"Welcome to the Weekend Chat" All Members are Invited!! February 23 - 25, 2018 [closed]

+16 votes
942 views

image

New Members Saying Hello (our favourite!)

Puzzles by Laura Bozzay

"Today Is" by Dorothy Barry

Eddie's Picks - Movies & Music

Where in the World ?  Share your photos!

Members Checking in via "All About the Weekend Chat"

Have fun and let others know you liked their posts... click the stars and mark answers you like as "best".  Those posts will be temporarily highlighted by being placed as the first answer in the chat for a while.  Members will also receive email notification (unless they opted out) that let them know you liked what they did.

At the end of the weekend "best answer" will be removed as all answers are equal in the eyes of the Chat.  Click to learn more.

It's ok.... go for it!

imageWeekend Chat is for everyone. It's a place to catch up on what people are up to and to share what you've been doing.  New members can say hello, introduce themselves, ask questions, and meet each other.  Our seasoned members can share progress or successes from their projects, give tips and advice, or chime in on hot topics.

Post as many answers and comments as you wish. It doesn't hurt anyone to post a lot, and many will enjoy their multitude of reading options.

Weekend Chat 30 June - 2 July 2017

Enjoy yourself and spread goodwill :)

WikiTree profile: David Selman
closed with the note: Weekend Chat for February 23 - 25, 2018 has closed.
in The Tree House by David Selman G2G Astronaut (1.3m points)
closed by David Selman
Welcome Brooke, so glad you came in. Isn't it exciting to find our long lost ancestors and learning about their families and accomplishments that they made?? There may be ups and downs though, and even a roadblock or two, but don't forget to ask for help on our g2g forum. That is how I found out my surname was not always Barry, it emerged from Baril!!

Anyway hope you keep us posted on your adventures during your research!!
Thank you, Dorothy! And congrats on your family name discovery! this is exciting to be a part of :) I'm personally hoping to just be of help to lots of peeps after my own hopes for Huguenot / Mayflower connections are realized. Have a great weekend :)
Hi Brooke and welcome to the chat!  We love it when new folks join in.

There are a lot of seasoned veterans with all kinds of knowledge who pop in and out of the chat.  We like to have some social fun but we also have a focus on our families which is why we all are so drawn to genealogy.  

So glad you are here!
Well hello there!!  I am Jennifer.. a 40-something, family researcher currently living in AZ.     I just joined up last night and have been playing around with various tools.  I actually stumbled onto this site while doing some research for a friend on her massive brick wall  .. but because I was intrigued by the Wiki Tree approach.. I joined up myself... LOL.  

 I've been on a "family research hiatus" for the last few years after a pretty decent break through on my own tree. It seems I've been bitten by the bug yet again. LOL   I have been researching both my tree and my husbands tree.  Some Surnames I am working on in my tree include.   Rojo, Duarte, Facio,  (my Dad is from Argentina.  this has been my biggest brick wall as I don't speak Spanish) Lance, Gartin, Poe,   In my hubby's tree... Bashaw, Ward, Welch, Hove,

10 years ago I was an eager genealogist. adding information willy nilly without a thought that the information I was adding could be incorrect.  Oh.. how naive I was!!    My most current tasks involve  combing through over 2500 members of mine and my husbands combined tree in an  attempt to verify all my previous work,(especially where I may have gotten a little lax in my sources.) add sources and information where needed and remove any discrepencies.   ::::sigh::::.  Well.. you live, you learn...right??  Thankfully my research techniques have improved...

I am glad to be here and I look forward to collaborating with other genealogists.
Jennifer,  Welcome to the Weekend Chat!  We are so glad you joined us!  We love it when new folks drop in!  We were all newbies to WikiTree and to Genealogy once.  I cringe at some of the things I used to do...  but we learn and the great thing about WikiTree is we collaborate and help each other.  

We have people on the tree who are native Spanish speakers who volunteer their time with languages.  

If you look in the upper right hand of most WikiTree Pages you see icons called My Tree, your WikiID, Add, Find, and Help.  Under Help you will find the tutorial called Intro To WikiTree.  Under Find you will see Projects.  Joining a project that makes sense to your genealogy is a great way to learn about WikiTree and collaborate with others who share your interest in a topic or area.  We have https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Project:Latin_American_Roots

Also under Find is Surnames and you can see what profiles are here for the surnames you are interested in.  If you see a project box with a surname that is a One Name Study.  

Hope you enjoy your time here on the chat but more importantly as part of WikiTree.  And if you haven't already, read and sign the Honor Code.  The link to the Honor Code is also found under the Help menu.

Adding my welcome greetings as well! Good to have you join us Jennifer! 

I think you will enjoy the experience once you get comfortable being here. I know I have! "I've been a WikiTreer for three years and what I love most is seeing my tree grow and breaking down roadblocks with the help of fellow WikiTreers!!  

We hope you keep coming back to chat each weekend! 

Hi Jennifer! And everyone! :) I'm about the same as you in your description sans location and marriage. Its taking me a long time to look at the screen and figure out what its saying at times because I have visual migraines often but its very fun to be here and comforting to know there are so many wise guides available to help with everything. Blessings on your day, everyone! Happy Saturday! :)
Ditto to what everyone said Brook and Jennifer. Welcome to WikiTree and WikiTree Love Hug Heart Month Weekend Chat.
Welcome to the WikiTree family and community, Jennifer! You will find many members willing to be of help and feel free to ask!
Welcome to the jungle! Fun and games are to your right. =)

Welcome to Wikitree!

20 Answers

+9 votes
 
Best answer
Yesterday during one of the times my grandson was taking a break from the computer I printed up ancestor trees for all of my great - great grandparents, I had to go back that far to find any blanks I need to fill in for my next genealogy class. Now I need to redo all of those charts as well as my own so that the instructor will even look at them, the ones from here use married names and she will not even look at them because of that. I do wish we had the option to print those charts without using the current last name, and without having to change that on every profile. That class is on Wednesday so that job is a priority for me but I also took a practice exam for the ham radio class I am taking and started reading ahead for next Friday's class. On the practice test I scored 80% and a passing score is 74% so it looks like I am on track with that. The grandson had to go home after dinner yesterday so I should have the computer all day but I will probably take frequent breaks to ease the pain, my new glasses are not only a very different prescription but they are much heavier so my nose gets sore.
by Dale Byers G2G Astronaut (1.7m points)
selected by Living Barnett
Your dedication is admirable, sir. Keep up the good work!

