Writings
ARTICLES OF ALL SORTS
I have completed the historical novel about my ancestor Elisabeth. It is available for purchase in e-book form. Check page at this website for information.
I am excited to report that I was honored by placing 3rd in the “Published Articles” category of the 2011 writing contest sponsored by the International Society of Family History Writers and Editors (ISFHWE) for the article the previous year inFamily Chronicle – “Uncovering More than Artifacts” – about my father’s inadvertent involvement with bootlegging. I received a nice prize and certificate at the ISFHWE banquet at the NGS conference in Charleston, SC, in May 2011. It has been reprinted in Columns, the ISFHWE publication. Thank you, ISFHWE, for this honor and I enjoyed having had a chance to visit with my fellow writer friends.
Quasi-regular writings can be read on my blog. These include, but are not limited to, information about lesser known microfilms at the National Archives, Pacific Region (Riverside); music-related posts; and updates on upcoming (or recently past) seminars and festival events, as well as my most recent addition: my father’s autobiography (in multiple posts).
Other blog posts will appear occasionally on the SCCAPG blog, mostly dealing with Chapter events and particulars, as well as at the Gena and Jean blog.
In years past, I enjoyed being included in the Family History Expos’ Bloggers of Honor for past Mesa, AZ and St. George, UT Expo events.
I appreciate being included in the “top 100” lesser-known genealogy blogs by MyHeritage in May 2010.
Partial listing of articles I have written and where they have been published is provided below:
LEXICONS OF LOST LIFESTYLES
Articles about word and phrase origins, organized by theme.
“The Animal Kingdom, Part 3 – Catastrophic Terminology” (8 Mar 2012, GenWeekly)
“The Animal Kingdom, Part 2 – It’s a Dog’s Life” (12 Feb 2012, GenWeekly)
“The Animal Kingdom, Part 1 – Going to the Dogs” (8 Jan 2012, GenWeekly)
“Tradition and Terms of Thanksgiving” (10 Nov 2011, GenWeekly)
“Learning English can be Torture,” Part 4 (7 Oct 2011, GenWeekly)
“Learning English can be Torture,” Part 3 (7 Sep 2011, GenWeekly)
“Learning English can be Torture,” Part 2 (5 Aug 2011, GenWeekly)
“Learning English can be Torture” (7 July 2011, GenWeekly)
“Getting Information” (10 June 2011, GenWeekly)
“The Games People Played” (5 May 2011, GenWeekly)
“Finding Etymology Gold in the Mines” (3 Apr 2011, GenWeekly)
“Clothing, Part 10 – The Fabric of our Lives” (3 Mar 2011, GenWeekly)
“Clothing, Part 9 – I’ll Sleeve it to You” (8 Feb 2011, GenWeekly)
“Clothing, Part 8 – In the Beginning . . .” (3 Jan 2011, GenWeekly)
“Clothing, Part 7 – ‘Baby, It’s Cold Outside'” (9 Dec 2010, GenWeekly)
“Clothing, Part 6 – Who Wears the Pants in the Family?” (5 Nov 2010, GenWeekly)
“Clothing, Part 5 – Headstrong” (20 Oct 2010, GenWeekly)
“Clothing, Part 4 – Hat Trick or Treat” (2 Oct 2010, GenWeekly)
