What's New in Belgian Genealogical Research?

Researching on the Belgian Archives site

2012-01-14T12:13:00.002-05:00

I find this article published in Belgian Laces Vol#30-116 still applicable and since FamilySearch was once again asked to remove the images from access on www.familysearch.org, at least here are some directions as to how to use the Belgian Archives site to do some research. Good luck!

TheBelgian Royal Archives have made available many names online also.

Go to: http://arch.arch.be/ and choose your language of preference: Dutchor French only for search formats, which is why I have taken the time totranslate below to help take you through the steps of a Person Search on thissite.

If you chose the English setting for the site, the searchmenu will be in Dutch.

(see AdvancedSearch)

Person Search

1. What can youfind under “Person Search”?

A large number of researchers at the Archives facilitiesare interested in information about their ancestors, … Therefore a large partof the research in the reading room sis geared to genealogy. In the past, analyses on often used documentshave been done in collaboration with volunteers and that is what has producedthe ‘analytical inventories’.

The results of these volunteer projects can be foundunder Person Search.

We have chosen to set up one large database from whichall information can be retrieved.

2. Whatinformation is available?

The information starting point is the archivalrecord. At the top of the screen, youhave the information about the document and the link to the database where itis found in the archives, then, a description of the record.

Each record is linked to the names of persons found init. The roles these people play in therecord are also explained.

The availability of the records first depends on thesource but also on the project definition. The analysis provides the starting point that will require that theresearcher view the original record for him/herself. Here is a description of different projects:

- Marriage records from Eastern Flanders : 1,337,339 names

- Birth records from Western Flanders: 160,785 names

- Death Records from Eastern Flanders: 130,389 names

- Notarial records fromNivelles (Notaire Paradis): 41,076 names

- Marriage records from Flemish Brabant: 12,525 names(test)

- Notarial records from Antwerp: 290,888 (to validate)

3.Searchingin “Person Search”

http://arch.arch.be/component/option,com_analyses/Itemid,122/lang,fr_BE/

3.1. Simple Search

the site in Dutch/French:

Gelijk aan/égale = exact match

Begint met/commence par = begins with

Eindigt op/termine par = ends with

Bevat/contient – contains

Type in a first name and/orsurname and set a time frame for your search.

To be more efficient, youmight choose specific documents to search in, or be more flexible with the nameby changing from “exact match” to “starts with” or “ends with”, or “contains”specific letters.

For example :

« Comprend ‘Jan’ » will givePieter Jan, Jan Pieter, …

For the date, you also haveseveral choices. You can use an exact date, or choose a time frame betweenspecific dates or years, or before or after a certain date or year.

And you can limit your searchto a specific record: birth, death or marriage, assuming the records areavailable

3.2. AdvancedSearch - See first picture above

http://arch.arch.be/component/option,com_analyses/Itemid,122/lang,fr_BE/

Allows you a wider variety of searches:

3.3. Search results

Results will be limited to 1,000 hits. If you receivethis message, it is advised that you narrow down your search.

You will get a list containing the names matching whatyou were looking for. In the 1^stcolumn you will find the type of record abbreviation. By hovering over it with your mouse youshould get a complete description of the record.

The 2^nd column gives the record date, then thename, place and role played by the person whose you found in the record.

Click on a names to see all the information.

Restrictions

The information contains misspellings sue to the factthat it is transcribed AS IS. The researcher must be flexible enough in his/herresearch to look for all possible spellings of a name.

Thisinformation is online thanks to the efforts of the DemoGen indexers. For more information: http://demogen.arch.be/
I did a search for a last name only "DROSSART"
The search resulted in 64 hits:

I clicked on the first name in the listed to obtain the following:

In this case, Servais DROSSART is the father of the deceased. I know, no images but it's still a pretty awesome way to find your ancestors... Happy Hunting!

http://thebelgianresearchers.blogspot.com/

How to Help with The “Belgians in the US Census” Project

2011-08-12T17:16:00.016-04:00

By Guy Gallez

The idea to develop a census template came to me after a member of TBR volunteered to help retrieve the Belgians who lived in Michigan in 1930, using the microfilm images available for free at www.archive.org.

A quick look at the number of microfilms to view (106 total), each approximately 1,100 pages long, convinced me not only of the enormity but also of the impracticability of the task at hand. So I suggested creating lists of persons using Ancestry.com’s index and see if it was possible to link this information with the microfilms available at Internet Archive.

After much stumbling I found a system which, although far from perfect, makes it realistically possible for someone with internet access to help move this project forward.

I added the link to the microfilm # and to the corresponding page within the microfilm. However, although the link to the microfilm causes no problem, the link to the page number is something else. I kept the Ancestry page # but there is a discrepancy in matching with Internet Archive. The matching page for a particular entry is usually not too far from the given number, at most 5 pages ahead or behind the number.

What I did for the 1930 Census for the state of Michigan, I applied to the other states and the other census that we have not done yet, as well. That is how the list of Belgians found in the complete 1880 census is now available on our TBR website. Each web page contains one State/County, the ones with a lot of names are divided further into State/County/Township. Some, particularly in Wisconsin, even covered several web pages.

In the first column, you find the microfilm#
In the second, the (approximate) page where to pull the information for the listed name.
This list covers, not only the people born in Belgium but also those for whom at least one parent was born there.

For those who would like to try themselves at this and help us finish the 1880 census, here is how to proceed:

To transcribe a county or part of one, go to our webpage at http://www.rootsweb.com/~inbr/index.html and pick the census page you want to help with. Copy and Paste into your own Spreadsheet software (Excel, MicrosoftWorks or other)

Note: if it’s easier for you, just contact me and I will send you the county of your choice, already in a spreadsheet format.

Important: before beginning, contact me at guy.gallez@gmail.com
It is possible another person has chosen to work on the same county or that the work has already been done.

Here is what Mobile County, Alabama looks like in Excel2003.
Only two townships: Mobile and Spring Hill.
The first column gives the reel number and the second the approximate page on which to find the information.

Go to the Internet Archives site (http://www.archive.org/)

In the “Search” box, type
- the census year
- the word “census”
- the name of the state
- the reel number in 4 digits – so if it’s 25, enter it 0025
So here you would type: 1880 census Alabama 0025
And click “Go”
Your results should show as follows

Click on the link to obtain the next image.

At this point you will be able to choose to:
- Read Online or
- Save as a PDF file
Unless you want to save the file to your computer, the “Read Online” option is fine.

You are now on the roll’s first page.

Make sure you choose the ONE page mode rather than 2 (as set as default) so you can better manage the cursor on the page you are looking for. In this case we are looking for.
Here we are looking for page 234
Slide the hand to the right to advance faster to page 234
Zoom in to see better

After looking through the page you should find Leonard Dirke on page 232. As mentioned earlier, usually you will find the name you are looking for within a 10 pages range of the number given (5 ahead, 5 behind). That’s the big drawback in this method as the numbering system used by Ancestry is not exactly the same as the one used by Internet Archives. However once you have found the discrepancy, the difference seem to remain the same all through the reel.

If you need help with this, contact me - guy.gallez@gmail.com. We can look at it together.

All you need to do after that is to type in the additional information found on the page (and correcting the page number if necessary).
- sex = M ou F
- S = single, M = Married W = Widowed, D = Divorced
- complete the spaces for occupation and birth places
- add the other family members
- possibly correct the spelling of the Name in parenthesis
- add notes if you need to
- insert a blank line to separate each family
- re-order the families as the Ancestry index does not take the order the census was taken in into consideration.

This should give you the end result that follows:

Then all you have left is "Spring Hill" on reel 24.
Go back to Internet Archives.
Search for 1880 census Alabama 0024 and follow the same procedure.

When you are finished, email me the spreadsheet to be uploaded on the website.
If you run into any trouble, just let me know and we will check it out together.
Thank You for your help!

http://thebelgianresearchers.blogspot.com/

Are you Looking for the History of Courcelles?

2011-07-24T20:52:00.004-04:00

Some researchers dismiss the value of mailing lists and forums.
I have found true pearls on these networks. One such pearl was shared today by Pat on http://fr.groups.yahoo.com/group/gencharleroi/
A complete book on the town of Courcelles, in pdf format, searchable!
It is in French but don't be afraid to try Google Translate to get a fairly decent translation.
It is wonderful to see how researchers enthusiastically share the tools they find as they research online, thus keeping all from 'reinventing the wheel'!
Thank You Pat and Thank You to the person who posted this book!
http://thebelgianresearchers.blogspot.com/

New strategies to give online access to more records: part 2

2011-07-21T08:58:00.015-04:00

Thank You to Hubert Barnich for giving the opportunity to look at the site at
http://actes.marche.be/
Here is the list of the localities being digitized for this site:
Aye, Champlon, Grimbiemont, Hargimont, Hollogne, Humain, Lignieres, Marche, Marloie, On, Roy, Verdenne, Waha
There are already 48,020 TIF files

Here is a sample of what you can expect.
"How do I access these?", you ask...
First things first... You will need a username and password to log in.
This comes with membership in Wallonia ASBL

Once you have the login, you can search for the record using a variety of filters.
- By "Commune" (locality)
- By "Doc" (register or index)
- By "Type" (birth, marriage, death)
- By "Patronyme" (surname)
- By "Date"
or even by extension, which will give you ALL 48,020 images (=
Once you have located the file you want, just download it (telecharger)

The entity of Marche is joining forces with the genealogical society Wallonia ASBL in offering access to 1900-1910 digitized birth records at
http://genealogie.marche.be/m1900/mef/nais-1901-10.htm as a prelude to a special fair to be held on August 15th, 2011.
They invite the public to come to the fair and present a downloaded/printed copy of a birth record found on the site and exchange it for a researched pedigree chart retracing that person's ancestry back to the French Revolution - as long as you can explain how this person fits into your family tree, of course, and that it pertains to the old locality of Marche.

So, just click on the town that interests you to find an index of births linked to digital images.
Print this image and take it to the fair.
Here is the list of towns for which these are available - slightly different from the one listed above: Aye, Hargimont (+ Jemeppe), Humain (+ Havrenne), Marche, Marenne ( + Verdenne), On, Waha ( + Marloie, Champlon/Famenne, Hollogne), Roy

Of course Wallonia is also involved with ExpoActes.
Access to these indexes are reserved to members of Wallonia or those who participate in their indexing project.
You can find their subscription page here in English.

Their indexes on ExpoActes cover towns in the Namur and Luxembourg provinces area.

As of 7/21/2011 there were 204,553 records:
- 105,485 Births/Christenings
- 31,261 Marriages
- 65,701 Deaths/Burials
- 2,106 various records
which are progressively linked to digital records.

