The Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology defines industrial engineering as: the profession in which a knowledge of the mathematical and natural sciences gained by study, experience and practice is applied with judgment to develop ways to utilize economically, the materials and forces of nature for the benefit of mankind concerned with the design, improvement and installation of integrated systems of people, materials, equipment and energy. It draws upon specialized knowledge and skill in the mathematical, physical and social sciences together with the principles and methods of engineering analysis and design to specify, predict and evaluate the results to be obtained from such systems.

History

The origins of industrial engineering can be traced back to many different sources. Fredrick Winslow Taylor is most often considered as the father of industrial engineering even though all his ideas where not original. Some of the preceding influences may have been Adam Smith, Thomas Malthus, David Ricardo and John Stuart Mill. All of their works provided classical liberal explanations for the successes and limitations of the Industrial Revolution.

Another major contributor to the field was Charles W. Babbage. a mathematics professor. One of his major contributions to the field was his book On the Economy of Machinery and Manufacturers in 1832. In this book he discusses many different topics dealing with manufacturing, a few of which will be extremely familiar to an IE. Babbage discusses the idea of the learning curve, the division of task and how learning is affected, and the effect of learning on the generation of waste.

In the late nineteenth century more developments where being made that would lead to the formalization of industrial engineering. Henry R. Towne stressed the economic aspect of an engineer’s job. Towne belonged to the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) as did many other early American pioneers in this new field. The IE handbook says the, “ASME was the breeding ground for industrial engineering. Towne along with Fredrick A. Halsey worked on developing and presenting wage incentive plans to the ASME. It was out of these meetings that the Halsey plan of wage payment developed. The purpose was to increase the productivity of workers without negatively affecting the cost of production. The plan suggested that some of the gains be shared with the employees.. This is one early example of one profit sharing plan.

Henry L. Gantt belonged to the ASME and presented papers to the ASME on topics such as cost, selection of workers, training, good incentive plans, and scheduling of work. He is the originator of the Gantt chart, currently the most popular chart used in scheduling of work.

hat would Industrial Engineering be without mentioning Fredrick Winslow Taylor. Taylor is probably the best known of the pioneers in industrial engineering. His work, like others, covered topics such as the organization of work by management, worker selection, training, and additional compensation for those individuals that could meet the standard as developed by the company through his methods.

The Gilbreths are accredited with the development of time and motion studies. Frank Bunker Gilbreth and his wife Dr. Lillian M. Gilbreth worked on understanding fatigue, skill development, motion studies, as well as time studies. Lillian Gilbreth had a Ph.D. in psychology which helped in understanding the many people issues. One of the most significant things the Gilbrethss did was to classify the basic human motions into seventeen types, some effective and some non-effective. They labeled the table of classification therbligs. Effective therbligs are useful in accomplishing work and non-effective therbligs are not. Gilbreth concluded that the time to complete an effective therblig can be shortened but will be very hard to eliminate. On the other hand non-effective therbligs should be completely eliminated if possible.

In 1948, the American Institute for Industrial Engineers (AIIE), was opened for the first time and began to give a professional authenticity for the practicing engineers. Up to this time industrial engineers really had no specific place in the hierarchy of a company. The ASME was the only other society that required its members to have an engineering degree prior to the development of the AIIE.

What is the future for Industrial Engineers? With analytical methods and the advancing technologies for the computer, modeling complex production and service systems will become more and more an every day task.

Performing a motion study. Every job can be broken down into its’ fundamental work elements. The Gilbreth family found that there are seventeen of these motions. The time to complete each motion does not change. Jobs can be studied visually or through the assistance of a camera for micro-motion studies.

The environment for the workers also needs to be set up to promote efficiency of work. Tools should be placed in fixed locations to eliminate the search and selection therbligs. Work surfaces and chairs should be adjusted to the correct working heights to eliminate stress. Whenever possible, gravity feeders should be used to deliver parts to the correct location. The worker’s tools should be designed to eliminate multiple cuts. Adjustment handles should be designed to maximize the operator’s mechanical advantage.

