My first look at the Digital Public Library of America

 How excited were you to explore this new amazing resource?

First glimpse: beautiful.

I was very pleased to open the Digital Public Library of America (or DPLA) on Sunday when I finally had some time to devote to it. The format, layout, color scheme… all very well done and easy to navigate. Thank goodness.

One thing that caught my attention right away was the “Timeline” link in the top menu. I love me a good timeline! Nearly every state I research in, this is a vital tool for me; finding a good online timeline for the area that gives me major events in the history of the area. I tried this first, in my exploration of the new site, and did a search for “Colorado.” The site came back with 17,324 results, beginning in 1827. The results were displayed in a graph, and you click on each bar of the graph to see the events. I chose the year 1859, since that was the year that gold was discovered in Breckenridge, to see if it made the list. What I got was this:

Screenshot of "Colorado" search results in the timeline feature. 21 Apr 2013.

Nine images related to “1859” in Colorado. The red link is a title, which then directs you to a citation and brief description of the book. I noticed that you can also view the results of the initial timeline search in list form, or by location on a map. A nice feature.

Screenshot of search results for "Colorado" in the timeline, but displayed on the map. 21 Apr 2013

My next exploration was a general search from the homepage. I looked up “Moravian,” since that is a topic I’m working on right now. It brought me 43 results – which is not too bad compared to other sites I have visited in the past week – and a quick scroll through brought me several options to review. I was able to locate exact articles (which then referred me to sites like Internet Archive); census records; images of artwork, historical objects and portraits, to name a few. One feature I particularly liked about the site was the availability to filter the results by the Owning Institution or online Partner, allowing me to chose just what I could access online. Other filtering options include location, subject, date and language. (Also a nice feature, since many Moravian records are in German!) 

First glance, I’m impressed. I see this becoming one of my “go-to” resources, for any major project and plan on using it often.

I recommend following the DPLA on Twitter or Facebook for the latest info and updates. You can find the links on their homepage: 

The Digital Public Library of America


Have you had a chance to explore the site yet? What are your thoughts? I would love to hear about it!

Using the National Register of Historic Places Database

Genealogical research can lead you in so many different directions, and investigating the origins of a specific site or building can really make an impact in the stories you are trying to tell. The United States is lucky to have an amazing resource in the National Register of Historic Places, and researcher’s in all disciplines can utilize the database made available to us via the National Park Service website.

Using this tool can prove to be incredibly exciting, especially for those researching a general area or community that has been put on the list. In work done relating to the Town of Breckenridge, Colorado, I was able to find the original (scanned) application that was submitted, dated 1980; all 38 pages of it! The document included a typed list of contributing buildings, and a color coded map of the town indicating “Historic”, “Contributing” and “Intrusion” properties that factored in to the decision.

The Frisco Schoolhouse, now a
Museum. Main Street, Frisco, CO. 

Certainly individual properties are listed as well, and are more frequent than the “districts”. This includes site such as the Frisco Schoolhouse, which is now a museum on Main Street of Frisco, Colorado. The picture seen here was available on the site to be downloaded, (the material is considered public domain according to the site "Disclaimer") and dates from 1983.  I was also able to learn that the addition in the back of the building was put on in the 1950s, and that’s also when the double door was added to the main entrance. The diamond shaped window in the upper eaves appears to be original (ca. 1909).

Records relating to individual residences include written descriptions and in several cases, a floor plan of the building. There is also a required “Significance” summary that generally gives a historical background of the building, and why it is being pursued as a addition to the list.


Not every site has the application and images online yet, but many do. This is a site you will want to add to your bookmarks list and go back to recheck on a regular basis. For advanced viewing, printing or downloading the documents,  you will need the DjVu Plugin. There is a link at the bottom of the screen when you open the files.

Screenshot of the NPS Focus site, allowing you to see the original application records. This example is from a residence in Salida, Colorado. 

Learn, Over and Over

Image Copyright
Ancestral Journeys, 2012

As genealogists, as researchers  and simply as human beings, one of the most wonderful gifts we can give to ourselves is that of continued learning. The mantra is simple, "don't stop."  Whatever form it comes in, there is always opportunity to learn, learn again and learn some more.

I find myself reading - constantly - on a wide array of topics. My personal library skips through what you would expect: genealogy, history, military references; and then races on with music history, loved children's literature from years past, business and marketing texts, and so much more.


