even more podcast content to you! You can join us for as little as $1 a month or as much as you’d like to contribute. Visit https://www.patreon.com/genealogyguys to get started.
Please also tell your friends and your genealogical society about our free podcasts, our free blog, and our Genealogy Guys Learn subscription education website. And the Genealogy Guys Learn site is on sale through 30 June 2023.
Don't forget to order Drew's new book, Generation by Generation: A Modern Approach to the Basics of Genealogy, from Genealogical Publishing Company (https://genealogical.com/) or Amazon.com.
Thank you to all our Patreon supporting members for their support. Your Patreon support helps us improve our technology and provide even more podcast content to you! You can join us for as little as $1 a month or as much as you’d like to contribute. Visit https://www.patreon.com/genealogyguys to get started.
Please also tell your friends and your genealogical society about our free podcasts, our free blog, and our Genealogy Guys Learn subscription education website.
FamilySearch has announced that the 1931 Census of Canada will be released on 1 June 2023 at the Library and Archives (LAC) Canada website. Read more at https://library-archives.canada.ca/eng/corporate/website-updates/pages/census-1931.aspx. Following the release, LAC will collaborate with Ancestry and FamilySearch to create an advanced searchable database.
The International African American Museum has set its opening day in Charleston, South Carolina, for Tuesday, 27 June 2023. Learn more at https://iaamuseum.org/.
Listener Email
Susan wrote to say she was unable to order software from Evidentia at https://evidentiasoftware.com/. Apparently, they were migrating their website and encountered some delay with the transfer. However, the site is up and running again.
Gabriel wrote about an Irish mystery for his ancestor, James Thomas Donoghue. Listeners are urged to share ideas and suggestions.
Rosemary wrote about finding Order Book B (1812-1822) for Lewis County, Kentucky. Work is underway with the Kentucky Department of Library Archives and FamilySearch to make the images, transcription, and index available for use.
Don’t forget to order Drew’s new book, Generation by Generation: A Modern Approach to the Basics of Genealogy, from Genealogical Publishing Company (https://genealogical.com/) or Amazon.com.
Thank you to all our Patreon supporting members for their support. Your Patreon support helps us improve our technology and provide even more podcast content to you! You can join us for as little as $1 a month or as much as you’d like to contribute. Visit https://www.patreon.com/genealogyguys to get started.
Please also tell your friends and your genealogical society about our free podcasts, our free blog, and our Genealogy Guys Learn subscription education website.
Joshua asks about a format for a letter to be used in disproving incorrect family connections.
Judi sent a detailed email to Drew regarding Bannon families in Essex County, New Jersey, and in Ireland.
Timo wrote to advise how to turn off AirTag notifications for usual places.
Drew's Upcoming Ireland Research Trip
Drew discusses a genealogy research trip he and his brother are making to Ireland in October 2023. He continues to talk about the preparations he is making and will provide more over the coming months. And you can be sure he will report back about how well his preparations served him on the trip.
Thank you to all our Patreon supporting members for their support. Your Patreon support helps us improve our technology and provide even more podcast content to you! You can join us for as little as $1 a month or for as much as you would like to contribute. Visit https://www.patreon.com/genealogyguys to get started.
Please also tell your friends and your genealogical society about our free podcasts, our free blog, and our Genealogy Guys Learn subscription education website.
Please also tell your friends and your genealogical society about our free podcasts, our free blog, and our Genealogy Guys Learn subscription education website.
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