I would try to attend if possible, can't be positive this far in advance. Esther Whitney Mott California emott6@home.com ----- Original Message ----- From: "Chris Branagan" <slainte@together.net> To: <WHITNEY-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Friday, January 19, 2001 12:38 PM Subject: [WHITNEY-L] the Reunion > Hi Everybody! > > OK, we are putting out a "Last Call" regarding the possibility of a > Whitney Family Reunion. Please let us know via the Whitney roots > web site (you are on it right now) if you think this is a good idea > and if you would try to come. > > Based on information collected so far, it looks like a Reunion would > take place in the summer of 2002 in or near Watertown, Ma. , the > residence of John and Elinor Whitney when they came in 1635. > > Because planning is still very, VERY early, there is a lot of > flexibility as to what content could be considered, but the general > goals of the reunion would be for members of the Whitney Research Group > to get to know one another better and to share with one another the > scholarly research done to date regarding the Whitney Family. This > would include John and Elinor, Henry, the Southern Whitneys and the > Canadian Whitneys. (Have I left out anyone?) We would try to include > social times, banquets, perhaps some tours, lectures by members of > the WRG, and perhaps some involvement by the Watertown Historical > Society. Is there any interest in a golf tourney? > > The reunion would take place over one three day weekend, starting on > Friday afternoon, running all day Saturday and concluding after church > and brunch on Sunday. > > We will need people to be on the Organizing Committee willing to take > charge of each of the following areas: lodging and meals, tours, > lectures, registration. This will be a volunteer committee, no one > from the committee will make any money on this reunion. > I think we should also have some legal advice from some of our member > WRG attorneys on liability pitfalls for the Committee. So far the > volunteers for the Committee are Lynn Legere and me. We are hoping to > involve Jeanne Muse somehow. > > Make your thoughts known. If we do this, we want it to be done well. > > > from, Carolyn Whitney Branagan > > ______________________________

Dear WRG, The way you pronunce Worcestor is Wissta. This is the Boston accent. Maureen

I am searching my Whitney family and I hope this is the right address: My beginning information begins with: Isaac Whitney, born in Canada to a father also named Isaac Whitney. The first Isaac Whitney I have that I know of lived in Connecticut at the time of the Revolutionary war. He was an English sympathizer so he moved to Canada at least for the duration of the war. He fathered four sons: Isaac, Levi, Abraham and Nelson. His son Isaac lived in Fairfiled, Vt a town near Sheldon, Vt. He was a farmer and blacksmith. Was a black smith for the Union Army during the Civil War. He married Julia Anne Moore, a widow with two daughters. Marcellas and Sarah. They then had three children: Levi, Flora and Lucy. All born in Vermont. Levi moved to Clearwater, Minn. Levi married Julia Anne Shirley. They too lived in Clearwater. Levi and Julia Anne Shirley had two children. Pearl Flora and Ward. Julia died when Pearl was seven years old. Her father was James Shirley. Lucy married a George Humphrey from England, farmed near Clearwater. Suppose to be info on them in the Wright County records in Minn. Flora married an Englishman too named Ashley Cummins. Any connection to this family would be most welcome. Joanne Marshall Wood mossyrose@aol.com

