Tag: FamilySearch

Ain’t No Party Like a RootsTech Party!

Published on by Cheri

Just a week ago, we were all flocking back home from an EPIC RootsTech 2026 at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City – navigating jetlag AND the time change. The one thing to remember about any given year of RootsTech is that it’s never really over. While I focused my attendance on the in-person only classes, and main stage sessions, I still have weeks and months worth of sessions to watch at my leisure over the next year – and so do you!

Wide angle shot of the main stage arena – at capacity = 6,000 packed house.

**Important** While we are still in March – whether you attended in-person or virtually, make sure you take some time to thoroughly go through the RootsTech site to visit the exhibitor websites, download syllabus material (where available), and visit some of the social media experiences shared out there via several platforms with the hashtag #RootsTech2026. Some of these features will expire in the RootsTech site – so do not hesitate while things are still live. Yes, the recorded sessions will live on the main site for the next few years, but some features will naturally go away by April.

Now – Let’s get down to the main event. Some of the highlights below will be covered more in length via a podcast episode or larger review where noted. This year’s theme was “Together” which was apparent through the many stories featured during the conference.

AI (Artificial Intelligence) was driving the RT2026 bus!

Just like previous years, when DNA was the topic-du-jour, AI has risen to take that title. I have been learning a lot about AI, but I’m personally still trying to wrap my head around the concepts and tools available to researchers – and the multi-faceted implications of AI applications – some seen, and many in the background.

One huge reminder about AI is that the major companies (FamilySearch, Ancestry, etc.) have been utilizing AI in the background for over a decade. If you have ever accepted a shaky little leaf hint for your family tree, you’ve used AI – even if you didn’t know it. When the 1950 census was released, AI tools were hard at work in the background to transcribe the handwriting – eliminating the need for volunteer indexers. And RootsTech 2024 introduced FamilySearch’s full-text search option in their lab area – but now it’s fully integrated into the research experience (long before RT2026). Finally, let us not forget the amazing AI toys that MyHeritage gave us several years ago to bring our family photos to life. In other words – AI has been a part of our lives for a long time – but we’re just now waking up to this common technological thread – and how we can use it in our own research process, through tools outside of the genealogy industry vendors. 2026 is definitely AI’s time to shine!

On a side note – my RT2026 experience began this year when I was invited to attend the ARC (Archives & Records Custodians) Symposium in person on Wednesday. There were a lot of sessions that addressed the use of AI in the archival process – in conjunction with the research process, but I came away with more questions than answers at this point – simply because I’m not using AI in my own archival processing during my day job. Also, while I was blown away by the work and networks being developed on a global scale, historical concepts and context are still fluid descriptors when talking about AI in this field – and I have some thoughts about this that will be featured in a future post and podcast episode – stay tuned! Sneak peek phrase from one of the sessions: Think of the past as a beta space! BTW – I encourage all archivists in the field to go watch the sessions – they are free, online!

As part of this invitation, I was also granted VIP status for the main stage – and given a special behind the scenes tour of the Church History Library which I will cover in a separate post. With the new colleagues I met, and the projects featured, this was a wonderful experience and I would love to take part again!

Big Vendor Announcements:

Every year, software upgrades and new features are launched during RootsTech week. If your favorite software has a new look or special announcements – pay attention. Here are just a few I caught wind of while attending the conference – there are SO many more:

MyHeritage: This company introduced two new tools – Scribe AI and Country Coding for their pedigrees. Scribe will help you with handwriting and context analysis for documents and photographs. Also – they have a new AI assistant coming soon (GAIA) – and a family infographic feature that will really shake up the family history sharing world – so check back with them throughout 2026!

Steve Rockwood and Dave Rencher at the FamilySearch Influencers Social

For FamilySearch – they already have their hands full putting on the biggest genealogy show in the world – but as a platform, they will be expanding their AI generated full-text search throughout the global records they are digitizing at a rapid rate. And always be checking out their lab section of the website to catch new tools as they come available. Playing with these new features before they go fully live helps them gain valuable feedback as they work on development.

