Friday, September 04, 2015

Volunteers honoring those buried in unmarked graves at forgotten cemetery for mentally ill


Unmarked Graves
Many graves go unmarked and forgotten.


For almost 80 years, no one is thought to have visited Peter Gauslin's grave.
Relatives didn't know where he was buried or how he died until his great-grandson Andrew Daft began researching family history in 2012 and learned his death occurred at a mental institution. He also discovered that Gauslin, his grandmother's father, is buried in an unmarked grave in Appleton, about 100 miles north of Milwaukee.
Gauslin is among tens of thousands who were buried in unmarked graves around the nation during the 20th century after dying at state- or county-run psychiatric hospitals, then called insane asylums or sanitariums. Families were either too poor for a headstone, couldn't be reached or had forgotten about their relatives.

Maine Store Ledger 1922-1927 online

Maine Store Ledger 1922-1927 online
AncestorsAtRest has the following store ledger online

Maine Store Ledger 1922-1927 PDF files available for download Index, P. 1, P. 23, P. 43, P. 63, P. 85, P. 105, P. 123, P. 215, P. 241, P. 273

Wednesday, September 02, 2015

Got Ancestors in Maine? Check this Store Ledger for Ancestors

Got Ancestors in Maine?
AncestorsAtRest has the following Ledger Books on site for Orono, Lagrange, Howland, Penobscot County Maine

Orono, Lagrange, Howland, Penobscot County, Maine 1923 to 1925 Store Ledger

170 Million Wills online FREE Sept 2-7!

FREE 170 Million Wills Now on Ancestry!
 More than 170 million pages from the largest collection of wills and probate records in the United States is now available online exclusively on Ancestry. 

With searchable records included from all 50 states spread over 337 years (1668-2005), this unprecedented collection launches a new category of records for family history research never before available online at this scale the United States.   

Until now, these records have only been available offline. Ancestry spent more than two years bringing this collection online, working with hundreds of different archives from individual state and local courts across the country and making a $10M investment to license and digitize the records. The documents cover well over 100 million people, including the deceased as well as their family, friends and others involved in the probate process. Ancestry expects to continue to grow the collection, with additional records available over the next several years.

To celebrate the launch of the new U.S. Wills and Probates collection on Ancestry,, the collection along with all U.S. birth, marriage and death records, will be available to explore for FREE, September 2 (12pm MT) through September 7 (10pm MT). 


Here are the records available as of today:


Tuesday, September 01, 2015

Coffin Plate Of Mary Jones 1871 - 1913

Coffin Plate Of Mary Jones
Mary Jones 1871-1913
This interesting Art Nouveau Coffin Plate for Mary Jones 1871-1913 was popular in the 1890-1920 time period. It is made from silver plated cast Pot metal—also known as monkey metal.

Mary Jones Died Jan 16, 1913 age 42 years.

If you would like to look for your ancestors Coffin Plate I have over 500 more at.... 

AncestorsAtRest.com

Friday, August 07, 2015

Four Skeletons Identified as Original Jamestown Settlers

The bodies of four original settlers of Jamestown Colony have been identified! They are minister Robert Hunt, Sir Ferdinando Wainman, Captain Gabriel Archer and Captain William West.
 

Tuesday, August 04, 2015

Use A Relationship Calculator to Help with DNA Matches


A Relationship Calculator Helps with DNA Matches
If you are like me, whenever you get a DNA match that says the match is possibly a 3rd or 4th cousin, you can't remember or are not sure how to figure out where your common ancestor might be in your ancestry - a grandparent, a great-grandparent....??  In other words, how do you narrow the list of suspects candidates? 

Sunday, August 02, 2015

Favourite Canadian Genealogy Site?

Now's your chance to nominate your favourite site for Canadian genealogy.  Nominations are open until August 3rd so don't delay.

I'm happy to see Olive Tree Genealogy website on the list of pre-nominated sites! Check the list and see if there are some missing that you think need to be considered.


Saturday, August 01, 2015

The Coffin Plates Of Jonathan Abrams And Mary Abrams

Jonathan Abrams 
Died April 28th 1918
Aged 64


Mary Matilda Abrams 
Died April 27. 1924
Aged 66 years 10 mons

This group of Coffin Plates is for a husband and wife. I am told Jonathan Abrams was from Ontario Canada.