Performing a time study. Without a standard the company will find it hard to estimate lead-time on their products. Times very greatly when the employee does not know what the expectation of company is. In order to correct this problem the IE will develop a fair standard expectation for each operation. It has been estimated that 12% of a company’s total cost comes from direct labor. Another 43% of cost comes from the material cost. The other 45% is spent in overhead. So the idea that the largest productivity gains can be felt on the floor does not hold up in this light. A good time study will take into account the unavoidable delays, fatigue, and to an extent, outside interferences. Time for wasteful steps, such as searching for tools, will not be included in the final standard. The expectation is that the workplace will be designed to accommodate the work and will be free from this type of waste.

Set-Up Times Set up time is the amount of time it takes to begin producing different parts on a machine. If set-up times remain large the company will operate with high levels of work in progress and finished goods tying up the companies valuable capital. Companies that fail to reduce their set-up times have a tendency to look sluggish in regards to their customers.

Cost An IE will generally be responsible for coming up with a cost analysis on the equipment purchase. There are a several ways of coming up with this. Lifehow long the machine is expected to last when developing the cost analysis.

Efficiency The traditional way of looking at efficiency was to keep the machine running at a 100% The idea was the cost of the machine could be spread out over the amount of time it was kept running. The higher the machines efficiency, time running / time available, the better the accounting numbers looked in regards to machine cost.

Material The IE is concerned with the delivery and flow of material throughout the plant, often the plant has evolved as the company has.

Lot size To allow the manufacturer to stay flexible the production lot sizes should be minimalized. This will only be economical after the reduction of machine set-ups have been achieved.

Inventory Levels Since inventory is capital that cannot be converted until finished and purchased by a consumer, it should be kept to a minimal. Inventories not only tie up capital but if the customer requests a change then the inventory runs the risk of becoming obsolete.

Quality The quality of the material can affect all parts of the system. Poor quality material often introduces excessive amounts of rework into each of the processes. A typical job for an IE would be to work with the quality department to set up a Quality Management system QMS.

Maintenance The amount of maintenance that the machine is going to require is a variable that must be considered. Another issue about maintenance is whether or not the staff on hand will need to be retrained.

Land surveying in Ohio is said to be trickier than conducting surveys in any other area of the United States. The history of land surveying in the Ohio area dates back to relatively early in American land survey history, and in part because of this, there are several land surveying systems in use across the state. In Ohio, land surveyors must work between more than a dozen distinct surveying systems, depending on the area of the state; in many areas, two or more systems have previously been used to survey the same area of land.

The exploration of what is now Ohio began relatively early, by the French in 1669 and 1670. This area was disputed between the French and English until the French and Indian War, which ended in 1763, assigning all of the area to England. At this point, many large tracts in the area were assigned to pay debts to the Penn family, the Connecticut Colony, the Virginia Settlement, the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and others. The English knew little about these lands due to their distance; as a result, a lot of guesswork was involved in these transactions. Because of this, many of the grants overlapped, causing legal problems almost since the start.

With the end of the Revolutionary War, the various colonies ceded certain areas to the newly formed government, and this land would be sold to pay off war debts. The new government needed a method to inventory and sell this land. Because Ohio was then at the edge of the Western frontier, it was the testing ground for many different surveys, including nine major survey systems and 46 smaller ones. The major surveys in Ohio include the Ohio River Survey (the first PLSS survey), the Virginia Military Survey, the Connecticut Western Reserve Survey, the Between the Miami Rivers Survey, the Miami River Survey, the United States Military Survey, the South and East of the First principal Meridian Survey, the North and East of the First Principal Meridian Survey, and the Michigan Survey.

In surveying history, Ohio is perhaps best known as the birthplace of the Public Land Survey System, which is still in use today. This system split public land into townships of six miles by six miles. These would be divided into sections, each one mile square and containing 640 acres. The first area surveyed under the Public Land Survey System was in eastern Ohio, and the work began in 1785 with the Point of Beginning, or the intersection of the Western boundary of Pennsylvania and the North bank of the Ohio River.

The Virginia Military Survey, which started in 1787, was a metes and bounds survey with tracts varying from 100 to 15,000 acres; this land was granted to Revolutionary War veterans depending on their rank. Land shapes were not necessarily rectangular, but drawn by the veteran himself to encompass the best available land. Over 16,000 distinct land plots surveyed by the Virginia Military Survey can be found in 23 countries across the state, and is the only surveying system in Ohio not based on rectangular plots of land.

Numerous other surveys were conducted to sell of the land in the Ohio area, both before and after Ohio became a state in 1803. As the area known as Ohio developed, numerous other survey systems were used to divide the land again and again. Other survey types included three-, four-, or six-mile square survey townships. In order to survey land in Ohio, one must be familiar with each of these surveys.