New glasses are a challenge. I had to get some new ones, too. They're high definition transition glasses as seen in my profile pic. =)

Hope new glasses work out for you and keep up the good work with the class. Wish I was taking a genealogy class.
Ditto to both to what you both said Dale and Chris.

Yes Welcome  to the WikiTree Love Hug Heart Month Weekend Chat everybody.
Big problem today, I don't feel like doing anything on the computer, forget that I don't feel like doing anything period. I just do not have any motivation today so I guess it is a day of rest for me today.
I am still mouseless and pulling my hair out...  I did manage to get my inventory done for 2017 taxes.  Believe me trying to do a decent spreadsheet without a mouse is a royal pain.  But it is done and I filled out my business personal property tax assessment that is due in before March 1 with a few days to spare!   Now I still have to do the rest of the tax reports but I think I got Quicken fixed after fighting with it for 3 months.  If so I can at least run reports out of that!
Yay productivity! I wish I made enough on videos so I could use it as a tax write-off.
+13 votes

Bahamas

https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Project:Bahamas

G2G Tag: BAHAMAS

Leader: Peter Roberts and a co-leader is needed here! If you're interested, contact Peter

The Bahamas project also includes the Turks & Caicos Islands from 1799 to 1848 when they were administered by the Bahamas.

500px-Photos_for_Puzzles-2.png

Find the differences between the 2 pictures.

Some hints can be found in this Wikipedia article below:

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Bahamas is a group of about 700 atolls and cays in the western Atlantic Ocean, of which only between 30 and 40 are inhabited. The largest of the islands is Andros Island, located 200 kilometres (120 miles) southeast of Florida. The Bimini islands are to its northwest. To the North is the island of Grand Bahama, home to the second-largest city in the country, Freeport. The island of Great Abaco is to its east. In the far south is the island of Great Inagua, the second-largest island in the country. Other notable islands include Eleuthera, Cat Island, San Salvador Island, Acklins, Crooked Island, and Mayaguana. Nassau is the capital and largest city, located in New Providence. The islands have a tropical climate, moderated by the Gulf Stream.

The islands are surface projections of the three oceanic Bahama Banks - the Little Bahama Bank, the Great Bahama Bank, and the westernmost Cay Sal Bank. The highest point is only 63 metres (207 feet) above sea level on Cat Island; the island of New Providence, where the capital city of Nassau is located, reaches a maximum elevation of only thirty-seven meters. The land on the Bahamas has a foundation of fossil coral, but much of the rock is oolitic limestone; the stone is derived from the disintegration of coral reefs and seashells. The land is primarily either rocky or mangrove swamp. Low scrub covers much of the surface area. Pineyards are found on four of the northern islands: Grand Bahama, Great Abaco, New Providence, and Andros. On some of the southern islands, low-growing tropical hardwood flourishes. Although some soil is very fertile, it is also very thin. Only a few freshwater lakes and just one river, located on Andros Island, are found in the Bahama

 

by David Selman G2G Astronaut (1.3m points)
Yes Welcome  to the WikiTree Love Hug Heart Month Weekend Chat everybody.

Thank you Laura and  David for the puzzles how can you download it and the answers?

Hi Linda,  David said he could not get the entire set of links to show.

To download the puzzle you need to go the dropbox file at

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/rqo8mt2eobujwgd/AAAzB3IGNHqNKXBfdE985NBZa?dl=0

Sorry I had to wait until I could use my husband's computer again.  

Thanks Laura.
+13 votes
This will be brief so forgive me if I sound short. I Have reduced my watchlist to under 3700 and still plan on reducing it further because of my busy schedule for the next 3 months. I completed the second class on genealogy yesterday at our local library, this one was about using the 62 databases they have available for patrons, most do not require you to actually visit the library but do require a card, and they gave us a list of "The Best 25 Sites for Genealogy Research". I have not fully explored all of this information yet because I have to finish my homework for a Amateur Radio class tonight, homework at age 66 is not fun, and I am having problems with my TV and Internet provider. I did get my new glasses yesterday but it is still too early to see if they will help because I am still getting used to them. The glasses were a major change from the last pair so this may take some time as well.

I hope everyone else is doing well and I will lurk around when I can but for now it is off to work on 8 pages of homework.
by Dale Byers G2G Astronaut (1.7m points)
Wow, what a busy fellow! Good luck with your new find. Maybe you should hold on to those profiles as there might be information to add when you do your additional research databases!!

I hope you don't have cataract problems! I know I am about your age (just a tad bit older) and find it a bit hard to drive at night. Hope you take a break and enjoy the weekend!
I do have cataracts Dorothy but I was told just keep checking my eyes every year and wait until they get a bit worse before having the operation. As for the profiles I am setting free aany that are not close family with some exceptions because I do not see that I will have the time to work on them. I am moving a lot of my research to a tree that is offline for now.
Good luck with the homework Dale, and the new glasses!

If the adjustment is due to graduated lenses, can I share a few tips? Just turn your head to see sideways, not your eyes, and lift your chin for the small print. If the print is still too small, you can tilt your head back farther by opening your mouth. With your chin up AND your mouth open, you should be able to get the best magnification through the very bottom of the lens.

It will be fine if you stick with radio, the people on the other end of a radio can't see you in that position.
Actually Laurie the prescription is a drastic change form my old glasses, in fact the left eye prescription is closer to what I had for the right eye and the right eye prescription is close to what I had for the left, go figure. I still have the old style bifocals.
Oh my, I hear some tired eye muscles! That won't mix well with your homework. .

My eyes are each progressing along their individual paths too. The most recent prescription has magnification, an axis of rotation and a prism.  And the young people like to think that age is all in the mind.
Ditto to everyone especially Laurie the young people do think that age is all in the mind but when they get to our ages they will change their minds about that.

Yes Welcome  to the WikiTree Love Hug Heart Month Weekend Chat everybody.
Best of luck with your cable co., studying and getting use to the new glasses.
Laurie Welcome to the chat!  Great tips for Dale and anyone getting used to new glasses!
+15 votes

If you haven't eaten breakfast yet, hold on, because .....

