RootsTech London Keynotes

The final Keynote speaker for RootsTech 2019 London was announced this morning. For those who will be there, or still thinking about going, here is the lineup! I know I am looking forward to hearing from the UK Celebrities Dan Snow and Nick Barratt. I have seen them in several programs and would love to hear their family stories.

Dan Snow: Dan Snow is a historian, broadcaster and television presenter. He was born and raised in London, and remembers spending every weekend of his childhood being taken to castles, battlefields, country houses and churches. He developed a great love of history which he went on to pursue at Oxford University. While there he also rowed in the Boat Race three times. He left Oxford and immediately started presenting military history programs with his father, Peter Snow. Their series, “Battlefield Britain”, won a BAFTA award. He went on to make programs around the world on a range of historical topics. He has presented shows such as “Armada”, “Grand Canyon” and “Vikings”. He has a regular slot on the ONE show on BBC1 and is also part of the BBC Events team presenting anniversary programs commemorating the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain and the landings at Gallipoli in 2015. He has written or contributed to several books including ‘Death or Victory;’ the story of the siege of Quebec in 1759, ‘The World's Greatest Twentieth Century Battlefields’ and most recently ‘The Battle of Waterloo Experience’.

Donny Osmond: Osmond’s successful career as an entertainer has spanned 5 decades. He is known internationally for his talent as a singer, songwriter, actor, television series host, and best-selling author. Osmond has performed since the age of 5 in such productions as The Andy Williams Show, The Osmonds, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, and most recently with his sister in their Vegas show Donnie and Marie.

Nick Barratt: Nick Barratt is known for his work on Who Do You Think You Are?, House Detectives, Hidden House Histories, Secrets from the Attic, and Missing Millions. He has authored several books, including Lost Voices from the Titanic, The Forgotten Spy, and The Restless King. In 2016 he was made an Honorary Associate Professor of Public History at the University of Nottingham. He is a committee member for the Community Archive and Heritage Group, and President of the Federation of Family History Societies.

Steve Rockwood: Steve Rockwood was elected as CEO of FamilySearch International on 1 October 2015. Prior to joining FamilySearch, Rockwood specialized in creating unique service offerings for worldwide customers of such brands as MasterCard International, AT&T, Disney, Office Depot, and Citibank among others. He was also a successful entrepreneur building two companies from the ground up that were later acquired by larger companies.

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Passchendaele Archives and Memorial

In July my family and I traveled to France and Belgium for a 14-day tour of battlefields, military museums, and history. As the consummate genealogist, I poked my head in archives and libraries that were open when we were there. One of those was the Passchendaele Archives.

But first, a bit of history.

Also known as the third battle of Ypres, the Battle of Passchendaele was fought from 18 July to 6 November 1917 in Flanders. The offensive's goal was to push the German's away from the ports and eliminate the U-boat bases along the coast. However, it came to be known as one of the bloodiest WWI battles.

Commanded by General Sir Douglas Haig the Bristish forces shelled the German lines for 10 days. In total, roughly 4.5 million shells fell on the enemy. Haig believed the German Army was close to collapse and with one large offensive the war would soon be over.

The British forces consisting of mostly Australian and New Zealand troops fought through rain and

extensively shelling beginning in mid-July to attempt the capture Passchendaele Ridge from the German forces.  Historians state the largest amount of rain in 30 years fell at this time. The result, men and horses drowning in the quagmire. Haig ordered the assault suspended until the 20th of September.

Herbert Plumer took command on 20 September and made some progress with captures of land east of Ypres. Canadian troops 100,000 strong were ordered to Passchendaele in mid-October and through their planning, the Canadians captured the ridge.

In the nearly three month offensive, the Allies gained just under five miles. The human toll was also massive with 325,000 Allied and 260,000 German casualties. In addition, the town was completely destroyed.

The Memorial Museum in Passchendaele and the attached Memorial Park is a remarkable experience. It brings to life the story of these men and the utter futility of it all. The family spent 7 hours there touring the museum, walking the park, and visiting Tyne Cot cemetery. If you ever have the chance to do this, I highly recommend it.

During lunch, I read a few fliers about other attractions in the area. During the browsing of leaflets, I discovered one for the local archives. I looked at my husband, he looked back at me, sighed, shrugged and we adjusted our plans. It's like he knows me!

The archive is in a 1920s era art deco home (beautiful and one of the oldest in the town) with a library and research center set-up. Primarily the archive performs research on the persons who fought at this battle. Their primary goal is to create a database with the name and military information for every man who fell during the battle. Not only for the Allies but for the German soldiers too.

In addition to the database, the historians on-site will research your WWI ancestors who were at the Battle of Passchendaele. So, if you are doing research on this area of WWI I recommend contacting the archives. They are friendly, multilingual, and excited to share information with you.

Sources:
BBC "Battle of Passchendaele: 31 July - 6 November 1917"
Canada and the First World War "Passchendaele"
Historic UK "The Battle of Passchendaele"

Genealogy Workshop: Discover Your Family Roots!

August is packed full of great education in the DMV area. If you are able, I hope to see you tomorrow at the Belair Mansion in Bowie, Maryland.  It's going to be a great afternoon of learning. I will specifically be speaking on the basics of DNA testing for genealogy. A topic you all know is near and dear to my heart.

RootsTech London 2019 - Pass Giveaway

Yes, that's right, I am heading over to London this October. While I will not be speaking this time I am an Ambassador for the conference. As an Ambassador, I have ONE pass to give away!

The giveaway if for a 3-day pass (£149 value) which includes the following:
• Over 150 classes
• Keynote / General sessions
• Expo Hall
• Evening event

To be entered into the giveaway tell me why family history is important to you in 500 words or less. You can write a post here, on my Facebook post for the contest, or on Twitter (@tntfamhist). That is 3 ways to enter!

Your entry will be placed into a random draw on August 14th and the winner announced on August 15th. Good luck!

FGS 2020

It is just under a month away, FGS 2020 conference in Washington D.C.  I will be there as a vendor and as a speaker. So let the fun begin!

If you are attending the event, I do have a guide to Washington, DC for genealogists available on Amazon. While it is a few years old, the information is still accurate. 

In the exhibit hall, you will find my co-author, Brianne Kirkpatrick, and myself selling our books and discussing our professional serivces. Check back here for the times and days we will be having our book signings!

As for speaking, you can come to hear me lecture on the following days:

House and Land Histories for Genealogical PurposesT-212 - Thursday 9:30am

Researching at the Naval Heritage and History CommandS-423 - Saturday 11:00am

Two topics I am excited to share with everyone. Thursday's lecture even has a case study that participants can go see while they are in DC!  Intrigued yet?

Hope to see you there!