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Newest Geneablogger – us!
As of today, A Week of Genealogy’s blog is one of the newest Geneabloggers! You can read about it here: http://www.geneabloggers.com/new-genealogy-blogs-7-may-2016/#more-39406 Thanks to Thomas MacEntee for including us!
read moreIt’s Complicated: Marital Status State Diagrams
When you are looking for records, you have to play to your strengths. State diagrams are important in my field of Computer Science and Engineer. They show the state that a computer can be in, and how it moves from one to another via a transition. State diagrams are merely roadmaps showing how to move through a computer system in time. For football fans, John Madden uses something similar to show how plays are made. While I was trying to formulate how to continue searching for records of a married ancestor, I enumerated all the possible...
read moreFound Ancestors in the Workhouse?
Did you tear up when the episode of “Who Do You Think You Are?” took us to a workhouse? Does your stomach tighten at the thought of families enduring this hardship, and your heart ache at the thought of the very young children being taken away from their parents? Imagine how it feels when you see records from the workhouse that contain your ancestors’ names. My Great Grandmother never spoke of her family. The only thing that her Grandchildren knew was that she was born in England. In fact, she rarely spoke to her Grandchildren at all....
read moreThe Second Editions of Our Books are available!
The Second Editions of “A Week of Genealogy” and “A Weekend of Genealogy” are available now! Are you searching for your ancestors? If you have been wanting to learn more about moving your genealogy research forward, find that help in the books: “A Week of Genealogy” and “A Weekend of Genealogy”. They are available now! Follow the link to learn how to save $3 on either or both books: https://aweekofgenealogy.com/lp041416 To see a short video advertising the books:
read moreAnchor’s Aweigh: Getting the 51st Pioneer Infantry to France and Back
Anchor’s Aweigh: Getting the 51st Pioneer Infantry to France and Back The history of the 51st Pioneer Infantry included information about the ships that brought Joseph McMahon to France and back home again. Gathering images and more information about these ships fleshes out the details of his WWI service. From U.S. to Brest, France On 29 July 1918 the 51st Pioneer Infantry left Camp Merritt, NJ, and marched to Alpine Landing. From there they were placed on ferries to Hoboken, NJ. Then they boarded the steamer USS Kroonland. On 8...
read more3 Reasons to Post on a Message Board
If you have attended one of my classes about using social media or beginning genealogy, you know that I always recommend reading and posting in message boards. My favorite is boards.rootsweb.com which is also tied to boards.rootsweb.com. All of the boards are searchable, so only put your post on one board. 1. Organizing material helps you understand it I have always my college and graduate students to send the questions that they had outside of the classroom in an e-mail. The act of reviewing the material and formulating a question...
read moreWWI Battles and Cemeteries
A little while ago, I saw a request on a genealogical Facebook page and tried to locate an obituary for a soldier who died in World War I. Although I did not find the obituary, it led to some interesting websites and resources that I was able to share with the obituary seeker. If you have an ancestor who died overseas in WWI, you should search the American Battle Monument Commission website. If you have not lost an ancestor overseas in WWI, you should still check out the resources about the battles and the World War I accessible from this...
read moreLooking for the 51st Pioneers in the New York State Military Museum
The New York State Military Museum and Veterans Research Center is part of the New York State Division of Military and Naval Affairs (DMNA). It is located in Saratoga Springs, NY. This blog post takes you on a tour of the Museum’s website. Hopefully will inspire those who have military ancestors from New York to investigate the material that can be found. Remember to look not only for your ancestor, but for information about the places and times that s/he served. Letters from or pictures of contemporaries may shed light on your...
read more51st Pioneer Infantry in the Library of Congress American Memory Collection
The American Memory Collection documents the American experience. I searched for the 51st Pioneer Infantry in this collection. In the search box, I entered “51st Pioneer Infantry” and got only two results. So I tried “51st Pioneer”. The results were: There is a choice to download the pdf of the page or of the whole issue. Be sure to note the page number and position of the article; searching in the pdf may not work. The first result in “The Stars and Stripes” was: The second result in “The Stars and...
read moreThe St. Mihiel Offensive and the 51st Pioneer Infantry
General Pershing’s American Expeditionary Force (AEF) launched the Saint-Mihiel offensive. This was the AEF’s first independent offensive, with an American Army under American command. The goal was to cut off the rail lines between Paris and the Eastern Front. The St. Mihiel salient was a fortified bulge into France that was 15 miles on either side of St. Mihiel, 20 miles south of Verdun. The 51st Pioneer Infantry was divided. My Grandfather’s Company, B, was attached to First Division. They had their first experience with exploding...
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