There is something I struggle with though, and that is making time for online education. I do my fair share of reading through blogs, news articles, and other mentions from our friends in social media. However, I'm constantly struggling with making time for webinar's, YouTube video's, Podcast's and tutorials. I know they can help me, and when I do make the time, I always learn something.

I actually really enjoy watching or listening to them. The topics list are varied and for the most part, the presenter's are engaging and entertaining. My to-do list is just sooooo long that I have a hard time convincing myself to stop trying to multi-task and focus on what is being discussed.

As part of my newly developed set of goals, I plan on taking advantage of two of these educational opportunities each month. Starting today.

So, here I'm going to remind you of the incredible set of videos that were made available just a few months ago, from RootsTech 2012. I've seen them all, but many are worth watching again. Take out your notes from this past March, and watch with me. While you're on the site, check out the schedule for next year.

Let me know what you learn today! 

Ancestry.com completes the 1940 US Federal Census Index

From Ancestry.com today:

Ancestry.com Releases Completely Searchable 1940 U.S. Federal Census

A searchable index to 134 million records makes researching family history in the latest available U.S. Census dramatically easier

PROVO, UTAH – (August 3, 2012) – Ancestry.com, the world’s largest online family history resource, is proud to announce that it has completed the records indexing process for the 1940 U.S. Federal Census, which is available at www.ancestry.com/1940census. All 134 million records are now easily searchable by name, date, place of birth and other key information recorded in the census. These records, which are free to search, offer valuable insight for the nearly 90 percent of Americans who either have family members recorded in the 1940 U.S. Census or are in it themselves.

Since the initial release of the 1940 U.S. Census by the National Archives in April, Ancestry.com has progressively published information from this important family history resource state by state. Ancestry.com has made this vital family history information while providing an engaging user experience including the ability to search for maiden names or other family names, often a roadblock when searching records. Additionally, users can make corrections or update information that is incomplete, leading to a better overall database of information.

Assisting in navigation of the 1940 U.S. Census is Ancestry.com’s Interactive Image Viewer, which enables users to easily peruse document pages with simple graphical overlays. The viewer adds highlights, transcriptions and other functionality directly on the Census page. This enables searchers access to small census fields by simply scrolling over them for a pop up that magnifies the information recorded by census takers.  With the ability to zoom in on individual records, these new features dramatically improve the usability of the 1940 U.S. Census, which previously only included images of the paper records. These paper records, handwritten in small entry fields, have traditionally been very hard to read, making the visual enhancements in the Interactive Viewer a huge improvement.

“We are so excited to be publishing our index to the 1940 U.S. Federal Census for free on Ancestry.com,” said Tim Sullivan, CEO of Ancestry.com. “As one of the most anticipated family history resources ever, the 1940 Census is a fantastic way for almost every American to get started making discoveries about their family history as well as a key new resource for so many of our two million existing subscribers.  Experienced through our new Interactive Image Viewer, the stories and discoveries inside the 1940 Census really come to life.”

Users can now find basic information such as their ancestors’ names and where they lived, but also gain more insight about their ancestors’ daily lives. This information includes whether they owned or rented their home, the value of the residence and how many people resided there. For the first time, census takers in 1940 also asked questions specific to income and education. Interestingly, details like prior military service, the ability to read or write, and whether citizens spoke English – all asked in prior censuses – were not asked in 1940.

The entire census can be viewed online at www.ancestry.com/1940census

About Ancestry.com

Ancestry.com Inc. (Nasdaq:ACOM) is the world's largest online family history resource, with approximately 2 million paying subscribers. More than 10 billion records have been added to the site in the past 15 years. Ancestry users have created more than 38 million family trees containing more than 4 billion profiles. In addition to its flagship site www.ancestry.com, Ancestry.com offers several localized Web sites designed to empower people to discover, preserve and share their family history.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated by these forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include our ability to digitize content, to provide desired content to our subscribers, to make our services convenient to use and to otherwise satisfy customer expectations. Information concerning additional factors that could cause events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements is contained under the caption “Risk Factors” in our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2012, and in discussions in other of our Securities and Exchange Commission filings. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any subsequent date and we assume no obligation to publicly update or revise these forward-looking statements.