Archives.com: First two grants announced

Just as Tracing the Tribe was walking out the door to the Family History Library, we received this announcement from Archives.com, naming their first two grant winners.

Are you or a group working on a special project? Would a $1,000 grant enable you or your group to complete the work? Read the announcement and apply online.

Here's the press release:

Archives Announces Two Grant Winners for January 2011 Grant Will Help Recipients to Digitize Historical Records and Explore Black Heritage

(PRWEB) February 8, 2011 -- Archives.com launched its Grant Program in early January and has received a terrific response. In the last 30 days Archives received over 100 applications, and has been extremely impressed with the caliber of project proposals. Archives is pleased to announce not just one, but two Archives.com Grant recipients for January 2011.

These are the first recipients of the Archives.com Grant, an award that will be given monthly. Archives is honored to help the two recipients achieve their goals. Both projects will contribute in unique ways to the preservation of family and community history, which is of central importance to Archives’ mission.

Winners of the January 2011 Archives.com Grant:

Columbia County Historical & Genealogical Society (CCHGS) - CCHGS is an organization dedicated to the preservation of Columbia County, Pennsylvania history. CCHGS would like to transcribe marriage license dockets 1921 to 1939, an estimated nine thousand bride and groom names. Once entered into an electronic database, the records will be made available on the CCHGS website and published in book form. This project will enable researchers worldwide to easily find information about their Pennsylvania ancestors.

CCHGS Vice President Andre Dominguez notes, “This index will be particularly valuable in the case of the bride's index, since the bride's birth name is provided, which could potentially solve a brick wall.”

Archives is honored to assist a project which helps to bring more valuable historical records online. Archives recently integrated a marriage collection from Alachua County, Florida, adding over 45 thousand records and images to its website from a similar time period. We applaud CCHGS’s effort, and are pleased to help them bring these records to the online community.

Myron McGhee - Myron is an amateur historian who would like to explore questions regarding his African-American heritage, and expand on his father’s considerable family history research. Specifically, Myron wants to investigate the hypothesis that his black ancestors were related to a nearby white family of the same name. Myron comments, “In ways yet unknown, I hope that exploration of the relationship between these extended families alters the manner in which typically polarized communities might engage one another.”

Myron seeks to travel to Alabama and interview residents, review deed transcriptions, and scan photographs which will help him to solve this mystery. Ultimately, he will compile and share both his and his father’s findings to honor his family’s proud tradition. Archives.com is delighted to make this second grant award to a project which will make a positive contribution to the research of African-American families in Alabama during this fitting time of Black History Month.

Each recipient will be awarded a $1,000 grant to pursue their projects. Archives believes the work accomplished will be of significance to their families and communities now and in the future.

Thanks to each and every grant applicant for taking the time to share their stories. Applicants from previous months will still be considered for future grant awards. If you have wanted to pursue a family history project but just need a little extra help, we encourage you to visit Archives.com and fill out a grant application.

Congratulations to both of the Archives.com Grant recipients! To read more about the recipients, visit the Archives.com blog where their stories will be posted soon.

About Archives.com

Archives.com is a leading family history Web site that makes discovering family history simple and affordable. The company has assembled more than 1.1 billion historical records – birth, death, marriage, divorce, census, obituary, immigration, military and more – all in a single location, and makes them available at a price that’s up to 80 percent less than the leading competitor. Archives also partners with other leading family history websites to provide integrated record collections, discounted memberships, official certificates and other special promotions – providing a comprehensive resource for researching your family history. Archives.com is free to try for seven days, allowing anyone to explore the benefits of membership without risk or obligation. For more information and to start discovering your family history, please visit www.Archives.com.

For more information or to apply, visit the website. Congratulations to the first two winners.

Tracing the Tribe hopes to see some Jewish genealogy projects on the winners' list in the future.