Our Stories: The Mayflower and more!
There are so many ways to get bitten by the genealogy bug. MyHeritage member Melva Jo Wright of Florida (US) took over the research of her maternal aunt (Geraldine Martinez) when she died in 2004.
Her aunt’s four sisters helped with the research and each received a family history binder from their researcher sister.
Melva Jo’s maternal great-grandparents and their family: Norval Smith Channing (1878 PA-1955 PA) and Amanda Catherine (Pyle) Channing (1877 PA-1957 PA). Her grandmother (far left) is Rebecca (Channing) Lytle (1901 PA-1980 FL) (Courtesy photo)
Most have shared them with me, but I’m still waiting to hear from the others to complete their details in our family tree. I hope they contain some original pictures, as most of those I already have are copies.
Melva Jo, 60, has three children and three stepdaughters. Her mother worked at the Pentagon and her father was a stockcar racer, killed in a 1951 race. Her mother remarried, to an Army major, and the family lived in Germany and France.
Among her exciting discoveries: the Mayflower’s John and Priscilla Alden are her direct ninth great-grandparents. She's also related to writer Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, President Abraham Lincoln, Clement Clark Moore (who wrote “The Night Before Christmas), as well as Orson Wells, Marilyn Monroe, Dick and Jerry Van Dyke and Ricky Nelson, to name a few.
Continue reading "Our Stories: The Mayflower and more!" »
Memorial Day: Free access to US military records
Memorial Day in the US is May 27, and millions of Americans will remember the men and women who died while serving in the US Armed Forces.
In honor of this special day, we are proud to provide free access - through May 28 - to our most popular collections of US military records.
Journey back in time to some of the most important conflicts in world history that not only impacted families in the US, but millions of families worldwide.
Continue reading "Memorial Day: Free access to US military records" »
Introducing Record Detective™: A breakthrough technology for family history
MyHeritage is excited to announce the launch of Record Detective™. It is the first technology of its kind to automatically extend the paper trail from a single historical record to other related records and family tree connections. 
Record Detective™ generates new leads and discoveries by turning a single record into a door to more. For example, a record discovered in MyHeritage’s digital archive, SuperSearch, will now automatically include a summary of additional records and individuals in family trees relating to it, providing new information and clues to take your research to new directions.
Here's a short video which explains how it works:
Continue reading "Introducing Record Detective™: A breakthrough technology for family history" »
Family History: A box of secrets
Every family historian has at least one story or event on which hours have been spent, trying to unravel the truth.
What would happen if there were a knock on the door, you opened it and a box was delivered into your hands. Inside, you would find documents, photographs (labeled!), journals and other records.
What would you like to see in that box?
For me, that's an easy answer. One of the last family members to arrive in the US from Belarus brought with him a 300-year-old family history. The few people who saw it described it as a sort of book, compiled of different kinds of papers, different calligraphies, many different languages, all bound together. Continue reading "Family History: A box of secrets" »
MyHeritage: All US census records now available!
We're proud to announce that the entire collection of U.S. Federal Censuses is now available on MyHeritage.
These censuses span every decade from 1790-1930 and complement the existing 1940 U.S. Census, which you can search for free on MyHeritage.
The collection is the nation’s largest and most important set of records including a huge searchable index and all scanned images of the original census documents, covering some 520 million names.
Start searching the censuses now
Continue reading "MyHeritage: All US census records now available!" »
NGS 2013: MyHeritage heads to Las Vegas!
MyHeritage is excited to head to the 2013 National Genealogical Society (NGS) conference, taking place next week from May 8-11, in Las Vegas, Nevada.
NGS was established 110 years ago in Washington, DC, to serve and grow the genealogical community through education, training, promoting access to and preserving genealogical records.
The conference is a great opportunity for genealogists and those interested in family history research to meet and share ideas on how to advance family research.
Will you be at NGS? Come visit MyHeritage at booth #431, and meet our team.
Continue reading "NGS 2013: MyHeritage heads to Las Vegas!" »
Meshing surnames: A new wedding trend?
It’s not uncommon for people to change their given names or surnames, but a new trend is becoming popular among married couples in both the US and the UK.
Michael Pugh and Rebecca Griffin, who married nearly three years ago, are an example of this latest trend in the UK called "meshing,” where married couples fuse their surnames.
The couple took part of Michael’s surname “Pu” with part of Rebecca’s surname “Ffin.” Now they are the Puffins.
Continue reading "Meshing surnames: A new wedding trend?" »
Our Stories: Hidden families and an opera singer
We never know what our unique family histories may reveal, and MyHeritage member Kathleen Whitfield, 60, of the UK, is no exception.
Her childhood was spent in the UK with her parents and older brother, who lived some 250 miles from any blood relatives. Neither of the siblings ever met their father’s family or had any living grandparents they knew about.
Although they occasionally visited their mother’s sister and family in Lancashire and another sister in London, the only details they were told about their father’s family was that his Irish father was an opera singer, their father was born in London, that he had siblings, but he had lost contact with his family. Kathleen was told she was named for her father’s mother. Further, she discovered that her paternal grandmother was really Kate Constance, not Kathleen!
William C. Green, Kathleen’s paternal grandfather (Courtesy Photo)
Kathleen got “into” family history because her husband’s niece conducted fascinating research into his family. Continue reading "Our Stories: Hidden families and an opera singer" »
New Release: Family Tree Builder 7.0
We're pleased to announce the release of MyHeritage Family Tree Builder 7.0 - the latest version of the world’s most popular free genealogy software - which combines innovative technologies with easy-to-use features.
Used by millions of people worldwide, Family Tree Builder lets you build your family tree and enhance it with photos, historical records and more. The latest version, 7.0, is packed with exciting new features and improvements.
Download Family Tree Builder 7.0 for free now
We've been working hard for more than a year to enhance Family Tree Builder to make documenting and sharing your family history even easier. We're taken the time to ensure this release is as robust as possible and have just completed a successful two-month beta program with some of our power users. Enthusiastic feedback from the first users to use version 7.0 indicates that this is the best version we've ever released.
The new version now syncs your entire family history in both directions between your computer and your family site on MyHeritage, as well as smart phones and tablets, and opens new channels for discovering relatives and billions of historical records with our advanced matching technologies. This means you can now access your family tree securely not just from your computer but also from your online family site, smart phone or tablet device, and even grow the tree and add more information and photos to it, any time and anywhere. All additions and changes will sync back to your Family Tree Builder software on your computer. Continue reading "New Release: Family Tree Builder 7.0" »
Competition: The oldest wedding photo?
Springtime is here and the wedding season is near.
Wedding photos preserve your unique family legacy and document memories in your family history research.
We want to know the stories behind your ancestors' wedding photos.
In February, our colleague Justyna received a stunning 1932 wedding photograph via the MyHeritage Polish Facebook page, from a member.
Wedding Photo 1932
With that photo’s popularity, we wanted to see more of our members' family memories.
What's your oldest wedding photo of an ancestor?
Share your photos of your ancestors' weddings, a brief description of the people, and the date and place where they were married.
The oldest photos - with the most interesting stories - will be posted on our blog and our Facebook page. Readers will decide the winner.
One lucky winner will receive a one-year Premium subscription and a one-year data subscription.
Send photos by April 22 (with description, date and place) with the subject "Wedding Competition" to stories@myheritage.com.
Good luck!
Note: Do not send photos not your own or those for which you do not have permission to use. MyHeritage is not responsible for photos that may be transferred without the consent of the family. The competition is open to registered users at MyHeritage. Don’t have an account yet? Start your free digital family tree today at www.myheritage.com.
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- Our Stories: The Mayflower and more!
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