Family Locket

RLP 397: What Genealogists Can Learn from Colum McCann’s TransAtlantic: Writing Family History

The episode opens with Diana and Nicole catching up on their latest work, focusing on testing AI models for accuracy in handwritten-text transcription tasks. The hosts then discuss the novel TransAtlantic by Irish author Colum McCann and what family historians can learn from its structure to write better family narratives. Diana explains that the novel views the immigration story from the Irish perspective, following the fictional character Lily Duggan and three subsequent generations, with the […]

By Nicole Elder Dyer February 16, 2026 Podcast

Testing AI’s Ability to Map Historical Land Records: ChatGPT Compared to DeedMapper

About a year or two ago, I asked ChatGPT to convert a metes and bounds land description into a land plat drawing. It was not able to do so correctly. Yetserday, I tried again and the results were astounding! I compared three scenarios: ChatGPT 5.2 Auto with a short, simple prompt ChatGPT 5.2 Auto with a longer meta and chain-of-thought prompt ChatGPT 5.2 Thinking with a short, simple prompt I used a deed I […]

By Nicole Elder Dyer February 13, 2026 Artificial Intelligence, Research Tips

Transforming Court Records Research with AI: A Case Study from Colonial Virginia Part 2: Analysis

Claude 4.5 Sonnet assisted with organizing and writing this blog post based on my research report and a syllabus about using AI for court records. In part 1 of this series, we learned how AI assisted my research on finding, logging, and organizing a series of court orders between Samuel Daniel and my Roystons. In this blog post, we’ll go through the cases and see how AI helps us understand the legal context of court […]

By Diana Elder February 13, 2026 Research Tips

RLP 396: Visiting My Love County, Oklahoma, Roots

In this episode, hosts Diana and Nicole share a personal and informative journey as they visit their Love County, Oklahoma, roots to walk in the footsteps of Diana’s ancestors, Richard and Nancy (Briscoe) Frazier. Diana recounts the lives of her 2nd great-grandparents, discussing their survival through the Civil War in the Ozarks, Richard’s service as a teamster for the Confederacy, and their eventual migration from Missouri to Texas and then across the Red River into […]

By Nicole Elder Dyer February 9, 2026 Podcast

Transforming Court Records Research with AI: A Case Study from Colonial Virginia Part 1 – Finding and Logging

Claude 4.5 Sonnet assisted with organizing and writing this blog post based on my research report and a syllabus about using AI for court records. For generations, genealogists have known that court records contain some of the richest genealogical information available—and some of the most challenging to access. Unlike vital records or census enumerations, court records rarely come with indexes. The researcher faces the daunting task of browsing court books page by page, deciphering cryptic […]

By Diana Elder February 6, 2026 Research Tips

RLP 395: How to Use Ancestry DNA Custom Clusters in Your Research

This episode focuses on the exciting custom clustering feature now available in Ancestry’s Pro Tools. Diana introduces the tool, explaining how it allows for the strategic targeting of specific ancestral lines, offering more flexibility than the original clustering tool. She describes Ancestry’s process, which looks for matches sharing 65 cM to 1,300 cM with the user, and then finds those matches that also share at least 20 cM with each other. Nicole discusses the key […]

By Nicole Elder Dyer February 2, 2026 Podcast

RLP with DNA Research Log 4.2 (2026) Airtable Template Updates

The Research Like a Pro with DNA Airtable research log has been updated for 2026! Version 4.2 includes several enhancements designed to streamline your DNA research workflow and make tracking matches more efficient. While the changes might make the base look a little different—especially in the DNA Match Details table—I think you’ll find these improvements make your research process smoother. You can access the new templates here: RLP with DNA Research Log 4.2 (2026) RLP […]

By Nicole Elder Dyer January 29, 2026 DNA, Research Tips

RLP 394: When Birthdates Don’t Agree: Analyzing and Correlating Evidence

Nicole and Diana open the episode by discussing what they are currently working on, including their projects for the 14-day challenge. They then turn to the challenge of family history research when conflicting dates appear for an ancestor. Diana explains that because original records may not exist, genealogists must rely on sources created later in a person’s life, which often do not agree. Diana uses a case study of her relative, Mary Elizabeth (Royston) Slagle, […]

By Nicole Elder Dyer January 26, 2026 Podcast

Understanding the FamilySearch Research Wiki – Part 4: Case Study

Success in our research depends on understanding the locality’s records, history, and required methodology. Whether we’re experienced in the research locality or a newbie, there is always more to learn. In this blog series on the FamilySearch Research Wiki, guest blogger Virginia Pratt will help us understand what the wiki contains and how best to use it. Virginia worked on the FamilySearch Wiki team for five years, writing and organizing Wiki pages. We’re excited to […]

By Diana Elder January 24, 2026 Research Tips

RLP 393: Revisiting the Father of Cynthia (Dillard) Royston – Part 6 Writing the Report

In this episode, Diana and Nicole discuss the crucial process of writing a formal research report for the ongoing case study to identify the father of Cynthia (Dillard) Royston. Diana explains that a report is essential for synthesizing details, bringing a research phase to a close, and providing next steps. She outlines the project’s objective—to find a candidate for Cynthia’s father in Cass County, Georgia, during the 1830s—and notes the constraints, particularly the missing early […]

By Nicole Elder Dyer January 19, 2026 Podcast

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