<div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">Need to unsubscribe?<a href="https://genealogytipoftheday.com/mailman/listinfo/genealogy_genealogytipoftheday.com" target="_blank"> Manage here</a>. </font></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="4"><br></font></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">Genealogy Update 17 May 2026</font></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="4"><br></font></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">** Santa Letter Evidence of Birth Date</font></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">** AI for Genealogy</font></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">** </font><span style="font-family:georgia,serif;font-size:large">Card Comments</span></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">** 2026 Brick Wall Busters</font></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">** Keep Getting the Update</font></div><div><br></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">-----------------------------------------------------</font></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">Santa Letter Evidence of Birth Date</font></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">----------------------------------------------------------</font></div><div><img width="600" height="300" src="https://rootdig.genealogytipoftheday.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/santa-letter.jpg" alt="" style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px;padding:0px;outline:0px;max-width:100%;height:auto;vertical-align:bottom;display:block;text-align:initial;font-family:inherit"><p style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;outline:0px;line-height:1.6;color:rgb(37,41,42);text-align:initial;max-width:100%"><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">A six-year old knows when his birthday is. He knows it because he has been told it. While his knowledge of the precise date comes from what others have told him, his general idea of his age does not. If a child is around other children\u2013as this one apparently is because he attends school\u2013then he knows approximately how old he is from first hand experience. He knows he\u2019s older than any three or four year olds that he sees and he\u2019s also well-aware that he\u2019s not ten or eleven years old. James would provide primary information for his age based upon his first hand knowledge.</font></p><p style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;outline:0px;line-height:1.6;color:rgb(37,41,42);text-align:initial;max-width:100%"><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">Because the statement made by James comes from a handwritten letter that was in a newspaper there is always the chance that an error snuck in. The word \u201csix\u201d is spelled out in James\u2019 letter as it appears typed in the newspaper and it is reasonable to conclude that he wrote it that way in his letter as well. If the number \u201c7\u201d had been used instead, the chance of a potential typographical or transcription error would have been higher.</font></p><p style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;outline:0px;line-height:1.6;color:rgb(37,41,42);text-align:initial;max-width:100%"><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">Realistically speaking, there\u2019s a good chance that James was actually born on 1 November 1894. Hopefully a researcher doesn\u2019t have to use a letter to Santa Claus as a source, but it\u2019s always possible. Of course, it should be cited so that if more contemporary sources for James\u2019 birth are located, a proper analysis can be conducted.</font></p><p style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;outline:0px;line-height:1.6;color:rgb(37,41,42);text-align:initial;max-width:100%"><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">James provides primary information for his age, but not for his date of birth based upon how he came to know both those pieces of information.</font></p><p style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;outline:0px;line-height:1.6;color:rgb(37,41,42);text-align:initial;max-width:100%"><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">The letter is the newspaper is a derivative source. The original letter is the original source. Sources contain information.</font></p><p style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;outline:0px;line-height:1.6;color:rgb(37,41,42);text-align:initial;max-width:100%"><font face="georgia, serif" size="4"><span style="color:rgb(23,37,42)"></span></font></p><p style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;outline:0px;line-height:1.6;color:rgb(37,41,42);text-align:initial;max-width:100%"><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">And you thought Santa Claus letters were only for requesting genealogical presents for yourself?</font></p></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="4"> </font></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">---------------------------------</font></div><div><p style="text-align:center"><strong><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">Special Announcement</font></strong></p><p style="text-align:center"><strong><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">Introduction to Artificial Intelligence for Genealogy</font></strong></p><p style="text-align:center"><strong><a href="https://michael-john-neill.dpdcart.com/cart/add?product_id=249790&method_id=272804" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank"><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">ready for immediate download</font></a></strong></p><p style="text-align:center"><em><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">practical and hype-free presentation</font></em></p><p style="text-align:center"><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">by Michael John Neill of <em>Genealogy Tip of the Day</em></font></p><p><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">Been curious about using artificial intelligence for your genealogy research? In this hour-long session, we will provide an overview of responsible and simple ways to use artificial intelligence to assist with your genealogy research. Our focus will be practical, easy-to-follow techniques to use artificial intelligence to jumpstart your research in a responsible manner. We won\u2019t talk about ways to create images or fiction but will show you how to incorporate AI into your research in down-to-earth ways that don\u2019t waste your time. We will see how to use AI to get research ideas, focus your research, transcribe handwriting, organize and extract information\u2014and how to create your own research prompts. AI can be used as a research assistant that\u2019s always available. See how to take advantage of it without the hype.</font></p><p><a href="https://michael-john-neill.dpdcart.com/cart/add?product_id=249790&method_id=272804" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank"><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">Order Yours Today!