The following announcement was written by GeneaNet:

NOTE: GeneaNet is a very popular genealogy website based in France with 4 million members. The database consists of data added by participants and is intended for all genealogists.

Two hundred years after the death of the emperor on Saint Helena, we are excited about a major milestone: Geneanet’s community of genealogists has indexed over 1 million of Napoléon’s soldiers!

At Geneanet, we accompany our community of genealogists by organizing and supporting indexing projects which, like all data provided by members, are free for all. We are excited about a major milestone: our dataset of Napoléon’s soldiers has just passed the 1 million mark!

Every record of a soldier lists complete information: military roll number, last name, first names, parents’ names, date and place of birth including the French département, the military unit dates, and a link to the original image scanned and hosted by France’s Ministère des Armées. Each record also has the username of the volunteer transcriber and the index ID rank number in the Geneanet database. This precious information – names, parents’ names, birthplace, and dates – is a goldmine for genealogists. And with the original scan 1 click away, further information is available in the register image, such as the enrollment and discharge dates and the list of campaigns which can be matched with historical sources covering the unit in question.

From 1802 to 1815, Napoléon recuited approximately 2 million soldiers for his Grand Armée which crisscrossed Europe and participated in a number of legendary battles: Austerlitz (1805), Jena-Auerstedt (1806), Friedland (1807), Somosierra (1808), Wagram (1809), Borodino (1812), and of course Waterloo (1815), to name only a few. These fighting men, volunteers and conscripts, were mostly French. But as many as 200,000 of them came from other European countries: Belgium, Italy, today’s Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, and elsewhere. Following the Revolution, the “registre matricule” or military roll register was kept by every army unit with a copy for the Minister of War. Every soldier was assigned a number (unique only to that military unit, so different from today’s unique service numbers) and the register is a treasure trove of information: birth date and place, parents’ names, physical description, date enrolled, list of campaigns, injuries, decorations, and date and cause of departure – and injury or death. The registers were used for years afterward for pensions or as proof of military service.

Each record is rich in information

If you have French ancestry, it is quite possible you will find an ancestor in this dataset. François Ollivier was one of Napoléon’s young recruits who battled to save France in 1814. What, he was a deserter? This register tells the story: every recruit not in hospital deserted that spring. Why? Well, by the first week of April, Prussian and Russian troops were in Paris, and Napoléon had abdicated and fled to Elba Island. François remained in service until May 29th, and no doubt wished to return home as the war was over…

The military roll register shows that this soldier was conscripted in 1812 and participated in the 1814 campaign. Like the other soldiers of his unit, following the defeat and exile of Napoléon, François Ollivier left and no doubt went home. Be sure to check the first page of any series where you find an ancestor; there may be information about the unit’s history!

France’s Ministère des Armées scanned these images from 1,191 registers – representing about 38% of all of Napoléon’s soldiers – and published them online in late 2013. [The inventory, in French, of the original documents can be found here.] However, finding a soldier’s record within the images was nearly impossible if you didn’t already know the unit and timeframe. A Geneanet member passionate about history, Claude Valleron, began indexing the registers in 2014 and was soon joined by other volunteers; since 2016, the project coordinator is member Alain Brugeat who works tirelessly to check and correct data. For example, the image above shows a birthplace difficult to decipher. French indexers are able to correctly identify many such place names. The Ministère des Armées published a second series of registers in 2019; eventually, all surviving registers will be online – and Geneanet members will continue to index them. Parlez-vous Français ? Help us grow this dataset here!

Anecdote of the battle of Jena-Auerstedt, shown in Horace Vernet’s painting (detail) hanging in Versailles: Napoléon was galloping in review past his reserves standing at attention during the battle, while noting his flanks were threatened by cavalry. The impatient troops cried “Long Live the Emperor!’ but also: “En avant !” – “Forward!”. “Why, that could only be a beardless young man, who could be so sure of what I must do; he should wait until he has commanded thirty battalions in a pitched battle before presuming he can advise me.”

There are many other indexing projects at Geneanet honoring soldiers in France and elsewhere in Europe. In particular, there are hundreds of thousands of photos of gravestones of Allied soldiers who fell in France during the First World War and were buried there. Over 600 Allied military cemeteries have been completely photographed and indexed, and a thousand other cemeteries with military plots have been indexed too.

Geneanet volunteers regularly contribute photos of archival documents, monuments and cemeteries, as well as historical postcard images. Volunteers also index the names and places in uploaded documents, which makes pertinent search results possible. The Geneanet website provides members with an easy-to-use interface for uploading and indexing documents. If you are passionate about genealogy and have time to spare, please consider contributing unpublished archives or helping index archives uploaded by others. Visit our forums if you have any questions, the community is there for you!

