Sunday, December 21, 2025

Best of the Genea-Blogs - Week of 14 to 20 December 2025

   Scores of genealogy and family history bloggers write hundreds of posts every week about their research, their families, and their interests. I appreciate each one of them and their efforts.


My criteria for "Best of ..." are pretty simple - I pick posts that advance knowledge about genealogy and family history, address current genealogy issues, provide personal family history, are funny or are poignant. I don't list posts destined for most daily blog prompts or meme submissions (but I do include summaries of them), or my own posts.

Here are my picks for great reads from the genealogy blogs for this past week: 

*  Hear Your Ancestors for the First Time: Ancestry’s New “AI Stories” Brings Records to Life and Prompt Cowboy: How Genealogists Can Use It to Supercharge Their AI Research Workflow and The Genealogical Proof Standard for Real Life: Why Genealogists Are Uniquely Qualified to “Disagree Better” by Thomas MacEntee on Genealogy Bargains.

*  Canceling Ancestry Subscription? What You Need to Know First by Mercedes Brons on Who Are You Made Of?

*  Evaluating the FamilySearch AI Research Assistant and New Availability of the 1921 England and Wales Census by James Tanner on Genealogy's Star.

*  Find the History of Any Date in Your Family Tree by DiAnn Iamarino Ohama on Fortify Your Family Tree.

*  When the Machine Finally Learned to Read: Gemini 3 and the Question of “Good Enough” and The Art of Breaking Things Apart: A Framework for AI-Assisted Genealogical Research by Steve Little on AI Genealogy Insights.

*  You Can't Have Just One by Jacqi Stevens on A Family Tapestry.

*  Do You Use Shared Facts? by Marcia Crawford Philbrick on Heartland Genealogy.

*  2025 Genealogy Goals: How Did I Do? by Linda Stufflebean on Empty Branches on the Family Tree.

*  Ending the Year with Intention, Not Pressure by Ellen Thompson-Jennings on Hound On the Hunt.

*  AI: The Future for Family History by John Reid on Anglo-Celtic Connections.

*  The Strength of Cluster Research (AKA FAN Club) by Jill Morelli on Genealogy Certification: My Personal Journal.

*  Applying Context to my Ancestor Stories by Lisa S. Gorrell on My Trails Into the Past.

*  What 2025 taught me about owning my work by Denyse Allen on Chronicle Makers.

*  Using AI as Your Genealogical Deed Abstracting Partner: A Case Study  by Diana Elder on Family Locket.

Here are pick posts by other geneabloggers this week:

*  The Chiddicks Observer Edition 36 [15 December 2025] by Paul Chiddicks on Paul Chiddicks.

*  Friday’s Family History Finds [19 December 2025] by Linda Stufflebean on Empty Branches on the Family Tree.

*  This week’s crème de la crème -- December 20, 2025 by Gail Dever on Genealogy a la Carte.

*  GenStack [20 December 2025] by Robin Stewart on Genealogy Matters.

Readers are encouraged to go to the blogs listed above and read their articles, and add the blogs to your Favorites, Feedly, another RSS feed, or email if you like what you read. Please make a comment to them also - all bloggers appreciate feedback on what they write.

Did I miss a great genealogy blog post? Tell me! I currently am reading posts from over 900 genealogy bloggers using Feedly, but I still miss quite a few it seems.

Read past Best of the Genea-Blogs posts here.

             ==========================================================

Copyright (c) 2025, Randall J. Seaver

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Betty and Fred's Story: "Winter Into Spring 1942"

 The AI-assisted ABC Biography of my mother, Betty Virginia (Carringer) Seaver, is in ABC Biography of #3 Betty Virginia (Carringer) Seaver (1919-2002) of San Diego, California. I also  wrote Betty's Story: The First-Year Art Teacher about the start of her teaching career.

The AI-assisted ABC Biography of my father, Frederick Walton Seaver, is in ABC Biography of #2 Frederick Walton Seaver Jr. (1911-1983) of Massachusetts and San Diego, California.  I also wrote Fred's Story: The Three-Day Cross-Country Escape  and Fred's Story: "I Need A Girl" about him coming to San Diego, and then wanting for a girlfriend.

Then I wrote:


                (AI NotebookLM Infographic - Betty and Fred's Story - Winter into Spring) 

1)  Based on the biographies and the earlier stories, I asked Anthropic Claude Sonnet 4.5 to tell another story - what happened next (I offered some suggestions!)?  Here is the next story (edited for more detail and accuracy):


Betty and Fred’s Story: Winter Into Spring

Mid-February 1942 - The First Telegram

Fred was at work when the telegram arrived at his apartment on Granada Avenue on a Tuesday afternoon. The building manager, Mrs. Henderson, knew Fred worked at Rohr and took it upon herself to call the plant.

"There's a telegram for Mr. Seaver," she told the receptionist. "From Massachusetts. It looks urgent."

The message reached Fred on the production floor. His supervisor pulled him aside, concern on his face. "Seaver, you've got an urgent call. You can take it in the office."

Fred's heart hammered as he picked up the phone. Telegrams from home were never good news.

"Mr. Seaver? This is Mrs. Henderson at your building. A telegram came for you today. I hope you don't mind, but I opened it—it's from your mother."

"What does it say?"

"'Your father not well stop At Evelyn's house Salem Depot New Hampshire stop Will keep you informed stop Mother.'"

Fred gripped the phone tighter. His father, Frederick Walton Seaver Sr., had been in declining health for the past year, but Fred had hoped it wasn't serious. His parents had been staying with his sister Evelyn and her husband John Wood in Salem Depot, where Evelyn could help care for their father.

"Thank you, Mrs. Henderson. I appreciate you calling."

Fred returned to his supervisor. "I need to make a personal call. Family emergency."

He called Betty at the school, knowing she'd be between classes. When she came to the phone, he could hear the concern in her voice immediately.

"Fred? What's wrong?"

"My father's not well. My mother sent a telegram. I don't know how serious it is, but..." His voice broke slightly.

"Oh, Fred. I'm so sorry. Do you need to go to Massachusetts?"

"I don't know. I can't just leave work right now—we're in the middle of a major production push. But if it's serious..."

"Come by after work. We'll figure this out together."

That evening, Fred sat on the Carringer's front porch with Betty, reading and rereading his mother's telegram as if he could divine more information from the sparse words.

"Tell me about your father," Betty said gently. "You've told me bits and pieces, but I want to know more about him."

Fred was quiet for a moment, gathering his thoughts. "My father was born in 1876 in Leominster, Massachusetts. He worked hard his whole life—combmaking, plastics work, whatever he could find to support the family. He married my mother, Bessie in 1900, and they had seven children, but my brother Stanley died at age four. I'm the fifth oldest."

"Tell me about your siblings."

"Marion is the oldest—she's forty now, married to Irving Braithwaite. They live in Ashburham and have a daughter. Evelyn is next—she's thirty-eight, married to Walter Wood with a daughter and two sons in New Hampshire. That's who my parents are staying with now. Ruth is thirty-four, married to Bowers Fischer with two little girls in nearby Sterling. Then there’s me. Edward is twenty-eight, just two years younger than me—he's in Leominster married to Janet. And Geraldine is the baby at twenty-four, though she'd hate me calling her that. She's a schoolteacher in Northampton and not married."

"It must be hard being so far away from all of them."

"It is. When I moved to California, I thought I'd go back eventually. But then I met you, and suddenly Massachusetts felt like a distant memory. This is home now." He looked at Betty. "You're home."

"Have you talked to your supervisor about going back?"

"I did. He said they can't spare me right now. We're running three shifts, and they need every experienced hand. Unless it's..." He couldn't finish the sentence.

