Sno-Isle Genealogical Society – Sno-Isle Genealogical Society

Author: Sno-Isle Genealogical Society

Snohomish County Maps

Posted on February 11, 2020February 5, 2020 by Sno-Isle Genealogical Society

LOSHO (the League of Snohomish County Heritage Organizations) is taking an inventory of historical assets across unincorporated Snohomish County. They maintain a mapping system that allows users to overlay a variety of vintage maps accurately scaled to match modern survey references.

The maps allow users to easily compare the historical maps (including homestead lines) and modern parcel surveys and aerial photographs.

While the mapping system is comprised of over 330GB of data (too much for them to conveniently share online), much of the capability has also been streamlined for online access:

1) An interactive online map allowing the user to explore Snohomish County ca. 1910 can be accessed on a PC, tablet, or smartphone at: https://loscho.maps.arcgis.com/apps/StorytellingSwipe/index.html?appid=408cad1ea69943bb8aa15dc87d6cd50a#

2) An interactive online map allowing the user to overlay maps from 1910 through 1975, original homesteads, early railroads, and “County Corners”, and to explore them on a PC, tablet, or smartphone at: https://loscho.maps.arcgis.com/apps/PublicInformation/index.html?appid=d88679dd9d04410f806546b0d7f776f2

3) A map of 465 significant items, comprised of a subset of the 2015 Historic Resource Scan contracted by Snohomish County augmented with LOSCHO additions, can be found at https://loscho.maps.arcgis.com/apps/StorytellingSwipe/index.html?appid=93618e0d7d94433ca2740bebbd684f55

You can find more information on their website.

Working with Probate Records

Posted on February 5, 2020February 5, 2020 by Sno-Isle Genealogical Society

Kathy Morrow put together a wonderful list of resources for working with probate records.

Why is working with probate records so important? Let’s face it, most of the people we research as genealogists are deceased. A probate record, the court-supervised process of validating a deceased’s will, can be very helpful in finding relations to that person, in discovering land holdings, or gleaning that nugget of information that will help you break through a persistent brick-wall. Knowing how these records work, how to find them, and the easiest way to navigate through the process can make these invaluable records a wonderful resource for your research.

Probate is the court-supervised process of validating a will if the deceased made one. Probate steps are similar even if there isn’t a will, and includes identifying assets and determining their value, paying outstanding bills and taxes, determining the care of dependents, and distributing the remainder of the estate to their rightful beneficiaries. Each state has specific laws in place, and there is generally a special probate court with its own judge. (Source: Balance.com: What is probate?)

Resources

What Happens During the Probate Process? (has a great flow chart & information on each step of the process)
Family Search Wiki – United States Probate Records
Family Search Wiki – Analyzing United States Probate Records
Margaret Linford – Using Wills and Probate Records in Genealogy Research
Family History Daily – Probate Records Could Be the Key to Unlocking Your Family’s Hidden Past
Shirley Hornbeck – This and that genealogy tips on probate records and wills
Ancestry Support – Searching Probate Records
Ancestral Findings – Finding Probate Records
ThoughtCo – How to Use Wills and Estate Records to Learn About Your Ancestors
Legacy Webinar by Linda Woodward Geiger – Estate Records – More Than Just Wills
Cyndi’s List – Wills and Probate

For Beginners

Ancestral Findings – Looking for Probate Records in Your Genealogy Research: Why You Should
Family History for Beginners – a video series on basic methods and records

Genealogy Terms

Testate: a person who died having made and left a legally valid will
Intestate: a person who died having made no will, or whose will is found not legally valid.

Quick Tips and Favorite Links

Amy Johnson Crow – 5 Types of Maps Every Genealogist Should Know 2 Guidelines for Resolving Conflicting Information in Sources
Legacy Tree 5 Tips for Maximizing Use of the Internet Archives
Family History Fanatics

Have a useful genealogy site or resource? Let us know and we’ll be glad to share it.

Everything old is new again

Posted on January 10, 2020February 5, 2020 by Sno-Isle Genealogical Society

In addition to our new monthly meeting location, the Library has been making some improvements to help you with your research even when you can’t physically visit us.

Our librarians are continuously reviewing our research material to make sure we have the most appropriate research material available and that we aren’t taking up valuable space with duplicates. What happens to those duplicates? We place them on our Used Book Shelf!

