iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 5h

I also finally have more than just a phonetic idea of my 2nd great grandmother’s maiden name. #genealogy #jewish #ukraine

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 5h

Through a search at JewishGen I was able this afternoon to add two generations of names on one line. With birth, marriage and death records. I can’t read the Russian or Hebrew records, so I will need to rely on the index, but I will download all the records.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 14/06/2026

#genealogy The stories they tell are sometimes ‘exaggerated.’ #artmemes

Text: How your grandparents claim they met

Art: The Swing, JEAN-HONORÉ FRAGONARD, 1767

Text: How your grandparents met

Art: The Café Concert - Edouard Manet - 1879

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 14/06/2026

Art: Emile Bayard, illustration for Ninety-Three by Victor Hugo Text: Accidents have been known to happen. Don’t forget to digitize your source materials. #genealogy #artmeme

Illustration of three children tearing the pages of a book.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 10/06/2026

I think I discovered one of the artists AI originally used to learn how to draw hands. Art: José Clemente Orozco, Man in Chains, 1930

I apologize but I have no idea how to describe this artwork to do it justice.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 06/04/2026

Gathering historical documents and filling out an application? This I can do.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 06/04/2026

Dual citizenship has been on my radar as a potential backup plan for a few years, but I didn’t think it would be Canada. My last Canadian ancestor goes back quite a few generations. I helped a cousin get a Hungarian passport, but that required he learn the language. I don’t have that dedication.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 06/04/2026

I have learned that a December 2025 change in their legal code now makes me a Canadian citizen by descent. Proving this to them sufficiently so they send me a certificate of citizenship is another matter.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 09/02/2026

If someone had ancestors in Texas before Texas became a state and you told them their ancestors were American that would just be wrong. But I feel that’s essentially equivalent to what Dr Gates told Lizzie Caplan. The movement of borders doesn’t change your heritage. 3/3

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 09/02/2026

My grandfather was born in Hungary. He considered himself Hungarian. His father fought as a Hungarian soldier under Franz Joseph. He insisted he was not Romanian simply because the border changed after he left. Romania had pogroms in the 19th century. Hungary did not. 2/3

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 09/02/2026

I’m behind on watching Finding Your Roots and just watched the episode with Lizzie Caplan. It seems a small thing, but I am bothered by Dr Gates telling her she is part Polish and not Russian because the place her ancestors were born is now Poland. It was Russia when they lived there. 1/3

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 01/02/2026

My ultra cheap Ancestry student subscription ran out a week ago. My wife graduated last year, so I renewed at 50% off their US plan. Twice what I was paying for World. Can’t really complain. I had the ultra cheap rate for three years. If you’re a student & genealogist - don’t let the deal pass.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 15/11/2025

I have several funeral homes send me obituaries in my email. Not only am I a genealogist- I’m getting older. Today I received one dated Nov 30, 2020. I didn’t notice the date until the obituary mentioned the pandemic. Computer programs do the darndest things. #genealogy #technology

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 09/11/2025

A Hungarian ancestor of mine - when told they needed a German name - selected Deutsch. I like to think it was a dry sense of humor.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 09/11/2025

I have not confirmed all of the surnames. Or the origin. #Genealogy #Netherlands #Surnames

What are some of the craziest, wildest but definitely true stories from across history?

Jay Matthews
Writer, Unsolicited Non-Advice (2000-present) • Jan 12

When the French occupied the Netherlands in 1811, they took an official census and asked for last names, which weren't common for the Dutch to have.
So, they made up some goofy last names, thinking this would be a temporary measure.
It wasn't.
Some of these names are quite common today:
Niemand (nobody)
Zondervan (not from anywhere)
Van der Hoek (from around the corner)
Zonderkop (headless)
Dodeman (dead man)
de Graf (the grave)
Gekkehuis (looney bin)
Donderwinkel (thunder store)

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 30/10/2025

I find the app useful for quickly looking people up in my tree when I’m not near my computer.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 30/10/2025

Ancestry is trying out their “famous relative” feature again on their app. Shades of We’re Related and OneWorldTree. Just as inaccurate as before. The below screenshot I found humorous as they messed up on gender, and that is something that should be easy to code.

