U.S. National Archives fees increase

The National Archives issued a press release last month that I somehow missed. As of October 1, 2012 there are many increases and a few decreases in costs for copies in-person and by request.

Self-service paper to paper copies will be .25 in all NARA facilities. Microfilm to paper is up  by .10 to .60 each.

Copies of passenger arrival records have decreased from $25 gto $20.

A Civil War pension record has gone up by $5 to $80 and after 100 pages the cost is .70 per page.

The full fee schedule can be viewed here.

National Archives puts more workshops online

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                               

July 30, 2012

National Archives Puts More Popular Records Workshops Online

More “Know Your Records” videos now available on National Archives’ YouTube Channel

Washington, DC… The National Archives has launched new online videos of its most popular genealogy “how to” workshops. These videos cover “hot topics” in genealogical research such as Civil War records, online resources and databases, and more. These workshops led by National Archives experts are available on the National Archives YouTube channel at http://tinyurl.com/NARAGenie.

The National Archives–produced Know Your Records video shorts cover the creation, scope, content, and use of National Archives records for genealogical research. “We are happy to make more of our most popular genealogy lectures available online. We welcome researcher feedback and will continue to make more workshops available online for free for viewing by anyone, anywhere, at any time,” said Diane Dimkoff, Director of Customer Services. 

For the first time, researchers and staff voted for their favorite topics—and the National Archives listened:

Access to Archival Databases (AAD) for Genealogists (54:57) http://tinyurl.com/NARAaad

National Archives electronic records expert Dan Law discusses using electronic records for genealogy research and shows how to access such records using the National Archives Access to Archival Databases (AAD) online search engine.

Documenting Death in the Civil War (1:22:29)  http://tinyurl.com/NARACivWar

National Archives genealogy expert John Deeben explores War Department death records created during and after the Civil War. These records show how the government documented personal circumstances of soldiers’ deaths on the battlefield, in military hospitals, and in prisons.

Let No Man Put Asunder: Freedmen’s Bureau Marriage Records (1:12:09) http://tinyurl.com/FreedmensBur

National Archives archivist Reginald Washington explores marriage records from the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands (the Freedmen's Bureau). The Freedmen’s Bureau provided assistance to tens of thousands of former slaves and impoverished whites in the Southern states and the District of Columbia. These records from 1865 through 1872 constitute the richest and most extensive documentary source for investigating the African American experience in the post–Civil War and Reconstruction eras.

Army Service in the Civil War: An Overview (1:02:44)  http://youtu.be/nUTbjQM32vc

Over 2.8 million men (and a few hundred women) served in the Union and Confederate armies during the Civil War. National Archives genealogy expert John Deeben demonstrates how to research and use Civil War Army service records.

Exodus to Kansas: The 1880 Senate Investigation of the Beginnings of the African American Migration from the South (1:05:26) http://tinyurl.com/Exoduster

National Archives archivist Damani Davis examines Federal records relating to the “Kansas Exodus” (the so-called “Exoduster” movement), which was the first instance of voluntary, mass migration among African Americans. This mass exodus generated considerable attention throughout the nation and resulted in a major 1880 Senate investigation. For more information, see http://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/2008/summer/exodus.html.

National Archives Records on Ancestry.com (56:38)   www.youtube.com/watch?v=AvZfi-77xCU

Ancestry.com has digitized selected National Archives microfilm publications and original records and made them available on their web sites for a fee. Lead Family Historian for Ancestry.com Anastasia Harman discusses these records and their use for genealogy research.   Access to Ancestry.com and Fold3 (formerly Footnote.com) is available free of charge in all National Archives Research Rooms, including those in our regional archives and Presidential Libraries. For a list of National Archives records available online through Ancestry.com and other digitization partners, see http://www.archives.gov/digitization/digitized-by-partners.html.

