JGSLA 2010: What you will find!

Don't bother getting vaccinated for the genealogy bug - it won't help! Just be prepared for an amazing genealogy immersion experience this year.

From gold-rush pioneers to goniffs, from geo-tagging to gazetteers, and many other exciting topics, JGSLA 2010 has gathered experts, archivists, professors and authors from around the world to share their knowledge of a diverse range of fascinating topics with you and your fellow conference attendees.

These experts will bring genealogy - and possibly your personal genealogy - to life and present a new world of possibilities.

Regardless of whether you identify as a mind-mapper, Google geek, PC-pusher, Mac-Maven, Litvak, Galitzianer or "somewhere in Russia," JGSLA 2010 is for you!

In fact, you don't even need to be Jewish or researching your Jewish heritage - many programs provide general information, no matter what you are personally researching.

You'll never know whom you'll connect with at lunch, having a cup of coffee or taking a workshop. A long lost cousin? Descendants of your ancestral village? Someone investigating your family?

Will this be the year you find someone to share your research, to collaborate with others, to design a website for your research interests? Will a new resource or database provide that all-important clue enabling a major breakthrough?

You won't know unless you come to this year's conference!

A few tidbits:

-- Ancestry will provide classes and a free (by-appointment) digital scanning service for attendees.

-- JewishGen's Warren Blatt and Michael Tobias will present "JewishGen LIVE at L.A. LIVE” on their latest databases and search capabilities.

-- Steve Morse, a household genealogy name, will present a series on his website's resources, but his new program, presented with daughter Megan, will be "DNA and the Animal Kingdom: Evolution and Genealogy in the Natural World."

Stay tuned for news on workshops, special interest groups, birds-of-a-feather groups, films, breakfasts and tours. Everything you need to know is at JGSLA 2010.

WDYTYA: Library feedback and more

Our friend at Ancestry, society partnership manager Suzanne Russo Adams sent Tracing the Tribe some feedback received from libraries and how the Who Do You Think You Are? series is helping them.

Midwest Genealogy Center (Independence, Missouri):

We have seen an increase in foot traffic in our center. We usually don’t start our busy time of year this early. We have had lots of first-time patrons and are handing out many beginning genealogy materials. The television show is hitting people at an emotional level and they, too, want to find out about their ancestry. Our staff has spent many one-on-one hours with these ancestor hunters and has found it to be a rewarding experience.

Denver Public Library (Denver, Colorado):

Denver Public Library has seen a lot of foot traffic in the past few weeks. With the airing of “Who Do You Think You Are?”…our use statistics have spiked. Not only are many of our “regulars” excited by the program but there are many fresh faces coming in full of expectations.

Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center (Ohio):

We had a meeting Tuesday night, and one member presented an idea about the “Who Do You Think You Are?” series…. An officer of the Seneca County (OH) Genealogical Society thought we could find 3 – 5 “celebrities” of our county and ask them if they would like us to dig into their genealogy…. After we get permission…[we] will do some research and track down what we can on each individual. Then we would have them come to a meeting of the Society and present our findings to them. We have already discussed this with the local newspaper feature writer and she was interested.

Tracing the Tribe thought this idea was particularly useful, and could be utilized by societies around the world. Ask a local celebrity to participate and get a lot of local publicity!

Suzanne also noted a change in the episode schedule. Here's the new schedule:

April 2 – Brooke Shields
April 9 – Sarah Jessica Parker (Repeat)
April 16 – No episode
April 23 – Susan Sarandon
April 30 – Spike Lee

Here's some info on this week's episode with Brooke Shields:

Brooke Shields’ episode is the most royal of the series, taking viewers to New Jersey, Rome, and Paris. In the episode, Brooke seeks to learn more about her father’s aristocratic roots and to learn the origins of the “Torlonia” family name. Watch for Brooke’s visit to the New Jersey State Archives in Newark and the New York Historical Society.

Check out the teaser featuring Brooke Shields, and tune into NBC for the full episode on Friday at 8/7c.

Last Week’s Episode – Matthew Broderick

In last week’s episode, award-winning actor and performer Matthew Broderick set out to learn more about his father’s side of the family. Matthew begins his journey by visiting battlefield grounds of north-eastern France, where he finds out his grandfather served as a medic in World War I. Matthew is surprised to learn that through his grandfather’s heroic military sacrifice, he was awarded the Purple Heart and recommended for the Distinguished Service Cross. But Matthew’s military roots don’t stop there. On a trip to Connecticut, Matthew discovers his great-great-grandfather served in the Civil War and fought in the Battle of Gettysburg. The last leg of Matthew’s journey leads him to Marietta, Georgia, where he visits his great-great-grandfather’s grave site and also solves a 150-year-old mystery.

