MyHeritage Adds Lithuanian-Jewish Historical Records in Coordination with LitvakSIG

From MyHeritage (www.myheritage.com):

MyHeritage Adds Lithuanian-Jewish Historical Records in Coordination with LitvakSIG

Tel Aviv, Israel and Lehi, Utah, March 9, 2021 — MyHeritage, the leading global service for discovering your past and empowering your future, and LitvakSIG, a U.S. non-profit organization providing the primary online resource for Lithuanian-Jewish genealogy research worldwide, jointly announced today the publication of an important compilation of Lithuanian-Jewish historical records by MyHeritage. The records in this collection were originally translated and indexed by LitvakSIG, and represent almost the entire corpus of LitvakSIG's work over more than twenty years. These records have now been added to MyHeritage's historical record database.

The Lithuanian-Jewish Records from LitvakSIG, 1795-1940 collection consists of several million historical records and covers the era from the Russian Empire (1795 to World War I) to the period of independent Lithuania (1919–1940). The majority of records are from places in present-day Lithuania. However, due to various geopolitical changes during the time period covered, the records are not limited to the modern boundaries of Lithuania; they also cover areas located in present-day Poland, Belarus, or other neighboring countries. The records in this compilation include vital records, census records, tax and voter lists, conscription lists, household registers, directories, emigration lists, and more.

These records have tremendous genealogical value, and together with MyHeritage’s search and matching technologies, which overcome language barriers and provide matches to family trees in English, Russian, and Hebrew, among other languages, will open a new frontier of discovery for individuals who are researching their Lithuanian-Jewish heritage. MyHeritage is home to a treasure trove of Jewish historical records. In addition, the company’s collections include millions of pages from passenger and immigration lists documenting the wave of emigration from Europe to North America, South America, and Israel in the aftermath of the Holocaust.

“This year we are increasing our efforts to expand the Jewish genealogy resources on MyHeritage,” said Gilad Japhet, Founder and CEO of MyHeritage. “Adding this collection from LitvakSIG provides a valuable resource for anyone of Lithuanian-Jewish origin. On a personal level, some of my own ancestors appear in this collection, including my paternal grandmother and her siblings from the small Lithuanian town of Valkininkai (Olkieniki), making this addition especially meaningful for me and my family.”  

“We are excited to make the bulk of LitvakSIG’s translated historical records available to millions of MyHeritage users,” said Jill Anderson, President of LitvakSIG. “By allowing this collection to be searchable on the MyHeritage platform, LitvakSIG is fulfilling its mission to promote widely Lithuanian-Jewish (Litvak) genealogical research. This arrangement will enable LitvakSIG to accelerate the pace of publishing new records, which will be added to the collection on MyHeritage in the future.”"

The Lithuanian-Jewish Records from LitvakSIG collection is available on MyHeritage. Searching the collection is free. A subscription is required to view the full records and to access Record Matches.  

To access the collection visit https://www.myheritage.com/research/collection-10951/lithuanian-jewish-records-from-litvaksig-1795-1940

Chris

Just out, Sharing Your Family History Online is on sale at https://bit.ly/SharingFamHist. Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scottish2 is also out, as are Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed) at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Irish1 and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scotland1. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

RootsIreland's 25% off 12 month subscription offer

From RootsIreland (www.rootsireland.ie):

Celebrate St Patrick’s Day by taking out a 12-month subscription for RootsIreland with 25% off from 7th March to 31st March 2021!

• RootsIreland have the most complete and most accurate set of Roman Catholic church records online, as well as numerous Protestant records, civil records, census records, headstone inscriptions and census substitutes. Our index is easily searchable and has features such as standardised surname and forename searches which make your searches even more user-friendly
  
• We hold over 23 million records, and our database is being added to continually. In 2020, we added over 500,000 records to our database from Limerick, Clare, Sligo, Kerry, Wicklow, Westmeath, Kilkenny, South Dublin, Armagh, North Mayo and Cork. New records are continually being added to our database throughout the year, which will be announced in due course.
• Together, our 34 genealogy centres have an unparalleled amount of local knowledge which can be invaluable to those tracing their ancestors, a service which no other website or company can provide to such a high standard. By taking out a subscription with RootsIreland, you are helping these centres to continue to provide a world-class service and securing many Irish jobs.

If you have any questions please check our Help section and if this does not provide an answer, then you may contact us or one of the county centres. You can check what is available on our site for each county here.

* Offer applies from 7 March 2021 to 12 midnight Irish time on 31 March 2021 only. Cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer.

