Joan, I can not thank you enough! Your contribution gives me that "warm and fuzzy" feeling, but your example and your exhortation truly makes my day. You folks may not hear much from me in the following few months since I am going to start work on 21 VA County Census Records. As I finish transcribing each of them, I will place them on the Census Board at RootsWeb. Which brings up contributions. Contributions do not need to be in money; there are literally hundreds, if not thousands, of County Census Records just waiting to be adopted. We need transcribers (those that actually read the microfilm and transcribe the data to files for posting at RootsWeb), and proofreaders (those that don't have time to transcribe, but can still spend some time looking at the finished files. Some day, hopefully, we will have the necessary resources to pay to have ALL the available microfilms and microfiches put on the web site. You know, the Library of Congress has records that are of critical value to researchers, but who can afford to travel to Washington and spend days looking for data? Wouldn't it be nice to log on to RootsWeb and see the data from all those files? And, to see graphics of the actual files? That's our goal folks. In the meantime, we do it with volunteers just like you. SgtGeorge Listowner -------------------------------------- At 10:28 PM 12/31/98 , JRose10700@aol.com wrote: > >Sgt. George and other listowners have been appealing for voluntary >support of a few dollars a year to 'Rootsweb. I tried figuring up how >much I spent on research -- travel times, books, lunches, copying, >etc. -- in the couple of years before I got my computer, and how much >I had spent since. Then I looked at how much information on my >family I had obtained in those early two years, and how much I have >obtained in the past two. Folks, there was NO comparison. Aside >from my computer expenses -- which I would have had without >genealogy -- I had spent less than $100 out of pocket in past two >years -- and have pushed my research back into undreamed of >generations!! I had no trouble deciding to contribute $10 for each of >the major lists to which I subscribe -- and this is one of them. >This is one of the best bargains we genealogists ever received. >If you are not proud to contribute to Rootsweb, be shamed into it!! >Bar none. >love >joan

RootsWeb recommends that you keep your signatures at the end of messages to no more than 4 lines. Tens of thousands of subscribers receive these emails and every little bit we can do to cut down on the bytes being transferred sure helps. Also, remembering to delete original posts from your replies (except for just enough to identify the subject) cuts down on the amount of bytes users have to download. Thanks, SgtGeorge