Of course, it is a work in progress, so help is always welcomed of course, and could save you some money too.

There is a link to a manual to use the search functions - in French - or you can refer back to one of our previous articles on another ExpoActes index sponsored by GeneDinant and Netradyle.

Hope you can get some use out of this information, and HAVE FUN!

http://thebelgianresearchers.blogspot.com/

Défilé du 21 juillet en live | RTBF

2011-07-21T07:40:00.000-04:00

Défilé du 21 juillet en live | RTBF
Watch LIVE !

http://thebelgianresearchers.blogspot.com/

New strategies to give online access to more records: part 1

2011-07-20T17:21:00.009-04:00

Several organizations in Belgium have been plugging along indexing civil registers and parish registers and making the indexes available online for free and even giving access to the electronic copies of the original records.

How do they do this?

Simple. The Royal Archives don't have a true monopoly on these records as each locality retained a copy and has the right to make them available on their own.

One of the reasoning is that if more localities followed the example of the ones here, the Royal Archives would have to relinquish their grip and make the records available to all online.

BSkempen.be: Civil Registry of the Campine, Antwerp Province
As of July 1, 2011, their indexes contained entries for 226,480 records from the Civil Registry and 35,514 records from various parish registers. The number of scanned records requested was 25,385.
Access the indexes by going to their home page at http://bskempen.be/home_en.htm
Here are the available locations:
Endhout, Geel, Herentals, Herselt, Houtvenne, Hulshout, Morkhoven, Noorderwijk, Oevel, Olen, Tongerlo, Varendonk, Veerle, Vorst, Westerlo, Westmeerbeek, Zoerle Parwijs

EINDHOUT (Laakdal)	Civil Registry 1797-1910 (6454 records) Transcription of the tables of the parish registry 1659-1791
GEEL	Civil Registry 1797-1907 (74.504 records) Registry parish Zammel 1754 -1776 (694 records)
HERENTALS	Civil Registry 1798 -1910 (33.389 records) Parish registry 1775-1805 (4510 records) and 1584 -1796 (baptisms, 20.475 records)
HERSELT	Civil Registry 1800 - 1881 (18.037 records)
HOUTVENNE (Hulshout)	Civil Registry 1800 - 1910 (3335 records)
HULSHOUT	Civil Registry 1813 - 1910 (in progress, 5926 records)
MORKHOVEN (Herentals)	Civil Registry 1792 -1910 (3433 records)
NOORDERWIJK (Herentals)	Civil Registry 1797 -1910 (7733 records) Parish Registry 1605-1797 (baptisms 5545 records, marriages 1476 records, deaths 2814 records)
OEVEL (Westerlo)	Civil Registry 1792 -1900 (5705 records)
OLEN	Civil Registry 1802 -1910 (12.188 records) Census 1867 -1880
TONGERLO (Westerlo)	Civil Registry 1799 -1900 (10.496 records)
VARENDONK (Laakdal)	Civil Registry 1801 - 1910 (1094 records)
VEERLE (Laakdal)	Civil Registry 1803 - 1910 (in progress, 8336 records)
VORST (Laakdal)	Civil Registry 1792 -1910 (13.943 records) Parish registry 1598-1800 (baptisms and funerals)
WESTERLO	Civil Registry 1802 -1900 (15.104 records)
WESTMEERBEEK (Hulshout)	Civil Registry 1813 - 1910 (3697 records) Conscription list 1851-1880
ZOERLE PARWIJS (Westerlo)	Civil Registry 1802 - 1900 (3107 records)

Click on the coat of arms of the town in which you are researching and you will find a link to a zipped file containing spreadsheets of Births, Marriages and Deaths for that locality.
I don't think you will need a special program to unzip the file. It seemed to use IE to do this by itself.

If you want a look at the original record, go back to the page where you found the zipped file and click on "Scans" at the top of the page to request a copy.

There is no cost to you whatsoever.
If the file is small enough to email to you, you will find it in your mailbox. If not, they will upload it to their website with instructions on how to retrieve it. All they ask is that you let them know when you have downloaded it because they want to make sure they are not short on cyber space.

If you have time, you might consider giving some of it to help with this special project.
The site is tri-lingual so you should not have too much trouble using it.

This system is used by other groups and in fact I wanted to develop this article about 6 months ago already but got caught up in daily living.
I am waiting for the latest on this other group which offers records from the Marche-en-Famennes area and will share the additional information with you as soon as I get it.

HAVE FUN!

http://thebelgianresearchers.blogspot.com/

Brussels City Archives Online

2011-01-13T08:06:00.017-05:00

The news this morning is the RTBF announcement that the Brussels City Archives are now accessible online.
Check out this link http://www.bruxelles.be/artdet.cfm/4445
The article is in French so I will endeavor to expound in English.

Only a portion of the records is online as of yet: the City's "Livres d’Or" (golden Books), some Commerce and Industry Almanacs, and "Cahiers bruxellois".

The Golden Books

Since 1843 official dignitaries visiting the Hôtel de Ville in Brussels have been invited to sign the Golden Book.
These dignitaries were, for the most part, heads of state and foreign officials, invited by the burgomaster, but also included honored guests such as prominent artists or sports personalities. This signing usually takes place in the burgomaster's office at the start of the meeting and is often accompanied by a photo session.

These golden books are leather-bound and bear the city's symbol on the cover page: St Michael. These books are kept by the Protocol service and later kept in the city Archives.

Three of them are accessible online. The first one covers the period of 1843 to 1967. The second one covers the years between 1967 and 1999. The pages of the third one have been scanned up to November 2010.

The online viewing enables easy access to the history of the City of Brussels.
Click on your choice of Book 1, 2 or 3. Another page will open from which you will be able to navigate by thumbing through the book, that is, simply turning the page. Zoom in if the picture is not clear, pan it to move it around, print it if you like.
Note that due to a problem with the binding of the first book, the first 10 pages are off center.

Almanacs

These almanacs are the equivalent to old phone books. They contain alphabetical lists of residents (including their address and sometimes even their social status, and eventually their telephone number), residents by profession, by street, and repertories of services and state officers.
They make it possible to put together lists of building renters or owners, to locate the movement of someone within the city or in the suburbs and even note the eventual job promotions or changes. When used in combination with the population registers these lists can be very useful for the researcher as personal circumstances could change very rapidly.
These books can no longer be handled manually due to the paper deterioration. The digital collection is accessible online and goes from 1820 to 1969 (with a few hiccups). Yearly phone books are available at the City Archives building only, for the period after 1969.

This series was completed by the online addition of other almanacs (pocket Almanacs, royal Almanacs, Court Almanacs) which also contain much detail on public life in Belgium and in Brussels during the 19th and 20th centuries, as well as later periods, more specifically the second half of the 18th century: very important sources that identify public figures, military men along with public or private institutions.
Pick the type of almanac and keep clicking until you reach the beginning of the book you want to look at.
Click the magnifying glass at the top left of the page to clarify the image, then roll the mouse back to resize it so as to better fit your screen.

Cahiers Bruxellois

The scientific newsletter "Cahiers Bruxellois" contributes to promoting and furthering the study of the History of Brussels at the same time as urban and general history in general, for any given period. All issues of the publication published by the City of Brussels Archives between 1956 and 2005, are freely available online. Later volumes can be purchased or viewed at the City Archives building.
The search engine enable the searcher to retrieve articles by volume (tome), by year of publication, by author and by word contained in the article title.

Not everything that has been digitized is available online however and requires a trip to the City Archives building. Many unpublished manuscripts are also available by using the Pallas Catalogue, namely a large part of the registers of the Collection of historical Archives like the old cartuaries, the rules and jurisprudence of the city of Brussels from the Middle Ages until the end of the Old Regime.
To access the PALLAS catalog more easily, click "browse the archives" then open all the "+" signs in front of the different subjects. This will give you an idea of what is available and how to locate it - NOT online.

So if you have the opportunity to visit the Archives... let me know... I would love to hear a personal experience with these records, and I may have a question or two about a long gone bike racer who is dear to me.

Here is the address:
Archives de la Ville de Bruxelles
Rue des Tanneurs, 65
1000 Bruxelles
Tél. : 02 279 53 20
Fax : 02 279 53 29
archives@brucity.be
http://archives.bruxelles.be

Happy Hunting!
http://thebelgianresearchers.blogspot.com/

The Belgian Archives Online

2010-11-22T03:44:00.001-05:00

In February 2009, FamilySearch began uploading digital images of Belgian civil records onto its Record Search Pilot site, enabling genealogists researching their Belgian ancestry to access original records right from their homes.

It was however short lived as the Belgian Archives quickly requested access to the public be restricted. I won't lie when I say that it was a terrible blow to researchers, especially since the creation of the index for these Belgian records had just begun.

What a treat it was to have been one of the first countries online!!!
Even if it was short lived.

On November 18, FamilySearch made an announcement about having added another 15 million names to its site. Many of them are linked to digital images of original records.
Dick Eastman composed an article on the subject, to which I would like to refer you: A Lot to Be Thankful For

I have had the opportunity of using this wonderful new tool and can't wait till more is uploaded.

While researching on microfilms at our local Family History Center, I have learned to appreciate paging through the reels and finding information in documents that apparently did not fit in my direct lines. Actually that has helped me more than once in stumbling onto great-grandparents I had not found on my direct-line ancestors' records. So when I saw the "Browse the images" option, I jumped on it with both feet.

It didn't take me long to realize that - and that is by no means a criticism, but rather motivation for me to help more - however incredibly wonderful it is, using the browse feature is slow and tedious.

Belgian registers usually have one index at the end of each year.
Some group all the records into one annual book with three indexes at the end of the year, in other words, the records are divided into three parts (sometimes 4):
1. Births,
2. (Marriage Publications - which have no index),
3. Marriages,
4. Deaths.

On a microfilm reader, you just crank up the wheel, find the index, locate the name you are looking for, then if you find something that is relevant to your search, you backtrack (or go forward if the index is at the beginning of the year) to the right page.
It is tedious but I have found this method very efficient.

On the computer, the process is more or less the same, except it is more or less slow depending on your computer's ability to handle the image but also on your internet connection.
And the big question comes up: "Where is the right image?"

You soon learn that you do not need to thumb through each page if you don't want to. You can skip a few forwards and backwards, pretty much in the same way that you would crank up the microfilm reader's wheel forwards and back.

So what has this taught me?
It has taught me the reason why it is so vital to work on the indexing of all these images.
We are incredibly blessed to be able to use this 'browsing' system in the first place but how much easier it would be if all we needed to do is type in a name and narrow down the search.

