Countdown: Top 10 Posts of 2014

Well, we’ve come to the end of another year. When I was a kid, I loved listening to Casey Kasem’s Countdown of the top 100 songs on New Year’s Eve. They’d play on the radio all day, with the number one song announced about midnight.

I remember when Three Dog Night’s “Joy to the World” topped the chart in 1971. I was at a sleepover of my church’s junior high youth fellowship at someone’s house that New Year’s Eve. We were so happy when the song came on that we grabbed pots and pans from the kitchen, ran out on the front porch, banged the pans and sang along at the top of our lungs. A moment of pure, simple joy.

So in time-honored fashion, I’ve compiled a countdown of my top 10 posts of the year. They’re a mix of reflections, tips, strategies, stories, and information I’ve gathered. For 2014, the winners are:

10: Tips for Planning YourTrip to the Family History Library

9:   Free Guide to Research at the Ohio History Center

8:   Willard Bishop’s Model T Camper

7:   Minnie King Steele, the Oldest Ancestor I’ve Known

6:   Lloyd Ballenger and Reeb’s Restaurant

5:   George Clark, Ohio Pioneer

4:   Jacob Roush and Philip Roush, Virginia Militiamen

3:   The Two Most ImportantThings Genealogists Can Do Now

2:   Finding John Herrel’s Naturalization in an Unidexed FamilySearch Collection

                                         and

1:   You Too Can Be a Virtual RootsTech Attendee

If you have time to read just one, you can’t go wrong with #3, The Two Most Important Things Genealogists Can Do Now. Following an all-day seminar, I reflected on sage advice from Tom Jones, who urges all family historians to preserve today what could be lost tomorrow.

A good starting point, I think, for setting goals for the new year.

And now, in the spirit of celebration, here’s Three Dog Night performing “Joy to the World”:

--Shelley