The following is from FamilySearch. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Donates 2 Million Dollars to the International African American Museum Center for Family History Gift will enable greater family history discoveries for African Americans at the site where nearly half of all enslaved Africans arrived in the United States At the 9th annual RootsTech family history and technology conference held at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City, Utah, Elder David A. Bednar of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints presented Michael Boulware Moore, president and CE ..read more

The following is from Findmypast and RootsFinder. FINDMYPAST ACQUIRES ROOTSFINDER INC. RootsFinder accelerates Findmypast’s development of the Findmypast Tree. Acquisition marks the latest step in Findmypast’s drive to innovate and enhance user discoveries. RootsFinder founder, Dallan Quass, joins the Findmypast team to assist with future integration work and tree development Leading family history website, Findmypast, has acquired RootsFinder Inc. and their critically acclaimed RootsFinder family tree product, including new features to help customers analyze their DNA results. The acq ..read more

RootsTech 2019 Announces Lineup of Keynote Speakers and Entertainers Salt Lake City, Utah (13 February 2019), RootsTech 2019, the world’s largest family history conference, announced its full lineup of keynote speakers and entertainers, including Saroo Brierley, Patricia Heaton, Derek Hough, Jake Shimabukuro, and Steve Rockwood. Fueled by the popularity of DNA genealogy, social networking platforms, and related mobile apps, RootsTech 2018 had over 50,000 in-person and online attendees. Hosted by FamilySearch International, the conference will be held in Salt Lake ..read more

How to Remotely Watch RootsTech 2019 Salt Lake City If you are unable to attend RootsTech 2019 in Salt Lake City, you have two remote viewing options. Some of the show’s sessions will be streamed live for free at RootsTech.org (see the broadcast schedule below)! If you want more, you can purchase a Virtual Pass to view additional sessions from the conference. RootsTech 2019 in Salt Lake City runs February 27 to March 3, 2019. Go to RootsTech.org to view the entire schedule of events. The RootsTech daily general sessions will be broadcast live and for free. T ..read more

New Historical Records on FamilySearch: Week of February 4, 2019 FamilySearch added millions of new free historical records this week from France and England. Additional records were added from Australia, Russia, New York, Wales, and the BillionGraves Index. Search these free new records and images by clicking on the collection links below, or go to FamilySearch to search over 8 billion free names and record images. Country Collection Indexed Records Digital Images Comments Australia Austral ..read more

Elder and Sister Bednar to Speak at Family Discovery Day RootsTech is pleased to announce Elder and Sister Bednar as featured speakers at the popular Family Discovery Day, happening Saturday, March 2, 2019 at 9:30 A.M. MST. Family Discovery Day is a free one-day event for families and members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Learn More In addition to hearing from Elder and Sister Bednar, you will: Experience the interactive expo hall, where families and friends can create a visual ..read more

FamilySearch Awarded Silver Anvil Honors for Historic Freedmen’s Bureau Project You might say that 25,000 volunteers were silent recipients of a 2018 Silver Anvil Award for Integrated Communications when it was presented to FamilySearch International in New York City. The prestigious honor, which was bestowed by the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), was given because of the supportive collaboration that led to the success of the Freedmen’s Bureau Project.  Nearly 1.8 million African-American historical documents were indexed by the volunteers, resulting in&n ..read more

Emmy Award-Winning Actress Patricia Heaton to Keynote RootsTech 2019 RootsTech is delighted to announce that actress Patricia Heaton will keynote at the conference on Thursday, February 28, 2019, in Salt Lake City. Heaton is best known for her role as Deborah Barone on the hit sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond (1996–2005) and more recently as Frankie Heck on The Middle (2009–2018). Although Heaton has played many roles throughout her career, she is celebrated for her relatable and funny representation of what being a typical American wife and mother looks and f ..read more

Patricia Heaton to Speak at RootsTech 2019 Nobody knows family quite like Emmy award-winning actress Patricia Heaton. Known for her humorous roles as a typical American housewife in big hit television series’ like Everybody Loves Raymond and The Middle, Patricia has won many prestigious awards and the hearts of television viewers worldwide. Behind the scenes of her career as an actress—and adding some serious fuel for her decades of success—is the fact that she really is a wife and the mother of four sons. Patricia has a deep love and appreciatio ..read more

Don’t Miss Jake Shimabukuro at RootsTech Salt Lake City! Music has a special way of connecting us to our families—this is especially true for ukulele master, Jake Shimabukuro. From the time he was small, the ukulele has been a symbol of his connection to his family, his home, and to the Hawaiian culture he was raised in. Jake has been strumming the ukulele since the age of four, but by the time he turned fourteen, it was clear that he was playing the four-stringed instrument in unprecedented ways. In 2005, years after playing in two differen ..read more