"Then we wait and hope for the best," Betty said firmly. "And we pray."

Early March 1942 - The Second Telegram

A week later, another telegram arrived. Fred was home this time, and when Mrs. Henderson knocked on his door with the yellow envelope, his hands shook as he opened it.

"Father in hospital Lawrence General stop Condition serious stop Come if you can stop Mother"

Fred immediately called his supervisor at home. "Sir, I need emergency leave. My father's in the hospital. It's serious."

There was a long pause. "Seaver, I'm sorry, but I can't authorize leave right now. We're behind on the B-24 cowlings, and you're one of our best material controllers. If we fall behind, it impacts the entire production line."

"My father might be dying."

Another pause. "I understand, and I'm truly sorry. But we're at war. The country needs these planes. Can you wait a few days? See how things develop?"

Fred wanted to argue, wanted to demand his right to see his dying father. But he also understood the impossible position everyone was in. The war made everything urgent, everything critical.

"I'll wait," he said heavily. "But if I get another telegram..."

"Then we'll figure something out."

Fred went straight to Fern Street. Betty took one look at his face and pulled him inside. They sat in the living room—Lyle and Emily tactfully making themselves scarce—and Fred told her about the second telegram.

"I should be there," he said, his voice thick with emotion. "He's my father. I should be with him."

"I know. I'm so sorry you can't go."

"What if he dies and I never got to say goodbye? What if the last time I saw him was when I left for California two years ago?"

Betty held him as he cried—quiet, restrained tears that spoke of a grief held too tightly. Fred had been raised not to show emotion, taught that men didn't cry. But here, with Betty, he could let himself feel it.

"Tell me more about him," Betty said softly. "Tell me your favorite memory."

Fred wiped his eyes and thought. "I was about ten years old. It was winter in Massachusetts—real winter, three feet of snow. My father and I went out to cut firewood in the woods. It was just the two of us, the trees heavy with snow, everything quiet. He taught me how to read the trees, which ones to cut and which to leave. How to swing an axe properly. How to stack wood so it would season right."

He smiled slightly at the memory. "We worked all morning, and then we sat on a fallen log and shared the lunch my mother had packed. He didn't talk much—he never was a talker. But he put his hand on my shoulder and said, 'You're going to be a fine man, Freddie. You've got a good head and a good heart.' That was it. That was all he said. But I remember feeling like I was ten feet tall."

"He was proud of you."

"I hope so. I hope he knows that everything I've done, everything I've become, was partly because of him."

Friday, March 13, 1942 - The Final Telegram

Fred was at work when the third telegram arrived. Again, Mrs. Henderson called the plant. Again, Fred was pulled off the production floor.

He knew before he even picked up the phone. Something in Mrs. Henderson's voice when she said, "Mr. Seaver, there's another telegram."

"'Father passed away this morning stop Funeral Monday March 16 Leominster stop All our love stop Mother'"

Frederick Walton Seaver Sr. had died at Lawrence General Hospital on Friday, March 13, 1942, of prostate cancer. He was sixty-five years old.

Fred hung up the phone carefully, walked to his supervisor's office, and knocked.

"Sir, my father died this morning."

His supervisor's face fell. "Seaver, I'm so sorry. Of course you can have leave now. Take as much time as you need."

"The funeral is Monday in Massachusetts. I can't get there in time—trains take three days at least. By the time I arrive, it'll be over."

Fred felt numb, disconnected from his body. His father was dead, and he was three thousand miles away. He, the oldest son, hadn't been there. Hadn't said goodbye. Hadn't told his father how much he loved him, how much those words on that winter day had meant.

He went through the rest of his shift like an automaton, his hands doing familiar tasks while his mind was elsewhere. After work, he drove to Fern Street. Betty met him at the door, took one look at his face, and knew.

"Oh, Fred. Oh no."

She pulled him inside. Lyle and Emily appeared from the kitchen, their faces sympathetic. Without needing to be told, they understood this was a moment for Betty and Fred alone. They quietly retreated.

Betty and Fred sat on the sofa, and Fred told her everything—the telegram, the impossibility of getting to Massachusetts in time, the funeral he'd miss, the father he'd never see again.

"I should have gone last week when I got the second telegram," Fred said, his voice hollow. "I should have demanded leave. But I thought there was time. There's always supposed to be more time."

"You were doing what you thought was right. Serving your country. Your father would have understood that."

"Would he? I don't know. I'll never know now."

Betty held him as he cried again, harder this time, the tears of a son who'd lost his father without getting to say goodbye. She didn't try to fix it or minimize it. She just held him and let him grieve.

Later that evening, with Lyle and Emily's help, they arranged to send flowers to the funeral home in Leominster—a large arrangement of white lilies and roses with a card reading: "In loving memory of Father. From Frederick Jr. and Betty."

"I wish I could meet your family," Betty said. "I wish I could be there with you for the funeral."

"You are here with me. That's what matters." Fred squeezed her hand. "My family will meet you eventually. Probably at our wedding."

It was the first time since Valentine's Day that Fred had mentioned their future wedding without prompting. Despite his grief—or perhaps because of it—he was thinking about the future, about the life they'd build together.

"Your father would have liked me, do you think?" Betty asked tentatively.

"He would have loved you. He'd have seen what I see—your kindness, your strength, your goodness. He'd have welcomed you into the family with open arms."

Fred stayed at Fern Street until late that night. Emily made tea and sandwiches that neither Fred nor Betty could eat. Lyle sat with them for a while, sharing his own stories of losing his father years earlier.

"The grief doesn't go away," Lyle said quietly. "But it changes. It becomes part of you, woven into who you are. And you carry your father with you—in your values, your memories, the man you've become because of him."

When Fred finally left, Betty walked him to his car. The March night was cool and clear, stars bright overhead.

"Will you be all right?" Betty asked.

"Eventually. Not tonight, not tomorrow. But eventually." He pulled her close. "Having you helps more than you know. You make the unbearable bearable."

"I'll be here. Whatever you need, whenever you need it."

Fred kissed her forehead. "I love you, Betty Carringer. And I promise you—I won't wait too much longer to make you my wife. Life's too short. My father taught me that, even if I had to learn the lesson the hard way."

March 15-29, 1942 - Healing Through Living

The funeral in Leominster on Monday, March 16th, happened without Fred. His mother Bessie called him that evening to tell him about it—the church packed with people who'd known Frederick Sr., the kind words spoken, the hymns sung. His sisters Marion, Evelyn, Ruth, and Geraldine had been there, along with his brother Edward. Everyone had admired the flowers Fred and Betty sent.

"Your father was proud of you," Bessie told her son over the crackling long-distance line. "He always said you were the smartest of all his children. He was glad you found good work in California, even if it meant you were far away."

"I wish I could have been there, Mother."

"I know, dear. But you were there in spirit. And you're doing important work. The war—we all have to make sacrifices."

Over the following weeks, Betty helped Fred grieve in the best way she knew how—by keeping him engaged with life, with beauty, with the city he'd made his home.

On his first Sunday off after his father's death, Betty suggested they go to Belmont Park in Mission Beach. Fred was reluctant at first—an amusement park seemed too frivolous, too cheerful for how he felt.

"That's exactly why we should go," Betty insisted. "You need to remember that life goes on. That there's still joy in the world, even when we're grieving."

Belmont Park had opened just before the Depression, a small amusement park right on the beach. The Giant Dipper roller coaster dominated the skyline, its wooden track curving against the ocean backdrop.

"I've never been on a roller coaster," Betty admitted as they bought tickets.

"Never?"

"Never. Are they scary?"

"Terrifying. Let's go."

They climbed into the Giant Dipper's cars, and as they clicked slowly up the first hill, Betty gripped Fred's hand so tightly he thought she might break his fingers.

