Woodland Cemetery, Newark, New Jersey

Yesterday was the annual Safe Day at Woodland Cemetery in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey.  Thanks to Mary Lish and John Sass for their coordination and help.  It was great seeing everyone!  After a stormy night, the clouds cleared.  The ground was soggy at first, but soon dried under the hot sun.

Woodland Cemetery was established in 1855 and holds over 80,000 burials.  The annual Safe Day allows volunteers to photograph and record gravestone transcriptions and guide the public in locating graves of loved ones.

Woodland Cemetery, Newark, New Jersey

Woodland Cemetery, Newark, New Jersey

Using a weedwacker to uncover these stones from ivy.

Using a metal detector to locate buried treasures.



Spoon found buried at the cemetery.  Silver-plated copper alloy.

Engraving on spoon.

Ancestry.com DNA Update

I am awaiting an invitation to Ancestry.com's new autosomal DNA testing.  Some have already received the invitation to obtain a DNA kit.  I received an email from Ancestry on 30 May 2012 that I am still on the list and demand is high.  I will share with you when the invitation arrives.

I am interested in trying this service and comparing Ancestry to 23andMe and FamilyTreeDNA.  I am hoping that my paternal grandfather's cousin will agree to test.  (That's you, D.W.)

Having results spread across the three different companies will cripple comparisons.  For now, I can compare results from 23andMe and FamilyTreeDNA at GedMatch, hindered only if a match at one company did not upload results to GedMatch.

Ebay Mitchill Family Documents

Ebay auction listing for papers of the Mitchill family of Long Island, New York

Ebay has a listing for what appears to be a collection of papers of the Mitchill family of Cow Neck, Long Island, New York.  Included are the family bible with names and dates of birth, marriage, and death; deeds; wills; ledgers; and more.  The price is rather steep at $1,500.

Picture of Mitchill family paper collection at ebay.

The Mitchill Family Bible containing important life dates.

Cow Neck, Long Island, New York is a peninsula on the northern coast of the Island.  When these records were made, Cow Neck was in Queens, but now lies in Nassau County.

1848 map of Long Island, New York by J. H. Colton
LongIslandGenealogy.com
Cow Neck is circled.

The Mitchills are an old Long Island family.  I hope that the possessor of these old papers donates the collection to a local repository if these items do not sell.