In the context of this note, FREE means WITHOUT COST. OK, we say that the RootsWeb services are FREE, meaning that no user/subscriber HAS to pay anything in order to use these wonderful services, BUT..... is it really FREE? Of course not! Let's see, what has to be paid for? First of all, there is the monthly service fee that each Listowner or Webmaster pays in order to be connected to the Internet/Web. Then there is the hardware and software that must be kept up-to-date by the Listowners and Webmasters. Last, there is the TIME each Listowner and Webmaster spends keeping the Lists and Web Pages running smoothly -- that TIME is worth money too. Let me tell you, when I spend several hours every day managing Lists and Web Sites, that time could be spend pursuing things that might bring in some more personal income -- it could certainly be spent with my family at home and maybe going out to see a new movie once in a while, or visiting relatives that are long overdue for a visit. Enough about us Listowners and Webmasters -- let's get down to some real expenses. The folks at RootsWeb must maintain state-of-the-art hardware and software and folks that is not cheap. It seems like about every other week we hear that RootsWeb has to add another server or computer system or larger hard drives or more memory or something. Then they pay for the connections to the Internet, T1's, T'2's, T3's, etc., and fees to the "backbones" and so on. The monthly charges for phone line services runs around $28,000 right now. Now, who maintains all that hardware and software? Well, Brian and Karen (the founders of RootsWeb) and several other really neat people. There are some that get a pittance of a salary, but most of the work is "volunteer" work. Then we have all the dozens of people who work for nothing keeping all the various services at RootsWeb working and in good order. We have people right now volunteering to transcribe and maintain services like the Census Record project. We aim to put all Census Records online at RootsWeb, every state, every county, every Census year from 1790 through 1920, which is the last one available to the public. What a project! And, as I said, it's all volunteer work. (I know, since I volunteered to do all the years for Wythe and Smyth Counties in VA that are not already being worked on; that amounts to 21 Census Records.) The long term goal of RootsWeb is to have a database that contains information from every microfilm/microfiche source imaginable. Do you have any idea how much that will cost and how much work will be involved in transcribing the data, or even just scanning and putting graphics of original files online? What this is all about, is that there are costs of running RootsWeb that most of you have NEVER imagined. There are thousands of man hours put in each week by volunteers; right now RootsWeb cannot even afford to buy the microfilm of the Census Records. We volunteers have to buy it ourselves! With a good base of users who donate to RootsWeb, we could start paying for some of these things that are done voluntarily and get them on line much, much sooner. The whole point is that doing genealogy research at RootsWeb is not FREE!!!!! It is only free to the users/subscribers, and as far as we are all concerned it will ALWAYS stay that, so you don't have to worry that we are going to start charging monthly fees in order to access the information like some other services (which I won't mention because you know who they are). What we need are many, many users/subscribers who think that RootsWeb saves them enough money to donate something to the service on a regular basis. I mean like donating $12.00 or $24.00 every year. Is that too much to ask? $1.00 or $2.00 per month? Heck, if you couldn't use RootsWeb for your research, you would spend more than that on just gasoline alone every year, driving to libraries to dig out information. And think of the time it saves you! Right now RootsWeb needs at least 15,000 users/subscribers to donate at least the minimum of $12.00 per year. We have a hard-core user-base of about 400,000 users and a total user-base (including those that drop in and out) of around 800,000. Now that's a lot of users! And it doesn't cost any one of them even $1.00 to use all the facilities at RootsWeb. How about sharing? Run on over to the page at RootsWeb where you can read all about the joys of becoming a supporter. We Listowners and Webmasters don't need to hear words of praise from you -- we need you to put your money where your mouth is. Instead of telling me what a good job I am doing (and, yes, some users do that), how about cutting loose of some of that mouldy old money and helping out a good cause? Here's where you start: http://www.rootsweb.com/rootsweb/how-to-subscribe.html You can subscribe online with a credit card, or you can write down the snail mail address and send a check or money order. I tell you something, you users out there are just like me. You spend at least $19.95 per month for your ISP connection and you spend at least $12.00 per month for paper and ink for your printer and other things you buy for your computer. So $12.00 per year seems like a good deal to me. Please don't feel like I'm pressuring you to contribute. Not so! I just want all of you to think of how much money RootsWeb saves you by having all these goodies right at your fingertips, then think of making good use of part of those savings. You don't have to become a supporter -- no one will ever mention it to you -- no one will think less of you; but it would sure be appreciated. If you DO contribute, please mention in your comments which Mailing List or Web Site prompted you to do so. Regards, SgtGeorge

Each week, RootsWeb sends out a Review of all the important happenings at RootsWeb during the past week. If you are not subscribed, I would suggest that you do so RIGHT NOW! The Review gives all the added Mailing Lists for the week, all the added GenConnect Boards, all the new Homepages, all the new Web Sites, all the new, letters from users who have found missing ancestors, and lots of just interesting information. You owe it to yourself to subscribe to this weekly newsletter to keep up on what is happening at RootsWeb. To subscribe, send an email to: ROOTSWEB-REVIEW-L-request@rootsweb.com And type SUBSCRIBE, either in the subject line or in the body of the email. This Review is a "MUST" for those interested in specific SURNAME Mailing Lists, Web Pages, or GenConnect Boards. SgtGeorge Listowner