If you missed the episode, watch it here. [CAVEAT: The link doesn't work if your computer is located outside the permitted geographic area of the US and its territories. See Tracing the Tribe's earlier post explaining the limitations. Tracing the Tribe wonders if those in the permitted area can download it to a CD and send out the CD? Is there some sort of tech coding that would prevent such a CD from playing on an "internationally located" computer? Anyone up for the challenge?]

Suzanne also sent along more on Matthew Broderick's episode and how the team of genealogists discovered his military heritage. Here's some insider information:

Go-to resources: U.S. military records, U.S. Federal Census

How they helped

Matthew Broderick knew little about “Joe the postman” – his grandfather – at the start of this family history journey. But a conversation with his own sister provided Matthew with a valuable clue: their quiet, somewhat ill-tempered grandfather served in World War I and was said to have received money because he got “gassed.” What else could Matthew learn about this side of the family – a side that rarely mentioned its past?

Resource #1: 1919 military service record

Searching through military records at the National Archives in New York City, Matthew learns his grandfather was stationed in France and transferred to the medical department while there. But what did Joe do in the war?

Resource #2: Purple Heart citation and Distinguished Service Cross recommendation

On a French battlefield, Matthew learns more about his grandfather’s job in World War I – he tried to save people. Joe the postman was to go through the battlefields and attend to the wounded while waiting for the stretcher bearers and other medical personnel to arrive. Because of an injury sustained while performing his duties, Matthew’s grandfather was awarded a Purple Heart and recommended for a Distinguished Service Cross, neither of which Matthew nor his sister had known about.

Resource #3: 1910 U.S. Federal Census at Ancestry.com

Matthew decides to take a look at the family of Joe’s wife, Mary, as well. In the 1910 census, Mary is living in an orphanage, another fact of which Matthew and his sister were unaware. Orphanage records explain how Mary’s father, William, died in a work-related accident. Were there more stories about the family that this generation could uncover?

Resource #4: 1850 and 1870 U.S. Federal Census

Matthew continues his search for this side of the family through the census. In 1870, great-grandfather William is living in the same house with his mother and siblings. But where is William’s father? Searching the 1860 census turns up no trace of the family, but the 1850 census does. In that year, William is living at home with both his mother and his father, Robert. What happened between 1850 and 1870?

Resource #5: Civil War enlistment record

The 1860s raise a red flag: Civil War. Was Matthew’s great-great-grandfather involved? An index of individuals from Connecticut who served in the Civil War indicates that yes, Robert did serve in the Civil War, and enlistment records for Robert go a step further, giving a physical description of him and his date of enlistment. Civil War service records and muster rolls place Robert in the Battle of Gettysburg, but that wasn’t the end of the line.

Resource #6: Inventory of Effects from Final Statements

An Inventory of Effects offers the final details: Matthew’s great-great-grandfather died at the Battle of Peachtree Creek.

Why didn’t the “gassed” story steer the research off course?

Matthew mentions at the start of the show that it’s easy to lose family history connections when you don’t write them down. But you can also lose the true stories to faulty memory and recounting, which may have been what happened over the years as the tale of Matthew’s grandfather’s military service became progressively fuzzier.

It’s easy to get hung up on the small stuff, but if Matthew had limited his search to battles in which Germans employed chemical warfare in World War I, he may have never discovered the place where his own grandfather was injured. However, using the “gassed” story as a starting point did trigger Matthew’s search into military records and helped Matthew make a very important discovery: that his grandfather was more than Joe the postman – he was also an American military hero.

Check out www.ancestry.com/spreadtheword for materials you can use to tell others about the series.

TV: A Noah's Ark of immigrants - more

A nation of immigrants looks at its ancestors - and its genealogy.

Ancestry and genealogy cut across all ethnic/religious lines. The process of discovery has meaning for all of us no matter our origins.

In for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Rob Owen reports on a press conference for the new PBS' Faces of America, hosted by Harvard University Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. It premieres tonight (Wednesday, February 10) at 8pm ET. on PBS channels.