</font></a></p><p><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">$26--regularly $32</font></p></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">----------------------------------------------------</font></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">Card Comments</font></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">----------------------------------------------------</font></div><div><p style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;outline:0px;line-height:1.6;color:rgb(37,41,42);text-align:initial;max-width:100%"><font face="georgia, serif" size="4"><br></font></p><p style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;outline:0px;line-height:1.6;color:rgb(37,41,42);text-align:initial;max-width:100%"><font face="georgia, serif" size="4"> <span style="text-align:initial">The instructions for these draft cards are probably online somewhere, but I\u2019m not certain they would even answer the question I have. </span></font></p><p style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;outline:0px;line-height:1.6;color:rgb(37,41,42);text-align:initial;max-width:100%"><font face="georgia, serif" size="4"><br style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px;padding:0px;outline:0px;text-align:initial;max-width:100%">The World War I draft card for Bertus Ufkes of Cassia County, Idaho, is typical of cards for the era. Ufkes signed the front of the card and included an exemption request based upon his farm operation.</font></p><p style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;outline:0px;line-height:1.6;color:rgb(37,41,42);text-align:initial;max-width:100%"><font face="georgia, serif" size="4"><br style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px;padding:0px;outline:0px;text-align:initial;max-width:100%">I\u2019ve seen other World War I draft cards where an exemption from the draft was claimed based upon farm operation, a dependent parent, etc. It\u2019s not often where I see a registrar questioning the registrant\u2019s answer to question 12. </font></p><p style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;outline:0px;line-height:1.6;color:rgb(37,41,42);text-align:initial;max-width:100%"><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">The question I have is: did the registrant usually see the comment the registrar wrote down or did they only see the front of the card? After all above their signature it does say \u201cI affirm that I have verified above answers and that they are true.\u201d</font></p><div style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px 0px 1em;padding:0px;outline:0px;max-width:100%;text-align:initial;font-family:"Open Sans";color:rgb(23,37,42);font-size:16px"><img width="807" height="650" src="https://rootdig.genealogytipoftheday.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/ufkes-bertus-ww1.jpg" alt="" style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px;padding:0px;outline:0px;max-width:100%;height:auto;vertical-align:bottom;display:block;text-align:initial;font-family:inherit"><div style="text-align:left"><br></div></div></div><div><div><font color="#888888"><font color="#888888" face="georgia, serif" size="4"><div><p style="text-align:initial;box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;outline:0px;line-height:1.6;color:rgb(37,41,42);max-width:100%">-----------------------</p><p style="text-align:initial;box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;outline:0px;line-height:1.6;color:rgb(37,41,42);max-width:100%">Want to <span>Keep</span> <span>Getting</span> These Updates?<br>-------------------------</p><p style="margin:0px;padding:0px;color:rgb(64,63,66)"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,255)">With distribution costs of the updates, we've finally had to stop sending this out for free after this issue. 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This is the easiest and cheapest way for me to accept credit cards as a small merchant.</span></p></div></font></font></div><div><p><font face="georgia, serif" size="4"><span class="gmail_signature_prefix"><br></span></font></p></div><div><span class="gmail_signature_prefix" style="font-family:georgia,serif;font-size:large">-</span><span style="font-family:georgia,serif;font-size:large">----------------------</span><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">-------------------------------------------</font></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">Brick Wall Busters 2026 is here!!</font></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">--------------------------------------------</font></div><div><p style="text-align:center"><em><font face="georgia, serif" size="4"><b>Brick Wall Busters 2026</b></font></em></p><p style="text-align:center"><em><font face="georgia, serif" size="4"><b>Need to jump-start your research</b><b>?</b></font></em></p><p><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">This hour-long presentation is geared towards advanced beginning or intermediate genealogists. Our focus will be on problems in the United States between roughly 1700 and 1900. Brick wall ideas will be pulled from consultations with clients and personal research experience. Approaches will be practical and down-to-earth. </font></p><p><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">Handout included. Presentation made by Michael John Neill.</font></p><p><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">Michael has forty years of research experience in families throughout the United States. Presentation is based on his personal experience and consultations he has made to clients on research trips and via virtual consultations. </font></p><p><font face="georgia, serif" size="4"><br><a href="https://michael-john-neill.dpdcart.com/cart/add?product_id=249781&method_id=272792" target="_blank">Presentation and handout available now for immediate download--for $26.</a> Download link sent immediately</font></p></div></div><div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">-------------------------------------------</font></div><div><div><div><div><div><b><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">Need to unsubscribe? Do so at:</font></b></div><div><b><a href="https://genealogytipoftheday.com/mailman/listinfo/genealogy_genealogytipoftheday.com" target="_blank"><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">https://genealogytipoftheday.com/mailman/listinfo/genealogy_genealogytipoftheday.com</font></a></b></div></div></div><font face="georgia, serif" size="4"><br>------------------------------------<br>Michael John Neill<br>Genealogy Tip of the Day</font></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">PO Box 17, Henderson, IL 61439</font></div><div><a href="http://www.genealogytipoftheday.com/" target="_blank"><font face="georgia, serif" size="4">http://www.genealogytipoftheday.com</font></a></div></div></div></div><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_signature" data-smartmail="gmail_signature"><div dir="ltr"></div></div></div>
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