Suitcase Genealogist

Going on my "To Read" list.

Graphic featuring the FamilyTreeDNA logo with the word “NEWS!” in orange. Below is an illustration of a newspaper with the headline “Big DNA Tech News” and a featured story that reads “FamilyTreeDNA Is Upgrading their Testing Platform.”

Another big shift in autosomal DNA testing. FamilyTreeDNA is moving to targeted sequencing, meaning more coverage and higher resolution where it matters for genealogy. We’re watching genetic genealogy grow up in real time. I’m especially watching how this impacts distant match discovery. #genealogy

An old shelf filled with animal specimens from pre-1945.

In my series “German things you didn’t know survived the war and are still in use by Poles” I want to give you a glimpse of an amazing research day I had some time ago.
Let me take you on the most unexpected journey through artefacts that survived the 1945 border change.
🧵

Join us tomorrow, Thursday, February 26th at 7:00 pm ET for "Black Women at the Center of Revolution" with Deborah Hall, Patrice R. Green, Kyera Singleton, and Angela T. Tate. Both in person and online options available: americanantiquarian.org/programs-events/black-women-center-revolution

The Gamechanger: Using FamilySearch Full Text AI My FamilySearch Stats Several weeks ago, my husband asked me what I was working on. I replied that I was working on my genealogy and his res...

If you haven’t yet tried out #FamilySearch Full Text AI’s search feature yet, I wrote a blog post on how to find those genealogical gems. #AI #ArtificialIntelligence #genealogy #FullText #familyhistory #CRAIGEN gptfamilytree.blogspot.com/2026/02/the-...

25 Feb 2026 Standardized place name errors on FamilySearch #genealogy #FamilySearch

Tag yourself.

I'm the white kitten screaming at its indifferent mother.

It's parasitic, cashing in on grief.

"AI & large language models [have] turbo-charged this industry. Where previous pirates were copying obits by hand, now we have AI programs sifting through thousands of pages in seconds, automating the whole process"

#GiftLink 🎁

www.thestar.com/gift-redeem?...

A friend is looking for an appreciative home for their late relative's library (books & other docs) focused on the history, religion and culture of India and Bangladesh (ancient-modern & around the time of Indian partition), & the history of Islam (particularly in South Asia and Bengal). #askbluesky

Coming up as part of @niscifest.bsky.social this Saturday with @drfranceskane.bsky.social 👍

#GenHour Researching Suffolk ancestors? Join this FREE online event with SuffolkArchives, @sfhs1975.bsky.social and partners to discover key records, resources and research tips, with a live Q&A.

23 Feb 2026 | 14:00–16:00 | Online | Free

Book: portal.sog.org.uk/Event/view/1...

February 19, 2026 INSTRUCTIONS TO ALL PERSONS OF JAPANESE ANCESTRY As survivors and descendants of the mass removals, detention, deportation, and family separation targeting our community during WWII, we refuse to stand by idly while our friends and neighbors are violently disappeared, forcibly removed, mass incarcerated, and separated from family members. We decry the murders of community members and at least 37 people in ICE custody and enforcement in 2025. We reject false narratives that state violence is "unavoidable," a "justifiable military action," necessary for "national security"—the same arguments used as they forced our parents, grandparents, aunties, and uncles into U.S. concentration camps in 1942. On this Day of Remembrance, we call on Japanese Americans and all people who believe in "Never Again" to demand justice for those we have lost—on the streets and hidden away in ICE detention centers. To break this cycle of state violence. To rise up and resist, together. We bravely commit to being the allies our familes needed during WWII. STOP REPEATING HISTORY. #TsuruForSolidarity #FreeFamilies #FreeThemAll

84 years ago today, President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, ordering the removal and incarceration of more than 120,000 Japanese Americans, about two-thirds of whom were US citizens. The Day of Remembrance this year comes as we see DHS buying land and warehouses for more camps now.

Absolutely. But, people still want to find community somewhere, a feature that Substack offers in addition to the newsletter component.

It's been a bummer to see so much of the community head that direction. I get why after the demise and fracture of social media channels (the apparent ease of getting started there being the main reason), but I hope more folks will reconsider like you have.

#Genealogy community: check out the link. Have a little think.

My dad gave me some old disposable cameras he'd never developed, with expiration dates dating to the early 2000s.

I just developed the first one and found photos of my grandpa, who died in 2010—one on his little red tractor, and one walking in his garden with my childhood pet dog behind him. 🥹

Can anyone help‬ ‪@xanthh.bsky.social‬ XanthH? It would be fascinating to know if a #OnePlaceStudy or similar project has been done of Simla (or indeed, for us, any other place in #India)! #OnePlaceWednesday

Black and white image of a large scale map showing streets and houses

New Large Scale Historic OS Maps now at @thegenealogist.bsky.social

Find out more 👉 www.thegenealogist.co.uk/news/

Blog 👉 www.thegenealogist.co.uk/featuredarti...

Don't forget you can access The Genealogist in either of our Research Centres

Minnesota Genealogical Society is accepting proposals for breakout sessions for the 2026 NorthStar Conference, October 30 and 31, 2026. The theme is Delights and Frights: Your Family Stories. More information here: mngs.org/North-Star-2...

Oh God are we doing this again?

A LARGE SWATHE OF YOU WOULD HAVE BEEN DEAD BEFORE THE AGE OF FIVE.

SCARLET FEVER WOULD HAVE CARRIED YOU OFF IN DROVES

I did some research for one of the case studies in Episode 7, Season 12 of Finding Your Roots. I believe it was to do with the ancestry of Flea from the Red Hot Chilli Peppers! The episode airs in the US tonight. I don’t know how much of my research they used but look out for my name in the credits!

#IrishGenealogy #FamilyHistory

Xeirographa A guided learning platform for reading Greek manuscripts with interactive transcription exercises.

My (free) website for learning to read from Greek manuscripts is available. Still some tweaks to be made but it’s ready with 12 lessons, tips and hints, downloadable reports if you use it for a class, and links to lots of resources.

Please share and give feedback!

xeirographa.com

Right, another key thing that historians do is working with important records that have not been digitized.

And the vast majority of the world’s records *have not been digitized* and thus do not exist in any format that LLMs/AI can work with.

With the 250th coming up, this seems to be arising frequently. What questions do you have about #Connecticut and the American Revolution? #genealogy #ancestry #familyhistory

Tagging for the #genealogy feed

#OnePlaceStudies #OneNameStudies #LocalHistory #FamilyHistory

Lifehack!

Ah, sweet Tulip. *boop*

So coy. 😍

Love this. What a character.