"I've changed my mind!" she said as they neared the top. "I want to get off!"

"Too late!"

Then they crested the hill and plunged down, and Betty screamed—but halfway through the ride, her screams turned to laughter. By the time they pulled back into the station, she was grinning widely.

"Again!" she demanded. "Let's go again!"

They rode the Giant Dipper three times, then tried the other rides—the carousel, the bumper cars, the Ferris wheel that gave them a view of the entire coastline. They ate hot dogs and cotton candy and laughed like children.

"Thank you," Fred said as they walked along the beach afterward. "I needed this. I needed to remember how to laugh."

"Your father would want you to live, not just exist."

"He would. He always said life was for living, not for brooding about."

The following Saturday, they went to a movie downtown—"Mrs. Miniver" at the Fox Theatre. It was a serious film about a British family during the Blitz, and it made them both cry. But it also reminded them of what people were enduring overseas, how much worse things could be.

"We're lucky," Betty said as they left the theater. "Even with the war, even with losing your father, we have so much to be grateful for."

"We do. We have each other."

On Sunday, March 29th, Fred suggested they drive out to the Point Loma Lighthouse. It was one of those rare, crystal-clear San Diego days where the air was so clean you could see forever.

They parked at the old lighthouse, now a monument, and climbed to the viewing platform. The view was breathtaking—San Diego Bay spread out below them, the city stretching north and east, and in the distance, mountains.

"Look," Betty said, pointing. "You can see snow on the mountains."

Fred followed her gaze. To the north, the San Gabriel Mountains rose with white peaks. East were the San Bernardino and San Jacinto ranges, also snow-capped. Closer by, Palomar Mountain was visible, and to the east, Cuyamaca and Laguna Mountains. Even two peaks in Baja California were visible with their mantles of white.

"It's beautiful," Fred breathed. "I've lived here almost two years, and I've never seen it like this."

"These days are rare. Maybe a few times a year when the weather is just right."

They stood there for a long time, taking in the 360-degree view. Ocean to the west, mountains to the east, city below, sky above. It felt like standing at the center of the world.

"My father would have loved this view," Fred said quietly. "He always appreciated natural beauty. He'd have stood here and just taken it all in without saying a word."

"Tell me more about what he appreciated."

So Fred told her more stories about his father—how Frederick Sr. had loved working with his hands, how he'd taught young Fred to fix things instead of throwing them away, how he'd believed in the value of hard work and honest dealing.

"He wasn't perfect," Fred said. "He had a temper sometimes, and he could be stubborn. He was quiet. But he loved his family fiercely. He provided for us through the Depression when so many families fell apart. And he taught us—all six of us kids—that our word was our bond."

"That's where you get it from," Betty said. "Your integrity. Your sense of responsibility."

"I suppose it is."

Fred put his arm around Betty's shoulders as they looked out over the vista. "You know what? Looking at all this, feeling how small we are in comparison—it helps. My father lived sixty-five years. He raised six children. He worked hard, loved his family, left the world better than he found it. That's a life well-lived. That's what I want too."

"That's what you'll have. What we'll have together."

They stayed until the sun began its descent toward the Pacific, painting the sky in brilliant oranges and pinks. As they walked back to the car, Fred felt something shift inside him—not the absence of grief, but the beginning of acceptance. His father was gone, but the lessons remained. The love remained. And life, as Betty had reminded him, was for living.

To be continued ...

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2) Here is the Google NotebookLM Video Overview about Fred and Betty's activities in the late winter and early spring  of 1942 in San Diego: 

3)  This story is historical fiction based on real people -- my parents -- and a real place. I don't know the real story of these events -- but this is how it might have been. Claude is such a good story writer!  I added some details and corrected some errors in Claude's initial version.

Stay tuned for the next episode in this family story.

                           ==============================================

Links to my blog posts about using Artificial Intelligence are on my Randy's AI and Genealogy page. Links to AI information and articles about Artificial Intelligence in Genealogy by other genealogists are on my AI and Genealogy Compendium page.

Copyright (c) 2025, Randall J. Seaver

The URL for this post is:  

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Share it on Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.  Please note that all comments are moderated, and may not appear immediately.

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Saturday, December 20, 2025

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun -- Your 2025 "Dear Genea-Santa" Letter

 Calling all Genea-Musings Fans: 

 It's Saturday Night again - 

Time for some more Genealogy Fun!!


(Photo courtesy of footnoteMaven)

Come on, everybody, join in and accept the mission and execute it with precision. Here's your chance to sit on Genea-Santa's lap (virtually) and tell him your Christmas genealogy-oriented wish list:

1) Write your 2025 Genea-Santa letter. Have you been a good genealogy girl or boy? What genealogy-oriented items are on your Christmas wish list? They could be family history items, technology items, or things that you want to pursue in your ancestral quest.

2) Tell us about them in your own blog post, in a comment on this post, or in a Facebook Status  post.  Please leave a link on this post if you write your own post.

Here's mine:

Dear Genea-Santa,

I tried so hard to be a good genea-boy again this year. I  hosted and moderated Zoom meetings with my local society, wrote and edited my society monthly newsletter, wrote over 1080 blog posts, watched and participated in some Zoom webinars, attended RootsTech 2025 virtually, wrote about 25 genealogical sketches, transcribed about 50 probate records or deeds, and helped several friends and colleagues with their research. In addition, I have added more names, facts, notes, and (especially) sources to my database.  I used the Artificial Intelligence tools to create engaging biographies of 60 of my ancestors and a number of Linda's ancestors, and wrote many ancestor stories -- that was great fun!

Thank you for last year's genealogy gift - my T-shirt with my wife and myself on it was great!  The center of the shirt says "Grandpa's Legacy."  The 8 photos on the front of the shirt include all of my descendants - my two daughters and all five grandchildren.  On the back of the shirt is a photo of Linda and me celebrating our 50th wedding anniversary.

Another gift was the inspiration of the "Magic Genie AI" request that resulted in the AI-assisted ABC Biography concept, combining an engaging biography (based on my research) with a family group image, poem, song, audio overview, video overview, infographic, narrated slide show and YouTube video about an ancestor.  Did you have something to do with that?

Was I a bad genea-boy, or maybe you thought I had enough, or you were out of the other things?  I'll ask for some of them again, and add a few more!  I still BELIEVE!!!!! Come on, Santa, all I want for Christmas in 2025 are:
  • One of my descendants (out of two daughters and five grandchildren) becomes interested in their ancestry and family history, and wants to share the fun.  
  • More visits from my daughters and grandchildren to me and Linda.  Also, more photos of the daughters and grandchildren living their lives.  
  • A new Windows 11 laptop and a new Windows 11 desktop computer. 
  • A monthly subscription to Google One so that I can make an unlimited number of deep research requests, infographics, video overviews and slide decks every day.
  • An AI agent that will create an ABC Biography with one custom prompt to generate all of the elements of the ABC Biography.  
  • More ancestor story ideas to write AI-assisted stories about.
  • Solid leads on the parents of William Knapp (1775-1856), Devier James Lamphear Smith (1839-1894), Hannah Smith (1768-1827), Sarah Fletcher (1806-b1850), Mary Palmer (1790-1845), Ann Warren (1764-????), Ann Kenyon (1742-1824), Hannah Brown (1725-1774), and the name of the wife  Stephen Feather (1736-1804),  would be welcome too!  
  • Good health and wealth for me and my family, all of my genealogy friends and their families, and for your wife, elves and reindeer.  I feel the sands of time are sifting out of my hourglass.
Thank you, Genea-Santa, for listening to my pleas. I will leave a nice personal meat-lovers pizza in the freezer for you (you can heat it in the kitchen microwave), a rosy red apple and some delicious chocolate chip cookies on the fireplace hearth, and some eggnog (in the refrigerator) for you on Christmas Eve just in case you need fortification. You can get a yummy Dove chocolate ice cream bar out of the freezer for dessert if you'd like. Nothing's too good for Genea-Santa - mi casa es su casa!  Please don't let your reindeer trample my solar panels on the roof.