"I call it the Noah's Ark approach," Dr. Gates said of his new program during the PBS press conference. " 'African-American Lives' was so popular, I got thousands of letters from people who weren't black, saying, 'What about me?' Particularly Jewish people from Russia, with Russian roots, saying, 'Why don't you try to trace us?'... Russian, Jewish lineages are very, very hard to trace. People in Japan --very, very hard to trace. So I wanted to take that on.

"So, like Noah, I wanted two Muslims, two Jews, two Asians," he said. "Yo-Yo Ma is a friend of mine, so I thought it would be intriguing to do him. I had always admired [Yamaguchi], and I thought it would be a great way to do it, to meet her. ... We had one person, Tony Shalhoub had said yes. He was my other Arab person, and then his shooting schedule [conflicted]. He had to cancel it. So then, I asked Mehmet Oz, and he agreed right away."

In the story on the show in the Los Angeles Times, Gates shares more of his concept:

When Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. started his latest genealogical project for PBS, which used historical archives and cutting-edge genetic research to trace the ancestry of a dozen famous Americans, he already had one hoped-for outcome in mind.

"I wanted to pick someone who is Jewish and someone who is Muslim and pray we get the same result in their DNA," he said.

Sure enough, genetic testing revealed that director Mike Nichols, of Eastern European Jewish heritage, and surgeon and television host Mehmet Oz, the son of Turkish Muslim immigrants, had a common paternal ancestor thousands of years ago."That is like affirming the story of Abraham," Gates said delightedly.

Also, the New York Times reviewed the series, which looks at celebs Meryl Streep, Mike Nichols, Queen Noor of Jordan, Mario Batali, Malcolm Gladwell, Elizabeth Alexander, Louise Erdrich, Dr. Mehmet Oz, Yo-Yo Ma, Stephen Colbert, Eva Longoria and Kristi Yamaguchi.

But that is perhaps fitting for the subject: watching this solemn, painstaking examination of immigrants’ roots is a little like trying to pry juicy family stories from an elderly aunt at Thanksgiving dinner: There are some tedious detours and false starts, but the unexpected details and touching sidebars are worth the effort.

Among the surprises: Gladwell learns that a Jamaican ancestor was a free colored woman who also owned slaves. Nichols learns he is indeed related to Albert Einstein. Yamaguchi learns about her nisei grandfather, a WWII war hero., the only Japanese-American in his unit. Alexander is a descendant of King John of England.

Ms. Longoria, who is Mexican-American, is not afraid to look at her pie chart and discover that while she is 70 percent European, she is also 27 percent Asian (and 3 percent African). When told that she has a genetic tie to Yo-Yo Ma, she jokes, “He’s Mexican?”

Queen Noor learns about her first-generation grandfather Najeeb, buried in Brooklyn, and she visits the grave for the first time.

Her ignorance about her own roots is as telling about the willful amnesia that clouds many immigrants’ assimilation process as anything else she reveals. But Mr. Gates doesn’t ask questions, he answers them.

I'm hoping the series will be shown in Israel. The site for the show indicates that the first full-length episode will be available online on Thursday, February 11, so see the show's website for more.

One very good section is for educators, and includes detailed lesson and learning activity plans, optional activities, additional websites and relevant episode clips for specific lessons from the Video Segments Page.

Here's some info on the lesson plans and links:

Grades 2-4: Exploring the Past: Lesson Overview
Hands-on, media-enhanced lesson challenges students to gather clues about the past through photographs, drawings and other primary source materials.

Grades 5-7: They’re Coming to America: Immigrants Past and Present: Lesson Overview
Students explore the history of America

Grades 7-9: A Cold Reception: Anti-Immigrant Sentiment in the United States: Lesson Overview
Students explore the hostile reception immigrants have often received from anti-immigrant “nativists.”

Grades 9-12: I Dream of Genome: Lesson Overview
Exploring types of genetic information in the human genome.

Read the newspaper articles at the link above.

Illinois: Family history Internet resources, Nov. 8

The Jewish Genealogical Society of Illinois will host Harriet Rudnit on "Using World Wide Web Resources in Researching Your Family History," on Sunday, November 8.

The program will cover use of various websites and the finer points of searching Google, Ancestry and JewishGen. It is geared to all levels of researchers.

Doors open at 12.30pm at Temple Beth Israel in Skokie for attendees to use the library or receive help from experts. The main program starts at 2pm.

For more information, click here.