HOW can this be done?
Through FamilySearch Indexing

Some people have been unhappy with me for getting on my soapbox and encouraging others to get involved with the Indexing program.
This site is for my voice, so I will shout it from the roof tops and as loud as I can.

GET INVOLVED!

There are so many records to index out there!
The goal of FamilySearch is to digitize all the microfilms that are in the granite vault and to create an index that will enable people to better use these images to research their roots.

There are many English records to work on, but there are records from everywhere to work on too. I have worked on census records and vital records of several countries and what i find is that it is easier for me to read those whose languages I am most familiar with.

My first experience with this came when we were working on the 1880 US Census.
I had come across a name that, no matter how I looked at it, I was unable to make sense of.
The handwriting was not even the problem. It was actually beautiful.
So, I turned to another indexer who was working on something else and asked her what she thought it was. Without hesitation she said "Felicity" and sure enough once she had said it I could see it too.

There is a need for multilingual people to help.
Not only because you understand the text you are looking at but because you will be more familiar with the names and more likely to recognize them, especially when the handwriting is difficult to decipher. What is hard for you becomes impossible for another and this can affect the accuracy of the end product.

Now, this sounds like the proverbial carrot, I know, but FamilySearch has made good on their promises and will on this too, I have no doubt. "Qualified Indexers" will be given access to databases that are otherwise closed to the public per request of the Archive owner.
A point system has been set up for this purpose.
Some things still have to be worked out at this point (for the Belgian project anyway) but I truly believe it will happen.

Come and help with the Belgian project. You will find greater satisfaction working on this project
- if you are Belgian
or
- if you read/speak Dutch, French or German fluently

Contact Jean Huysmans and tell him you want to help.

If you want to help with other projects, visit FamilySearch Indexing and click on
"Get started"

There are tutorials to help you learn how to index.
The program is a free download (it is a big program, best downloaded with a high speed connection)

You don't have to go it alone.
There is a feature in the program that enables you to share your work with someone to have them take a look at what you're doing - if you want them to.

Otherwise, the system is simple, with line-by-line instructions right into the form lay-out.

You work as much or as little as you want.
There is no expected quota you must meet.
The batches are small enough that you can index them within 30 minutes but you don't have to do a whole batch in one sitting if you don't have time.
Just close the program and pick up where you left off later
You have a whole week to submit your work.
If you run into a time problem and can not finish, the batch is automatically returned and someone else can pick up where you left off. No questions asked. No bad feelings.

If you are looking to make a difference... consider taking a bite out this elephant...
The task is HUGE and requires many hands.
Many people are already involved but more means faster access but it also means "lighter load" for those who are indexing already.

http://thebelgianresearchers.blogspot.com/

Try FamilySearch "record Search Pilot"

2010-10-01T13:24:00.007-04:00

There is great news on the horizon, even though there is still room for improvement (like making the images for the Belgian records available!!!)

If you have family from Luxemburg (the Grand Duchy), you will be delighted to learn that the Civil Registers have been uploaded online and you can 'scroll' , more like page through, the records as if you were sitting at a microfilm reader in a Family history Center or in another library.
Yes, and it's not just for Luxemburg. There are other countries available too.
We who have BELGIAN only lines, will have to be content (for now) to have access to the index and continue to hope the Archives will let up and realize this would open their archives to the world not make them lose patrons... quite the opposite I think..
Anyway... here is what you do...

Go to www.familysearch.org

Under the heading "Search Records", choose "Record Search Pilot"
You will be redirected to a page where all the product of FamilySearch Indexing is uploaded.
There is quite a bit of information on Belgium already and hopefully images sometime in the future... )=
Click on "Search or Browse our record collections"
You will see a map come up. Click on Europe or choose from the pull down menu "All regions (48)"

Three choices for Belgium: Births, deaths, marriages - indexes, no images ... yet...

This should be exciting to those who have ancestors who lived on the Luxemburg border as there was often a lot of movement between countries... You might find family members already...
Have fun!

PS: Allow me another pitch from on top of my soap box to invite you to index with FS Indexing... It will never cost you a penny to access the records online, and that's really how it should be.

http://thebelgianresearchers.blogspot.com/

Are you Looking in Hoogstraten?

2010-02-20T11:42:00.011-05:00

I can't remember when I discovered this site but I rediscovered it this morning
http://www.erfgoedbankhoogstraten.be/

I still don't speak Dutch and so I struggle with the contents of this site, therefore, the only way for me to learn what is behind each tab, is to just click...

Under Beeldbank, I discovered pictures: postcards of streets, church, nuns, people of all sorts.
You can even do a search if you prefer to not browse through the different pages.
Just type in a word in the box above the list of selections then press "zoeken".

Under Filmbank, I found old video clips. The quality of the video isn't great but we have all gotten spoiled with HD, let's face it.

Under Erfgoedbibliotheek you can do a search through a series of publications.

The Geluidsbank contains interviews relating to events listed chronologically.

The next tab tells you about the Stedelijk Museum Hoogstraten - of course in Dutch, so if you don't know the language and really want to know what is being said, you might want to do a quick "Free Text" translation at www.worldlingo.com
There is a tab for the museum collections under Collectie.
and the Educatief tab tells about programs offered by the museum.

The Forum is not very active but you can always leave a call for help.

The most valuable tab for the researcher is the one I have kept for last: Genealogie

There you will find 28 links to pdf files containing images of actual birth, marriage and death records from 1797 to 1812.
You can search through them as you see the search menu above:
- by name
- by birth place
- by birth year
- by year of death
- by place of death
or you can save these files to your pc and read through them one page at a time.

Remember that this information is made available to you free of charge and should remain such.
These records may be hard to read so be ready to refer back to the blog article on tackling old records or take this paleography course online to help you extract the information from these original records. This course is for English records but it will help you build confidence in your ability to decipher the old handwriting.

Remember too that the Hoogstraten site is a growing site, so go back periodically to see what has been added.

Happy Hunting!!!

http://thebelgianresearchers.blogspot.com/

Belgian Archives Update

2010-02-05T18:54:00.005-05:00

Don't get your hopes up, access is still limited to the Archives buildings in Belgium BUT
the article they posted to announce the latest released registers is well worth becoming acquainted with. You should be able to apply the same concept to other villages and make use of your local Family History Centers, even if the staff is not up to par with Belgian research.

These latest records are the 1784 census of the Saint Catherine Parish in Bonlez (Brabant). Census records served to figure how much tax each individual should pay. (view example)
It symbolizes Austrian emperor Joseph II's political outlook (enlightened despotism). An earlier local census was taken in Brussels in 1783, but the 1784 census was held in all the Austrian Netherlands.

Contrary to other census, this one did not have any fiscal purpose. The government simply wanted to get a basic idea of the population: an exact count was not necessary. They asked parish priests, through the bishops, to make lists of all those who resided within their parishes, thus given the priests an increased administrative role and holding them responsible for the correctness of the statistical data sent back to Brussels and Vienna. It is important to note that not all priests took this task seriously. The 1784 census must be considered more carefully than previous ones as there was no constraint to give correct answers (no penalty in case of errors).
The Bonlez census is a good example.
When comparing the Bonlez Parish register with the one Private Counsel's official record (Kept at the Archives de l’État in Bruxelles, Conseil Privé, Période autrichienne, c.1340 (19 June 1784)), we notice a difference in the final count of parishers. In the second part, there were 13 people too many. Where is the error? in the numbers sent to Brussels or in the infomration recorded byt the Private Counsel?
For more information on the 1784 census, you can check the works of BRUNEEL (C.), DELPORTE (L.) et PETITJEAN (B.), "Le dénombrement général de la population des Pays-Bas autrichiens en 1784", Centre de services et réseau de recherche. Statistiques historiques en Belgique. Heuristique, inventoriage rédaction et interprétation, Archives de l’Etat, Brussels, 1996.
For the Duchy of Brabant Demography, check COSEMANS (A.)'s work: "De bevolking van Brabant in de 17de en 18de eeuw", Commission Royale d’Histoire, Brussels, 1939.

As I was checking further into this, I also discovered some really nice online literature that can add to your research, unfortunately not in English.

I also discovered a couple of historical sites you may enjoy if you read French:
One on the history of the Ban de Meefe,
and another on the Ban d'Olne

Hope this stirs up your interest as much as it did mine.
For access to the links, visit the Blog's home page at
http://thebelgianresearchers.blogspot.com/

A New Decree shortens Cemetery Leases in the Walloon Region

2010-02-02T04:36:00.008-05:00

A few years ago, we presented an article in Belgian Laces (BL102) that dealt with the preservation of funeral patrimony. At the time (2005), Xavier Deflorennes, Mr. Cemetery was documenting these Walloon Region cemeteries.

To the horror of many American researchers, used to visiting cemeteries to find information about their departed loved ones, in Belgium, graveyards are not enduring as they are here.
Granted there are many graves here that can no longer be deciphered due the weather but the sexton usually has a record of everyone buried in the cemetery, even where there are no stones.

That is the case for our family's Adeline Cattin who is said to have taught French to Cole Porter, a Peru (IN) native. After taking photographs of every tombstone in the cemetery where she is buried I still never found her and so I contacted the cemetery's office and sure enough, they knew exactly where she was. This gives our family the option to either repair or replace the stone over the grave.

In Belgium, due to lack of space - not lack of heart - graves are leased not purchased.
If, or rather when, the lease expires, the graves are reused.
This can be very disheartening, even disturbing, to the descendants of emigrants who may travel to Belgium hoping to find their ancestors' grave.
Leases can be renewed but when the family leaves the area, they may not have any idea that the lease is due for renewal... And thus, without wanting to sound calloused, new 'occupants' soon fill these graves.

Up until yesterday the lease was up to 50 years. The new rule sets a minimum of 10 years and a maximum of 30. However, should the grave fall into disrepair or show signs of being abandoned, the local administration has the right to advise the families that their loved ones have a year before being 'evicted'. These warnings would go out on All Saints Day, providing a whole year before taking any action. As Xavier Deflorennes remarked when interviewed on the matter, before WWII, people visited cemeteries daily and maintained their loved ones' graves. But times have changed and most graves are only visited once a year on November 1st, All Saints Day. Posting the notices at that time will ensure that the occasional grave site visitor will find the notice and take action. Notices would only go out however if a site has not be maintained for a period of 10 years and is declared 'abandoned'.

The purpose of this decree is to enable towns to better manage their cemeteries, whether it be past (Preservation of funeral patrimony), present (space management) or future (expanding cemetery and crematory sites), while taking into account the needs of the living.

