American citizens have always had the right under the U.S. Constitution to petition Congress directly to redress specific grievances or recoup financial losses resulting from government actions (such as private property damaged by the Union Army during the Civil War). In the 19th century, Americans commonly exercised this right, sending hundreds of thousands of private claims to … Continue reading Family Tree Friday: Congress granted pensions as private claims.
Category: Research
Question: What are some good examples of interactive historical timelines on the Web?
The internet provides lots of great tools and services to help genealogists and historians understand the evolution of relationships and events over time. From teachers to big corporations, researchers at all levels can benefit from these innovative new tools, one of the most effective of which is the interactive map or timeline. One example of … Continue reading Question: What are some good examples of interactive historical timelines on the Web?
Tech Tuesdays
Thanks to your great feedback on our recent Family Tree Fridays and NARA Staff Favorite posts, we're considering introducing another specialized series here on NARAtions. This new set of posts, called Tech Tuesdays, would allow us to start a discussion about the cutting-edge technologies that are being developed across the archives field (a topic we're … Continue reading Tech Tuesdays
Family Tree Friday: Volunteer vs. Regular Army service was documented differently.
Most people have a relative or ancestor who either served in the military or fought during a specific war. Many researchers are unaware, however, that a significant distinction exists between volunteer soldiers and Regular soldiers, and that the two types of service are documented differently. Volunteers (citizen soldiers) were enlisted to serve during specific wars … Continue reading Family Tree Friday: Volunteer vs. Regular Army service was documented differently.
NARA Staff Favorites- Online Records
We’ve loved reading your suggestions and comments about sharing NARA’s holdings on Flickr, and it’s been interesting to see which images people are marking as favorites. All of this got us wondering about which records NARA insiders are particularly fond of, so we asked a few of our experienced colleagues for their picks. This week’s … Continue reading NARA Staff Favorites- Online Records
Family History Friday: The real scoop about name changes in immigration records.
Have you ever had an immigrant ancestor whose name appeared to change after they came to America? It was a very common occurrence, but the popular perception is that U.S. immigration officials deliberately changed a person's name if they couldn't understand the verbal information relayed to them by the immigrant. In fact, this is one … Continue reading Family History Friday: The real scoop about name changes in immigration records.
Question: What’s the biggest dead-end you ever hit in your research where you suddenly, unexpectedly found a way forward?
It happens to all of us. You follow one lead after another, following a thread of information that seems to link your months, or even years, of research together. Then, suddenly, the thread is gone. What do you do then? For many, this is a dead-end; all that time spent working on a topic has … Continue reading Question: What’s the biggest dead-end you ever hit in your research where you suddenly, unexpectedly found a way forward?
Family History Friday: Seamen's protection certificates served as an early mariner's passport.
Customs records at the National Archives often provide interesting glimpses of personal information about our seafaring ancestors. The occupational hazards of the maritime trade after the Revolutionary War, especially the threat of Impressment by the British, caused many American sailors to purchase seamen's protection certificates, such as the one pictured here that was issued to … Continue reading Family History Friday: Seamen's protection certificates served as an early mariner's passport.
Family Tree Friday: Military pension records can hold unexpected surprises!
Military pensions often contain valuable documents regarding family. Veterans who applied for such benefits often had to prove their military service, using affidavits from officers and fellow soldiers, or letters and journals written in the field. Widows and dependents had to prove their relationship to the deceased soldier. Many personal or family documents often, and … Continue reading Family Tree Friday: Military pension records can hold unexpected surprises!
Question: Motion Picture File Formats
This week’s highlighted question comes from Dan in NARA’s Motion Pictures (NWCS-M) department. The unit has been looking for some time at new models for delivery of NARA’s film, video and audio holdings as it struggles with keeping the aging analog reference collection alive and well. Given limited resources, the problem requires a multi-faceted solution, … Continue reading Question: Motion Picture File Formats