Today is NATIONAL TOAST DAY!!!

Would you believe National Toast Day honoring the humble slice is on February 23rd? But it is so very versatile. It carries a multitude of jams, jellies, marmalades and fruits compotes. We don’t stop there. Toast transports proteins and veggies, sprouts and soaks up sauces and drippings.

Perhaps we have overlooked the necessity of toast, and it shall have its due.

HOW TO OBSERVE

Raise a toast to your toast.  Be it burnt to a crisp or golden brown, honor your toast. Use #NationalToastDay to share on social media.

HISTORY

National Toast Day was started in 2014 by The Tiptree World Bread Awards in the UK but has found a following in the United States.

by Dorothy Barry G2G Astronaut (2.7m points)
Yum warm toast (not burnt of course) slathered with butter and dabs of vegemite for breakfast!!  That was so yummy!!!!

Have't had that for years. Vegemite is no longer readily available.

Something to do with being a yeast product with some severe restrictions on allowing it to cross national borders. I wish I know why...

My family chat doesnt start for another 3 hours!! I will be back!!
I did have toast for breakfast this morning along with hard boiled eggs.
Toast and butter with my cheesy scrambled eggs!
Yes Welcome  to the WikiTree Love Hug Heart Month Weekend Chat everybody.
Mmmmm. Peanut butter toast with banana slices on top! Yummy! I like National Toast Day!
I like fried eggs, cheese, onion and lots of crispy bacon or about anything on toast. Now I am hungry!
Wow, with all these suggestions tomorrow, myself and my company (relatives coming in for the weekend) we will be going to Cracker Barrel to eat a hearty breakfast to include "toast" eggs, pancakes etc.
When I was little I used to live with my Grandparents, Great Aunt, Aunt, and parents.   They used to put a lot of butter, sugar, and cinnamon on toast.  Something that today we would think of as unhealthy but these folks lived very long lives at least into late 80s and some into mid to late 90s.  My grandfather still did complicated math in his head in his 90s.  When I am not feeling well I still do that from time to time as a comfort food.  Food is one of our basic memories that we associate with family isn't it?
+17 votes

Tips February 23, 2018

Some of the most frequent questions in G2G revolve around understanding and using DNA.  Recently there was a post where Mags (DNA project leader) asked what process any of us use.  Interestingly I had this written as I was going to use it for tips this week.   Please also see the thread in G2G at https://www.wikitree.com/g2g/563647/how-do-you-do-dna-on-wikitree.  There is a lot of great info there! 

Autosomal DNA and WikiTree

  1.  First thing to do if you have taken an Autosomal DNA test is to enter into WikiTree the Test name and if you have not uploaded the raw data into GedMatch.com, do so and get your GedMatch ID.
  2. Now go to the Add Icon located in the upper right hand corner of most WikiTree Pages and select DNA Test Information. 
  3. Follow the instructions to input your various tests.
  4. Wait 24 hours for them to show up as the process to add them runs around midnight each night.
  5. If you have others on WikiTree who already connect into you via paper trail genealogy and they have taken a DNA test you will see their names also showing up under the shared DNA part of your profiles and those of you close relatives.  If you do not see this it just means no one who is related to you has taken the test. 
  6. Go to GedMatch and run the one to many report.  Look for those matches with GED or WIKI in the columns where those are indicated.  That means you can see their trees.   Click on the GED link and you will see a short pedigree at the top of this screen is a tab called pedigree.  Click on that to see more generation.    If it says WIKI it will take you to our Compact Tree Screen
  7. Peruse these trees to see if you can find any common ancestors or ancestor surnames. 
  8. Now if you find common ancestors you want to run a People who match One or 2 Kits Report.  This will give you everyone on GedMatch who matches both of you and the display is at a chromosome and base pair level so you can really see strong relationships.  You want at least 7cm and the higher the cms the better.   But you also want to make sure you have matches within ranges on the SNPs.     For example:

Person Amatches Person B and C on Chromosome 3.

Person A has SNP range of 37586 – 47593

Person B has SNP range of 1876 – 53000

Person C has SNP range of 49673 – 54000

Person A and C do not match because their SNPs are not over lapping

Person A matches person B because they have overlapping SNPs

Person B matches person C because they have overlapping SNPs.

 

So that means B matches A in a different line then C.This can be very helpful when trying to determine Mother vs Father lines.

 

9.  I also use the https://www.wikitree.com/g2g/451031/do-you-follow-blaine-bettinger-s-shared-cm-project-  and its charts.  This helps to determine how you are related to these matches.  This is important because if you are 3rd cousins or closer you do not need to do triangulation to confirm a DNA match.  However, if you are 4th cousins or farther (and autosomal is not recommended for anything past 5th cousins and those are getting very sketchy) then triangulation is needed.  That is a fairly complex process and I am going to try to simplify it here… basically you are looking for 3 people who are not closely related like parent/child or siblings, essentially 3 cousins who all match each other on the same chromosome within a range as discussed in point 8 above. 

The DNA Project has a lot of great resources for you here on WikiTree.  Take a few moments to look through these links and bookmark the ones you think will help you!

https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Project:DNA

https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Help:How_to_Get_Started_with_DNA

https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Help:DNA_Confirmation

https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Space:DNA_Project_Resources_Page 

https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Help:DNA_Tests

https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Category:DNA

by Laura Bozzay G2G6 Pilot (832k points)
Thanks again for great tips Laura.

Yes Welcome  to the WikiTree Love Hug Heart Month Weekend Chat everybody.
My frustration with the DNA thing is being unable to use ySearch and Mitosearch for mine and several of my relatives mtDNA and yDNA kits on Wikitree. I really want their numbers in Wikitree but can't get the site to accept anything. I've heard of a workaround, but can't get anyone to help me out... :(
Thank you, Laura, learned a lot from your DNA post.
Every time I read Laura's tips I learn something new and have to bookmark the references and the post from our Weekend Chat. Thank you so much for all your research, Laura B, to give us these wonderful nuggets of information to help us in our genealogy research and dna results.
I am going to create a Free Space page with all the tips in one place and post the link each week along with new tips.  

I had hoped to have that ready for this week but with no mouse and my touch screen and built in touch pad not working (no ability to highlight) I am struggling this week to do anything but type.  