It may be of interest that David Day Whitney, Ph.D. Professor of Zoology at the Univ. of Nebraska 1916-1948, was a well-known geneticist. He is listed in American Men of Science 1961, 10th ed. Physical and Biological Sciences 4:4401. His lineage is David D -9, Cyrus H -8, Daniel -7, David -6, Benjamin -5, Joseph -4, Joseph -4, Jonathan -2, John -1. As he was my maternal grandmother's cousin, we always referred to him has "Cousin David." He wrote two books on genetics, in which he included examples from his own family (though they were anonymous in the books). These are: Family Treasures. Lancaster, PA: Jaques Cattell Press 1942 especially seek p. 18 which are: A. Julia Hall (1816 - 1873) B. Daniel Whitney -7 (David -6, Benjamin -5, Joseph -4, Joseph -3, Jonathon -2, John - 1) (1809 - 1873) 1 Roann (1835-1878) 2 Rosette (1836-1923) 3 Maria S (1838-1884) 4 Alonzo B (1840-1864) killed in Civil War 5 Emma (1841-1911) 6 David (1844-1927) 7 Daniel Frank (1846-1904) 8 Amine (1849-1924) 9 Cyrus H (1852-1908) 10 Walter Eugene (1856-1894) 11 Julia Ella (1858-1927) Family Skeletons. Lincoln, NE: Univ. of Nebraska Press 1946 (see p. 5, 72, 126, 188, 208) "Cousin" David was born 6 August 1878, in Brookfield Vermont. He received his A.B. from Wesleyan Univ. CT in 1904, his M.A. from Columbia Univ. in 1906, and his Ph.D. from Columbia in 1909. He married Kathryn Stillman Bunce (b. 10 Dec 1877, d. 23 Jan 1937) on 17 June 1914. They had one child, Elizabeth, who married a Mr. Vollnhofer from Switzerland. They moved to the Mother Lode region of California where they raised miniature and toy poodles commercially. David applied his knowledge of genetics to help them develop unusual colors in the poodles. I especially remember how proud they were of an apricot color variation. He died 7 April 1965 in Auburn, CA. Elizabeth died in 1976. Elizabeth had one daughter, Ingrid. When I last heard, several years ago, she was working for the State of New Mexico in Santa Fe. On Tue, 16 Jan 2001, Jeanne Muse wrote: > No Whitney photos here ... but an interesting site nonetheless. Thought > I'd pass it along anyway. > > Jeanne > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: mitch keamy > To: jwmuse@compuserve.com > Sent: Saturday, January 13, 2001 11:27 PM > Subject: New England Surnames > > > Hello, > > I found your website and I think you would like to know about the new > genealogy online project in which I am involved. AncientFaces is the > visual > genealogy website that has thousands of old photos visitors are sharing > for > free. The url is: http://www.ancientfaces.com AncientFaces adds a > visual > element to the lists of names and dates to help complete our > genealogical > research. We also offer a military section just for military photos that > contains hundreds of photos covering multiple wars. > > If you have any comments, or would like more information, please feel > free to > contact me at this email address. We have a searchable banner that can > be > added to other websites located under the news section at > http://www.ancientfaces.com > > AncientFaces is entirely free and we welcome any questions regarding the > site. > > Best wishes, > > > Mitchell F. Keamy IV > AncientFaces > > Karl Schwerin SnailMail: Dept. of Anthropology Univ. of New Mexico Albuquerque, NM 87131 e-mail: schwerin@unm.edu Cultural anthropology...is valuable because it is constantly rediscovering the normal. Edward Sapir (1949:151)

Dear Rose, Dea. means deacon. Other questions will, I'm sure, be answered by our very esteemed senior researchers. However, for pronouncing some Mass. cities, only a Mass. native can do that because they sound totally different than spelled, espectially Worcester. It really is pronounced: Wister, with a small i. Other good ones: Leominster: Leminster. Quincy: Quinzy, etc. Who knows why, but that's just the way it is!! Lyn Rose Zella wrote: > I'm really getting into this family stuff but find myself still > incredibly stupid. > I do believe that the practice of genealogy is 'disturbing the dead and > irritating the living' so I have been going real slow as I > really don't want to irritate or offend some of the really hard working > researchers. > But I do have some questions that I just don't know-for instance I have > found an ancestor, Capt. Jonathan Whitney > also know as Dea. Jonathan Whitney. What does the Dea. mean? > Then this is just a "What do you think?" > I have been watching the PBR (Professional Bull Riding) at Worcester, > Mass. I can't help but wonder what our hard > working and probably stately Whitney ancestors would think of making > money riding bulls! > Also how do you pronounce Worcester? The announcer says-Wooster like > rooster. > Sorry I know the last one is dumb. > Rose Zella