“Clothing, Part 3 – Starting at the Bottom” (5 Sep 2010, GenWeekly)
“Clothing, Part 2 – It’s the Little Things that Count” (8 Aug 2010, GenWeekly)
“Clothing, Part 1 – Dress to Impress” (25 July 2010, GenWeekly)
“Chew on These, Part 2” (28 June 2010, GenWeekly)
“Chew on These, Part 1” (26 May 2010, GenWeekly)
“Five a Day” (30 Apr 2010, GenWeekly)
“These Words will Grow on You” (2 Apr 2010, GenWeekly)
“Weaponry Wordings, Part 2” (6 Mar 2010, GenWeekly)
“Weaponry Wordings, Part 1” (5 Feb 2010, GenWeekly)
“Words of Holidays Past” (4 Dec 2009, GenWeekly)
“In Passing, Part 3” (6 Nov 2009, GenWeekly)
“In Passing, Part 2” (3 Oct 2009, GenWeekly)
“Solving Word Mysteries” (Autumn 2009, Vol. #46, No. 4, SCGS Searcher)
“In Passing, Part 1” (3 Sep 2009, GenWeekly)
“Words of War, Part 3” (4 July 2009, GenWeekly)
“Words of War, Part 2” (4 June 2009, GenWeekly)
“Getting Information” (Jun 2009; CGS Newsletter)
“Words of War, Part 1” (16 May 2009, GenWeekly)
“Digging for Words in the Mines” (Dec 2008, CGS Newsletter)
“Working on the Railroad” (Sep 2008, CGS Newsletter; 8 Jan 2010, GenWeekly)
“From Logs to Log Cabins” (Jun 2008, CGS Newsletter; 1 August 2009, GenWeekly)
“Get me to the Church on Time” (Mar 2008, CGS Newsletter; April 2009, GenWeekly)
“All the World’s a Stage” (Dec 2007, CGS Newsletter; 22 Jan 2009, GenWeekly)
“Meanwhile, back at the Ranch, Part 2” (Sep 2007, CGS Newsletter; 11 Dec 2008, GenWeekly)
“Meanwhile, back at the Ranch, Part 1” (Jun 2007, CGS Newsletter; 27 Nov 2008, GenWeekly)
“Games over Generations” (Mar 2007, CGS Newsletter; Jan 2009, Vol 26, #1, SCGS Searcher)
“From Ship to Shore” (Dec. 2006, CGS Newsletter; 19 Mar 2009, GenWeekly)
“Firearm Phraseology, Part 3” (Sep. 2006, CGS Newsletter)
“Knomenclature of Knights” (Jun. 2006, CGS Newsletter; 19 Feb 2009, GenWeekly)
“Firearm Phraseology, Part 2” (Mar. 2006, CGS Newsletter; Sep. 2008, SCCAPG Newsletter)
“Firearm Phraseology” (Dec. 2005, CGS Newsletter; 2006, SCCAPG Newsletter)
SONGS OF YESTERDAY
Articles about the backstories of songs our ancestors sang (and we still enjoy). To read a comprehensive review of song articles written from the onset of this series through the end of January 2012, please see “The Rest of the Story” by Elisabeth Lindsay (it’s a free article). She did a great job of squishing information about 26 articles and the songs they cover into a descriptive wiki article.
“Stephen Collins Foster, Part 3 – ‘Oh! Susanna'” (21 Apr 2012, GenWeekly)
(should include MP3 of “The 49ers Oh! Susanna”)
“Stephen Collins Foster, Part 2 – ‘Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair'” (26 Feb 2012, GenWeekly)
“The Appeal of Stephen Collins Foster” (22 Jan 2012, GenWeekly)
“Civil War Series, Part 12 – ‘O Little Town of Bethlehem'” (24 Dec 2011, GenWeekly)
“Civil War Series, Part 11 – ‘The Vacant Chair'” (23 Nov 2011, GenWeekly)
“Civil War Series, Part 10 – ‘Marching through Georgia'” (incorrectly titled “Tramp, Tramp, Tramp”; 26 Oct 2011, GenWeekly)