Storied also presented us with some new features that help you build one of their family history books and online trees – such as enhanced transcription features, API integration with FamilySearch, and new story telling features from newspaper information extraction.

GedMatch also had an entire presentation on their new features which will include a much more user friendly interface – with new toys going live for their Tier one customers! This interface overhaul has not went live just yet – but in-person attendees got a sneak peek.

LifeWeaver is not only a brand new company, but also a new platinum sponsor of RootsTech. This company aims to take all emails and texts from your phone and turn them into shareable snippet stories and histories to make sure we capture the important moments we are sharing via the technology in our hands. I hope to cover this company at a later date since I have some additional questions regarding privacy and shareability of the digital stories – but for now – they have several videos that introduce their range of features.

Main Stage Fireworks – Literally!

The main stage keynotes were scene stealers, as always! From academy award winning actress, Marlee Matlin, football great Steve Young, Irish dancers – the Gardener Brothers, and author/adventurer Tara Roberts! You can watch all of these great speakers on the RootsTech website, plus a few other international bonus speakers. Coming soon – I’ll be reviewing Tara’s book and featuring some of her post session interview in a future post and podcast episode.

America 250 was also well represented with a huge booth that featured ways to volunteer – and mapping where your revolutionary ancestor was during the American Revolution. Ancestry also announced their enhanced search feature for their Revolutionary War pensions in Fold3 – AI driven full text search that can find multiple family members! Of course, I (along with a couple of my instructors) was also passing out bookmarks to promote our virtual NGS GRIP 2026 Course coming this summer – Navigating Independence which will teach attendees about the life experiences of the Revolutionary War generation – shhhh – I’ve heard seats are already half gone – so you better hurry if you want to take our course!

The most visually impressive feature was the ball pit in the middle of the exhibit hall. Side note – the exhibit hall was larger this year by over 30 booths! Obviously, this conference just keeps getting bigger every year. Back to the ball pit – people of all ages enjoyed this ginormous ball pit with over 50,000 plastic balls inside. Each blue and green ball had a specific question that you could answer if one was thrown to you!

Media/Speaker folks getting an early taste of the ball pit extraveganza!

Relatives at RootsTech – is still going on if you have built a tree in FamilySearch! At last count, I had almost 40,000 cousins attending RootsTech and opting into the feature!

Disclaimer: I was an official member of the RootsTech Media team which means I was able to interview several people, including most of the mainstage keynotes – which will be featured on my site over the next several months. This also means I was a guest at media events from several vendors which allowed me to feature their new product enhancements in this post: MyHeritage, Storied, FamilySeach, etc.

For more photos from the week – check out the latest photo dump on my Instagram account. And for those wanting to join the party next year – it is already set for March 4th-6th, 2027! #savethedate

Juneteenth Event with Family Search

Published on by Cheri

As summer marches along, another holiday is fast approaching – Juneteenth, occurring this year on Monday, June 19th. In honor of this holiday, marking the end of slavery in America, Family Search has selected Juneteenth as the topic of the month for its new monthly lecture series.

Since the 2023 RootsTech Conference, back in March, the Family Search team has decided to keep the educational momentum going by hosting additional live sessions each month under the umbrella of a unique selected topic. So far, they’ve had Women’s history, DNA, and now Juneteenth coming up in the next week.

The speakers selected for these featured sessions are usually RootsTech veteran speakers (but not always) and are asked back to provide fresh, new content for the designated topic. The sessions are FREE and hosted as LIVE events via several watching platforms: YouTube, Facebook, RootsTech website.

Just to be clear: these sessions are NEW – they are not recycled content from the previous RootsTech conferences. While they may also feature some previous sessions on their website and social media platforms that fit with this topic, the live sessions provide fresh content for viewers. Each session is also recorded and made available on the Family Search YouTube Channel.

The class lineup for Juneteenth is full of great sessions – and I’m honored to have been selected as host of a panel session that centers on a very special project that I am privileged to be a part of: From Ali to Clay: Taking the Family Narrative to DNA.