You can search the Napoléon military rolls (in French) at: https://en.geneanet.org/fonds/search-event/76/napoleon-s-soldiers. 

Boxing Day is almost unknown in the USA although it remains well-known and is celebrated in many other countries around the world. Boxing Day originates from the United Kingdom, but people around the world join in the celebrations as well.

Boxing Day is celebrated every year on December 26, the day after Christmas. It is traditionally a holiday dedicated to giving gifts to the poor or serving those in need. For many, it’s a day to give back and consider the needs of others. It also offers a chance to show appreciation for the service you receive from others—from your mail carrier, your garbage collector, or even your neighbor.

The tradition has been around for centuries—often as a day off for servants who worked on Christmas Day. It also coincides with the celebration of St. Stephen’s Day, which falls on the same day. Today Boxing Day is also widely known for shopping and post-Christmas sales, similar to the U.S. holiday Black Friday. It’s also a big day for sports fans, as many sports—such as football, rugby, and horse racing—feature Boxing Day events.

You can read a detailed description of Boxing Day in the FamilySearch Blog at https://www.familysearch.org/en/blog/what-is-boxing-day.

If you have Acadian heritage in your family tree, you may find some of your ancestors in a book produced by Aroostook County genealogists. Those people might be difficult to find in any other records.

For those not familiar with Maine's geography, I will point out that Aroostook County is the northernmost county in the state, bordering New Brunswick and Quebec provinces. It is also (by far) the largest county in the state and the least populated. For many years, it was also disputed territory, claimed by both the United States and by Great Britain (which felt it belonged to what today is called Canada).

By the way, I used to live in Aroostook County and I later identified a number of my ancestors in a book produced by Aroostook County genealogists.

NOTE: During the War of 1812, the British occupied most of eastern Maine, including Washington County, Hancock County, and parts of Penobscot County, Maine, for eight months, intending to permanently annex the region into British North America as New Ireland. That plan obviously never succeeded. 

The disputed claims of which country governed the territory was settled by negotiations between British diplomat Baron Ashburton and United States Secretary of State Daniel Webster who quickly settled the dispute.

The Webster–Ashburton Treaty of 1842 established the final boundary between the countries, giving most of the disputed area to Maine while a militarily vital connection between Lower Canada and the Maritime colonies was secured by Britain, as well as a project for a commercial right-of-way that would allow British commercial interests to transit through Maine on their way to and from southern New Brunswick or Nova Scotia.

Prior to the treaty that was signed in 1842, the territory was settled by both Americans and Canadians (mostly Acadians). There were few legal restrictions; most of the settlers felt they (and their governments) had a legal right to live there. Because of the disputed territorial claims, very few government agents or employees would ever set foot in the area. These agents and employees from both governments were afraid of being arrested and then incarcerated as "foreign spies."

These "government agents or employees" who would not set foot in the area included census enumerators (those who record the census records). As a result, most of the families living in the area were never listed in the U.S. census records of 1790 through 1840. (The first Canadian coast-to-coast census was not taken until 1881.)

The families that were never documented in U.S. census records were primarily French-speaking Acadians families who had earlier escaped the British Army following the British victory after the Seven Years' War fought between England and France. The British took command of what had been known as Acadia (including present-day regions of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, the Magdalen Islands, and Prince Edward Island).

The book “The Families of the Upper St. John Valley in 1790” contains information regarding 68 families that were not included in the United States’ first census in 1790, compiled and published in 2014 by members of the Aroostook County Genealogical Society.

The 172-plus-page softcover book documents families on both sides of the St. John River, and includes information from all of the known original Acadian families. Some land deed reproductions along with basic details — like marriages and deaths — are included. This publication is a compilation of all the known original families now contained in one volume.

From this small community, literally thousands of descendants are scattered to the four corners of North America. Each chapter includes the head of household, their spouse(s) and their respective parents, their children, and who they married. Other information that will be found is the head of household’s occupation(s), applicable crown land grant(s) and acreage received. Most of this information is not available elsewhere.

The book “The Families of the Upper St. John Valley in 1790” might be found in public libraries in the former Acadian cities and towns but probably will not be found elsewhere. However, you can purchase a copy directly from the Aroostook County Genealogical Society at https://ac-gs.org/publications-for-sale/ for ($34 + $11 shipping & handling) USD funds.

To find out if a person you are searching for is in this book, click here: 1790 Families Name Listing. 

Hampshire County Council is to make more than 500 years of historic records free to access at its libraries and record office from next year.

The council has signed an agreement with Ancestry, the largest family history site in the UK, to digitise parish registers and probate records.

The registers comprise Church of England baptisms, marriages and burials for Hampshire parishes in Winchester Diocese dating from 1536 to 1921.

