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NNEEWWSSLLEETTTTEERRGenealogy and Local History Section

Newsletter Number 9 / February 2007

Table of contentsWords from the Chair……………………………….………1

Richard E Huws, GENLOC Committee Member.………2

The Work of the Section…………………….……………..3

IFLA 2007, Durban, South Africa…………………………4

Spellbound in Seoul. IFLA 2006 ..……..…….….………4

Researching e-Genealogy……………………….…….…..6

Making what we do relevant: a conversation……..…...9

News from Elsewhere

GENRT: the Genealogy Roundtable of the Utah LA ……………..……….…….………………….…10

RUSA: The ALA Reference & User Services Association History Section…………………...……..11

Useful Local History Websites……………..………..….12

Standing Committee Members…………………….……12

Words from the Chair

Since the last issue of this newsletter we haveheld a very successful programme at the WorldLibraries and Information Conference which was

held in Seoul in August, 2006 of which more shallbe said in the current issue. We wish to thank thepresenters of papers at our open session on localhistory, who kept the attention of the largeaudience by giving very well done presentations.We are especially grateful for the unparalleledsupport that was extended by the National Libraryof Korea in organising a workshop on Koreangenealogy with learned scholars, a boundbilingual volume of their papers, and simultaneoustranslation.

At the Seoul meeting the Governing Board andProfessional Committee of IFLA presented aproposal for changes in the structure of IFLA thatcould dramatically affect small sections such asours. A requirement of 50 section members and10 standing committee members was proposed asthe criteria for deciding the continuation ofsections. Our Standing Committee opposed thisrequirement in a hearing in Seoul and hassubmitted its own suggestions for ways ofstrengthening IFLA in general and sections inparticular.

Not knowing what the fate of the proposal will be,we are busy recruiting new section members andcalling for more nominations to our standingcommittee. Good progress is being made on thelatter, but at last count, only 36 institutions,associations and individuals belong to the section.Invitation letters have been mailed to more than600 institutions and associations, and weanxiously await a positive result.

If your institution or association is not a member,we encourage your support through joining IFLAand our section as a personal affiliate. May wework together to effectively promote therecognition and development of genealogy andlocal history librarianship.

For information on IFLA membership, seewww.ifla.org/III/members/index.htm

Melvin P Thatcher, Genealogical Society of Utah. Chair ofIFLA Genealogy and Local History Section

Interview with Mel Thatcher, Chair of GENLOC

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Richard E. HuwsLlyfrgell Genedlaethol CymruThe National Library of WalesGENLOC Committee member

Richard E Huws with Dr Guiwon Lee at IFLA, Seoul

The National Library of Wales, founded in 1907,which celebrates its centenary this year, hasalways been the most important centre ofresearch for those who wish to trace their Welshancestry. The Library is unusual in that it not onlycaters for the printed word, but also acts as arepository for archives, manuscripts, mapping andgraphic material making it a convenient one-stopshop for the researcher. The people of Waleshave always had a bit of an obsession with theirancestry or tylwyth (family), and this may beattributed to the influence of the ancient pre-Norman conquest system of native Welsh lawscodified by King Hywel Dda in the 10th centurywhere certain rights were dependent on theindividual knowing and being able to recite hisfamily tree to the ninth degree! A 13th centuryillustrated Latin manuscript, Peniarth 28, whichcontains these laws is now one of the Library’smost important treasures and a digitised versioncan be viewed on our website:http://www.llgc.org.uk/drych/drych_s006.htm

My initial involvement with genealogical resourcesarose during a period of 18 months when I was ajunior assistant in the former Department ofManuscripts and Records in the early 1970s.Although the proportion of family historians usingthe Library was much lower then than it is today,significant numbers still visited the Library inpursuit of their ancestry. It was my job to retrieveand deliver parish registers, probate records,estate papers and archives to these readers. Theexperience I received in this work not only taughtme a great deal about the wealth of resources thatthe Library held, but also kindled a personalinterest in my family history, an interest I haveretained and developed ever since.

Although I have been a member of the Library’sprofessional staff since 1973, my involvement withgenealogical services was minimal for thefollowing 20 years. This period was spent in avariety of posts including cataloguing, periodicalindexing and acquisitions with only a marginalgenealogical content. However, since 1993 I havebeen directly involved with Reader Services,initially as Head of the Printed Books ReadingRoom, and since 2002, when the Library was re-organised along functional lines, I have beenresponsible for all reader and enquiry services.This has allowed the streamlining and centralisingof many services, and the most important changefrom the user’s viewpoint has been the creation ofa single non-print reading room with substantiallyimproved facilities for family historians. Planningand delivering this service, now provided in ourspacious South Reading Room, was an excitingproject, and the response to these changes, fromboth the staff and the public, has, in the main,been very positive.