(Source: https://www.rootsireland.ie/2021/03/special-25-discount-on-annual-subscriptions-4/)

Chris

Just out, Sharing Your Family History Online is on sale at https://bit.ly/SharingFamHist. Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scottish2 is also out, as are Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed) at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Irish1 and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scotland1. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

Ayrshire poor law records available on FamilySearch

The Poor Relief Records database for Ayrshire which was previously accessible through Ayrshire Roots (www.ayrshireroots.co.uk) appears to be disabled, whether permanently or just temporarily is not yet known. However, thanks to a couple of Scottish Genealogy Network colleagues, Graham Maxwell and Kirsty Wilkinson, I have learned today that the register records, which were previously only accessible on microfilm at the Ayrshire Archives search rooms, have in fact been digitised by FamilySearch and can be found through its catalogue.

The list of poor relief records microfilms available from Ayrshire Archives is detailed at https://www.ayrshireroots.co.uk/Genealogy/Records/Poor%20Relief/Poor%20Relief.htm. To locate the relevant rolls on FamilySearch, make sure you are signed in (registration is free), and then visit the catalogue at https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog. From here, I have found the easiest way to locate relevant records is to use the Keywords search field, and type in the name of the town of interest followed by the word poor. 

For example, if I type in Irvine poor, this is the immediate search return of likely possibilities:

 

 

 Clicking on the 2nd entry gives me this:

And by clicking on the camera icon besides the relevant collection, I can then see the digital microfilm (note that if you are not signed in you will not get access through the camera icon until you do!):

The records are not keyword searchable, so you will have to use them the auld fashioned way - have fun!

(With thanks to Graham and Kirsty)

Chris

Just out, Sharing Your Family History Online is on sale at https://bit.ly/SharingFamHist. Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scottish2 is also out, as are Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed) at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Irish1 and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scotland1. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

Schedule for Scottish Indexes Conference IX on March 20th

Emma and Graham Maxwell, the dynamic duo at Scottish Indexes (www.scottishindexes.com), have announced the programme for the 9th Scottish Indexes Conference, which takes place on Saturday 20th March 2021. The talks will be run twice in the day to cater for worldwide time zones. 

First Session

07.00  Introduction
07.15  Interview with a Scottish Family History Society
08.00  'Family History at the Mitchell' by Dr. Irene O' Brien
09.00  'There's Been a Murder - The Mount Stewart Murder of 1866' by Chris Paton
10.00  'Beware the Babbet Bapper and Other Cautionary Tales' by Kate Keter
11.00  'Scottish Records in the National Archives' by Audrey Collins
12.00  Genealogy Q & A hosted by Graham and Emma Maxwell
13.00  'Researching Kincardineshire Ancestors' by Emma Jolly
14.00  'DNA Match Lists, Shared Matches & Testing Sites Basics' by Michelle Leonard

Second Session

15.00  Introduction
15.15  Interview with a Scottish Family History Society
16.00  'Family History at the Mitchell' by Dr. Irene O' Brien
17.00  'There's Been a Murder - The Mount Stewart Murder of 1866' by Chris Paton
18.00  'Beware the Babbet Bapper and Other Cautionary Tales' by Kate Keter
19.00  'Scottish Records in the National Archives' by Audrey Collins
20.00  Genealogy Q & A hosted by Graham and Emma Maxwell
21.00  'Researching Kincardineshire Ancestors' by Emma Jolly
22.00  'DNA Match Lists, Shared Matches & Testing Sites Basics' by Michelle Leonard

The conference is free to attend, but you can donate to Scottish Indexes to help with costs. To access the event visit the team's Facebook Group at www.facebook.com/groups/scottishindexes, or visit www.scottishindexes.com.

I'm looking forward to sharing the story of Scotland's longest unsolved cold case by a modern police force, the victim being my three times great grandmother, and to chipping in with colleagues in the Q&As, as well as to listening to some great presentations. I'll hopefully see ye there! 

Chris

Just out, Sharing Your Family History Online is on sale at https://bit.ly/SharingFamHist. Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scottish2 is also out, as are Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed) at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Irish1 and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scotland1. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

FamilySearch changes its International Genealogical Index access again

FamilySearch (www.familysearch.org) has been tinkering with its International Genealogical Index (IGI) once again. Until recently when you accessed the IGI it gave you two options on the same page for the results, derived from the Community Indexed IGI (indexes to original records) and the Community Contributed IGI (indexes from patrons and seemingly from the land of fiction in some cases!).

