Previous Grants Awarded 2002

December 2002
Mattoon Public Library of Mattoon, IL, established in 1903, has a local history room that serves both resident and remote genealogists. The collection includes an extensive obituary file, city directories dating back to 1893, newspaper microfilm for 1861-1947, and a large file of photographs. Because of the advancing age of the city directory collection, the new library director has decided to scan the individual pages into PDF format and make them more accessible to patrons. Barring copyright problems, they will also make them available on the library's website. The library also recently received records from the local VFW with personal data about Mattoon servicemen who died in WWII and will digitize these files as well. The grant will be used to purchase a scanner and Acrobat software to make these records more accessible to all.

November 2002
Orphan photos are one of the saddest aspects of genealogy; those photos that stray from family hands and wind up unidentified in some antiques store or flea market. That's why I'm a big fan of efforts to reunite these wandering treasures with their families of origin. Dead Fred's Genealogy Photo Archive is one of the best mechanisms for doing this. With more than 20,000 records representing more than 7,000 surnames, this free site is searchable and user-friendly for those wishing to post their own photos. I actually found a long-sought branch of my extended family due to a mystery photo I uploaded to there. A grant has been made in support of the Dead Fred gang's ongoing efforts.

October 2002
Organized in 1946 and incorporated in 1967, the Genealogical Forum of Oregon has been serving genealogists for over 56 years. I know firsthand because I had the pleasure of using their facilities during a research trip I piggybacked onto the 2001 NGS conference in Portland, Oregon. This month's grant will be used by the GFO to launch a project to gather, copy and publish funeral cards from African-American funerals in the Portland area. Anyone who has done African-American research knows the value of these documents which were frequently used in lieu of obituaries. Here's hoping others consider following the GFO's lead!

September 2002
Surah Carletha LeNoir-Mfume of Los Angeles, CA instructs students aged 13 to 18 each week after school. The subject? How to reseach their ancestors. The group, African American Genealogy for Youth, includes not only African Americans, but also Mexican and Native Americans. Surah wanted to obtain copies of Tony Burrough's inspiring Black Roots for her students. Tony, being the kind of fellow he is, readily agreed to personalize copies for each of Surah's current students. This month's grant is for Tony's terrific book. Thanks, Tony!

August 2002
The Creative Combustion humanities class at I Can Do Anything Charter High School in Reno, Nevada has launched the Saving Generations Hillside Cemetery Project. According to Joseph Galata, “The cemetery has been ruined, vandalized and left in absolute disrepair since 1973. Buried there are 1,400 children, teens and adults. The city government has declared this cemetery a “public nuisance" as college students have broken tombstones and used them for blocks to fix their cars, littered the graves with liquor bottles, and even held a barbeque on the grave of a 22 year old named Corrie who died in 1896. The state legislature passed a bill making it legal for the graves to be dug up and the bodies removed so the land can be sold and used to build public college parking or dormitories, so my high risk teens created a project called Saving Generations to save the cemetery. They are leading a public awareness and fund-raising program to restore and preserve the cemetery and have begun by simultaneously cleaning the cemetery up, doing genealogical research, and getting the cemetery made into a public landmark instead of a public nuisance. The students are also filming their project and writing a screenplay. They already took particular interest in a 17 year old boy who died in 1896 and traced the boy's ancestors all the way back to 1750 when his family left Ireland and came to NY, then to Kentucky, then to Indiana, and then to Reno.” A grant has been made in support of this extremely worthwhile endeavor.

July 2002
If you watched the PBS Ancestors series, you may recall the story of Suzanne Ballard and how she and some others discovered a set of old diaries written by an Irish tenant farmer, James Harshaw, in the 1800s. These diaries recounted the day to day lives of an entire Irish community as well as political events of the day and were invaluable to Suzanne in her research. Since then, the diaries have been declared a national treasure and its author officially recognized as an important contributor to the history of Ireland. As a result, The Donaghmore (Iveagh) Heritage and Preservation Society was established. One of the society's first activities was to create The Harshaw-Martin Trail which aims to highlight the Donaghmore area as a historical site and bring the Harshaw Diaries and its stories back to life. Many of the locations mentioned in the six volumes remain today, some virtually unchanged since the times described. This grant is being given to help with the purchase of signs to mark this ancestral trail in Northern Ireland.

June 2002
Saint Paul Church and School has been inextricably linked to the history of Leavenworth since its founding in 1861 by German Lutherans who settled in the “First City” of Kansas. The church recently appointed its first congregational historian, who is now conducting a survey, inventory and assessment of historical artifacts, records and materials to determine what has been retained and its state of preservation. Ultimately, everything will be catalogued, artifacts will be displayed, and records will be transcribed for their historical and genealogical value. This grant will provide for an initial supply of archival materials toward this effort. Here's hoping that more churches do what's necessary to protect and preserve their irreplaceable documents, photos and artifacts!

May 2002
Modene Knight Thornton is preparing to publish a new kind of cemetery book that will provide much more than just the details contained on monuments. Antioch Cemetery in Luna, Freestone County, Texas was established around 1871 and has over 800 graves. Modene has researched the genealogy of these people for many years, so her book will include the dates and places of birth, marriage and death of all those buried there, as well as the names of their parents and children (except for those who are still living). She has also gathered photographs of many of the interred and plans to incorporate them as well. Modene hopes that others who are involved in creating cemetery books will use this comprehensive format in the future. This month's grant will be used to support this special publication.

April 2002
Do you have ancestors from Norway, Iceland, Denmark, Sweden, Finland or Estonia? If so, you might want to attend Scandinavian Fest where you can learn about your heritage first hand! This grant has been awarded in support of a demonstration by a history teacher and re-enactor who travels as a Norwegian immigrant, "Ole Oleson". Ole entertains and educates the crowd - especially youngsters - with his trunk full of personal belongings that he empties while explaining how and why immigrants such as himself brought these particular items to their new country.

March 2002
Steve Smith of the U.K. has created a lost and found website to "help family history researchers locate lost heirlooms and other related family memorabilia of their UK ancestors." Heirloom Search features an alphabetized collection of photos, letters, and other documents to search through, as well as a community board where people can post messages about items found or ones they hope to get into the appropriate hands. The site has a particularly good record of placing items of genealogical and historical value with county records offices, where they can be safely held for public viewing and research. A grant has been given to Steve to further his re-unification efforts!

February 2002
Richard Deuel lost his sister, Cindy Deuel, in the tragedy of 911. Cindy, only 28 years old, was an avid genealogist and Richard was her family history partner. Just about a year ago, Cindy discovered the unmarked grave of their great-great-grandfather, Henry Deuel. Appropriately, Richard had her buried at the same site along with others of her ancestors. Because of her passion for genealogy, he is commissioning a special headstone which will have her family tree on one side and the twin towers on the other. A grant was made to contribute to the cost of this headstone.

January 2002
Well deserved attention and recognition has been brought upon America's fire service as a result of the September 11 attacks. The Fire Museum of Greater Chicago assists families of Chicago area firefighters who have died in the line of duty since 1858 to learn more about their ancestors and the ultimate sacrifice they made in securing the lives and property of others. This grant and matching funds will be used to secure death certificates for members of the Chicago Fire Department. Information from these certificates will then be added to their database of over 20,000 names.