Volunteer Field Genealogist Workshop

I am now available to present the National Society Daughters of American Revolution volunteer field genealogist workshops.  The workshop will help anyone who is interested in joining DAR, complete their application or Registrar’s some good information to help prospective members submit an application that is approved the first time it is submitted.

I joined 40 ladies at NSDAR for the 3 day seminar and learned so much about DAR and the folks that review these applications.  There are some very good resources for proving lineage.  Sometimes the information is not there to be found so a “preponderance of evidence” must be used for the proof.

Anyone who enjoys research will enjoy the workshop or course in Washington DC.

Genealogy Consultant Course at NSDAR

I took the Genealogy Consultant course at NSDAR last week.  What a way to get rejuvenated in genealogy.  Much of it was aimed at completing NSDAR applications, but everyone learned a thing or two about doing research and where to look.  There are so many sites available for free that contain valuable information about our ancestors.

When working on a Revolutionary War ancestor for DAR, service and location is key.  If they were in the militia in Cumberland County, but they lived in Chester County, you probably have the wrong soldier.  Militia groups were formed locally.  It is not unheard of that they may have joined somewhere else, but doubtful.

NSDAR has put the Genealogy Research System (GRS) on the public site at www.dar.org.  If you think you know of an ancestor who fought in the Revolutionary War or provided civil or patriotic service you may be eligible to join this lineage society.

Search and share

I work on many lineage society applications, so do research  on the NSDAR website and am amazed what connections I find in my research for others.  Today I need to send a birthday card to a “daughter” in my local DAR chapter, looked her up on the NSDAR website  and lo and behold, she was from the area where I grew up.  Many of her ancestors have similar last names to my ancestors.  Today will be spent researching our possible connections. Is there another supplement in the works here?

I’ll begin my research on the Bradford County (PA) website that Joyce Tice hosts.  This is the best county website I have ever found.  All the folks in Bradford County graciously offer historical records and their own research, to Joyce, for the website.  If every county would be so generous, we would have so much more information available and so many records would not be destroyed.

On another similar topic, that I have mentioned before, don’t hoard those records you find, share them with a local historical society or submit them to the web for your local county site.  You can find a good repository by going to www.uswebgen.org and click on your State and county.  You will find many volunteers ready to help.

Historic Preservation is everyone’s job

I began my preservation career as the first Chairman in the State of Pennsylvania for the historic preservation committee in NSDAR and in the first year we had the first ever Historic Preservation Project Contest National, Regional and State winner.

Our local DAR chapter began our own project of documenting homes that were originally occupied by a Revolutionary War patriot, that are still in existence.  We were documenting ownership, photographing the property and making a list of these homes.  We hope the entire State will join our efforts and send information on their local patriot homes.

We have not had any additions to our local list, but as I travel around the State, ladies are occasionally giving me leads of homes to be recorded.  We are making these records so that these homes are not destroyed by people who are not aware of the history behind the home.  We hope that making more people aware of the existence of these homes will also give the present owners a sense of responsibility to maintain these historic buildings.

Do you know the history of your home?  Do you know how to go about finding out the history.  I can help you research your home, just contact me for a quote.