When you access the IGI now, the following message is currently being displayed at the top in a blue banner:

Searching the International Genealogical Index (IGI) has changed. Names in the IGI come from two different sources: indexed historical records and user contributions. Previously, users could search both types simultaneously. They are now searched separately. Search the Indexed International Genealogical Index below. Search the Contributed International Genealogical Index using Search Genealogies.  

So to summarise - landing on the IGI page now gives you access to indexed records only. Community contributed records, previously in the database, are now accessible on a different page called Search Genealogies.

COMMENT: From a Scottish point of view, I gave up on the online hosted IGI a very long time ago, because it was an impossible to control database, returning absolute nonsense with many searches. The same records extracted from OPRs and other church denominations are also available on the Scotland page within the Scotland Births and Baptisms 1564-1950 collection and the Scotland Marriages 1561-1910 collections, which do work no problem, and which have been my go to pages for some time.  

NB: I have no idea why the 'Ireland Births and Baptisms 1620-1881' database is currently listed on the Scotland page, except to say that I do often refer to myself as coming from a wee island off the coast of Scotland - in that sense, it is correct!

Chris

Just out, Sharing Your Family History Online is on sale at https://bit.ly/SharingFamHist. Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scottish2 is also out, as are Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed) at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Irish1 and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scotland1. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

New military records added to TheGenealogist

From TheGenealogist (www.thegenealogist.co.uk): 

New Military Book Records added to TheGenealogist with ancestors’ names, places and details

TheGenealogist has released over 150,000 individuals to its ever expanding Military Record Collection. Containing names, places and dates, these publications can aid the family history researcher find their ancestors and build a fascinating story of their lives. With records from Britain, Canada and a number of Indian registers and directories, these searchable records contain lists of men and women who served their country in various capacities connected to the military, and not just on the front line. 

Included in this release are: 

• A List of the Royal Military College at Sandhurst 1833
• Bombay Artillery List of Officers 1749-1902
• Canada, Defence Forces List August 1938
• Canada Defence Forces List November 1939 
• Colonial Office List for 1914
  
• East-India Register and Directory 28th August 1821 
• Gradation List of Officers of the British Army July 1924 
• Graduation List of Officers of the British Army Oct 1915 
• India List Civil and Military July 1881
• Northern Command Official Directory No. 45 Nov 1938
• Records of Clan Campbell in the Military Service of the Honourable East India Company 1600-1858
• Rules And List Of Members Imperial Service Club, Salisbury Plain Military Directory April 1914
• War Office List 1939
• War Office List 1920
• Western Command Official Directory No. 12 April 1938 

For further details read the blog post from TheGenealogist at https://www.thegenealogist.co.uk/featuredarticles/2021/military-records-fill-in-the-blanks-and-point-where-to-look-next-1381/ 

(With thanks to Nick Thorne) 

Chris 

Just out, Sharing Your Family History Online is on sale at https://bit.ly/SharingFamHist. Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scottish2 is also out, as are Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed) at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Irish1 and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scotland1. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

Update on Self-Employment Income Support Scheme

From the UK Government:

The UK Government has today announced that the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) will continue until September with a fourth and fifth grant. We will contact customers who may be eligible for the fourth SEISS grant from mid-April to tell them how they can claim.

The fourth and fifth grants will take into account 2019 to 2020 tax returns and will also be open to those who became self-employed in the 2019 to 2020 tax year. This means that some customers may be able to claim, even if they were not eligible for previous grants.

To qualify, you must have filed your 2019-20 Self Assessment tax return by 2 March 2021, at the latest.

Fourth SEISS grant

The UK Government will pay a taxable grant which is calculated based on 80% of three months’ average trading profits, paid out in a single payment and capped at £7,500 in total. The value of the grant is based on an average of your trading profits for up to four tax years between 2016 to 2020, where available.

The grant will be available to claim by late April. As with previous grants, trading profits must be no more than £50,000 and at least equal to non-trading income in order to claim the fourth SEISS grant.

Eligibility for the fourth SEISS grant will depend on whether you experienced a significant financial impact from coronavirus between February 2021 and April 2021.

HMRC will take into account your 2019-20 return when assessing your eligibility for the scheme. This may also affect the amount of the fourth grant, which could be higher or lower than previous grants you have received.

For this period, you will need to make an honest assessment that there has been a significant reduction in trading profits due to reduced demand or your inability to trade. If you make a claim, you will need to keep appropriate records as evidence.

For further details of the changes to eligibility and calculation of the grant, please visit GOV‌‌‌.UK and search 'Self-Employment Income Support Scheme'.