The National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth

In parallel with improved facilities within thebuilding, the Library is also developing its digitalprogramme and implementing a new informationmanagement system. The digitisation strategy,which also involves partnership agreements withother organisations, will ensure delivery of full-textsearching of probate and parish records on ourwebsite. Other useful print-based genealogicalsources such as 20

th century periodicals published

in Wales are also being digitised over the comingtwo years in a JISC funded project. The newinformation system, which will be introduced inseveral phases over the next 18 months, will alsoinclude a family history `skin’ on its publiccatalogue. This will facilitate searching across avariety of formats, and the `skin’ will also includequick links to general websites useful to the familyhistorian.

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These are exciting times for the genealogicalcommunity. It has been a great privilege for me tohave served on the IFLA committee, and to havemet with so many other international colleaguesalso involved in delivering similar services. It hasbeen fascinating to learn at first hand in formalconference presentations of the likely impact ofnew revolutionary developments, such DNAprofiling, on genealogical research.

And on a more informal note, new and lastingfriendships, which I very much value and treasure,have also been cemented. All these aspects arethe very essence of IFLA, and I, and theorganisation I have represented, have been proudto have played a small part in facilitating this work,which encourages nations to co-operate to makethe world a better place for all its citizens.

Richard E Huws: GENLOC Standing Committee Member

The Work of the Section taken from theReport 2005-2006Summary:

The Section has 35 committed members.Raymond Wright is working on increasing thisnumber to over 50, by promoting the Section to

over 600 libraries world-wide

Open Session Program Seoul, 2006

The theme of the 2006 IFLA programme wasLocal History: A Dynamic Partnership betweenLibraries, Archives, and Museums.

The Genealogy and Local History Open Sessionin Seoul was successful - 5 speakers and 90attendees. Wu Shushi’s paper on Co-operation on

local history and the concept of network buildingbetween libraries, museums and archives in Chinawas chosen for publication in the main IFLAJournal.

The GENLOC Workshop

Participants at the GENLOC Workshop

Guiwon Lee from Korea organised an excellentworkshop on Korean genealogy at the NationalLibrary of Korea. The National Library providedsimultaneous translation to the 85 participants anddistributed the presentation papers in a bilingualvolume to all the delegates. Moreover they hadproduced the most magnificent banners bothoutside and inside the building.The workshop was featured in the Conferencenewspaper, IFLA Express 7, Thursday 24 August.

The Study Tour

As in previous years the Section organised its ownfull day study-tour. In the morning we visited theJongmyo World-Heritage Shrine to see the placewhere memorial services are performed fordeceased kings. In the afternoon Sectionmembers went to the Royal Library to see theroyal collections inherited from the Joseondynasty (1392 – 1910). There were 16 attendeesin the morning and 18 in the afternoon.

Section Committee Meetings

Minutes of Committee meetings can be seen on:www.ifla.org/VII/s37/annual/s37-2006-minutes.pdf

IFLA Review of Sections

Much time was spent on this subject in committeeboth before and during the congress in Seoul.Section members attended the Special IFLAmeeting on the Review of Sections and made theirvoices heard. Two pages of suggestions andcommentary on the subject collated fromCommittee comments were sent to IFLA HQ.

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GENLOC Membership Drive

The section is encouraging more members inorder to avert the threat of being closed down.Mel Thatcher, chair of GENLOC has organisedthe sending of recruitment packets to:

• 127 IFLA member national libraries

• 74 IFLA member library associations

• 30 IFLA non-member national libraries

• 24 IFLA non-member library associations.

Communication with members

The Newsletter has been well received. Theeditor, Elizabeth Melrose, and her co-editor,Richard Huws, were thanked.

GENLOC listserv

The listserv does not yet operate as a discussionforum, but it is still used to send out information,minutes, the Newsletter and so on.

Publication of conference papers

It has been suggested that previous ConferencePapers from the Section’s Open Sessions shouldbe published. Ruth Hedegaard, Elizabeth Melroseand Richard Huws are working on this, planningpublication for later in 2007.

Nearly all the Conference papers have beencollected. IFLA and the publisher, K.G. SaurVerlag, have shown great interest.

Quebec 2008 Pre-conference Meeting

The Section is planning a pre-conference inQuebec. Janet Tomkins of Vancouver is lookinginto the matter.