New York: Dutchess County naturalizations, 1932-1989

New York's Dutchess County has received an Ancestry.com grant to scan and digitize naturalization records, 1932-1989. Records of some 20,000 individuals will be included.

The grant doesn't involve money; rather, ancestry.com will do the work to digitize original petitions for naturalization, signed oaths of allegiance and original photographs, according to the statement.

"I am very excited to see this worthy project become a reality," Kendall said. "These records record the bravery and the determination of so many who left a world they knew to travel to America seeking a more prosperous life."

The searchable database will be placed on Ancestry.com and available to the site's subscribers.

Ancestry adds five databases

In honor of Abraham Lincoln's birthday, Ancestry.com has added more than 4 million new records in five new databases focused on the Civil War period.

If your Jewish families came to the Southern states early on, these resources mayhelp you find information on those ancestors who served in the Confederate Army.

The most useful:

• Confederate Pension Applications from Georgia offers more than 60,000 records documenting pension applications filed in Georgia from Confederate soldiers and their widows. As part of the application process, applicants answered a series of questions about themselves and signed the document, resulting in a wealth of personal information.
• Confederate Applications for Presidential Pardons has more than 15,000 records of former Confederate soldiers and government officials requesting Presidential pardons.
• U.S. Civil War Soldier Records and Profiles contains more than 4.2 million records and profiles about nearly every officer and soldier who fought in the Civil War. Many of the records include actual photographs of the individuals.

The remaining two sets include the letters of President Abraham Lincoln, with some 20,000 documents,and New Orleans Slave Manifests 1807-1860 with images of ship manifests transporting some 30,000 slaves to New Orleans from upper Southern states.

Chicago 2008: A new chapter, Part 1

While whispers of a JewishGen/Ancestry relationship have been flying around the Jewish genealogical world for several months, the formal agreement announcement was made public Tuesday night, August 19, at the Chicago 2008 conference.

Speaking at the meeting were Ancestry CFO David Rinn, David G. Marwell of the Museum of Jewish Heritage, and Ancestry indexing manager Crista Cowan.

Comments focused on features, tools, functionalities and extensive Jewish content being added to Ancestry's seven billion names and 26,000 databases. Both Ancestry and JewishGen will cross-market this new arrangement to their constituencies; Rinn called the arrangement "good for the genealogical eco-system."

Over the years, JewishGen has experienced technical problems with servers and other issues. The data will now be housed on Ancestry's more robust servers providing improved reliability

Marwell said that this "new chapter" in the life of JewishGen, will "build on and extend the organization" founded by former JewishGen director Susan King. The arrangement was concluded, he said, after "a long and complex negotiation."

The bottom line is that JewishGen's data will remain free and freely accessible. Technically, JewishGen will be more stable and able to sustain a growing database.

The arrangement grew out of financial difficulties at JewishGen. Said Marwell, Ancestry makes money, while JewishGen loses money, and needed the means to survive. The financial aspects of the deal will enable JewishGen to extend its reach, while thriving in a stable environment.

According to Marwell's comments to the packed room of conference attendees, Ancestry will provide "pipe and power" - hardware, bandwith, facilities - while JewishGen will remain an independent non-profit entity, with its own management, and free forever. Ancestry will not administer JewishGen and will not have access to registrants' personal data.

Technically, this will result in better user experiences for both sites, with more records online and better navigation capabilities. Rinn called it a win-win situation: While Ancestry gains new content and a new user base, JewishGen gains the benefit of marketing experience and access to more users. The new partnership makes Jewish genealogy resources more accessible.

The Jewish genealogy world has also been hearing about Ancestry's negotiations with seven additional Jewish entities for more content, including digitization projects. At posting time, no further information was available.

Ancestry indexing manager Crista Cowan offered a glimpse of how the new integrated system will operate as she searched Rinn's Jewish family and provided new records in various databases, including Jewish Records Indexing - Poland (http://www.jri-poland.org/) for the RYN family's Lublin records.

JRI-Poland associate director Hadassah Lipsius said JRI-Poland is an independent organization whose database, website and discussion groups are hosted by JewishGen; she released a written statement:

"After thorough discussion by the JRI-Poland board, it was voted to grant permission to JewishGen to sub-license some JRI-Poland data to Ancestry. This will include nearly 1.5 million index listings from Polish-Jewish records microfilmed by the LDS and historical sources. This will not include any data indexed pursuant to JRI-Poland's agreement with the Polish State Archives (PSA)."

