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| LIFE IN SOLERA | MAY 2023 | 35 NUGGETS When you think of nuggets, what comes to mind? Perhaps it might be chicken nuggets or nuggets of gold. However, when it comes to family history research, there is another kind of nugget, an information nugget. These information nuggets can be found in a variety of genealogical databases. It is these information nuggets that you are searching for to help you build your family tree and delve deeper into your family history. What exactly are these informational nuggets? They are the bits of data such as; birth, marriage, death information for an individual. These are found in a variety of databases: census data; vital records (birth, marriage, deaths); religious databases; state, county or city archives; newspapers; special projects concerning people data; school yearbooks or college graduation information; and biographical books of individuals and families, to name a few. Many of these databases can be found online at genealogical sites, such as Ancestry.com, Familysearch.org, and others. You can go directly to some of these sources, such as: vital records at city or county levels. Death information can be obtained at county records offices, but can also be accessed online at Findagrave.com. Many of these sources will not only have a single nugget of information, but also will contain some additional information on other family members related to the subject individual. Obituaries in newspapers many times will list surviving relatives and their spouses. Findagrave.com also will sometimes contain nuggets of information for other family members. Census data contains information nuggets including age, birth place, occupation, parents birth state or country, and sometimes other bits of information. So, the next time you go looking into your family tree, remember that it is a treasure hunt to find pertinent information and you are really looking for those nuggets of information to allow you to build your family tree. ~ Bill Cramsie ANCESTRY GROUP MASADA: MYTH AND REALITY Masada ('Fortress' in Hebrew) is an ancient fortification situated atop an isolated rock mesa located in Israel in the eastern edge of the Judaean Desert about 50 miles from Jerusalem and overlooks the Dead Sea. The Hasmoneans (Biblical Maccabees) were the first to fortify the mesa in the 1st century BCE. Herod the Great enlarged the fortress and built two palaces for himself between 37 and 31 BCE in the event of a revolt. After the First Jewish Revolt against the Romans in 66 CE, Masada was the last bastion of Jewish resistance to fall from Rome's onslaught after the destruction of Jerusalem and the Second Temple in 70 CE. The only history of Masada's siege by the Romans was written by Flavius Josephus, the first Jewish historian, and he wasn't there. How much of his portrayal is true will be part of our discussion as we compare his presentation with archaeological evidence uncovered during the 20th century. The History Group meets on May 1, 4:30 to 5:30 pm. Come and listen to the story of Masada. HISTORY GROUP

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