/==============================================


Copyright (c) 2025, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Share it on Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.
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A Seaver Family Christmas in 1875 in Leominster, Massachusetts

 One hundred years ago, the Isaac Seaver (1823-1901) family resided in Leominster, Massachusetts at 7 Cedar Street.  The ABC Biography for Isaac is in ABC Biography of #16 Isaac Seaver (1823-1901) of Massachusetts and for his wife Lucretia is in ABC Biography of #17 Lucretia Townsend (Smith) Seaver (1828-1884) of Massachusetts. They had four children.  Life was good.  Isaac and Lucretia (Smith) Seaver are my paternal 2nd great-grandparents through my great-grandfather, Frank Walton Seaver (1852-1922).

                     (AI NotebookLM Infographic - The Isaac Seaver family Christmas in 1875) 

I wondered what Christmas 1875 might have been like for this family.  I asked Anthropic Claude to tell me, based on information in the Biographies and additional information about the family members.  Here is the story:

Christmas Day 1875: The Seaver Family of Leominster

The first pale light of Christmas morning crept through the frost-etched windows at 7 Cedar Street, casting delicate patterns across the wooden floorboards. Isaac Seaver stirred in bed, listening to the familiar sounds of his home beginning to wake. At 52 years old, with his sandy hair now streaked with gray, he had seen many Christmases, but none quite matched the joy of watching his children experience the magic of the day.

From down the hallway came a whispered giggle, then the patter of feet trying desperately to be quiet and failing spectacularly. Isaac smiled in the darkness, knowing his youngest, fourteen-year-old Ellen Maria—Nellie, as everyone called her—was likely leading the charge. He could picture sixteen-year-old Elizabeth and twenty-one-year-old Benjamin trying to maintain some semblance of mature restraint while being pulled along by their sister's enthusiasm.

"They're awake," Lucretia murmured beside him, her voice warm with amusement. At 47, his wife still managed the household with capable hands, and Isaac knew she'd been up late the night before, making final preparations for the day's festivities.

"Have been for the past hour, I'd wager," Isaac replied, sitting up and reaching for his clothes. "Best go down before Nellie explodes from anticipation."

The family gathered in the parlor, where a modest Christmas tree stood decorated with strings of popcorn, paper chains the children had made, and a few precious glass ornaments that caught the morning light. Stockings hung from the mantelpiece, bulging with promised treasures.

"Can we, Mama? Can we?" Nellie bounced on her toes, her dark eyes shining.

"You've been patient this long," Lucretia said, settling into her chair with a smile. "Go ahead."

The room erupted in controlled chaos as the children descended upon their stockings. Nellie squealed with delight at finding an orange—a rare treat—along with some peppermint sticks, a small wooden whistle, and a new hair ribbon. Elizabeth carefully extracted a lovely handkerchief with embroidered edges, a packet of needles and thread, and her own orange. Benjamin, trying to appear nonchalant despite his obvious pleasure, discovered a new pocketknife, some tobacco for his pipe, and several pieces of horehound candy.

"Look, Papa! Look what Saint Nicholas brought!" Nellie held up each treasure as if it were made of gold.

Isaac watched from his chair near the fire, his blue eyes soft with contentment. His work-roughened hands—perpetually marked by the soot and burns of the blacksmith's forge despite Lucretia's best efforts with soap and salve—rested on his knees. These were the moments that made all the years of hard labor worthwhile.

After stockings came the gifts beneath the tree. Isaac had spent several evenings in his workshop behind the house, creating a small wooden jewelry box for Elizabeth, its lid carefully fitted and the corners precisely joined. For Nellie, he'd fashioned a wooden sled with iron runners he'd forged and carefully shaped in his shop. Benjamin received a new leather belt with a brass buckle Isaac had cast and polished himself.

"Oh, Papa, it's beautiful!" Elizabeth ran her fingers over the smooth wood of the box, admiring the grain.

Nellie was already imagining sledding adventures. "Can I take it out today? Please?"

"After dinner," Lucretia interjected firmly, though her eyes sparkled. "We have much to do before our guests arrive."

As the morning progressed, the house filled with the rich aromas of Christmas dinner preparation. Lucretia had been planning for weeks, saving butter and eggs, and Isaac had purchased a fine goose from a local farmer. The bird was already in the oven, and Lucretia moved efficiently between tasks—checking the roasting goose, preparing potatoes for mashing, cutting turnips, and assembling her apple pie, the crust crimped with practiced precision.

Elizabeth worked alongside her mother, learning the rhythms of meal preparation. She peeled potatoes while Nellie was assigned the task of setting the table with their best dishes—not fine china by any means, but the nicest pieces the family owned, accumulated over years of careful saving.

"Make sure you polish the silver first," Lucretia reminded her youngest. "And use the good tablecloth, the one with the drawn work."

Benjamin, feeling too old for such domestic tasks but not quite old enough to escape them, was dispatched to bring in more firewood and ensure the parlor fire was burning cheerfully. Isaac retreated to his chair with the newspaper, though he found himself reading the same paragraph three times, too distracted by the bustling household around him.

Around noon, a knock at the door announced the arrival of their guests. Isaac rose to answer it, his large frame filling the doorway as he swung it open to the cold December air.

"Merry Christmas, Father!" Frank stood on the step, his arm around his wife Hattie. Behind them stood Hattie's parents, Edward and Sophia Hildreth, who carried their bundled 18-month-old son, Clarence, their faces ruddy from the short walk across Lancaster Street.

"Merry Christmas! Come in, come in, before you all freeze!" Isaac stepped aside, ushering them into the warmth.

The house seemed suddenly fuller, voices overlapping in greetings and exclamations. Hattie, at just eighteen years old, was still growing into her role as Frank's wife, learning from her mother. Sophia unwrapped the baby carefully, revealing a round-faced little boy with curious eyes who immediately reached for the nearest shiny object—one of the ornaments on the tree.

"Frank, my boy, married life suits you!" Isaac clapped his eldest son on the shoulder. At twenty-three, Frank was shorter than Isaac, but had his father's sturdy build and was making his own way in the world as a combmaker, though he still worked alongside Isaac in the fork shop on occasion.

"It does indeed, Father," Frank said warmly, helping Hattie with her coat.

Sophia Hildreth embraced Lucretia like the old friends they'd become. "Something smells absolutely divine, Lucretia. You've outdone yourself."

"I hope there's enough," Lucretia fretted, though Isaac knew she'd prepared portions generous enough to feed twice as many.

Edward Hildreth, a solidly built man in his forties who worked as a machinist, shook Isaac's hand with the firm grip of someone accustomed to manual labor. "Good to see you, Isaac. How's work treating you these days?"

"Well enough," Isaac replied, gesturing for Edward to join him near the fire while the women fussed over baby Clarence and the final dinner preparations. "The fork shop keeps me busy. We've got orders backed up through February."

"That's good, that's good," Edward nodded approvingly, settling into the offered chair. "Steady work's a blessing, especially in winter. I've got a commission to build cabinets for the new house going up on Merriam Avenue, but it's slow going in this cold. The wood doesn't want to cooperate when it's this frozen."

"I can imagine," Isaac said. "Though I'll take cold over the heat of summer in the forge any day. Last July nearly did me in—too old to be working over hot coals in that weather."

