On Friday, May 2, at 1:00 pm in the auditorium of the Mount Clemens Public Library, Deborah Larsen will present Finding Hidden Gems in the Suburban Library Co-Op Digital Archive. She will show how to search the archive and give examples of what you can find.

If you are in the Mount Clemens area, PLEASE JOIN US.

See you soon at the Mt. Clemens Public Library! 
LE

DNA Testing Kit Sales for DNA Day - April 25, 2014

Happy DNA Day!

Okay, here are the various DNA Day Sales that I've learned about:

FamilyTree DNA
At FamilyTree DNA the Y-DNA 37-marker test is on sale for $135.20, regularly $169.  Remember, Y-DNA tests are for males only.

More details were provided in a pre-sale announcement to FamilyTree DNA group administrators. But since a press release from FamilyTree DNA has not been located yet this is the buzz about the sale. 

To sum it up, Y-DNA SNPS will be 20 percent off (this is for those already tested with FamilyTree DNA) and as stated above the Y-DNA 37-marker test is on sale for 20 percent off. That sale began April 25 and ends April 29 at probably at 11:59 pm Central but different websites are reporting different end times. 

If you are ordering a Y-DNA test, first check to see if there is a Y-DNA test group that applies to the surname or location of the person submitting the sample (being tested). Generally, if you order through a surname project or a geographical project there is the benefit of an additional project discount on top of the cost of the test.

Today is also the day FamilyTree DNA has released its updated Y-DNA Haplotree. It is also hosting a webinar today to explain the new tree. This webinar will be archived for viewing later if you can't view it live.

Ancestry.com
Ancestry is offering its AncestryDNA (autosomal) test on sale for $79 plus shipping and the offer is good until April 27, 2014, 11:59 p.m. ET. The test is regularly $99 so the savings is about 20 percent. Remember, autosomal tests are for males AND females -- it tests what you inherit from both biological parents.

At the same time, Ancestry is running a different sale on the same test for Mother's Day. The Mother's Day sale is $89 and runs until May 11 at 11:59 pm ET.

In addition, RetailMeNot has a free DNA shipping coupon code listed for Ancestry. The code is FREESHIPDNA and the code is good until April 1, 2015. (Note: you do not have to go to the retailmenot website to get the code. It is as you see above, all caps with no spaces.) The success rate is in the 90 percents and the most recent comments are that the code works with the DNA Day sale also. 

So if you are going to order, be sure to click on the DNA Day sale link on Ancestry.com's website, not the Mother's Day sale link to insure you get the best price. And don't forget the coupon code for more savings.

23andMe 
As of 1:18 am and again at 11:21 am Friday, April 25, I have seen no sales from 23andMe yet. 

See you soon at the Mount Clemens Public Library!

LE

DNA Day is April 25 -- This Friday -- Be on the Lookout for DNA Testing Sales

Wikipedia calls it a holiday to commemorate the day "in 1953 when James Watson, Francis Crick, Maurice Wilkins, Rosalind Franklin and colleagues published papers in the journal Nature on the structure of DNA." Fifty years later, The U.S. Senate and House of Representatives proclaimed a one-time celebration of DNA Day on April 25, 2003. But that has not stopped groups from celebrating the day every year since.

The National Human Genome Research Institute even has a web page devoted to events going on in regards to DNA Day.

Though we do not get a day off work for DNA Day, what we usually get (at least for the last several years) are various sales on DNA testing kits. DNA Day is this Friday, April 25.

So if you are interested in doing a DNA test on yourself or a family member, keep an eye out for announcements of DNA Day Sales. Maybe as early as Wednesday or Thursday but perhaps not until the day itself. In the meantime, if you have not already, prepare yourself by learning about the various tests available, how they may help you in your research, and about the various companies that offer the tests.

All three of the major genealogy-related DNA testing companies offer Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) and learning/information pages on the different tests and what each can do for you. These companies are:

FamilyTree DNA

Ancestry.com DNA

23andMe

As I learn of the sales, I'll add posts about them here.

LE

Back to Basics: How to Record Sources 2.0 is the topic of this Wednesday's Let's Talk...Genealogy meeting

This Wednesday, April 9, at 7 p.m. in the Genealogy/Local History Room of the Mount Clemens Public Library is MCGG's Let's Talk...Genealogy meeting. The discussion topic of the night is Back to Basics: How to Record Sources 2.0. We'll revisit sourcing/citing our genealogy -- often a source of questions itself.

Also, the topic of Let's Talk...Genealogy's May meeting will be My Best Research Trip where we'll share our best research trips (no slide shows please) and perhaps inspire some for this summer.

See you soon at the Mt. Clemens Public Library!

 LE

Follow-up to Friday MCGG Meeting

As most of you know our scheduled speaker was sick and unable to make our meeting.

Our backup plan was a video on searching with a little digital organization suggestion thrown into the mix. In the question and answer afterwards we showed a few websites. Here is a list of them for you.

Quaker Archives
The Friends Historical Library 
The direct link to the New York Yearly Meeting Search Page 

Sites with links or lists of Newspapers

International Coalition on Newspapers (ICON) Newspaper Digitization Projects

Data Visualization Project (Stanford University) Growth of Newspapers Across the US 1690-2011

Michigan State University Library Guide to Newspapers

Library of Congress' Chronicling America

Here's a few we forgot to mention:

Central Michigan University has a newspaper list by County which indicates pay/fee or free.

Our Ontario Community Newspapers Collection

There is also a blog that has a pretty comprehensive list of Canada's progress with digitization of its newspapers.

Last but Not Least

We forgot to mention that if you are interested in Saving Money while doing genealogy, watch this week's Legacy Family Tree Webinar by Thomas MacEntee, "7 Habits of Highly Frugal Genealogists." It was presented on Wednesday, April 2. The archived webinar will be free to view until Wednesday, April 9.  Only Legacy Webinar members can view the archived webinars and access the handouts at any time.

Our Ann said there is a tip on how to save 30% off your Ancestry membership if you belong to AARP. You end up having to call Ancestry (which she did). If you have a membership you can get the discount when you renew. Ancestry put a notation in her file but told her to call again when they notify her that her renewal is coming up. The discount is runs until March 2015. Watch the webinar to learn more. Also, here is the Ancestry discount information from the AARP website.

See you soon at the Mt. Clemens Public Library! 

LE

Sourcing -- Who Needs It Anyway? is Friday, April 4 Meeting Topic

It appears the Macomb County Genealogy Group has made April the month of Sourcing.
 
On Friday, April 4, at 1:00 pm in the auditorium of the Mount Clemens Public Library, Karen Krugman will present Sourcing -- Who Needs it Anyway?


If you are in the Mount Clemens area, PLEASE JOIN US.  
 
And stay tuned for the Let's Talk...Genealogy meeting post for another take on sourcing.

See you soon at the Mt. Clemens Public Library! 

LE

Breaking News -- All Missing and Burnt Records from Everywhere Have Been Found! It's a ...

miracle? ... No, It's April Fool's Day!

Hope you got a chuckle and are not too disappointed with my genealogy humor.

See you soon at the Mt. Clemens Public Library! 

LE