Extra! EXTRA! Read All About It!

If you are geek like me, I have some exciting news!

The Medina Library has just purchased several Wadsworth newspapers on microfilm.

Masthead from the Wadsworth Enterprise

What?!? You're not thrilled!

Wait. You will be.

First, how can you not love using newspapers for historical and genealogical research?

In newspapers you can find information on your ancestors that you cannot find anywhere else. Sure, you can find birth, marriage and death notices. But you also find information about your ancestor's real estate sales, businesses (and the ads they put in the paper), out of town visitors, vacation plans, engagements and illnesses.

Portage Sentinel 24 February 1847, page 4.
William Tagg followed his father, James, into
the painting and glazing business.

Not too long ago, I found a notice where one of my relatives hosted the birthday party for his mother-in-law. It included a list of all the guests. A whole list of people that can now be added to my research plans.



And when I was researching my 3X great-grandfather, James Tagg, I found a notice of his attendance at a GAR reunion. It told how the gathering was entertained by his stories from his Civil War Service. Apparently, he was a storyteller. Who knew?

Excerpt from a larger article on the Reunion of the 91st O.V.I.
Gallipolis Tribune 1 August 1894, page 3.

Cleveland Plain Dealer 6 November
1929, page 7. Clara was running for
a seat on the Cleveland Board of
Education. It was a position she
held for the rest of her life.

To learn more about online sites to do newspaper searches, look at this BLOG POST from 2 September 2015.

Now, in Medina County, the type of news reported in the papers changed over time. The early papers, 1830-1866, mostly consisted of national and political news. Many of these early papers affiliated with a particular political party and their articles reflected a strong bias. But when you do find information on a ancestor or local resident, you cherish it even more.

Some, like the one below, can fill in the gaps for a period when vital records are scarce or nonexistent.

The Watchtower 1838.
The notice gives us George MCCORMICK's birthday
and his father's name. We know he was apprenticed
to Noah BRONSON, who was an early settler of
Medina and a judge from 1823-1830. We also know
that George is sprightly and active and that Noah did
not have a high opinion of George's father.

Around 1870, more articles on local events and people start creeping into the paper. This trend continued until about 1960. Papers from the 30s, 40s and 50s, are FULL of social events that list everyone who attended and often describe the food served and the clothes worn. These details help give us insight into our ancestor's lives - the best of reasons to get excited about newspapers!

And the Medina County District Library has never owned any of the Wadsworth newspapers on microfilm, until now.

Here is the list:

Medina Watch Tower – 1 reel
Sep 12, 1838-Apr 14, 1841
June 2 & 9, 1841
Aug 4, 1841-Mar 2, 1842

Wadsworth Enterprise – 3 reels
May 4, 1866 to April 25, 1877

Wadsworth News Banner – 26 reels
Feb 3, 1910- Dec 29, 1955

Wadsworth News – 6 reels
Oct 30, 1920-Oct 6, 1932
Feb 23-Sep 2828, 1933
Nov 2, 1933 –June 29, 1944

Now, besides the fact that Wadsworth is one of three cities within Medina County, what can we get out of these films?

First, the Wadsworth Library has the obituaries in the Wadsworth newspapers indexed as part of the Ohio Obituary Project on the Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Library and Museum website: http://www.rbhayes.org/  Access to more obituaries? That is always a good thing!

Next, imagine how my blog on the Wadsworth Coal Mines could be impacted by having access to these Wadsworth newspapers. The post would probably contain a lot more detail than I was able to glean from The Gazette.

AND...

The 1876 editions of the Medina Gazette have always been MIA (Missing In Action). This is critical for two reasons that come immediately to mind.

1. 1876 was the American Bicentennial. As Medina is celebrating its Bicentennial, wouldn't you like to know how the county celebrated the first U.S. Centennial in 1876? Me too!
2. 1876 was the year the H.G. Blake died and for years local historians (including myself) have searched for his obituary. If you want to know who Blake was, read this POST.

The Wadsworth Enterprise has its 1876 editions:

The Wadsworth Enterprise 19 April 1876, page 4.

NOW are you excited?  Me too!

