When I first started this challenge it was almost overwhelming. I was a bit late signing up, so I was behind when I began. I didn't see how I would ever catch up and complete all the assignments! But here we are, at the end already! There were a few frustrations, but on the whole, exploring the databases was fun!
Perhaps the biggest discovery for me was the variety of information available. It was so easy to get distracted from my assignment and go looking at other things! I am reminded of the Family Circus cartoon where the little boy has to go from point A to point B. Instead of going in a straight line, you see his footprints going in a circuitous route all over the page. That's me with these databases! I kept forgetting my mission and going off on other tangents!
I have used World Book with students who have come for library tours. I will continue to do that, but will also make it a point to show them other databases as well. World Book and SIRS Discoverer have some features I can use with library programs.
I will also these databases myself when I need information. I don't how it is with other families, but my relatives regard me as their personal reference librarian and frequently call with questions. Now I have a new source for answers!
This Challenge has been a challenge! But it's been a lot of fun too. Thank You!
Monday, March 19, 2012
Friday, March 9, 2012
Sanborn Maps
I love maps! When we travel, I usually have a map open on my lap so I can see where we are and where we are going. My techie husband loves his GPS, but I maintain that a map is less expensive and has no annoying beeps! And you nver have to replace the batteries!
Looking at the January 1917 and November 1923 maps of Aberdeen was a mini local history lesson. I found the Alexander Mitchell Public Library at it's original location on the corner of 6th Avenue and South Lincoln Street. The library had steam heat and electric lights! Although the library is no longer there, the Methodist Church and Masonic Temple, also shown on the maps, are still in use today.
I know at least one third grade class that does a unit on Aberdeen. I am going to show their teacher this site. I think the kids will have fun looking at the maps and seeing how the city has changed over the years.
Looking at the January 1917 and November 1923 maps of Aberdeen was a mini local history lesson. I found the Alexander Mitchell Public Library at it's original location on the corner of 6th Avenue and South Lincoln Street. The library had steam heat and electric lights! Although the library is no longer there, the Methodist Church and Masonic Temple, also shown on the maps, are still in use today.
I know at least one third grade class that does a unit on Aberdeen. I am going to show their teacher this site. I think the kids will have fun looking at the maps and seeing how the city has changed over the years.
Thursday, March 8, 2012
HeritageQuest
After spending time with AncestryLibrary yesterday, HeritageQuest today was sort of a disappointment. It seemed really slow, and the results were not so helpful. It does have the advantage of being accessible from home, so that's good.
I searched for my hometown (Doylestown, Ohio), figuring there would be a town history or two recording it's 175 year history. I didn't find any. But Doylestown was mentioned in some family histories, so I looked at one of those.
The book mentioned how a local church is known as High Church rather than its "real" name, Emanuel United Church of Christ. High Church sits on a hill about a mile from town. Surrounded by trees, it looks like a picture postcard, especially on a beautiful clear autumn day. At night, it is lit, and visible for miles. As kids, when we'd be driving home from somewhere, we would watch for High Church. As the car would round the curve, whoever saw it first would call out, "High Church," and we knew we were almost home. I admit, on my last trip home, I still watched eagerly and called out "High Church," as my husband and I drove around that curve....
So even though I'm not so fond of HeritageQuest, I am thankful for this little jaunt down Memory Lane.
I searched for my hometown (Doylestown, Ohio), figuring there would be a town history or two recording it's 175 year history. I didn't find any. But Doylestown was mentioned in some family histories, so I looked at one of those.
The book mentioned how a local church is known as High Church rather than its "real" name, Emanuel United Church of Christ. High Church sits on a hill about a mile from town. Surrounded by trees, it looks like a picture postcard, especially on a beautiful clear autumn day. At night, it is lit, and visible for miles. As kids, when we'd be driving home from somewhere, we would watch for High Church. As the car would round the curve, whoever saw it first would call out, "High Church," and we knew we were almost home. I admit, on my last trip home, I still watched eagerly and called out "High Church," as my husband and I drove around that curve....
So even though I'm not so fond of HeritageQuest, I am thankful for this little jaunt down Memory Lane.
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
AncestryLibrary
Searching for your roots is easier than ever when using AncestryLibrary. From the comfort of your local library you have access to all sorts of information. Some people may feel it's an inconvenience to have to come to the library to use AncestryLibrary, but it's easier to come to the library than to have to travel to distant cities and/or states to obtain information!
I did find myself listed in the U. S. Phone and Address Directories 1993 - 2002. The neighbors were listed as well! In a way, it's a little scary that all this information about a person is so accessible. Makes me feel like I'm living in a glass house with no curtains!
On the other hand, it was sort of fun to look up my parents and grandparents. I found them all listed in the 1930 Census. I wasn't sure how to spell my maternal grandfather's name, so I used the ? feature (Thornd?ke), which resulted in records for both Thorndike and Thorndyke. I will need to do more research, but I think I found his baptismal record, his name on the passenger list on a ship from England, Census Records from 1900, 1910, and 1920, and his Word War I draft registration! Who knew all this was available?!
