Off the Charts : Presenting Ancestors’ STories meets Wed. 9/15/2021 via Zoom @ 1:30 pm

We are a genealogy group for people who like to think outside the box and beyond the chart. We exchange support for our work and excitement about how we’re sharing it. Our meetings include topics and speakers on writing, crafts, photo projects, organization, trips, reunions, issues, and much more.

Wednesday Sept 15th @ 1:30-3:30 ==> Contact Kathy knielsen68@gmail.com or Karen 917-2042 for Zoom meeting details.

This Month: “Family Reunion Planning” with Linda Sanders and Kathy Nielsen

Linda Sanders, just back from a family reunion, and  Kathy Nielsen, will be presenting, and probably many others will be participating.  Come and bring YOUR ideas, questions, and frustrations.

Every meeting includes a chance to connect, ask questions, and update genealogy friends on your latest discoveries or roadblocks. We also have an opportunity to receive inspiration from others and to help.

 

Merger Mania

Geneanet (based in France) has just announced that it has been acquired by Ancestry . com.

https://en.geneanet.org/genealogyblog/post/2021/08/geneanet-joins-ancestry-the-world-largest-genealogy-company?utm_source=geneanet&utm_medium=e-mail&utm_campaign=SITE_en_geneanet-ancestry

Last month, Filae (also based in France) was acquired by My Heritage.

https://blog.myheritage.com/2021/08/myheritage-to-acquire-filae/

It seems that the French genealogists have decided that if you can’t beat them, then you better join them!

In case you forgot….

12 months ago, Blackstone acquired Ancestry . com.

8 months ago, myDNA and Gene by Gene (owner of FamilyTreeDNA) merged.

7 months ago, Francisco Partners acquired MyHeritage.

1 month ago, 23andMe became a publicly traded company (symbol ME). You can become an “owner” today for about $9 a share!

Everybody keeps saying that nothing negative will happen, things will only get better. Crossing fingers, here. From my perspective, when mergers occur, either customer growth occurs or employment decreases.

I just wish one of these companies would merge with an Artificial Intelligence company!

Rare 23andMe Sale

The 23andMe ancestry DNA test kits are for sale at Amazon!

In the Amazon store, you can buy the standard 23andMe Ancestry + Traits test kit for $79. Regularly $100 or so, this is 20% off the going rate, and matching the lowest we have tracked all year at Amazon.

Sourcing over 2,000 regions across the globe, this test kit will trace your lineage back as far as possible to tell you where you’re genetics come from and to help build out your family tree. It also optionally offers up details on living relatives and dives into the genetic traits that make you who you are, with no hidden fees attached. You’ll find the more advanced 23andMe test kits on sale below.

More 23andMe deals:

• Health + Ancestry Service $129 (Reg. $199)
• Premium Membership Bundle $159 (Reg. $229)

All Things Relative is on You Tube! #2

I did not know before, but the Monterey Public Library has a YouTube channel!   And they are putting the All Things Relative: Finding Family at the Library series on that channel. 

You can Subscribe to the Monterey Public Library channel and see these programs whenever, or you can click on these links to see the first two program in the series, and then subscribe!

• Local Histories: How local libraries and historical societies can help with your research
  • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KVApN-g3Nx8
• A New Life for Old Photos: Identifying, Organizing, and Restoring Photos
  • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1yfbM_SeSw
• DNA: The Key to Discovering Your Family History
  • https://youtu.be/cfHJVclTUMg

Monterey Public Library | 625 Pacific Street, Monterey, CA 93940

(831) 646-2091 

California’s First Public Library ~ est. 1849

“Wear Masks. Save Lives. Meet the Moment for Monterey.”

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Wouldn’t it be great if MoCoGenSo would put some of our presentations on You Tube.  If you agree, you could recommend to our Board that MoCoGenSo create a You Tube channel!! Contact one of the Member-At-Large officers, Erica Burton or Kristina McGill.

Ancestry.com Puzzle

I have always wondered if it was possible to put two names within the surname field in Ancestry.com and not screw up the searching algorithms in Ancestry. Everyone I have ever asked either doesn’t know or says try it and see. Ya well, time marches on and then tonight I accidentally copied a record with a graphic character in the name field. And the copy took!

See the funny character after my grandfather’s name? That is some kind of a UTF-8 or UTF-16 character that can be copied from place to place! Yes, I know it is a picture of a DNA strip. I can envision hanging this character on my DNA match people.

But meanwhile, my original question has yet to be answered. Is it possible to put two names in a surname field, like for example “Tenorio Franich”? If it is, there should be no difference if the surname field contained a regular name followed by a space followed by that funny character above.

I will try to place it here: “Robeson 🧬” . Humm, this blog system takes it. Trust me, it shows up in color some places, and not others. The important thing is that Ancestry shows it in color. Perhaps you too, if you are so inclined, can copy it from here and use it in your own Ancestry tree! Give it a go… 🧬 🧬 🧬

Meanwhile, can someone answer my original question?

