Member Book: The Tricking of Freya by Christina Sunley

Read any good fiction lately? How about some with a genealogy theme?

A few years ago, genealogist-extraordinare Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak wrote a series of articles for the 24/7 Family History blog about her pursuit of mysteries, cozies and other books with a genealogical theme. I haven't yet cozied up to any of Megan's suggestions and lately it seems that everything I read is on a computer (or iPhone) screen but all that may change this week.

On Thursday night I'll be heading to my favorite neighborhood bookstore to meet a new CGS member. Author Christina Sunley will be reading from her first novel, The Tricking of Freya, at A Great Good Place For Books.

What is her novel about? I hope Christina doesn't mind if I let her tell us in her own words. (You can read more at her blog.)

It’s about a young woman obsessed with unraveling a family secret that takes her all the way to Iceland.

It’s about turning your back on the past, then discovering years later that you can’t move forward in life without coming to terms with your own history.

It’s about forgiving the very family members who have hurt you most deeply.

It’s about being influenced by ancestors who died long before you were born.

It’s about writing your way to redemption.

Christina Sunley
The Tricking of Freya

Thursday, June 11, 2009
7:00 p.m.

A Great Good Place For Books
6120 LaSalle Avenue
Oakland, CA 94611

A-Files Update

On Wednesday, June 3, 2009, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services USCIS and the National Archives and Records Administration NARA held a formal joint signing ceremony in Washington, D.C. to "designate as permanent the immigration files created on the millions of aliens residing in the United States in 1944, as well as those arriving since then." The NARA press lease described the significance:

These Alien Case Files (commonly referred to as A-Files) document the famous, the infamous, the anonymous and the well-known, and are an historical and genealogical goldmine. The new agreement authorizes the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services/Department of Homeland Security to send A-files to the National Archives when 100 years have passed since the birthdate of the subject of a file. The National Archives expects to receive the first transfer of A-files later this year, and will store the files at National Archives facilities in San Francisco and Kansas City. Researchers will be able to access the files at these two sites, or request copies of files. An index will be available to support research use.

CGS member Jeanie W. Chooey Low has been a tireless advocate for the A-Files and active member of "Save Our National Archives" SONA, an ad hoc group formed in 1998 when the Regional NARA were threatened with closure. Jeanie was concerned that the recent publicity, including the USA Today article, made no mention of SONA's ten years of advocacy nor the major contribution of the late Congressman Tom Lantos, California. She sent this:

After ten years of SONA (Save OUR National Archives) advocating to the USCIS and NARA to schedule the accessioning of the Alien Files (A-Files), those two agencies now have an agreement to transfer custody of these invaluable immigration case files from USCIS to NARA. Then too, a major victory was gained by the NARA agreeing that for all time the Alien-Files in the Pacific Region would be allowed to remain at the NARA Leo Ryan Building in San Bruno, CA.

It is the only part of the A-Files in the nation to have "escaped" consolidation to Missouri, and instead be retained as a permanent collection of the Pacific Region National Archives as a local Bay Area treasure.

ACCESSIONING of the ALIEN FILES
Under the Alien Registration Act of 1940, all aliens in the United States were required to register with the Immigration and Naturalization Service (now known as the USCIS, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service). The Alien Registration Files (A-files) are the detailed evidentiary records collected for each of these registered individuals. The contents within these files may include photographs, birth and marriage certificates, visas, employment records, transcripts of testimony, personal artifacts, and other important biographical and historical information.

Although the A-files were first started in the 1940s, some of the A-files contain much older information that was collected and consolidated from earlier entries back and forth through ports of entry into America. For example, the immigration records (e.g. like those from the Chinese Exclusion Act era) that are currently available for public research and viewing at NARA, San Bruno (known as Record Group 85 case files) go as far back as the late 1800s.

The A-files stored at San Bruno are a valuable collection of historic immigration records from the Port of San Francisco, Honolulu, Nevada and Northwest. These A-files not only include records of Chinese immigrants during the Chinese Exclusion period, but also records of such people as German, Italian, and Japanese WW II alien internees; Holocaust survivors; Filipino Freedom Fighters; WWII “war brides”; immigrants from many different regions of Eastern Europe and the Pacific Islands.