This panel brings together a ragtag group of genealogists, historians, curators, and DNA experts to discuss the generations old family mystery of the origins of Muhammad Ali’s Clay ancestry. Many of you may not know that Muhammad Ali’s original name was Cassius Clay, and he was born in Louisville Kentucky to a long line of African American Clays.

Ali’s family narrative, as recorded by journalists in the 1980s, identified Kentucky Senator, Henry Clay, as the progenitor of this Clay line. With the enslaver identified as the direct line ancestor, you can imagine the challenges that go with trying to confirm this amazing tradition.

This is where the panel comes in – join me and panelists, genealogist, Keith Winstead, genealogist and RootsTech speaker, Donald Shores, Curator of Henry Clay’s Ashland Estate, Eric Brooks, and Family Tree DNA representative and RootsTech speaker, Sherman McRae as we discuss the research challenges and strategies that accompany such a project. Our session goes live at 1:30 pm eastern time on the multiple platforms identified above. In case you miss the live version, check out the recording at a later date on the Family Search YouTube Channel.

Happy Juneteenth, y’all and enjoy the day!

Sharing is Caring: The Insider’s Guide to Interlibrary Loan

Published on by Cheri

It’s quite a mouthful: Interlibrary Loan. But it would be wise to remember this phrase as it could be your new best friend!

Depending on your local public library, Interlibrary Loan (ILL – sometimes known as Resource Sharing) may be a service that is promoted, simply extant, hidden, or not available – you may need to read the services fine print to learn about your library’s ILL offerings.

Most public libraries are eager to borrow the items you need for research, when feasible. However, the research needs of the genealogist can be challenging for Interlibrary Loan services. Let’s explore the obstacles, tips and tricks of this underused, and often misunderstood service.

What IS Interlibrary Loan?

In a nutshell, this is a networked loan program between libraries, allowing patrons to borrow from outside collections. Most of these libraries are connected electronically through their membership in OCLC: Online Computer Library Center – which also happens to run WorldCat, the world’s largest library catalog.

Tip #1: Remember these terms: Borrower and Lender. They are exactly as they sound, but the Borrower is not you – you are the patron or customer and the library borrowing on your behalf is the Borrower. The lending library is the Lender. Contrary to perceptions, the ILL transaction is a contract between the two libraries – NOT between the patron and the lending library. This way, both parties agree to certain standards during the transaction, even if things get damaged or lost in the mail, there is already a protocol in place to resolve the situation.

Through OCLC, each library will request materials on your behalf via the ILL software of their choice that will talk to OCLC, asking if the lending library is willing to lend an item. Each loan is considered based on a few questions:

  • Is the item available for loan? (Many items do not circulate due to various factors: Is it currently checked out to someone else? – Is it rare or archival, and does not circulate?)
  • Can they supply the item within a few days? (4 days is the standard turn around time)
  • Does the library charge a fee to loan?
  • Are there special use restrictions?
  • Is the item an article? – Articles are also available through this type of service.

Tip #2: You can be proactive in determining the likelihood of your ILL success. When using WorldCat to look for your needed title or article, you can make note of a couple of things for your librarian: The OCLC number, which can be found in the details section of the book record in OCLC – this will ensure that they borrow the exact edition you have found. Also, read the fine print: Is this an e-book edition, or an archival item? (Look for a print edition of your needed title as these are best for ILL – except in cases of e-resource agreements between certain libraries) Neither may be able to be borrowed, but if you are desperate, you can discuss photocopy options with your librarian.

What does ILL cost?

This program may be free for you, but depending on the location of the needed item, you may incur some fees. Many libraries belong to nearby or specialty networks that agree to free loans under reciprocal agreements. Sometimes, articles are included, but sometimes they are only supplied for a fee. So, be prepared for a fee structure running from free to about $20.00 per transaction.

Tip #3: Ask about ILL fees prior to submitting a request. For some libraries, they have decided to offer ILL services at no cost to the patron. Others provide this service for free IF they can borrow from a free lender. If they can only find your item through a fee-based lender, they may pass the charge on to you – it is safer to ask about their fee policies prior to submitting an order.

