One of the fundamentals of genealogy is the various numbering systems used to make quick and easily-read lists of ancestors. Perhaps the most common method of listing ancestors is to create an ahnentafel. Yet I suspect that word confuses most newcomers. Here is a (hopefully) simple explanation.

An ahnentafel is a list of one's ancestors with each one numbered in a sequential manner that makes it easy to calculate relationships. The ahnentafel method is the most common method of numbering ancestors

Ahnentafel is a German word that translates as “ancestor table” or, literally, a list of one’s ancestors. The same numbering system is sometimes called the Sosa-Stradonitz System, named after the Spanish genealogist Hieronymus/Jerome de Sosa, who first used it in 1676, and after the German genealogist Stephan Kekulé von Stradonitz [1863-1933], who popularized it in his 1896 Ahnentafel Atlas.

In an Ahnentafel numbering system, the base person is assigned the number one. The father of each person is assigned a number equal to double the child’s number. The mother of each person is assigned a number equal to double the child’s number plus one. As a result, the number of any child is one-half that of their parent, ignoring any remainder. For the first four generations, the numbers assigned a given person and their ancestors reflect the following relationships:

1. person

2. father

3. mother

4. paternal grandfather

5. paternal grandmother

6. maternal grandfather

7. maternal grandmother

8. great-grandfather

9. great-grandmother

10. great-grandfather

11. great-grandmother

12. great-grandfather

13. great-grandmother

14. great-grandfather

15. great-grandmother

Translating this to a real person, here is an excerpt from the Ahnentafel of one well-known American, complete with Ahnentafel numbers:

1. George Walker Bush, b. New Haven, Conn., 6 July 1946, m. 5 Nov. 1977, Laura Lane Welch

2. George Herbert Walker Bush, b. Milton, Mass., 12 June 1924, m. Rye, N.Y., 6 Jan. 1945

3. Barbara Pierce

4. Prescott Sheldon Bush, b. Columbus, Ohio, 15 May 1895, m. Kennebunkport, Maine, 6 Aug. 1921, d. New York, N.Y., 8 Oct. 1972

5. Dorothy Walker, b. near Walker's Point, York Co., Me., 1 July 1901, d. Greenwich, Conn., 19 Nov. 1992

6. Marvin Pierce, b. Sharpsville, Pa., 17 June 1893, m. Aug. 1918, d. Rye, N.Y., 17 July 1969

7. Pauline Robinson, b. Ohio, April 1896, d. Rye, N.Y., 23 Sept. 1949

8. Samuel Prescott Bush, b. Brick Church, N.J., 4 Oct. 1863, m. Columbus, Ohio, 20 June 1894, d. Columbus, Ohio, 8 Feb. 1948

9. Flora Sheldon, b. Franklin Co., Ohio, 17 Mar. 1872, d. "Watch Hill", R.I., 4 Sept. 1920

10. George Herbert Walker, b. St. Louis, Mo., 11 June 1875, m. St. Louis, Mo., 17 Jan. 1899, d. New York, N.Y., 24 June 1953

11. Lucretia [Loulie] Wear, b. St. Louis, Mo., 17 Sept. 1874, d. Biddeford, Me., 28 Aug. 1961

12. Scott Pierce, b. Sparkville, Pa., 18 Jan. [or June?] 1866, m. 26 Nov. 1891

13. Mabel Marvin, b. Cincinnati, Ohio, 4 June 1869

14. James Edgar Robinson, b. near Marysville, Oh., 15 Aug. 1868, m. Marion Co., Ohio, 31 March 1895, d. 1931

15. Lula Dell Flickinger, b. Byhalia, Ohio, March 1875

The primary disadvantage of Ahnentafel numbers is that the size of each number when going back many generations becomes quite large. Someone with a documented line of descent from Charlemagne may be using Ahnentafel numbers in the billions.

Ahnentafel numbers are the only commonly-used numbers for ancestor lists. However, several systems exist for numbering descendants in a list.