* * * * * NEWS AND NOTES FROM ROOTSWEB DONATIONS TO HELP SUPPORT ROOTSWEB ARE GREATLY APPRECIATED. For details about support levels/benefits and payment options, please visit: <http://www.rootsweb.com/rootsweb/how-to-subscribe.html> or send e-mail to: <RW-info@rootsweb.com>. RootsWeb's address is: RootsWeb Genealogical Data Cooperative, P.O. Box 6798, Frazier Park, CA 93222-6798. (Please include your e-mail address on all correspondence and checks.) * * * * * * * * CONNECTING THROUGH ROOTSWEB: Thanks for sharing your stories. I have many RootsWeb success stories, and have met a number of cousins who have become my good friends, sometimes even becoming part of my extended family. My first big success resulted from being a look-up volunteer. I got a request to check a book for someone's grandfather. It turned out that the grandfather in question was my great-grandmother's brother. The person who asked that question and I have become close, share a lot of our research, and have been very helpful to each other. Since then, I have joined several other cousin groups at RootsWeb, two of them with their own e-mail lists that work together. When GenConnect came along, I posted a query about one of my dead ends and had a response from another cousin, who has my whole line with documentation back to the immigrant ancestor, born in France about 1742. She needed more on my direct line which was entangled. I have just sent a small donation to RootsWeb in honor of my RootsWeb cousins. I know that I would not be nearly as far along in my research without RootsWeb, nor would some of the people I have helped. I think we are breaking new ground in family research here, and I am pleased to be a part of it as a participant and volunteer. Pat Thomas <ptthomas@hbci.com> * * * I was starting to research my OHLHAUSEN roots and noticed two postings for that name on the RootsWeb Surname List (RSL). I replied to the one that seemed more probable to be in my line and guess what? It was! I found a cousin in Abilene, Texas (I am in Colorado) and he was able to tell me that one of my relatives had done extensive research on the Ohlhausen family (a five-volume book). I have been able to find out so much about the family in such a short time that I wanted to let you know. Thanks for RootsWeb. Kim Elkins <kelki@aol.com> * * * I am in the middle of fixing turkey, dressing and all the fixings for dinner tomorrow, and I was thinking about "thankfulness." It occurred to me that I was thankful for all the obvious things but one very important thing, as this year I discovered the Internet and more importantly RootsWeb. When we sit down and say Grace tomorrow, RootsWeb will be included. Due to the fact that RootsWeb exists, we have found so many ancestors. Last month I decided to send my $12 in for each ancestor that I found from this point on. This is not going to be possible because of the gold mine I hit this last weekend. My bank account is not that large. Up until Saturday, I knew the name of my 4th-great- grandfather, Samuel Lane RICHARDSON. He died in 1820 in Vigo County, Indiana. I figured that LANE might be a family name, but was unable to get back any farther. Because RootsWeb has taught me so much and so well, I now have information to check out that probably will take me back to 1610 England on my Richardson line -- and Lane WAS a family name. How can anyone put a price on that? Thank you RootsWeb for "being." You are very much appreciated. Roberta Hammer <kdhx6@swbell.net> * * * I have always been interested in genealogy only as a kibitzer; however, when I bought my computer three years ago, I went into high gear. The first genealogical site I visited was RootsWeb, and I began searching for the names I was interested in. The first person I found listed in the RootsWeb Surname List (RSL) looking for contact with others researching LUMBY answered me immediately and said he had more than 5,000 references dating back to 1500 and knew my branch back to the parents of my great- grandfather, Joseph Rawson Lumby, professor of Divinity at Cambridge University, UK in the late 1800s. He had not been able to trace my grandfather, a son of Joseph Rawson Lumby. I was able to fill in the gaps with information that John Rawson Lumby had immigrated to Canada at the age of 18 and had worked as a cowboy and farmed just outside of Winnipeg. He had become a fairly well- known newspaper editor in Fort William, Ontario, and died in 1942. Another contact I made through RootsWeb was David Bellhouse. We had a BELLHOUSE in our background, so I got in touch and we found that his great-grandfather had married a STACPOOLE, who turned out to be a sister of my maternal grandmother. He was able to provide me with a direct lineage (confirmed by Burke's "Irish Family Records") through her (Lizzie Grace Stacpoole Lumby ) to Bartholemew Stacpoole, who is noted in the source mentioned as being the bailiff of Limerick, Ireland in 1596. Through my paternal grandmother, Corrine May TACKETT, I was able to trace the Tackett line back to a Louis (Lewis) TACQUETTE, a Huguenot, who arrived in Virginia in 1686/87. Corrine May Tackett's mother was a DURKEE, with direct line back to William Durkee b. 1630, Heath, Ireland, d. 1704 in Maryland, who was deported to the Caribbean by Oliver Cromwell, made his way to the colonies, married a colonial girl, and started a line that comes down to me. I owe this all to RootsWeb. Thank you very much. Ralf L. Aldrich, Thunder Bay, Ontario <lumby@air.on.ca> * * * * * SgtGeorge Listowner