Edward chuckled. "We're none of us getting younger, my friend. But at least we've got good families around us. Speaking of which, I want to thank you again for the fine son you've raised. Frank's been good to our Hattie, and they’ve been good helping with little Clarence there—well, he's brought more joy than I knew was possible."

"Frank learned from watching his mother," Isaac said, glancing toward the kitchen where Lucretia directed operations with calm authority. "I can't take credit for his finer qualities."

The two men fell into comfortable conversation, discussing the challenges of their respective trades, the price of materials, and the changes they'd seen in Leominster since Isaac's family had arrived just a few years earlier. The town was growing, new businesses opening, more houses being built. It was a prosperous time, generally speaking, though both men had lived through enough lean years to appreciate their current circumstances without taking them for granted.

"Papa!" Nellie appeared at Isaac's elbow, unable to contain herself. "Mrs. Johnson's twins have their new sled outside, and Tommy Morse got ice skates, and everyone's going to the pond after dinner! May we go? Please?"

Isaac looked to Edward with amusement. "Did you hear that? 'Everyone's going to the pond.' I suspect 'everyone' means about six children who've been cooped up all morning."

"Let them go," Edward said with a grin. "Better they run off that energy outside than bounce off the walls in here."

"After dinner," Isaac said firmly to Nellie. "And you'll bundle up properly, or you won't go at all."

"Yes, Papa!" Nellie dashed off to spread the news to Elizabeth and Benjamin.

Dinner was announced with appropriate fanfare. The family and guests crowded around the table, which practically groaned under the weight of Lucretia's preparations. The golden-brown goose took center stage, surrounded by mashed potatoes, turnips with butter, bread stuffing, cranberry sauce, fresh baked rolls, and various preserves Lucretia had put up during the harvest season.

Isaac said grace, his deep voice warm with genuine gratitude: "Heavenly Father, we thank You for this blessed day, for family gathered together, for the gift of Your son, and for the abundance of Your provision. May we always remember those less fortunate, and may we use Your blessings wisely and generously. Amen."

A chorus of "Amens" circled the table, and then the serious business of eating began.

Frank carved the goose with the skill Isaac had taught him, distributing portions to each plate. Hattie managed to eat while keeping little Clarence entertained, though the boy seemed more interested in grasping at everything within reach than in any food offered to him.

"Do you remember the Christmas when Benjamin was this age?" Lucretia asked, smiling at the memory. "He grabbed the cranberry sauce and upended the entire bowl in his lap."

"I did not!" Benjamin protested, his face reddening.

"You most certainly did," Frank said with brotherly glee. "You were covered head to toe in cranberries. Looked like you'd broken out in red spots."

The table erupted in laughter, and even Benjamin couldn't help but join in, though he muttered good-naturedly about the injustice of family memories.

The meal progressed with the comfortable rhythm of people who genuinely enjoyed each other's company. Stories were shared, gentle teasing exchanged, and seconds of everything were consumed. When Lucretia brought out her apple pie, still warm and fragrant with cinnamon, there were genuine groans of appreciation despite everyone's full stomachs.

"Mrs. Seaver, I don't know how you do it," Sophia Hildreth said, accepting a generous slice. "Everything is perfection itself."

"Years of practice," Lucretia replied modestly, though she clearly appreciated the compliment.

After dinner, the women cleared the table while the men retired to the parlor with pipes and conversation. Baby Clarence, having been passed from lap to lap throughout the meal, finally surrendered to sleep in his mother's arms.

"Can we go now?" Nellie appeared again, this time dressed in her warmest coat, scarf wound around her neck, mittens dangling from strings sewn into her sleeves.

"Let me look at you," Lucretia said, inspecting her youngest daughter with a critical eye. She adjusted Nellie's scarf, pulling it higher around her ears. "Elizabeth, make sure your sister doesn't stay out until she catches her death. Benjamin, you're in charge."

"Yes, Mama," came the dutiful replies.

Isaac watched as his three youngest children bundled into their winter clothes, Elizabeth wrapping herself in her good wool shawl, Benjamin pulling on the leather gloves Isaac had given him last Christmas. Nellie clutched her new sled with barely contained excitement.

"Two hours," Isaac said firmly. "Back before dark."

"Yes, Papa!"

The door burst open, admitting a blast of cold air and releasing three excited young people into the gray December afternoon. Isaac could hear their voices carrying back as they rushed to meet their friends, Nellie's laughter ringing out clear and bright.

Through the window, Isaac watched them go, his children joining the small clusters of other young people making their way toward the pond at the edge of town. Other families' children emerged from houses up and down Cedar Street and Lancaster Street, all bundled in their winter best, carrying sleds and skates, cheeks already pink with cold and anticipation.

"They grow up so fast," Frank said quietly, coming to stand beside his father at the window, little Clarence now asleep against his shoulder.

"That they do," Isaac agreed, thinking of how not so long ago Frank had been the one racing out into winter afternoons with friends. Now here he stood, a husband himself, looking remarkably mature with his sleeping brother-in-law. "That they do."

The afternoon settled into a peaceful lull. The women sat in the parlor with their needlework, talking in the comfortable way of friends who need not fill every silence, with Clarence napping on a pad. Edward and Isaac discussed the potential for spring work, making tentative plans for Edward to build some new storage cabinets for Isaac's workshop.

"The problem is organization," Isaac admitted. "I've got tools and parts scattered everywhere. Lucretia threatens to refuse to wash my work clothes until I can prove I have a proper place to hang them."

"A man's workshop is his domain," Edward said with mock solemnity. "But I've learned it's wise to accommodate reasonable requests from one's wife. Keeps the peace, and peace is worth its weight in gold."

"Truer words were never spoken," Isaac agreed, raising his coffee cup in salute.

As the winter afternoon light began to fade toward evening, the sound of returning children announced itself long before the door opened. They tumbled inside in a rush of cold air and excited voices, faces bright red with cold, mittens soaked through, but eyes shining with happiness.

"It was wonderful!" Nellie exclaimed, shedding her wet outer clothes in a heap that Lucretia immediately began gathering with practiced efficiency. "My sled is the fastest! We raced down Harper's Hill, and I beat Tommy Morse and the Johnson twins!"

"The pond's frozen solid," Benjamin reported, warming his hands by the fire. "Half the town must have been there. The Aldrich boys have a bonfire going near the shore."

Elizabeth, more restrained but no less pleased, added, "We saw the Reverend White and his family. Mrs. White asked after you, Mama. She wants to know if you'll help with the church social in January."

As the children thawed by the fire, sharing tales of their afternoon adventures, Isaac looked around his crowded parlor at his gathered family—his wife of twenty-three years, his grown son with his young wife, his children still at home, and his friends the Hildreths and their Clarence. The room glowed with lamplight and firelight, warm against the gathering dark outside.

This, he thought, was wealth beyond any measure. Not the modest home on Cedar Street, nor the tools in his workshop, nor even the small savings he'd managed to accumulate through years of labor. This—family, friends, health, the simple joy of Christmas shared with those he loved—this was the true treasure of his life.

"More pie, anyone?" Lucretia asked, and the room filled once more with laughter and conversation, the sound of a family complete and content on a cold Christmas evening in 1875.

Outside, snow began to fall softly, dusting Cedar Street with fresh white, each flake catching the lamplight from the windows before settling gently on the frozen ground, while inside the Seaver home, Christmas continued in warmth and joy, creating memories that would last a lifetime.

=======================================

3)  The Google NotebookLM video about this story is below: 


4)  This story is, of course, historical fiction with real persons and created dialogue.  It's a traditional view, even sappy and positive, but I think it's fairly realistic. It might have been this way in 1875. 

I wish I had a photograph of any Christmas that my family celebrated, but the Infographic at the top of the post captures the mood.

