Christmas Gifts To Warm A Genealogist’s Heart

What to get for your favorite genealogist for Christmas - is this a problem you’re facing this year?

Maybe it’s your wife or mother-in-law or brother who is the family genealogist. Whoever it is, be assured that folks tracking their forebears would much rather have a new genealogy resource than another shirt, sweater or tie.

Or, turning this around, how about letting it slip to your family that you would really like to have Ancestry’s “Red Book” or Heritage Books’ “Biographical Dictionary of New England,” first published in 1809?

How about a gift membership in the Clark County Genealogical Society? Or a gift certificate from Ancestors Plus in Shadle Center?

Wouldn’t this be more welcome than another paisley sweater?

For those who want to explore the relationship between genealogy and history, Compton’s Encyclopedia of American History is a dandy CD-ROM to add to your collection.

The disc carries articles and pictures on U.S. history, has an atlas and a timeline, and comes complete with video and sound effects.

I had more fun playing with this new resource, and I didn’t come up with one topic that wasn’t on the disc. The material can be accessed chronologically, or by idea or subject, and is cross-referenced to related topics.

It’s easy to use, with mouse-only capabilities, online help and a menu path that’s constantly on-screen.

Priced at around $40, this Christmas gift would be most welcome to any serious genealogist. Give Compton’s a call at (800) 862-2206, or pass this info on to the giftgiver of your choice.

Every genealogist struggles to understand their ancestors’ relationship with the land. The Nuthatch Grove (5144 N. Academy Blvd., Suite 302, Colorado Springs, CO 80912-4002) offers a terrific stocking stuffer.

“The Basic Researchers Guide to Homesteads and Other Federal Land Records” is a gem. In the book’s 80 pages, author James C. Barsi gives the clearest and most simple explanation of how your ancestors obtained their land - and how you can obtain copies of the records they left behind.

With particular emphasis on homesteads, Barsi shows by example what all the forms look like and what the researcher can expect to learn from the various papers involved in a land transaction.

Order this as a Christmas gift for $12.95, plus $2 postage. And, while you’re at it, ask for their free catalog with its dozens of other available goodies.

Has your family been talking about organizing a family reunion, but so far there’s not a volunteer to handle the job? For Christmas, nominate a likely candidate and give that person Patricia Bauers’ new book, “So That’s Who You Used To Be! A Reunion Planning Guide.” The whole family will benefit.

The guide covers everything you need to know about staging a family reunion - and I do mean everything. It begins with examples of initial letters, tips on finding lost folks, how to do name tags, finding a place for the reunion and even recipes for a big crowd.

So, if Aunt Mary has indicated she’d like to plan the next family reunion but needs a boost, give her this book for Christmas. It costs $18.95, plus $3 postage, from the author at PO Box 1751, Vancouver, WA 98668-1751.

To help the family genealogist with Irish research, there’s a dandy quarterly: The IRISH At Home and Abroad, edited by Dwight A. Radford and Kyle J. Betit.

This newsletter consistently has “meaty” articles to really help track your Irish ancestor. Recent articles in two issues included Colonial Scots-Irish Immigrants, The Irish in San Francisco, Ontario Newspapers, Australian Free Settlement, The British Newspaper Library, Guide to County Cork, Introduction to New York City Irish Research, Focus on County Wicklow, The Irish in the Barbados - and several more.

Annual subscription rates are $18; order from PO Box 521806, Salt Lake City, UT 84152; or call (801) 238-2562. Ask them to send a Christmas gift certificate.

How about a beginners’ book for that would-like-to-be genealogist?

I recommend two very reliable books: “Successful Genealogy,” by Diane Dieterle, details tried-and-true methods for success in genealogical research. The 90-page book comes packaged with a thick stack of forms so when your friend receives this Christmas gift, he (or she) can get right to work before the relatives head for home.

The $12.95 book can be ordered from AGLL, (801) 298-5446.

The other is, “Basic Genealogy, Including Steps Sometimes Forgotten By the Pros,” by Kathy Kirkpatrick.

The 125-page book is delightfully basic and the print is large so Uncle Rudolph won’t need his glasses when he opens it Christmas morning. The book costs $12.95 and can be ordered from Advanced Resources, (801) 298-8344.

Or, call Ancestors Plus at Shadle Center, 328-6558, to reserve a copy of either book.

Any genealogist of any experience level would truly enjoy Vera McDowell’s “When Your Ox Is in the Ditch,” genealogical how-to letters. Vera’s letters to her cousin Bette, written in the 1980s, are a curl-up-in-your-chair kind of book. Each page is headed by a topic like Why Did Our Ancestors Move So Much, Mortality Schedules, Loyalists and Nicknames.

Vera’s one-page letters to Cousin Bette explain nearly 200 genealogical topics. Through this very different format, needed genealogical knowledge can be gained or reviewed over and over.

Order “When Your Ox Is in the Ditch” from Genealogical Publishing Co. at (800) 296-6687 for $19.95, plus $3.50 postage. It will warm a good many winter evenings.

Here’s another gift suggestion: How about helping your favorite genealogist take a trip to Salt Lake City’s Family History Library? I’m taking a group there for the week of January 7 to 14.

Two advantages of going with this group are that I will serve as a personal assistant, and I hire a team of professional researchers to help us.

The cost is $360 with a roommate, plus airfare and meals. For more information, leave a message for me at Ancestors Plus in Spokane, (509) 328-6558, and I’ll promptly return your call, or write me in care of this newspaper. What a wonderful Christmas present this would make - even to yourself.

Today’s laugh

A succinct tombstone for Dr. J.J. Subers in Rosehill Cemetery in Macon, Ga., reads: “Been Here - Now Gone - Had A Good Time.”

The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = Donna Potter Phillips The Spokesman-Review