The Widow's Tale in MGSJ

Civil War pension files tell tales that are not necessarily about the soldiers. Sometimes the thanks of a grateful nation came with strings attached, making otherwise private matters public, especially when the nation required soldiers' widows to disprove anonymous accusations. In this case the soon-to-be-ex-pensioner was Ella (Bartlett) (Middlekauf) (Crandall) Haley of Baltimore. Her Crandall husband was my great-great grandfather-in-law. So often the best stories happen out on the far end of the branches of the tree!

This article's publication had its genesis at the 2016 Association of Professional Genealogists Professional Management Conference in Fort Wayne [CORRECTION -- IT WAS 2017 NGS IN MAY!], when incoming Maryland Genealogical Society Journal managing editor Malissa Ruffner was working the room, asking folks if they had any Maryland-related articles in mind. I didn't . . . and then I remembered that I did. (Moral: always think twice before telling an editor "no"!) 

Meanwhile, I'm looking forward to reading the lead article in this issue . . . about Babe Ruth's paternal-line ancestors!



“The Widow’s Tale: Ella A. (Bartlett) (Middlekauf ) (Crandall) Haley and Her Baltimore Neighbors,” Maryland Genealogical Society Journal 58(3), 2017: 411–26.

The ultimate Ancestry insider -- part of a Salt Lake City twofer for ambitious genealogists

If I hadn't already signed up for APG's Professional Management Conference January 8-9 in Salt Lake, I'd be scrambling now. Thursday's speaker will be Ancestry CEO Tim Sullivan on the role of professionals in genealogy.

This conference has plenty for professionals who take clients, for professionals who don't make a business of it, and for any genealogist who would like a more serious, substantial conference than the usual fare. It's at the beauteous Salt Lake Hilton, not far from the Family History Library.

The other speakers and topics that already had me convinced:

Tom Jones on citations
Angie Bush on DNA and genealogical proof
Elissa Powell on measuring yourself against standards (workshop) and on setting fees
Angela Packer McGhie on time management
James M. Beidler on finding your niche and on taxes
CeCe Moore on adoptee research (workshop)
Christina Grover on difficult conversations with clients and colleagues
Judy G. Russell on finding the law
Anastasia Harman on improving your writing (workshop)
Kimberly Powell on Scrivener
Ron Arons on mind maps
Thomas MacEntee on self-publishing
Billie Stone Fogarty on becoming a genealogical speaker

For more information and registration (same link as above).

And as long as you're in Salt Lake, check out the classes still open at the five-day Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy the following week. Discounted early-bird registration ends at the end of October, and four classes still have room:

F. Warren Bittner on German research
Paula Stuart-Warren on U.S. research
David Ouimette on finding immigrant origins
John Philip Colletta on researching in original document repositories.


Harold Henderson, "The ultimate Ancestry insider -- part of a Salt Lake City twofer for ambitious genealogists," Midwestern Microhistory: A Genealogy Blog, posted 18 October 2014 (http://midwesternmicrohistory.blogspot.com : viewed [date]). [Please feel free to link to the specific post if you prefer.]

January in Salt Lake: new workshop, new practicum case, new talk

Genealogists don't hibernate during the winter -- we go to Salt Lake City for the APG Professional Management Conference, immediately followed by the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy!

Here's where to find me speaking in Salt Lake City in January 2014:

• Friday afternoon January 10, as part of the Association of Professional Genealogists' Professional Management Conference, a workshop: "The Story of the Story of Jethro: The Making of an NGSQ Article." Registration for the PMC is cheaper if you sign up before January 6, if you are an APG member, and if you are a full-time undergraduate. (Check out our great lineup even if this workshop is not for you.)

A finished article in a top-tier genealogy publication normally shows some ways of cracking a tough research problem. But it necessarily omits much of the research, writing, editing, and agonizing that went into its creation. Workshop attendees will review and discuss the logic, structure, writing, omitted research, and more of a recent article in the National Genealogical Society Quarterly. Not all professionals will write for NGSQ or similar publications, but the writing and thought habits needed for such articles make other genealogical writing and editing easier.

• Tuesday-Wednesday, January 14 and 15, as part of the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy's Advanced Evidence Practicum, a western Pennsylvania problem from the 1800s: analyze and correlate evidence to prove or disprove a family story and determine parentage. Don't be spooked: The early-bird discount for SLIG registration ends October 31! 

•  Tuesday evening, January 14, a talk open to the public as well as SLIG enrollees (for a fee): "Reading Genealogy: Why Not Follow the Best?" An introduction to and sampling of the five top genealogy publications: NEHGR, NYGBR, NGSQ, TAG, and The Genealogist. They're all hard-core, and they're all different.

I hope to see you there -- especially for the last one, where I'm scheduled against Judy Russell and Kimberly Powell!



Harold Henderson, "January in Salt Lake: new workshop, new practicum case, new talk," Midwestern Microhistory: A Genealogy Blog, no. 1267, posted 27 October 2013 (http://midwesternmicrohistory.blogspot.com : viewed [date]). [Please feel free to link to the specific post if you prefer.]

My upcoming workshops in January 2014

Both in Salt Lake City:

• Friday January 10, as part of the Association of Professional Genealogists' Professional Management Conference, "The Story of the Story of Jethro: The Making of an NGSQ Article":

  Workshop Summary: A finished article in a top-tier genealogy publication normally shows some ways of cracking a tough research problem. But it necessarily omits much of the research, writing, editing, and agonizing that went into its creation. Workshop attendees will review and discuss the logic, structure, writing, omitted research, and more of a recent article in the National Genealogical Society Quarterly. Not all professionals will write for NGSQ or similar publications, but the writing and thought habits needed for such articles make it other genealogical writing and editing easier.

• One day during the week of January 13-17, as part of the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy's Advanced Evidence Practicum, a western Pennsylvania problem from the 1800s: finding parents by analyzing and correlating evidence to prove or disprove a family story.

Harold Henderson, "My upcoming workshops in January 2014," Midwestern Microhistory: A Genealogy Blog, posted 13 September 2013 (http://midwesternmicrohistory.blogspot.com : viewed [date]). [Please feel free to link to the specific post if you prefer.]