Image: Portrait of a Woman

Text: Your famous ancestor

Did you know you are related to Elizabeth Kortright? He is your half 4th cousin 8x removed.

Learn more about this famous ancestor below.

Elizabeth Kortright was the wife of James Monroe, the fifth President of the United States, and served as the First Lady from 1817 to 1825.

See relationship

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 06/08/2025

Finally decided to try Ancestry’s Pro Tools. One key interest was their reports. They claim to offer a Register descendancy report. The numbering system is not accurate though. They start over with 1 on every family grouping. I can’t be the first to notice. It should be fixable. #genealogy

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 05/08/2025

The administration has announced that they will not be filling the Veterans Claim File FOIA requests. They will only provide minimal genealogical information. I filed several requests in December. I received notifications they were being processed but I have not yet received any of the files.

birls.org

Search the BIRLS Database - over 18 million records about deceased US veterans, from the US Department of Veterans Affairs, now online and FREE from Reclaim The Records

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Reposted by John Newmark

John Newmark @gavroche.org · 31/05/2025

Graves Tombstones Skeletons Cemeteries Emily Dickinson fan fantasy. Genealogist’s Sunday afternoon. Cemeteries Skeletons Research Trees #Tetractys #poetry

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 01/04/2025

In honor of #NationalPoetryMonth I have shared on my #OnePlaceStudy Substack a poem written by a resident of the OPS and published in 1920. Some may feel it is still timely today. I also share a little research conducted on the author. A Cry of the Foreign-Born by Leah Rachel Clara Yoffie

open.substack.com

Poem - A Cry of the Foreign-Born - Leah Rachel Clara Yoffie - 1920

In honor of National Poetry Month, I share a poem written by a woman who grew up in the Little Jerusalem/Carr Square tenements.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 23/03/2025

I've emailed the owner of the online family tree where I found the images to see if they have additional information about the origin of these photos, but thought I'd ask the bsky genealogy community as well for their opinion.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 23/03/2025

I found these images online as possible #photographs of my third great-grandparents. The woman died in 1880 and the man in 1873. The photographs would have been taken in Canada. I know photography was unusual in the #1870s, and was wondering if these are similar to other 1870s photos.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 08/03/2025

I used Ancestry’s search features to break down some demographics for my One Place Study. I used The 3rd Ward of St Louis City in the 1900 census as my starting point.

open.substack.com

Demographics of the Third District - 1900

On Using Ancestry.com to Uncover a Neighborhood's Demographics

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Reposted by John Newmark

Society for One-Place Studies @oneplacestudies.bsky.social · 05/03/2025

Romance in Little Jerusalem - 1895🔗 is the latest post by John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com for his #OnePlaceStudy of Little Jerusalem and Carr Square Tenements in St Louis, #Missouri. It's a 19th-century love story transcribed from the St Louis Post Dispatch of Oct 13, 1895. #OnePlaceWednesday

transylvaniandutch.substack.com

Romance in Little Jerusalem - 1895

Below I share and transcribe a 19th-century love story from the Oct 13, 1895 St.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 03/03/2025

1) How we imagine our ancestor’s arrival on these shores 2) Closer to the truth #genealogy

Art: Wanderer above the Sea of Fog, Caspar David Friedrich, c. 1817

Art: The Raft of the Medusa, Théodore Géricault, c. 1819

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 26/02/2025

Today my legacy.com obituary alert notified me of an obituary from seven years ago.

Today's
St. Louis County Obituaries
Wednesday, February 26, 2025

Obituary for Cardinals manager and player, Red Schoendienst who died in 2018.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 26/02/2025

Another genealogical pet peeve. The use of “Mrs. husband’s name” on documents. I want to know HER name. But it’s not just genealogy. In 2025 my wife still gets mail addressed to her in this fashion. It really needs to stop.

Art: Agostina by Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot - 1866

Text:
My name is not Mrs. Alberto Rossi!
I have a name of my own!

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 26/02/2025

The look on a genealogist’s face when examining a census record.

Art: Ilya Repin, Portrait of Garshin, 1884, the Metropolitan Museum of Art

Text: This handwriting is atrocious!

