Blog – Page 15 – Family Locket

RLP 303: Southwestern Research with Michelle Mickelson – Part 1 – Jurisdictions and Manuscripts

In this episode, Diana and Nicole welcome guest Michelle Mickelson, AG, to discuss key records and repositories for researching ancestors in the Southwestern United States. They explore the differences between federal, state, and local records, highlighting the importance of each for uncovering vital information. Michelle guide listeners through navigating the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), state archives, historical societies, local government records, university archives, and private collections. They emphasize the value of collaboration […]

By Nicole Elder Dyer April 29, 2024 Podcast

Back to the Basic with Immigration Records: 1906 Forward

Finding an immigration record for an ancestor arriving in the United States after 1906 will depend on record availability and good search techniques. Identifying your ancestor among people of the same name is a challenge and thorough research in the U.S. records is important to find every clue available. Timeline of Immigration Laws Key to understanding 20th-century immigration is knowing the laws and historical context that influenced an ancestor’s desire to emigrate from their home […]

By Diana Elder April 27, 2024 Research Tips

RLP 302: Examining Family Lore: Was Eliza Isenhour a Cherokee?

Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is about the story of Eliza Ann Isenhour (1850-1898) and the family lore that claims she was a full-blooded Cherokee. The conversation starts with the 1884 incident that left Eliza a widow with four young children and another on the way after her husband, William Henderson Shults, died following an accident. Faced with the challenges of widowhood, Eliza remarries Jacob Meek, and they eventually move to Indian Territory, […]

By Nicole Elder Dyer April 22, 2024 Podcast

Evaluating Double Cousin Relationships with Banyan DNA

Do you have instances of multiple relationships, such as double cousins, or pedigree collapse, in your family tree? If so, the new third-party DNA tool BanyanDNA can help you analyze the amount of DNA you share with your cousins. Leah Larkin introduced Banyan DNA in December of 2023, and in that blog post she wrote: BanyanDNA is unlike any other tool for genetic genealogy. Not only can it help you identify an unknown parent, grandparent, […]

By Diana Elder April 21, 2024 DNA Tools, Research Like a Pro with DNA, Research Tips

RLP 301: Genealogy and DNA Research in Phases

In this episode, we discuss breaking up complex research projects into phases. This is a great way to make progress on a research question that might otherwise seem daunting. We’ll talk about how to identify the mother of Elsie, a woman born in 1820, as an example of how to set up phases for research. We’ll also discuss how to determine which phases are necessary and how to write research objectives. We wrap it up […]

By Nicole Elder Dyer April 15, 2024 Podcast

Disclosing Use of AI for Writing Assistance in Genealogy

Exploring the use of artificial intelligence chatbots for creating written content is the new frontier – full of uncertainties and unknowns. Organizations that once prohibited the use of LLMs for research papers are now allowing them, as long as authors are fact-checking the output and attempting to cite potentially copyrighted materials included in the output. In 2023, the International Conference on Machine Learning prohibited the use of LLMs in their call for papers. In 2024, […]

By Nicole Elder Dyer April 12, 2024 Research Tips

Using GEDmatch DNA Segment Tools in a Research Project

Have you wondered how DNA segment data could help with a research project? I have been working on a chromosome map in DNA Painter for several years and gradually added matches that I’ve identified descending from one of my ancestral couples. For my Cline DNA research project, I’m seeking genetic evidence confirming my hypothesis that John C. Cline is the father of Clemsy (Cline) Weatherford. Using the segment tools that are part of GEDmatch’s Tier […]

By Diana Elder April 8, 2024 DNA Tools, Research Tips

RLP 300: RLP Past, Present, and Future

In episode #300 of Research Like a Pro, Diana and Nicole discuss the evolution of their genealogy research methodology, Research Like a Pro (RLP), over the years, focusing on past, present, and future perspectives. Past Developments: Technology: Initially, Diana and Nicole utilized tools like PAF and Ancestral Quest for family trees, Google Sheets for research logs, and Evernote for notes. They also used a lot of paper files and some digital files for organization. Genealogy […]

By Nicole Elder Dyer April 8, 2024 Podcast

Using the Scandinavian Feast Day Calendar

A previous post, “Unlocking the Mystery of the Feast Day Calendar,” told the story of the feast day calendar, how it’s made up, and what to look for in church records. This post will take you through the process of using the feast day calendar. The church book samples are from Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish records. Danish Christening Record Let’s start with a christening record from Alsønderup parish in Fredriksborg, Denmark. Every entrance on these […]

By Torhild Shirley April 4, 2024 Research Tips

RLP 299: Immigration Records Part 3 – 1820 -1906

In this episode of Research Like a Pro, we discuss strategies for researching ancestors who emigrated to the United States after 1820, emphasizing the wealth of ship manifests and other records available for identifying individuals among those with the same name. We explore immigration trends from the 19th to the early 20th century, the impact of U.S. immigration laws on the process, and the roles of key immigration stations like Castle Garden and Ellis Island. […]

By Nicole Elder Dyer April 1, 2024 Podcast