Ruth HedegaardSecretary of Genealogy and Local History Section

IFLA: World Library and InformationCongress,Durban, South Africa, August 2007

The theme for the IFLA Conference in Durban willbe ‘Stories without writing: local and family historybeyond the written word.’ GENLOC iscollaborating with the Audio-visual and Multimedia

Section and have already received very manyexciting abstracts from the call for papers.

The Section Study Tour will be to the DurbanArchives Depot and the Killie Campbell Museum.

For more information about the Section and itsactivities, please visit our website:

www.ifla.org/VII/s37/index.htm

A leaflet promoting the work of the Section isavailable in the following languages: English,

Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, French,Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Portuguese,

Russian and Spanish.

Leaflets in African languages are beingprepared

Spellbound in Seoul:the 72nd IFLA Conference, Seoul, SouthKorea, August 2006

Members of the IFLA Genealogy and LocalHistory Section are committed to the organisationof the Section, especially at this moment when thecentral IFLA organisation is casting a searchingeye on value for money, member numbers withinthe Sections and work accomplished. I am on theSection Committee, acting as the NewsletterEditor. I was also successful in having beenchosen to give one of five presentations at theSection’s Conference Open Session. I wasinvolved in the official and unofficial Sectionmeetings, an off-site afternoon programme at theNational Library of Korea, the Open Session itself,and the all-day genealogical study tour to theJongmyo Shrine and the Royal KyujanggakLibrary at Seoul National University. OurCommittee members also attended and spoke atthe Special Session to discuss the future of IFLA'sprofessional structure and I attended the FAIFE(Free Access to Information and Freedom ofExpression) Committee Meeting along with our

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Chairman. There was not enough time to do muchmore apart from enjoying the official functions anddinners!

In May 2006, the Section Committee hadconducted its now annual e-committee meeting.Preparation for the Conference had continued.The Chairman, Mel Thatcher (Family HistoryLibrary, Utah) had sent out a call for papers on thesubject of Local History: a Dynamic Partnershipbetween Libraries, Archives, and Museums.Abstracts and prospective papers were scrutinisedby the adjudicating committee and fivepresentations were chosen for the open session.Our Treasurer, Janice McFarlane (National Libraryof Scotland) collected the current leafletspromoting the work of the Section, including thenew translations and Richard Huws (NationalLibrary of Wales) collated the current results fromthe Survey of National Libraries and theirparticipation in genealogical studies.

Sightseeing in Seoul

The first Committee Meeting held the day beforethe start of the Seoul Conference considered thearrangements for the three events that the Sectionwas hosting at the impressive COEX ConferenceCentre. More serious discussion then took placeover our possible response to the Special Meetingof the Professional Committee on the future ofIFLA's professional structure. The SectionCommittee, and our associate members present,took the view that to have only one criteria, that ofa "minimum of 50 members", for continuance as aSection negated all the work in which the youngerSections were involved. In our case this wouldinclude work achieved in the few years since theGlasgow Conference in 2002: the increase inmembers and the efforts being made to advancethe Section through the Newsletter; the survey ofNational Libraries and a campaign of promotion ingenealogical journals; annual participation in theIFLA Conferences; the fact that two of the Sectionpapers from previous Conferences had beenpublished in the IFLA Journal and that

preparations are being made to publish theSection Conference presentations.

The National Library of Korea GENLOC banner

At the seminar, organised at the National Libraryof Korea by Committee member Guiwon Lee,simultaneous translation and a dual languagebook of the papers taught delegates about theprivate and public genealogy collections in Koreaand the family Jokbo, (the Korean genealogicalrecord equivalent to the family tree, held by eachfamily and passed down through the generations).

The Open Session at the COEX buildingdemonstrated how much could be achievedthrough continuing collaboration. One was by amember of the National Library of China speakingon co-operation and network building betweenlibraries, museums and archives in that continent.Another session explored the way that one NewZealand resource centre at Puke Ariki is helping toconserve and describe the history of the Maoriand the early settlers. A Japanese delegatecommented on one of my slides of a PoliceCharge Book showing mugshots of 19

th century

delinquents. He wanted to know how genealogistsreacted when they realised that their ancestorshad been up in court for criminal activity. I wasable to respond that modern-day family historiansare very enthusiastic about such detail.

The Chairman and I attended the FAIFECommittee Meeting and we will be part of aninternational Working Group, corresponding byemail, on the subject of what to do aboutbalancing privacy concerns with the need forlibraries to provide access to personal data for

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totally valid library service reasons. This is asubject that has massive resonance in the field ofgenealogical research.