One thing I did discover is that spellings and dates are inconsistent. Both his and his mother's names were spelled differently on the various records, and his birth year was listed as 1887, 1888, and 1889, depending on where you looked. The month and day were the same on all the records. So I can't say for sure that I found him, or maybe someone else?
The Picture search for South Dakota yielded over 3,000,000 records! I'm assuming that the terms were searched separately, as some of the photos were from South Carolina, North Dakota, or even elsewhere. Using Quotation marks ("south dakota") resulted in 412,442 records, which is still a lot to look through if you are looking for something specific. Adding more details could help narrow the search further.
It was interesting to look at the various photos of South Dakota towns from the 1930s and 40s. Some looked pretty bleak.
I don't usually encounter library patrons doing genealogical research in my area of the library. But if someone does ask me, now I know where to point them!
I did find myself listed in the U. S. Phone and Address Directories 1993 - 2002. The neighbors were listed as well! In a way, it's a little scary that all this information about a person is so accessible. Makes me feel like I'm living in a glass house with no curtains!
On the other hand, it was sort of fun to look up my parents and grandparents. I found them all listed in the 1930 Census. I wasn't sure how to spell my maternal grandfather's name, so I used the ? feature (Thornd?ke), which resulted in records for both Thorndike and Thorndyke. I will need to do more research, but I think I found his baptismal record, his name on the passenger list on a ship from England, Census Records from 1900, 1910, and 1920, and his Word War I draft registration! Who knew all this was available?!
One thing I did discover is that spellings and dates are inconsistent. Both his and his mother's names were spelled differently on the various records, and his birth year was listed as 1887, 1888, and 1889, depending on where you looked. The month and day were the same on all the records. So I can't say for sure that I found him, or maybe someone else?
The Picture search for South Dakota yielded over 3,000,000 records! I'm assuming that the terms were searched separately, as some of the photos were from South Carolina, North Dakota, or even elsewhere. Using Quotation marks ("south dakota") resulted in 412,442 records, which is still a lot to look through if you are looking for something specific. Adding more details could help narrow the search further.
It was interesting to look at the various photos of South Dakota towns from the 1930s and 40s. Some looked pretty bleak.
I don't usually encounter library patrons doing genealogical research in my area of the library. But if someone does ask me, now I know where to point them!
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
CAMIO
Slow day today at the library.... Snow and blizzard warnings are keeping our patrons home, so I've been able to spend the morning investigating CAMIO. I've had fun with this database: it's sort of like a virtual tour of the top museums in the country!
Paul Revere was a silversmith, and a variety of museums own his works. Looking at the tea pots, sugar bowls, etc. reminds me of times past when my mother would get out her fancy silver for special guests. (Me - well I just plop a tea bag in a mug, pour in the hot water and go from there....) I did notice that some records have more detailed descriptions than others. I also thought it was interesting and sort of ironic that the museum in Williamstown, Massachusetts has a sugar basket that it lists as a forgery! I guess it's true what they say - "Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery!"
The "Sioux" search also turned up a variety of items (clothing, drawings, paintings, photographs, etc.) from many different museums. Most of the items are from the 1800's, but I did notice the star quilt from 1991. One odd item was the French writing table, included because one of the creators was a man named Jean-Charles Sioux....
For my artist search I looked up Norman Rockwell. I thought there would be many records, but there were only six! I also looked up Matthew Brady, the Civil War photographer. Only one photograph was listed, from the Minneapolis Institute of Arts.
One of my favorite art forms is a quilt, so that's what I did for a subject search. I especially like antique and vintage quilts, and have quite a lot of reproduction fabrics in my stash. There were 50 records to look at. I saved several of the quilts in "Favorites." The goal will be to study them and maybe try to see if I can achieve a similar look in one of my own quilts. (What did I say about imitation?!)
How will patrons use CAMIO? Teachers could use the images in presentations to classes, and students could use them as well. Having to access CAMIO from a library or school may be a negative for some, as it means planning ahead and not waiting until midnight the night before an assignment is due.... I don't think this database will be as popular as some of the others, but it's there for when we are asked just the right question!
Paul Revere was a silversmith, and a variety of museums own his works. Looking at the tea pots, sugar bowls, etc. reminds me of times past when my mother would get out her fancy silver for special guests. (Me - well I just plop a tea bag in a mug, pour in the hot water and go from there....) I did notice that some records have more detailed descriptions than others. I also thought it was interesting and sort of ironic that the museum in Williamstown, Massachusetts has a sugar basket that it lists as a forgery! I guess it's true what they say - "Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery!"
The "Sioux" search also turned up a variety of items (clothing, drawings, paintings, photographs, etc.) from many different museums. Most of the items are from the 1800's, but I did notice the star quilt from 1991. One odd item was the French writing table, included because one of the creators was a man named Jean-Charles Sioux....
For my artist search I looked up Norman Rockwell. I thought there would be many records, but there were only six! I also looked up Matthew Brady, the Civil War photographer. Only one photograph was listed, from the Minneapolis Institute of Arts.