Preservation work will continue: graves dating to before 1945 will be better protected by putting in place a procedure to determine the historic value of a particular monument (former mayors, architectural features, local artists...)

In an effort to help parents grieve the loss of a child during pregnancy (between the 106th and 180th day), the decree gives them the option to bury the foetus.
A special section is also to be dedicated for the burial of infants.
Part of this decree will also address the need for the indigent to have a decent burial (no cost) and for all recognized religious beliefs to be honored, regardless of origins or status.

3,500 cemeteries in the Walloon Region are affected by this decree, of which 5% of these are in bad shape. The decree also fosters the development of ossuaries.

Many people have dedicated their time to helping preserve the special grave sites in Belgium:
My favorite one is Lescimetieres.com (not limited to Belgium)

After you click on "Entrez" you will see the option to -
look at the "Les Photos"
That section gives you access to different types of pictures, including two tours, one of which is the Simenon Tour (Parcours Simenon) that takes you to the grave sites of people who were part of famous author Georges Simenon's life

At the top in the middle however, you will see "Paris", "Nice" and "Ailleurs", which means "Other places", where you will have 4 choices:
- France
- Belgium
- Europe
- the rest of the world

Obviously this site is far from complete but it really contains some beautiful pictures of beautiful graves.

You can also read the History of different cemeteries. The Belgian ones are in:
Robermont, Laeken, Sainte-Walburge, Aubel, Neuville-en-Condroz and Bruxelles

My grandmother's ashes were scattered in a lawn at the Robermont Cemetery.
I am grateful that Joseph Beaujean took the time to take a picture of that lawn.
I had not known until I saw the picture how powerful an effect it would have on me, but it did.

It is interesting to note that between 1979 and 2008, the number of cremation in Belgium has risen from 5,287 to 48,418 according to a statistics study
I guess I won't have to worry about my grandmother's remains being moved.

Another site with funeral monuments is on a Blog "Images de Belgique"

Food for thought anyway...

http://thebelgianresearchers.blogspot.com/

More Funeral Cards

2010-02-01T17:31:00.003-05:00

Try this link for new funeral cards.
http://www.pues.be/

http://thebelgianresearchers.blogspot.com/

BUMMER!

2010-01-30T02:54:00.010-05:00

This morning I opened a promising email from the Archives in Belgium.
It seemed to promise the reader access to online parish record images, and since I have been working with FamilySearch Indexing's Belgian project, and have been aware that the Archives had not wanted to release the images online, I was really anxious to see exactly what was happening.

Registres paroissiaux numérisés
Province de Flandre orientale
> Arrondissement d’Audenarde.
Province du Brabant wallon
> Province du Brabant wallon.
Province de Luxembourg
> Arrondissement de Marche-en-Famenne et canton de Saint-Hubert.
Province de Namur
> Province de Namur A-L.
> Province de Namur M-Z.
> Ville de Namur.
NOUVEAU: Province d'Anvers
> Province d'Anvers.
> Première partie: 493 registres issus de 47 paroisses.
> Un aperçu général des registres est consultable sur notre site. Pour la consultation des images, rendez-vous dans une des salles de lecture des Archives de l'État.

I followed the link to the Brabant Province with high expectations.
There was a LOT of villages that would be of great interest to the descendants of Belgian emigrants:
Archennes (Grez-Doiceau), Autre-Eglise (Ramillies), Baisy-Thy (Genappe), Baulers, Beauvechain, Bomal, Bossut, Dongelberg, Folx-les-Caves, Jodoigne, Marilles, Melin, Neerheylissem, to name but a few...
Now, that was impressive.

I have ancestors in Jauche, so I clicked on the link to check out those registers.
A new page opened showing me that they had digitized the St Martin Parish registers and these were listed under sub folders links:

Jauche (Orp-Jauche), paroisse Saint Martin
+ Registres Paroissiaux. Actes
+ Registres Paroissiaux. Actes de baptêmes
+ Registres Paroissiaux. Actes de décès / sépultures
+ Registres Paroissiaux. Actes de mariages
+ Registres Paroissiaux. Extra

Since I was just exploring and not really researching, I just picked one of the sub-links to see where it would lead me and a folder opened with yet another link, so I clicked too and this time was given a new series of sub-folders obviously grouping several series of records.
I hurried up further and I waited and waited and waited... nothing...
The link just opened but nothing came up...

I was using Firefox, so I thought maybe I needed Internet Explorer for it to work so I opened explorer and followed the same steps and...
Nothing...
Now that was a huge let down!

But anyone who knows me knows I can be quite tenacious and so I started clicking on different sub folders. Maybe it was just a fluke... Maybe the folder I was looking at had a bad link...
Nope...
The same thing happened with all the folders, for all the areas, except for one: Archennes (Brabant), the very first one...
So... forgive me for teasing you by showing you what apparently none of us out here in cyberspace will be able to use since these will only be accessible in the Belgian Archives buildings... What a shame... This sure could have been a tremendous help for many people who do not have a way to go to Belgium or hire someone to go to the Archives for us.

So... back to me teasing you,
The Archennes Parish records contain 4 sub folders:
- Christenings
- Deaths/Burials
- Marriages
- Miscellaneous (communions, etc)

When I clicked on the first link, the folder opened and I clicked it again and had a choice between 4 more folders:
- n° 3/1_C-0001-r - 19/02/1597 - 20/10/1745
- n° 3/2_A-0001-r - 11/10/1745 - 28/09/1796
- n° 3/3_A-0001-r - 15/01/1794 - 02/11/1795
- n° 3/3_A-0005-r - 24/01/1795 - 02/11/1795
I clicked on the first one and was redirected to the actual register... Very nice...

Unfortunately, even though they let you turn the pages, to some extent, and it looked for a minute like they may have disabled the features that would enable you to read the record better, but on the retry the features worked and you can enlarge the image so as to be able to read it.

This really bummed me out so I wrote them an email to ask them how to use the site and tell them how disappointed I was going to be if it turned out to be just a preview of what is available in their buildings, in Belgium... as I had looked forward to preparing an article for the blog to help English-speaking researchers learn to use their site.

They are asking for volunteers too, to help create an index of all these images, through the Demogen project. I for one will stick with FamilySearch Indexing. At least those of us who are indexing will be able at some point to access even the records held by archives who do not want to release them to the public at large. And you know... that's only fair...
Not that people, especially volunteers, ever help in the hope to get something in return but where is the incentive for those of us who can not go to Belgium to the Archives buildings?

I will continue to hope the Belgian Archives will see the need to open their records to the world.
This would defuse the networks of people and societies who are generating outrageous profits from hogging their resources or selling them to the highest bidder.
Records should not be held hostage in that manner!
They should be accessible to all those who are seeking out their ancestors.

So... Here it is... The proverbial carrot that should bring people to the Archives buildings...
Won't be me any time soon... Traveling to Belgium is enticing but not within my budget...
Too bad... This would have been a wonderful tool to work with.

I look forward to the results of the work done for FamilySearch Indexing on the Belgian records. To think they had the records already online and were asked to remove them... So many hopes were dashed that day!
If you have not used the Record Search option on FamilySearch, let me encourage you to check it out. The database is growing and contains amazingly diverse records from a variety of countries and ALL FREE.

If you want to help with the Belgian projects, you will have to contact Jean Huysmans, the project manager, directly as it has not yet been released to the bigger pool of indexers.
Each project has its own set of directions available online with tutorials, as well as direct access to the director who can help you understand what to do.
Be aware that a fluent knowledge of Dutch and/or French is required to help with these projects.
If this does not make a good fit for you, consider the many other projects available through the main program. For that all you need to do is to sign up at www.familysearchindexing.org and download the software right from the site.

Anyone going to Belgium... let us know what you think of this new tool they have in their Archives building, would you?

For access to all links, please visit our Blog page at
http://thebelgianresearchers.blogspot.com/

The Red Star Line Museum

2009-12-02T01:43:00.009-05:00

A couple of weeks ago I received the following information from Charlotte Op de Beeck who works for the Red Star Line Museum in Antwerp, Belgium.

In 2006 the South Street Seaport Museum in New York held a 6 months exhibit Antwerp-America:
The Red Star Line and
the Paintings of Eugeen Van Mieghem, 1870-1935
(see Belgian Laces #107 and also the Van Mieghem Museum)
It is about that time that word reached us of the plan to turn an old warehouse into an immigration museum in Antwerp and we had hoped to do a follow up but never really had the chance. Maybe this message will provide a renewed opportunity to learn about the museum but also about its website. Here is the message from Mrs. Charlotte Op de Beeck:

"Belgian Red Star Line Museum looking for emigrant photographs, memorabilia and stories (1873-1934, Antwerp to New York) Between 1873 and 1934 the legendary shipping company Red Star Line transported more than two million passengers to America. Poor European emigrants in search of the American Dream, but also affluent passengers traveling for business or pleasure left for New York. They departed from the city of Antwerp (Belgium), where the port warehouses of the Red Star Line were situated. To this day those Red Star Line warehouses are preserved. For many passengers they represented the last stop on the European mainland. It was there that, just before their departure, the emigrants traveling in third class underwent a medical examination and were disinfected, while clerks scrutinized their documents. The Red Star Line buildings are protected monuments. They are part of the communal memory of innumerable new Americans. They had long been standing empty and were pleading for a new purpose. In the spring of 2012 the new Red Star Line Museum/People on the Move will open its doors at this historic location. It will be a place of remembrance, experience, debate and research into international mobility, both past and present. The story of Red Star Line and its passengers will be brought to life once more. Do you have any old Red Star Line items such as postcards, luggage, diaries or photos? Are there travel stories or objects preserved in the family archive? Maybe you too can contribute to the new museum collection. Send an e-mail to redstarline@stad.antwerpen.be or call (+32)3 206 03 50. Perhaps your family item will find its way into the future museum... All information welcome! More information at http://www.redstarline.be."

The company's main ports of call in the United States were New York and Philadelphia, and in Belgium, Antwerp. The Wikipedia article on the Red Star Line offers some beautiful pictures as well as a short history of the line.

The Red Star Line Museum website is available in Dutch, French and English and offers a section solely on the Belgian emigrants, although no searchable database of passengers.

A short movie by Mario de Munck, Red Star Line - People on the Move, will no doubt interest the researcher, by providing the unique texture only a video can give.

More Memorial sites

2009-11-23T17:11:00.006-05:00

Annette Biazot was so kind as to refer me to two other Memorial sites you will want to check out.
The first is the Memorial Genweb linked with FranceGenWeb.

On this site you will find a database of monuments to the dead, soldiers and civilians, French and of various nationalities, who were killed or disappeared during war time.
As of 23 Nov 2009, the site numbers 2,755,906 entries.

