HistoricalTownMaps Blog

I have been a long time user Family Tree Maker to maintain my own genealogical research.  However I am still on the 2005 version - avoiding an upgrade to the 2008 version which was not well received in the genealogical community.  In a recent article by Jana Lloyd at Ancestry.com, the upcoming 2009 version has 2 location based features:

Migration Path - Family Tree Maker’s mapping tools allows one to plot their ancestor’s life on a map. All the events (birth, marriage, death) for which there is an associated location will appear. These maps are also printable.

Spatial Locality of Reference Research Support - Beyond just being able to create and view maps of an ancestor’s location based events, Family Tree Maker 2009 also provides support for searching for nearby cemeteries, libraries, courts, churches, hospitals, etc. to assist in field research.

These are welcome features to the Family Tree Maker product to help create location based insight to one’s family research.  It is supposed to be available on August 26th, 2008.

Good hunting

Bernie

Nicholas Wade of the New York Times recently reported that biologists have constructed a genetic map of Europe showing the degree of relatedness between its various populations:

As Mr. Wade reported -the genetic map of Europe bears a clear structural similarity to the geographic map.  This should not be surprising to the readers of this blog.  This geo-genetic map reinforces the criticality of the location dimension in deep ancestral origins research.  Moreover it once again demonstrates two corollaries of the Spatial Locality of Reference principle that can be applied as you analyze Historical Town Maps for more recent ancestral insight:

1) Birds of a Feather Flock Together - as was posted in Genealogy and Geodemographics - the Spatial Locality of Reference principle can be applied to large groups - in this case it is those of similar ethnicity  as well as culture and heritage - language, religion, rituals, shared oral histories, governance, dress, art, interests, attitudes, and beliefs – tend to congregate. 

2) The Impact of Geographic Isolation - as was posted in Location, Location, Location  - when you take into account where physical geography hindered mobility, or where geography and culture intersect - the Where dimension can actually become the dominant dimension in one’s family tree.  Where becomes the dominant factor on the pool of potential mates.  Looking at the geo-genetic map - you see those geographic hindrances in the relative isolation of the Finns (FI) and the Italians (IT1 and IT2).  In the case of the Italians - Wade postulates that the Alps impeded the free flow of people between Italy and the rest of Europe.  This is further exemplified in Location Based Genealogy and DNA Part 1 where I reported that scientists are currently analyzing the “pure DNA” from 12 villages in the Cilento and Vallo di Diano regions in southern Italy because of their relative geographic isolation in the surrounding hills and mountains. 

Another proof point in location based genealogy.

Good hunting,

Bernie