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Hello DURMAN-L Listmembers, I'm pleased to announce a new resource for DURMAN researchers... DURMAN GenConnect Boards for Queries, Bible Records, Biographies, Deeds, Obituaries, Pensions, and Wills. Some of you who frequent USGenWeb or WorldGenWeb sites may already be familiar with GenConnect. Many of the GenWeb sites have been linked to GenConnect for some time. Recently GenConnect Boards became available for individual surnames and I applied to create seven DURMAN Boards. This is another service being hosted by our friends at the RootsWeb Genealogical Data Cooperative. (And another reason for all subscribers to consider becoming supporters of RootsWeb. We keep adding fantastic services for researcher, including the recently-announced Census project. All of these services are "free" to RootsWeb subscribers and most of the work, time, and money involved is on a voluntary basis by dedicated supporters.) For those who are not familiar with GenConnect, it is a web-based automated query and record management system. Visitors see their queries posted immediately and the posts are also threaded, meaning responses to a previously posted query will appear immediately under that query. Each GenConnect Board is indexed by the GenConnect Global Search Engine at: http://cgi.rootsweb.com/~genbbs/genbbs.cgi?search Each is also indexed by Surname Helper at: http://cgi.rootsweb.com/surhelp/srchall.html Another feature of GenConnect is automatic email notification. For any given Board, you have the option to receive automatic email notification each time a new post appears on that Board. Seven web-based posting Boards are now available for the DURMAN surname. The boards are virtually empty right now and it's up to us to fill them up. The following DURMAN GenConnect Boards have been activated: (These URLs are case-sensitive; "Durman" will work, "DURMAN" and "durman" will not work.) QUERIES: http://cgi.rootsweb.com/~genbbs/genbbs.cgi/FamilyAssoc/Durman Most queries that are appropriate for the DURMAN-L Mailing List can also be posted to this Board. It's not a matter of having to choose whether to post your query to one resource or the other. You can post the same query to both the DURMAN-L Mailing List and the DURMAN GenConnect Queries Board. There may be times when you will want to post only to the List or only to the Queries Board. Questions that seem likely to stir up quite a bit of discussion or debate would probably be better suited to the Mailing List, where the discussion can take place in something approaching real time. Similarly, very simple questions that are likely to be answered quickly are probably better handled by the Mailing List because there's not much point in having your query remain visible on the Queries board indefinitely after you've already received the answer. Conversely, your really tough questions might be better suited to the Queries Board. Because your query will remain visible indefinitely, the Queries Board is a particularly good place to post your "dead end", "brick wall", and "most wanted" type queries... especially the ones that you've posted to the List once or twice already without any useful replies. Please restrict your DURMAN queries to this Queries Board only. Queries posted to any of the six non-query Boards below will be deleted without notice. Remember, if you want to post a query that you wish to remain active indefinitely, the DURMAN-Query Board is the place to post it. BIBLE RECORDS: http://cgi.rootsweb.com/~genbbs/genbbs.cgi/FamilyAssoc/DurmanBibl Feel free to post any DURMAN Bible Records to this Board. It would help if you included the age of the bible, which family it belonged to, location, and of course all its entries. BIOGRAPHIES: http://cgi.rootsweb.com/~genbbs/genbbs.cgi/FamilyAssoc/DurmanBios DURMAN Biographies will be accepted here. Be very careful not to violate copyrights when posting Bios. If in doubt, check first with me at mailto:sgtgeorg@concentric.net before posting. Any posts found to be in violation of copyright will be removed. If the Bios are not copyrighted, be sure to include dates, places, publishers, etc. If source documents are listed, be sure to include them. DEEDS: http://cgi.rootsweb.com/~genbbs/genbbs.cgi/FamilyAssoc/DurmanDeed Post any DURMAN-related Deed transcriptions here. As above, make sure you include all pertinent data, such as Names, Dates, Places, etc. OBITUARIES: http://cgi.rootsweb.com/~genbbs/genbbs.cgi/FamilyAssoc/DurmanObits Transcriptions of DURMAN Obits, or Obits that mention DURMAN survivors may be posted here. Include source documents for the Obits, such as names of publications, places, dates, etc. PENSIONS: http://cgi.rootsweb.com/~genbbs/genbbs.cgi/FamilyAssoc/DurmanPens Transcriptions of DURMAN Pensions, or Pensions that mention DURMAN beneficiaries may be posted here. Give all the pertinent source information. WILLS: http://cgi.rootsweb.com/~genbbs/genbbs.cgi/FamilyAssoc/DurmanWill Transcriptions of DURMAN Wills, or Wills that mention DURMAN beneficiaries may be posted here. Give sources, such as locations of the Wills (County Courthouses, etc.), dates, Book Nrs., etc. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= I hope that these new resources will aid us all in our pursuit of DURMAN genealogy. Now, some additional rules about posting to any of the Boards. There will be ABSOLUTELY no "chit-chat" messages allowed. Queries and/or replies to such MUST be "on-topic". If you have something to post that is off-topic, or some question you want answered, send to me at the email address at the end of this notice. Each message posted to a Board will contain the poster's name and email address. If you need to contact such a poster about something not related to the Board, copy the email address and send a private message. I have established Boards for the following names: Broyles, Cullop, Durman, Garoutte, Lovette, Wilhite, Wilkinson, and GermannaColonies. I have activated the Boards for the seven Surnames. GermannaColonies will be activated sometime after the 30th. George W. Durman SgtGeorge mailto:sgtgeorg@concentric.net