Background on “Know Your Records” programs

The National Archives holds the permanently valuable records of the Federal Government. These include records of interest to genealogists, such as pension files, ship passenger lists, census and Freedmen’s Bureau materials. The “Know Your Records Program” offers opportunities for staff, volunteers, and researchers to learn about these records through lectures, ongoing genealogy programs, workshops, symposia, the annual genealogy fair, an online genealogy tutorial, reference reports for genealogical research, and editions of Researcher News  for Washington, DC, area researchers.

Civil War era National Cemeteries

The National Park Service has a website page that lists "Civil War Era National Cemeteries: Honoring Those Who Served." The listing is by state and includes sites designated as national cemeteries. Click here to learn more about each site. This does not represent all cemeteries where Civil War related burials took place.

For more listings in National Cemeteries and others see Nationwide Gravesite Locator. As that site says, "Search for burial locations of veterans and their family members in VA National Cemeteries, state veterans cemeteries, various other military and Department of Interior cemeteries, and for veterans buried in private cemeteries when the grave is marked with a government grave marker. . . Information on veterans buried in private cemeteries was collected for the purpose of furnishing government grave markers, and we do not have information available for [those] burials prior to 1997."

Many states also have listing online or off that include veterans burials. During the WPA (Works Progress Administration) era of the late 1930s and early 1940s some lists of veterans burials were compiled.

Check these examples for more details. Read the information included with each to learn more about the parameters of the listings. Most clearly state that the details are not comprehensive. These sites do not all have online databases. Other states include Florida, Iowa, and South Dakota. Other places where WPA workers compiled lists of burials did not produce separate veterans and civilian records.

• Minnesota Veterans Graves Registration Index. http://people.mnhs.org/vgri/
• Westchester County, New York: http://collections.westchestergov.com:2009/wcacustom/vetguide.php
• Indiana: http://www.in.gov/icpr/2557.htm
• Johnson County, Kentucky: http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~kyjchs/wpagraves1.html
• Hamilton County, Ohio: http://recordersoffice.hamilton-co.org/helpful_information/cemetery_locations.html 

Also check Findagrave.com, Interment.net, and other compilation websites for other veterans burials. 

Proud to announce a Civil War Prisoners website

I received a very special email tonight. It was about a friend's years of work being preserved and even better, being shared. I first met fellow Minnesotans Jack and Carol Lundquist in the 1990s when they joined us on the group research trips we used to lead to the Family History Library. I would still see them when we had occasional trip reunions. Sadly, Jack passed away a few years ago. Carol wanted his special research projects preserved and I am happy to announce that she has done just that. Jack loved history and especially that surrounding the Civil War. One of Carol's Civil War ancestors was imprisoned during the Civil War. 

Carol wrote to me: "You know how important Jack's Civil War research (obsession?) was to him.  Well, I'm thrilled to announce the birth of www.CivilWarPrisoners.com.  It's up and live and I'm already getting some very nice feedback from some of the Civil War groups that Jack worked with.  After two years, I feel like I can breathe again knowing that his work is preserved - it's really been weighing on me.Jack never would have cared about a website, but I wanted to be sure and preserve his work."  

What is it? Jack worked long and hard to document Civil War prisoners at Andersonville and Cahaba. Because more than 800 prisoners from Cahaba perished when the steamboat Sultana exploded in 1865. As the website says: "Jack combined a lifelong love of history, especially the Civil War, with a mind that loved crunching data. After retirement in 1990 he initially set out to research only the Sultana Disaster with the aim of compiling the most accurate list of names of those who were on the ship. This soon expanded into researching Cahaba Prison, and then Andersonville as well as other Southern prisons such as Salisbury and Florence."

Check out Jack (and Carol's work):  CivilWarPrisoners.com - Main Page

CNN and Civil War memorabilia

On its website, CNN has been asking for people to share their photos and stories. This year is the 150th anniversary of the start of the war and the Their topic is "History in your home: The Civil War" and some people have contributed images of a variety of records and artifacts. Some people have shared a story about the document, artifact, or about the person. The last day to contribute is this Friday, April 8th. It is another way to share your family history information and maybe find a new cousin as happened with one contributor and someone who commented on the letter.

Next Tuesday, April 12th is the anniversary of the actual day the war is said to have begun.