In 1998, USCIS began consolidating all of its A-files at a non-research NARA facility in Lee’s Summit, Missouri. At that time a group of educational institutions, researchers, history and genealogical organizations, non-profit organizations, and individuals got together to form SONA (Save OUR National Archives). Their original goal was to prevent the closure of local NARA facilities but it was transformed into a coalition to make sure that the non-current A-files are transferred from the authority of USCIS to NARA so that they can be permanently preserved and made accessible to the public by database. 

For the past 10 years, SONA, under the leadership of former Congressman Tom Lantos (previously representing San Mateo) and others, were able to demand the A-files be stored at San Bruno and never move to Lee’s Summit. Indeed, USCIS has admitted the Pacific Region A-Files are the “lone exception” being the only A-Files that have not been moved to Missouri. However, since the A-files are still under the authority of USCIS, they are not viewable without submission of a formal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request and are subject to possible censure to protect the privacy and/or government sensitivities as determined by USCIS officials.

What is so significant about the accessioning of the A-Files from USCIS to NARA is to make them part of the nation's permanent historic records and guarantee their availability to the public for all time. Government documents are not automatically preserved.

When a government agency such as USCIS normally retires its older documents, NARA must evaluate these records for their historical value before they can be considered for inclusion in NARA’s permanent collection. Approximately 98% of all the records produced by our national government are not preserved by NARA and the A-files were among those originally designated for destruction.

Thus, after 10 years of constant community clamor and support from a wide range of organizations as diverse and far as Australia, the two agencies have finally come to an agreement for the Alien Files to transfer from USCIS to NARA for protection and preservation for future generations of scholars, researchers and family genealogists of many nationalities.

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday
The California Genealogical Society Library

Photograph courtesy of Judy Bodycote, Oakland, California, 2/27/2009.

July Membership Meeting - Steve Danko

July Membership Meeting
Saturday, July 11, 2009
1:00 p.m.
CGS Library
2201 Broadway, Suite LL2
Oakland, California 94612

Genealogy Gadgets and Gizmos: New Technology to Help in Your Research

CGS is thrilled to have member and noted blogger Steve Danko as our speaker for the July membership meeting.

New hardware, software and online technology make finding, recording and sharing information faster and easier than ever. Many of these advancements have found their way into genealogical research, enabling even a moderately technology-capable genealogist to take advantage of these new gadgets and gizmos. New technology allows genealogists to have access to family history data from anywhere in the world. Researchers can avail themselves of genealogy education at times and places of their choosing, collect documents and information more easily and prepare professional-quality family books without the commercial price.

Please note that the short membership meeting starts promptly at 1:00 p.m. Steve's talk follows at approximately 1:20 p.m. Seating is limited so please arrive early. Meetings are open to everyone but non-members pay a $5.00 users fee to enter the library. (Or come and become a member of CGS!)

Dr. Stephen J. Danko holds a Ph.D. in Botany and Plant Pathology and recently completed requirements for the Professional Learning Certificate in Genealogical Studies (PLCGS) from the National Institute for Genealogical Studies, University of Toronto.

Steve began seriously researching his family history ten years ago, focusing primarily on American, Canadian, and Polish records. He has conducted research on location in Poland and Lithuania and has visited the villages in which his immigrant ancestors lived.

Steve writes a daily genealogy research blog where he posts images of family documents and discusses his genealogical research process. In the course of his writing his blog, Steve has reconnected with lost cousins in Poland, the United Kingdom and the United States.

CGS in the News: Family Tree Magazine - July 2009 issue

The July 2009 issue of Family Tree Magazine is out and some CGS researchers are featured in "Changing Gears" an article by Maureen A. Taylor, the Photo Detective, about "reverse genealogy" – finding living relatives to further your research.

Among the five reasons to research forward in time, Maureen counts "grow your family tree" and two of her examples come from the California Genealogical Society. CGS President Jane Lindsey is sited for her use of newspaper research to sidestep San Francisco record gaps after the 1906 earthquake and fire. One of Jane's clients was able to make a Mayflower connection "through the work of researchers on three continents."