I just received the most heart rendering email from a user on one of these Lists I manage. Have all of you, as I had, forgotten the SURVIVORS of those who have given their lives for our country? I'm terribly sorry for not mentioning wives, sons, daughters, mothers, sisters, sweethearts, husbands, fathers, brothers, and other relatives and close friends of those who have served, and serve, in our armed forces. I stand in front of my computer now and salute all of you. Merry Christmas SgtGeorge Listowner

To all the users of my Mailing Lists who are military, ex-military, relatives of military or ex-military, and to those who are still patriotic enough to support those who defend our country: Here is a URL for a wonderful web page dedicated to our fighting forces. It starts with the emotional poem, "The Soldiers Night Before Christmas". http://mrmom.amaonline.com/asoldierschristmas.htm Please visit the page and pass it on to others. Merry Christmas, SgtGeorge George W. Durman

Just in case you did not know that RootsWeb is currently involved in a huge project of having Census records transcribed and placed on the web site, I thought I would let you know how to access these records. Go to this URL in your web browser: ftp://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/census/ >From this page, you can select the State you wish to search. From within the State page, you can choose the County you wish to search. Once in the County list, you can choose the year of the Census record. These Census records are being transcribed from photocopies of the actual Federal Census Records. The transcriptions are being done by volunteers as they have the time to do the typing. It is a slow, tedious process and will take months, maybe even years, to complete. To date, most of the States have only a few of the counties transcribed, and for only a few Census years in the 1800's. You should bookmark the above URL and then you can come back in the future to see if the State/County/Year of your interest has been transcribed yet. If there are any users out there with lots and lots of time on their hands, and who would like to do some volunteer work, go to this URL: http://www.usgenweb.org/census/ Scroll down to the section on "Census Transcribers". You can volunteer to Transcribe specific Census rolls, Proofread already completed transcriptions, or act as Technical Support in trouble-shooting the programs used for this project. Any help is appreciated. If you volunteer to Transcribe, you can pick the State, County, and Year unless it has already been assigned. (A very, very small percentage of the Census records has already been assigned.) Regards, SgtGeorge George W. Durman Listowner (P.S. You can also access these records via an FTP program, but it is much easier to use your web browser and read the records right there on-screen.)

Dear Sargent Durman, I have the additonal information that you inquired about-appears to be common threads from MO all the way back to VA. I would like to mail it to you , if you would provide me with an address. I must warn you, T. J. Durman, my great-great grandfather fought in the Cival War (the Yankee side)-His father Harvey was from VA. I'm sure there was some "raised eyebrouse" in that family. Oh well, forgive me for my feeble attempt at humour. Let me know where to send the information. Happy Holidays Kathy Burton-Walden

Hello Kathy. I would be very interested in any data you have on the DURMAN name in Indiana. I am from the eastern part of Tennessee and my grandfather migrated down here from VA about 1905. From family oral history, we know that he had relatives in this area before he moved. We have narrowed the search to a fairly small area, but have never been able to find any record of any DURMAN. This may seem a long way from IN, but let me continue. A few years ago, I contacted a DURMAN in MO, whose grandfather came from the Indianapolis area. All he knows is that a DURMAN family, husband, wife, and grown children, left this part of TN, working on the railroad moving north and eventually getting to Indianapolis. One of the sons met a local girl and left the railroad, settling down outside of Indianapolis. Now we think that this DURMAN man is the one who is the ancestor of the cousin in MO. Our problem is that we can't trace the family backward to TN to see where they came from originally. Any clue whatsoever is more than we now have. I would love to have a copy of the note and any information your father may have. We've traced our branch back to Smyth Co., VA, to about the late 1700's, but can't find any real data past that. There HAS to be a common thread linking all these DURMAN branches back to one common ancestor and one area of the country. So, we keep hoping for some tiny shred of evidence that will give us something else to go on. I'm fairly certain that the DURMANs found in IN are from the TN bunch, but just don't know how we all relate to each other. Looking forward to hearing from you again. If we can ever connect, I have some data from VA that might be useful in your genealogy research. Regards, George W. Durman DURMAN Listowner At 08:35 AM 12/6/98 , you wrote: > >I have some information about a woman named Melinda Thompson-Durman. >She was my Great-Great Grandmother and lived in Kingman Indiana. At >this > >time I only know that her date of birth was around the 187?. I found a >purse >she had made among my grandmothers belongings with a note attached with >this sketchy information. My father may know more and have more if you >are >interested. > >Kathy Burton-Walden

