Footnote.com: Revolutionary War records free through July 7

Our friends at Footnote.com are providing free access to their Revolutionary War Collection, now through July 7, in honor of Independence Day.


The unique collection features millions of original records found nowhere else on the Internet.

Jewish genealogists can also discover records, such as this pay roll (left) for David Levy in 1779.

Genealogists and history buffs can discover new details about the Revolutionary War in such records as:

-- Soldier Service Records
-- Original letters written by Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin and other founding fathers
-- Revolutionary War Pension Files
-- Payment Vouchers for Military Pensions
-- George Washington Correspondence

Visit the Revolutionary War Collection today as free access ends July 7.

Washington DC: Jewish chaplains monument

Plans are set for a memorial to Jewish chaplains at Arlington National Cemetery to be dedicated in October 2010, according to a story in the Washington Jewish Week.

Tracing the Tribe read about the memorial campaign in the DC Jewish History blog of the Jewish Historical Society of Greater Washington.

The Jewish Historical Society (JHSGW) has initiated a local fundraising campaign for the monument and for a booklet detailing the cemetery's Jewish sites and the chaplains' history. The goal is to raise a total of $10,000 from at least 100 area residents, to make it a true community project.

The new monument will memorialize nine Jewish chaplains who died in World War II, one in Korea and three who died during the Vietnam War era, according to Sol Moglen of Caldwell, N.J., who is spearheading the project with Ken Kraetzer of Westchester, N.Y.

The project has already raised $30,000 and the current campaign will fund publication of the 30-page booklet, including the Jewish chaplains' history, and to cover travel costs to the dedication for the nine chaplains' family members.

The booklet, in conjunction with the Jewish Genealogical Society of Greater Washington, will also include information on other Jewish service members buried at the cemetery. For more information on the JGSGW's Arlington Cemetery project, click here. The 31st IAJGS International Conference on Jewish Genealogy - DC 2011 - will be hosted by the JGSGW - August 14-19, 2011 - at the Grand Hyatt.

Readers who would like to help this project may click Contribute; make sure to put "Arlington Campaign" in the designation box.

For more information, see the complete article at the first link above.

Book: Jews and the Civil War

The New York Jewish Week book column spotlighted a book on Jews and the Civil War.

Sandee Brawarsky's column mentioned "Jews and the Civil War: A Reader," in addition to other books on different topics.

Civil war buffs are an insatiable crew, and here’s a new book that will appeal to them, as well as to others interested in American Jewish history, culture and identity.

“Jews and the Civil War: A Reader” edited by Jonathan D. Sarna and Adam Mendelsohn (NYU) is a collection of essays by noted scholars, edited by Sarna, professor of American Jewish history at Brandeis and chief historian of the National Museum of American Jewish History, and Mendelsohn, a professor of Jewish studies and director of the Center for Southern Jewish Culture at the College of Charleston, in South Carolina.

The wide-ranging pieces describe how Jews experienced the war, in the North and in the South, and how the war divided Jews. Contributors take up the subjects of Jews, slavery and abolition; the role of rabbis; Jewish civilian life; Jews in the army — more than 8000 Jewish soldiers fought — and on the home front.

Also mentioned in the article:

-- “Blows to the Head: How Boxing Changed My Mind,” by Binnie Klein (Excelsior Editions).

-- “Keep Your Wives Away From Them: Orthodox Women, Unorthodox Desires – An Anthology,” edited by Miryam Kabakov.

-- “Bedouin Law from Sinai and the Negev: Justice Without Government,” by Clinton Bailey (Yale University Press).

Read the complete column at the link above.

Doing the happy dance!

We all like to read about genealogy "happy dance" moments!

From my dear friend Rosanne Leeson (Los Altos, California), comes this delightful email. She wants everyone to be as happy as she is now after watching the Matthew Broderick episode of "Who Do You Think You Are?" and following a clue on the show to the solution to a Civil War family mystery.

Her family arrived very early in the USA (pre-Civil War) and she is an experienced and seasoned researcher of her Jewish family.

Wow! I am sitting here with tears in my eyes!

I have just had my first benefit from watching the "Who Do You Think You Are?" show!

Saw the last one with Matthew Broderick, when he finds his great-great's grave in the Marietta GA National Cemetery. I never even knew that such a cemetery existed, or that they had moved Union dead there from Atlanta.

I had been hoping for ages to find out what ever happened to my great-grandmother's youngest brother, who she had brought over to the US from Bavaria in the early 1860's. I had gotten his record from NARA, knew when and where he had died (in a hospital in Atlanta of miliary fever).