Jazz is an American art form whose roots date back to the mid-19th century slave songs and chants. The early 20th century saw the art form blossom as instrumental music in the southern United States, mainly along the Mississippi river and specifically New Orleans, Louisiana.

Early instrumental jazz combos of New Orleans varied in instrumentation.  More often than not, these early jazz groups generally consisted of trumpet, clarinet, trombone, tuba and drums.  This instrumentation became what is known as the “dixieland” combo, making its way up the Mississippi river to Chicago where the music became popularized by jazz greats such as Louis Armstrong.

Dixieland combos can be thought of as groups that play “polyphonic” improvisational music.  Each instrument is independent of every other instrument, with each player creating separate musical improvisations based on known melodies, or “tunes” of the day.

The players of these early jazz combos each had a separate role within the group.  The trumpet player was depended upon to state the melody of the song, while the clarinet would improvise complex lines above him.  The trombonists role was to improvise or “fill in” the middle register with lines and notes that were essential to the chord changes of the song itself.  The tuba player (or bass player) generally laid down root notes (and 5ths) of each chord on beats 1 and 3 of each measure.  The tuba served as the harmonic anchor for the group. Lastly, it was the drummers role to keep everyone together by keeping a steady beat throughout the entirety of the song.

As jazz music developed throughout the 1940s and 1950s, jazz combo instrumentation began to become more standardized.  The jazz “quintet” and “sextet” became very popular during this time.  The quintet consisted of trumpet and alto (or tenor) sax as the main melodic instruments while the rhythm section (piano, bass and drums) took care of rhythm and harmony. 

The sextet added a trombone to form what essentially was a three horn front line, with rhythm section accompaniment.  The extra melodic instrument of the sextet made it possible for the horns to add more harmonic depth to the sound of the group.  Each instrument had a role not only as a melodic voice, but also as an integral component of the harmonic structure as well.

Modern jazz combos consist of a variety of instrumentation – 4, 5 horn combos are common place.  As the group grows in size however, the name “combo” is replaced by “band” or “little big band”. 

The jazz combo has provided a musical and creative outlet for countless musicians over the last 100 years.  The jazz combo continues to provide jazz musicians the opportunity to work together to make music not only as a group but also to develop their own voice as individual jazz improvisers.  It is, and probably always will be, the perfect vehicle for learning the art of jazz improvisation.

Ballet, a graceful dance form dates back to the 14th century. In fact, it was initially called balleto and has its origins in Italy. Balleto loosely translates as dances performed to portray some form of theatrical depiction or story. Comedies, stories and events during ancient times were performed.

Domenico di Piacenza named the dance balleto because it was performed on toes and had graceful movements. Daughter of the ruling Florence family, Catherine de Medicis married King of France Henri II in the year 1553. This was the beginning of the great ballet history, which would travel numerous places and become a dance associated with the rich and elite!

When Catherine de Medicis moved over to France, she arranged a group of dancers to perform in her courts. She hired a chief musician Balthasar de Beaujoyeulx for the same. Beaujoyeulx was also responsible for designing costumes and decorating the stage. Here, the first ballet drama was performed in Paris outside Italy. Five hindered dancers were roped in to perform the epic Greek myth of Circe.

In the fifteenth century, when the Italian Renaissance was its peak, huge importance was laid on costume designing to highlight the beauty of the dance. The name ballet was a French version of balleto and has been called so ever since. In the late 1600s, King Louis XIV of France was so impressed with ballet that he decided to establish the Royal Academy of Dance. Today it is popularly known as “Paris Opera Ballet”.

The popularity of the dance slowly grew to other European countries like Russia and finally reached America.

Narrative poetry is one of the three main types of poetry–the others are lyrical and dramatic. A narrative poem is best described as a poem which holds a plot. The poem may be short or long, simple or complex, but it must tell a story. It is often nondramatic and has objective regular scheme and meter. The types of narrative poetry include ballads, epics, idylls, and lays.

Narratives may sometimes exist as an entire novel, but shorter ones are often similar to short stories. Other short narratives may even be divided and collected into interrelated groups, such as Canterbury Tales. Some narratives are largely made of prose but include poetic interludes. An example of this is The Cremation of Sam McGee.

