Be Sure to Visit my new 1900 Galveston Storm Website at: http://freepages.genealogy.rootseb.com/~barnette 

US CENSUSES 1790-1920 GOING ONLINE

 Last week Heritage Quest announced HQ had been acquired by the Information and Learning Unit of ProQuest (NYSE:PQE). ProQuest will begin to integrate HQ's data into its genealogical databases immediately. The first of the primary databases to be migrated will be the United States censuses 1790 to 1920.

 Subscribers to Genealogy and Local History Online, ProQuest's web-based genealogy database for libraries, will have access to the census data by late Fall 2001. The good news for Houstonians is that the Houston Public Library System including Clayton Library is a ProQuest subscriber.

 Last summer HQ, then a subsidiary of Sierra On-Line, announced they planned to set up a subscription based website where genealogical researchers could view digitally scanned images of all the original handwritten pages of the United States censuses from 1790 through 1920. The website, they reported, would be online by the end of the year and contain indexes to each census. Within a week of Heritage Quest's announcement one of their rivals, Ancestry.Com announced they too would have the censuses 1790-1920 online.

  In September 2000 many of the Dot.Coms failed and much of the money supporting them dissipated. By the end of the year Heritage Quest announced "due to the market situation" they were not going to post the censuses at that time. Instead they would sell the information in CD-Rom format only.

 Ancestry.Com has diligently continued working throughout the year to digitally scan and place all the censuses 1790-1920 online. At this time they have completed 1790, 1800, 1810, 1880, 1900, 1920 and 95% of the 1910 census.

 On August 10th HQ announced they had completed digitally scanning  the 898 rolls of National Archives microfilm series M806, Revolutionary War and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files. These files contain records of over 80,000 American military, naval and marines who served in the American Revolution. As per HQ's announcement these records are currently for sale by HQ in CD-Rom format. It would be logical to assume ProQuest would integrate this series to their online database as quickly as possible along with ship passenger lists and other important databases owned by HQ.

NTGA SEMINAR

 The North Texas Genealogical Association will host their annual seminar in Wichita Falls Saturday September 15 from 8 A.M. to 4 P.M. Speakers will include: Nancy Hengst, Carlian Pittman, Michael L. Collins, and Norman Lewis. Topics will include: How to Begin Genealogical Research; How to Start a Successful Genealogical Society; The U.S. and Texas Partisan Rangers 1846-1877; and How to Build and Maintain a Web Site.

 For more information contact Beverly Wyatt by email at beckywyatt@aol.com

LEARN ABOUT IMMIGRATION

 Covering time frames from the colonial era to the present Mic Barnette will lead a class discussing Immigration, Passenger and Naturalization Records for Historians and Genealogists. The class will be held at Leisure Learning's 2990 Richmond Avenue campus from 7 P.M. to 9 P.M. on Wednesday September 5. For more information and to register, contact Leisure Learning at 713-529-4414.

MAKING SENSE OF THE CENSUS

 Paula Perkins Parke will offer a class describing and explaining the genealogically rewarding information found in censuses and how to use it. Making Sense of the Census: Tips, Types and Repositories will discuss the normally used population schedules and the underused special schedules of the Federal censuses plus state, territorial and other censuses.

 The class will be offered at Grace Presbyterian Church, 10221 Ella Lee near Sam Houston Tollway in West Houston from 2 to 5 P.M. Tuesday September 18. For more information and to register contact the Grace Adult Education office at 713-267-5091.

NEWS FROM THE BOOKSHELF

 Stuart C. Wade conducted an extensive amount of research on the Wade families of England and much of the United States prior to his death in 1901. In 1900 he published a 400 page book of his research and planned to publish more. His unpublished notes are held in the New York City Public Library and have been microfilmed by the Mormon Imaging Department.

 Desiring Stuart C. Wade's manuscripts and book be made available to all Wade researchers, Debbie Wade of Canada and Georgia Hendrix of Dallas, Texas have teamed together and had the 2700 microfilm images professionally digitally scanned. The images are contained on four CD-Roms priced at $39.95 for the set, plus tax, shipping and handling of $9.74.

 CD-1 contains notes on Wades in England and Massachusetts. CD-2 contains notes on Wades in New Jersey, Ohio, Soldiers named Wade and Miscellaneous Wades in America. CD-3 contains more miscellaneous Wades in America and CD-4 contains Wade's Wade Genealogy published in 1900.

 The Wade CD's are available from Georgia Hendrix, 9131 Livenshire Drive, Dallas, TX 75238-2820 or by email at Georgiamhh@aol.com.