January 2016

Next week, the Geni team will be heading to RootsTech 2016, the largest family history event in the world. From February 3-6, genealogists and family history enthusiasts from around the country will gather at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City, Utah to attend this unique genealogy conference. From the family history novice to genealogy experts, everyone has the opportunity to learn and discover the latest tools and technologies for researching your family history. This innovative… Read the full story

Do you have Irish ancestry? On this day in 1939, renowned Irish poet William Butler Yeats died in Menton, France. W.B. Yeats was born on June 13, 1865 in Dublin, Ireland to John Butler Yeats and Susan Mary Pollexfen. His mother had come from a wealthy merchant family, who owned a milling and shipping business. Yeats grew up in a creative and artistic family; his father had abandoned his studies of law to become an artist… Read the full story

Today we’re excited to announce that Geni’s World Family Tree now connects over 100 million profiles! Thanks to the collaborative efforts of the entire Geni community, the World Family Tree has quickly become the largest, highest-quality family tree of the world. This significant milestone is the product of the hard work and research done by our dedicated community of users and our trusted team of volunteer Curators. The World Family Tree is the definitive family… Read the full story

Happy birthday, Ellen DeGeneres! Today the beloved comedian and talk show host turns 58. She was born Ellen Lee DeGeneres on January 26, 1958 in Metairie, Louisiana. Ellen got her start in comedy doing stand-up at small clubs and coffee houses. In 1986, Ellen made her first appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson where she became the first female comedian to be invited by the iconic host to join him for an onscreen chat. Today,… Read the full story

We love hearing stories from our users when they make fascinating new discoveries. Recently, genealogy blogger Kitty Cooper shared an amazing discovery she made just last week thanks to Geni. Through the power of collaboration, she’s found her long lost second cousins in Germany! Kitty shares that her family has always known of family in Bavaria, but surnames and where they lived remained a mystery. According to family lore, Kitty’s great grandfather, Benedict Reiner, was studying to… Read the full story

Have you found your connection to the Spanish monarchy? On this day in 1716, Charles III, King of Spain, was born in Madrid. The third surviving son of Philip V of Spain, but the eldest by his second wife, Charles became the Duke of Parma and Piacenza at the age of 15. As Duke, he conquered the kingdoms of Naples and Sicily and was crowned king on July 3, 1735. He reigned as Charles VII… Read the full story

Eighty-seven years ago today, civil rights icon Martin Luther King, Jr. was born in Atlanta, Georgia. A middle child, King was named after his father, Martin King. After a trip to Germany in 1934, his father chose to change his name and his son’s name to Martin Luther King in honor of the German Protestant reformer, Martin Luther. As a child, King enjoyed singing with his church choir and even had the opportunity to perform with… Read the full story

Family heirlooms are often precious artifacts linking the present to your family’s heritage. They hold stories and memories from the past about the lives of loved ones that are no longer around. Usually passed down from generation to generation, family heirlooms provide us with a greater personal connection to our ancestors, perhaps more so than a census record or death certificate could provide. They often provide a unique insight into your family’s history and hold deep… Read the full story

Today we remember actor Alan Rickman, who has passed away at the age of 69. A versatile actor, Rickman showcased his remarkable talent on both the stage and silver screen. He is perhaps best known for playing Severus Snape in the Harry Potter film franchise as well as his villainous roles in Die Hard and Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. Born on February 21, 1946 in London, England, Rickman was the second son born to working class parents. His father… Read the full story

On this day in 1968, Johnny Cash performed live at Folsom State Prison. His live album recording At Folsom Prison was a hit and stayed at the top of the charts for weeks. In 1955, Cash first released is single, “Folsom Prison Blues.” He was inspired to write the song from the perspective of the incarcerated after watching the movie, Inside the Walls of Folsom Prison, while serving in the United States Air Force Security Service. Not only had the… Read the full story

News spread today of the death of iconic singer-songwriter David Bowie after an 18-month battle with cancer. He died on January 10, just two days after his 69th birthday. Herald as an innovator and pioneer, Bowie seemed to reinvent himself for each new generation of fans. Bowie constantly transformed his sound and appearance to the delight and surprise of audiences around the world. In remembrance of Bowie’s extraordinary life, we take a look at a few things… Read the full story

On this day in 1885, woman’s right activist and suffragist Alice Paul was born. She was born on January 11, 1885 in Mount Laurel Township, New Jersey to William Mickle Paul and Tacie Parry and was the eldest of four children. An influential figure of the women’s right movement, Paul was the leader and strategist of the 1910 campaign for the Nineteenth Amendment, which prohibits sex discrimination in the right to vote. She founded the… Read the full story

The traditional, solitary pursuit of genealogy is a thing of the past. Geni’s World Family Tree has made collaboration the easiest, fastest and most exciting way to uncover your family’s heritage. You can collaborate instantly with your relatives by inviting them to join the family tree on Geni. When your relatives join the tree, they can contribute their own knowledge of your family’s history and help research exciting, new branches of your ancestry. As more relatives are invited and the tree expands, you… Read the full story

Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei died on this day in 1642. A pioneer and revolutionary thinker of his time, Galileo’s scientific discoveries would forever change the world’s understanding of the universe. Galileo was born on February 15, 1564 in Pisa, Italy. He was the oldest of six children born to Giulia Ammannati and Vincenzo Galilei, a famous lutenist and composer. As a young man, Galileo considered joining the priesthood before turning his attention to science and mathematics. His work… Read the full story

Do you enjoy a game of chess? Today Estonia celebrates the 100th birthday of famous Estonian chess grandmaster Paul Keres. Keres was born on January 7, 1916 in Narva, Estonia. He showed an aptitude for chess at an early age, first learning about the game from his father and older brother, Harald. His brother would later go on to become a prominent physicist and is considered the father of the Estonian school of relativistic gravitation theory. From the mid-1930s to… Read the full story

Do you have explorers in your family tree? On this day in 1799, trapper and explorer Jedediah Smith was born in Jericho, New York. One of the first to explore the West, Smith is often considered one of America’s greatest trapper-explorers. In 1822, he joined William H. Ashley’s fur trading company to explore and trap in the Rocky Mountains. He would come to discover the South Pass through the Rockies, which offered a safer and… Read the full story

Do you have twins in your family tree? It’s not often you will find a pair of twins with different birthdays. However, for one San Diego couple, that’s just what they got. Not only were their twins born on different days, but they were not even born in the same year! A San Diego mother gave birth to twins, but one was born in 2015, the other in 2016. https://t.co/G7qBusgyDu pic.twitter.com/3so9OwMNz6 — WFMY News 2 (@WFMY)… Read the full story