I have tried multiple fixes and so far nothing is working.  So I am trying to reach my husband's IT guru to see if he can fix whatever is going on.  

I am a mouser... and am grumpy without my mouse!
A and C do not have to be different lines they may have merely inherited different bits of DNA.
Good catch Sue.   That is true.  Thanks for the correction!
+13 votes
It's damp and was raining earlier in St. Louis. Still cloudy but above freezing! Did some work on the Data Doc challenge for prefix in middle names just to get away from the crazy of my own tree. I can't believe how much I have to enter! My family just isn't here! Plus trying to source everything cause the gedcom didn't import the important stuff like how the H*** I know some one married someone else!
by Katrina Whitaker G2G6 Mach 4 (40.4k points)
Katrina,  I live in St Louis Missouri.  Is that the St Louis you are in?

Small world!   If you ever want to get together for a research session or just for fun let me know!
Yep! Sure is! And yes, I'd love to! I'm in North County Florissant area.
Yes Welcome  to the WikiTree Love Hug Heart Month Weekend Chat everybody.
Great I will send you a private message
We have had close to 6 inches of rain since last Sunday. Ready for sunshine. Just uploaded a GEDCOM to see first hand how the GEDCOMpare works even though I have already created all my family and ancestors profiles.

Like the rest, we here in Tennessee have had our share of rain. We are hoping we don't see a repeat of the flooding we had in 2010 in Nashville. The heaviest rain of the entire weekend is expected to arrive on Saturday night.Right now, the Cumberland River is at around 31 feet, which is 9 feet below flood stage.

If you don't remember the flooding in Nashvile May, 2010, here is a good link to review, but it was awful, flooding everywhere and alot of damage to homes and property.  https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/local/2015/04/30/nashville-flood-20-things-to-know/26653901/ 

I hope flooding stays away from everyone this year!  Last year was really horrible for so many people around the globe.  I know some areas are having it now and I feel for those who are affected.  

This is a good reason to back up your genealogy and make sure you store it in at least 3 places with one being in a different location than you live.  

I have mine on my computer, on harddrives that I keep in a waterproof container, and in electronic places like WikiTree.   This is why on my list of things to do is to scan all my non-copyrighted hard-copy references and get them onto Free Pages here that I can keep for reference and share with the world.
I remember that Dorothy the year before that at Christmas my sister and I and my sister-in-law and mother had ben at Gaylord for the Christmas stuff like Christmas on Ice and we enjoyed ourselves. Then that happened but that year my sister, sister-in-law and a friend of my sister-in-law, and I went back to that same thing. Gaylord and the mall next to it had gotten flooded that time. Dorothy where I live in Loudon, Tennessee is near Nashville also it takes about 2 hours to get their from my house. So either place I will be close by.
+14 votes
Wow, do I have a lot to talk about this week. Gonna work this all into a story. Cue the Ken Burns documentary music and narration by  none other than Morgan Freeman. This is a tale for the ages.

First up is a tip. If something doesn't seem right to you you must always trust your gut. In my case, it was more like a "spider-sense" as my head was throbbing like "This is wrong. This is a holocaust of wrong." Trust your gut because nine times out of ten it will be accurate.

The details of why you should trust your gut can be found here: https://www.wikitree.com/g2g/564830/the-danger-of-false-news

It could still be wrong. It could be right. I just didn't like how the researcher said people were not literate in Italy. Maybe they were. Maybe they weren't. I've been talking to the commune office regularly for months now and they SAID it was Gatto. Perhaps the last names he gave me were really Gatto, too. Who knows? You can bet I will be asking the commune office about this soon. I won't be mentioning this. The situation really did set off my spider-sense, though. I am sure everyone here had those moments.

Next up? I did meet a new cousin. Her name is Angelina Tedesco. I had messaged her a while back on a tip from my cousin Caterina. Both live in town and she suggested I talk to Angelina. She talked to me and to my surprise she remembered my great-aunt. In fact, they just exchanged e-mail addresses. Her father was VERY happy to hear from me. He wanted to know how Nickie was. I said she wasn't bad for 94. I had both exchange e-mail addresses and there ya go. Family reconnected.

Angelina is going to help by taking pics in the cemetery for me. I should probably give her a list of people. Oh and it seems Antonio Mario (her father) is friends with the people I was talking to at the commune office. I am not surprised. Italians talk. We're good at that. And talking with our hands, too.

Ordered a DNA test for my mom. Bases are now covered. So when the results come in and everything I will do confirmed with DNA or whatever. Should be awesome. =D

I think that's all from me for now. Just remember to trust your gut and your spider-sense as my friend, Mark put it. Oh and if you plan on going to the genealogy conventions happening soon, please do go. Some awesome people are gonna be there who may or may not follow me on Twitter...=P

Wow, that last part was shameless. I don't care!
by Chris Ferraiolo G2G6 Pilot (766k points)
Congraulations Chris.

Yes Welcome  to the WikiTree Love Hug Heart Month Weekend Chat everybody.
Thanks! =D
Thanks for dropping in on the chat, Chris. I need to do a DNA test, just need to figure out the best one to take.
AncestryDNA kits were 69 bucks last week. Got it while I could. I was like "YOINK!" when my mother said to get one for her.

At least now I covered the bases. I dunno if I can get my brother to do it. I don't think I need to.

As far as tests go, I think Ancestry has the best deal at least for me. I've heard that Ancestry does a great job with people with Italian roots for some reason. It might be because a lot of Italians are in the database. I have no clue.

I never tried the others and I don't think I need to. We only went with Ancestry because my great-aunt took it and so did her daughter. She got some interesting results.

I say go with Ancestry when they have sales. Best bet. =D
Chris you are so enthusiastic and I love it!   Thanks for sharing this on the chat!
No problem, Laura. Glad I could liven up the place.  The shipping cost is what really gets ya when you order the test. I suppose it makes sense. It's covered when you send your sample back.

Side note: I should make my mom a basic tree on Ancestry with the first thirty people. I have found literally HUNDREDS of her ancestors. Did the same with my dad.

The funny thing is that I know I'm going to get my second cousin, Lisa, in the matches. She put up a tree. I'm friends with her on Facebook and when I was looking up stuff on Ancestry I saw her tree pop up. I asked if it was her and she said "Yup". So, I will definitely have her showing up as possible connections. My mother has a ton of cousins and listing them all would take ages.