CGS example two sites the work that Lavinia Schwarz, Judy Bodycote and Richard Rees did on the Peralta Project and the database they created of some 700 descendants of Luis Maria Peralta.

It's great to see the fantastic research team at CGS acknowledged for their excellent work! Thanks, Maureen.

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday
Intermediate Genealogy Series with Marge Bell
Reading and Transcribing the Handwriting of Colonial America

Photograph courtesy of Tim Cox, Oakland, California 5/9/2009.

Puckerbrushed by Randy

I was gobsmacked to learn that Randy Seaver included the CGSL blog in his Genea-Musings: My Puckerbrush Blog Awards of Excellence and bestowed The Janice Brown Puckerbrush Blog Award for Excellence. Randy writes Genea-Musings and is the most prolific genealogy blogger, just ask anyone. He's been tremendously kind and supportive and his Chula Vista Genealogy Cafe was a model when I got started in the society blogging business. Thank you, Randy, for the honor.

The award was created in honor of genealogy blogger Janice Brown by Terry Thornton, author of Hill Country of Monroe County, Mississippi, who explained that "Janice told us all about the word 'puckerbrush' in an article she posted August 27, 2007, at Cow Hampshire. Terry elaborated a bit further in a comment:

On any land allowed to go fallow and left untended, a wild assortment of wild plants grow – in some areas, this wild growth results in such a thicket of plants that it is almost impossible to push your way through the growth.

So it is with the growth of blogs --- so many that it is impossible to read them all. But in the puckerbrush eventually a few plants/trees become dominant and influence all who view them through the thick surrounding puckerbrush.

And it is those outstanding blogs whose influence spreads beyond just the surrounding rabble of puckerbrush that I'm honoring.

Terry issued this challenge:

Henceforth these awards will be called the Janice Brown Puckerbrush Blog Award for Excellence. All blog authors are hereby challenged to name the ten blogs which have influenced their writing the most and list them as a tribute to Janice --- the Janice Brown Puckerbrush Blog Awards for Excellence.

I see this award as a way to acknowledge the blog authors who paved the way and inspired us to take our own blogging baby steps and to those who continue to influence our work. Here are my ten recipients for the Puckerbrush Blog Award for Excellence:

1.) Steve Danko: Steve's Genealogy Blog was the first blog I ever read. Early in 2007 I stumbled upon his New Year's Resolution list where he pledged to renew his California Genealogical Society membership and help with a society project. Since then he has become a wonderful supporter of CGS and a noted lecturer (he'll be our guest speaker at the July membership meeting.) Steve's blog is the model for what a research blog should be.

2.) Jasia of Creative Gene is my blog mentor and she is the reason I started the blog for the society. Her series Declining Membership in Genealogical Societies should be required reading for every genealogical society board member. As a matter of fact, it's been awhile since I've done a re-read so I'm adding it to my Google Task List. (She always has great ideas.)

3.) Thomas MacEntee of Destination: Austin Family is the king of the GeneaBloggers and one of the most supportive and generous people I know. I am thrilled that we will finally meet at Jamboree. (Summit 2 Son of Blogger is going to be a kick.)

4.) Denise Olson of Family Matters: Tech Support for the Family Historian is my "go-to" person for anything technical and everything macintosh. She is all about helping genealogists into the digital age.

5.) Miriam Robbins Midkiff of Ancestories: The Stories of My Ancestors and the Eastern Washington Genealogical Society Blog has become another blogger buddy. She introduced Scanfest - a monthly online scanning party so genealogists can chat while they digitize photos. Hers was one of the few society blogs out there when I got started.

6.) Linda, the Footnote Maven, and author of the beautiful Shades of the Departed, creates blogs that are as beautiful to look at as they are a pleasure to read. The fact that I ever actually started this blog is a testament to fortitude – hers is a tough act to follow.

7.) Maureen Taylor is an incredibly talented speaker and author who fused her expertise in history, photography and genealogy to become The Photo Detective.