Search results on Ancestry will provide a link back to JRI-Poland, and the data will remain free forever on Ancestry agreement.

(Part II follows)

Chicago 2008: A new chapter, Part 2

(Continued from Part 1)

Said Cowan, some 9.3 million people have partial Jewish ancestry, without any religious or cultural connection. They don't know about Jewish resources to help their research. "A novice," she said, "can find Jewish ancestors using their memory, documents and resources like Ancestry and JewishGen."

She illustrated advanced search techniques. Searching for "Jewish" in Ancestry, produced 46,249 records in such groups as census and voter lists, while another 18,000 were in immigration databases. Other terms - such as Hebrew or Yiddish - will also produce many records.

Comparing the two entities: Ancestry has some 8.9 million records in such categories as Jewish names and Jewish databases - mostly American - while JewishGen has some 13 million records in databases and tools - mostly European.

The evening ended with numerous questions from the audience. Attendees were asked to submit written questions for the JewishGen presentation Wednesday evening.

A reception was held for JewishGen leaders, including SIG moderators, coordinators and others, with comments by Marwell and JewishGen managing director Warren Blatt. It was explained that the initial agreement is for five years and renewable. JewishGen has granted a license to Ancestry to use this data, according to Blatt.

According to individuals in attendance, the comment was made that JewishGen data remains the property of JewishGen and will be free on Ancestry. The last comment is important to donors of material as it was understood at the time of donation that the material would always be accessible without charge on JewishGen.

As to material donated by many individuals, JewishGen maintains that current donor agreements are sufficient and will not need to be revisited. What will be transferred - not sold - is most of the collections under the database section of the site.

The agreement does not include transfer to Ancestry of the Family Tree of the Jewish People, JewishGen Family Finder, yizkor (memorial) books or ShtetlLinks - No personal information on any registered user of JewishGen will be transferred or ever accessible, including discussion groups and those archives.

While the Ancestry press release says yizkor book data will be accessible, JewishGen leaders say it will not. Warren Blatt clarified that the bibliographic database and the necrology database are included in the licensing arrangement, but the translation texts of yizkor books will not be included.

To learn what will be included - a full list will be released soon - click here www.jewishgen.org/databases. Not included are the Family Finder, Family Tree of the Jewish People and the discussion group archives.

Some voiced the perception that Ancestry is linked to the LDS church, and that JewishGen data might be used for other purposes. The answer was that there is no danger of the church gaining access to JewishGen data, and that the parent company is a completely independent entity.

It was agreed that it was important to make sure JewishGenners understand the agreement: Ancestry and JewishGen are not merging, nor has Ancestry bought JewishGen, that JewishGen's website will remain "as is," and that JewishGen's data will remain free and accessible on Ancestry.

However, users performing a search may see links to Ancestry databases, and while JewishGen will remain free to users, some links may be to for-fee sections of Ancestry. Searchers of Ancestry will see backlinks to JewishGen for more information.

JewishGen will receive a percentage of any new subscriptions for Ancestry when users join through JewishGen.

Transfer of data to new servers will begin in September with integrated functionality available in October, although Ancestry says material will be there by the end of the year.

Chicago 2008: JewishGen-Ancestry press release

Tonight's evening program at the conference was the announcement of the agreement between Ancestry.com and JewishGen.org.

There will be another post with more information following this post. For more information, click www.ancestry.com/JewishHeritage

Here is the joint press release:

ANCESTRY.COM AND JEWISHGEN ALIGN TO PROVIDE MORE ONLINE ACCESS TO MILLIONS OF JEWISH HISTORICAL DOCUMENTS

Partnership Enables Broader Research of Jewish Ancestry Through Powerful Search Tools in One Centralized Location

CHICAGO – Aug. 19, 2008 – The Generations Network, Inc., parent company of Ancestry.com, and JewishGen, a non-profit organization dedicated to researching and promoting Jewish genealogy and an affiliate of the Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust, today announced a partnership designed to provide easier online access to millions of important Jewish historical documents. JewishGen's collection of databases will be integrated and be made available for free on Ancestry.com, making these historical Jewish records and information ore accessible than ever before. As part of the agreement, the JewishGen site will also be hosted in Ancestry.com's data center.