Plus I found many cousins here on that side. *Waves to Guy, Greg, Dani and many, many other people.*
+14 votes
This weekend I'm travelling through the snow to Nanaimo, British Columbia for a storytellers workshop. Last winter at the same venue, we were served Nanaimo bars with the coffee. My hosts didn't see the irony of eating Nanaimo bars in Nanaimo, but I had a chuckle, just like I make a point of eating quiche in Lorraine and clam chowder in Manhattan.

I'm also thinking about the role of food in genealogy.  In my case, there are recipes and family stories about food. For example, in one branch of my family we have a favourite recipe called "Mrs. Hoben's Rolls". I checked with various relatives to see who has the recipe and who doesn't, and using WikiTree I was able to identify the most likely Mrs. Hoben.  

Last week I read about one family who boiled the leather from their cow to make soup when they ran out of supplies near the end of a difficult winter.

Another ancestor was a distiller, which could have been perfectly respectable - fresh water was dangerous and drinking tea, beer, and spirits were considered healthy choices - but this particular distiller seems to have been associated with smugglers. He used a fake name, pretended to be penniless, but served rare delicacies at his dinner parties, and his legacy was a handful of coins with button fobs attached - much less likely to jingle when sewn into the lining of his coat.

How does food play a role in your family tree?
by Laurie Giffin G2G6 Pilot (104k points)
I have my great grandmother Moss' poor man's potato soup! Literally potatoes, milk, water, onion and celery. (The celery was added by my grandmother later when it was available, but she learn it from Grandma Mary Moss/Hodge/Abrams/Reed. (That's gonna be fun to input).

And I got a Hungarian cookbook many years ago to make some dishes for my dad that his grandmother made when he was a boy. Kept claiming she was German and the food didn't taste right. Got a hit she was Hungarian and voila! The food was suddenly the right stuff. (He still claimed she was German even after I proved she was Hungarian).
Yes Welcome  to the WikiTree Love Hug Heart Month Weekend Chat everybody.
Thanks Linda!
Haha Katrina, your Dad had a German grandmother, and a Hungarian stomach!
I have always like potato soup. I tried some moonshine our son purchased, guess it tasted like rubbing alcohol would.
Great question Laurie!! Being in the military I had an opportunity to see how people in Germany and Thailand enjoy their meals and the various recipes and dishes they come up with. Germany had the best french fries and pretzels. Thailand not so much, either boiled chicken or minced pork served with rice. It was a hard find to get mashed potatoes lol.  

Anyway check out this recipe for German style pretzels: http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/german-style-pretzels
Laurie I love this post!  Food is such a unifier and it breaks across cultural lines.  I have all of my Great Aunt's recipe cards.  I treasure them.  She was a 2nd Generation German born in the late 1800s.  She taught me to cook and bake since I lived with her until I was 6.  She was my best friend.  Her nickname was Nuddy which is a type of dumpling I found out in the past year.  Her real name was Ottilia but I never heard anyone call her that.  

One of the cookies I make every year and actually get requests for are Cream Cheese Cookies.  They are so simple to make and the recipe is easy to remember because it is 1 of everything...   

1 cup of shortening like Crisco or Spry, 1 8 oz brick of cream cheese, 1 cup of vanilla sugar (this is sugar made with vanilla beans but you can also use regular sugar and add 1 tsp of vanilla extract it is just a little harsher than the vanilla sugar which is more delicate in flavor), cream those then add in 1 egg, whip that and then add it slowly 1 cup of flour.

Bake at 350 until the you see the edges getting a little brown about 8 minutes in my oven.  

She also used to make something we called stink beans which were green beans cured in a brine of salt with something she called bonakraut and I discovered was the herb savory.  

I think my love of trying different kinds of foods comes from her.  She was always on the lookout of something new to try.
Oh my goodness, Katrina,  I married a man of 50% Hungarian descent and have not only recipes from his family but the Hungarian cookbook that they used.  When I first met my inlaws (before they were inlaws) his mother offered me something and said something that sounded like for-gosh-funk. Now Hungarian is not known for being a lyrical language, and how does one respond to for-gosh-funk?   They were wonderful pastries in the form of lovers knots!

I see a comfort-food meal coming on!  We'll start with Dorothy's pretzels, then we'll have Poor Man's Potato Soup, with Savory-Cured "Stink" Beans and Mrs. Hoben's rolls on the side. For dessert, we'll share some Cream Cheese cookies, and For-gosh-funk.  

I'm thinking in a couple of weeks to let the beans cure - just guessing because my sauerkraut takes 2-3 weeks.  

There's room for more dishes on the table. What was your Great-great grandma cooking?

 

+11 votes
Yes Welcome  to the WikiTree Love Hug Heart Month Weekend Chat everybody.

I am here after going with my sister and brother-in-law and mom and dad and looked at the lot where I've been talking about that my mom going to buy and have the builder build a house on near where I am going to leave in my sister's old house and where my sister had my brother build and draw a house that they are living in for about 3 years. So it will be about August to October that when we will move up in to Greenville, Tennessee. So this year is going to be busy for me this year again.

I didn't know tell last night if we were going to go today because my dad seems to have a uniary infection and my mom wasn't feeling good in the afternoons but we went and I am glad that we did.
by Living Barnett G2G6 Pilot (502k points)
Well Linda you will be a short drive from me in Nashville. Good luck in the move, I hope you wait until October though, because August might be the hottest month of the year!
Linda it will be good for you all to be in one place.  That way you will also have some help when you need it.  You have been a trooper taking care of your parents for so long.  Having done this I know how hard it is.  I also know how guilty you feel asking someone else to watch them when you need to go out.  But the truth is we need that refreshment to get re-energized and it benefits both us and them.
Dorothy where I live in Loudon, Tennessee is near Nashville also it takes about 2 hours to get their from my house. So either place I will be close by.

Also thank you Laura.

Also so far as I get that this year is the year that a lot of WikiTreers are moving or fixing up their old house. also.

For me this week and weekend has been better except for my mom and dad having health problems.

