Saturday, March 8, 2014

Saturday Serendipity (March 8, 2014)




Saturdays often allow a more leisurely approach to life than work days. I can more easily post links to some blog posts or other materials I have discovered during the week, or even to those discovered during a Saturday morning coffee and extended surfing of the blogosphere/internet.

This week offers an abbreviated selection. Due to a problem on my iMac as the result of trying to install updates to iTunes and the Maverick OS (it will not restart now and just keeps shutting itself down), I am using Molly's unfamiliar MacBook Air and thus lack some of my usual resources.  I sure hope I can resolve this irritating problem later today!  

In any event, here are just a few quick recommendations for inclusion on your reading list this week .  .  .  

1.  Today is National Genealogy Day as established in 1997 by Jerry Hill, an amateur onomatologist. As part of his "Celebrate Your Name Week" (the first full week in March), the last day of the week is designated as Genealogy Day. [See,  http://filiopietismprism.blogspot.com/2014/03/name-days-and-celebrate-your-name-week.html]  
     
2.  Today is also "International Women's Day." It is celebrated on March 8th each year. Read about the history and meaning of Women's Day here and here.       

3.  Continuing with a Women's Day theme, you should check out this item posted at The Vault. Susan B. Anthony managed to vote in Rochester, NY during the 1872 national elections (this was almost five decades before women were granted the right to vote via the 19th Amendment to the Constitution in 1920). In January 1873, Anthony was served with a federal indictment for "illegal voting." See a copy of the indictment, learn who Susan Anthony voted for, and read about the defense she mounted.            

4.  For those with New England roots going back to 1854 and earlier, The Vault also offers a fascinating resource to inform us about the travel and communication routes available to our ancestors and relatives in the New England of that time. Go here to view an interactive map of New England showing the routes and extent of railroad and telegraph service throughout New England in 1854.  The map shows the "mass transit" and modern communication technology that was available to those of the time and should be a valuable resource for those trying to piece together a full story about the lives of New England ancestors.     

5.  And since this week IS "Celebrate Your Name Week" (and today is the last day of this celebratory week to boot), let's end today's Saturday Serendipity with a name theme recommendation.

Do you know anyone who is about to have a baby? Naming a baby is always a matter of intense interest within families and often brings up the subject of family history and genealogy through the recounting and recalling of first names in the past of merged families.  Sadly, it sometimes can result in tense and even acrimonious feelings. Enter the very helpful and entertaining website Wait But Why to solve the problem of how and what to name that new person. Read the extremely helpful, informative, humorous, and (as always) well-illustrated post titled "How To Name A Baby,"  Enjoy!   

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Copyright 2014, John D. Tew
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