Ah yes, the good old' days. Life was simpler back then... and smellier. Of course, that was before the days of sanitation laws, underarm deodorants, breath mints, and other modern marvels.

A.J. Jacobs has written an article that reminds us that perhaps the good ol' days perhaps were not quite as good as some of us may have imagined:

"It is my contention that the past stunk—both metaphorically and literally. It’s true: The past was a putrid place. The nostrils of our ancestors were constantly assaulted by unimaginable odors. It was like living your entire life in the men’s room at New York City’s Penn Station. Here are six reasons that you should be happy you and your nose live in modern times."

To read his article, hold your nose and then go to https://www.mentalfloss.com/posts/how-the-past-was-stinky.

As part of a $17,980 grant from the R. J. Taylor, Jr. Foundation, the Digital Library of Georgia has digitized over 77,000 pages of Georgia newspaper titles in partnership with the Atlanta History Center. 

The newly-released collection includes rare nineteenth-century titles from north Georgia and previously unavailable titles from larger cities across the state. 

The project creates full-text searchable versions of the newspapers. It presents them online for free in its Georgia Historic Newspapers database at https://gahistoricnewspapers.galileo.usg.edu/.

Users will be able to search the database for geographic, corporate, family, and personal names.

Henry Louis Gates Jr., the renowned historian, author, teacher, and genealogist met with the three survivors of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre last week and pledged to trace their family trees on his popular PBS show, Finding Your Roots.

According to the Oklahoma Eagle, Gates’ meeting with Viola Ford Fletcher, 107, Hughes Van Ellis, 101, and Lessie Benningfield Randle, 107 came during a visit in Tulsa on April 8.

Gates would visit other landmarks in the city and offered insights into his impactful work in genealogy. He also stressed the importance of tracing one’s roots.

Henry Louis Gates, Jr. comes with instant credibility.

Gates, a top American intellectual, is a professor of African American Studies and director of the Hutchins Center for African & African American Research at Harvard University, author of 21 books, recipient of 50 honorary degrees, and creator of over 15 documentary films.

You can read more in an article written by Ezekiel J. Walker and published in the Black Wall Street Times web site at: https://theblackwallsttimes.com/2022/04/19/henry-louis-gates-jr-to-trace-family-lineage-of-tulsa-massacre-survivors/.

The following was written by Jane Knowles Lindsey, NGS Local Host Society Chair in Sacramento, California:

My excitement is mounting as the first, live, in-person national family history conference in three years draws near!  In just over a month, genealogists from around the country will converge on Sacramento for the NGS 2022 Family History Conference. Imagine genealogists meeting one on one and in groups talking about genealogy 24/7 for almost a week, and no one ever gets that “glazed over” look. To me, that’s heaven.

As chair of the Local Host Committee, I see all the conference plans taking shape. I am especially excited about our Tuesday tours on May 24 and the two special evening events planned by the California Genealogical Society—A Taste of California on May 25 and the Back to the Fifties on May 26.  It will be a thrill to see genealogists sharing their research, going to fantastic lectures, visiting experts in the Expo Hall, and having fun at our social events.

For me, the best part of any conference is the networking opportunities. We want everyone to feel welcome whether you are a veteran conference attendee or it is your first time! We hope everyone will enjoy the comradery of sharing a cup of coffee or dinner or luncheon with their fellow family historians. A great way to meet your fellow attendees is by volunteering a few hours of your time. Learn more about volunteering at the NGS 2022 Family History Conference.

For up-to-date information about conference hotels and COVID-19 policies, visit the conference website.

I personally look forward to meeting everyone in Sacramento. Please come and say hello. If you have any questions before the conference, please feel free to email me.  We have a special conference address for your questions, NGS2022@californiaancestors.org.

Online registration ends on May 13.

Best Wishes,

Jane Knowles Lindsey

California Genealogical Society, Local Host Chair

2022 NGS Family History Conference, Sacramento, California

This should have a positive impact on companies trying to extract data from Ancestry's website and other sources of online genealogy information

Good news for archivists, academics, researchers and journalists: Scraping publicly accessible data is legal, according to a U.S. appeals court ruling.

