New York: Spying on ancestors, June 28

"Spying on Ancestors" is the topic of the next meeting of the Jewish Genealogical Society of Long Island (JGSLI) on Sunday, June 28. The program starts at 2pm at the Mid-Island Y JCC, in Plainview, New York.

The focus is on practical use of reconnaissance and cartographic resources by Jordan Auslander, always an interesting and humorous speaker.

Maps are frozen geographical snapshots combined with contemporary and current gazetteers. Dictionaries of place names will form the core of this talk.

Other applicable resources will be discussed, Allied, captured German aerial reconnaissance photography, satellite imagery and what details can be discerned from them, their availability on-site, at the FHL, NYPL, Library of Congress, NARA and online, including Google Earth.

With the proper tools and context, many genealogical details can be gleaned from these unique visual resources such as historical street patterns, layouts of since-destroyed towns, even the shadows of ancestors.

New York-based genealogical researcher, lecturer and expert witness, Auslander has pursued cases across the US, Europe and Israel; published an index to vital records in the Slovak State Archive system and the Genealogical Gazetteer of the Kingdom of Hungary. He holds a BA in history.

His video "Heir Jordan, Extreme Genealogist" won RootsTelevision.com's Telly Award.

The program is free. Society experts will be available from 1.30pm to assist with questions. For more information, visit the JGSLI.