Many narrative poems are used as performance pieces. Narrative poetry has roots in oral tradition, which used poetry as a way of memorization. The meter, alliteration, and kennings would help bards remember stories which were used to tell oral traditions, the happiness of life, and its deepest troubles.

Epics are deemed extremely important to the livelihood of the narrative genre. An epic is a lengthy narrative which contains details of heroic deeds and events which are significant to a culture or nation. Epics have been written at least as long as the time of Homer, whose wrote the epics Iliad and Odyssey, began to roam earth. Today, epics are used to tell both imaginative and re-imagined heroic figures.

Without narratives, many of the stories we love, like Robin Hood and the story of Troy, would be lost in history and much of what we know about ancient warfare and politics would be left only to our imagination.

In this day and age, you would think that ADHD has been around forever. The disorder itself has been around for quite some time, but it was only recently that it was given the name Attention Deficit Disorder. Before that, the disorder had various names that changed over the years.

In 1902, there is the first documented disorder relating to impulsiveness. This was in Britain, and the doctor who diagnosed the impulsive disorder was named Dr. Still. He called this disorder “Defect of Moral Control” and he believed that the diagnosed individual had a medical disorder beyond their control.

After this event, the next documentation of similar symptoms was in 1922. Here, the symptoms we associate with ADHD were given the name “Post-Encephalitic Behavior Disorder.” What this title means I am not quite sure, but that was the name during this time period.

The next event in the history of ADHD was in 1937, where Dr. Charles Bradley introduced the use of stimulants in children who were hyperactive. I still find it interesting that stimulants were thought of to treat hyperactive children when they were already bouncing off the walls. While it is true that stimulants calm hyperactive kids down, how did someone hypothesize that this would occur? After this, in 1956, Ritalin was introduced as the drug of choice to treat hyperactivity.

In the 1960s, stimulants were used by a wider population. The only symptom that was really documented at this point was hyperactivity. In the early 1960s, the disorder was called “Minimal Brain Dysfunction”. At the end of the decade, though, the name of the disorder was changed to “Hyperkinetic Disorder of Childhood.”

The next event that occurred in relation of ADHD was that new symptoms were added to the realm of the disorder. Along with hyperactivity, added symptoms were lack of focus and spaceyness associated with impulsiveness. Impulsiveness now included verbal, cognitive and motor impulsiveness.

In 1980, the disorder was given its current name of Attention Deficit Disorder, with or without hyperactivity. This was documented in the DSM-III put out by the American Psychiatric Association. ADD and ADHD were two different diagnoses.

Next, in 1987, ADD was changed to Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. The American Psychiatric Associated noted that this was a medical diagnosis, and not purely psychological. They also noted that ADHD could cause behavioral issues.

In 1996, a new medication called Adderall was approved by the FDA for the treatment of ADHD. After a period of time, it was deemed to be better at treating the disorder since it lasted longer and was easier to come down off of. In 1999, other medications were added to treat ADHD such as Concerta and Focalin. In 2003, Strattera was introduced as the first ADHD medication that was not a stimulant. This drug acted like an antidepressant, but increased the amount of norepinephrine in the brain.

Gambling is something that many of us today cannot run away from. It has been in existence for thousands of years and is not about to go anywhere. Some even say that it is intrinsically linked to humanity itself meaning that gambling is well within our very own human nature.

Gambling is the wagering or money or anything else of value with the primary goal of winning a material object or money. The wager is often placed with the consciousness of the risk the gambler is taking. For gambling to take place, three elements must be present, which is the consideration or amount wagered; the risk and the prize. Today gambling has evolved into what is now looked at as modern day gaming and is even regulated in most countries and licensed by gaming authorities. It has truly become a, international commercial activity and is said to contribute millions to economies.

History

Gambling can be traced back to as early as before history was written or as early as 3000BC with the six sided dice. Its history can be traced to ancient China where betting on animals fighting was a common practice. It was not until the 10th century that lottos and domino games appeared in China and gambling started to take its shape. The popular games that we know today like poker appeared in the United States in the 17th Century and they say; the rest is really history.

When gambling became mechanized it became easier for the winnings to be regulated more accurately and for the odds to be in everyone’s favour. No more did people have to rely on the goodness of the betting houses since the machine basically determined the outcome.