It is difficult watching my dad going through this Vascular Demita problem. He use to not talk to himself or out loud and needing my mom all the time and worrying when she will get home and not being able to do work or things. He now only sits, eats, and watches TV and looks and watches things going on outside. It will difficult also watching my mom not being able to do a lot of work like she use to be able to do because of her arthites disease she has and being in pain all the time and not being able to lift her arms up past her head she can only lift them to her breast now and has to stand on a step stool to get things down from her cabinet at the top. She always in pain I know that she would be pain all the time in the fall and winter during the cold time of the year but not during the warm part of the year. But starting last year during the warm part of the year she was in pain all the time and it is the same this year but the pain seems to be worse this year. I is really hard to watch them go from doing things to not being able to do things or do a lot.

When they were looking after me with my disability of Prader Willi syndrome. Now I am looking after them. But it will be better when they can help when we are closer to them. Instead of me doing a lot it. They have been coming down more and helping but they have jobs they need to do to earn money for themselves even. That I was happy about.
+11 votes
One of these days it will sink in that the weekend chat starts the day BEFORE the weekend. (sigh) Life being confusing.

So, keeping the spreadsheet up to date for the Weekly Data Doctor challenge. Anyone not able to find the chat section may need to send me an email address linked to some type of google or youtube account.

Also we are moving forward with a major update to the historical state names sheet to determine what to call it at what period of time. This is to match the update to the Canadian sheet. Ongoing progress is located on the same sheet as the weekly challenge under the STATE tab.

It is currently a chilly 28 degrees F here in Maine. I guess without global warming it might have plunged to 27. LOL
by Steven Tibbetts G2G6 Pilot (410k points)
Good to here from you Steven. You've been missed.

Yes Welcome  to the WikiTree Love Hug Heart Month Weekend Chat everybody.
Today must be the day we confuse "hear" and "here". I've been doing it all day myself. :D
It has been a long day I got up at 6:00 a.m. and left the house at 8:15 and didn't get home until 4:45 p.m.
The Weekend Chat starts at 12 noon on friday, just add a reminder to your phone or a sticky note on your computer screen. Thanks for dropping in to the chat, Steven.
Steven we start it at noon on Friday Eastern Time because it is already Saturday for those who live on the other side of the International Dateline and Friday for some is the start of the weekend.
+13 votes

Happy Week end to All!

 

Spring has about sprung in southeast Virginia....time to start gardening.

Image result for blooming purple leaf plum grove

by Doug Lockwood G2G Astronaut (2.7m points)
In my neck of the wood in Loudon, Tennessee it is suppose to start Monday going in the 50's and then the week after next they say we are suppose to get snow.

Welcome  to the WikiTree Love Hug Heart Month Weekend Chat everybody.
Great picture, Doug. Has been right at freezing here at night warms to around 50 during day, been raining since last Sunday. Ready for sunshine.
In my neck of the woods we have major flooding from all the snow melting and lots of rain. River rising levels are breaking all kinds of records and many homes are ruined. Hope we are all done with this soon!! More snow here expected in Northern Indiana this month and next....
Great picture
Doug always love your photos!  And this one is a real breathe of spring!

I think we all need some sunshine and warm weather!  It has been a long and hard winter for a lot of WikiTreers.  

Debbie hope you are on high ground!   Flooding is such a gut wrenching thing to deal with.  We had a lot of it in the past several years in the St Louis area.   We got really adept at sandbagging and even figured out how to use the neighborhood children of all ages who wanted to help save their community.   We took a ladder, got one of those cones you see in the street and cut the top off creating a funnel.  The square bottom kept it in the ladder which we had laid across 2 saw horses and inserted the now funnel between two of the ladder rungs.   Now the little ones can bring the empty sandbags to under the funnel.  Even a 6 or 7 year old can hold the bag around the funnel.  Older children and teens can shovel the sand into the funnel which drops into the bags.  We were able to do 500 sandbags an hour with a team of about 8 children and adults.  We sang songs, helped each other and took turns at the harder tasks.  The Captain of the National Guard unit came over to see what we were doing because they were having trouble keeping up with us.  He loved it and dedicated a bobcat to come get our bags every half hour.  What this did was showed the children they can make a difference and contribute to the safety of their homes and community.  (Yes I was a cub scout Den Leader for a lot of years...)

 I love your photo Doug!! I will be glad when the temperatures settle down, being cold one day and warm the next doesn't help for growth of leaves plants and trees. Just about Easter time we are blessed to have the purples, and the Primroses and Easter Lilies! So colorful!! 

+15 votes

Hi everyone! doing good this week with getting things done around the house and planning for more time online doing genealogy.

I am celebrating the results this week of the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.

Medal Count       Total
Norway 13 14 11 38
Canada 11 8 9 28
Germany 13 7 6 26
United States 8 8 6 22

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/sports/olympics/medal-count-results-schedule.html

A sad note, the Reverend Billy Graham passed away just days short of his 100th birthday. I am glad we had a profile on him, or I would have made him one! https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Graham-8093 

His boyhood home is right up the road from us in North Carolina!! Here is a nice article on his life and death:

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2018/02/23/grahams-spiritual-journey-began-and-ended-in-north-carolina.html

by Sandra Davidson G2G6 Pilot (189k points)

I remember when Billy Graham's boyhood home was on the Heritage USA (PTL) grounds in Fort Mill, SC. I used to live on the grounds myself in 1988. 

                

Then with the situation with the Bakkers, etc they decided to move Billy Graham's home back to its original spot. Anyway a nice write up and pictures of the home can be found here: https://billygraham.org/story/billy-graham-library-hosting-an-evening-with-mel-graham/

Moving a house like that could not have been easy!  

Did they have to take it apart and reassemble it or did they move it intact?

Wonders never cease and you never know what you are going to learn about on the chat!

 They had to dismantle the house piece by piece, brick by brick both times. It was too tall, even without the roof!

https://billygraham.org/story/billy-graham-library-hosting-an-evening-with-mel-graham/

Thank you everyone on this chat on Billy Graham. Also ditto to what everyone said here on Billy Graham. He was a special man for God.