                        ==============================================

Links to my blog posts about using Artificial Intelligence are on my Randy's AI and Genealogy page. Links to AI information and articles about Artificial Intelligence in Genealogy by other genealogists are on my AI and Genealogy Compendium page.

Copyright (c) 2025, Randall J. Seaver


Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Share it on Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.  Please note that all comments are moderated, and may not appear immediately.

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Friday, December 19, 2025

Added and Updated FamilySearch Record Collections - Week of 13 to 19 December 2025

 Each week, I try to keep track of the number of Full-Text Search collections (indexed, searchable) and the Images collections (browsable but not searchable) -- see Sections 1) and 2) below. In addition, I list the genealogy historical record collections (often name-indexed) that are added, removed, and/or updated on FamilySearch and listed on the Historical Record Collection list at   https://familysearch.org/search/collection/list --  See Section 3.

1)  As of 19 December 2025, there are now 6,618 searchable image collections on FamilySearch Full-Text Search this week, an increase of 11 from last week. There are over 1.620 BILLION "results" in the collections. There are 868 collections from the United States, 147 for Canada, 236 for England, and 266 for Ireland. It is not possible to see which collections are new.  

2)  As of 19 December 2025, there are now 24,554 browsable (but not indexed or transcribed) image collections on FamilySearch Images this week, a decrease of 112 from last week. There are over 5.876 BILLION images in these collections.  There are 2,103 collections from the United States, 6,958 from Europe and 224 from Canada.  It is not possible to see which collections are new.  I wonder where the removed collections go - to Full-Text Search and/or Historical Records?

3)  As of 19 December 2025, there are 3,431 historical record collections on FamilySearch (an increase of 1 from last week) on the Signed In screen (and 3,431 on the Signed Out screen).

 The added, deleted, and updated collections this week from FamilySearch (from a list supplied by Marshall Clow):

--- Collections Deleted ---

*  Hawaii, World War I Service Records, 1917-1919 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3019092); 9,527 indexed records with 9,512 record images, DELETED
*  Nebraska, Grand Army of the Republic, Burial Records, 1861-1948 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2721451); 43,367 indexed records with 42,630 record images, DELETED

--- Collections Added ---

*  Italy, Massa E Carrera, Civil Registration (Tribunale), 1866-1929 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000545); 2,360 indexed records with 1,232 record images, ADDED 18-Oct-2025
*  Italy, Umbria, Perugia, Civil Registration (Tribunale), 1810-1978 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000549); 16,177 indexed records with 5,012 record images, ADDED 18-Oct-2025
*  Sierra Leone, Property Records, 1800-2024 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000535); 103,307 indexed records with 103,296 record images, ADDED 18-Dec-2025

--- Collections Updated ---

Canada, Nova Scotia, Deaths, 1890-1955 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2251294); 280,653 indexed records with 251,097 record images (was 336,983 records with 251,097 images), UPDATED 17-Dec-2025
Chile, Cemetery Records, 1701-2021 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1428897); 5,600,036 indexed records with 3,675,058 record images (was 5,486,775 records with 3,675,058 images), UPDATED 19-Dec-2025
Costa Rica, Catholic Church Records, 1595-2022 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1460016); 2,676,711 indexed records with 962,203 record images (was 2,672,013 records with 962,203 images), UPDATED 17-Dec-2025
Denmark, Census, 1911 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2691890); 83,659 indexed records with 251,268 record images (was 2,794,162 records with 251,268 images), UPDATED 18-Dec-2025
England Marriages, 1538–1973 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1473015); Index only (10,626,737 records), no images (was 10,678,884 records with 0 images), UPDATED 18-Dec-2025

England, Births and Christenings, 1538-1975 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1473014); Index only (40,529,863 records), no images (was 40,723,271 records with 0 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025
England, Deaths and Burials, 1538-1991 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1473016); Index only (13,644,987 records), no images (was 13,734,459 records with 0 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025
England, Lincolnshire, Parish Registers, 1538-1990 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2540411); 1,788,503 indexed records with 391,055 record images (was 2,371,569 records with 393,023 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025
England, Warwickshire, Parish Registers, 1535-1972 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1462403); 2,362,948 indexed records with 134,087 record images (was 2,370,925 records with 134,087 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025
Find a Grave Index (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2221801); 261,300,369 indexed records with 68,320,102 record images (was 260,453,667 records with 68,320,102 images), UPDATED 19-Dec-2025

France, Charente, Parish and Civil Registration, 1550-1936 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4129995); 2,595,028 indexed records with 1,045,469 record images (was 2,595,857 records with 1,045,469 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025

France, Loire-Atlantique, Civil Registration, 1792-1960 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3288440); 4 indexed records with 2,783,499 record images (was 4 records with 2,783,499 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025

Georgia, County Delayed Birth and Death Records, 1829-1961 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3438747); 99,233 indexed records with 3,143 record images (was 102,539 records with 3,143 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025
Ghana, Census, 2010 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000267); 27,652 indexed records with 713,103 record images (was 30,720 records with 713,103 images), UPDATED 19-Dec-2025
Guatemala, Civil Registration, 1833-2009 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1682771); 2,614,040 indexed records with 2,755,000 record images (was 2,613,162 records with 2,755,000 images), UPDATED 16-Dec-2025

Haiti, Civil Registration, 1794-2018 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1482819); 2,940,046 indexed records with 31,609 record images (was 2,916,467 records with 31,609 images), UPDATED 18-Dec-2025
Hawaii, Name Change Records, 1874-1995 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000141); 25,179 indexed records with 21,949 record images (was 26,638 records with 21,949 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025
Honduras, Civil Registration, 1841-1968 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2135627); 6,104,566 indexed records with 337,976 record images (was 5,757,814 records with 337,976 images), UPDATED 19-Dec-2025
Iowa, Births and Christenings, 1830-1950 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1674820); Index only (395,117 records), no images (was 395,117 records with 0 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025
Iowa, Church and Civil Births and Baptisms, 1837-1987 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2366597); 88,313 indexed records with 8,317 record images (was 90,260 records with 8,317 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025

Iowa, Church and Civil Deaths, 1845-1987 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2366613); 20,371 indexed records with 7,627 record images (was 20,415 records with 7,627 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025
Iowa, County Death Records, 1880-1992 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2110820); Index only (850,994 records), no images (was 853,814 records with 0 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025
Iowa, Military Discharge Records, ca.1862 - ca.1976 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4114270); 137,157 indexed records with 56,298 record images (was 184,179 records with 55,531 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025
Italy, Avellino, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1809-1947 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2484771); 2,324,501 indexed records with 3,099,458 record images (was 2,325,004 records with 3,099,458 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025
Italy, Benevento, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1810-1942 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2475030); 511,982 indexed records with 1,827,400 record images (was 514,321 records with 1,827,400 images), UPDATED 16-Dec-2025

Italy, Campobasso, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1809-1918 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1968528); 1,941,407 indexed records with 2,171,605 record images (was 1,836,917 records with 2,171,605 images), UPDATED 17-Dec-2025
Italy, Chieti, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1809-1931 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2419833); 1,508,566 indexed records with 3,714,370 record images (was 1,511,037 records with 3,714,370 images), UPDATED 18-Dec-2025
Italy, Frosinone, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1809-1945 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3006902); 518,426 indexed records with 120,102 record images (was 258,947 records with 119,600 images), UPDATED 18-Dec-2025
Italy, Modena, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1806-1942 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1968527); 832,227 indexed records with 2,114,742 record images (was 839,514 records with 2,114,742 images), UPDATED 18-Dec-2025
Italy, Padova, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1621-1936 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2120751); 456,594 indexed records with 601,344 record images (was 155,614 records with 601,344 images), UPDATED 12-Dec-2025