Submitted by Brad Abrams

View more Coffin Plates at http://ancestorsatrest.com

Friday, July 31, 2015

J K Rowling on Who Do You Think You Are?

J. K. Rowling on Who Do You Think You Are? This Sunday
Who Do You Think You Are? “J.K. Rowling” (US premiere, originally aired in the UK)
Tune In: J.K. Rowling’s episode of Who Do You Think You Are? airs Sunday, August 2 at 9/8c on TLC

 Ancestry.com , the leading family history company, is teaming up again with TLC as a sponsor. As part of the show sponsorship, Ancestry provides exhaustive family history research on each of the featured celebrities to help make discoveries possible and build out the story of each episode.
Famed Harry Potter author and philanthropist JK Rowling is eager to trace the  French roots of her maternal side, having always been very close with her mother who’s passed away. She knows that her great-grandfather, Louis Volant, received the Legion d’honneur for his WWI efforts, but she doesn’t know why. 

She embarks on a journey in France to trace her mother’s roots. She discovers that a family war story might not be what she thought when military records reveal a surprising truth. Tracing the trail even further back, Jo learns of her 2x great-grandmother, who had plenty of struggles both as a poor, single mother and a witness to German invasion during wartime, which forced her family to choose sides in a time of turmoil.  

Sunday, July 26, 2015

Digging up Bodies of Those Buried in Bedlam Insane Asylum

The Bedlam mental health hospital was established in 1247. A burial site, called Bethlehem and the New Churchyard, was opened after graveyards around London started to overflow.
The poor from London and inmates from the asylum were buried there and recent excavations have uncovered bits and pieces of skeletal remains.

Thursday, July 23, 2015

Ancestry DNA Available in Canada

Great news! Ancestry DNA test kits are now available to Canadians. If you've been waiting for the chance to order a kit to Canada, now's the time.

I've had my DNA (and my parents) DNA tested at other companies and now is my chance to do the same with Ancestry DNA in Canada  

The more places you test, the better so I'm eager to do this! So far, with our DNA tests we've learned many new things - not just our ethnic background but family secrets. That's right.

We learned, for example, that the family rumours were true and that my grandfather's father was not the man married to his mother. Nope, the rumour that Great-Grandma had been messing around with the hired man named Cooper turned out to be true! DNA connected my husband and his mother with first cousins through the Cooper family. 

We also were able to verify our paper research showing my wife's Native American heritage, and my black ancestry. 

So if you live in Canada, why not find out what secrets lie in your family tree? Take the Ancestry DNA now.

Sunday, July 19, 2015

Betsy Ross Buried in Neglected Abandoned Cemetery in Pennsylvania


Imagine a cemetery, an abandoned cemetery, the size of a small town. 

Well that is what Mount Moriah Cemetery in Pennsylvania is like. It is over 400 acres in size and in complete disarray with crumbling tombstones, weeds and thick vegetation. 

Betsy Ross (of American flag fame) is buried here. I'm sure she's turning over in her grave!

Continue reading this story at http://olivetreegenealogy.blogspot.ca/2015/06/such-huge-abandoned-cemetery-in.html

Sunday, July 12, 2015

Why is Great-Grandpa's Death Registration Missing?

Great-Grandpa's Death Registration is Missing - Where is it?
How many times have you looked for a Vital Registration of a Birth, Marriage or Death in Ontario and come up empty? Lorine of Olive Tree Genealogy tells us why this happens! Anyone searching for Ontario ancestors needs to read this.

Sunday, July 05, 2015

350 Year Old Body found in France with Heart of Husband

  The body of Louise de Quengo, a widow who died in 1656, was found in France, She was fully dressed and buried  with the preserved heart of her dead husband

Sunday, June 28, 2015

Saturday, June 27, 2015

Saturday, April 25, 2015

Ancient Human Remains Found

Ancient human remains have been found at a construction site in St. Catharines Ontario Canada. Experts believe the bones may be over 200 years old. 

Read the full story at http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/2015/04/20/ancient-human-remains-found-at-downtown-construction-site


Thursday, April 23, 2015

Happy DNA Day! 20% off on AncestryDNA Kits

AncestryDNA is celebrating their annual DNA Day this April by offering a 20% discount on AncestryDNA. The special will run from April 23-April 27, 2015. Happy DNA Day! 

This link takes you to their offer DNA Day 20% off AncestryDNA 

If you don't have your DNA kit yet, maybe it's time. Don't miss out!