Yes Welcome  to the WikiTree Love Hug Heart Month Weekend Chat everybody.
+11 votes
I am going to jump in quick this morning because the one grandson showed up just before I left for class and announced that he was spending the night, yes he had permission from his father just nobody told us. The grandson may try to dominate the computer when he wakes up so I am doing this while I can. The class went fine and the homework is optional, a good thing because I did not finish. We actually got ahead and that is also good because the hard stuff is ahead of us. Today's plan is work on what I can but take frequent breaks to rest my eyes. The next genealogy class is on Wednesday so I better get my stuff for that class organized soon, I have a meeting on Monday evening and Payday for me is Wednesday so that means shopping in the morning because we will need a lot of groceries, especially since a growing 15 year old 6 foot tall teenager is staying this weekend. No major goal for genealogy this weekend but I will be going thru my watchlist to reduce it further and do at least minor improvements on the profiles I am keeping. I might play with some of those databases I mentioned from the last genealogy class, I found a couple of interesting things on Heritage Quest about my paternal line when I was doing what the genealogist wanted us to do in that class so I might dig deeper if I can get my computer back from the teenager and my eyes don't hurt too much. I might also study ahead for the radio class, we already did next weeks work, I had studied most of that already so I will probably read the work for the next two weeks just in case but because I have until next Friday evening to do that I will probably pace myself on that.
by Dale Byers G2G Astronaut (1.7m points)
Dale it so great that your grandchildren love to stay with you and visit so often.  I had a great rapport with my grandparents and still miss them terribly and I am 64!
Dale as you know I am having mouse issues and in using the touch screen I wanted to give you an up vote and gave you a down vote!   Ok, so I hit it again and it went to 0 and then I gave you the up vote... but so sorry if you see the down vote... it was a huge mistake!  I am really grumpy now!!!
I love Nachos!   No sour cream though... makes them too mild.  Give me the heat!
Laura, I just got back on, I don't know for how long yet, and did not even notice the votes. I have done the same thing when using my tablet so I completely understand, that is why I do not use a tablet of phone for WikiTree. Don't be grumpy, we all have those things happen and one vote I would not even notice.
Laura Dale is right some days or even weeks or months or years are not good to people we all understand.

Yes Welcome  to the WikiTree Love Hug Heart Month Weekend Chat everybody.
+15 votes

Today is.....

                       

National Tortilla Chip Day, a day set aside for the crunchy snack loved by millions across the nation, is observed annually on February 24th.  

The tortilla chip is most commonly served with salsa, chile con queso, guacamole, cheese dips or other dips.  Tortilla chips are made from corn tortillas that have been cut into wedges and then fried.  The corn tortillas are made from corn, vegetable oil, salt and water.  Typically made with yellow corn, tortillas can also be made with white, blue or red corn.

Even though tortilla chips have always been considered to be a Mexican food, known as tostados, they were first mass-produced in Los Angeles in the late 1940s. It is said that the triangle-shaped tortilla chips were made popular by Rebecca Webb Carranza as a way to use the misshapen tortillas that were rejected from the automated tortilla manufacturing machine that she and her husband used at their Los Angeles deli and tortilla factory. 

Carranza realized that once the discarded tortillas were cut into triangle shapes and fried, they became a popular snack.  She then sold them for a dime a bag at the El Zarape Tortilla Factory.  Carranza received the Golden Tortilla Award in 1994 for her contribution to the Mexican food industry.

The United States is one of the primary markets for tortilla chips. 

Another favorite dish made with tortilla chips is nachos.  The dish was first created around 1943 by Ignacio “Nacho” Anaya. Nachos are tortilla chips served with melted or shredded cheese, and often additional toppings are added, such as meat, salsa, refried beans, tomatoes, diced onion, lettuce, olives, jalapenos, guacamole and sour cream.

HOW TO OBSERVE

Go and get your favorite dip and enjoy some tortilla chips today!!. 

by Dorothy Barry G2G Astronaut (2.7m points)
I like tortilla chips, nachos are a favorite. I understand today is also bartenders day.
Ditto Dorothy and David.

Yes Welcome  to the WikiTree Love Hug Heart Month Weekend Chat everybody.
+12 votes
Went to a concert last night ... The Piano Men (http://www.harmonyartists.com/artist/piano-men-a-tribute-to-elton-john-billy-joel) ... Two guys and a backup band.  One played Elton John and the other Billy Joel.  Pretty cool.  Love both of those guy's music.

Thought we might get snowed out of the concert (it's 20-30 miles away) as there was supposed to be a snow storm ... 1-3" ... not much on the way over and just damp roads most of the way back.  This morning I had to shovel a bit but it was only an inch of snow or so.  Whew!

Still watching the Olympics ... I love it when lower rated folks/teams win a medal ... Women's hockey!  Wow!  Canada and the US go at it every year ... all those girls are good!

Got a couple of merges to do ... better get movin'
by Bob Jewett G2G Astronaut (1.2m points)
Thanks for dropping in Bob and for working to clean up our tree with merges.
Bob ditto to what Laura said.

Yes Welcome  to the WikiTree Love Hug Heart Month Weekend Chat everybody.
+15 votes
Hi everyone, I have been working on wikki tree for 2 years now, and I like it very well, friendly helpful people, since December I am an invited member of the Integrators project team, I still have to find my way here, I do not know yet exactly what is expected of me, I have started a one name study, for my ancestors Stuivenberg and de Graaf, and furthermore I try to help other members with finding sources, such as birth certificates, baptismal certificates etc, special members with Dutch-Roots, I am a member of the Dutch-Roots project,
It gives me a lot of satisfaction to help members find their ancestors, so in other words i love Wikki-Tree
by Enoch Stuivenberg G2G6 Mach 6 (69.0k points)
Good for you Enoch I am glad that you love WikiTree.

Yes Welcome  to the WikiTree Love Hug Heart Month Weekend Chat everybody.

Hi Enoch, Thank you for all your contributions to WikiTree. To find the details of what we do as Integrators visit our project page here Integrators project. If you have any questions about the project, feel free to ask! David ~ Integrators project Coordinator 

Hi Enoch,  so glad you dropped into the chat!   Dutch Roots is a great project and lots going on there!   David is the go to guy for the Integrators and he is working on some rewrites of the project pages which should help you know what to do.   By doing what you are doing in answering questions on G2G, finding sources, and helping in any way you can you are doing a lot of the things Integrators do.  Every contribution helps our tree be strong and healthy.
+12 votes
Hi All,

I’m new to WikiTree, have been using Ancestry for years. I am getting acclimated to the site, have found a couple of ancestors that didn’t have profile managers so have adopted them.