(should include MP3 of the song as composite with “Tramp, Tramp, Tramp”)
“Civil War Series, Part 9 – ‘Yes! What Did the Privates Do?'” (24 Sep 2011, GenWeekly)
(should include MP3 of the song)
“Civil War Series, Part 8 – ‘Battle Cry of Freedom'” (27 Aug 2011, GenWeekly)
(should include MP3 of the song)
“Civil War Series, Part 7 – ‘Minstrel Boy'” (21 July 2011, GenWeekly)
(should include MP3 of the song)
“Civil War Series, Part 6 – ‘Lorena'” (24 June 2011, GenWeekly)
(should include MP3 of the song)
“Civil War Series, Part 5 – ‘When Johnny Comes Marching Home'” (24 May 2011, GenWeekly)
(should include MP3 of the song)
“Civil War Series, Part 4 – ‘Lincoln and Liberty'” (21 April 2011, GenWeekly)
(should include MP3 of the song)
“Civil War Series, Part 3 – ‘Tenting on the Old Camp Ground'” (23 Mar 2011, GenWeekly)
(should include MP3 of the song)
“Civil War Series, Part 2 – ‘Tramp, Tramp, Tramp'” (19 Feb 2011, GenWeekly)
(should include MP3 of the song)
“Civil War Series, Part 1 – ‘The Battle of Shiloh Hill'” (23 Jan 2011, GenWeekly)
(includes MP3 of the song and link to Civil War CD)
“House to House” (15 Dec 2010, GenWeekly)
(includes MP3 of “Here We Come A-Wassailing”)
“The Folk Process” (9 Nov 2010, GenWeekly)
“Can’t Dance and It’s Too Wet to Plow” (30 Oct 2010, GenWeekly)
“The On-Going Weasel Debate” (19 Sep 2010, GenWeekly)
(should include MP3 of “Pop! Goes the Weasel”)
“The Legend of John Henry, Steel-Driving Man” (22 Aug 2010, GenWeekly)
(includes MP3 of “John Henry”)
“The Legend of John Henry, Steel-Driving Man” (7 July 2010, GenWeekly)
“Cowboy’s Lament” (7 June 2010, GenWeekly)
(includes MP3 of “Streets of Laredo,” AKA “Cowboy’s Lament”)
“Home on the Range” (7 May 2010, GenWeekly)
(includes MP3 of “Home on the Range,” AKA “My Western Home”)
“An Appalachian Tragedy” (on “Tom Dooley”; 16 Apr 2010, GenWeekly)
(includes MP3 of “Tom Dula”)
“Danny Boy” (17 Mar 2010, GenWeekly)
(includes MP3 of “Londonderry Air”)
“Glory, Hallelujah!, Part 2” (19 Feb 2010, GenWeekly)
“Glory, Hallelujah!, Part 1” (22 Jan 2010, GenWeekly)
(includes MP3 of “Battle Hymn of the Republic”)
“How Our Ancestors Sang in the Holiday, Part 2” (11 Dec 2009, GenWeekly)
(includes MP3 of “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day” & link to my Holiday CD)
“How Our Ancestors Sang in the Holiday, Part 1” (27 Nov 2009, GenWeekly)
(includes MP3 of “Good King Wenceslas” & link to my Holiday CD)
OTHER ARTICLES
“We Need Mentors” (Genealogical Speakers Guild newsletter SPEAK!, June 2017)
“Warning! Beware of Fallacious Reasoning in Genealogical Research!” (Spring 2017, The Journal of the Cape Cod Genealogical Society, Vol. 7, No. 1; originally printed in UGA’s Crossroads, June 2009)
“When Our Ancestors Converted: What a Family Historian Should Know” (Spring 2017, Utah Genealogical Association’s Crossroads)
“Taking Speaking to the Sea” (December 2016, Genealogical Speakers Guild SPEAK!)