I have some information about a woman named Melinda Thompson-Durman. She was my Great-Great Grandmother and lived in Kingman Indiana. At this time I only know that her date of birth was around the 187?. I found a purse she had made among my grandmothers belongings with a note attached with this sketchy information. My father may know more and have more if you are interested. Kathy Burton-Walden

Just in case any subscribers to the Lists which I manage are users of Hotmail, I thought I should explain why your email sent on Dec. 3 did not get posted to the Mailing Lists. Apparently, Microsoft re-jiggled some settings on their server software and really screwed up the works. From about 10:00 AM on Thursday, Dec. 3rd, until sometime that same evening, Hotmail was sending 6 or 7 emails for every one that a Hotmail user sent. What this meant was that if you are a Hotmail user and sent an email during this time period, MS was sending 6-7 identical copies to the RootsWeb server. I don't think I have to tell you what this did to the server and how it screwed things up. Any way, RootsWeb temporarily instituted a "reject" for ANY email coming from Hotmail users as soon as they were aware of the problem. Even with acting as quickly as they did, the RootsWeb mail server crashed twice during the night of Thursday-Friday, trying to handle the email that was already in the pipeline. You can read all about the MS problem by going to these URLs: http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/news/0,4586,2171763,00.html http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/news/0,4586,2171819,00.html Folks, as long as we have AOL and Microsoft around, we need never fear that life will get dull. SgtGeorge Listowner

Check it out !!!!! If you can't find what you want on the Net on Cyndi's page, it probably doesn't exist. SgtGeorge * * * CYNDI'S LIST OF GENEALOGY SITES ON THE INTERNET, <http://www.CyndisList.com>, a categorized and cross-indexed listing of more than 38,000 links to genealogy and family history sites on the Internet, is provided as a free resource by Cyndi Howells and is hosted under its own domain name by RootsWeb Genealogical Data Cooperative <http://www.rootsweb.com>. Three features were added recently: (1) "New" and "Updated" graphics appear next to links which recently have been added or updated, (2) "What's New" pages <http://www.CyndisList.com/whatsnew.htm> will be the temporary home for newly submitted links until they are permanently categorized by Cyndi. This means that new links will be available from the Cyndi's List "What's New" page within 24 hours from the time they were submitted. (3) Daily posts to the CyndisList Mailing List will indicate which of the nearly 300 Web pages comprising Cyndi's List have had links added or updated in the past 24 hours. Please see subscription instructions for CyndisList Mailing List: <http://www.CyndisList.com/maillist.htm> * * *

Hello all users of the Mailing Lists at RootsWeb that I manage. Below are the NEW benefits for becoming a Member or a Sponsor of RootsWeb, and the NEW reduced prices. Of course you can read below, but YOU CAN NOW HAVE ONE MAILING LIST AND ONE GENCONNECT SURNAME BOARD AT ROOTSWEB FOR JUST $12.00 A YEAR !!!!! READ ON, especially the last paragraph about Gift Memberships. SgtGeorge * * * * * NEWS AND NOTES FROM ROOTSWEB ROOTSWEB MEMBERSHIP BENEFITS INCREASED. This new benefits schedule reflects changes made based on your suggestions. -- MEMBERS ($12 per year) may now request the creation of one genealogical mailing list and one GenConnect Surname Board. -- SPONSORS ($24 per year), in addition to the two mailing lists that have been included in the past, may also request the creation of two GenConnect Surname Boards. -- SPONSORS PLUS ($50 or $75 per year) may pay instead in installments ($10 or $15 every other month) and, in addition to space for a genealogical Web site and mailing lists, may also request the creation of four or six GenConnect Surname Boards. -- DONORS ($100 per year) may pay instead in installments of $10 per month. They also may have additional GenConnect Surname Boards. -- DONORS PLUS ($250 per year or $25 per month), in addition to all the Donor benefits, may request a rootsweb.com domain name, such as smith-family.rootsweb.com or wilson.rootsweb.com. See <http://www.rootsweb.com/rootsweb/how-to-subscribe.html> for more details, or send a message to <RW-info@rootsweb.com>. RootsWeb's mailing address is: RootsWeb Genealogical Data Cooperative, P.O. Box 6798, Frazier Park, CA 93222-6798. * * * GIFT MEMBERSHIPS. Just in time for the holidays, RootsWeb gift memberships are now available. Always appropriate, perfect for every genealogist on your list, and less expensive than dinner out for four, a RootsWeb gift membership at the Sponsor Plus level would provide your friends or family members with a home on the Web. For about the price of a two-pound box of drugstore chocolates, you might thank your paperboy for crushing your petunias by introducing him to the fun of exploring history and solving mysteries with the gift of a basic RootsWeb membership. * * *

