Finland

New Online Databases Reveal WWII Cousin Casualties In Finland

OK, so the online databases I’m writing about aren’t brand new; they were just new to me. Finding them recently reminds me to check online from time to time for records of interest.Here’s the back story: In June of 2018, I visited Finland for the annual gathering of Finnish Americans known as FinnFest. It was

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Vesanto, my grandparents home town in Finland, is 150 today

Vesanto residents celebrated the municipality’s 150th birthday today: May 14, 2021. Vesanto became an independent municipality on May 14, 1871. Due to the corona virus situation, a small group gathered at the municipal marina and beach by Lake Vesantojärvi for speeches, group singing, and a poetry reading by school children. In addition the event was

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Having Fun with Green Screen in Zoom

In a former life, in the late 1970s and early 1980s, I operated an audio-visual production company, As a result of that experience, I have been fascinated by the possibilities of using “green screen” technology (sometimes referred to as chroma key compositing) to achieve a composite video or photo. This technology makes it possible to

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MyHeritage to be Acquired by Private Equity Firm Francisco Partners

I am a subscriber to MyHeritage.com, a genealogical database provider that has helped me connect with cousins in Finland, from which my paternal grandparents emigrated to America in 1902 and 1903. I am a subscriber because MyHeritage, which is based in Israel, has aggressively marketed its services in Europe, including Finland. Yesterday (24 Feb 2021),

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My Genealogy Beginnings Happened in Salt Lake City

Nearly 25 years ago, I was on a business trip to Salt Lake City, Utah. At the end of the day’s scheduled activities, my business colleague announced that he wanted to visit the LDS Family History Library (www.familysearch.org/locations/saltlakecity-library) to do some research. Since I had nothing planned for the evening, I decided to tag along.

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A Finn Was Pitcher for Chicago White Sox

From time to time my cousin Matti in Finland sends emails with links to articles and other text material of interest to me and my brother Walfrid. This morning, he sent an item article about a Finnish national who came to America in the early 1900’s to pitch for the Chicago White Sox. It was

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