It was difficult to attend other Open Sessions, dueto conflicting timings, but I did manage to meet upwith friends from France, Japan and Hungaryamong many others. The conference location,Seoul, seemed so exotic with its mix of modernhigh-rise buildings juxtaposed with urban Buddhisttemples. By chance I had been advised to book inat an apartment hotel which turned out to be onlya street away from the COEX Conference Centreand the Airport Bus Terminal - very welcome afterthe security queues and the long flights fromGatwick. The Korean people continued to behelpful in every way when I was sightseeing onmy own, visiting the ancient palaces and shrinesas well as the no-man’s land on the borderbetween North and South Korea. They explainedthe Seoul Subway map, shepherded me out of theimmense shopping Mall when I just could not findan exit, and took every opportunity of practisingtheir language skill.

Learning about the genealogical and local historytraditions of other countries and the way that suchcollections are being used with researchers andstudents was stimulating. Comparing differenttypes of genealogical evidence was extremelyuseful, especially for those dealing with immigrantcommunities from the East. It proved that allpeoples of all nationalities are curious about theirpast inheritance.

Elizabeth Melrose: Councillor, CILIP (Chartered Institute ofLibrary and Information Professionals)

A full page of promotion in IFLA Express

Researching e-Genealogy

‘Information behaviours, literacies and strategies of theusers of UK e-genealogical resources and the implicationsfor Local Studies Collections’ is a project being undertakenat the Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen by doctoralresearcher Kate Friday. It is funded by RGU’s ResearchDevelopment Initiative, established to enhance existingresearch within the University. The study complimentswork in the Local Studies field being carried out by DrPeter Reid, also the project’s Principal Supervisor. Thispaper will give an overview of the project, and progress todate.

Background

The profile and level of interest in genealogy andfamily history have never been greater, and therecent emergence of research resources on theInternet has effected an explosion in its popularity.Census results, parish registers, birth, marriageand death records and commercial databases arewell established online, alongside a wide range ofvolunteer-run resources including mailing lists,newsgroups, discussion forums and co-operativetranscription projects. The ease that these’e-genealogical’ resources bring to some parts ofthe research process has opened the discipline toa whole new audience. However, the majority ofthese provide only a search mechanism or rawmaterials lacking in context.

Local Studies Collections ‘exist in order torecognise the social, economic and culturalactivities of the local community’ (Reid 2003),hosting and making available this informationwhich can place names and dates in a widerhistorical context. The new expanded possibilitiesof remote access to information have opened upour collections to researchers all over the world.Collections are represented on the Internet tovarying degrees, yet remarkably few UK LocalStudies sites visibly break into the list of populargenealogy sites amongst governmental,commercial and volunteer-run offerings. Thosewithin the profession are well aware of the workdone with genealogists, but is this high profileenough and visible within the UK media and ourworking practices? Genealogy is visible within thenames of the relevant IFLA and Irish LocalStudies sections, but not within UK’s LocalStudies Group. Did this contribute to Webster’s(2005) claims of a lack of support for familyhistorians in UK libraries and subsequent heateddebate in CILIP Update? Do we run the risk ofnew researchers missing the important role ofLocal Studies? What can Local Studies learn from‘branded’ sites – how can we apply the same kindof visibility to our library resources?

Do researchers who, despite warnings within thegenealogical instructional literature, expect all the

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work to be done for them? How are genealogistslooking for information on the Internet, and how doour conceptions of Information Literacy compare towhat is happening in their ‘real world’? Howreliable and ethical are both Internet sources, andgenealogists’ use of information? Can we assistestablished genealogists who are adapting to newtechnology and resources? These are importantquestions for the information profession that thisresearch seeks to address.

Richard Harvey (1992) observed that the issues ingenealogical provision are grouped according to‘the subject and its sources, the people, and thelibrarian’s response’, and similarly the project’sthree central foci, e-genealogical resources,users, and Local Studies Collections. The widerresearch takes a phenomenological approach andinvestigates these resources and collections fromthe perspective of the users, in an attempt todiscover how to make the ‘added value’ of thelocal studies collections more visible. Theresearch seeks a better understanding of theusers of these e-genealogical resources; how theusers use the resources; and the resourcesthemselves, in order to elucidate ways in whichlocal studies collections can increase their visibilityand encourage increased usage.

Project Aims

� To identify, examine and categorise sourcesof, and services for, e-genealogy within theUnited Kingdom.

� To investigate the information seekingstrategies and information literacycompetencies of users of e-genealogicalresources.

� To formulate methods by which Local StudiesCollections can, more visibly, enhance andadd value to ‘online family and communityexperiences’.