You might be uncomfortable exploring a site in French, but it usually becomes rather self-explanatory once you see what the different buttons open up to your view.
Under "Base Memorial", you will find a Map of France, divided into Departements, of varied shades of blue. A quick look at the legend will tell you that the darker the blue the closer to being complete the database is.
On the left side of the screen, you will find three types of search
1. The "Recherche par nom" require that you give at least a name and nationality or cemetery location:
Nom - Last Name
Prenom - Given Name
You can check the box located beneath these fields if you are unsure of the spelling
Pick which war or leave the search on the default setting - which is Tous = All
Pick the location (Situation du monument) you want to check out or simply look for the person according to his/her nationality (Nationalite de la victime).
Then click "Chercher" = Search
2. If you have specific information about the soldier's unit, use "Recherche par unite" and type in the unit nunber
3. "Recherche par Conflit" will allow a search specific to the war, beginning as far back as the Hundred Year War and as close as the war in Afghanistan, including the American Civil War and the American Revolutionary War.

The complete listing of databases can be browsed as well by clicking under "Voir Aussi" at the bottom of the column. Your second option is by file number

You can narrow your browsing by selecting a Country under "Par Pays"
As of today there were 121 entries in a total of 100 villages
Click on a letter at the top of the page and pick a town where you want to look further.

Pick a monument to look at closer and see what names were listed on it then pick a name for detailed information on the individual.

Let's go back to the main page and take a look at the other buttons. Here again, some trial and error is likely to be the easiest way for you to learn to handle the site.

- "Base 1914-1918": under construction; already counts 394, 524 soldiers out of 1,300,000 along with 4,603 individuals pictures.

- "Lieux 1914-1918": 16,129 locationsas of 24 September 2009.

- "Deportes 1939-1945": Individuals deported between 1939 and 1945 - still under construction, so be preapred not to find what you are looking four.

- "Monuments regimentaires": 870 photos from 516 communes.

- "Cartes postales anciennes": 3,087 old cards from 2,491 communes along with 2,380 recent photos ( ie 77.1 %) - The images are categorized by Departement/country and by commune and a link redirects you to the corresponding abstract.

- "Galerie photos": slideshow of soldiers
- "Fiches a Verifier" invites you to check out data and submit supplemental information

The other Memorial site is more specifically designed to find deportees who died in concentration camps: Les Deportes Decedes en Deportation

The Ministère des Anciens Combattants (Ministry of Old Soldiers) estimates that 115,500 people died while having been deported. It is plain that this research is a long and tedious process.

You will be most interested in clicking on the buttons that follow:

- Les Deportes nes dans le reste du monde: Foreign born
- Les Deportes tries par ordre alphabetique: sorted by alphabetical order

Ex:

JO1988p13038-13039

Dinesman née Léwy (Alice)

le 12 mai 1892 à Anvers (Belgique)

décédée le 2 novembre 1943 à Auschwitz (Pologne)

et non le 28 octobre 1943 à Drancy (Seine)..

As you can see by the maps below, there are many entries for Belgium.

Hope this can prove useful information.
Happy Hunting!

Bel-Memorial

2009-11-18T14:58:00.007-05:00

Are you looking for Belgians who were killed during WWI or WWII?
Not sure exactly where they might have died?
Try this web page: Bel-Memorial
This bilingual site (Dutch - French) is dedicated to the memory of those who died during these conflicts.

A total of 1012 monuments are listed in the database to date.

You can browse through a province, or you can search through a complete alphabetical listing of all the towns in Belgium that are available.
To do this, just click on "Toute la Belgique" (French) or "Heel Belgie" (Dutch)

But you are not limited to Belgian memorials, you might also like to check out some that are located in Austria, Canada, France, Germany, Great Britain, Lithuania, Luxemburg, Netherlands, Poland, and Switzerland. Click on "Etranger" or Buitenland"

The sad story of Camille Coquette whose mother died wondering where her son was buried seems to have stirred conflicting emotions over why it took 93 years for them to solve this mystery, but as researchers we know that sometimes these things happen and what a treat to have a place to look now!
Camille Coquette's grave was found in Colchester, England, along side of 3 other Belgians

An easier way might be to search the Name database: Tous les noms - Alle namen
for a complete alphabetical listing of all the dead found so far.

I want to thank Jean-Paul Leburton for pointing me to this web page. It is really well done, complete with personal stories and an impressive list of participants and links to more similar sites.

Those who paid the ultimate price to keep their fellow man free deserve to be remembered.

The next few weeks will also be filled with events commemorating the 65th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge.

You will also want to visit the official website of tourist information for the Belgian Luxemburg

Let us never forget...
and may our hearts be always full of gratitude for the sacrifice made by these brave men!

Are you looking for a short cut?

2009-07-12T07:18:00.004-04:00

This new site GenWalBru will give it to you!

It covers the southern part of Belgium and Brussels
An alphabetical listing of localities will redirect you to the site where that town's particular records can be found online.

This is a brand new site announced this morning by Michel Toussaint who has done extensive indexing for the Bouillon area.
Its creation stems in the wish to create a place where people could find easy access to FREE records online

In the column to the left you will have a choice of selections.

You will find the locality listing under "Depouillements"

Under "Bibliotheque, they have placed downloadable books the researchers should find interesting, including two on witch hunts by Abbé C.G Roland
- Sorcellerie dans le comté de Namur: Début de l'époque moderne (1509-1646)
- Sorcellerie à Noville-les Bois: Epidémie de sorcellerie au début du 17ième siècle

Look-ups are available for other books, concentrating on particular surnames: ROBIN, ANCIAUX, NICOLAS, BROGNIET.

"Fichiers Utiles" will contain a growing number of items you should find helpful too.

and do you remember talking about paleography?
They have a page dedicated to it and invite you to submit your questions to their mailing list: GenWalBru Yahoogroup

On that same mailing list they welcome requests for help with translations as well.

Sounds like this was well worth sharing with everyone.
Thank You Michel Toussaint!

Tackling OLD records.

2009-06-30T13:41:00.013-04:00

As I was looking through my Favorite links to share with you I saw one many English speaker probably don't know about but which leads to an amazing site, that of Andre Comeliau's Genealogies au Pays de Herve.
It is not a fancy site by any means but does it ever contain amazing things!
I don't know how good you are at using notarial records, but those are the records you need to use once you have run out of parish records. They should probably be used in combination with these parish (church) records to help confirm what is guessed from them as they can be filled with names and not necessarily relationships.
They can be almost impossible to use if you already have a hard reading the newer records' handwriting.
A Paleography course would probably be useful and there are several available for free online.
Paleography is the art of analyzing and reading handwriting. Some have called it a science but it is better described as 'an art with some scientific props'.
It boils down to decoding texts for which the handwriting is no longer familiar.
Someone who has indexed records will know exactly what I'm talking about as even more recent handwritings are difficult to decipher. So we look for familiar words and determine what each letter looks like and thus learn to read these old texts.
Most researchers don't take this much further but some do and what luck it is for the rest of us!
One such person is Andre Comeliau. Others have followed in his footsteps and the results of their work is available online FOR FREE.
The original records are, for the most part, available at your local Family History Center, through the use of the FamilySearch catalog. The centers can order the microfilms for you, which you can then view there for a period of time.
Handwriting also changes with the language spoken.
One wonderful site you will want to try is "Medieval Writings" where you will have your choice between English, French, German, Italian, and Spanish tutorials.

I have ancestors in Petit Rechain and will show you here that these church records dating back to the 1700s are already hard to read although the letters are easier to make out.

All this to try and explain how valuable these internet pages are to the researcher who has little or no experience reading these old records.

Andre Comeliau's page starts with a complete listing of all the surnames found on his site, which contains about 18,000 couples from the Herve region (Herve, Charneux, Thimister, Battice, Clermont etc) from 1500 to 1730.
Select the surname that interests you and click on it
This will take you to a more detailed listing from which you will choose the family that has your attention.
By clicking on the family you will be able to access a complete extraction of the record(s) found on them on the site

Here is an example

Notice that the husband is on the left and the wife on the right
The asterisk in the back of each spouses's name will redirect you to the respective individual alphabetical listing.
Notice that the wife's parents are listed under her name. If one or both parents are in blue, you will be able to click to go up a generation.
Children born to the couple are listed further down.
In this case, you see that Marguerite Joseph Largefeuille was christened on 20/09/1759 - or the 20th of September 1759 - her parents' names follow and her godparents are listed as well (Susceptores)
A notarial record is also completely transcribed here along with references.

Notice too the "21" on the right.. If you click on it you will be redirected to the complete source listing and more precisely to the one pertaining to the record you are looking at.

More of these notarial records can be found at Source et Archives dans les anciens Duche du Limbourg et Comte de Dalhem.

The records there are used following a similar pattern.
Click on the name of the locality that interests you, then on the right, notice you have a choice between different types of documents.

I clicked on Mortier and only have one type of documents available, the "Cour de Justice, Oeuvres". The left side tells you how many volumes have been transcribed but if you try clicking on there nothing happens
Click on "Cour de justice" on the right
At the top of the next page you will have to click on the pull-down menu to select which register you want to look at

and the whole book will be revealed before you, all typewritten!

That site will take you to several others that are similar in their contents:
- My Barthelemy Ancestors (click on Entrez to enter the site)
- Samuel Defauwes' Geneadef which also contains valuable transcriptions

including a link that can trace this lineage back to Adam, yes Adam!
(As you know anyone who can trace their ancestry back to Charlemagne should be able to link to this line)

His transcriptions are found under "Copie d'actes" and represent several volumes of notarial records from Aubel (1568 to 1644), Charneux, Clermont-sur-Berwinne (1435-1711), Herve (1523-1549), for an impressive total number of extracted records of 12124!

Another link takes you to the Netherlands: the Digital Bronbewerkingen Nederland in Belgie
which contains Belgian records as well (and is accessible in English)

Just click in the left column on "internet" under the province of your choice, then look on the right for things you can use.
There is also a link to a WONDERFUL mailing list - mostly in French but there are English and Dutch speakers there too - HerveGeneNet, where members have also uploaded records they have shared freely. You only have to subscribe to the group (free).

I hope this has given you a new idea of where you can find records.
Don't be afraid of exploring and use these resources to help you tackle your own notarial records if none have been transcribed which can help you in your research.
And once you have found them, help someone else by sharing your knowledge!
Happy Hunting!

Online History Books

2009-06-19T17:15:00.012-04:00

This morning my attention was redirected to a very interesting site.
Granted its content may make it difficult for the non-French speaker but it is worth a look if you have family in the provinces of West Flanders and of Hainaut.
The borders between Belgium and France were often crossed back and forth and you may find the information of great value: NordNum.