And now I need to see if I can find a list of all the possible UTF-8/16 characters. There might be a different picture that we could use, like a ball, or bullet, or whatever. possibilities abound.

Monthly Meeting – Sept. 2, 2021 – “The Jewish Marriage Contract and What It Really Says” – by Stephen Morse

Vital records (birth, marriage, death) have always been a valuable source of family information and sought after by genealogist. The Jewish Marriage Contract (Ketubah) is no exception. The information in the Jewish record complements the information in the civil record: the civil record typically identifies the bride and groom by giving their family names whereas the Jewish record gives their fathers’ names instead. There is a basic difference between the civil and religious marriage records in that one focuses on the union and the other on the termination of the union. This talk discusses what is contained in the Jewish marriage contract, tells what it really means, and provides information that can be useful to family historians.

Stephen P. Morse was given the Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Association Jewish Genealogical Societies in 2006, the APGQ Excellence Award, and the National Genealogical Society – Award of Merit in 2007. It was in recognition of exceptional contributions to the field of Genealogy. His “One-Step” search tools have assisted genealogists greatly by making it easier to find their ancestors within existing large genealogical databases. He is a computer professional who holds a doctorate degree in electrical engineering. He is best known as the architect of the Intel 8086 which sparked the PC revolution.

The Zoom meeting will start at 7:00 pm sharp. Zoom meeting details will be sent by invitation only. If you are not a member and wish to attend, send an email with your email address to our Membership VP, Marilyn Ruccello .

If you are not familiar with Zoom, click here.

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”The only reason people do not know much is because they do not care much.” – Stephen Fry

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Monthly Calendar – September 2021

fun genealogically speaking

Here is a simple diagram with a simple challenge.  First fill in names of people that are related in parent/child relationships.  For example, put you at the bottom and fill in your parents and grandparents. The challenge then => add some other information.

• For example, put in everyone’s birth date and birth place.
• Or, place of birth and place of death.
• Or, inheritable illness’s they had and cause of death.
• Or, religion, politics and socioeconomic status.
• Or, height and weight at mid-life.
• Or, haplogroups, mitochondrial for all and Y-DNA for males.

For example, my wife’s maternal grandfather was described as 5’ 11”, 135 lbs, and swarthy with grey hair at 69 years of age in his Petition for Naturalization. We know his religion but have no idea where he stood politically.  

But I am really puzzled over his haplogroups.   A haplogroup is a genetic population group of people who share a common ancestor on either their paternal or maternal line. Particular haplogroups are associated with well-known ancestral groups such as the Vikings, Aboriginal Australians, and the Celts. We know he was born on an island in Croatia, we know the mitochondrial  haplogroup of his wife.  My wife knew him until she was about 12.  But there aren’t enough descendants testing at 23andMe to figure out his ancestral group!

This chart can be a challenge to any genealogist, amateur or otherwise.  Take a copy and give it a go. Below is a chart for a female with haplogroups.  I cannot figure out the mitochondrial groups for 2 of the men, but I am still working 😊

Haplogroup teasers

According to the International Society of Genetic Genealogy, a haplogroup is a genetic population group of people who share a common ancestor on either their paternal (Y-DNA) or maternal (mitochondrial) lines.

Not every DNA testing companies show us our haplogroups. AncestryDNA, MyHeritage, and FamilyTreeDNA kits do not test for the specific SNPs required to determine haplogroup, while 23andMe and Living DNA do test segments of the mtDNA and Y-chromosome and display our haplogroups and, most importantly, those of our shared matches.

FTDNA also includes Y haplogroup and mtDNA haplogroup information, only if you buy specific tests related to those traits. Gedmatch displays haplogroup info that is self-reported.

I have found the haplogroup information displayed automatically at 23andMe to be invaluable in some of my research.  In a future DNA Discussion meeting, I will give a show-n-tell of how this additional information helped unlock puzzles in our family trees.

Meanwhile, when searching the internet for haplogroup information, I found this page which has lots of comparative details about the various DNA testing companies.  Eupedia is a great sight for exploring.  And this page in particular should interest most everyone who has read this far!  Do page through it.

https://www.eupedia.com/genetics/which_ancestry_dna_test_to_choose.shtml

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My Y-DNA haplogroup is I1a-​A13294 and my mitochondrial haplogroup is ​H1e1a.

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23andMe Tree Recalculation

Go ahead, drag the above slider left and right!

I have mentioned in the past about recalculating my tree in 23AndMe.  I said you had to find out how to do it within the Help system.  Arghh, finding where the function is located is a royal pain! But I did find it, and wrote the attached PDF document. If you are interested, you can download it. This is only for advanced folks. This worked for me, but let the buyer beware.

23andme tree recalculationDownload

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“If a machine is expected to be infallible, it cannot also be intelligent.” – Alan Turing