For the first time ever, those interested in researching Jewish ancestry will be able to search JewishGen's databases on Ancestry.com, taking advantage of Ancestry.com's powerful search technologies, including tree hinting and the ability to search all JewishGen databases through one simple interface. The agreement will also give researchers the ability to make connections within family trees and to perform broader searches – searching JewishGen's databases in combination with the other 7 billion names and 26,000 databases available on Ancestry.com. In addition, visitors will be able to network with millions of Ancestry.com members to connect with others interested in Jewish genealogy and discover distant relatives.

"We are thrilled to be collaborating with JewishGen, an elite and well-respected resource in the Jewish genealogy community," said Tim Sullivan, president and CEO of The Generations Network. "Both organizations are committed to the preservation of important historical records. We look forward to working with JewishGen and to making these wonderful collections even more accessible for free on Ancestry."

Under the new agreement, some of the important JewishGen content that will be available on Ancestry.com includes databases from many different countries, the Holocaust Database, Yizkor Books (memorial books from Holocaust survivors), The Given Names Database and JewishGen ShtetlSeeker, among others. The JewishGen collections will be available on Ancestry.com by the end of the year.

"This important partnership between JewishGen and Ancestry.com demonstrates a commitment both to preserving Jewish heritage and providing the public with unprecedented access to these records," said Warren Blatt, Managing Director of JewishGen. "The impact on the genealogy community will be significant; not only will genealogists now have the use of powerful search tools to make research easier, they will be able to find everything for their Jewish heritage research needs at one location."

David G. Marwell, Director, Museum of Jewish Heritage, said, "The continuity of Jewish heritage is central to the Museum's mission. We are pleased that this partnership will make it easier for users to discover their Jewish roots and connect or re-connect to their family's history."

To learn more about this important agreement, or if you would like a sneak peek of the Jewish collections that will be available on Ancestry.com, visit www.ancestry.com/JewishHeritage.

About JewishGen

JewishGen, www.jewishgen.org, became an affiliate of the Museum on January 1, 2003. An Internet pioneer, JewishGen was founded in 1987 and has grown from a bulletin board with only 150 users to a major grass roots effort bringing together hundreds of thousands of individuals worldwide in a virtual community centered on discovering Jewish ancestral roots and history.

Researchers use JewishGen to share genealogical information, techniques, and case studies. With a growing database of more than 11 million records, the website is a forum for the exchange of information about Jewish life and family history, and has enabled thousands of families to connect and re-connect in a way never before possible.

About Ancestry.com

With 26,000 searchable databases and titles and nearly 3 million active users, Ancestry.com is the No. 1 online source for family history information. Since its launch in 1997, Ancestry.com has been the premier resource for family history, simplifying genealogical research for millions of people by providing them with many easy-to-use tools and resources to build their own unique family trees. Ancestry.com is part of The Generations Network, Inc., a leading network of family-focused interactive properties, including www.myfamily.com, www.rootsweb.com, www.genealogy.com and Family Tree Maker. In total, The Generations Network properties receive nearly 8.5 million unique visitors worldwide (© comScore Media Metrix, March 2008). To easily begin researching your family history, visit www.ancestry.com.

Here is the JewishGen and Ancestry Fact Sheet:

We are pleased to announce that JewishGen.org, the premier resource for Jewish genealogy, and Ancestry.com, the largest online resource for family history information, have entered into a cooperative agreement.

Basics of the agreement:

• JewishGen will make some of its databases available on the Ancestry website.
• Ancestry will provide hardware and network support for the JewishGen website.

Benefits of the agreement:

• JewishGen will be able to provide more robust and functional resources to genealogists throughout the world.
• Specific and immediate improvements will be seen in the speed of the website, along with greater accessibility when searching databases.
• More people will be exposed to Jewish genealogy and have access to a greater range of resources to assist in researching family history.
• JewishGen's comprehensive records and information, contributed by volunteers from around the world, will continue to remain freely available on JewishGen.org.

Details of the agreement:

• JewishGen remains an independent non-profit organization, affiliated with the Museum of Jewish Heritage - A Living Memorial to the Holocaust.
• There will be no change to the JewishGen management team, structure or affiliation with the museum.
• This new agreement, combined with generosity of our donors throughout the world, will allow us to continue offering all of JewishGen's extensive resources for no charge.
• Privacy of personal information for JewishGen users is of key importance to us. Information about JewishGen registrants will not be shared.
• Personal informtion stored on JewishGen, such as data entered into the JGFF and Family Tree of the Jewish People, will not be shared.
• JewishGen will continue to independently administer the JewishGen website, mailing lists and affiliates.