In an effort to cull out some of the junk that is going into the permanent archives at RootsWeb, I wish to request a couple of things from all users of the Lists which I maintain. 1) Signatures at the end of your email should be no larger than 3 lines. I have seen some lately that are 2 pages in length, in fact much longer than the actual body of the message. Today I saw a reply that consisted of ONE line, with 18 lines of quoted text AND headers, and with a 35 line SIGNATURE !!!!! 2) Most of you use email browsers that give you the option of appending or not appending a signature to your email, and most of these browsers even give you the option of picking from a selection of signatures. I will not comment on your signatures to other places, BUT I would like to ask that you have a SHORT one that you use when sending to ANY Mailing List. Remember, all that extra stuff at the end is archived just like all the other data. All those fancy lines made of symbols and those historical quotes are just not appropriate for email to Mailing Lists 3) When you reply to a post, DELETE all but just enough of the original to identify the subject. We have all seen the original at least once and there is NO need to quote it again in its entirety. Again, when you quote an original, plus a reply, plus a reply to the reply, and then add your reply, all this junk (yes, at this point it is junk) ends up getting into the permanent Archives at RootsWeb. It is taking up far too much valuable space, space that could be better used for Census databases, for instance. 4) When you reply to a user, and your reply is strictly PERSONAL, send it to that user, NOT back to the List. Again, your personal chit-chat gets Archived too. As an example, today on one of my Lists a user sent an email asking another user where to find a book which had absolutely nothing to do with that List. 5) If any of you want to argue over this, and some always do, DO NOT send your reply back to the List. (Remember it will be permanently Archived.) Send to my private email address and I will gladly discuss it. Lets all try to keep these Lists, and the email to them, "lean and clean". Some of my Lists have only a few dozen users, while the largest two have over 600 and 1000, respectively. With hundreds of posts to these large ones, I hope you can see that we need to cut down on anything that is not absolutely essential. Thanks for listening, SgtGeorge Listowner

Below is an extract from the latest RootsWeb Review. We could sure use your help, so if anyone can give just a few dollars it would be appreciated. Remember, RootsWeb is 100% user supported, and there are NO mandatory fees. You get it all free, but if we hope to continue to grow and add new databases, we must have some help. The current ongoing project is to add a Census database at RootsWeb for all to use. Just think! Log on to RootsWeb and search Census records from any of the Census years, from any state! That would sure save you a few trips to a genealogy center somewhere; and it would save you some dollars in having to buy a Census CD database, or having a professional do lookups for you. All the work, such as this Census project, is done on a voluntary basis. None of the helpers get paid for the work. RootsWeb is truly a community project, but we just don't have enough of the community members participating. Oh, we have millions of users who RECEIVE in the way of free mailing list service, but we just don't have enough who GIVE. It is approaching the Christmas season and I hope more of you out there can GIVE a little to RootsWeb this year. All the details are below. Merry Christmas, SgtGeorge George W. Durman, Listowner * * * * * NEWS AND NOTES FROM ROOTSWEB ROOTSWEB GENEALOGICAL DATA COOPERATIVE IS COMMUNITY-SUPPORTED. However, at the moment, it is supported by only 2-5% of those who use it. Your membership is crucial in enabling RootsWeb to continue to add more genealogical data, Web sites, and mailing lists. The degree of community support directly affects RootsWeb's ability to grow. Basic RootsWeb membership is $12 per year. Sponsorship is $24 per year. Higher levels of membership support carry with them additional perquisites. For details about membership options, perquisites, and payment options, please visit: <http://www.rootsweb.com/rootsweb/how-to-subscribe.html> RootsWeb's mailing address is: RootsWeb Genealogical Data Cooperative, P.O. Box 6798, Frazier Park, CA 93222-6798. * * *

