In this issue: Learn about family history using HPL’s History Resource Center YouTube Channel playlists; Electronic resources we like: National Geographic Magazine Archive (1888-present).
Learn about family history using HPL’s History Resource Center YouTube Channel playlists
By Irene B. Walters
Homepage of Houston Public Library’s YouTube channel
Almost every day we are asked at the library if there are classes or resources that people can use to learn more about how to research their family history. Happily, the short answer to this question is yes. Along with the live webinars that are offered by Clayton Library, there are many past webinars that have been recorded and are available on the Houston Public Library’s (HPL) channel on YouTube.
HPL’s YouTube Channel was first created in 2007. Videos offering similar content are grouped together in “playlists,” making it easy to find whatever interests you. Videos of webinars of help for those interested in genealogy can be found on the playlist for “HPL History Research Centers.” The videos presented by HPL’s Family History Research Center at the Clayton Library Campus (FHRC or Clayton Library), mostly have a title beginning with the words “Clayton Library Presents,” or “HPL/HPL Resource Clayton Library.” We have produced more than twenty-four videos of interest to family history researchers under our YouTube umbrella. The videos cover records topics like census records, finding funeral records, and research methods for beginners. Research topics include Beginning Genealogy, Irish immigration, German resources, Native Americans, French, and African American history. There are also several how-to genealogy topics covered: “Family History Research,” “Researching Court Records,” “Thinking Like a Genealogist: Using Your Five Senses,” “Scrapbook Preservation,” and more. Most likely any family history researcher could find at least one video with valuable insights on a favorite topic.
HPL's History Research Centers' playlist on YouTube
The best way to experience the HPL History Research Centers’ YouTube channel is via a free subscription. Anyone with a YouTube profile (you have one if you have a Google account such as Gmail or Google Drive) can click on the Subscribe button on the channel homepage. The playlist can be found by clicking the Playlists heading and then scrolling through the Created Playlists. Clicking on the bell icon next to Subscribe on the channel homepage will enable a notification whenever a new HPL video is posted. Remember to watch this space, so you don’t miss out on great new content.
Electronic resources we like: National Geographic Magazine Archive (1888-present)
By Melissa Hayes & Irene B. Walters
Home page of the National Geographic Magazine Archive (1888-present) database
For this issue, we’d like to highlight an electronic resource that should bring a touch of nostalgia to many of our customers or a possible new look at the world for others. It is the National Geographic Magazine Archive (1888-present). This database is found under subject headings of “Magazines, Scholarly Journals, & Publications,” Science, and “Travel & Geography” in the A-Z Databases research tab on the Houston Public Library website. The name reflects the content. It is a collection of the monthly issues of the National Geographic Magazine from 1888 to present. Yes, those same National Geographic Magazines with the yellow spine and border around the cover image that many of us had stacked up in our homes, or grandparents’ homes, and that we would see on the shelves of school or public libraries. The magazines that gave us glimpses of exotic places around the world long before the days of the internet and search engines. For those that didn’t grow up with it in your world, the National Geographic Magazine is an iconic magazine famous for its high-quality photojournalism covering cultures, nature, science, technology and the environment.
The database contains every issue of the original magazine from 1888 to today and the National Geographic Kids magazine. New issues are added after a minimum 45-day embargo period, so the current latest issue posted is from December 2024. Everything is searchable, text, photographs, maps, even the words in the advertisements. From the main page you can do a simple keyword search, browse the magazines, or click explore topics. The topics to explore are Animals, Environment, History, People and Cultures, Science and Technology, or Travel. There is also an advanced search option. With this option you can add your search terms, then limit the search to a particular date or range of dates, limit by document type, content type, or type of illustration in the article. Your search might bring up a full article or a news brief and or an entire magazine issue of that subject. For example, I searched DNA and found 40 featured articles, 89 Brief Articles, 3 Magazine Covers, and 42 Advertisements. I clicked on the 3 magazine covers and opened the cover page Entitled: What dogs tell us: The ABC’s of DNA. The article was in the February 2012 issue entitled: New Tricks from old dogs. It talks about genetics and studies made on or with dogs. Even though the broad search method of keyword searching for a place or event will probably be the most popular search, try the limiters too. You might be surprised at what you find.
Results when searching the word genealogy in the National Geographic Magazine Archive (1888-present) database
You may ask yourself, “What is in a magazine that is not about the history of a specific place or people that will help me in my genealogy?” Well, you may find that searching the National Geographic Magazine for the places your ancestors lived may give you some nice background about their home city, state, or country. You can also find information about the wars that have taken place since the magazine’s founding in 1888. Browsing the issues can be enjoyable as well. It can be interesting to read what your 20th century relatives read without getting decades of dust all over you.
In this issue: Learn about family history using HPL’s History Resource Center YouTube Channel playlists; Electronic resources we like: National Geographic Magazine Archive (1888-present).