The landmark ruling by the U.S. Ninth Circuit of Appeals is the latest in a long-running legal battle brought by LinkedIn aimed at stopping a rival company from scraping personal information from users’ public profiles. The case reached the U.S. Supreme Court last year but was sent back to the Ninth Circuit for the original appeals court to re-review the case.

In its second ruling on Monday, the Ninth Circuit reaffirmed its original decision and found that scraping data that is publicly accessible on the internet is not a violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, or CFAA, which governs what constitutes computer hacking under U.S. law.

The Ninth Circuit’s decision is a major win for archivists, academics, researchers and journalists who use tools to mass collect, or scrape, information that is publicly accessible on the internet. Without a ruling in place, long-running projects to archive websites no longer online and using publicly accessible data for academic and research studies have been left in legal limbo.

You can read further details at: https://techcrunch.com/2022/04/18/web-scraping-legal-court/.

The following is a press release issued by the U.S. Census Bureau:

Today the U.S. Census Bureau launched its latest data explorer tool, My Community Explorer (MCE). MCE is an interactive map-based tool that highlights demographic and socioeconomic data that measure inequality and can help inform data-based solutions. This tool is designed to help users identify underserved communities as directed by the President's Executive Order 13985 on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility in the Federal Workforce.

Here’s a closer look at the survey and datasets featured in this tool.

Community Resilience Estimates (CRE)

The site includes statistics on the predominant risk factor group from the 2019 CRE Equity Supplement at the county and census tract levels. The CRE use 2019 American Community Survey (ACS) one-year estimates microdata and Population Estimates data to measure the capacity of individuals and households ability to absorb the external stresses of the impacts of a disaster. More information on the methodology behind the CRE is available here. The estimates use the 2019 ACS one-year estimates geographic boundaries.  

American Community Survey (ACS)

The site includes select demographic and socioeconomic statistics from the 2015-2019 ACS five-year estimates at the state, county and census tract levels. These include data on poverty, educational attainment and language spoken at home. Additional data from the ACS are available via the program link above the thematic map.

County Business Patterns (CBP)

The site includes selected business statistics from the 2019 CBP at the state and county levels by two-digit North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code. These include data on number of establishments, average annual payroll per employee and employment (based on the week of March 12th). Additional CBP data are also available via the program link above the thematic map.

Nonemployer Statistics (NES)

The site includes selected statistics on self-employed persons from the 2018 NES at the state and county levels by two-digit NAICS code. These include data on the number of firms and average annual receipts per firm. Additional NES data are also available via the program link above the thematic map.

Additional data and tools related to My Community Explorer are available here. 

The following announcement was written by the Findmypast team:

Our partnership with the British Library has reached an incredible milestone with over 50 million newspaper pages digitised and now available online at Findmypast and the British Newspaper Archive.

Back in 2011, we set out to digitise the British Library's entire newspaper collection and open it up to the public as the British Newspaper Archive. Today we're proud to announce that we've passed the 50 million pages milestone. But we're not stopping there.

Soon there'll be millions more pages filled with momentous moments, local legends and family folklore. And you can explore every word with a Findmypast Pro subscription.

Our newspaper archive is the largest collection of British and Irish newspapers in the world and includes the Daily Mirror, Liverpool Echo, Belfast Telegraph and Dundee Courier, as well as many other regional publications that are now out of print.

Extra! Extra! Your family’s in the news

From national news to local events, you'll find your family's colourful story is right there amongst the headlines and small print of our old newspaper pages. You may even catch a glimpse of your ancestor starting back at you. Whether you stumble upon an old photo, political cartoon or courtroom illustration, it could well be worth a thousand words.

Britain's colourful history in black and white

Just like modern Britain, diversity is what makes the British Newspaper Archive so interesting. From Jamaica to Jaipur, you’ll find dozens of international titles to explore.

So even if your family tree has far-flung roots, you might still find your ancestors' life-changing moments in our papers.