Online Gambling/Gaming

The breakthrough for online gambling came in 1994 when Antigua and Barbuda passed the Free Trade and Processing Act into Law allowing the licensing of organizations applying to open casinos online. Between then and 1996 a number of laws were passed all of which were directed to online gambling and in 2003, the first live dealer casino was introduced.

Gaming today

The more technology has advanced, the more the gambling industry has also evolved with developments being made geared towards making the lie of the gamer much easier. Given how lucrative the gaming industry is and the fact that people actually like to play, many governments have had no choice but to allow gaming and only control the industry through licensing. There are numerous online casinos in the world today, the best of which are licensed in the various areas within which they practice.

The gaming industry has fast evolved a number of games are now available online and many jackpots can be won from various sites. The only word to players today is to make sure that they are sure to play with an online casino that is licensed and which has a good reputation or which is properly established.

If you have doubts about the reputation of some online casino, visit a website which offers independent casino reviews on the gaming industry today.

Plumbing systems have already existed during ancient times. In fact, at around 1700 BC, The Minoan Palace of Knossos in Crete first featured a terra cotta-based piping that provided water for faucets, as well as faucets made of marble, gold and silver. During the Roman period, personal bathrooms and lead pipes have already existed (1000 BC – 476 AD). Rome’s public baths were already equipped with silver faucets along with fixtures made of gold and marble.

Since then, public systems have changed, including faucets. For many decades, faucets had two handles – one for hot water, and the other for cold water. In 1937, however, this design changed, and this change was initiated by a college student named Al Moen. One fine day in 1937, he turned the faucet handle to wash his hands but scalded them since the water came too hot. This gave him the idea of designing a single-handle faucet.

Between 1940 and 1945, he designed various kinds of faucets: from a double-valve faucet to a cylindrical design, and finally he sold his first single handle mixing faucet in the latter part of 1947. By 1959, his design was used in a million homes in the United States and sold in around 55 countries all over the world. Today, single-handle faucets are popular and can be found in about 50% of American homes.

Aside from single-handed faucets, Al Moen also came up with other inventions in his lifetime, which included the replaceable cartridge (to eliminate washers in the faucets), push-button shower valve diverter, screen aerator, flow control aerator, pressure balancing shower valves and swivel spray. Aside from Al Moen, Landis Perry was also involved in doing innovative faucet designs. In 1945, he designed his first faucet ball valve which aimed at providing a combined blending control and volume with an effective means for sealing valve elements. This design was patented in 1952 and was first introduced in 1954 by Delta faucets (who bought the patent beforehand). Four years henceforth, their sales topped a whooping $1 million.

About two decades later, Wolvering Brass patented the ceramic disk for water control. Unlike rubber-based cartridges, ceramic discs are lapped and polished in such a way that their flatness is only measured in light bands. Ceramic disks tend to last a lot longer than cartridges since they have high wear resistance and are able to provide a more accurate control. These disks are widely used today.

More recent innovations in faucets include built-in cartridges used to reducing the level of lead, cysts and chlorine, built-in pull out sprays, electronic faucets as well as those designed for disabled people. Electronic faucets were introduced in the early 1980’s for hygienic and water conservation purposes, and come with infrared beams that detect motion. When a person happens to put his hand underneath the faucet, the infrared beam is disrupted, and this disruption triggers the water to run. In addition, battery-operated electronic faucets have also been distributed. More developments will surely come in and improve the lives of many homeowners.

Last summer I found out that my husband’s grandmother did not have any kind of life history recorded. She does not have any journals and pictures are scarce. She is the last living grandparent on either side and the thought of my children not knowing her or even being able to learn about her through pictures and memoirs is devastating. I was determined to make some kind of record of her life history but found myself in front of a very daunting task.

I learned that making a record of someone’s life does not have to be as overwhelming as a novel-long biography or a cinema-worthy video- but that even a simple photo or handwritten story can be a treasure for years to come.

Recording a life history can be simplified.

First, decide on the structure you would like to use. For example, would you prefer a video, picture book, timeline in journal entries or biographical articles. Consider your resources, skills and time available for this project. Find the one that is the most practical and achievable in the time allotted for this project.

The next step and the most challenging will be gathering as much information as possible. Much of this information will be obtained by simply asking the right questions. Prepare your questions before the interview so that you can organize the stories into a chronological timeline. It was helpful for me to talk to her children before the interview. They remembered events that their mother had long since forgotten. Here are some thoughts to consider while planning your interview questions:

~ Were there any significant dates in history during their life? How were they affected?