Italy, Torino, Ivrea, Civil Registration (Tribunale), 1865-1937 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1475996); Browse 722,302 Images only, no index (was 0 records with 722,302 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025
Italy, Vercelli, Vercelli, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1802-1813, 1838-1942 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1939214); 70,053 indexed records with 1,499,389 record images (was 70,053 records with 1,500,370 images), UPDATED 18-Dec-2025
Italy, Verona, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1630-1946 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2016225); 641,134 indexed records with 2,976,910 record images (was 641,218 records with 2,976,910 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025
Kansas, Grant County, Census Records, 1895-1982 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3288444); 89,611 indexed records with 16,647 record images (was 28,877 records with 16,647 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025
Louisiana, First Registration Draft Cards, 1940-1945 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1916286); 211,896 indexed records with 792,451 record images (was 385,686 records with 792,451 images), UPDATED 17-Dec-2025

Mexico, Baptisms, 1560-1950 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1473011); Index only (29,488,965 records), no images (was 29,530,505 records with 0 images), UPDATED 14-Dec-2025
Mexico, Chiapas, Civil Registration, 1841-1991 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1916246); 1,254,017 indexed records with 1,526,718 record images (was 1,421,111 records with 1,526,718 images), UPDATED 14-Dec-2025
Mexico, Chihuahua, Civil Registration, 1861-1997 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1922462); 1,584,744 indexed records with 1,561,583 record images (was 1,626,513 records with 1,561,583 images), UPDATED 14-Dec-2025
Mexico, Coahuila, Catholic Church Records, 1627-1978 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1502401); 1,364,352 indexed records with 393,502 record images (was 1,414,677 records with 393,502 images), UPDATED 16-Dec-2025
Mexico, Distrito Federal, Civil Registration, 1832-2006 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1923424); 6,684,893 indexed records with 4,936,321 record images (was 6,704,219 records with 4,936,321 images), UPDATED 14-Dec-2025

Mexico, Durango, Civil Registration, 1861-1995 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1916235); 1,264,112 indexed records with 1,042,146 record images (was 1,299,447 records with 1,042,146 images), UPDATED 14-Dec-2025
Mexico, Hidalgo, Catholic Church Records, 1546-1971 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1804358); 4,849,345 indexed records with 1,750,627 record images (was 4,946,958 records with 1,750,627 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025
Mexico, Jalisco, Catholic Church Records, 1590-2022 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1874591); 8,444,831 indexed records with 5,797,486 record images (was 8,350,860 records with 5,797,486 images), UPDATED 14-Dec-2025
Mexico, Jalisco, Civil Registration, 1857-2000 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1918187); 7,130,679 indexed records with 3,955,679 record images (was 7,166,874 records with 3,955,679 images), UPDATED 14-Dec-2025
Mexico, Marriages, 1570-1950 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1473012); Index only (5,251,033 records), no images (was 5,297,693 records with 0 images), UPDATED 14-Dec-2025

Mexico, Michoacán, Catholic Church Records, 1555-1996 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1883388); 5,392,827 indexed records with 5,283,986 record images (was 5,662,716 records with 5,283,986 images), UPDATED 14-Dec-2025
Mexico, Nayarit, Civil Registration, 1868-2001 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1916242); 552,422 indexed records with 422,997 record images (was 573,586 records with 422,997 images), UPDATED 14-Dec-2025
Mexico, Oaxaca, Catholic Church Records, 1559-2022 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1909191); 5,951,098 indexed records with 3,458,764 record images (was 6,154,826 records with 3,458,764 images), UPDATED 14-Dec-2025
Mexico, Oaxaca, Civil Registration, 1861-2002 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1923401); 5,104,862 indexed records with 3,865,729 record images (was 5,110,561 records with 3,865,729 images), UPDATED 14-Dec-2025
Mexico, Puebla, Civil Registration, 1861-1956 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1918287); 2,958,543 indexed records with 1,459,393 record images (was 2,960,151 records with 1,459,393 images), UPDATED 14-Dec-2025

Mexico, Querétaro, Civil Registration, 1864-2005 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1922415); 1,109,141 indexed records with 624,300 record images (was 1,126,739 records with 624,300 images), UPDATED 14-Dec-2025
Mexico, Sonora, Civil Registration, 1861-1995 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1918289); 684,295 indexed records with 745,080 record images (was 726,802 records with 745,080 images), UPDATED 14-Dec-2025
Mexico, Tamaulipas, Civil Registration, 1800-2002 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1916237); 1,217,811 indexed records with 1,184,297 record images (was 1,224,852 records with 1,184,297 images), UPDATED 14-Dec-2025
Mexico, Veracruz, Civil Registration, 1821-1963 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1922413); 2,656,241 indexed records with 1,624,732 record images (was 2,674,522 records with 1,624,732 images), UPDATED 14-Dec-2025
Mexico, Yucatán, Civil Registration, 1860-2005 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1916248); 2,266,866 indexed records with 1,521,336 record images (was 2,290,333 records with 1,521,336 images), UPDATED 14-Dec-2025

Mexico, Zacatecas, Catholic Church Records, 1605-1980 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1804458); 2,855,664 indexed records with 1,663,800 record images (was 2,853,924 records with 1,663,800 images), UPDATED 14-Dec-2025
Nebraska, Marriages, 1855-1995 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1708654); Index only (926,377 records), no images (was 926,377 records with 0 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025
New Hampshire, Marriage Certificates, 1948-1959 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1876926); 94,876 indexed records with 96,581 record images (was 96,585 records with 96,581 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025
New Mexico, Births and Christenings, 1726-1918 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1680839); Index only (264,938 records), no images (was 263,905 records with 0 images), UPDATED 14-Dec-2025
New Mexico, Marriages, 1751-1918 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1680844); Index only (66,434 records), no images (was 66,029 records with 0 images), UPDATED 14-Dec-2025

New York, Yonkers, Birth and Death Registration and Indexes, 1875-1916 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4116431); 76,978 indexed records with 1,693 record images (was 71,248 records with 1,693 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025
Nicaragua, Catholic Church Records, 1740-2014 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1494432); 450,506 indexed records with 86,119 record images (was 825,362 records with 86,119 images), UPDATED 18-Dec-2025
Nicaragua, Civil Registration, 1809-2014 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1601210); 978,508 indexed records with 2,591,542 record images (was 2,655,067 records with 2,591,542 images), UPDATED 18-Dec-2025
Paraguay, Civil Registration, 1842-2012 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000049); 9,271 indexed records with 9,434 record images (was 8,915 records with 9,434 images), UPDATED 16-Dec-2025
Pennsylvania, County Marriages, 1775-1991 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1589502); 3,628,856 indexed records with 1,789,697 record images (was 3,618,274 records with 1,789,697 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025

Pennsylvania, Delayed Birth Records, 1780-1977 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3743274); 178,440 indexed records with 135,675 record images (was 193,892 records with 135,675 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025
Philippines, Bicol, Church Records, 1738-1989 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000336); 27,112 indexed records with 23,142 record images (was 5,703 records with 2,825 images), UPDATED 12-Dec-2025
Philippines, Catholic Church Records, 1520-2014 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2861657); 12,234,884 indexed records with 2,919,193 record images (was 12,213,164 records with 2,867,383 images), UPDATED 12-Dec-2025
Philippines, Eastern Visayas, Church Records, 1716-2014 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000329); 318,586 indexed records with 267,236 record images (was 121,106 records with 192,597 images), UPDATED 12-Dec-2025
Philippines, Ilocos, Church Records, 1718-2007 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000330); 175,859 indexed records with 150,928 record images (was 9,555 records with 34,989 images), UPDATED 12-Dec-2025

