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By Angelo Coniglio Recent columns have reviewed the free genealogy research website of the Mormon church, https://familysearch.org/ (familysearch). The most recognized paid subscription genealogy site is www.Ancestry.com (Ancestry).   Ancestry may be considered expensive by many beginning researchers; however, the service does offer free 14...

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We don't know how many of you know this, but there is a thing called "Passport Index" which ranks the passports of the world, based on their Visa Free Score. The higher the Visa Free Score, the better the Passport Power Rank. Italy is ranked third : not bad, right? Still, this is not why so many Italian Americans apply for their Italian passport: a...

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by Angelo Coniglio   Today, most Western names consist of one or more given names combined with a family name, or surname. Surnames are a relatively recent phenomenon in human history. Nobility and landowners may have had identifying names besides their given names, but ordinary residents of most countries didn't use surnames until they were...

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by Dan Niemiec   Last month, we discussed on-line family trees, and some of the pros and cons. The major pro is that when you upload your tree, the on-line sites (familysearch and ancestry) check your tree for matches with other trees already in their web sites. Keep in mind a couple of things when working with these two web sites. Familyse...

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By Rena Garrett At St. Louis' historic Union Station, a team of genealogists uncovers fascinating family stories from Missouri. A musician hopes to find connections to a famous St. Louis jazz composer; two sisters explore links to a survivor of the legendary Donner party; an Italian-American woman finds out if she is related to Italian royalty; an...

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by Dan Niemiec   A few years ago, I received a phone call from a cousin I had not heard from in some time. Some years earlier, this distant relative and I had been in regular contact while I was working with them on their branch of the family tree. They gave me the data on the descendants and photographs, so the tree would be up to date. I g...

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By Angelo Coniglio Genealogy entails more than tracing a single line or surname of ancestors, even though that line may go very far into the past. I like to think of genealogy as having three dimensions, which I characterize as backwards, sideways, and forward. A simple example: Researching your parents is backwards genealogy; researching your si...

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By Angelo Coniglio If you still live in the place where your immigrant ancestors settled, your local public library probably has hard copies of the US Census covering your location. However, if you live elsewhere, you must search on-line censuses.   I find that even for local information, using on-line searches is easier than using hard cop...

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Have you ever thought about organizing your family history so it is preserved and can be passed on to future generations? Or, creating a family tree to see all of your relatives and how you are all linked? This is genealogy. The search for, and documentation of, one's ancestors and family lineages. If you have been thinking about starting a genealo...

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1 On 1 Genealogy Consultation The Casa Italia Genealogy Department is now offering one on one genealogy assistance in our library on select Mondays. We are not only assisting with Italian research, but any ethnic background. Terri O'Connell is providing consultation on a few dates and specializes in Irish research and also Germans and Russians in...

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