The Library is excited to announce that you can know look at available Used Book titles online. You can find this listing at https://snoislegen.org/used-books-for-sale/ .

We hope to have online payment available, however at this time you’ll either need to stop in the Library to pick-up and pay for your book or call us at 425-775-6267 to pay over the phone and arrange shipping. Shipping charges will be added to the cost of the book.

Take a look at the available books. You never know what gem you will find.

US Citizenship and Immigration Service Fee Increase Proposed

Posted on January 8, 2020January 8, 2020 by Sno-Isle Genealogical Society

In November of 2019, the US Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) proposed a nearly 500% increase in the fee for records searches and records provided by it’s Genealogy Program.

Under the proposed fee increase the cost of a records search would go from $65 to $240, while the cost for copies of a record would increase from $65 to $385. If this fee increase goes into effect the cost of obtaining a single record would be $625 – more than a decent 65″ flatscreen TV.

For many genealogy enthusiasts this cost increase would effectively halt their ability to utilize the USCIS records as the cost would simply be too extravagant for one record, much less the many records that the average genealogist would want to search.

You can read more about this proposed hike on the Board for Certification of Genealogists blog.

New Meeting Location

Posted on December 16, 2019December 16, 2019 by Sno-Isle Genealogical Society

Have you heard the exciting news?

Beginning with our January meeting on January 8th the Sno-Isle Genealogical Society will be hosting their general meetings and events at the Wicker’s Building in Heritage Park.

This larger space gives us more flexibility for hosting meeting, events, and gatherings.

Our January meeting featuring Kent Morgan discussing The Oregon Trail. Check out our calendar for this and other meetings.

As always, members and guests are welcome to attend so bring a friend and share with them the fun of genealogy.

SIGS at the Western Heritage Center

Posted on September 23, 2018 by Sno-Isle Genealogical Society

Betty Gaeng and Phylis Jorgenson recently hosted our information table at the Western Heritage Center at the Monroe Fairgrounds, complete with our recently completed SIGS banner. Our banner is hanging in the Commercial building, alongside others. The glass ball sitting on the side of our SIGS table was put there for safety reasons as our banner sticks out. We were using a round table.

Betty Gaeng standing next to our display (the big glass ball was for safety – the banner stuck out).

Shoreline Family History Center Announces Upcoming Classes

Posted on September 17, 2018September 17, 2018 by Sno-Isle Genealogical Society

The Shoreline Family History Center has announced three upcoming classes for family history researchers, each available on both a weekday and weekend to suit your schedule. The 90 minutes classes will be held at the Shoreline Family History Center. The three classes are:

Introduction to DNA for Family History: Thursday, October 18 from 7:00-8:30 pm
Saturday, October 27 from 10:00-11:30am
Due to heavy demand, this class, which was initially offered last spring, will be repeated. The class will discuss the basics of DNA as it applies to family history. You will learn about what DNA can and cannot do to assist you in discovering and understanding your ancestors. The class will discuss the types of DNA tests that are offered by the testing companies, and what each type of test will do. This will allow you to select the company and test which best fits your family history goals.
Understanding Your DNA Test Results: Thursday, November 8 from 7:00-8:30pm
Saturday, December 1 from 10:00-11:30am
This class will discuss what your DNA test results mean, and what family history information you can obtain from those results. You will learn how to interpret your ethnicity information. You will be introduced to possible ways to identify unknown relatives using your DNA test.
Organizing and Preserving Family History Photos: Thursday, January 10 from 7:00-8:30pm
Saturday, January 26 from 10:00-11:30am
Do you have a box of old photos stored somewhere in your house? If you do nothing, those valuable pieces of your family history can be lost due to deterioration or loss of information on who was photographed. This class can help you learn how to organize and preserve your family history photos before it is too late. it will cover traditional and digital preservation of photos. You will learn how to prevent loss of photos due to acid paper or deteriorating photos. The class will cover ways to electronically preserve photos. You will learn methods of preserving identification of persons in photos.

For more information on these classes, including how to register, please visit www.shorelinefhc.com.

Welcome to the SIGS Blog

Posted on June 27, 2018April 21, 2019 by Sno-Isle Genealogical Society

Welcome to the SIGS Blog. This will be the place where we post the latest news, updates, and tips for our members.

Introduction to DNA for Family History

Understanding Your DNA Test Results

Organizing and Preserving Family History Photos