Hey! I was on Mondays with Myrt!

I had the opportunity to join in on Mondays with Myrt yesterday, and it was a ton of fun! 

If you haven't experienced the new "Hangout On Air" format, you really should join in. Great conversation, great people, great content!

I come in at about the 30 minute mark, and had the time to talk about Conference Keeper and #genchat.

Proudly Presenting...

If you do any genealogy research in the Rocky Mountains, you know one thing: there is a genuine lack of printed research guides for this area.

There are general guides, and those are helpful, but there are very few texts of any kind written specifically for the geographical area of Montana, Wyoming, Colorado and New Mexico. I know, I’ve looked.

And looked.

And looked.

Knowing that, the pieces that have been written are all very good. Truly.

So when the opportunity came knocking on my door to write such a guide, I snagged it. Immediately.

The best part for me is that these are my favorite types of guides to use. Simple, concise, no frills. Just four pages of resources on the topic, with good information and very easy to use. I prefer the laminated version, and have several on a variety of other topics; everything from citing sources to world history. I buy them for my family, too; my niece received two for Christmas this past year on algebra. Partly because she’s really enjoying her math class this year, and party because I’m a good aunt who likes to encourage the educational efforts of the next generation.

The first two to be published are Colorado Genealogy and Wyoming Genealogy. I’ll admit: I was venturing into new territory here and wanted to stick with topics I was well versed in. I am happy to report they came out incredibly well. They are currently available for purchase from the Legacy Family Tree store, as a PDF download, at a mere $2.95. 

Here is the description of the Colorado guide from Legacy Family Tree store: 

"Colorado has experienced more than one gold rush in its history. The original sent masses to Pike’s Peak in 1859; additional mineral booms throughout the late 1800s continued population growth, and now the “white gold” covering the mountains bring winter sports enthusiast from around the world.Looking to find those elusive Centennial State ancestors? 

The Colorado Genealogy Legacy QuickGuide™ contains useful information including a timeline of Colorado history events, tips on Colorado research strategy, outline of major immigrant groups, and more. Also included are links to websites and resources covering vital records, church records, census records, as well as general Colorado resources. Utilize this handy 4-page PDF guide on your computer or mobile device for anytime access to create your own genealogy gold rush!"

"Genealogy gold rush!" I love it! I'm going to be using that one quite a bit, I think. 

Next on the list? More states! In the next month, I’ll be working on Montana, New Mexico and Washington. Watch my Facebook and Twitter accounts; I’ll definitely be posting when those are available.

That’s not all!  I’ll be branching out of geography in the near future, with “Using Fraternal Society Records,” “Researching Germans from Russia,” and “Moravian Genealogy.” Three topics that come straight from my own personal research. (You can read some of my posts about the Moravian religion here.)

Above all, I hope that other researcher’s find these guides useful. They were certainly useful to write, and truly opened my eyes to the variety of sources one can use in genealogical research. I often write – and think – about creative research, but in this manner I have written it all down and truly tried to go beyond the traditional borders.

Let me know if you love it or hate it. This is my first major "pitch" of a blog post, but I am just too excited about this to not write it. 

Everybody’s Talking: All At Once

Thirteen months and one day ago, I had a conversation with my big brother. I remember it so well because it occurred on Christmas Day, and well, because big brother’s are good at this kind of thing. We were talking about my new “business” which at the time of course, consisted of very little. Ancestral Journeys was very new, in fact, it technically had not even been launched yet. That happened on 1 Jan.

I digress.

Big brother makes the following statement, and I took it to heart:

"Social media isn’t going anywhere. It’s only going to grow. So you can either jump in or be left behind."

I listened. I activated a new Twitter account, grabbed onto Facebook and started exploring Google+. Pinterest, LinkedIn, Tumblr… yes, I dove into them all.

Who knew that thirteen short months later, I would be hosting a Twitter Chat.

Those words had never entered my sphere before, but I now know them so very well. I have learned a great deal from a variety of chats, including #blogchat, #saturdayschool and #lulybchat; but none has ever been as enjoyable as last night’s #genchat.



The idea struck me a couple of months ago, but it was something I knew I could not do alone. I circled the wagons with Terri O’Connell and Stephanie Pitcher Fishman, and we got to work. Last night’s inaugural experience was amazing, and I cannot say thank you to my co-hosts enough, nor can I ever express how truly awesome it was to see so many genealogy folks participate. It was incredible watching the message pass by; everything and everyone coming at you so fast! I’ve seen some chats that really move before, but this was something really special.

I love the comparison of Twitter to a cocktail party. I think its an amazing analogy to explain what Twitter is designed to be. Last night’s cocktail party was absolutely one I will not forget.

Here’s some stats, in case you were interested. (Source: www.hashtracking.com, compiled at 11:15pm MST, 26 Jan 2013. This site produces statistics based on an individual hashtag for the past twenty-four hour period.)  The #genchat hash tag produced…

• 1,146 tweets, which generated…
• 766,955 impressions, reaching an audience of…
• 33,560 followers

That’s pretty impressive stuff!