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Reposted by John Newmark

Reclaim The Records @reclaimtherecords.org · 25/02/2025

Update: BIRLS.org has now sent 12,400+ #FOIA requests in just the ~63 days since launch. That's ~20% of what the VBA (the relevant sub-agency within the VA) usually gets in a single *year*! And yet the letters *are* going out, and some people are starting to get their C-Files too. Kudos to the VA!

birls.org

Search the BIRLS Database - over 18 million records about deceased US veterans, from the US Department of Veterans Affairs, now online and FREE from Reclaim The Records

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 25/02/2025

Don’t forget to backup your data.

Art: Winslow Homer’s Blackboard. 1877. On the blackboard is written, four times: I will backup my data.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 24/02/2025

Another meme I created a few years ago. (This one in 2019 if my FB memories app is accurate) #genealogy #research #science #politics #everything

Image: Oliver Twist holding his empty bowl.

Text:
Top: Please sir
Bottom: I want a source

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 22/02/2025

It’s occurred to me I should add a photo of #Toonces for those of a certain age.

Toonces the Driving Cat from Saturday Night Live 1989-1993

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 22/02/2025

I have added a page to my #OnePlaceStudy listing in alphabetical order the residents of the tenements I’m researching. It’s incomplete as I have not finished going through the 1900 census for the neighborhood. I will update as I continue. open.substack.com/pub/transylv...

open.substack.com

Residents of the Tenements

Below is an incomplete list of the residents of the Carr Square neighborhood tenements in 1900 St.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 22/02/2025

This #cat is smart #Caturday #genealogy (Image came from Pixabay 12 years ago. Text added by me)

Image of cat walking down a street.

Text: You can't conduct all of your genealogy research online. You may need to go outside and walk (or drive) to a library, cemetery, or genealogical society.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 22/02/2025

Today I received four more notification letters, so now I know 5 of those 6 FOIA requests are being processed. Of course…as slow as I knew the process would be…with the recent layoffs at the DVA I expect it to be even slower.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 21/02/2025

I thought I’d experiment with posting on Substack so I imported my One Place Study from blogspot. Only 10 posts to import, all from 2022, but I have continued researching so I have more to write. open.substack.com/pub/transylv...

open.substack.com

Little Jerusalem - Carr Square OPS | John Newmark | Substack

A One Place Study of Little Jerusalem & Carr Square Tenements - St. Louis, Missouri - Early 1900s. Click to read Little Jerusalem - Carr Square OPS, by John Newmark, a Substack publication. Launched 1...

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 18/02/2025

My 2nd great grandfather lived in the tenement section of St Louis in 1900. His block went by many names including 8th Street Yard, Castle Thunder, and Wild Cat Chute. It was a hotbed of criminal activity before he moved in. #genealogy #stl #tenements blog.transylvaniandutch.com/2025/02/a-pl...

blog.transylvaniandutch.com

A Place of Many Names - Eighth Street Yard, Castle Thunder, Wild Cat Chute

When researching the neighborhoods your ancestors lived in, it's important to know all the names the area was known by. Sometimes there were...

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 17/02/2025

9thC1R but several unconfirmed generations on my side.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 02/02/2025

Years researching: Since 2007 Hobbyist or pro: Hobbyist Fun fact/Wildest discovery: 2nd great grandfather, a blacksmith, is in the US Patent Database for an improvement to fire hydrants My niches: Geographic: St. Louis & Southeastern Missouri, US Cultural/Ethnic: Jewish

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 31/01/2025

I completely understand they are overwhelmed.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 31/01/2025

On Dec 24 @reclaimtherecords.org announced their Vererans C-File database. I didn’t submit my first 6 FOIA requests until Dec 26. I just got my first notification letter that they’ve received 1 of those 6 requests and are processing it. It will likely be several months for the docs. I can wait.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 08/01/2025

Since this article is 10 years old I wonder if anything has changed.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 06/01/2025

The Mr. and Mrs. (Male first name Male surname) is extremely frustrating. Genealogically and Socially. My wife & I actually still get mail addressed to us in this fashion. It’s 2025 for g-d sakes! Another frustration is ancestors who didn’t write on the backs of their photographs.

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John Newmark @transylvaniandutch.com · 04/01/2025

Today I put in an FOIA request for an unrelated famous author. Just out of curiosity. I also requested the file for a distantly related (3rd cousin twice removed) author. Mostly out of curiosity as well.

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