Christmas morning, my 11 year old is up very, very early and wakes us up so that she can open her presents. We make her wait until the coffee is ready and then she goes at it. She always saves a few to open later when my eldest daughter and husband and two grandchildren come over to receive their gifts, after the main gifts are opened we all get to do our stockings, even the animals. I usually will be taking movies and pictures during this time. After everything is opened we start with the munchies and cooking dinner and watching the kids playing with all the good stuff Santa brought them. We don't really have a traditional Christmas dinner, this year it will be prime rib, Yorkshire pudding, scalloped potatoes, artichokes, Caesar salad, orange glazed carrots, blueberry pie, pumpkin pie, homemade cookies. I always have a big tree, lots of Christmas decorations around the house, Christmas music playing, good smells of good things cooking, the house outlandishly adorned with outside lights. Later, after dinner is finished, I usually take the kids for a walk around the neighborhood to look at the Christmas lights on the houses. Usually around this time phone calls from family who live on the East coast will begin. Nancee, Ca. (where it is really feeling like Christmas this year...cold and windy)/

Christmas day all the kids come home, we have friends & elders who have no family, but for 30 years, I have served lasagna. After we eat we open the gifts and every year there is a wrapping paper fight! We always end the day playing cards, even the kids. My eldest daughter still talks about as a small tot having fun with the "paper throwing". My day ends reading my emails as I know I friends and family I enjoy hearing from. Merry Christmas Bunny & everyone on this great list! Hugs Gloria Glory Gospel Group http://glorygospelgroup.homestead.com/Welcome.html CadesCove Site http://cadescove.homestead.com/cadescove.html -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus. Version: 7.0.298 / Virus Database: 265.6.4 - Release Date: 12/22/2004

A Site Worth Seeing .. http://www.msnusers.com/ssleopoldville/ Allan Andrade has dedicated his website to remembering the 763 American soldiers of the 66th Infantry Division who were killed on Christmas Eve 1944. Their troopship was torpedoed in the English Channel 5.5 miles from Cherbourg, France. The bodies of 493 soldiers were never found. There are hundreds of families still unaware that it was the Leopoldville's sinking that took the life of their loved one. Andrade, the "Leopoldville Disaster" author and historian, has reached out to many families and provided them with information unavailable to them for 60 years. As the result of his efforts there is now a Leopoldville Disaster Monument upon which are engraved the names of all 763 dead in alphabetical order by state. The monument is located in Fort Benning, Georgia (home of the infantry) and was dedicated on 7 November 1997. Most recently Andrade helped the White House Commission on Remembrance coordinate a wreath-laying ceremony honoring the soldiers killed in the Leopoldville disaster at the Tomb of the Unknowns, Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. Arlington, The event took place on 15 November this year -- the 60th anniversary of 66th Division sailing from New York to England -- and was attended by 160 people from 23 different states from Maine to Florida to California. This Christmas Eve will be the 60th anniversary of the catastrophe. Anyone seeking info regarding a relative they think might have been killed in the disaster may contact Andrade via e-mail at agandrade37@msn.com He has a copy from the National archives of the official Army Leopoldville casualty list, which was prepared on 29 December 1944. In a number of cases Andrade has been able to put a family in touch with a survivor who remembered their loved one who was killed. "My only intention is to help families find some measure of peace about relatives lost so many years ago in the sinking of the ship," Andrade said.