~ Other than big historical events, the trivial things can be fun as well if they remember them- for example the price of bread or how they received the news.

~ Are there other people you would like to interview to get a different perspective of this person and their life? Children? Friends?

~ Try to include stories instead of just facts. Stories can reveal someone’s character in a way that questions and answers cannot.

~ Legacy questions- keep in mind that what you write is how future generations will remember this person. What kind of legacy would they like to leave? What are some life lessons they learned that they would like to pass along? Financial? Family-oriented, etc.

During the actual interview, remember to have fun and enjoy getting to know the person. Be genuinely interested instead of simply filling in your answers. Try to be flexible with your questions and let the conversation flow naturally so they feel comfortable sharing details of experiences with you and reminiscing.

Lastly, put your final project together. Whenever possible ask for the person’s opinion on the structure or layout before the project is completed. Respect that, although you are doing much of the work, this is their history and they may have a preference on how it is presented. They may have not given this much thought, but it is polite to ask.

When the life history project is completed, keep it in a place where you can pull it out often to remember them when they are gone and if possible make copies for other family members or friends to treasure as well. Be sure to keep a digital copy if possible for backup. This is one project you will never regret having completed and with a simplified approach it need not be overwhelming.

Do you know the difference between genealogy and family history?

When you are a beginning genealogist; taking those first tentative steps in researching your ancestry, it can be difficult to distinguish the difference between them.

The terms genealogy and family history refer to two separate but equally significant approaches to exploring your roots. The fundamental difference between the two methods lies in the sources of information used to conduct the research. These sources consist of primary, secondary, and tertiary information.

The study of Genealogy refers to the fact based inquiry into your ancestry. It is the concrete process of searching for your genetic origins by gathering and documenting the names, dates and locations of your predecessors. Genealogy requires adherence to the precise information presented within public record to provide irrefutable evidence of your lineage.

A genealogist’s tools are the source materials such as Statutory Index Records for marriages, births, deaths, and baptisms, although at times family bibles and Census Records can be primary sources. To correctly conduct genealogy research you would want to use only primary source information, which means using any record showing a first hand account of an event and containing the signature of a witness.

Family History refers to the study of the unique details and personal events in your ancestor’s lives; it is their story as told by you, their descendant. Family history research fleshes out the full account that gives life and character to your family tree by including the private details of your generations past; these being the fine points of lives lived that are not found solely within public records. A family historian can use secondary and even tertiary information such as, old photographs, diaries, letters and family lore.

That is not to say that you can not use primary sources for family history research. The study of family history often requires the need to read between the lines of public documents and dig a little deeper to find the tale that lies within. Some truly wonderful opportunities for family history stories are hidden in genealogical data.

Using a fantastic clue found in an Old Parish Record, I will show you how the two can work together.

Genealogy Data + the Family Historian = A Great Story

OPR Extract:

Parish of Carstairs, County of Lanark. Dated May 2nd. 1790

“May 2nd, this day Alexander Gibson in Longflush and Christian Weir had a daughter {Begot in Fornication}. Baptized, Named Janet Gibson.”

The Family History Element

This baptismal record from Scotland 1790, tells us that the child being baptized was “begot in fornication”. Even so, both father and mother were listed in the parish record.

Sensing a good family history story I researched what the term “Begot in Fornication” would have meant to the lives of these individuals in 1700’s Scotland.

What I found was that, the community was very narrow-minded in those days, quick to bring transgressors before the sessions. In this case the father of the child came forward and admitted his liabilities. Due to this he was listed in the record even though he did not marry the mother. The parents of the child being from “good church going families” would have been brought to task publicly and admonished for their sin, this over a period of three Sundays at normal services. Having then been deemed publicly humiliated they would be, so to speak, brought back into the fold and the child baptized.

The short and sweet answer to the question; do you know the difference between genealogy and family history is…

You are a genealogist when: you are searching for and documenting records from primary sources and your concern is for factual, proven accounts of births, baptisms, marriages and deaths.

You are a family historian when: you are using those facts in addition to reported events that although probable may not be substantiated by first hand account in the available records; for the purpose of telling the story of your family’s unique and very personal past.

No matter what your method, don’t be surprised if when rediscovering their lives’, you gain a better understanding of your own.