Genealogy Records are Given to Library

Below is an article that appeared in the New York Times on July 19, 2008
Author: SAM ROBERTS

Anyone interested in Genealogy will find this of interest!

Wolfert Van Couwenhoven visited New Amsterdam in 1625 but apparently was unimpressed. He left town and went home to the Netherlands, only to return five years later and purchase a large tract of land on Long Island. He probably never imagined that his odyssey would be immortalized, but there it is, nearly 400 years later, at the New York Public Library.

The library's extensive genealogical collection has just been enormously enhanced by the gift of 75,000 volumes, 30,000 manuscripts and 22,000 reels of microfilm from the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society.

Faced with a dwindling endowment, the members-only G & B, as it is known, sold its four-story building on East 58th Street in Midtown Manhattan last year for $24 million. It bought an office condominium in Midtown where it will now focus on grant-giving, tours, lectures and other means of encouraging genealogical research. One of the first grants was about $1 million to the library for a four-person staff to process and catalog the G & B collection within two years.

"The G & B wanted a place where the members would have access and where the collection would be taken care of," said David S. Ferriero, the Andrew W. Mellon director of the New York Public Libraries.

"Combining the two collections will result in an extraordinary resource for people nationwide seeking to learn about family members who were born in New York, lived in New York or passed through New York on the way to becoming citizens."

Merging the collections will create what Waddell W. Stillman, the society's chairman, described as "one of the world's largest and most accessible genealogical libraries."

The society was founded in 1869 and moved into its building at 122 East 58th Street in 1929. Its earliest members were primarily interested in delving into their 17th- and 18th-century Dutch and English roots, and records of their ancestors in censuses, deeds, baptisms, births, deaths and wills constitute the bulk of the collection.

After World War II, "the G & B had almost disappeared," said William P. Johns, its president. The society was real estate rich, cash poor, and peppered with debate about its direction.

Genealogy grew more popular after the nation's bicentennial, the publication of Alex Haley's "Roots," and the restoration of Ellis Island. In recent years, do-it-yourself programs for amateur genealogists have proliferated, along with commercial ancestry Web sites. Mr. Johns invoked the author Louis Auchincloss, who once acknowledged that in the old days the eminence of one's pedigree might depend "on how much you pay the genealogist."

The society's library closed last month. Now, Mr. Johns said, the society hopes to evolve into more of an umbrella group to encourage and coordinate research.

"The New York Public became far and away the best place to take care of a collection that should stay in New York and stay together," he said. The future of the society's portrait collection, which includes those of prominent New Yorkers and paintings by the British artist Frank O. Salisbury, is being negotiated with the New-York Historical Society.

Last year, the New York Public Library's local history and genealogy division recorded 56,000 visitors and 1,200 mail inquiries, said the division's chief, Ruth Carr.

The collection is mined not only by professional and amateur genealogists, but also by art historians seeking to establish the provenance of paintings or to identify the subjects of centuries-old portraits. Ms. Carr tapped the library's records to trace her father's roots to the 18th century. With the acquisition of the society's collection, including Suffolk County deeds from 1660, she will be able to delve even further back.

The society's collection of 1725-to-1850 cemetery and church records from Hempstead, N.Y., complements the library's holdings of 6,000 photographs of churches, gravestones and old houses on Long Island, Ms. Carr said, and the combined collections will help historians and people "who want to understand the world their ancestors lived in."

William Stingone, the library's Charles J. Liebman curator of manuscripts, pointed to a 19th-century book from the Emigrant Savings Bank in the library's collection, which included the birthdates, occupations and other information on depositors. It was called a "test book" and, the bank used it much the way Web sites do today when they ask security questions about a visitor's favorite color or first pet's name, to verify identities when money was being withdrawn.

The book "ended up being a source of information, though that was never intended," Mr. Stingone said

World Book Online Webnair

Attached is the webinar schedule for free training of the World Book Web Online subscription for all staff. With school starting on August 18th, and homework soon to follow, training is key to providing better cutomer service to our student population. Please take a few moments and look over the schedule. If you would like to attend one of the Webnairs offered, simply follow the instuctions about how to register. I encourange anyone who can attend to do so.


Training on World Book Online Web:

Webinars offer an overview of the features of the World Book Web’s full suite of products, including World Book Kids, World Book Online Reference Center (with a preview ofthe new interface), World Book Advanced, and World Book Discover.

To Register go to: http://www.worldbookonline.com/webinars
Please note all schedules are in Central time.
Session Time (Central) / Webinar ID.

World Book Kids (30 min)
Mon, August 11, 2008 1 p.m. 681247770
Tues, September 9, 2008 9 a.m. 942357511
Tues, October 7, 2008 2 p.m. 218329286

World Book Discover (30 min) NEW!
Thurs, August 14, 2008 3:30 p.m. 113282026
Mon, August 25, 2008 10 a.m. 304391044
Tues, September 9, 2008 2:30 p.m. 307528741
Wed, September 24, 2008 4 p.m. 494657224
Wed, October 1, 2008 1 p.m. 803028307
Wed, October 22, 2008 9 a.m. 365966128

World Book Online Reference Center/Student (30 min)
Mon, August 11, 2008 2 p.m. 738055028
Thurs, September 11, 2008 10 a.m. 364923552
Mon, September 15, 2008 3:30 p.m. 276582371
Wed, October 1, 2008 12 p.m. 772252692
Wed, October 22, 2008 4 p.m. 904027987

World Book Advanced (30 min)
Thurs, August 14, 2008 9:30 a.m. 333776137
Wed, September 24, 2008 2 p.m. 619048667
Tues, October 7, 2008 1 p.m. 215622102

World Book Complete Suite (1 hr)
Mon, August 25, 2008 11 a.m. 941258238
Mon, September 15, 2008 1 p.m. 404559273
Fri, October 10, 2008 10 a.m. 633973987
For technical assistance dial 1-888-259-8414.