Google & Partners are Digitizing Millions of Old Books Five of the world's largest libraries have joined Google to digitize millions of books and make every sentence searchable. Nothing in today's announcement mentions genealogy books but with millions of out-of-print books being digitized, one has to believe that at least a handful of them will be genealogies or local histories. The project involves libraries at Harvard and Stanford Universities, the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, and the University of Oxford, as well as the New York Public Library. It could soon turn Google into the single largest holder of digitized published material. In effect, it will become the world's largest digital library and one of the world's largest libraries of any kind. It will also provide researchers and students with an unprecedented tool for finding information. The company will begin by scanning works that are in the public domain, and the full contents of those books will be accessible online through the popular Google search engine. But the company also plans to scan copyrighted books in some of the libraries. The search engine will not return the full texts of those volumes, but will instead provide up to three short excerpts, each consisting of only a few lines of text in which a search term appears. Google officials and librarians hope the excerpts will be sufficient to let researchers determine whether they want to check out or purchase the book. Google will include links to online booksellers and local library catalogues along with search results. The number of volumes that could be scanned is interesting to contemplate: Harvard University: 15 million volumes New York Public Library; 20 million Stanford: more than 7.6 million University of Michigan: 7.8 million Oxford: more than 6.5 million books. Harvard, Stanford, and the New York Public Library have agreed only to pilot projects with the company. Harvard University, for example, has agreed to let Google scan only 40,000 books during the pilot phase of the project. The books will be selected randomly from the five million volumes in the Harvard Depository, an off-site storage facility for seldom-requested books. During the pilot phase of the project, the New York Public Library has agreed to let Google scan more than 10,000 but less than 100,000 public domain books. Oxford will allow Google to scan only books published before 1900 while officials at the University of Michigan have agreed to allow all of their books to be scanned. All of the projects are expected to take years to complete. Susan Wojcicki, director of product management for Google, said that the Google Print project would lead to an increase in book sales because it would show readers what the volumes contain. "For publishers, we believe that this will be beneficial," she said. AND Library and Archives Canada is Scanning Millions of Pages of Documents The following is an excerpt from an interesting article about digitizing old documents in Canada: Library and Archives Canada, which combines the former National Library of Canada and National Archives of Canada, has been especially active, scanning millions of pages of documents a year. It has now put all of the publications, including pamphlets and books, printed in Canada in the 18th and 19th century on-line for the public to access, said Ian Wilson, librarian and archivist of Canada. "We're building this systematically and we're looking right now at the feasibility of other print material for the 20th century," he said. But even if the archive digitizes several million pages a year over 10 years, it will still have only less than half of 1 per cent of the national archives on-line, Wilson added. You can read the entire article on the Globe and Mail web site at http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/TPStory/LAC/20041215/GOOG LE15/TPEntertainment/TopStories

Christmas will be here sooner than I expected... Why not let us all know of your special Christmas traditions... with our diversified list we should have some nice ones.... We can have our list relaxed until after New Years.... OK? ? ? Bunny SHARING works.... try it..... just once... you could reap the benefits ! ! ! ! !.

GET A FREE RESEARCH ASSESSMENT FROM BRITISH/SCOTTISH ANCESTORS Looking for ancestors from England or Scotland? Let us have the details and we will ask one of our British-based researchers to provide a FREE research assessment. If you commission us to do the work (there's no obligation to do that!) our prices start from $68 (US) and if we are unsuccessful, we will either charge you nothing or only a part of the fee. Learn more about our RESEARCH WEEK IN SALT LAKE CITY! For a free research assessment visit: http://www.britishancestors.com/consultrwr/ sallypavia2001@yahoo.com "We will not be remembered by our words, but by our kind deeds." List Owner: GENEALOGYBITSANDPIECES-L-request@rootsweb.com Archives: http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/index/GENEALOGYBITSANDPIECES "All incoming and outgoing email checked by Norton Anti-Virus"

Jewish "again": DNA unlocks secrets in New Mexico By David Kelly Los Angeles Times ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - As a boy, the Rev. William Sanchez sensed he was different. His Catholic family spun tops on Christmas, shunned pork and whispered of a past in medieval Spain. If anyone knew the secret, they weren't telling, and Sanchez stopped asking. Three years ago, after watching a program on genealogy, Sanchez sent for a DNA kit that could help track a person's background through genetic footprinting. He soon got a call from Bennett Greenspan, owner of the Houston-based testing company. "He said, 'Did you know you were Jewish?' " Sanchez, 53, recalled. "He told me I was a Cohanim, a member of the priestly class descended from Aaron, the brother of Moses." With the revelation that Sanchez was almost certainly one of New Mexico's hidden, or crypto-Jews, his family traditions made sense to him. He began a DNA project to test his relatives, along with some parishioners at Albuquerque's St. Edwin's Church, where he works. As word got out, others in the community began contacting him. So Sanchez expanded the effort to include Hispanics throughout the state. Of the 78 people tested, 30 are positive for the marker of the Cohanim, whose genetic line remains strong because they rarely married non-Jews throughout a history spanning up to 4,000 years. Michael Hammer, a research professor at the University of Arizona and an expert on Jewish genetics, said that fewer than 1 percent of non-Jews possessed this marker. That fact - along with the traditions in many of these families - makes it likely that they are Jewish, he said. It also explained practices that had baffled many folks in Albuquerque for years: the special knives used to butcher sheep in line with Jewish kosher tradition, the refusal to work on Saturdays to honor the Sabbath, the menorahs that had been hidden away. Spanish Inquisition's role In some families, isolated rituals are all that remain of a once-vibrant religious tradition diluted by time and fears of persecution. Norbert Sanchez, 66, recalled the "service of lights" on Friday nights in his hometown of Jarales, N.M., where some families would dine by candlelight. "We always thought there was a Jewish background in our family, but we didn't know for sure," he said. "When I found out, it was like coming home for me." In 1492, Jews in Spain were given the choice of conversion to Catholicism or expulsion. Many fled, but others faked conversions while practicing their faith in secret. These crypto-Jews were hounded throughout the Spanish Inquisition. "In the 1530s and 1540s, you began to see converted Jews coming to Mexico City, where some converted back to Judaism," said Moshe Lazar, a professor of comparative literature at the University of Southern California and an expert on Sephardic Jews, or those from Spain and Portugal. "The women preserved their tradition. They taught their daughters the religion. People began rediscovering their Jewishness, but remained Catholics." But in 1571, the Inquisition came to Mexico. Authorities were given lists to help identify crypto-Jews, Lazar said. People who didn't eat pork, knelt imperfectly in church, rubbed water quickly off newly baptized babies or didn't work on Saturday were suspect. If arrested, they were sometimes burned at the stake. For the rest of the article: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/cgi-bin/PrintStory.pl?document_id=200211121 6&zsection_id=268448413&slug=heritage07&date=20041207 or http://shorl.com/dastegyrybreta