Let’s Talk Genealogy Materials

This is the bad news about ILL. We genealogists are usually on the hunt for obscure material. What exactly falls under the term “obscure”? Microfilm, family histories, local histories, archival/manuscripts or rare books. These items have a high chance of falling under “restricted” material.

“So, what is the point of this post, if I can’t borrow genealogical material?”

You can – but not always. This is just a word of caution to be realistic in your expectations.

Access versus Preservation:

While libraries are in the information providing business, many of them are also in the preservation business. Your natural inclination may be to argue that since you can’t get this information elsewhere, they should be willing to provide it. (Trust me, I’ve heard this argument more times than I care to count.) But think about it, if there is only one or two copies in existence, why endanger the item by placing it in a mail service where it could get lost? – As in, FOREVER, so that no one sees it ever again! Depending on the number of copies available worldwide, preservation can sometimes outweigh access – just be prepared for that scenario.

Tip #4: What to do if your material falls under this category? 1. Look for a copy to purchase online, through Amazon, Ebay, or the librarian’s friend: Bookfinder.com. 2. Look at the description of the book, is it small or really large? Does it have an index so that you can request look-ups or copies of certain pages? If archival, does it have a Finding Aid to help you identify the portions you would like photocopied? Many libraries are willing to copy portions of restricted material, because, after all, they still enjoy providing access to information. 3. Look at the publication year, is it old enough to be in the public domain and may have been digitized in its entirety through Google Books or the Internet Archive? Many of the older family and local histories are available for free download through these sites. Also, don’t forget to try the books section of FamilySearch. 

The above section was only meant as a caution – not to discourage. Regardless of what you find, ILL is a program in place to help patrons get the information they need – so use it! One of the really great uses for ILL is genealogy education and historical context study. Did you see a great new genealogy or history title out there that you’d like to use, but it’s just too expensive? Try ILL – the more recent titles (even recent local histories), owned by multiple libraries, have a high chance of being loaned out.

Tip #5: If you borrow a book through ILL, READ IT – and do not dawdle! ILL books will usually arrive with a generous loan period of around a month, but many do not allow renewals. So, get cracking on that title once it comes in!

The Gems in Those Smaller Libraries

OK, I’m talking very small libraries. The ones so small that they do not pay for membership in OCLC. Since your method of requesting material began with a WorldCat search, just remember that not every library can afford membership in this service. If you find out that a smaller non-OCLC library owns the title you need, you can still ask your librarian about ILL. There is a paper form that can be used between the libraries for these types of transactions.

Tip #6: So, you can’t find the title you need in WorldCat. Look at the title from a regional eye. Where was it published, and where is the subject material from? Then canvas the local area for smaller libraries and archives – they may have their own catalog – or, give them a call. You might be surprised at the number of small libraries “off the grid” that house those obscure titles and archives.

What About Historical Societies?

As a state historical society library, our catalog is connected to OCLC. However, it was only recently that we began loaning our books. As a new option for access, we decided to loan out duplicate material, or material small enough that we could create a circulating copy. Much of our library still does not circulate, but we have a lot of duplicate local/county/family histories that just might be the key to your research. As for other state historical societies, it depends. I’ve seen some connected to their local universities for the service, or some that just do not loan at all. In those cases, you are encouraged to call and discuss photocopy options.

Last Word About Microfilm:

As the Family Search microfilm lending program ended, we are resigned to waiting for digital copies of records. However, for many local newspapers, only a portion has been digitized through online databases. Multitudes await your use through the microfilm reader. Some libraries are great at lending these, but many are not. Different types of libraries, such as university libraries are much more eager to loan microfilm than public libraries – but don’t forget, all of these OCLC connected libraries loan to each other, regardless of library type – so, again, it’s well worth a try!

Happy researching!                                                                                                                                                    Cheri Daniels, MSLS                                                                                                                                            Your Genealogy Librarian