Selling Ancestry

Often cited but rarely studied in their own right, family directories allow a reconsideration of how ancestry and genealogy became an object of widespread commercialization across the eighteenth century. These directories replaced the expensive, locally-produced, early modern artefacts (tombs, windowpanes, illuminated pedigrees), and began to reach a wide audience of readers in the British Isles and the colonies. From the first Peerage in 1709 to the guidebooks of Debrett's and Burke's in the 1830s, Stéphane Jettot offers an insight into the cumulative process leading to the creation of these hybrid products — a combination of court almanacs, county histories, and town directories. Employed by contemporaries as reference tools to navigate through a dynamic and changing society, they could be used as a means to probe contemporary attitudes towards social status and political events. Published by the most prominent London booksellers who shared their copyrights among themselves, they relied on the considerable involvement of thousands of families in the counties. In their correspondence with publishers, many new and old elites desired to insert their own narrative into a general history of Britain by dispatching documents, quotations, and anecdotes. Based on a unique source-base, this book provides a systematic review of these directories, their production, and sale, but also their potential role in shaping the character of social change. Jettot demonstrates the wider ramifications of genealogy and its structural ability to reinvent itself, associate amateurs and antiquarians alike, and thrive on the wavering lines between facts and fiction, offering an exciting and unique insight into the social history of eighteenth-century Britain.

Often cited but rarely studied in their own right, family directories help us reconsider how ancestry and genealogy became objects of widespread commercialization in the 18th century. Employed by contemporaries as reference tools to navigate society, they can be used by historians to explore attitudes towards social status and political events.

Whether you are coming to Ancestry.com for the first time or have used it for years, you need The Official Guide to Ancestry.com. Written by noted genealogist and lecturer George G. Morgan, this official guide takes you inside the #1 website for family history research for an unprecedented tour. This second edition includes chapters on the new search at Ancestry, MyCanvas, and Ancestry DNA. In addition, it helps you create and develop your own Family Tree, explore obscure databases you didn't know existed, and more. You've always known Ancestry.com was a valuable resource. Now you can learn to use it like never before.

Master the world’s #1 Genealogy Website Discover the secrets to Ancestry.com success! This book, newly revised and expanded, will help you get the most out of your Ancestry.com subscription. Inside, you’ll discover how to take advantage of what the world’s biggest genealogy website has to offer—and how to find answers to your genealogy questions within its billions of records and millions of AncestryDNA profiles. Each chapter includes step-by-step examples with illustrations to show you exactly how to apply search techniques to your genealogy. A new section on AncestryDNA will also help you understand and analyze your DNA test results. What you'll learn: * Timesaving tips for uncovering specific records, time periods and topics using Ancestry.com’s search forms and Card Catalog * Details on Ancestry.com's historical record collections, including what you can expect to find in them * Step-by-step guides for creating and managing your family tree on Ancestry.com, plus how to connect with other users and utilize the site’s powerful Hint system * Plain-language strategies for using your AncestryDNA results, including guides to your ethnicity report and DNA matches Whether you've just begun dabbling in family history or you're a longtime Ancestry.com subscriber, this book will turn you into an Ancestry.com power user!

The rise of the multi-billion dollar ancestry testing industry points to one immutable truth about us as human beings: we want to know where we come from and who our ancestors were. John H. Relethford and Deborah A. Bolnick explore this topic and many more in this second edition of Reflections of Our Past. Where did modern humans come from and how important are the biological differences among us? Are we descended from Neandertals? How should we understand the connections between genetic ancestry, race, and identity? Were Native Americans the first to inhabit the Americas? Can we see evidence of the Viking invasions of Ireland a millennium ago even in the Irish of today? Through engaging examination of issues such as these, and using non-technical language, Reflections of Our Past shows how anthropologists use genetic information to suggest answers to fundamental questions about human history. By looking at genetic variation in the world today and in the past, we can reconstruct the recent and remote events and processes that have created the variation we see, providing a fascinating reflection of our genetic past.

Oliver Klöckner investigates the changes resulting from buy-outs in family businesses. He contrasts the characteristics of family businesses with those of non-family businesses after a buy-out. His theoretical discussion is complemented by an in-depth analysis of 17 bought-out family businesses in Germany.

Scientists in the news speak out from opposite sides of the fence on the question of DNA testing for researching family history and ancestry. How do you interpret your own DNA test results? How do you work with or research oral history? What's the cultural component behind a trait as biological as your genes? If you're a beginning family historian, an oral history researcher, or a person with no science background fascinated with ancestry, here's how to understand and use the results of DNA tests. Scientists, media, historians, and business owners share different opinions on whether DNA testing is a useful tool in the hands of family historians. Steve Olson, author of the book, Mapping Human History in a telephone interview with me answered my question, "What do you say about using DNA as a tool for genealogy-to extend family history research?" Does Steve Olson think DNA testing as a tool is useful to genealogists? What does Bryan Sykes, author of the best-selling, The Seven Daughters of Eve have to say? Sykes's book has a very different opinion about DNA testing and genealogy/family history research. The two have opposite views. Numerous scientists comment. Sykes is associated with Oxford Ancestors, the world's first company to harness the power and precision of modern DNA-based genetics for use in genealogy. The motto on the Oxford Ancestors Web site reads: "Putting the genes in genealogy." Use these resources and easy to understand explanations for family history research.