Objectives

� To identify UK sources of and services fore-genealogy, and scrutinise existinginformation source and Web site criteriaapplicable to these resources.

� To formulate specific evaluative criteria fore-genealogical resources, and apply thesecriteria to a purposeful sample of thoseresources earlier identified.

� To construct a demographic profile of theuser community for UK e-genealogicalresources.

� To evaluate the information and digitalliteracy, and information-seekingcompetencies of these users, and identifyand explore factors influencing theirbehaviour in the ‘real world’ context of theirresearch.

� To identify genealogical and e-genealogicalresources provided by UK Local StudiesCollections, and discuss practical methods ofincreasing the visibility of these toe-genealogy users.

� To identify methods by which these publiclibrary resources can add value to onlinefamily and community research.

Resources

What is the current status of UK genealogicalinformation on the Internet? How can UKe-genealogical resources usefully be defined andcategorised? What makes a good e-genealogicalresource? Why are some more visible thanothers?

Increasing awareness and understanding of theparticularities of e-genealogical resources amonglibrary professionals is considered key inadequately supporting researchers. Data collectionhas focussed on the examination of webresources, and library and genealogical literature.A category scheme has been devised and will beconstructed. Categories based on the provider ofthe information. The evaluative criteria are underconstruction based on these categories andrelevant sources.

Users

Which resources are being used, and how? Whichresources are visible to users and why? Does theattraction of the commercially ‘branded’ genealogywebsites pull users in? Why? Are Local StudiesCollections visible online to researchers? Dousers display knowledge of Information Literacywhen researching in their own homes? How donew genealogists research compared toestablished family historians? What else affectsresearching behaviour?

Studying the users of UK e-genealogical resourcesis the largest area of primary data collection. Userstook part in an online survey (between October2005 and April 2006) which aimed to better informLocal Studies organisations of the scope of thepotential user group that could benefit from theirmaterials, and better knowledge of the group: whothey are, where they are from, and their likelyexperience levels.

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Results are explored here, with more detailsavailable at:www.researchingegenealogy.co.uk/survey/surveyresults.pdf

Diary-keeping by researchers is currentlyunderway (October 2006-March 2007), whichhopes to gather data on resource use, whilemaintaining the ‘real world’ context of theirinformation behaviour. Although limited use of themethod has been made in Library and Informationresearch (Goodall, 1994), it has been consideredideal for genealogists because of their renownedcommitment to their research.

Shadowing and ‘Think Aloud’ techniques willsupplement the diaries, obtaining a more detailedlook at researching behaviour. Focus groups willtake place in early 2007, which will examineissues and themes which have emerged from dataanalysis, and tentatively explore user attitudesand relationships with resources and libraries.

Results Summary of the User Survey

Of the 3949 usable responses received, themajority (59.7%) were UK resident. Respondentsoutside the UK were concentrated in the mainDiasporas from the United Kingdom: USA(15.1%); Canada (10.1%); Australia (10.1%); NewZealand (2.5%); and Other countries (2.5%).

38.1% of respondents were Male, and 61.9%Female. Although genealogists are stereotypicallyconsidered predominantly female, these results donot present as distinct a difference as one wouldexpect. Age distribution conformed more closelyto a stereotype of ‘older’ persons: 78.8% of thegenealogists were 45 or above. Although only1.4% of researchers were under 25, this agegroup is not evident in similar studies. Women aremore dominant in younger age groups, with ahigher proportion of men in later years. The agedistribution of UK respondents was in generalyounger than that elsewhere. Researchers werepredominantly married, and 61.3% were educatedabove school level. Scottish researchers were‘over-represented’ within the UK, although this islikely attributed to the Scottish origins of theresearch. This was mirrored by Scottish ex-patriots, who certainly anecdotally exhibit a strongScottish cultural identity.

Most respondents (81.9%) had been involved withgenealogical research for at least a year, thehighest concentration in the 1-4 years category.The recent growth in genealogy’s popularity isevident from the fact that over half therespondents have begun their family historyresearch within the last 5 years, a higher

proportion compared to other studies. Is this asignificant difference, or simply an illustration ofthe delay between the commencement ofgenealogical research in the present climate (mostlikely on the Internet) and going out to alibrary/archive/family history fair, or even self-labelling as a family historian?

It is important not to forget the significantproportion (46.7%) of highly experiencedrespondents who had been practising genealogyfor over 5 years. Female genealogists weregenerally the more experienced, and concentratedin the middle of the range. There were more malebeginners, but also a higher proportion of maleswith the more than 10 years experience.