Scoop! Over one million pages free

As part of our commitment to digitising diverse and culturally important titles, over one million pages are completely free to view without a subscription, both on Findmypast and the British Newspaper Archive. The digitisation of titles like The Keys provides an incredible view of 1930s Black British history, and the likes of 19th-century newspaper The Chartist shines a light on the rights of the working class.

Together with the British Library, we have committed to digitising a further 19 million pages over the coming years, all available to explore at your fingertips on any device.

Behind every news story there’s a family story, including your own. Read all about it at findmypast.co.uk.

The Ukrainian History and Education Center (in Somerset, NJ) will be holding an ONLINE genealogy conference on May 15th. Here is the announcement:

UHEC Nashi Predky Spring Genealogy Conference ONLINE In 2022!

May 15th, 2022 12:30 PM through 4:30 PM Eastern Time (North America)

The Nashi Predky Spring Conference will be online again this year. It's a great lineup of speakers, and you can participate even if you are not in New Jersey!

When we were planning this conference, Omicron was raging, and so we decided to yet again have the conference online.

What we certainly did not expect was a Russian invasion.

In addition to creating mass displacement, suffering, and death, the war in Ukraine has, of course, severely curtailed researcher access to Ukrainian archives, and has prevented us from having any speakers from Ukraine this time around. Regardless, we have a great, though slightly abbreviated, program on topics relate to records in the United States, and tools and case studies that you can make use of when Ukrainian archives again become accessible.

You'll be able to hear talks and pose questions to the speakers on topics as varied as:

• Researching Jewish ancestry in the areas of Ukraine formerly in the Russian Empire
• The 1950 Census, by genealogy superstar Stephen Morse!
• Research tools for Galicia and Bukovyna

As in previous years, UHEC members receive a 10% discount!

Registration Link is here:

https://www.ukrhec.org/nashi-predkyour-ancestors-2022-conference?fbclid=IwAR1H4P9lhrxxU-HemZ7KSHFZo8w6fLmv9BS6rsDjXdIo3Kxr8F3T5YlicCQ

The following is a Plus Edition article written by and copyright by Dick Eastman. 

According to the International Time Capsule Society at https://www.itcsoc.org, "A time capsule is ‘a container used to store for posterity a selection of objects thought to be representative of life at a particular time.’ Time capsules are interesting to people of all ages and touch people on a world-wide scale. Properly prepared time capsules preserve the salient features of history and can serve as valuable reminders of one generation for another."

Time capsules often are created by historical societies or other organizations who wish to preserve a "snapshot" of life today. However, creation of time capsules certainly is not limited to historical organizations. You might use a time capsule to mark a special anniversary, whether your tenth wedding anniversary, your baby's first birthday, or your home town's centennial or sesquicentennial celebration. Then again, you may just want a time capsule for fun or for a temporary learning project.

I know of one fifth grade class that made a time capsule containing information written by each member of the class. Each student wrote a note to their future selves, making some predictions of what the world and he or she will be like in the future. The school department promised to open the time capsule at the end of each high school graduating class and to send a copy of each note to the student who wrote it. Apparently, the school department repeats this project every year with all of its fifth grade classes.

Similarly, a private individual or a family also might want to create a time capsule to be opened by future generations. What better gift for a genealogist to leave for his or her descendants than mementos of life in the early twenty-first century? Then again, perhaps you want to bury something of value in your own back yard in hopes of retrieving it some time in the future when you need the item. Gold coins or a family heirloom pop to mind.

If this sounds like a fun project with very long-term rewards, read on for some ideas about how to create your own time capsule, what you might want to put in it, and – just as important – what NOT to put in it.

The remainder of this article is reserved for Plus Edition subscribers only. If you have a Plus Edition subscription, you may read the full article at: https://eogn.com/(*)-Plus-Edition-News-Articles/12710095.

If you are not yet a Plus Edition subscriber, you can learn more about such subscriptions and even upgrade to a Plus Edition subscription immediately at https://eogn.com/page-18077.