You can read more at https://bit.ly/3GPskho.

The world has lost one of the leaders in Hispanic Genealogy.

Here is an excerpt from the obituary of Eugene Lewis Torres:

"Eugene was a man of many things, and he helped many who knew him. He grew up learning the ways of a ranch, was a jet airplane mechanic in the Air Force, studied at the Colorado State University and became a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine. For Most of his life he had been caring for animals, but the one thing he was even more passionate about, was being a genealogist. He was a trendsetter in Hispanic Genealogy in the area of Northern New Mexico and Southern Colorado. He helped form the Genealogical Society of Hispanic America, an organization with chapters from California to Colorado."

You can read the entire obituary at: https://legcy.co/3yA9E2g.

It is amazing to think about the changes during the lifetimes of our ancestors. However, we rarely get to hear those ancestors describe the differences themselves. There is one exception: YouTube has a video of a fascinating interview with an 87-year-old farmer that was recorded on film in 1929.

The man admits to having been born and raised in the first half of the previous century (it must have been in 1842). He then compares the changes in his life since the invention of telegraph, typewriter, automobiles, electric lights, and airplanes.

My favorite quote from the interview? "You boys think you're living in just the best time of the world's history, but it's no better than [what] our father's had."

You can watch the (colorized) interview of the old-timer at: https://youtu.be/0yf_c0LYNOw.

If you, like me, "collect" humorous and unusual obituaries, here is one for your collection. It's long, but worth the read. I never met Renay Mandel Corren, but, after reading her obituary, I wish I had.

Here is an excerpt:

"There will be a very disrespectful and totally non-denominational memorial on May 10, 2022, most likely at a bowling alley in Fayetteville, NC. The family requests absolutely zero privacy or propriety, none what so ever, and in fact encourages you to spend some government money today on a 1-armed bandit, at the blackjack table or on a cheap cruise to find our inheritance."

You can read the entire obituary at https://www.fayobserver.com/obituaries/m0028451.

My thanks to newsletter reader Victor T. Jones, Jr. for telling me about  this obit.

The following is a press release issued by the (U.S.) National Archives:

Washington, DC

In accordance with President Biden’s directive of October 22, 2021, the National Archives today posted 1,491 documents subject to the President John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act of 1992 (JFK Act).  Released documents are available for download.

The John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection, established by the National Archives in November 1992, consists of approximately five million pages. The vast majority of the collection has been publicly available without restrictions on access since the late 1990s. As permitted by the JFK Act, agencies appealed to the President to continue postponement of certain information beyond October 22, 2021. The President provided agencies with a temporary certification until December 15, 2022, to allow for a review of all documents withheld in full or in part under section 5 of the JFK Act and directed agencies to “to ensure that the United States Government maximizes transparency, disclosing all information in records concerning the assassination, except when the strongest possible reasons counsel otherwise.”

As of December 15, 2021, all documents subject to section 5 of the JFK Act have been released in full or in part. No documents subject to section 5 of the JFK Act remain withheld in full. Over the next year, the National Archives and the agencies proposing continued postponement of more than 14,000 previously withheld documents will be conducting an intensive review of each remaining section 5 redaction to ensure that the United States Government maximizes transparency. Any information currently withheld from public disclosure that agencies do not propose for continued postponement beyond December 15, 2022, will be released to the public on that date. 

Online Resources:

The President John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection

Documenting the Death of a President

JFK Assassination Records Review Board

JFK Assassination Records FAQs

Warren Commission Report

On the cusp of turning 70 Linda learned that she wasn’t an only child after all, not only that but her newfound sister, Cheryl, was a former co-worker and good friend.

Linda and Cheryl’s story aired recently on the Today Show. If you didn’t get to see Anne Thompson’s report on the sisters take a moment and check it out here:

For Cheryl learning that her father, the man who raised her, wasn’t her biological father was a shock. But reconnecting with her old friend Linda and learning that they were in fact sister, has been a joy.

“It’s been a blessing really,” she said.

Not only have the two reconnected but they learned that for a couple of months each year they live just a mile apart making it that much easier to get reacquainted and build memories as sisters and friends.

You can watch a video about this story at: https://on.today.com/3F3ILpM.

The Jamaican Jewish Cemeteries Preservation Fund (JJCPF) launched its database of Jewish burial grounds in Jamaica today. Volunteers conducted extensive cataloguing of the sites across the island between 2008 and 2017. They recorded 33 burial locations including synagogue-purchased cemeteries, family burial grounds, those that were sold and no longer exist, and plot markers which were part of an interment ground that is now on residential property.

Details may be found at: https://petchary.wordpress.com/2021/12/15/jamaican-jewish-cemeteries-preservation-fund-launches-its-database/.