What happens next

HMRC will contact you from mid-April if we believe you may be eligible for the fourth SEISS grant to tell you how you can claim. You will be provided with your personal claim date, which will be the earliest date you can submit a claim for the fourth SEISS grant.  

Claims for the fourth SEISS grant must be made by 31‌‌ ‌May 2021, at the latest.   

The UK Government has also announced that there will be a fifth and final SEISS grant, covering the period between May and September, which you will be able to claim from late July if you are eligible.

The amount of the fifth grant will be determined by how much your turnover has been reduced. The grant will be worth 80% of three months’ average trading profits, capped at £7,500, for those with a higher reduction in turnover (30% or more). For those with a lower reduction in turnover, of less than 30%, the grant will be worth 30% of three months’ average trading profits.

Further details will be provided on the fifth grant in due course.

For more information on the fourth grant visit https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/self-employment-income-support-scheme-grant-extension

Chris

Just out, Sharing Your Family History Online is on sale at https://bit.ly/SharingFamHist. Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scottish2 is also out, as are Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed) at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Irish1 and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scotland1. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

New Irish Newspaper Archives site is now live

From the Irish Newspaper Archives  (www.irishnewsarchive.com):

The Irish Newspaper Archives team are happy to announce the release of an updated website. When you visit our site you will clearly see the changes however we would like to ensure that all our existing members and returning members know that the newspaper content has not changed and all the normal features are available once logged in.

The general layout and how you access the publications has altered slightly and we have created a short tutorial highlighting how to access the publications. Access this via https://youtu.be/02RJlx-lCdc

(With thanks to Andrew Martin)

Chris

Just out, Sharing Your Family History Online is on sale at https://bit.ly/SharingFamHist. Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scottish2 is also out, as are Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed) at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Irish1 and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scotland1. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

MyHeritage explains the digital sorcery behind Deep Nostalgia

By now you have probably learned that MyHeritage (www.myheritage.com) released a new tool yesterday that can turn old family photographs into short moving video clips, with the faces depicted able to move, blink eyes and make limited expressions. In short it was completely brilliant and utterly freaky in equal measure! (See http://scottishgenes.blogspot.com/2021/02/myheritages-new-tool-animates-ancestors.html). 

The reaction in the genealogy community has been interesting to behold online, with some wondering at the marvel of it all, seeing ancestors they never new before in a more human light, whilst others were a little disturbed to see what were essentially digital avatars without souls impersonating who our ancestors might have been.

Well now MyHeritage has lifted the lid on the technique behind the new tool in a video on YouTube at https://youtu.be/RVDu_u_a578, and reproduced below for your convenience. 

Love it or hate it, it is certainly the main talking point - so far - from this year's RootsTech.

Incidentally, if you rushed in to try the tool, you may be unaware that each photo is actually animated in several ways which you can choose from, as demonstrated in the video. So if an initial attempt with an image seemed unconvincing, you could have up to nine or ten alternatives worth trying.

Chris

Just out, Sharing Your Family History Online is on sale at https://bit.ly/SharingFamHist. Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scottish2 is also out, as are Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed) at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Irish1 and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scotland1. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.

FindmyPast adds early 19th century Royal Scots death records

A couple of interesting additions to FindmyPast (www.findmypast.co.uk) this week, the first concerning a British Army regiment I'm somewhat familiar with, in that one of my four times great grandfather was a member from 1819-1831:

Caribbean, 1st Bn Royal Regiment Of Foot Deaths 1801-1811

These unique records reveal names, ranks and death details of British Army soldiers stationed in the West Indies in the early 19th century.

The 1st Battalion of the Royal Regiment of Foot was the predecessor of the Royal Scots and it appears that many of the men listed in the records hail from Scotland.


And if your ancestors ended their days down south:

National Burial Index For England & Wales

We’ve added over 3.4 million new records to this useful Family History Federation collection and you won’t find them elsewhere online.

We've updated this record set to include the latest edition of this major transcription project by family history societies across England and Wales. To see the exact locations covered, browse the parish list at www.findmypast.co.uk/articles/world-records/full-list-of-united-kingdom-records/life-events-bmds/national-burial-index-for-england-and-wales-parish-list.

For details of other releases, including newspaper updates on the site, visit www.findmypast.co.uk/blog/new/lincolnshire-caribbean-burials.

Chris

Just out, Sharing Your Family History Online is on sale at https://bit.ly/SharingFamHist. Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scottish2 is also out, as are Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed) at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Irish1 and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scotland1. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.