Good Site .. Genealogy in the News http://www.genealogysearch.org/news/index.html Sally Rolls Pavia sallypavia2001@yahoo.com "We will not be remembered by our words, but by our kind deeds." List Owner: GENEALOGYBITSANDPIECES-L-request@rootsweb.com Archives: http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/index/GENEALOGYBITSANDPIECES "All incoming and outgoing email checked by Norton Anti-Virus"

Monday, October 18, 2004 Coffin Plates - A Great Source of Birth and Death Dates Brian C AncestorsAtRest.com http://www.ancestorsatrest.com/ <http://www.ancestorsatrest.com/> The history of Coffin Plates or casket plates is a long, but not very well documented one. Generally made of a soft metal like pewter, silver, brass, copper or tin, coffin plates are decorative adornments attached to the coffin that contain information about the deceased. These plates are an overlooked free genealogical resource. They often contain the Birth date and Death date and can be used as a substitute for vital records. The oldest ones that I have seen date from the 17th century (1600~1699) and were reserved for people of some stature, in other words people who had money. As time went on more people were able to afford the luxury of a Coffin Plate and with the coming of the industrial revolution the cost of the plates went down so much that by the middle of the 19th century almost every family could afford them. At the same time that coffin plates were increasing in popularity the practice of removing the plates from the coffin before burial increased. The coffin plates were often removed to be kept as mementos by the loved ones of the deceased. This practice peaked in the late 19th century (1880~1899). In rare cases the plates are removed when the grave is disturbed for some reason like cemetery relocation. This is more common in Europe were space for graves is at a premium. Unfortunately these valuable resources are scattered and there has not been a single repository for this valuable free genealogy resource until now. It is my intention to create a coffin plate database and a home for the unwanted plates themselves. You can see the start of this project at http://www.ancestorsatrest.com/coffin_plates/ In some rare cases the plates can contain even more information like place of birth or the occupation of the deceased. If you want to know more about what things qualify as a true Vital Records there is a good article Genealogy Without Sources is Mythology! at the Olive Tree at http://olivetreegenealogy.com/articles/myth.shtml <http://olivetreegenealogy.com/articles/myth.shtml> Sally Rolls Pavia sallypavia2001@yahoo.com "We will not be remembered by our words, but by our kind deeds." List Owner: GENEALOGYBITSANDPIECES-L-request@rootsweb.com Archives: http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/index/GENEALOGYBITSANDPIECES "All incoming and outgoing email checked by Norton Anti-Virus"

Colonial Love and Marriage By MYRA VANDERPOOL GORMLEY, CG C 1990, 2004 Scarcity breeds demand and women were scare in early America. No women accompanied the settlers who established Jamestown, Virginia in 1607. And when the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1620, only 28 women numbered among the 100 or so passengers on the Mayflower. In a rich new world, marriageable white women remained rare - and eagerly sought. Between 1620 and 1622, about 150 "pure and spotless" women arrived in Virginia and were auctioned for about 80 pounds of tobacco to future husbands. But, by 1625, men still comprised three-quarters of Virginia's white population, and, by mid-century, the situation had worsened. Eligible ladies obviously remained hard to come by. On the other hand, the free women of 17th-century America found their position enviable. Regardless of looks, wit, or wealth, they had no trouble finding husbands. For the remainder of the article: www.genealogymagazine.com/coloandma.html Sally Rolls Pavia sallypavia2001@yahoo.com "We will not be remembered by our words, but by our kind deeds." List Owner: GENEALOGYBITSANDPIECES-L-request@rootsweb.com Archives: http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/index/GENEALOGYBITSANDPIECES "All incoming and outgoing email checked by Norton Anti-Virus"

