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May 30. 2005
Help is Just an E-Mail Away
by - Leslie Viner

When I joined the JGSH I really hadn't a clue about how to locate my ancestors. Like so many rookie genealogists, I doubted that the information that I needed was readily available. The thought of researching in repositories and other archives - either local or international - struck me as a daunting and lonely task.

My father had no information about his paternal grandmother, Rebecca. The only evidence that she lived at all was a photo of her tombstone that my dad knew was located in Chicago. My initial and independent Google search for cemeteries in Chicago produced a long list of possibilities, but only a couple of cemeteries had email addresses and through communication with each of them I came up empty handed. My success changed when I followed a simple and helpful suggestion from the ‘Panel of Experts’ at my second JGS meeting: Why not contact the JGS in the area in which your relative lived?

When I jotted off a quick email to the Chicago Jewish Historical Society I had quite a surprise! Within one day, I received a phone call from a fellow named Norman, a member of that organization. He asked me for details about the inscription on the headstone. Norman advised that with the details I provided in my email request he had already completed a name search and through his local contacts he had discovered what seemed to be a match for my great-grandmother's grave site. He told me he would call again when he had a chance to investigate further. The very next day he called back and told me that he had been to the cemetery, located the stone (inscribed exactly as I had described) and taken photos of my great grandmother’s stone and other stones close by with the same surname! Since this discovery, I have received copies of the photos as a detailed map of the cemetery, instructions of how to get there from Hamilton and an invitation by Norman to stop by for tea if I come to Chicago!

Since Norman was familiar with the cemetery and Jewish History in Chicago, he was able to put forth some very interesting questions for me to research. For example, he was aware of the burial society that was responsible for the part of the cemetery where Rebecca was buried. He knew that they were organized around their home town in Poland, suggesting that my great-grandmother was possibly from that town and giving me a clue about where to focus my research in Europe.

Since my successful link with the Chicago Jewish Historical Society I have also connected with the British List on the Jewish Gen website and discovered the same generous spirit among its members. People with whom I have been communicating on line have provided both relative-specific information and short cuts to resources that are available in the places that I am searching. They have sent me references to the town where my maternal grandparents lived and information from Census records and indexes.

What this experience has taught me is that there is a wonderful social component to doing genealogical research. Jewish Genealogical Societies and Historical Societies offer additional support and help in locating information in far away places. With just a little bit of information and a question, we can receive many pieces of information that are readily available to local members or more experienced genealogists. By sharing our research questions, we can enjoy the company of others as we peel back the layers of history like the rings of an onion!