Profile Of The Week | WikiTree Blog

Hi WikiTreers!

Here are a few things happening around the community this week:

Challenge of the Week: Consolidate biographies and sources on messy merged profiles. Join our friendly “Data Doctors” competition to see who can clean up the most. The winner gets a badge and bragging rights, but we all benefit from a cleaner shared tree.

Profile of the Week: “Greatest of all Leathernecks,” 13th Commandant of the US Marine Corps, Lt. Gen. John A. Lejeune from The Great War 1914-1918 Project. Check your connection.

Member of the Week: Mel (Gilbert) Lambert is very involved with the Military and War Project and is one of our amazingly generous and patient Mentors. Mentors are volunteers who give one-on-one help to other members who are having trouble with WikiTree’s many complexities. Meet Mel in her blog interview. See how you are connected.

Michael Stills is recruiting members who have given or are interested in giving live presentations on WikiTree at their local library, genealogical society, etc.

Dean Anderson is recruiting members who have an interest in black sheep, spies and traitors in particular.

Jamie Nelson created a terrific little app to find missing relationships. It’s valuable if you’re working to connect profiles to the Global Tree. Test it and tell Jamie what you think.

Justin York’s FamilySearch Connections app can now update WikiTree profiles. This is a major advance for any WikiTreer who also uses the FamilySearch Tree.

Hi WikiTreers!

Here are a few things happening around the community this week:

The weekly WikiTree+ report of errors and warnings for your family members’ profiles (or just those you manage) now includes a handy system for recording when you correct or dismiss items.

Photo of the Week: Pvt. Coates, 11th Light Horse Regiment, Brisbane, Australia (1915). Uploaded by Veronica (Coat) Williams.

Profile of the Week: Governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and signer of the Declaration of Independence Stephen Hopkins (1707-1785) from the 1776 Project. [Check your connection]

Member of the Week: Texas Cemeterist and Volunteer Coordinator David Selman. Meet him in his blog interview. [Check your connection]

Question of the Week: Have you discovered any real characters in your branches? Answer on G2G or Facebook.

The Titanic Project and the Collaborative Profile of the Week Present

Thomson Beattie (1875-1912)

Thomson Beattie was a Canadian and a victim of the Titanic Disaster.

What did he do with his life?
Why was he aboard the Titanic?
How did he die?
Can we connect him to the Global Tree?

Can you add to Thomson’s profile? Post an answer and let us know what you’d like to work on/add. This prevents duplication of effort and it keeps the question on the front page of G2G.

The Titanic Project

In the early hours of the morning of April 15, 1912, the Titanic slipped beneath the waves during her maiden voyage from Liverpool to New York. Of the 2,223 passengers and crew of the Titanic, only 706 survived the sinking. To many, these are mere numbers, but family historians understand that each had a name – a history that linked them to true humanity. These people were real. They lived, they breathed, and they lived (or died) through a great tragedy; a tragedy that Eva Hart, who was seven years old when she boarded the ship, and who lost her father in the sinking, regarded as senseless because, with a little foresight, nobody should have died. Imagine how much larger the family tree would be if they all survived.

Regardless, the Titanic did sink, and from the tragedy, we were told stories of great self-sacrifice and heroism. The richest man aboard the ship, John Jacob Astor, helped his pregnant wife aboard a life-boat. When offered access to the same boat, he refused and instead offered his place to two third class children he saw nearby. Margaret “Molly” Brown encouraged the women in her lifeboat to row to keep warm. Ida Straus gave her maid her fur coat saying she wouldn’t need it as she chose to stay on the ship with her husband, saying, “We have lived together for many years. Where you go, I go.”

While these stories may be famous, when given the chance to look at the other 2,221 passengers on the ship, many other rich stories abound which are far less unknown… As in the case of William Edward Minahan who left his own legacy in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. As a local newspaper wrote, “Those who knew him best are confident that even if Dr. Minahan had been given the opportunity to escape in the lifeboats from the Titanic he would have preferred to remain on the liner himself rather than take the place of some one else who might be saved. It is easy to picture him walking about among the frenzied people who were facing their doom as the giant liner sank lower and lower, striving to give the same aid and comfort that characterized his work here.” What a legacy.