Family History Microfilm Program Being Discontinued

The popular microfilm lending program from the Family History Center is being discontinued as of September 1st, 2017. You can still order microfilm until August 31st.

Why is it being discontinued?

• Because they say microfilm technology is obsolete. Despite numerous studies that say microfilm, when handled appropriately and stored correctly, can last as long as 500 years. Digital technology lasts only as long as it doesn't become obsolete.  Technology changes quickly. Do any of you remember the old paper punch cards? How many of you still have 5 inch floppy disks in your home? Or 3 1/4 inch disks? CDs or DVDs? Or is it all on a USB drive or in the Cloud?

• Because the company has made tremendous progress in digitizing the microfilm. And they should have the rest of their microfilm digitized by the end of 2020.

But what if the film you want has not yet been digitized? Or if it is only available to view from within a Family History Center? (Which Lisa and I have noticed happening more and more frequently.)

I suggest ordering now any films you have been holding off requesting. Or wait until 2020...

To read their full announcement follow this link:
Family History Microfilm Lending Discontinued

Ordering Microfilm from the Family Search Web Site

As we learned last week, the Church of Latter Day Saints has been microfilming & digitizing records from around the world for a very long time. We've seen how a basic search on the Family Search Web site reveals the indexed records and we've learned how to access the unindexed records.

This week we are going to learn about the records that have been microfilmed but not digitized. They can be ordered from the Family History Library (FHL) in Salt Lake City, Utah.

From the FamilySearch website, put your cursor over the "Search" option on the options across the top.

Choose "Catalog" from the drop down menu.

This is what the catalog search page looks like:

You can search by Place, Surnames, Titles, Author, Subjects and Keywords.  You can combine your searches. Example: I searched MASON surname and WEST VIRGINIA keyword. It narrowed the search results from 660 (MASON surname search only) to 41 entries for the combined search.

Below that you can search for an item by Call Number or Film/Fiche Number. The Surname search alone is more helpful if you have an uncommon surname. 

The Family History Library catalog includes books as well as microfilm. You cannot order the books, unless they have been microfilmed. Then you can order the microfilm of the book. You can search by book title, author or subject. If the book has been digitized, it will provide a link to the digitized copy. The site also provides a link to the WorldCat catalog so that you can see which libraries own the item.

We are going to explore the Place search in more detail. Don't include words like "county", "state" or "country". Type in the name of the locality. Example: Marion County, Ohio:

As soon as you type in Marion, a drop-down menu appears so you can select the exact location you want.

 Once you select your location, you will see a subject list of all the items the FHL has for that location. Many of the records have separate indexes:

Once you select the subject area you are interested in, you'll see an expanded view of the topic:

Curious about what it contained, I selected the Pensions subject line.
I have never seen this kind of record.

Click on the title of the record to see more information:

This looks like it is pension records for mothers who lost a son in World War I.

Notice the little film reel icon on the bottom right?  When you click on that you are taken to the ordering page.

The Short term Loan costs $7.50 per reel and you would have access to the film for 90 days. The extended loan is for an indefinite period of time - basically until someone else wants the film. If you haven't already registered at the FamilySearch web site, you will want to now! 

You will have to designate which FHL you want the film to be sent to. I can HIGHLY recommend the Medina County District Library. We have been an Affiliate Family History Center Library since October of 2014. We are open 65 hours a week and have two fabulous new microfilm machines and two middling-old machines! 

You will also have to choose your payment option: PayPal or credit card.

The FHL will keep you updated on the status of your order:

• When the order has been received
• When the order has been shipped, or back ordered.
• When it has arrived at the library.

When the film arrives at the Medina Library, it is checked in and labeled with your name. It waits for you in a microfilm drawer in the Franklin Sylvester Room until it is time for it to be returned to the FHL in Salt Lake City.

It is definitely cheaper than traveling to distant locations. I used FHL films for Northamptonshire, England to find the marriage record of my 4X great grandparents, James Tagg and Rebecca Heighton in 1814, a full four years before other researchers had estimated for them!

Try it out! If you have any questions, see me or Lisa Rienerth at the Medina Reference Desk.

Next week, Lisa will be the guest blogger!