This site holds the work of a regional cooperative effort of digitization.
1. the Bibliotheque Centrale brings collections of rare local histories while
2. the Bibliotheque of the Centre de Recherche en Histoire de l'Europe du Nord-Ouest (CRHENO) specializes in regional history and collects all works published on the Nord/Pas-de-Calais, Picardy, Belgium and the Netherlands. This includes rare technical books on the mining industry, the textile industry, gas, electricity and transportation.
There is a dual purpose in creating this site. The local educators had requested access to these texts but since many of them are brittle, it was therefore unwise to handle them manually. The digitization process will enable access to them by a greater number of people.
This project is connected with the Libris project, database of local historical images
Their aim is to make 100 titles a year available online while maintaining high standards.
Since 2003, when they began this work, they have been able to digitize over 250 publications. At present they offer 370 searchable books.

Now, you ask, HOW do we see what's on there???
On the left side of the page, you have the choice between browsing through the catalog or doing a search.
Click on "Recherche" to do a search or even an "Advanced search" (Boolean) by clicking on "avancee". I never recommend a narrow search unless you know exactly what you are looking for. I always cast a wide net with a computer search then narrow down the search a little at a time. The buttons "Titres" (titles), "Auteurs" (authors) and "Sujets" (subjects) will enable you to narrow down your search.
Click "Rechercher" to start the search or "Reinitialiser" to clear it.

Click on "Catalogue" to browse and whether you browse or search, when you get a title you want to look at closer, just click on the results and either read the book online or download it (telecharger) completely at no charge.

Click in the left margin to go to a specific chapter or page or simply turn the page by clicking on the arrow at the top of the page.

The christening records of Ypres are shown here

If you want to explore a little more click under "Partenaires".
I was particularly taken with the IRHiS site which offers the download of their newsletters, "Cahiers de l'IRHiS"
Click in the middle of the page to enter the site, then scroll down and find the icon to continue. and you will will all the issues (2006-current) they have published, downloadable into pdf files.
I have downloaded several issues and intend to read them as soon as I get off here.
Till next week!

Family Histories and Index on a Variety of Personal sites

2009-06-08T11:35:00.023-04:00

In my early internet days I had the opportunity to meet a great many interesting people thanks to the Belgium-Roots mailing list that Georges Picavet created.
http://lists.rootsweb.ancestry.com/index/intl/BEL/BELGIUM-ROOTS.html
One such person was Jozef Smits. He was a scientist besides having a great interest in history and genealogy and we more or less locked horns on a technical word I had used in a post on Belgium Roots. http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/belgium-roots/1998-10/0909229315
Luckily we made it past this silliness and were able to forge a good relationship.

Jos had a "sidekick" with a real knack for getting into trouble with his English translation: Jose Schoovaert, a comic book artist, painter, historian.
Jos Smits left us suddenly in 2007 but his son recently reopened his webpage, translated into English for the most part: http://www.drsmits.be/translation.html
Jos wrote several histories on his family:
* - "De Familie SMITS in 't Land van Rijen", Edegem 1977.
* - "De Familie FAES uit 't Land van Rijen", I, Berchem-Edegem 1983.
* - "De Familie FAES uit 't Land van Rijen", II, Berchem-Edegem 1984.
* - "De Familie VAN DER KE(I)LEN", I, Edegem 1992.
* - "De Familie VAN DER KE(I)LEN", II, Edegem 1997.
* - "De Familie OLIVIERS, Edegem 2001.
* - “De Familie LIPPENS, Edegem 2006.* - "De aloude Heerlijkheid Wommelgem", Wommelgem 1989.
They are all made available at his web site - under "Boeken" - in Dutch for the most part but these are being translated into English.

Guy just created a new page on our site to accommodate the upload of such histories.
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~inbr/servicesAmVar.htm
On the right side, just click on Family Histories.
We have just uploaded the first one:
The story of Fons DeRoeck and Josephine Debot (Letters from Wausaukee to Antwerp 1887 - 1937) :
written for the Gazette van Detroit by Dominique Van Rentergem, Antwerp, Belgium

I hope we can also link Andre Bodart's site (in French) shortly.
http://delacharlerie.monrezo.be/index.htm
His tree can be found on Geneanet at http://gw5.geneanet.org/index.php3?b=socrate5

If you too want to share your stories, please contact us and we will make room for your text or a link to your personal page, whichever is most agreeable with you.

Jose Schoovaert built some sites where to share his knowledge, his art and his love for the Walloon language, which was still spoken fluently by our friends in Wisconsin and in Pennsylvania.
http://belgium.rootsweb.ancestry.com/bel/0wl/jose/map.htm

We partner with several genealogical associations in Belgium, and this one, the Association Genealogique du Hainaut Belge, also provides links to its members' personal pages or to their online genealogies:http://www.aghb.org/index.php?page=memblinks
- You can email the members if you click in the first box.
- You can be redirected to private pages by chosing a name from the second pull-down menu, like "Debaudrenghien", where you will find an extensive history of the Hainaut Province and 8 centuries of the family's history, with coats of arms etc. - Only drawback is that it's not in English but don't let this deter you. Just make use of the online translation software. even though you won't get a perfect translation, it will at least give you the main idea.

- Or you can click on a name from the third pull-down box to access genealogies.
Don't dismiss the "News" section on that site either as they give you links to their new projects. One such project is Philippe Capron's, on Paturages: //sites.google.com/site/paturagesenborinage/Home
This site not only contains local history information but also genealogical data about famous people who have lived in Paturages as well as many other families for whom research data is available: Abrassart, Attenelle, Audin, Ballez, Bertiaux, Blairon, Bouillon, Capiau, Dangre, Delattre, Delhaye, Demarez, Demoustier, Denis, Ducobu, Francois, Gerot, Grandmont, Juste, Lan, Lenglois, Louis, Masse, Maton, Prouveur, Robert, Simon, Tillier, Warenghien.

There are comments on how some names change from one town to another although the families are the same. Good insight to have into the research.

This is also where I found Daniel Duprez' "Ancestralement Votre" site
http://dduprez.be/dour.php
with further information on the Berlemont, Capron, Duprez, Grumiaux families as well as a Search option through indexes for the towns of Dour, Quaregnon and Wasmuel.

Total of indexed records -combined births, marriages and deaths:
Dour: 11,982; Quaregnon: 9,038; Wasmuel: 10,495
and a call to help there as well.

Clicking on the links I also found a searchable index of 262, 353 17th and 18th Liege Province marriages and 70,720 Luxemburg Province marriages. The actual content of this site requires membership in the society that offers it: The Service de Centralisation des Etudes Genealogiques de Demographiques de Belgique http://www.scgd.net/index.php

I never tire of finding new sites but find the process tedious when confronted with languages I don't speak or understand inadequately. Wouldn't it be nice to gather them all in one place?

I'm sure I have barely scratched the surface, please feel free to contact us to add more such wonderful places.

It occurred to me that

2009-05-31T10:48:00.002-04:00

I have not really taken the time to talk much about how to use our website on Rootsweb. It has really grown since we started it a few years ago.
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~inbr/index.html
There you will find
- the complete index to ALL the Belgian Laces issues
- a volume by volume listing of the back issues
- a history of The Belgian Researchers
- the purpose of our organization and how to join
- The Latest News will list the new items posted to the site as well as links to the previous ones posted
- a listing of events happening in Belgium in case you are traveling there or just want to know
- a link to this page, our blog "What's New in Belgian Genealogy?"
and last but by far NOT LEAST...
- free access to a growing number of indexed names thank to the hard work of good will of several of our members, such as:
1. the Belgians in both WW US draft cards
2. the Belgians in a variety of census (we could sure use more help with this)
3. the Belgians in ship lists from 1820 all the way to 1920 (incomplete)
4. the Belgians found in obituaries in several states and Canada
5. the Belgians found in the different Canadian census
6. the Belgians found in other countries (we could sure use your help)
7. Belgian records, either extracted by our members or linked to other sites
The Links also contain access to a variety of websites where to further your research.

We are striving to create a place where you can come and find answers, but we are well aware that the site is only as good as the material sent by those who are willing to share.
If you are aware of new places that we have not listed, please contact me or Guy Gallez so the site can better serve its purpose.

Thanks go to ALL those who are making this website a reality.
Keep up the good work!!

The Mercator Reveals its Secret

2009-05-30T08:12:00.014-04:00

When Yves Heraly sent word that records had been found on the Mercator, I immediately tried to find out more. I will always remember the excursion to Ostend to see the Mercator with my father, back in 1969. We later took our own kids to see that beautiful ship when we returned to Belgium some 20 years later.
The old training ship of the Belgian merchant marine sailed from 1932 to 1960 before being turned into a museum docked in Ostend. His name is, among other things, linked with the return of Father Damiens' remains on May 3, 1936.
During recent restoration work, a cache of archives (4 linear meters) was uncovered from behind the side pocket. The documents will be housed at the Rijksarchief te Bruge (Kingdom Archives at Bruges) along with more uncatalogued records (8 linear meters) on the Mercator - previously held at the Rijksarchief te Beveren (Kingdom Archives at Beveren).
Maurice Vandermaessen hopes to have a first cataloguing of the records done before the end of 2009 but much will depend on the nature of the Beveren Archives and unexpected discoveries.

On May 13, 2009 Maurice Vandermaesen, head of the Flemish Flanders Department followed the transfer in the company of Kris Peeters, Minister-President of Flanders and of Karel Velle, General Archivist of Belgium.

The archives cover the 1928-1960 period:
- books on its building
- technical reports on its 41 cruises
- documents on supplies
- the crew
- the formation of cadets
- weather reports
- medical information
etc.

As a side note, the Catholic church announced in February 2009 that Damien de Veuster, (January 3, 1840, Tremelo, Belgium – April 15, 1889, Kalaupapa, Molokai, Hawaii), born Jozef de Veuster and also known as Blessed Damien of Molokai, Apostle to the Lepers would be canonized a saint on October 11, 2009.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Father_Damien

The fact that his remains were returned to Belgium on the Mercator and that he was first brought to Doel had a great impact on things.
You might also take a look at this site on the Waasland available for free at http://www.beeldbankwaasland.be/

Watch the video below for more details on the discovery - in Dutch
found at http://focus-wtv-kw.rnews.be/nl/regio/wvl-8400/authentieke-brieven-en-logboeken-teruggevonden-in-mercator/Article-1184683226347-1194504455033.html
Just click on the "Video" tab

Finding Your Ancestors Using Netradyle

2009-05-25T00:45:00.003-04:00

Netradyle began in 1993. Its name comes from the combination of the names of three local streams: Nethen, Train and Dyle.