Lyn Legere wrote: > RE: Legal implications for the volunteer committee. Unless there is an > exchange of money between members (rather than to hotel, etc.), there should > be no legal implications. I think we would want to minimize money > exchange. For example, the accomodations committe could contact hotel, get > rate for rooms, possible reserve X amount of rooms, but the deposits should > be made directly to the hotel. If there are any other concerns, a simple > disclaimer should cover everyone's derrier. > > Lyn LEgere > > Chris Branagan wrote: > > > Hi Everybody! > > > > OK, we are putting out a "Last Call" regarding the possibility of a > > Whitney Family Reunion. Please let us know via the Whitney roots > > web site (you are on it right now) if you think this is a good idea > > and if you would try to come. > > > > Based on information collected so far, it looks like a Reunion would > > take place in the summer of 2002 in or near Watertown, Ma. , the > > residence of John and Elinor Whitney when they came in 1635. > > > > Because planning is still very, VERY early, there is a lot of > > flexibility as to what content could be considered, but the general > > goals of the reunion would be for members of the Whitney Research Group > > to get to know one another better and to share with one another the > > scholarly research done to date regarding the Whitney Family. This > > would include John and Elinor, Henry, the Southern Whitneys and the > > Canadian Whitneys. (Have I left out anyone?) We would try to include > > social times, banquets, perhaps some tours, lectures by members of > > the WRG, and perhaps some involvement by the Watertown Historical > > Society. Is there any interest in a golf tourney? > > > > The reunion would take place over one three day weekend, starting on > > Friday afternoon, running all day Saturday and concluding after church > > and brunch on Sunday. > > > > We will need people to be on the Organizing Committee willing to take > > charge of each of the following areas: lodging and meals, tours, > > lectures, registration. This will be a volunteer committee, no one > > from the committee will make any money on this reunion. > > I think we should also have some legal advice from some of our member > > WRG attorneys on liability pitfalls for the Committee. So far the > > volunteers for the Committee are Lynn Legere and me. We are hoping to > > involve Jeanne Muse somehow. > > > > Make your thoughts known. If we do this, we want it to be done well. > > > > from, Carolyn Whitney Branagan

Hello Rose Your EMAIL address is not right it bounced back. Thank you John Rose Zella wrote: > I'm really getting into this family stuff but find myself still > incredibly stupid. > I do believe that the practice of genealogy is 'disturbing the dead and > irritating the living' so I have been going real slow as I > really don't want to irritate or offend some of the really hard working > researchers. > But I do have some questions that I just don't know-for instance I have > found an ancestor, Capt. Jonathan Whitney > also know as Dea. Jonathan Whitney. What does the Dea. mean? > Then this is just a "What do you think?" > I have been watching the PBR (Professional Bull Riding) at Worcester, > Mass. I can't help but wonder what our hard > working and probably stately Whitney ancestors would think of making > money riding bulls! > Also how do you pronounce Worcester? The announcer says-Wooster like > rooster. > Sorry I know the last one is dumb. > Rose Zella

Good morning Rose Your email address is not right my reply bounced. John,, Rose Zella wrote: > I'm really getting into this family stuff but find myself still > incredibly stupid. > I do believe that the practice of genealogy is 'disturbing the dead and > irritating the living' so I have been going real slow as I > really don't want to irritate or offend some of the really hard working > researchers. > But I do have some questions that I just don't know-for instance I have > found an ancestor, Capt. Jonathan Whitney > also know as Dea. Jonathan Whitney. What does the Dea. mean? > Then this is just a "What do you think?" > I have been watching the PBR (Professional Bull Riding) at Worcester, > Mass. I can't help but wonder what our hard > working and probably stately Whitney ancestors would think of making > money riding bulls! > Also how do you pronounce Worcester? The announcer says-Wooster like > rooster. > Sorry I know the last one is dumb. > Rose Zella