Public Library Membership amongst the groupwas 78.2%. This is particularly relevant for LocalStudies Collections and Public Libraries. Althoughall of these members may not currently be activelibrary users, here we have a large potentiallibrary user group, of which nearly eighty percentare already receptive to what libraries have to say.With the exception of those under 25 (where rateswere amongst the highest), membership rateincreased with age and experience.

Ancestors in England were researched by 75.6%of respondents; in Scotland by 62.5%, Wales20.1%, Northern Ireland 19.1%, and ChannelIslands/Isle of Man 5.2%. The high incidence ofrespondents researching ancestors in Scotland isagain evident, but also in Northern Ireland. Itshould be noted here that due to the politicalchanges that have occurred in Ireland, it will beimpossible to distinguish between NorthernIreland and Eire. English ancestors were mostcommon amongst those in New Zealand andAustralia, and Scottish ancestors with those fromthe USA and Canada.

Respondents generally had a great deal ofcomputer experience, with 85.9% having 5 ormore years use. Male respondents had slightlymore computing experience: although not evidentuntil above 3 years of use. Generally, respondentshad not been using the Internet as long as theyhad computers (68.4% more than 5 years). Again,little difference was found between men andwomen until the top category of experience. Inaddition to the respondents feeling generally moreconfident using the Internet, they are feeling moreconfident more quickly.

Over half the respondents had been usingelectronic resources for over 3 years, withbeginner users matching the numbers of newgenealogists. Gardiner (2004) noted that menwere much more likely to be using the Internet

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within their Family History research, and indeedmore likely to be using the Internet in general. Isthe growth of Internet genealogical information thefactor encouraging younger men into genealogy?

There were significant differences in the lengths ofuse of genealogical websites between the UK andelsewhere, with researchers outside the UKhaving been using the resources for longer. Thisreflects that genealogy’s recent increasedpopularity has grown less quickly in the UK thanelsewhere – eg the United States and Canada.Further investigation would be necessary toinvestigate factors which have an effect on this.As was the case with Length of GenealogicalExperience, the Public Library membership rateincreases as the Length of Resource Useincreases.

The main location for e-genealogical research wasat home (88.7%), with 1.2% of genealogists basedmainly in a Library. 69.6% only used their mainInternet connection for researching, whichtranslates into nearly 80% of respondentsresearching exclusively from home. 78.9% of UKresearchers are using broadband connections,significantly higher than anywhere else. That said,there is still a significant group of researchers(nearly 20%) using Dial-up Internet connections.

Local Studies

What is the current status of Local StudiesCollections’ Web presences and e-genealogicalprovision? How can the visibility of Local StudiesCollections online be increased? What could andshould Local Studies practitioners be providing interms of e-genealogical provision?

The research (Local Studies area in particular) isvery much a cumulative project, and the exactdesign of the methodology here will be dependenton the outcomes of the earlier strands. LocalStudies Websites will be examined to verify whatis currently available online. Some form ofcollaboration with practitioners will be vital ingaining insights into current practice and visibility,and in gauging what will be achievable in terms ofrecommendations for electronic informationprovision. It is also hoped to tentatively explorethe attitudes and opinions of libraries andlibrarians towards genealogists and externally-provided resources.

Summary

The Internet has exponentially increased thepotential audience of collections that once mayhave only attracted those in the local area to thewhole country, and indeed the world.e-Genealogists are a group receptive to (if not

already aware of) the value that Local Studiesmaterials can add to their family histories. It mustbe noted that our collections are not necessarilyprepared or organised for remote access, eitherfinancially or philosophically. This research aimsto address the question of how best to proceed inproviding and promoting remote access to LocalStudies materials, in order to enhance thegenealogical research experience for those whocannot visit collections in person.

References:Gardiner, J., 2004. An Investigation into Staffordshire-basedfamily historians and their use and views of the Internet withinfamily history research. MSc Information and Library Studies,Robert Gordon University.

Goodall, D., 1994. Use of diaries in library and informationresearch. Library and Information Research News, 18(59), pp.17-21.

Harvey, R., 1992. Genealogy for librarians, 2nd

Edition.London: Library Association.

Reid, P. H., 2003. The Digital Age and Local Studies. Oxford:Chandos.

Webster, J., 2005. Genealogy: an information need we can'tmeet? Library + Information Update, 4(4), pp.42-3.

Kate Friday, Doctoral Researcher, Robert GordonUniversity, Aberdeenemail: prs.friday@rgu.ac.uk

www.researchingegenealogy.co.uk

GENLOC

Making what we do relevant

The following exchange came through the GENLOC2listserv. Of the two participants, one is an Enquiries andReference Services Manager working in Scotland. Theother is both a Librarian and the Secretary of aGenealogical Society in Belgium. It proves the worth of thelistserv for reasoned commentary. Thank you to both.