Learn about family history using HPL’s History Resource Center YouTube Channel playlists
By Irene B. Walters
Almost every day we are asked at the library if there are classes or resources that people can use to learn more about how to research their family history. Happily, the short answer to this question is yes. Along with the live webinars that are offered by Clayton Library, there are many past webinars that have been recorded and are available on the Houston Public Library’s (HPL) channel on YouTube.
HPL’s YouTube Channel was first created in 2007. Videos offering similar content are grouped together in “playlists,” making it easy to find whatever interests you. Videos of webinars of help for those interested in genealogy can be found on the playlist for “HPL History Research Centers.” The videos presented by HPL’s Family History Research Center at the Clayton Library Campus (FHRC or Clayton Library), mostly have a title beginning with the words “Clayton Library Presents,” or “HPL/HPL Resource Clayton Library.” We have produced more than twenty-four videos of interest to family history researchers under our YouTube umbrella. The videos cover records topics like census records, finding funeral records, and research methods for beginners. Research topics include Beginning Genealogy, Irish immigration, German resources, Native Americans, French, and African American history. There are also several how-to genealogy topics covered: “Family History Research,” “Researching Court Records,” “Thinking Like a Genealogist: Using Your Five Senses,” “Scrapbook Preservation,” and more. Most likely any family history researcher could find at least one video with valuable insights on a favorite topic.
The best way to experience the HPL History Research Centers’ YouTube channel is via a free subscription. Anyone with a YouTube profile (you have one if you have a Google account such as Gmail or Google Drive) can click on the Subscribe button on the channel homepage. The playlist can be found by clicking the Playlists heading and then scrolling through the Created Playlists. Clicking on the bell icon next to Subscribe on the channel homepage will enable a notification whenever a new HPL video is posted. Remember to watch this space, so you don’t miss out on great new content.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Houston Public Library YouTube Channel (2024 March 1). Houston Public Library’s YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@houstonlibrary
Electronic resources we like: National Geographic Magazine Archive (1888-present)
By Melissa Hayes & Irene B. Walters
For this issue, we’d like to highlight an electronic resource that should bring a touch of nostalgia to many of our customers or a possible new look at the world for others. It is the National Geographic Magazine Archive (1888-present). This database is found under subject headings of “Magazines, Scholarly Journals, & Publications,” Science, and “Travel & Geography” in the A-Z Databases research tab on the Houston Public Library website. The name reflects the content. It is a collection of the monthly issues of the National Geographic Magazine from 1888 to present. Yes, those same National Geographic Magazines with the yellow spine and border around the cover image that many of us had stacked up in our homes, or grandparents’ homes, and that we would see on the shelves of school or public libraries. The magazines that gave us glimpses of exotic places around the world long before the days of the internet and search engines. For those that didn’t grow up with it in your world, the National Geographic Magazine is an iconic magazine famous for its high-quality photojournalism covering cultures, nature, science, technology and the environment.
The database contains every issue of the original magazine from 1888 to today and the National Geographic Kids magazine. New issues are added after a minimum 45-day embargo period, so the current latest issue posted is from December 2024. Everything is searchable, text, photographs, maps, even the words in the advertisements. From the main page you can do a simple keyword search, browse the magazines, or click explore topics. The topics to explore are Animals, Environment, History, People and Cultures, Science and Technology, or Travel. There is also an advanced search option. With this option you can add your search terms, then limit the search to a particular date or range of dates, limit by document type, content type, or type of illustration in the article. Your search might bring up a full article or a news brief and or an entire magazine issue of that subject. For example, I searched DNA and found 40 featured articles, 89 Brief Articles, 3 Magazine Covers, and 42 Advertisements. I clicked on the 3 magazine covers and opened the cover page Entitled: What dogs tell us: The ABC’s of DNA. The article was in the February 2012 issue entitled: New Tricks from old dogs. It talks about genetics and studies made on or with dogs. Even though the broad search method of keyword searching for a place or event will probably be the most popular search, try the limiters too. You might be surprised at what you find.
You may ask yourself, “What is in a magazine that is not about the history of a specific place or people that will help me in my genealogy?” Well, you may find that searching the National Geographic Magazine for the places your ancestors lived may give you some nice background about their home city, state, or country. You can also find information about the wars that have taken place since the magazine’s founding in 1888. Browsing the issues can be enjoyable as well. It can be interesting to read what your 20th century relatives read without getting decades of dust all over you.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Houston Public Library. (2025 March 1). Houston Public Library A-Z Databases page https://houstonlibrary.org/az/databases?s=209037
National Geographic Magazine. (2025 March 1). National Geographic Magazine Archive (1888-present) [database on-line]. Gale, A Cengage Company https://go.gale.com/ps/start.do?p=NGMA&u=txshrpub100185
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