Hi Rose, Normally I believe dea stands for Deacon, as in a Deacon of the Church. Every one in new england usually refers to Worcester as either Wooster or Wusster from what I've heard (I'm in Vermont). Hope that helps some Ellen Emerson http://www.VermontProgrammers.com -----Original Message----- From: Rose Zella [mailto:" zella"@vcn.com] Sent: Saturday, January 20, 2001 12:36 AM To: WHITNEY-L@rootsweb.com Subject: [WHITNEY-L] Naive and still learning I'm really getting into this family stuff but find myself still incredibly stupid. I do believe that the practice of genealogy is 'disturbing the dead and irritating the living' so I have been going real slow as I really don't want to irritate or offend some of the really hard working researchers. But I do have some questions that I just don't know-for instance I have found an ancestor, Capt. Jonathan Whitney also know as Dea. Jonathan Whitney. What does the Dea. mean? Then this is just a "What do you think?" I have been watching the PBR (Professional Bull Riding) at Worcester, Mass. I can't help but wonder what our hard working and probably stately Whitney ancestors would think of making money riding bulls! Also how do you pronounce Worcester? The announcer says-Wooster like rooster. Sorry I know the last one is dumb. Rose Zella

I too live in Mass. I am willing to give information about the area I live in. About two miles from my house, there has been a boom on hotel/motel chains. All have been built on the same street. I live in an area that is centrally located to all major routes. It is a suburb of Framingham, and Worcestor. It is about 30 miles from Boston and Watertown. There is also a small airport in the town I live in. If someone wanted to avoid Logan airport in Boston, there is a airport in Worcestor. There is also Green airport about twenty miles from here in Rhode Island. Any thing I can help with, I surely will. Maureen ----- Original Message ----- From: "Chris Branagan" <slainte@together.net> To: <WHITNEY-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Thursday, January 18, 2001 1:32 PM Subject: [WHITNEY-L] the Reunion > Happy New Year Jeanne! > > I see from looking at the polls that there are 20-30 people interested > in some kind of a reunion. Would it be worth a "Last Call" for voting > before we have a serious discussion about the possibilities? A few > people (maybe 5) I've corresponded with in the last month have written > that they would try to attend a reunion, but their names don't appear > on the polls. > > My interest in a reunion is still high. I'm still willing to be part of > a volunteer committee. > What do you think? I notice on your family site it is possible to set > up a chat time. Perhaps that would attract more people to express > their opinion. > > Let me know what you are thinking. from, Carolyn > >

Does anyone have any information where the Southern Whitney's originated from? Southern being NC. Wanting to find the lineage of Nancy Whitney, known in Burke County, NC around 1828. Saw a marriage of a Nancy Whitney of Lincoln County abt 1824 to a Mr. Robinson. Hopefully some Whitney researcher has come across this line of Whitney's, :)

Dear Rose Zella: Hi, and welcome to the Whitney Research Group (WRG). You have given us some good information, and we will be delighted to try and help you in your search. Dea. is short for Deacon, and this Jonathan was evidently a very upstanding member of his community if he was both a Deacon in his church and a Captain in his local Militia. Can you give us a little more information about this Jonathan, so that we may help you place him in the proper family tree? What dates and places do you have for him? Have you found our WRG website yet? It contains a wonderful amount of useful research data as well as several different databases of family descent from early ancestors. Your Jonathan may well be found there already, which would allow you to take advantage of what has already been done by other members of the WRG. The address is: http://www.whitneygen.org/ and it includes an excellent search engine that will allow you to enter a name you want to look for and it will give you all of the places on the website where that name can be found. Naturally, not all Jonathan Whitneys will be your Jonathan, but hopefully you will find something useful. Don't hesitate to write to us again, asking for further help. The county is pronounced as the announcer said, but more like Wuss-ter rather than Woo-ster (if any of my New England friends wishes to disagree, please feel free to chime in). Happy Hunting! Allan E. Green

I'm really getting into this family stuff but find myself still incredibly stupid. I do believe that the practice of genealogy is 'disturbing the dead and irritating the living' so I have been going real slow as I really don't want to irritate or offend some of the really hard working researchers. But I do have some questions that I just don't know-for instance I have found an ancestor, Capt. Jonathan Whitney also know as Dea. Jonathan Whitney. What does the Dea. mean? Then this is just a "What do you think?" I have been watching the PBR (Professional Bull Riding) at Worcester, Mass. I can't help but wonder what our hard working and probably stately Whitney ancestors would think of making money riding bulls! Also how do you pronounce Worcester? The announcer says-Wooster like rooster. Sorry I know the last one is dumb. Rose Zella