Audio available by phone and/or VOIP. Certificates for attendance available.

SANBORN FIRE INSURANCE MAPS

Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps are a valuable resource for researching local history. They were designed to indicate the potential risk of fire for metropolitan area structures and edifices. The presentation of the maps is similar to a large format plat, showing a sections of municipal area that contain such information as, the outline of the buildings, the size, shape, height, construction materials, location of windows and doors, and what function the building serves. The street names of the particular view are noted as well as the address numbers, sidewalk widths, boundaries, and building use. More information is given in the textual information (such as building materials, reinforced walls, etc.)

USING THE SANBORN MAPSFOUR VOLUME SET OF THE MAPS WITH INDEX

(Located at the John F. Germany Library, 2 West)We have some of the original, hardcopy, Sanborn Maps and an index to the four volume set, in the History and Genealogy Collection of the John F. Germany Library downtown. These maps date from 1931 – July 1951. The maps are colored coded in addition to many other notations. Also the hard copy shows the paste-overs that the company did when there was a change of structure or demolition of such. A key to the symbols on the maps appear at the beginning of each volume, on the page entitled "Graphic Map of Volumes" at the very beginning of each book.

ON-LINE DIGITAL SANBORN MAPS

(via Databases and Websites)The on-line maps do not contain paste-overs, but they do have the Sanborn Maps as far back as 1867 which enables the viewer to compare the areas of differing years. In order to access the Sanborn Maps on-line one needs to go to " Online Resources" from the "catalog" menu, then click on "Databases and Websites." Choose "Genealogy," from the left hand side of the page, and scroll down to "Digital Sanborn Maps." When one clicks on this site a page appears that says Digital Sanborn Maps 1867 – 1970. On the bottom you can click on the box that says "Browse Maps," "About The Sanborn Maps," or "Help With This Collection." Choose the one that is most appropriate to your needs.

SANBORN MAPS ON MICROFILM

(Located at John F. Germany Library)The Sanborn maps are on microfilm, as well, for major cities in the following states: Alabama, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and West Virginia. Assistance with microfilm is offered in History and Genealogy.

INDEX TO ALL SANBORN MAPS

The Sanborn index is broken down by "Streets" i.e. 102 E. Seventh Avenue, "Specials" (which is the name of the structure) i.e. Tampa Public Library. Also there is an index for "Additions and Subdivisions." i.e. Parkland Estates. The index will direct you to a volume and/or sheet number. When you click on the appropriate sheet for your search you will see the address or building for which you had been looking.The Sanborn site has a thorough and detailed "Legend" screen containing explication of the notations on the maps. Also, there is a "Help" screen which enables you in your search. How to use this collection is explained in the section of that name.

New Oxford E-titles added to our Reference Collection

Listed below are the new e-titles which we have added to our online Reference Collection:

The Oxford Companion to World Exploration
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Economic History
Encyclopedia of Evolution
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Women in World History
Black Women in America
Dictionary of American Family Names
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Maritime History
The Grove Encyclopedia of Decorative Arts
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Latinos and Latinas in the United States
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Rhetoric

These titles can be accessed remotely 24/7 and they are also cross searchable when you login to the Oxford Reference Premium Online Collection.

The Digital TV Transition

On February 17, 2009 all full-power broadcast television stations in the United States will stop broadcasting on analog airwaves and begin broadcasting only in digital television (DTV) . DTV broadcasting will allow stations to offer improved picture and sound quality and additional channels.

The conversion to DTV will help to free up parts of the broadcast spectrum which in turn will then be used for other impotant services such as police and fire departments, emergency rescue, and advanced wireless service.

Between Jan. 1, 2008, and March 31, 2009, all U.S. households will be eligible to request up to two coupons, worth $40 each, to be used toward the purchase of up to two, digital-to-analog converter boxes. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has responsibility for administering the coupon program.

For more information about DTV and the converter box coupon program go to:
www.dtv.gov

New Flood Maps for Hillsborough County

Hillsborough County has received the final version of the updated flood maps from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). They are scheduled to become effective for flood insurance and development purposes on August 28, 2008. This process, which has been going on for the past ten years, is part of a required update of flood maps across The United States. The last time the maps were formally updated in Hillsborough County was 1992 and some parts of the County have not been updated since 1980.

You may start to get questions about these new maps as the time gets closer for them to become effective. Customers can view the updated maps online by going to the County's website at www.hillsboroughcounty.org and clicking on the "A-Z" Index link, and then selecting "Flood Map Update Process."

The John F. Germany Library will keep the "old" flood maps for historical purposes, but they will be labeled accordingly to avoid any confusion.
Another issue customers will need to keep in mind, is if they live in, or are moving into, a high-risk area with the County's new flood maps, they may be required to have a flood insurance policy. Remember to direct customers to the Flood Map Update website for more news and information.