From Rootsweb Review this week. Ignore the Ancestry search box on the top of the page and scroll down through the names which are in alphabetical order. NEW YORK. Names of orphaned children in Roman Catholic Orphan Asylum, Manhattan, from the 1900 census. Includes year and place of birth. http://www.rootsweb.com/~ote/orphans/orphans1900rc.htm NEW YORK. Names of orphaned children in Hebrew Orphan Asylum, Manhattan, from the 1900 census. Includes year and place of birth. http://www.rootsweb.com/~ote/orphans/orphans1900jewish2.htm NEW YORK. Names of orphaned children in Hebrew Sheltering Guardian Society of New York, Manhattan, from the 1900 census. Includes year and place of birth. http://www.rootsweb.com/~ote/orphans/orphans1900jewish.htm NEW YORK. Names of orphaned children in Orphan Asylum Society, Manhattan, from the 1900 census. Includes year and place of birth. http://www.rootsweb.com/~ote/orphans/orphans1900oas.htm NEW YORK. Society for Relief of Half-Orphans and Destitute Children, Manhattan from the 1900 census. Includes year and place of birth. http://www.rootsweb.com/~ote/orphans/orphans1900half.htm NEW YORK. Names of orphaned children in Albany Orphan Asylum, Albany, from the 1900 census. Includes year and place of birth. http://www.rootsweb.com/~ote/orphans/orphans1900albany.htm Sally Rolls Pavia sallypavia2001@yahoo.com "Books permit us to voyage through time, to tap the wisdom of our ancestors." .. Carl Sagan List Owner: GENEALOGYBITSANDPIECES-L-request@rootsweb.com Archives: http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/index/GENEALOGYBITSANDPIECES "All incoming and outgoing email checked by Norton Anti-Virus"

Although it might interrupt the flow of the festivities, consider keeping a small notebook on hand at holiday gatherings. You never know when some interesting bit of family history will come up in casual conversation, and relying on memory for when you get back to your computer (or where ever you keep your research) is dicey at best. Old family recipes can be a source of research if you know what you're looking for. They give clues to ethnic heritage, and often give the names of other cooks -- friends, family and neighbors -- which could lead to more avenues of research. Happy Holidays! Wendy Boughner Whipple ----- Creating an Heirloom: Writing Your Family's Cookbook http://www.CreatingAnHeirloom.com

Getting organized and knowing the proper way to address government agencies and organizations can help you get quicker, more effective results. Family Tree Magazine has created forms that can help you access and organize your family history information. All our research forms are available in two formats: text and portable document format (PDF). The text versions give you the basic form structure in files you can open in your word-processing software. You can print, edit or even type your information right in the file. The PDF versions are read-only files with snazzier designs-they're suitable for displaying or sharing your research with others. http://www.familytreemagazine.com/forms/download.html

Today, December 16th, marks the 60th anniversary of the beginning of the Battle of the Bulge, Germanys last major offensive of World War II. It was a bitter campaign, fought in the dead of winter in the most appalling conditions imaginable. Its ultimate failure is a testament to the heroism of the Allied troops determined to stop the Nazi war machine at all costs. Sally Rolls Pavia sallypavia2001@yahoo.com "Peace begins when all the hungry are fed." List Owner: GENEALOGYBITSANDPIECES-L-request@rootsweb.com Archives: http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/index/GENEALOGYBITSANDPIECES "All incoming and outgoing email checked by Norton Anti-Virus"

For Your Interest New TV Series -- Here's Your Audition Opportunity! A new television series will be produced through a US-Canadian joint venture on family history sleuthing. The producers are currently seeking a host and cast. All enthusiastic genealogists (and non-union actors) are invited to apply, especially if you've ever been described as charismatic, flamboyant, quirky, opinionated or eccentric! The producers are holding auditions in Provo and Salt Lake City, Utah; Toronto, Canada; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Auditions will be conducted in January and February 2005, and preliminary applications may be completed at the Honoring our Ancestors casting page www.honoringourancestors.com/casting.html. If selected, applicants should be willing to travel at their own expense to one of the casting locations (audition dates and locations are provided along with other details on the website). All submissions must be received no later than January 6, 2005. Good luck! Sally Rolls Pavia sallypavia2001@yahoo.com WVGS 2005 Seminar Registration