My first posting to the list. Hope my Whitney information will help someone and in turn that I may get more information also! John T W Whitney was born August 31, 1822 in Canada. He married Elizabeth Ann Morse who was born in 1826 in Whitefield, NH. They were married on April 4, 1845. John and Elizabeth resided in Northumberland, NH John died April 2, 1910 at the Old Soldiers Home in Chelsea, Mass. Elizabeth preceded him in death, died November 9, 1883. John enlisted in the 1st Regiment of NH, Heavy Artillery, I Company on Sept 7, 1864 and was mustered out on June 15, 1865. John and Elizabeth had a son, Benjamin Franklin Whitney (boy, this name is everywhere in this family!) He was born October 12, 1862 in Northumberland, NH On April 12, 1883 he married Edith Remick in Jefferson, NH. Benjamin died Feb 4, 1940. Benjamin and Edith resided in Warren, NH >From what my father knows from personal conversation with Benjamin before his death, Benjamin's grandfather's name was Newall or Newhall and he was in the lumber business in Canada. (Benjamin was also in the lumber business, specifically on Mount Moosilauke in NH) It appears then, that John T W Whitney's parents were Newhall Whitney and Elizabeth Whitehead listed on the Whitney Research Group website. An interesting note: John T. W. Whitney had a younger brother Benjamin Franklin Whitney born in 1824 who was mortally wounded in the civil war at Cold Harbor. (11th Infantry VT, K Company). He joined the war on 12/4/1863 and died 11/1/1864. John's son Benjamin Franklin Whitney was born October 12, 1862. I have two problems that I am working on, and hope someone can give me some insight. #1) John T W and Elizabeth Morse were married for 17 years and John was 40 years old when Benjamin was born. I cannot find any siblings for Benjamin. John being a farmer in Northumberland, NH, I find this unusual! #2) I am told that Benjamin's father-in-law, Harris Remick, was living in Lancaster, NH in 1920 in the household of his grandson Thomas J Whitney. No one knows or remembers a Thomas J Whitney! Benjamin and Edith had three children...Susie, Gladys and Percy. Harris had three daughters and only one, Edith, married a Whitney. Any ideas???? By the way, another Benjamin Franklin Whitney was born in December 1976!

A reunion sounds good to me also, and would attend if possible. Mary Ellen Jones, Washington State

At 03:54 PM 1/19/01 -0800, John F. Sherwood wrote: >Does anyone have any data on Ruloff or Ruluff Whitney who moved to >Dryden, Tompkins Co,NY in 1800? I'm really searching for Lucy Whitney >who lived in that area at same time and am going on hunch that they >might be related. Am at brickwall with Lucy. She married David Sherwood >in Dryden in 1817. This was Ruluff-7 WHITNEY [Christopher-6, William-5,4,3, Joshua-2, John-1]. See <http://www.whitneygen.org/archives/extracts/pierce/p376-380.htm#P3083>. Regards, Robert Robert L. Ward WHITNEY Research Group <http://www.whitneygen.org/>

A Whitney Reunion sounds like a great idea. We'll be there ! Hope you'll have something in mind for "Henrys" and those of us from Canada. If it's all "John" and Watertown, it would be less inviting for us but we'll still be part of it. Bill Whitney