Had asked someone in Atlanta to try to find out what had happened to his body. The only answer I got was that they had probably thrown his remains into a common or pauper's grave. NICE!

He had only been in the US a short time, spoke very little English, but signed up to fight for the Union cause in NY, where my great-grandparents were living. He was 20 years old when he died. I always felt so sad that there was no closure for any of the family descendants.

Then I learned about the Marietta National Cemetery. Got online and found not only history of it, but a list of those buried there. BINGO! Great-Grand-uncle found!

I just called the cemetery and the gentleman was wonderful. They are sending out someone to see if he had a stone and, if so, to photograph it for me, and send in a week. He said that he thought there might be a stone or his name would not have been on the list. If not, I will order one. No fee for a picture! Their duty and pleasure to add closure after nearly 150 years!

WOW!

Rosanne, a semi-retired librarian, is a consummate genealogist, specializing in Romania (RomSIG) and Alsace (has translated many records and visited over the years). She's also vice president of the San Francisco Bay Area Jewish Genealogical Society.

What this points up is that even very experienced researchers can learn something every day!

We never know when a ray of sunshine will illuminate that lost record that has eluded us for decades. We never know when a resource may provide a missing link.

I'm sure all Tracing the Tribe readers join me in congratulating Rosanne on her achievement, and congratulating WDYTYA on providing the clue.

Our well-known colleague Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak noted this post in her most recent Huffington Post article. Thanks, Megan.

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.

USHMM: Soviet Jewish officers and Germany, March 18

"Jewish Revenge? Soviet Jewish Officers' Encounters with Germany, 1945" is the 2010 Ina Levine lecture at the US Holocaust Memorial Museum on Thursday, March 18, in Washington DC.

It starts at 7pm in the Helena Rubinstein Auditorium, 100 Raoul Wallenberg Place SW.

Professor Oleg Budnitskii will present his work on Soviet Jewish identity through the lens of the Soviet Jewish military experience of World War II.

In Moscow, Budnitskii is: Senior research fellow, Institute of Russian History, Russian Academy of Sciences; academic director, International Center for Russian and Eastern European Jewish Studies: and professor of history, Department of Jewish Studies, Institute of Asian and African Studies, Moscow State University.

The author of numerous works, he most recently published (2008) Den'gi russkoi emigratsii: Kolchakovskoe zoloto, 1918-1957 (Money of the Russian Emigration: Kolchak's Gold, 1918-1957) and (2005) Rossiiskie evrei mezhdy krasnymi i belymi, 1917-1920 (Russian Jews between the Reds and the Whites, 1917-1920) of which an English translation is being published by the University of Pennsylvania Press.

For more information or to register, click here. To learn about past presentations and hear recordings, click here.

Footnote.com: WWII collection free in December

Today, Footnote.com has opened its extensive WWII collection to free public access during December.

In honor of Pearl Harbor Day, this largest WWII grouping, including the first-ever interactive USS Arizona Memorial, offers more than 10 million records, documents and photos from the National Archives. These resources will help more people to better understand the historical events and to find family members who served in the various military branches.

A quick check for COHEN resulted in 283 mentions in various categories. Try your own names of interest to see what information is available.

The Interactive USS Arizona Memorial online version allows viewers to see the actual wall of names and search for those they know. An interactive box for each name features additional information for each veteran, and provides a place where viewers can contribute photos and stories. As an example, view Franklin Van Valkenburgh - The USS Arizona's captain - on the wall.

Although more than 2 million WWII veterans are still alive today in the US, thousands of veterans are lost each month - taking their WWII stories with them. Footnote's efforts to help preserve and transmit these stories is assisted by digitizing National Archives documents and providing tools to help people connect and honor their family members.

Footnote.com's press release mentioned Christina Knoedler of Pennsylvania, who used the Missing Air Crew Reports to discover information about her WWII vet father-in-law. “The other night, I showed him what I had found,” explains Christina. “He couldn’t believe that these papers existed. They had not only his name but also his buddies’ names. He started to reminisce and it was quite an evening. This will allow me to go back and document many more events in our family’s history for the generations to come.”

In addition to the Missing Air Crew Reports, the other WWII collections at Footnote.com include:

Pearl Harbor Muster Rolls
U.S. Air Force Photos
Submarine Patrol Reports
Japanese Air Target Analysis
Army JAG Case Files
Navy JAG Case Files
Naval Press Clippings
Allied Military Conferences
Holocaust Records

According to Footnote.com CEO Russell Wilding, people are making fascinating discoveries in the records. Reading the first-hand accounts helps viewers develop a different view and appreciation of WWII heroes and their experiences.