I suppose one of the major difficulties is 'risingexpectations'. Increasingly people expect allrelevant records and information to be readilyavailable over the internet in digital format. Whilesuch data is increasingly available it is highlyunlikely that everything will be provided in digitalform. I am frequently surprised by the number ofpeople who do not appear to understand what a'catalogue' is and who contact us to say they havefound the bibliographic record, but can't find the(non-existent) digital item on our catalogue.

As a librarian and as the secretary of a branch ofthe Flemish Genealogical Society in Belgium, Ican only acknowledge this statement.

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It is sad to see that people expect more from theInternet than there is actually available. And it'seven sadder that those same people apparentlydon't accept that they will have to search other,that is, printed sources to do their family research.One could call this the symptom of ‘armchairgenealogy’.

A similar thing happens when people are trying tofind old books on family history topics. I often findmyself reading questions from people who areasking for a digital reproduction of a particularvolume on the Internet, since ‘the original is out ofprint’. Or they look for it in antiquarian bookshops,sometimes willing to pay a lot of money for it. Mostof the time it only takes me 5 or 10 minutes tolocate the sought title in a nearby public orscientific library. Most people don't have theattitude to search in the available catalogues forthemselves.

I also saw people intrude the copyright lawsbecause they make available a digital copy of anout of print book that they own themselves, butthat still is under copyright restrictions. Of coursethey act benevolently most of the time, but theyreally have no idea that such a reproduction isillegal without permission of the copyright holders.And when I tell them, they are highly surprised.

We are currently investigating providing ageographical search facility, to enable recovery ofrelevant data (in all formats) by geographicallocation. Here the major issue is the staff timerequired to create the necessary metadata.

Voluntary workers can create the metadata insome cases, but it will be necessary to give themproper training. And there will have to be a’quality control’ by competent and skilled staff.

Who knows where future technologicaldevelopments will take us? Libraries are alreadyproviding services direct to mobile phones etc.Should we be providing family/local history blogs?Further development of 'digitisation on demand'?

Family or local history blogs already exist on anindividual basis. I believe the scope of suchprojects is rather limited because the informationis important only to small groups of people who doresearch on a particular family or branch. Butlibraries and genealogical associations cancertainly adopt this technology to use it in a largerscope to serve a wide range of public users.

Other issues include the potential impact of dataprotection legislation on the retention of 'toadies'

personal data for the use of future generations -and the trend for tightening such restrictionscontinues to grow – despite potential conflicts withall the freedom of information legislation.

This was a 'hot issue' on one of the Flemishgenealogy fora a few days ago. In some cases,legislation makes it almost impossible to do familyresearch, or make available particular data for thepublic, because of privacy matters. It is my opinionthat genealogists shouldn't infringe the lawbecause they find it restrictive, but that theyshould instead lobby (with the help of thegenealogical organisations and the members ofparliament as intermediates) to change the lawand make it more appropriate for genuine andrelevant historical and genealogical research.

News from Elsewhere

GENRT: The Genealogy Roundtable of theUtah Library Association

www.ula.org/organization/rt/genrt/genrt-go.htm

The Genealogy Roundtable of the Utah LibraryAssociation was formed in the early 1990s toprovide support for librarians throughout the Stateseeking to serve the needs of genealogists. Theorganisation's official objectives statement reads

"The Genealogy Round Table (GENRT)supports Utah Libraries with guidance andprograms for helping patrons researchinggenealogy in libraries and on the Internet. Weoffer guidance in selecting resources,organizing programs, training staff, andrecruiting volunteers. The Round Table alsoserves as a forum for communicating andcollaborating on issues and concerns of

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librarians who provide these services. GENRTprovides opportunities for librarians to meet,visit member institutions, and communicateonline in sharing knowledge and experiences.We welcome everyone of all levels ofexperience who has an interest in supportinggenealogy in their communities and discoveringtheir family's past."

There are currently 78 members of theRoundtable, with 24 in academic settings, 24 inpublic libraries, 27 in special libraries, and 3 whoare not working in libraries. The institutions theselibrarians serve range from small rural libraries, tolarge academic libraries, to special libraries, suchas the Family History Library in Salt Lake City.

Each year the Roundtable sponsors one or moreeducational activities. These have typically beengenealogical presentations or tours of archives,cemeteries, and the like. During the Fall of 2006the roundtable sponsored tours of the Salt LakeCity Cemetery and the Utah State Archives. Themost recent activity was a lecture where MichaelLeclerc of the New England Historic GenealogicalSociety spoke on the topic of locating qualitywebsites for genealogical research.