Weather in Western Massachusetts we had a few days of spring tease us during the week, more snow Friday night, cold and windy today.

I am excited to report I have found two new cousins through DNA. A mother & daughter - their mother/ grandmother was apparently the illegitimate daughter of my maternal Grandmother’s first cousin. So they are my 3C and 3C1R, I hate that he didn’t stick around, but I’m glad I have made contact. I have a few other matches I am trying to figure out how we connect.

My initial thoughts on WikiTree are I am going to enjoy being a part of the community.
by Emily Holmberg G2G6 Pilot (155k points)
Hi Emily!  Welcome to the Weekend Chat!  So glad you dropped in.  WikiTree is different than other genealogy sites but there is so much to offer here it is worth the effort to learn how to get around.  In the comments at the top of the page I gave some hints to another newcomer on how to navigate around in WikiTree.  If you haven't taken the tutorial under the Help icon in the top right hand corner of the page called Intro to WikiTree, do so, it is very helpful.  And then there are all the people here who just love to collaborate!   Ask for help in G2G and normally you will get some answers.  Join projects that make sense to your tree.  The list is located under the Find icon in the top right hand part of the screen.  

And drop into the chat, you never know what topics will come up and there are always things learn from the chat!

Welcome to the WikiTree family and community, Emily! If you have any questions, feel free to ask! We also have a Help Index with links to topics you may have questions on.

Yes Welcome to the WikiTree family and community and Yes Welcome  to the WikiTree Love Hug Heart Month Weekend Chat. Plus Emily ditto to what everyone said to your answer.
+12 votes
Hi everyone!

Hope you are all having a great weekend! I can't believe Saturday is almost over and before I know it I'll be back at work again!

I finally got around to putting some information on the Pillichody ONS I started a while ago. I tried looking for information behind the name and couldn't find anything. Which was a little depressing. LOL But this surname is one I worked on with an actual Pillichody back when I was still married. After I found out he passed I felt I should make as much of that Pillichody information available for any future researchers of that surname.

I also fixed the Brewer ONS table. Now to go through and see if any of the brick walls have Ancestors connected yet to switch out with the farthest out Brewer.

What all do you put on your ONS?
by Charlotte Shockey G2G6 Pilot (983k points)
Hi Charlotte, it just turned into a new day here well actually 12:05 am. Sounds like you have been very busy with the ONS's. Have a great Sunday!
Charlotte thanks for dropping in!  You have so much going on here on WikiTree and outside of it, we appreciate you taking time with us!  

And Congratulations on your recent recognition in G2G.
Yes Welcome  to the WikiTree Love Hug Heart Month Weekend Chat everybody.
+12 votes
Somebody had a birthday today!!! Somebody is now a year older then they were yesterday... Someone had cake and ice cream... wanta guess who it is....

First Name starts with a D and surname starts with an S. (Hint, who is hosting the weekend chat this weekend?????)
by Dorothy Barry G2G Astronaut (2.7m points)
David just for you....

February 25 famous birthdays  https://www.famousbirthdays.com/february25.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/February_25  Notice that the USS Ranger was launched on this day... You are one of our Rangers!

Hope your day is super special!  Because we sure think you are!
Happy birthday, David!
David Ditto to what everyone said in this chat about your birthday.

Yes Welcome  to the WikiTree Love Hug Heart Month Weekend Chat everybody.
Happy Birthday! :-)
Thank you, Laura, yes we had a great day and dinner with our kids.
Thank you, Chris.
Thank you, Linda.
Thank you, Charlotte.
Glad to hear you had a great day with your family David!! Wishing you the best for the new year with new endeavors, memories and family fun etc.

Thanks everyone for helping wish David a Happy Birthday!!!!
Thank you, Dorothy, for the birthday wishes. Have been trying to catch up and post but seems my browser has had other ideas tonight as it keeps freezing up. Guess I need to try one of the other browsers.
+9 votes
It is nice to see the spring photos. It finally made it above freezing so we have rain instead of snow. There have been crazy ups and downs this year, 60s in February.

Did AARP taxes yesterday , should do my own taxes soon.

My sister said she just ordered Ancestry DNA from Amazon. I guess we will find out if she was switched at the hospital! Some of the stories you read are fascinating of things that people find out. So far my story has been mostly as expected. There are several lines where the cousins match the tree. I made the comment the this verifies the tree, but someone told me that since our ancestors came from a gene pool in early New England with lots of families marrying each other there could have been events outside of marriage that would still share DNA!

There was an interesting case where I was on someone's list on 23 and me but she was not on mine. Gedmatch says we share 7.1 cM. I posted on their forum. The response I got was they only show the closest 2000 matches, so my list had more closer relatives and hers didn't, 7.1cM is not large (we know where our trees match). Only 1200 or so are on the list because not everyone shares. 2000 is an incredible number of  people to have more than 7.1 cM matching. These are all people that have taken a test with 23 and me, not the total number of cousins out there.

The area that is most interesting is to try to find matches where there is no match on the trees. This is the case on my mother's side where her parents were immigrants.

Oh, and no toast for me or tortilla chips. Only oatmeal for breakfast, which I am doing now.
by Sue Hall G2G6 Pilot (168k points)
Sue I love finding new cousins with DNA.  What amazes me are the number of people who just don't respond to an email.  I mean, why did they test and do enter their data if not to find others?   

DNA proof is really more of a probability game than proof.  Recombant DNA can mix things up enough that you look like you don't match someone you are really related to.  And autosomal degrades quickly so it is easy to miss some of those cousins.  When you have matches it can confirm what you have on your paper trail.
Some people just want their ethnic percentages. Dealing with real people can be much messier. My husband commented he liked my dead relatives better. He didn't mind the trips to cemeteries, meeting live cousins is not his cup of tea.
*walks by* 'Sup 9th cousin. =)

Ah, the AARP....I got one of those cards on my 30th birthday. I had a sad.

My brother had a good laugh, though.

Am awaiting word from Ancestry on mine and my father's DNA tests. Ordered one for my mom. Should be cool to see what's in store for me.

Related questions

WikiTree  ~  About  ~  Help Help  ~  Search Person Search  ~  Surname:

disclaimer - terms - copyright

...