It is an absolute compliment to see tweets such as this…

@familyreflect: “Totally planned my entire evening so I would be home in time for the first #genchat.”

@wakela: “Mind still going a mile a minute after the great #genchat can’t wait until Feb 8th for next one.” 

@ddaruth: “Great #genealogy #genchat tweets running in my brain! Lots of great ideas & info for today’s research. nice way to spend a Friday night!”

You can see all the topic specific tweets on Storify. I cut out a few of the jokes. You kinda’ had to be there. Make sure to read all the way through to the end, though, because that’s where all the little hints and goodies for location specific research went.

The next #genchat will occur on Feb 8, 9pm CST, when we will discuss “Your Best 60 Minutes of Research.” The schedule for the entire year is available on Conference Keeper, as well as badges you can download and put on your own blog or website.

So, Big Brother, did you ever think that Little Sister would be doing this when you gave me that fateful advice?

Big Brother playing Santa Claus, with me on his knee.
Many years ago...
Photo: Personal archives of the author.

My Three Words for 2013: C x 3

2013: Exploring new, fresh territory.
© Ancestral Journeys, 2012-2013

I follow many people and all sorts of businesses on Twitter, Facebook, etc. One of the best discoveries I made in 2012 on social media was Chris Brogan, and his community, Human Business Works. He is well known, but new to me, and I have learned quite a bit from his blog, etc.

On 1 Jan 2013, he posted “My 3 Words for 2013”. This is a reoccurring post for him,  but it’s my first time. As I have spent a great deal of time in the last week reading about 2013 goals from other geneabloggers, and debating what my take on that would be, I found this concept to be very refreshing, meaningful and most importantly, manageable for me.

So, inspired, here are my three words.

Clarification: In my business plan. In my writing. In establishing myself, and my role, in my field. In my overall goals, not just in business, but as a person.

Collaboration: 2013 has started with the launch of a new project, a genealogy Twitter chat: #genchat,  that I am co-hosting with the amazing Stephanie Pitcher Fishman and Terri O’Connell. I continue to write a monthly series for The In-Depth Genealogist, which is one big collaboration in and of itself. I would like to find ways to continue this trend of working with others. Conference Keeper continues to expand and grow, with contributions from genealogists around the world. I would love to find more of these kinds of projects, perhaps guest blog some, and create new and interesting ways to incorporate my own research with the mission’s of the local societies'.

Courage: To reach out and grab what I want from life; to stand up to other’s that look down upon me; to yell out to the world, “I'm good at this!”. Courage. It goes hand in hand with confidence, and all that is growing inside me, it needs a little more attention to fully blossom. After my first year in the professional world, it's time for me to stop "getting my feet wet" and start making a difference, an impact. 

I am incredibly excited for the opportunities coming to me in 2013. I feel absolutely blessed to be in this field, to be able to turn a passion into a business, to share that passion with others. I am determined to reach out and grab what I want, instead of letting life take me where it will.

If you wish to collaborate on any projects stirring in your imagination, send me an email, huh? I would love to hear from you.

All my best for an amazing 2013,
~Jen

Tanner, my office buddy, an I are ready for an amazing 2013!
All rested and ready to go!
© Ancestral Journeys 2012

Announcing #GENCHAT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

THREE PROFESSIONALS UNITE TO PRESENT #GENCHAT; 

GENEALOGY TWITTER CHATS

Corn & Cotton Genealogy, Finding Our Ancestors and Ancestral Journeys Will Start Regular Twitter Chats in January, 2013

If you are interested in learning about resources, skills, methodology and techniques to further your family history research, the help you need may have just arrived. 

Three genealogy professionals: Stephanie Pitcher Fishman, owner of Corn & Cotton Genealogy; Terri O’Connell, owner of Finding Our Ancestors; and Jen Baldwin, owner of Ancestral Journeys; are reaching across state lines using the power of Twitter to answer your questions and create an environment of collaboration.  

Beginning January 25, 2013, they will combine their efforts to bring you #genchat, a Twitter Chat focusing on genealogy related topics, skills and questions. The chat will be hosted every two weeks, beginning at 9:00pm CST, and lasting for one hour. The chats will be oriented towards hobbyist genealogists and family historians; all interested are welcome to participate.

Between them, they bring 43 years of genealogy research experience to the Twitter platform. Individually, they each run a professional genealogy business and their areas of expertise range from the Midwestern United States, to integrating family history into home education, and the Rocky Mountain corridor. Each are also involved in various genealogy related projects, such as the digi-mag, The In-Depth Genealogist, and the upkeep of Conference Keeper, a site dedicated to compiling world-wide resources on educational opportunities for family historian’s.

A detailed schedule of the planned chats for 2013 can be found on the Conference Keeper website.

To contact the hosts directly, or to schedule an interview, please e-mail or tweet them (see below). 

Jen Baldwin

Ancestral Journeys

ancestraljourney@outlook.com

@ancestryjourney

Stephanie Pitcher Fishman

Corn & Cotton Genealogy

stephanie@cornandcotton.com

@CornAndCotton

Terri O’Connell

Finding Our Ancestors

terri@findingourancestors.net

@Tracingmyfamily