Below is the URL of an excellent web site for learning all about "urban legends", "virus hoaxes", "chain letters", and much, much more. The site is maintained by Cyndi Howells, who is one of the fine people who keep RootsWeb running. It is important that users of mailing lists understand about off-topic postings to the lists. We have all heard about the young boy in England who was collecting business cards (NOT !!). We have all heard about various "virus warnings" (UNTRUE !!). We have heard about everything from Red Velvet Cakes to Chocolate Pudding. Now the most recent one is about "Kidney Theft". This last one went around about a year ago and has evidently surfaced again. IT IS A HOAX CHAIN-LETTER !!! So before you receive such a letter and decide to send it to every person you know AND to every mailing list to which you subscribe, CHECK IT OUT FIRST !!!!! Go to this URL: http://www.CyndisList.com/internet.htm NEVER SEND AN OFF-TOPIC POST TO A MAILING LIST WITHOUT FIRST ASKING PERMISSION OF THE LISTOWNER !!!!! DO NOT RESPOND TO THIS EMAIL HERE ON THIS LIST !!!!! If you MUST discuss it, send to my private email address: sgtgeorg@concentric.net SgtGeorge (George W. Durman, Listowner)

***************IMPORTANT !!!!! PLEASE READ !!!!!*************** ==== Support of Mailing Lists at RootsWeb ==== Your donations to RootsWeb make this Mailing List possible. Without user donations, there would be no way to continue the Lists. For the upcoming holiday season, how about a little something in the stocking for RootsWeb? I'm sure that the majority of you users have found im- portant data on your ancestors that would have cost you hundreds of dollars if you were forced to dig out the information at libraries, court- houses, etc., in faraway states. Or, had you hired a Professional Genealogist, it could have cost you thousands and thousands of dollars. Just think how fortunate you are to have all the 4200+ Lists available at RootsWeb; and it doesn't cost you a dime!!!!! Come on, let's show our support for this wonderful service. Even if you can't afford much, just $5 or $10 dollars would help if each and every one of you donated. (As a personal example, let me relate this to you: A cousin of mine spent over $6000 about a year and a half ago to have a "Professional Genealogist" do research on our WILKINSON lines in North Carolina. All he did was load up his CD's on his computer and go through all the official documents from NC. Every bit of the information he found had already been found by another Cousin and me on the Web and on these Lists, mostly from the Lists. Could have saved her a bundle had she asked.) DONATIONS ARE NOT MANDATORY IN ORDER FOR YOU TO BE ABLE TO USE THE MAILING LISTS AT ROOTSWEB. DO NOT FEEL THAT THIS MESSAGE IS ANY KIND OF PRESSURE ON YOU TO DONATE. IT'S JUST AN APPEAL TO YOUR FAIRNESS. Send donations to: RootsWeb Gen. Data Coop. Box 6798 Frazier Park, CA 93222 Or, log on to the Web Site to make SECURE donations via credit card: http://www.rootsweb.com/rootsweb/how-to-subscribe.html SgtGeorge Listowner

Just a reminder that users may now search the archives at RootsWeb for messages that have been sent to these various Mailing Lists in the past. The URLs for the Lists have the same format, with just the last part being different, the part identifying the specific List: http://searches.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/listsearch.pl?list=AYLOR-L http://searches.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/listsearch.pl?list=BROYLES-L http://searches.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/listsearch.pl?list=CFT-WIN-L http://searches.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/listsearch.pl?list=CULLOP-L http://searches.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/listsearch.pl?list=DURMAN http://searches.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/listsearch.pl?list=GAROUTTE-L http://searches.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/listsearch.pl?list=GERMANNA_COLONIES-L http://searches.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/listsearch.pl?list=LOVETTE-L http://searches.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/listsearch.pl?list=SURNAME-QUERY http://searches.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/listsearch.pl?list=WILHITE-L http://searches.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/listsearch.pl?list=WILKINSON-L If your email browser allows you to click on the link, just click on one above and you will go to the appropriate web page at RootsWeb; then type in your search words and hit Search. If your email browser does NOT allow you to click on a link and go there, then just highlight the one you want and copy it to your clipboard. In your web browser, paste in that copied URL. If you want to access the Archive searcher for Mailing Lists other than the ones I have listed here, use the same URL but replace the actual List name with the one you want. Use the one for AYLOR above, but replace "AYLOR-L" with the name of the other, e.g. "SMITH-L". SgtGeorge Listowner