Guess I forgot to include this: You can search the database for FREE, view images from as little as 20 UK pence (approx 32 US cents) and save and print your copy. If you have already paid to view an image you can view it again without any further charge. Log in at http://www.nationalarchivist.com/login.cfm Sally Rolls Pavia sallypavia2001@yahoo.com "We will not be remembered by our words, but by our kind deeds." List Owner: GENEALOGYBITSANDPIECES-L-request@rootsweb.com Archives: http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/index/GENEALOGYBITSANDPIECES "All incoming and outgoing email checked by Norton Anti-Virus"

Good deal, just sorry I didn't get it sooner to pass along. .. Sally The National Archivist CHRISTMAS BONANZA IS CURRENTLY LIVE There is still time to gain unlimited access to all archives for just £2.50 Ends Friday 17 th December 2004 ________________________________ For just £2.50 you can have unlimited access to all the archives on our website NOW until Midnight (GMT) Friday 17th December 2004. Purchase unlimited access for £2.50 to search and view as many of our archives as you wish. If you currently have credits in your account these will be reinstated once the bonanza offer expires. Images viewed during the Bonanza offer will remain in the ‘Viewing History’ section of your Members homepage for 30 days. During this 30 day period you can view, print and save these images for free. Our resident Genealogist will be on hand to help with your research queries. Email archives@nationalarchivistcom To take part in this great offer and fill those gaps in your research please follow the login link at the bottom of this email and go to the Buy Credits section of your members’ page. If you do not wish take part in this offer you will still be able to use your existing credits during this period. ________________________________ THE ARCHIVES Now available to search at the National Archivist are a range of categories including; * Births, Marriages and Deaths * Military Records * Emigration and Passports * Wills, Administrations and Taxes * British Colonies * Directories and Professionals * Free to View archives ________________________________ The National Archivist Shop Just in! The latest release of The National Burial Index – See Births,Marriage, Deaths section • Census CD’s • Parish Register CD’s • Software• Book Scanner • BMD • Directories • Data CD’s ________________________________ COMING NEXT * Index to Death Duty Registers 1878 - 1881 * Harts Army List 1868 * Harts Army List 1909 ________________________________ You can search the database for FREE, view images from as little as 20 UK pence (approx 32 US cents) and save and print your copy. If you have already paid to view an image you can view it again without any further charge. The National Archivist is part of Trusted Third Party Ltd, UK registered company 3745789. The National Archivist Your Source of Original Documents Online

Much more on this site than just the Vernon Co, MO info. Spent about an hour on it last night and didn't even scratch the surface, great fun to see all the goodies Jim has posted .. Sally I just finished transcribing the 1890 Veterans Census for Vernon County Missouri and adding it to my web site. The Veterans listed served in units from all over the eastern U.S., but most served in Indiana and Illinois units. Many did not live in Vernon County, but were enumerated there. Jim -------------------------------------------- Free Genealogy Databases http://www.jrbakerjr.com Sally Rolls Pavia sallypavia2001@yahoo.com "We will not be remembered by our words, but by our kind deeds." List Owner: GENEALOGYBITSANDPIECES-L-request@rootsweb.com Archives: http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/index/GENEALOGYBITSANDPIECES "All incoming and outgoing email checked by Norton Anti-Virus"

I have added lots of new records this week on Ancestors at Rest More German Death Cards at http://www.ancestorsatrest.com/death_cards/ New Ontario Cemetery Records for Mt ALBION CEMETERY in SALTFLEET Twp,WENTWORTH COUNTY, ONTARIO. PRESBYTERIAN CEMETERY WYEBRIDGE, SIMCOE COUNTY, ONTARIO. LAKEVIEW CEMETERY MIDLAND, SIMCOE COUNTY, ONTARIO. To see a list of Cemetery Records go to http://www.ancestorsatrest.com/cemetery_records/ And lots more Funeral Cards at http://www.ancestorsatrest.com/funeral_cards/ and http://ancestorsatrest.blogspot.com/ P.S. Please feel free to pas this post on to others if you like.

Have you found your ancestor's Civil War records elusive? Maybe you've been looking in the wrong place. Ask yourself the following question: Was it the Civil War or the War Between the States? http://gentod.com/genweekly.mv?id=438 <http://gentod.com/genweekly.mv?id=438> Source: GenWeekly.com Sally Rolls Pavia sallypavia2001@yahoo.com "We will not be remembered by our words, but by our kind deeds." List Owner: GENEALOGYBITSANDPIECES-L-request@rootsweb.com Archives: http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/index/GENEALOGYBITSANDPIECES "All incoming and outgoing email checked by Norton Anti-Virus"