Experience the Interactive USS Arizona Memorial and the World War II collection.

Florida: How Fort Myers got its name

Have you visited Fort Myers in Florida and wondered how it got its name?

The story has a bit of everything: Love, gossip, war.

Read all about it here.

It was the love of a woman that got Fort Myers its name, but that same woman's tart tongue effectively ended its namesake's career.

The name originated as sort of an engagement gift from General David. E. Twiggs, who in 1850, was in charge of a fort on the Caloosahatchee, yet the Jewish Confederate who received it never actually visited the place.

According to the story, Twiggs was not the kind of guy you'd like to invite home for dinner, but he commanded the respect of his men.

He did however like one of his staff officers. Abraham C. Myers, born c1811 in Georgetown, S.C.

An 1833 graduate of West Point and the scion of a prominent Southern Jewish family, Myers was the son of an attorney, and a descendant of Moses Cohen, the first rabbi in Charleston, S.C. He'd fought with distinction in the Seminole and Mexican Wars before becoming the Chief Quartermaster of the Department of Florida.

Twiggs' daughter was in love with Myers, having met him in Texas. In honor of his future son-in-law and to make his daughter happy, he named fort for Myers. The couple married in 1853 when she was 15 and he was 42.

Confederate President Jefferson Davis also liked Myers who had joined the Confederate Army in 1861. He appointed him the first quartermaster general and Myers remained in that post until 1853 when Myers had some "problems." That's the public story anyway.

The real story was that Marion caused the problem as she was "quite the gossip." Beautiful and with "a wicked tongue" she had her father's temperament.

The final blow to Myers' career came when Marion publicly described the olive-skinned Varina Howell Davis, the president's wife, as a 'squaw.'"

Historians didn't say whether the colonel apologized to Mrs. Davis, but Davis replaced him in 1863. In 1865, the Myers family left for Germany and returned in 1876.

If you're planning to be in Miami Beach in 2010, Myers will be featured in a Florida Jews in the Military exhibit, from February 23-September 12, at the Jewish Museum of Florida.

Read the complete article and related stories at the link above.

Switzerland: Major WWI casualty archive discovered

British historian Peter Barton has unearthed information that could help thousands of people with their family histories, according to this BBC News story.

Barton was commissioned to carry out research into the identities of World War I casualties discovered in a mass grave at Fromelles in France, and received access to the Geneva-based Red Cross headquarters basement, the first researcher to see these records.

Details deal with capture, injuries, death, or field burials of servicemen from more than 30 countries, and sometimes include personal effects, home addresses and grave sites. The Red Cross received these details from the combatants; volunteers recorded details before sending them to the home countries.

Some of the records refer to other mass graves, with exact directions as to where they were dug, and the identities of the soldiers who were buried. Where possible, the registers include home addresses and next of kin.

He examined records untouched since 1918 and estimate there could be as many as 20 million records in the old cardboard boxes filled with thousands of index cards and hundreds of registers, compiled between 1914-1918.

According to Peter Barton, the UK's copies no longer exist, but the originals are still here and are immensely important.

"To a military historian, this was like finding Tutankhamen's tomb and the terracotta warriors on the same day," he told me.

"I still can't understand why no-one has ever realised the significance of this archive - but the Red Cross tell me I'm the first researcher who has asked to see it."

The records could potentially reveal the whereabouts of individuals whose remains were never found, or never identified. Grave after grave in the World War I cemeteries mark the last resting place of an unknown soldier.

The Red Cross must now address preservation and digitization of the paper records. Two million pounds has been earmarked for the project which will start in the fall, and will involve experts from all over Europe. The organization says it will almost certainly ask for volunteers to join their own archivists.

The organisation's head of press, Florian Westphal, admitted they had never faced a challenge quite like this: "First we have to make sure that we preserve the original records," he told me. "Then, this autumn, we will begin the process of digitising the World War I section of the archive - we expect that phase of the project to cost around four million Swiss Francs."

According to the Red Cross, it hopes to have the archive online by 2014, a century after the start of WWI. Those records and today's technology will unlock a piece of history.

There may be more to come, as this careful record-keeping extended through World War II, and to more recent conflicts. There are many more index cards in more boxes on more shelves.

Read the complete story at the link above, and see the video on the same page which covers Barton working with the records.

Ancestry.com: New resources added

This week, Ancestry.com added some interesting new resources.