Dear WRG: Just wanted to let you know that John Whitney from Oxford was in this country for the past week or so, and Robert Ward and I (and our good wives) had the pleasure of having dinner with him last night near Robert's home in Laurel, MD. As you might guess, some genealogy talk ensued. Here is an article that I found in todays (19 Jan 2001) Ancestry Daily News. ============================================================ GEORGE G. MORGAN: "ALONG THOSE LINES . . ." "Bogus Genealogies" ============================================================ I had a discussion last week with a gentleman who advised me that his sister had obtained the family genealogy from another researcher and that, "It's already done for us!" I cringed at the thought because there may be erroneous information in that genealogy, and the sister really needs to verify the evidence the other researcher documented. If not, she risks accepting as fact information that may have many holes in it. There has been some discussion recently on a genealogy librarians' mailing list concerning inaccurate or bogus genealogies. These are materials that, as researchers, are difficult to understand, but about which we must be wary. In "Along Those Lines. . ." this week, let's explore some of the reasons why bogus genealogical information seems to be so widespread and how we can protect ourselves from this problem. A LITTLE BACKGROUND In previous centuries, it was not unusual for wealthy people to hire someone to research their ancestral lines and produce a genealogical report. There were certainly cases where the wealthy patron requested a connection to kings, queens, heads of state, and other famous personages. Researchers may have also fabricated such links in anticipation of more favorable payment. (This is one of the reasons why, as genealogists, we start our research with ourselves and work backward, rather than starting with Charlemagne and "forcing" a connection to our line of descent.) These days, most professional genealogical researchers adhere to more stringent codes of conduct and ethics. These are set forth by such excellent professional standards organizations as the Board for Certification of Genealogists (http://www.bcgcertification.org/). [This is not to say there are no unscrupulous or sloppy professional researchers. It is always important to check the credentials and references of any professional researcher you might consider hiring.] However, despite these standards, fabrication has continued in recent times. For instance, some people have been eager to connect themselves to famous personages or families in order to join a hereditary society. As a result, some of them may have "fudged" the facts, the dates, and/or the connections in order to make the cut. The societies themselves have had to institute rigorous standards of proof and meticulously check the documentation submitted with membership applications. In some societies, it has been necessary to conduct a retroactive evaluation of all documentation to re-prove valid connections. I have personally seen information in societies' records that I can prove is incorrect through my own careful research, and I have seen these same documents used in others' published research. REASONS BEHIND BOGUS AND/OR INACCURATE GENEALOGIES Why would someone write a bogus genealogy? As I mentioned earlier, there may have been financial incentives for creating such a family connection. Being a descendant of a famous or wealthy ancestor does have some benefits: fame, fortune (perhaps in the form of an inheritance), position in society, and membership in certain organizations, to mention a few. As a result, a published or privately printed genealogy may well contain a little or a lot of fabricated data. In other instances, inaccurate genealogies may simply be the result of inattentive or sloppy work. A genealogist may have obtained the information from another person or from a printed genealogy; he or she may have assumed the data was correct without conducting personal research to verify the evidence. The problem is that, once published, a substantial number of other researchers accept the information as fact. Some just don't know any better, while others are just plain lazy. These people may then perpetuate the errors or inaccuracies in their own charts or, worse yet, in another published genealogy. Let me give you an example. John Bennett Boddie, on page 387 of his book "Seventeenth Century Isle of Wight Virginia," Vol. I, lists the names of 13 children of Nathan Bodie and Mary Edna Eidson. The names are supposedly presented in birth sequence and with names of spouses, beginning with James Russell, Jesse, Mary, Ann, Manda, Elizabeth, Amorilla, Susan, Jane, Virginia, Daniel, Jennie, and Andrew (all with surname Bodie). Two children's names listed there are of particular interest. Manda is listed as the fifth child, with no birth year, and her spouse is shown as Willis Holmes. Another daughter, Amorilla, is listed as the seventh child, born in 1839, but with no spouse's name shown. An examination of the 1850 census shows the name "Amanda" written in such a way (with curlicues and flourishes) that it could easily be interpreted as "Amorilla." There is no Manda listed. The conclusion, then, is that the author misinterpreted the handwriting in the 1850 census. However, a later marriage record indicates that Willis Holmes was, in fact, the spouse of Amanda Bodie--not of Manda or Amorilla. In a subsequent