Several volunteers are currently in the process of indexing those associated with the Titanic, and we could use any willing volunteers. There are many tasks available – writing biographical sketches, connecting passengers to the main tree, tagging profiles already on Wikitree, etc. If you are interested in joining this project, please visit The Titanic Project.

The Cymru Welsh Royals and Aristocrats 742-1535
and the Collaborative Profile of the Week Present

Henry VII, King of England.

Here at WikiTree Henry VII, King of Engand (c1457-1509) was born, married, and made elaborate plans for his tomb.

What else did he do?
Did his reign have any lasting effects?
His profile should have a sourced list of children. Would someone add one?
Most of the profiles for his children have material and sources, but a few could use a little help: Son Edmund Tudor needs a source; son Roland needs a gedcom cleanup and a source, and daughter Katherineneeds a source.
There are several images at Wikimedia Commons that can be added and perhaps worked into the biography. Make sure to give them proper provenance.

Not pre-1500 certified? Want to show us what you can do? Write a paragraph or more about Henry, with inline citations. Put it here in an answer. We’ll add it to the biography. (putting your name in the “Explain your changes”)

What would you like to contribute to this week’s profile? Please post an answer here first. This prevents duplication of effort and it keeps the question on the front page of G2G.

The Cymru Welsh Royals and Aristocrats 742-1535 Project

The Cymru Welsh Royals and Aristocrats 742-1535 Project is a sub-project of the United Kingdom Project. It includes royals, aristocrats and nobles in Wales from the birth of Charlemagne in 742 until the end of the 1535. What happened in 1535 that made it a significant date. In that year that the first Laws in Wales Act was passed. The legal system of England was extended to Wales, and the norms of English administration were introduced, including the imposition of English as the language of governance. You can read about theseActs on Wikipedia.

The United Empire Loyalist Project and the Collaborative Profile of the Week Present

Duncan Robertson

Duncan Robertson loyally served the King of England, during the American Revolution. Let’s see what we can do for his profile.

This profile is well on it’s way to being a super profile. There is information and explanatory text, but it needs sources and inline references. See also his brotherHugh’s profile.
There are some sources on the profile. But some of them are unclear as to their nature, and where I might find them. (I’m not familiar with Canadian sources)
His wife’s profile mentions they had no children. That should be reflected in his profile.
Let’s add some general detail about what Jessup’s Regiment was involved in during Robertson’s enlistment.
Pictures? Background?

What would you like to contribute to this week’s profile? Please post an answer here first. This prevents duplication of effort and it keeps the question on the front page of G2G.

United Empire Loyalist Project

A United Empire Loyalist is a title given to any individual, male or female, who was a Loyalist (as defined below), and all their lineal descendants.
Any individual who can document their lineage to a Loyalist may become a regular member of the United Empire Loyalist Association of Canada (UELAC), regardless of their citizenship or residency. These individuals may use the honorary post-nominal UE as a membership identifier, however this confers no special status or privilege.

Individuals may also become associate members to gain access to the genealogical resources held by the UELAC branches which are located in a number of communities throughout Canada; frequently associate members are individuals who claim Loyalist descent and are undertaking research to substantiate their claim.

Definition of a Loyalist

(aka Loyalist Ancestor):

Either male or female, as of 19 April 1775, a resident of the American colonies, and joined the Royal Standard prior to the Treaty of Separation of 1783, or otherwise demonstrated loyalty to the Crown, and settled in territory remaining under the rule of the Crown; or
A soldier who served in an American Loyalist Regiment and was disbanded in Canada; or
A member of the Six Nations of either the Grand River or the Bay of Quinte Reserve who is descended from one whose migration was similar to that of other Loyalists.