July Saturday Seminar - "Organizing and Identifying Photograph Collections" by Ari Wilkins

 Join Genealogy Friends of Plano Libraries in person at Haggard Library, 2501 Coit Road, Plano, TX or via Zoom for our next free Saturday Seminar. Email newsletter@genealogyfriends.org to join our email list for Zoom information. 

Organizing and Identifying Photograph Collections by Ari Wilkins

We all have mounds of old unidentified family photos sitting in boxes. This lecture will offer step-by-step direction in organizing, preserving, and cataloging these precious collections for future generations. Learn how to identify, digitize, and share collections using family trees and social media. 

Ari Wilkins is a graduate of Louisiana State University. Ms. Wilkins has been actively researching family history since 1998, specializing in African American research. She speaks nationally and locally. She has had the honor to speak at the National Genealogical Society, Federation of Genealogical Societies, Texas State Genealogical Society, Ohio Genealogical Society, Institute of Genealogical and Historical Research, Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy, American Library Association, RootsTech, and a multitude of local societies. 

Library Doors open at 10:00 am, Zoom Room opens at 10:15 am. (All Times are CDT) 

Networking and Goodies are served from 10:15-10:40 am.

Welcome and Announcements 10:40 am

Lecture Begins 10:45 am

MyHeritage Updates

 Family Infographics

Transform a Life Story into an Infographic using your photos and family tree data. Here is the Infographic created about Clara Magdalen Ziebold from my tree. It used the photographs I uploaded for Clara, her husband, and her parents. I used Google Notebook LM to create infographics but they didn't use the photographs of the people. I like this one better. 

Tribute Reel

Turn your photos into a Video. Here is a blog post introducing this feature. I uploaded six pictures. They were colorized and animated in a 40-second video. 

Scribe AI

Upload a historical record, letter, document, or photo, and AI will analyze it - Key Findings, Extracted Details, Historical Context, Research Tips. 

I uploaded an Annual Report from The Waterloo Milling Company 

Scribe AI provided an accurate transcription of the document, including both the printed and handwritten sections. There was also a summary and the following: 

Historical Context 

This document is a 1902 Annual Report for a corporation, specifically the Waterloo Milling Co., filed with the Secretary of State of Illinois.

• Purpose: It serves as a legal declaration of the company's active status, its primary business activities, its location, and its current officers. Such documents were required by state law to maintain corporate standing and provide public transparency regarding business leadership.
• Historical Context: Documents like this provide valuable insight into local economies and prominent businessmen of the era. The Waterloo Milling Co. would have been a significant agricultural and industrial entity in Monroe County.
• Terminology: The use of the word "do" in the table is an abbreviation for "ditto," meaning the entry is the same as the one immediately above it.

Key Findings

• The document is a 1902 Annual Report for the Waterloo Milling Co., located in Waterloo, Monroe County, Illinois.
• The company was actively engaged in the manufacture of flour, feed grain, and commissions.
• Jos. W. Rickert served as President, and Geo. Ziebold served as both Secretary and Treasurer, with their terms expiring in 1903.
• The document was officially signed, sealed, and notarized on February 8, 1902, by Geo. Ziebold and Police Magistrate A. C. Douglass.

Suggested Next Steps

• You should search MyHeritage for the 1900 and 1910 US Federal Census records for Jos. W. Rickert and Geo. Ziebold in Waterloo, Monroe County, Illinois, to discover their family members, ages, and birthplaces.
• You can look for local Monroe County historical societies or business directories from the early 1900s to learn more about the Waterloo Milling Co. and its economic impact on the area.
• Check MyHeritage for city directories or county histories that might feature biographical sketches of prominent local businessmen like Rickert and Ziebold.
• Investigate the Illinois State Archives online databases for further incorporation documents or subsequent annual reports for the Waterloo Milling Co. to track the company's history and leadership changes.