One of my favorite art forms is a quilt, so that's what I did for a subject search. I especially like antique and vintage quilts, and have quite a lot of reproduction fabrics in my stash. There were 50 records to look at. I saved several of the quilts in "Favorites." The goal will be to study them and maybe try to see if I can achieve a similar look in one of my own quilts. (What did I say about imitation?!)
How will patrons use CAMIO? Teachers could use the images in presentations to classes, and students could use them as well. Having to access CAMIO from a library or school may be a negative for some, as it means planning ahead and not waiting until midnight the night before an assignment is due.... I don't think this database will be as popular as some of the others, but it's there for when we are asked just the right question!
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
ArchiveGrid
On my first attempt, I could not get into ArchiveGrid, but if at first you don't succeed.... When I tried a second time I was able to successfully search for "sitting bull autograph card" and look at one record from Cornell University Library. The notes are quite detailed, so you can get a pretty good idea of what the document is and what it contains.
I'm not sure our library patrons will use this site, unless they are into some serious research. Having to access it from the library (as opposed to home or where ever) may be a negative for some, but if a person is really serious about their research, this site can be very beneficial in locating sources of historical documents.
For my own search, I looked for "laura ingalls wilder" and got 20 records. (I thought there would be more....) Several were for authors who won the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award, which was not what I was looking for. One of the records is for letters written by some of Caroline Ingalls's family. It is an electronic resource from the Wisconsin Historical Society. When I clicked on the link to the Society, I found that some of the letters have been digitized! I could actually look at them. Lesson plans are also included for teachers.
I confess that I sort of digressed from there and spent more time looking at the Historical Society site, and less time at ArchiveGrid. I was even able to listen to some oral histories of Holocaust survivors that immigrated to Wisconsin after the War. One never knows where a search may lead!
I'm not sure our library patrons will use this site, unless they are into some serious research. Having to access it from the library (as opposed to home or where ever) may be a negative for some, but if a person is really serious about their research, this site can be very beneficial in locating sources of historical documents.
For my own search, I looked for "laura ingalls wilder" and got 20 records. (I thought there would be more....) Several were for authors who won the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award, which was not what I was looking for. One of the records is for letters written by some of Caroline Ingalls's family. It is an electronic resource from the Wisconsin Historical Society. When I clicked on the link to the Society, I found that some of the letters have been digitized! I could actually look at them. Lesson plans are also included for teachers.
I confess that I sort of digressed from there and spent more time looking at the Historical Society site, and less time at ArchiveGrid. I was even able to listen to some oral histories of Holocaust survivors that immigrated to Wisconsin after the War. One never knows where a search may lead!
Thursday, February 23, 2012
WorldCat
WorldCat is not new to me, as I have searched for titles requested by our patrons. However, I was not familiar with the other databases, so I did learn something new today!
For the first part of this exercise, I looked up a title a patron told me about recently: The Winged Watchman, by Hilda Van Stockum. It's a children's story about a Dutch wind mill operator and his family during World War II. Of the 440 libraries that own a copy of the first record listed, Dakota State University is the only one in South Dakota. The LC "number" for this book is PZ7.V36.
When I did an author search for Hilda Van Stockum, WorldCat listed 145 items (131 books). Our library owns one title that she authored (The Borrowed House), and one that she illustrated (Little Men).
For a subject search, I clicked on "Netherlands - History - German Occupation, 1940-1945 - Juvenile Fiction." There are 83 items, 63 of which are books. Students who enjoy historical fiction set in this time period have many choices! We have access to the libraries of the world (literally!) when we use WorldCat!
OAIster is new to me. I didn't even know it existed before this exercise. It's been interesting to see what documents are available. I'm not sure who will want to read some of the government reports, but it's good to know they are there. I read part of a dissertation on pheasant hunting, and looked at a few old photographs as well. I tried unsuccessfully to view more photos: I kept getting an error message or the dread "webpage cannot be found" screen....
WorldCat has been a fun exercise. I am now starting a list of titles to interlibrary loan when I have more time to read them!
For the first part of this exercise, I looked up a title a patron told me about recently: The Winged Watchman, by Hilda Van Stockum. It's a children's story about a Dutch wind mill operator and his family during World War II. Of the 440 libraries that own a copy of the first record listed, Dakota State University is the only one in South Dakota. The LC "number" for this book is PZ7.V36.
When I did an author search for Hilda Van Stockum, WorldCat listed 145 items (131 books). Our library owns one title that she authored (The Borrowed House), and one that she illustrated (Little Men).
For a subject search, I clicked on "Netherlands - History - German Occupation, 1940-1945 - Juvenile Fiction." There are 83 items, 63 of which are books. Students who enjoy historical fiction set in this time period have many choices! We have access to the libraries of the world (literally!) when we use WorldCat!
OAIster is new to me. I didn't even know it existed before this exercise. It's been interesting to see what documents are available. I'm not sure who will want to read some of the government reports, but it's good to know they are there. I read part of a dissertation on pheasant hunting, and looked at a few old photographs as well. I tried unsuccessfully to view more photos: I kept getting an error message or the dread "webpage cannot be found" screen....
WorldCat has been a fun exercise. I am now starting a list of titles to interlibrary loan when I have more time to read them!
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