The US City Directories database has been supplemented by some 50 million names in 1,100 city directories from 45 states and Washington, DC. This includes directories around the year 1890. and the collection's high quality grayscale images offered are clearer than images in previous collections.

City directories are very important assets in tracking ancestors. You may be surprised at what you can find in these valuable resources. Even better, Ancestry plans to add thousands of additional directories over the next few months. Search this database here.

For more on the new directories, see Chris Lydiksen's Ancestry.com blog post here.

The website has also added to its US military collections. U.S. military collections:

- U.S. Military and Naval Academy Registers, 1805–1908;
- U.S. Navy Pensions Index, 1861–1910;
- Index to General Correspondence of the Record and Pension Office.

The International Collection has also benefited with new or updated databases:

- Värmland, Sweden, Parish Records, 1661-1895 (Swedish);
- UK, Soldiers Died in the Great War, 1914-1919;
- as well as three groupings of Croatia records (christenings, marriages and deaths).

View the complete list of recently added databases (a few months of additions) here.

Washington DC: Jewish burials, Arlington National Cemetery

A unique gift of Jewish history was presented to the Jewish Genealogy Society of Greater Washington (JGSGW) at the group's recent member appreciation luncheon.

Outgoing president Marlene Bishow announced that the family of the late Kenneth Poch has given to the JGSGW his extensive research on Jewish soldiers buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

Poch had spent more than 10 years on site at the cemetery, eventually identifying more than 2,200 Jewish soldiers.

Inspired by "Where They Lie: Someone Should Say Kaddish" (1992) by Mel Young, he decided to visit the graves, say Kaddish (Jewish prayer for the dead) and place a small smooth stone on the headstones - a Jewish custom indicating that someone had visited the grave.

These visits encouraged him to inquire how many Jewish soldiers were actually buried at the famous national cemetery, which has more than 330,000 graves (as of January 2008). Not until after World War I were religious symbols permitted on the gravestones, so not all Jewish soldiers' graves bear a Star of David.

Although his life was brought to an early end by Lou Gehrig's disease (ALS), Poch spent his last decade as the self-appointed historian of Arlington's Jewish soldiers.

Research donated to JGSGW includes Poch's meticulously organized photos, letters, surveys and other items. After his death in December 2003, his family hastily gathered together his personal belongings, including his research binders and boxes, and stored them in his sister's Gaithersburg home.

JGSGW member Ernie Fine knew Poch and had discussed the Arlington project with him; he arranged for the transfer of the materials.

The society's first Cemetery Project (1988-1992) indexed and researched two of the oldest Jewish cemeteries in the nation’s capital: Macpelah, the old cemetery of Washington Hebrew Congregation's old cemetery and the old cemetery of Adas Israel Congregation on Alabama Avenue in the southeast part of the city. This research was submitted to the Jewish Online Worldwide Burial Registry (JOWBR).

In December 2007, JGSGW launched their second Cemetery Research Project, with the goal of indexing all Jewish grave sites in the greater Washington DC area.

As part of the new project, JGSGW volunteers will visit the cemeteries and photograph the tombstones, gleaning from them and other sources, the information in the inscription, including the deceased's Hebrew name and his or her father’s name, if included.

Plans are being formalized as to how the ANC research materials will be presented, but the target date for the project completion is July 2011, when the JGSGW will host the 31st IAJGS International Conference of Jewish Genealogy.

According to the Arlington National Cemetery website:

In Section 13 there are five Jewish soldiers who fought and died during the Civil War serving in the Union Army.

At the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861 -- which saw brother against brother as well as Jew against Jew -- there were 150,000 Jews in the United States. Three thousand fought on the side of the Confederacy and 6,700 for the Union.

For more information (although numbers appear to need updating) on the history of Jews buried at Arlington, click here.

Ukraine: Jewish Military Encyclopedia printed

A JTA newsbrief focused on the "The Jewish Military Encyclopedia" with 1,800 biographies and 1,200 photos of Jewish soldiers and officers in the Czarist and Soviet Armies and the armies of some FSU countries. It had a limited publication run of only 1,000 copies.

The editor is Ilya Levitas, long-time president of the Jewish Council of Ukraine, a group that promotes Jewish culture in the former Soviet republic.

The theme of Jewish contribution to the military "is alive today because of some people who want to rewrite history and misrepresent facts about Jewish participation in World War II and its Jewish heroes," Levitas told JTA.

Tracing the Tribe is trying to get information on how to obtain a copy of this work which holds important genealogical information.