Deafbio-update Mailing List: DeafBiographies Update - Vol. 2, No. 7 - 14 September 2005

[DeafBiographies (amy]

DeafBiographies Update - Vol. 2, No. 7 - 14 September 2005
Updating you on new record groups and information on DeafBiographies.com

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From the Administrator
New Record Groups
New School Information
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From the Administrator

The pictures and stories from the Gulf Coast region in the wake of 
Hurricane Katrina are truly heartbreaking. For those of us outside the 
region, it is nearly impossible to fathom the extent of the devastation.

Adding to the unspeakable tragedy of the loss of life is the loss of 
history, both in records and in artifacts. Jefferson Davis's home, 
Beauvoir, in Meridian, Mississippi sustained heavy damage. The library 
on the grounds was completely destroyed. As genealogists and family 
historians, we feel loss of all the records regardless of whether our 
ancestors were included in them. It is hard to look at the pictures from 
the Gulf Coast and not think about all of the pictures, letters and 
diaries that were destroyed -- items which record our past, and should 
have been passed down to future generations.

Although it is almost always asked in a philosophical way, the question 
of "What one thing would you take with you if you were escaping your 
burning house" takes on a very practical meaning. My standard answer 
used to be "After my family, I would grab my photo album." I 
reconsidered my answer recently and thought, "After my family, I would 
grab my laptop computer." I have scanned numerous family photos and many 
of them are on the laptop. However, that answer isn't the best.

What if I can't get to my laptop to save it? Even if I never need to 
flee a burning or flooding house, there are still dangers to my family's 
records. What if the computer dies or is stolen? Certainly there needs 
to be multiple backups, not only in my house, but in other locations as 
well. (What good is a backup if it is stored in the same location as the 
computer and there is a fire or flood?)

I urge everyone to contribute to hurricane relief efforts in whatever 
way they can. I also urge everyone to examine their records and take 
steps -- immediately -- to preserve them and keep them safe. We owe it 
not only to ourselves, but to future generations as well.

Amy Johnson Crow, CG,
amy [at] deafbiographies.com
Administrator, DeafBiographies.com

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New Record Groups

-- Massachusetts - Pupils at the New England Industrial School for Deaf 
Mutes, January 1893
-- Massachusetts - Pupils at the New England Industrial School for Deaf 
Mutes, February 1880-January 1893
-- Minnesota - List of granduates of the Minnesota School for the Deaf 
who entered the Deaf-Mute College, Washington DC, 1874-1892

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New School Information

-- Massachusetts - Beverly School for the Deaf (formerly New England 
Industrial School for Deaf Mutes)

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Amy Johnson Crow, CG,
Administrator, DeafBiographies.com
amy [at] deafbiographies.com