book, "A Documented History of the Long Family," on page 237, Eytive Long Evans includes the names of Nathan Bodie and Mary Edna Eidsen's children as "James Russell, Jesse, Mary, Ann, Susan, Jane, and others." While the author does not cite the aforementioned book (or anything else) as her source, one might conjecture that she recognized potential problems with the Manda and Amorilla entries and therefore omitted them, especially since she listed some earlier-born and later-born children. But what is also of significant interest is both books' treatment of the children's birth sequence. In the first book, Jesse Bodie's birth date is given as 1830 and he is listed second. Jesse's birth date was actually in 1826, and he preceded his brother, James Russell Bodie. But the incorrect sequence is also listed in Evans' book. Inasmuch as Boddie's book was the only printed genealogy concerning this branch of the Bodie family in existence when Evans' book was written, and since the two lists of children are in the same sequence (although the children are listed differently in the 1850 census), it is probable that Evans used and accepted Boddie's work and perpetuated his conclusions, albeit with some errors. Thus, this is an example of a case where there are two printed sources with similar information, and one probably derived from the other. Because Evans' did not document her source for the Bodie family data (contrary to the title of her book, I might add), it is impossible to be certain that Boddie's data was her source. However, had she examined the 1850 census page herself and subsequently pursued the census records for all of the Bodie children, she would not have perpetuated the chronological sequence error of John Russell Bodie being born before Jesse Bodie. So this is also an excellent example of why you should verify source evidence for yourself. In this case, finding the truth required a personal examination of both printed sources, the 1850 census, and at least one marriage record. PROTECTING YOURSELF Most of us still conduct a significant amount of research in person at libraries, archives, courthouses, and other venues, or we are corresponding to obtain copies of records. As you work with printed materials, what do you do when you find two or more printed resources with conflicting information? You should (and must) start looking for additional resources, preferably in the form of the actual records from which the data was derived. Examine them for yourself, and make your own interpretation. Remember also that yet a third printed genealogy could exist, perpetuating errors or inaccuracies from one or both of the others. Certainly, the Internet has expanded our horizons and our research range. Databases filled with other people's genealogical research are found in many places, and you must assume from the outset that what you will find is, at best, a tertiary source--a source derived from a primary or secondary source, transcribed from other sources, or maybe even taken from fourth- or fifth-hand data. The same holds true for information received from another researcher. All of this illustrates the fact that you must be meticulous in verifying information you receive from sources other than original documents. While I am not saying that there are people who consciously perpetrate genealogical fraud or purposely falsify records, I am suggesting that we all maintain a healthy skepticism and look beyond making assumptions regarding the accuracy of the things we see in print. Regardless of the source--printed genealogy, database of any kind, GEDCOM file, e-mail message, message board posting, or whatever--protect your research by obtaining source citations, and follow through to review them for yourself. Happy Hunting! George BIBLIOGRAPHY Evans, Eytive Long. "A Documented History of the Long Family." Decatur, GA: Bowen Press. 1956. Boddie, John Bennett. "Seventeenth Century Isle of Wight Virginia." Vol. I. Chicago: Chicago Law Printing. 1938. __________________________________________________________________ George G. Morgan is a proud member of the International Society of Family History Writers and Editors, Inc. (ISFHWE) at: http://www.rootsweb.com/~cgc/cgc2.htm. He would like to hear from you at atl@ahaseminars.com, but due to the volume of e-mail received, he is unable to answer every message. Please note that he cannot assist you with your individual research. Visit George's Web site at http://ahaseminars.com/atl for information about speaking engagements. Copyright 2000, MyFamily.com. All rights reserved.

I've registered my vote in the poll as a definite yes & I'm sure my sister would attend, as well. As we get closer, one thing I can offer is my 25 years of travel agency experience, not necessarily to book tickets, though I'd be happy to assist anyone. Discounts for "meetings" are easily available with a minimum of 15 people flying from anyplace to a single destination for a specific date range on a single airline. "The Whitney Reunion" could be registered with one or two major airlines for a convention/meeting discount of 5-30% off published airfares. The amount of the discount depends on the type of fare. I'd need to get an idea where people are coming from to decide if there is enough people to qualify and also which airlines would be the best choice to register with. Tickets could be booked either directly with the airlines or through any travel agency.

Sounds Good Barry Whitney Rapid City, SD