Lost & Not Found

The Allen County Library has a section on the second floor which has the genealogy books and materials. It appears relatively safe with one main entrance. While  I  was at the library, my laptop computer was stolen. I notified the library security and filed a police report.  The  policeman told me that the likelihood of getting it back was slim.
The four year old computer itself had little financial value. The information contained within was of great personal value. The  good news for me is that my computer is password protected. I however changed all my passwords that are  available.  I used  an external hard drive to backup my computer prior to my trip.  I also  used Evernote to store my genealogical  research which is on my smartphone.
  Since this loss, I have learned more about computer security and reminded myself  that no place is truly safe.

Worth The Trip

Allen County Public Library

I made my first road trip to the Allen County Public Library in Fort Wayne, Indiana which is the  second  largest genealogy library in the county. With a lot of anticipation to make new discoveries I tried to prepare to utilize my time efficiently.  Prior to my trip, I reviewed the library’s online database for information.   I came equipped with my smartphone, computer laptop, pencils, paper and money for photocopies. There are two smartphone apps which helped me organize information. The app CamScan allows you take a picture of a document fine tune the image, label or tag, share or store. This app helped me save money. Instead of paying ten cent per copy I used the app to make copies from books.   I then organized my information on the app Evernote.  With CamScan, I could sync information onto the Evernote app which was installed on my smartphone and laptop computer. I purchased the premium edition of Evernote because I wanted to save a large amount of data. Organization is  key in genealogy research. Thru the years, I have found information and saved it, lost it and saved the information again thinking it was new information.  The Facebook group The Organized Genealogist has helped tremendously with organizational ideas.

The library is located in downtown Fort Worth.   I drove my car to the library and for a small hourly fee parked in their garage. Preparation is the recipe to success for research at the library. Be prepared. The librarians are not going to help you with your genealogy research.  Knowing what you can find and what you can’t find saves time.  I had a list of call numbers for books I wanted to review from the online catalog. I have made trips to the National Archives, the Mississippi Department of History and Archives and the Tennessee State Library and Archives on previous research trips.  Allen County Library has books that I have not previously found. My inability to find information in the past may stem from my previous inexperience in research or the library is user friendly and has a great collection. 

I found new information about the family trees which I plan to share. 

-------The Tree Gardener