Some similar sites (like GeneaDinant - http://www.genedinant.be/actes/index.php/A) require that you become a member of their organization and that you index 20 to 30 pages before giving access to the records but this is NOT the case with NetraDyle.

If you speak French you should have no trouble finding your way using the site. If you don't speak French, you can download basic word lists from http://www.familysearch.org/eng/search/RG/frameset_rhelps.asp?Page=./research/type/form.asp&ActiveTab=Type
At the top of the page, last line under Document Types, you will see Word List. Some of these are dowloadable in pdf format but it's not the case for French. Just click on the link and you will be redirected to the online version. You can either scroll down the page to the word you want to translate or just click on the alphabet on the top to be taken directly to the first letter of that word.

Once you are familiar with basic words, it will be a piece of cake. If you wish to access the records, you should send an email to netradyle@brutele.be, keeping in mind to limit your request to no more than 5 per person, per week.
At http://netradyle.be/actes/, you will be able to search through

598,513 birth/christening records
148, 167 marriage records
303,485 death/burial records

from Liege, Namur, Hainaut, Walloon Brabant and Vlaams Brabant.

You can also narrow your search to a specific locality in the alphabetical listing.

this is not a complete listing)
Once you have clicked on the town of your choice, you will be able to narrow your choice incrementally in the surnames' alphabetical listing until you find the last name you are looking for and choose the person you want to look at.

This is the birth / christening record of Francois Joseph GENICOT, born in Acosse, province of Liege, on 11 October 1698, son of Dieudonne GENICOT and Catherine FRIZON. Note that the date is not laid out the way it is in the US. The first number represents the day, then the month and the year.
Of course if you have no idea where about the person you are seeking was born, got married or died, Why not try a basic search or even an advanced one:

You can choose whether you are looking for the person or anyone else listed on the record AND you should pick a document type:

Naissances = Births

Mariages = Marriages

Deces= Deaths

Type in a name and see the results.

The Advanced research feature helps you filter out many things more.

The top part notes that you are looking for a first person concerned by this record

The second row asks the same question about a second person interested in this record.

And the third category offers to look for text.

You can truncate the surname you are looking for simply by picking between:

Exact spelling
Letters found at the beginning
Letters found at the end
Letters contained within the surname
Or Soundex.
The fourth category

And you can even narrow the time frame by time in from when to when the program should look.

You can also pick a locality or leave it "Toutes" (ALL) – same with the record type "Tous"

There are many other sites that offer free indexes. I will try and let you know where to find them next time.

Thank You Netradyle for making these records available to all, without asking for anything in return.

Virtual Tour of Waterloo

2009-05-19T22:37:00.005-04:00

When I was a little girl, my father decided to take us to Waterloo. It was a dreary day and the only memory I have of the place is that it was raining and I didn't want to be there.
How I wish I had better understood where I was!
Now that I no longer live in Belgium, I can't just decide to go to Waterloo like my father had done. BUT... modern technology is making miracles happen.
If you have had the same wish to visit Waterloo but just can't make the trip right now... Here is the next best thing.
http://www.waterloo1815.be/en/waterloo/
The site gives you a choice between Dutch, English and French. Just click on the little flag in the upper right corner.

The only glitch I have found is in the Videos section. I could not get any to pull up in the English version of the site. So if that happens to you to, just click on the French or Dutch flag and the choice between a tour of the Battle Field or a video of the 2008 reenactement show up.
The pictures are wonderful. I was impressed with the number of actors participating in this event.

I didn't realize there was a wax museum there as well.
It seems that things have really grown since I was there with my father.

If you had ancestors who lived through that period, I have no doubt you will want to take a look.

You might also want to check out this site:
http://www.fusiliers.net/wargaming20.htm

There is also a blog dedicated to the Battle of Waterloo reenactment: http://napoleon.thepodcastnetwork.com/2007/06/19/1815-battle-of-waterloo-reenactment-draws-thousands/

Watch another video at http://www.battlesceneproductions.net/apps/videos/videos/view/1744367-waterloo-re-enactment-battle-2008

By the way... did you know there were Belgians in both armies?

Here is the monument dedicated to the Belgians who fell.

Are you Looking for Belgian Funeral Notices Online?

2009-05-18T21:06:00.008-04:00

So far this year The Belgian Researchers have lost 2 good friends in Belgium:
- Jean-Jacques Hallaux, in January 2009, founder of Netradyle, http://www.netradyle.be/, who made so much information available to researchers online and whose kindness and generosity with his time was well known.

- Willem Bevernage, who passed away just days ago, at the age of 71. He too made abundant records available online with great deal of kindness to everyone.
http://www.vrijwilligersrab.be/willemcir/klappers.asp (updated link 2/2010)

They both were of the rare breed of those who believed records should be available to all without cost.

Researchers have lost two great allies with their departure. Our hearts go out to their families who feel their loss in a more personal way.

As I was looking for more information on them I tracked down the site I had referred to several months ago. We have since changed our web page and I failed to archive all postings so… it took me a while to find it again.
As I ventured on the different sites, I came across several well worth mentioning here.
The only one I had kept in my links was the international one: http://www.enaos.net/P1200.aspx

This site is in English and simple to use and does have an “Advanced Search” option.
You have the option to set a Default search location by entering your country of residence. This can be changed any time you want. Just be aware that not all families post obituaries for their loved ones.
You should also check out http://www.defunt.be

It seems less encompassing as it was when I first found it as you can only narrow your search to locations in Wallonia and the site is in French only. There is an option to choose a Province, but I can’t see how to use the function properly. Maybe I’m not doing something right…
For the WAVRE, GREZ-DOICEAU, CHAUMONT-GISTOUX, PERWEZ, INCOURT, JODOIGNE, OTTIGNIES-LOUVAIN-LA-NEUVE, CHASTRE area, try http://site.voila.fr/pfdevroye/page4.html - in French
Of course newspapers will also contain obituaries. You can download editions in their pdf format from different sites.
http://www.onlinenewspapers.com/belgium.htm will give you links to Belgian newspaper sites. Some give you access to their online version but the obituaries are usually not accessible without a subscription to their pdf version. These papers can also be purchased by the day.
In “La Libre Belgique” the obituaries (necrologies) are found under “Carnet” in “La Meuse” under “Services” or “Necrologies”.

The newspaper "La Meuse" gives a special access:
http://necro.sudpresse.be/

Also try http://www.souvenez-vous.be/Home.aspx

Another place you can look is at http://www.aghb.org/index.php?page=fpdc
The Association Genealogique du Hainaut Belge has a database with 15,310 deaths. You have to do a search or you can contact one of their members to place a query.
Other Belgian genealogical societies have similar databases too.
http://netradyle.be/actes/ boasts 303,485 deaths/burials (along with Births and marriages – 1,050,165 records in all). This was Jean-Jacques Hallaux’ baby.

I found the old link I was missing by checking the archived "Latest News" on this site and found yet another treasure I had forgotten about:
Belgian Funeral Cards: http://www32.websamba.com/wvlgen/bidprentjes.htm

The link will direct you to a place where many people who help gather obituaries/funeral cards have made their work accessible to all.

For example:

found on Andre Verlinden's site Documents mortuaires en Flandres et en Ardennes at http://tilia.cordata.free.fr/galerie/album.php?id_album=2&stat=ok

or even Freddy De Ghouy's work at http://users.telenet.be/freddy.de.ghouy1/bidprentjes.pdf

Other sites are found many places, like the following

http://users.swing.be/louis.possoz/courcelles/CcS1779.htm for Burials in Courcelles between 1779 and 1793.

I will continue to add them to this post as I find them.
For more, try checking out our Links page. Contacting someone in Belgium who knows the historical background as well as the geographical landscape can give you invaluable help. Just remember to acknowledge the service they are willing to give you, even if it’s not exactly what you had hoped and make sure to make yourself available for others. You may not help someone with Belgian research right away but you have access to records only people living in your area do. So check and see what you can do to help with different projects.
The USGenweb has several obituaries and cemeteries projects.
Go to www.usgenweb.org
Choose a state, then look for either an alphabetical listing of all the counties found in that state or a map – this is valuable in as much as the county boundaries often changed and it pays off to look into neighboring counties –
Browse through the site for more records. If you live in one of those areas where Belgians have settled, or even if it’s not the case, contact the site’s webmaster and ask how you can help.

There is plenty to do out there. You may not be able to help the person who helped you but you can pass it on. Return the favor by helping someone else.
Hope these links can be of help to you.

Treasure Trove for Grand-Leez researchers

2009-04-28T10:51:00.011-04:00

Our member Rick F was looking for family in Grand-Leez, Belgium. Several families from Grand-Leez ended up in Wisconsin between 1855 -1856, but the people he was looking for left in 1871. He had found a connection in Belgium and their family names compared well but they could not find a common link to tie their family trees together.
One of our members suggested he visit Netradyle, a site containing a lot of extracted records: http://www.netradyle.be/
Another sent a link to Ron Flemalle’s site: PenBelGen: 19th Century Belgian Residents of Door Peninsula, Wisconsin
http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?db=PenBelGen&I11.x=30&I11.y=1
I forwarded the query to http://fr.groups.yahoo.com/group/geniwal_magazine/ and received a most interesting answer redirecting me to Philippe Josis’ webpage at http://grandleez.be/

Another member went further and must have contacted the page owner as this morning I found a reply to the query in my mailbox. And what reply this was!
Mr. Josis had sent a link to an image from the Population register of Grand-Leez, showing Rick’s family.
Population registers in Belgium are maintained by decades and follow families over that time span: births, marriages, emigrations etc.
Allow me to extract the image for you:

As Head of household: DAVISTER, Louis Joseph, day laborer, born in Ernage, 17 July 1792, illegitimate son of DAVISTER, Marie Joseph, who is the daughter of DAVISTER, Pierre and BERGER, Marie Barbe
His Wife: LEGROS, Marie Thérèse, born in Sauvenière in 1788, daughter of LEGROS, Philippe (who is the son of LEGROS, Laurent and BRABANT, Magdelaine) and JOSET, Marie Josephe.
Their children:
- Marie Catherine, born in Sauveniere in 1815, married to DESSART, Amand, resides at Grand lez
- Ghislain Joseph, born in Sauveniere in 1818, married 1 BERNARD, Antoinette and 2. (blank)
- Hubert Joseph, born in Sauveniere in 1821, married to BEQUEVORT, Anne Julienne, resides at GrandLez
- Clement Joseph, born in Sauveniere in 1823, married to LOOSEN, Albertine, resides in Sauveniere
- Marie Françoise, born in sauveniere in 1829, married to Philippe LANGELE, resides in Incourt

Philippe Josis has spent the greater part of the last 10 years extracting the Grand-Leez records and as of now, he has photographed the all of the Grand-Leez parish registers from 1613 to 1796 (He is also working on the 11 other parishes of Gembloux).
He is working on the French period records (1796-1803) of the cantons of Gembloux and Spy.
For the new régime (1803 – abt. 2000), he has photographed the original records found in the Parish registers as well as in the Civil registers.