Steven M. Law GENRT Chair 2006-2007

The American Library Association:Reference and User Services Association(RUSA) History Section

www.ala.org/ala/rusa/rusaourassoc/rusasections/historysection/historysection.htm

The History Section of the Reference and UserServices Association (RUSA) of the AmericanLibrary Association represents the subjectinterests of reference librarians, archivists,bibliographers, genealogists, historians, andothers engaged in historical reference or research.It brings together representatives of historycollections in all formats from all types of libraries,archives, and historical societies.

History was the first section established withinRUSA and is the only group within the AmericanLibrary Association devoted to the discipline ofhistory. Reflecting the Section's broadrepresentation, its objectives are to identifycommon problems and to recommend solutionsthat can enhance service to users. Through itsprograms, committees, and projects, the Sectionhelps to improve the materials and methods forhistorical reference and research services.

You may select membership in the History Sectionat no additional charge when you join or renewyour membership in RUSA.

Local History Committee

This committee offers an opportunity to discussissues and concerns related to the managementof local history services and collections. Activitiesinclude writing guidelines that address services,collections, and preservation of local historymaterials. Programs sponsored by the Committeeinclude newspaper indexing, house histories, andthe care of photography collections.

Genealogy Committee

This committee provides a forum serving theinterests of librarians whose work is in or relatedto the field of genealogy, and in writing guidelinesto assist in creating and maintaining genealogicalcollections and instruction. Committee membersrepresent large and small genealogical collectionsin public, special, university and society libraries.Its objective is to train and assist librarians servinggenealogists. The committee has sponsored aone-day pre-conference entitled ‘Behind theGenealogy Reference Desk’ for several yearsprior to the American Library AssociationMidwinter and Annual Conferences.

Stephen Young RUSA History Section

Killie Campbell in her Library c1950, Durban see: khozi2.nu.ac.za/kcafricana.htm

Local History images, Durban, South Africa

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Useful Websites

Helpers

http://helpers.shl.lon.ac.uk:80/

Helpers (Higher Education Libraries in yourPERsonal history reSearch) is an online guide tousing the resources held in London University’slibraries and archives for family and local historyresearch._____________________________________

The following websites include lists of andlinks to Association members:

The Association of Family History Societies ofWaleswww.rootsweb.com/~wlsafhs/index.htm

Australasian Federation of Family HistoryOrganisations Inc.www.affho.org/

International Association of JewishGenealogical Societieswww.iajgs.org/

Federation of East European Family HistorySocietiesfeefhs.org/

Federation of Family History Societieswww.ffhs.org.uk/

FFSQ: Fédération des Familles-Soucheswww.ffsq.qc.ca/

FQSG: Fédération Québécoise des Sociétés deGénéalogiewww.federationgenealogie.qc.ca/

Scottish Association of Family HistorySocietieswww.safhs.org.uk/

Sveriges Släktforskarförbund(Swedish Federation of GenealogicalSocieties)www.genealogi.se/index.htm

(United States) Federation of GenealogicalSocietieswww.fgs.org/

Standing Committee Members

Melvin P Thatcher, Chair, Genealogical Society ofUtah, USAemail: thatchermp@gensocietyofutah.org

Ruth E Hedegaard, Secretary, Vendsyssel Historical

Museum Historical Archives, Denmarkemail: rhe@stofanet.dk

Janice McFarlane, Treasurer, National Library ofScotlandemail: j.mcfarlane@nls.uk

Colette O’Flaherty, Information Co-ordinator, NationalLibrary of Irelandemail: coflaherty@nli.ie

Lee Guiwon, member, National Library of Koreaemail: leegw@mail.nl.go.kr

Richard Huws, member, National Library ofWalesemail: reh@llgc.org.uk

Paul Sharp, member,email: smartpf@ldschurch.org

Jurgen Warmbruun, member,email: warmbrun@staff.uni-marburg.de

Gu Yan, corresponding member, Shanghai Library,Chinaemail: gyu@libnet.sh.cn

Laverne Paige, corresponding member

Marie-Louise Perron, corresponding member,National Library of Canada

Janet Tomkins, corresponding member,Vancouver Public Library, Canada

If any member of the Section would care tocomment on any item reported in the Newsletter.be willing to write an informative article for thenext issue, or know of a colleague who would liketo contribute, the Editor would be pleased to hear.

Please email the Editor, GENLOC Newsletter, at eam@freeuk.com

- We hope to see you in Durban IFLA 2007 -