"Tracing Our Roots" Newsletter Archive (A monthly genealogy newsletter written by the late Brenda Kellow, dec'd, for the Plano Star Courier newspaper. We've included all the ones we could recover.)
A favorite place on the Internet today may not be accessible in a week, month, or year. One must never take any URL on the web for granted. Many researchers were delighted when the birth and death record index came online for Texas and California. Some searched right away. Others procrastinated about the searches thinking they would be there forever. As many of you are aware, the Texas and California birth and death indexes were pulled from the web and may not be replaced. The same is true of the Bureau of Land Management and other data records on the Department of the Interior’s site. Some of those of interest to genealogists may reappear but as yet no date has been set for the replacement. Meanwhile, researchers must remember to take advantage of what we find on the Internet today for tomorrow it may be withdrawn.
SAR CONFERENCE: The SAR Genealogical Seminar is scheduled for March 8, 2002 in Tyler, Texas. Seating is limited and registration is handled on a first come first serve basis and the fee will be increased for those registering after February 7th. Flyers have a registration form and are available at most libraries.
ELLIS ISLAND SHAREWARE: A shareware program allows the user to enter all search criteria in one place and offers alternative surname spellings based upon confusing letters, the soundex, and the Daitch-Mokotoff soundex which is useful for Eastern European names. See http://erosenbaum.netfirms.com.
ITALY-SICILY PASSENGER LISTS: For ship passenger lists from Sicilian and other Mediterranean ports of embarkation including transcriptions and partial transcriptions see the site at http://freegages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~itasicily/ships/lists.htm.
ENGLISH CENSUS SITE OVERWHELMED: The 1901 census of the United Kingdom created by the Public Record Office came online a couple of weeks ago and was immediately overwhelmed with hits. Optimists can access the site at http://www.census.pro.gov.uk.
computer LECTURE: Do you ever surf the Web and wonder where are the better sites to research? Or how those genealogy sites get developed? Have you wondered how you get started in building a site of your own? Where do you begin? What tools you will need? Are all your valuable research materials in shoeboxes and cabinet drawers? Now is the time to organize and prepare your site.
If you are one of those genealogists with a love of the computer, then the morning lecture on January 19th is custom-made for you. The lecturer, yours truly and a “computer user,” will acquaint you with some of the best Internet sites for genealogists and also introduce you to ways of networking with fellow researchers searching your family lines. In addition, you will learn easy ways to publish your findings, conduct active research, or publish your family history on the Internet. Sponsored by Genealogy Friends of Plano Libraries, Inc., the lecture is free and begins at 9:30 a.m. Doors open at 9:10 a.m. The event will be held at the Gladys Harrington Library, 1501 18th Street in Plano. The program runs 9:30 a.m. to noon. Admission is free. For more information visit their URL at www.geocities.com/genfriendsghl.
SHELTON FAMILY OF EAST TEXAS: Charles & Dee Colvin, P. O. Box 1186, Gladewater, Tex. 75647, (903) 845-2741, email: chrdcol@gte.net, are searching to document the parents of James Knox Polk Shelton, born circa 1845-46 in Tennessee. He later served in the in Civil War, CSA, 44th Tenn. Inf. Co. I. He removed to Smith County, Tex. where he died 1891 and was buried in Starrville Cemetery. Shelton married Sarah Alice Oliver in Ellis Co. Tex. on January 5, 1875 and they had James Virgil Shelton born Oct. 19, 1875 in Hempstead, Tex., and James K. P. Shelton who was listed on the 1880 Smith Co. Tex. census as J.P. Shelton. His descendant’s obituary, [James] Virgil Shelton Junior who died on Saturday January 25th, appeared in the Ft. Worth [Tex.] Star Telegram newspaper on page 8-9, January 26, 1997. The Colvins have done extensive research on this line, but have nothing conclusive on the parents. If you can help them with this puzzle, please contact them at the above address.
Brenda Kellow, dec'd, Certified Genealogist and Certified Genealogical Instructor, had a Bachelor’s Degree in history and taught genealogy courses at the local Community College and computer genealogy at the University.