On his site’s Home Page - http://www.grandleez.be/grandleez.be.htm -, under the tab “Population”, you can find 5 lists:
- The 1693 enumeration of Mont-Saint-Guibert (Grand-Leez was a part of that location in those days): it’s one of the first enumerations!
- The 1709 enumeration of Mont-Saint-Guibert: 16 years later, with more details
- A list of Heads of Families taken around 1830 by the Abbot Surlectiaux: contains both spouses, house numbers, according to villages/hamlets
- A more recent population listing of Grand-Leez, first published in "Chez Nous" around 1990: includes street names, house numbers, names/surnames of both spouses or companions as well as telephone numbers
- A 2006 list of households of Grand-Leez, according to house number and street

Back to the main page, under “Histoire” you will find a local history (in French), a time line and the coat of arms along with pictures of 2 books dedicated to local history:
- Le Pays de Gembloux: Des Origines a L’An Mille: Jean Martin’s superb summary of 1000 years of History of Grand-Leez and its surrounding: The triangle Gembloux (Baudecet) – Walhain – Grand-Leez
- Notes d’Histoire sur Grand-Leez, also by Jean Martin covers 20 centuries of history and is available through the Cercle Royal d'Art et Histoire de Gembloux .

Let’s return again to the main page and this time click on “Généalogies”.
On this page Philippe Josis explains how so far 26,000 have been extracted from the Grand-Leez records and this has enabled the reconstruction of many old family trees.
If you have family in Grand-Leez, you will want to contact Philippe Josis to see if he can help you find your ancestor.

Be aware though that only specific questions will receive answers. There will be no reply to queries seeking “All information on any surname” so as not to deprive the researcher from experiencing the fun in personal discovery.
On that page, just click on the highlighted “en annexe” where many answers to archived queries can be found.
At the top of the page you will find tabs in alphabetical order.
Since we are looking for DAVISTER, let’s click on the one that says “de A à D”, then select D. This leads us to more alphabetical tabs at the top of the page.

In Internet Explorer, when you hover over “Recherches D”,

a menu comes down giving you some names. Move to the person you are interested in and click. A picture of a record or a family tree will be displayed.

Back to the main page again, this time click on “Tranche de vie” to discover two articles dedicated to personalities who made their mark on Grand-Leez and who deserve to be remembered.
- Henry II de Leez, Bishop of Liège, related to the Grand-Leez nobles
- Mathieu PORTIER, notaire at Petit Leez.

Under the “Evénements” tabs of the Main page, you will find lists of people who participated in events that marked the village history:
- List of young men enlisted in Napoleon’s armies
- List of those who emigrated to America between 1855-1856
- List of those who died or were deported during WWI
- List of those of were captured or/and died during WWII

Under “Liens”, you will find links to further sites to help you discover the region and if you have family in Gembloux, to help you further your research.
Under “Contact” you will find a form to fill out to make your request for research.
Just remember… it must be specific and show that you have given serious thought to your personal research before asking.

Philippe Josis enjoys making this information available to all freely but his work is copyrighted and should not be used for any other purpose than personal research. He juggles many hats besides and wishes for many more years with 32-48 hour days.
Please visit his wonderful site.
You will rave about it as I am, and I don’t have any relatives in Grand-Leez… I searched my database to verify as I would have LOVED finding one and tying into this Gargantuan work. He yet plans to take photographs of the cemetery to add to the information already available.
THANK YOU, Philippe for an amazing site!

Last minute addition and it's not an April's Fool

2009-04-01T08:35:00.002-04:00

Just received news that a third project is also available:
Belgie, Mechelen - Overlijden Registers 1851-1900

I was amazed to see this was more than just an announcement. The projects are already available for download to the software used to index these batches.
I actually worked on several batches yesterday,
It didn't take long at all since there were only 12 recoreds to index in each batch:
3 images with 4 records each.

One thing you need to know is that the default setting does not always match the number of records found in the images you end up with, so, make sure to insert the additional rows necessary to finish the work. For example, in these Charleroi batches, the default is 1 record per page. Since there are 4, you can either wait until youn have indexed the first one and a pop-up window asks you whether you want to add records. the default on that pop-up is "0" so, in the case of Charleroi records right now, you need to change the "0" to a "3".
3 more rows will appear under the one you just indexed, giving you the space needed to finish indexing the page completely.

OR
Before you start indexing, check out the number of records per page and click on "Tools" at the top of the page and then "Records per page" and change the number there and put a check mark in the bottom box so that this change will be made to all the pages in this batch.

There is a field-by-field set of instructions to index these records but the project manager also sends special reminders for cases not mentioned. I will add these here.
1. Age: If the age is not written, please leave the field blank! Don’t try to calculate the age, based on the difference between the birth date and the death date.
2. Place name: If the place is in Belgium, please list just the name of the town! If the place is outside of Belgium, and if the record mentions the country, you enter “the name of the town and the country name as written in the record” without punctuation. (Leyden Hollande)
3. Mother’s given and maiden name: The greatest number of arbitrations occurs in these fields. Please, take the time to enter the mother’s given and maiden name as it is written.
4. Numbers: Use single digits when you subscribe a day between 1 and 9. It is “1 Jan 1852”, and NOT “01 Jan 1852”!

When in doubt, please contact Jean Huysmans via email jean.gsu@telenet.be

Last month, the Belgian project indexed 35,168 records and arbitrated 33,371.
That's awesome!
L'Union fait la Force - Unity makes Us Strong...

FamilySearch indexing Projects

2009-03-31T09:14:00.007-04:00

I received news today that might liven things up for the Belgian indexing project started by FamilySearch indexing a couple of years ago.

Jean Huysmans is the Belgian project manager. Every month he sends the indexers a report on the project's progress.
Up to now, the project has only released images of towns in Flanders and, even though there is work for both Dutch and French speakers, that has hindered a more active participation from many who might otherwise have added their efforts to the current indexers'.

The wonderful news came this morning that 2 test-case projects are about to be added:
one for Belgie, Kalmhout - Overlijdens Registers 1851-1900
and
one for Belgique, Charleroi - Deces 1851-1900

Similar projects have been released in the past and they usually get done faster than the current general projects. If this happens with the two above mentioned projects, FamilySearch will consider releasing more such smaller projects.

If anyone is interested in participating, they should contact Jean Huysman right away at jean.gsu@telenet.be or HuysmansJ@familysearch.org
Then download the indexing software from http://www.familysearchindexing.org/

A fluency in Dutch or French is not required to work on these records but it definitely helps as the highlighter available for projects like the census, will not be available as the information is found by reading the text of the record.
There is an added difficulty with the handwriting which may make reading the record impossible for those who are not acquainted with the language.

I hope this reaches someone and maybe lots of someones who will sign up and help us get these records indexed and the images available through FamilySearch (free access to qualified indexers, FHCs and members of the church in an intranet type setting)

For a quick idea at how these records will be accessible, go to
http://www.familysearchlabs.org/ and click on "Record Search"
or directly from the FamilySearch homepage at http://www.familysearch.org/
Click on "Search" and pick 'Record Search" from the pulldown menu.

I am really looking forward to working on this!
I hope many others will too!

Trying something new...

2009-03-25T23:24:00.017-04:00

Over the past few years, I have subscribed to a growing number of forums and mailing lists in an effort to uncover new resources for my friends at The Belgian Researchers.

Some people will tell you they hate clutter in their email box... My thought on this is, I don't want to miss the one message containing key information to my work. I don't read everything. I weed through as well as wade through mail that comes in English, in French and in Dutch, from different US states as well as from Belgium and France.
I am sure most of those in charge of helping produce genealogical newsletters do the same.

I have researched my Belgian ancestors for a long time and have gained a form of expertise in the records I have used but am far from being an expert in all research matters.
Not long ago I received a phone call from someone trying to locate information on his Belgian ancestors who arrived in the US before it was a country. I have little experience with those records but I know people who do and so I referred him back to them.
I'm not sure he thought this was helpful but I preferred that to giving him wrong information.
So I am very grateful other more experienced researchers have been willing to share their knowledge so generously.

These individuals who participate on these mailing lists have helped me find marvelous information and more importantly, they have helped me make friends with people all over.
Note on mailing list etiquette: although those helping don't usually ask for anything in return, it is important to not be a 'taker' only but to offer your own help.

One such email arrived today that I would like to share with you... it's in French but it's easy to understand.

I credit Bernard Counen, member of the Liege yahoogroup - http://fr.groups.yahoo.com/group/liege/ who alerted the group to a site about Wallonia's clock towers and chapels.
http://www.clochersdewallonie.be

On the Home page, you can pick a letter to access the list of towns and then you can click on the small pictures to enlarge them.
On the left, under "Sites amis", you will find a link to the "Churches in Flanders" - "Kerken in Vlaanderen" (site in Dutch - so there is for everyone)

Going back to the left side, under "Description" you can find pictures of road side chapels with background explanations on the differences between them.

Chapels are religious buildings with a roof, doors, windows and in which one can expect to find an altar and chairs. Some are almost like little churches and can hold enough people to have a mass.
However, many are much smaller. They are found along the road all over the countryside and while their size prevents holding religious ceremonies, they provide a place for the passersby who want to stop to pray.

The “bornes-potales” are small edifices made of stone, metal or cement composed of several elements: a base, a body, a niche and a cross.
They can be found leaning against a wall and sometimes inside the wall itself or simply on the side of the road.
Their purpose is to protect the fields and the crops or simply serve as a reminder of a tragic event.
They can be used in religious processions, mark the presence of something sacred in the middle of an evil environment, or exist just because someone has wished to build one there.

The word “potale” in "Borne potale" finds its roots in the Walloon dialect. According to the area, it means hole or crease in a wall purposely made above a door or on the corner of a building, in plain sight, in which a religious statuette is displayed.

The Belgian emigrants brought this tradition with them when they came here and similar roadside chapels can be found in Wisconsin for one. I hope you make time to visit these sites and discover another side of Belgian culture.

Happy Hunting!