“Adapting Other Interests to Genealogical Writing” (December 2016, International Society for Family History Writers and Editors, newsletter Columns)
“When Families Leave the Dead Behind” (April 2016, Jefferson County New York Genealogical Society’s Informer)
“The Columbian Exposition: From Swampland to Fairyland” (Winter 2016, Crossroads) – combined work with Virginia M. Johnson Wilcox
“Planning a Genealogy Cruise: A Case Study in Unique Client Offerings” (Dec 2015, APG Quarterly)
“Cholera in Wisconsin, 1849-185” (Nov-Dec 2015, Your Genealogy Today) – re-write of article by Virginia Johnson Wilcox
“Continuing Education: The Process of a Lifetime” (Sep 2015, APG Quarterly)
“Home was Always Jefferson County” (July 2015, Jefferson County New York Genealogical Society’s Informer)
“Field-Dependency of Arguments/Stories as it Relates for Genealogy Instruction” (Colloquium Review in Spring 2015, UGA Crossroads)
“Volunteers: The Life Source of the Organization” (March 2015, APG Quarterly)
“Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed . . . I Feel Blue” (March 2015, Columns)
“My Presentation Tool Kit” (March 2015, SPEAK!)
“Female Immigrant Ancestors” (in Tracing Your FEMALE Ancestors, Niagara Falls, NY: Moorshead Publishing, 2015)
“Using Monroe’s Motivated Sequence to Organize Genealogy Methodology Presentations” (May 2014, SPEAK!)
“A Suggestion from the Daughter of a Would-be Writer” (March 2014, Columns)
“Symbolic Convergence Theory: Applying a Communications Device to Better Understand the Potential Effects of Family Stories and Storytelling” (March 2014 APG Quarterly)
Guest blogger at SCGS Jamboree Blog, “Jamboree – Research Assistance” (27 April 2014)
“Writing a Historical Novel: One Person’s Experience” (Fall 2013 Crossroads)
“From Hobby Historian to Guerdoned Genealogist” (Sep 2013 APG Quarterly)
“Watch Your Mouth: Self Monitoring Suggestions for Speakers” (Aug 2013 SPEAK!, Genealogical Speakers Guild Newsletter)
“Hints for Doing Genealogy Research when Reading and Writing are Difficult” (Apr-Jun 2013 NGS Magazine)
Guest blogger at SCGS Jamboree Blog, “SCGS Jamboree: Do You Need Help? Is that a Wall Straight Ahead?” (9 May 2013)
Guest blogger at NGS Conference 2013 Blog, “Speaker Profile: Jean Wilcox Hibben-PhD, CG” (10 Apr 2013
Guest blogger at SCGS Jamboree Blog, “Getting Folks to Jamboree” (11 Mar 2013)
“Public Speaking: Competition or Cooperation” (Feb 2013, SPEAK!, Genealogical Speakers Guild Newsletter)
“Being an Expert Witness: From the Unknown to the Known,” (Dec 2012, APG Quarterly)
“Even When You Thought You Covered Everything” (Nov 2012, SPEAK!, Genealogical Speakers Guild Newsletter)
Guest blogger at SCCAPG Blog. “APG Code of Ethics, Part 8” (1 Oct 2012)
Guest blogger at SCCAPG Blog: “APG Code of Ethics, Part 7” (1 Aug 2012)
“Pico Projector Review” (Aug 2012, SPEAK!, Genealogical Speakers Guild Newsletter)
Guest blogger at SCCAPG Blog: “APG Code of Ethics, Part 6” (15 May 2012)
Guest blogger for NGS 2012 Conference Blog (13 Apr 2012, NGS Conference Blog)
Guest blogger at SCCAPG Blog: “APG Code of Ethics, Part 5” (16 Feb 2012)
Guest blogger at SCCAPG Blog: “APG Code of Ethics, Part 4” (1 Feb 2012)
“Projection: It’s for the Voice as Well as the Visuals” (Feb 2012, SPEAK!, Genealogical Speakers Guild Newsletter)
Guest blogger at SCCAPG Blog: “APG Code of Ethics, Part 3” (16 Dec 2011)