8.) Schelly Talalay Dardashti is the author of Tracing the Tribe: The Jewish Genealogy Blog – a superlative example of what I now know is a niche blog. Whenever I get tempted to go beyond the scope of what the CGSL blog should be I think about Schelly's good example.

9.) Ben Sayer of Mac Genealogist.com is one of my new favorites. He is re-introducing me to my mac genealogy software – Reunion®. I love his QuickTime videos.

10.) Julie Cahill Tarr of GenBlog makes my top ten because I thank her almost everyday. Her post Managing Your Blog(s) is where I learned to create a blog editorial calendar. It's the organizational tool you MUST use if you are writing a society blog. I've just recommended that we create a similar calendar to coordinate our marketing efforts.

There you have it - my top ten, in no particular order. I hope many other gen-bloggers will come forward with their own list of ten influential blog authors.

The Great Lecture You Probably Missed

Laura Spurrier sent this report on the CGS May Membership Meeting with Jim Terzian:

CGS recently hosted a great speaker on heraldry, Jim Terzian. I almost missed the lecture myself, afraid it would be too stuffy. The opposite was true: Jim turned out to be delightful and not a snob at all. (He’s secretary-treasurer of a society called Descendants of the Illegitimate Sons and Daughters of the Kings of Britain, AKA the “royal bastards.”)

Jim started by explaining how coats of arms began as a means of displaying a person’s status and prestige in mostly illiterate medieval society. They continue in use to this day; the Great Seal of the United States is a heraldic seal. Many of our ancestors may have had coats of arms. Only in the British Isles are they restricted to members of the nobility. They are also hereditary, fathers to sons or in some cases to daughters. The fact that a family with the same name as yours has a coat of arms doesn’t mean you can automatically claim it too.

Jim Terzian taking questions before showing his chart.

For genealogists, coats of arms are a form of visual documentation of family trees. For example, if a man with a coat of arms marries a woman with arms in her own right, their sons bear arms showing half of each. All the little add-ons on either side of a shield have significance too. Jim demonstrated how this works by unrolling a gorgeously colored 44” x 22’ chart of all the arms of one of his ancestors, arranged in family tree form. I was thrilled when I realized that she was my ancestor too.

Jim Terzian unrolled his 22 foot chart for all to see.



Detail of the chart.

Photographs courtesy of Tim Cox, Oakland, California, 5/9/2009.

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday
CGS Past President Verne Deubler

Photograph courtesy of Tim Cox, Oakland, California, 5/9/2009.

Report #4: NGS 2009 Family History Conference in Raleigh, North Carolina

Jeffrey Vaillant concludes his reports from Raleigh with this one from Saturday, May 16, 2009:

The day began with another brisk walk to the Convention Center, passing by the State Capital monuments “To Our Confederate Dead” and “To Our Confederate Women”. My abolitionist-unionist brain struggles with the reminders of the Civil War, or as is called here, "The War of Northern Aggression."

This day's learning started with Locating and Interpreting Naturalization Records presented by Gladys Friedman Paulin. Two more morning sessions followed: Order in the Court: Ancestral Trials and Tribulation by Sharon Tate Moody and Okay, I “Got the Neighbors”…Now What do I do with Them!!! by Elizabeth Shown Mills.

I skipped lunch and walked back to the hotel to type up my experiences since I had fallen behind. When I left for the afternoon program I was greeted with a rain downpour and some Southern hospitality in the form of a helpful stranger with an umbrella. Speaking of weather, it has been warm and humid - afterall, this is the South.

The final two lectures were Our National Treasure: The Library of Congress by Pamela Boyer Sayre and What Is a Reasonably Exhaustive Search? by Laura Murphy DeGrazia. Wow, what a lot of learning!

Back to the room to conclude the notes and to start digging in to all the great ideas gathered over the last four days. The NGS will be in Salt Lake City next year starting in late April. It is a great learning experience well worth the time and expense. Thanks for reading and see you at the next CGS meeting – I’ll be the guy with the dark circles under his eyes.

Read the entire series:
Day One: NGS 2009 Report
Day Two: NGS 2009 Report
Day Three: NGS 2009 Report
Day Four: NGS 2009 Report