New genealogy CD breathes life into old history book

The Genealogy Department at the Kings County Museum in Kentville will host an open house that’s sure to be of particular interest to genealogists and persons interested in the history of Kings County.

A new genealogy-based CD about the families in the book The History Of Kings County by Arthur W. Eaton, published in 1910, will be launched. The open house and CD launch takes place at the museum Thursday, June 12 at 7:30 p.m.

The CD uses today’s technology to show the 98-year-old book in a new light. The 342 pages of family sketches and 80 pages of biography, which represent 218 surnames identified in the book, were combined with new genealogy-merge techniques. This includes merging related families that may not have been identified at the time the book was written in 1910.

Over 9,500 individuals and 3,400 marriages are included on the new disk, representing over 200 surnames. Each name is referenced back to the location in Eaton’s book.

Without leaving home, a researcher may consult the genealogy data on the disk. Further questions may be resolved with a trip to the Genealogy Research Centre.

The Genealogy Department expresses its appreciation to David S. Barss, Accredited Genealogist of the Historical Family Reconstitution Team at Family Search in Salt Lake City, Utah, for the gift of this CD. Sarah Stout of Rexburg, Idaho, did 99 per cent of the extraction for this project, assisted by Kristina Barss. David Barss did the proofreading and data-merging.

David took a special interest in this project, as the Barss family is descended from Edward Martin Barss, who was born in Kings County in 1866, and others. They have five generations of ancestors that lived in Kings County and other parts of Nova Scotia.

There will be a visual demonstration of how to use the CD and its interesting family connections at the open house, as well as an opportunity to learn about the resources available for research, a tour of the archives and a chance to purchase the CD at a special introductory price of $20.

Also, open for viewing the evening of the open house will be the New England Planter Commemorative Room and the exhibition on children’s literature featuring Kings County authors and illustrators.

The book The History of Kings County is available online at www.lib.byu.edu but the lineage-linked CD is not. It can only be purchased from the Genealogy Department of the Kings Historical Society. The society can be contacted at 37 Cornwallis Street, Kentville, N.S., B4N 2E2 or by e-mail at museum@okcm.ca. The price is $25.

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