“Trimming the Royal Forest” (Autumn 2011, Crossroads, Vol. 6, No. 3, Utah Genealogical Assoc. magazine)
Guest blogger at SCCAPG Blog: “APG Code of Ethics, Part 2” (17 Nove 2011)
“Be Not Afraid of the Webinar” (Nov 2011, SPEAK!, Genealogical Speakers Guild Newsletter)
Guest blogger at SCCAPG Blog: “APG Code of Ethics, Part 1” (1 Nov 2011)
“Getting Family History Information through the Back Door” (Oct-Dec 2011, NGS Magazine)
“Do the Written Words Support and Describe the Spoken Ones? Part 2 – Everyone Wants a Handout” (Aug 2011, SPEAK!, Genealogical Speakers Guild Newsletter)
Guest blogger at FGS Conference News Blog (2 Aug 2011)
“Family Stories as Arguments: Proving/Disproving Family Legends” (Apr-Jun 2011, NGS Magazine)
“Genealogy Road Trip!” (May/June 2011, Family Chronicle)
“Researching Civil War Engineers” (May/June 2011, Family Chronicle)
“Do the Written Words Support and Describe the Spoken Ones? Part 1 – The Title and Description” (Apr/May 2011, SPEAK!, Genealogical Speakers Guild Newsletter)
“Be Not Afraid of the Webinar” (Apr 2011, Newsletter of the Southern California Chapter of the Association of Professional Genealogists)
“John Adam Hollander: Civil War Soldier” (Mar 2011, APG Quarterly, publication of the Association of Professional Genealogists)
“How to Order an Official Military Grave Marker” (Mar 2011, Family Tree Magazine)
“A Contract? It Seems So Unfriendly!” (Feb 2011, SPEAK!, Genealogical Speakers Guild Newsletter)
“My Ancestor has No Stone: Now What?” (Feb 2011, Family Chronicle)
“Your Fan Club: The Personal Marketing Tool” (Nov 2010, SPEAK!, Genealogical Speakers Guild Newsletter)
“Corona Genealogical Society: Making a Mark on the Community” (July-August 2010, CSGA Newsletter)
“Fritz Mueller: Champion or Charlatan?” (June 2010, APG Quarterly, publication of the Association of Professional Genealogists)
“Uncovering More Than Artifacts: Roy Wilcox and Isle Royale” (May/June 2010, Family Chronicle )
“Who are the Genealogists?” (March 2010, Crossroads, Quarterly magazine of the Utah Genealogical Association)
“What Instruments Did Your Ancestors Play?” (Winter 2010, Vol. 47, #1, The Searcher, Newsletter of the Southern California Genealogical Society)
“Dong Genealogy Research with a Learning Disability” (Dec 8, 2009, Vol 3, #60, World Vital Records Newsletter)
“Is it Time to Spin Your Own Web . . . Site, That is?” (Nov 2009, SPEAK!, Newsletter of the Genealogical Speakers Guild)
“It’s about Time!” (Aug 2009 SPEAK!, Newsletter of the Genealogical Speakers Guild)
“Investigating Irene: The New York Parentage of Irene (Freeman) Wilcox” (June 2009, NGS Quarterly, Journal of the National Genealogical Society)
“Warning: Beware of Fallacious Reasoning in Genealogical Research!” (June 2009, Crossroads, Quarterly magazine of the Utah Genealogical Association)
“Visual Aids: Complement, not Nucleus” (May 2009, SPEAK!, Newsletter of the Genealogical Speakers Guild)
“Adapting to a New Culture” (Spring 2009, Vol 26, #2, The Searcher, Newsletter of the Southern California Genealogical Society)
“The Presentation Worksheet for Trouble-Free Bookings” (Jan 2009, SPEAK!, Newsletter of the Genealogical Speakers Guild)
“‘Stones, Bones, & Ancient Tomes’ Family History Month Event: A Success!” (Nov-Dec 2008, CSGA Newsletter)
“Managing Communication Apprehension” (Nov 2008, SPEAK!, Newsletter of the Genealogical Speakers Guild)
“Digitizing California Newpapers” (Nov 2007, CSGA Newsletter)