Philippines, Western Visayas, Church Records, 1712-2006 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000338); 79,193 indexed records with 99,217 record images (was 60,056 records with 58,504 images), UPDATED 12-Dec-2025
Poland, Lublin, Roman Catholic Church Books, 1784-1964 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1867931); 326,092 indexed records with 397,530 record images (was 346,464 records with 397,530 images), UPDATED 17-Dec-2025
Portugal, Vila Real, Catholic Church Records, 1533-1953 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1976140); 768,751 indexed records with 396,243 record images (was 769,525 records with 396,243 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025
Prisoners of War, 1715-1947 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4459223); 2,349,449 indexed records with 283,791 record images (was 2,434,805 records with 283,791 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025
Puerto Rico, Naturalization Records, 1897-1985 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2774942); 91,927 indexed records with 67,302 record images (was 91,157 records with 67,290 images), UPDATED 16-Dec-2025

Sierra Leone, Marriage and Divorce Records, 1854-2022 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000423); 82,165 indexed records with 101,840 record images (was 82,165 records with 101,840 images), UPDATED 18-Dec-2025
Switzerland, Catholic and Reformed Church Records, 1418-1996 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4138674); 20,798,224 indexed records with 2,024,010 record images (was 20,841,007 records with 2,024,045 images), UPDATED 17-Dec-2025
Switzerland, Church Records, 1277-1992 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1640373); Browse 517,510 Images only, no index (was 0 records with 517,510 images), UPDATED 17-Dec-2025
Tennessee, Deaths, 1914-1966 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1417505); 1,888,109 indexed records with 2,017,500 record images (was 1,923,635 records with 2,017,500 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025
Texas, Grimes County, Marriage Records, 1916-1971 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3518927); 6,237 indexed records with 7,015 record images (was 11,647 records with 7,015 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025

United States, Obituaries, American Historical Society of Germans from Russia, 1899-2012 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2367299); 6,633,957 indexed records with 539,877 record images (was 6,633,957 records with 539,877 images), UPDATED 17-Dec-2025
United States, World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1861144); 12,446,109 indexed records with 19,317,962 record images (was 12,868,306 records with 19,317,962 images), UPDATED 17-Dec-2025
Venezuela, Catholic Church Records, 1577-2022 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1951777); 17,395,647 indexed records with 1,899,876 record images (was 17,397,795 records with 1,899,876 images), UPDATED 14-Dec-2025
Wales, Flintshire, Parish Registers, 1538-1912 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1426674); 495,043 indexed records with 518,340 record images (was 495,063 records with 518,340 images), UPDATED 17-Dec-2025
Washington, Soldier Home Records, 1891-1945 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2143178); 1,734 indexed records with 98,141 record images (was 12,798 records with 98,141 images), UPDATED 15-Dec-2025

Zambia, Archdiocese of Lusaka, Church Records, 1908-2019 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3736255); 40,553 indexed records with 328,682 record images (was 1,480,684 records with 328,682 images), UPDATED 18-Dec-2025
Zimbabwe, Diocese of Hwange, Catholic Church Records, 1924-2022 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000103); 4,017 indexed records with 20,941 record images (was 7,577 records with 20,941 images), UPDATED 18-Dec-2025
Zimbabwe, Diocese of Mutare, Catholic Church Records, 1898-2023 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000105); 13,890 indexed records with 38,410 record images (was 12,438 records with 38,410 images), UPDATED 18-Dec-2025

--- Collections with new images ---

Argentina, Buenos Aires, Civil Registration, 1861-2018 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000041); 1 indexed records with 111,687 record images (was 1 records with 111,684 images), last updated 07-Jun-2024
Argentina, Military Records, 1911-1936 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000280); 1 indexed records with 2,926,827 record images (was 1 records with 2,926,824 images), last updated 31-Oct-2024
Arizona, Yavapai County, Voting Records, 1875-1932 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3734454); 157,847 indexed records with 5,710 record images (was 157,847 records with 5,693 images), last updated 15-Jun-2024
Brazil, Alagoas, Civil Registration, 1876-2023 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4469403); 1 indexed records with 454,031 record images (was 1 records with 454,022 images), last updated 07-Jun-2024
Brazil, Maranhão, Civil Registration, 1827-2022 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4469402); 1 indexed records with 905,710 record images (was 1 records with 905,708 images), last updated 07-Jun-2024

Brazil, Sergipe, Civil Registration, 1866-2021 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4470324); 1 indexed records with 268,808 record images (was 1 records with 268,807 images), last updated 07-Jun-2024
England and Wales, Census, 1911 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1921547); 36,354,828 indexed records with 8,898,192 record images (was 36,354,828 records with 8,700,952 images), last updated 01-Aug-2019
Netherlands, Archival Indexes, Vital Records, 1600-2000 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2704829); 46,579,094 indexed records with 46,579,094 record images (was 46,579,094 records with 46,322,205 images), last updated 08-Feb-2024
New Jersey, State Census, 1905 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1928107); 2,146,861 indexed records with 43,525 record images (was 2,146,861 records with 43,515 images), last updated 13-Jun-2024
Northern Ireland, Tithe Applotment Books, 1822-1840 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2729531); 397,856 indexed records with 164,318 record images (was 397,856 records with 164,259 images), last updated 14-Jun-2024

United Kingdom, British Armed Forces and Overseas Vital Records, 1761-2005 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4324570); 2,878,200 indexed records with 2,860,706 record images (was 2,878,200 records with 2,609,291 images), last updated 22-Sep-2021

--- Collections with images removed ---

England, Cambridgeshire Bishop's Transcripts, 1538-1983 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1465708); 1,108,130 indexed records with 107,282 record images (was 1,108,130 records with 113,963 images), last updated 14-Jun-2024
England, Hampshire, Parish Registers, 1538-1980 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2556014); 1,781,411 indexed records with 135,903 record images (was 1,785,222 records with 136,206 images), last updated 23-Sep-2025
France, Ariège, Parish and Civil Registration, 1583-1923 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000206); 1,660,594 indexed records with 691,421 record images (was 1,660,594 records with 692,921 images), last updated 05-May-2025
Georgia, Tax Digests, 1787-1900 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4130006); 2,880,488 indexed records with 124,697 record images (was 2,880,488 records with 125,164 images), last updated 11-Apr-2025
Italy, Foggia, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1809-1902 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2821290); 2,897,985 indexed records with 1,414,666 record images (was 2,897,985 records with 1,428,270 images), last updated 10-Nov-2025

Italy, Teramo, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1809-1936 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3006903); 1,131,025 indexed records with 801,965 record images (was 1,131,865 records with 825,479 images), last updated 02-Oct-2025
Russia, Tula, Church Books, 1722-1936 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000050); 4,397,945 indexed records with 1,572,032 record images (was 4,394,031 records with 1,574,069 images), last updated 16-Sep-2025
United States, Obituary Records, 2014-2023 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000145); 1 indexed records with 28,203,751 record images (was 1 records with 28,203,752 images), last updated 22-Jul-2024
Uruguay, Passenger Lists, 1888-1980 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2691993); 1,914,849 indexed records with 115,438 record images (was 1,911,888 records with 143,013 images), last updated 11-Dec-2025

--- Collections with new records ---

El Salvador, Baptisms, 1750-1940 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1584970); Index only (145,495 records), no images (was 145,490 records with 0 images), last updated 16-Sep-2025
El Salvador, Catholic Church Records, 1655-1977 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1919582); 3,173,907 indexed records with 592,191 record images (was 2,605,819 records with 592,191 images), last updated 03-Nov-2025
El Salvador, Marriages, 1810-1930 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1584975); Index only (22,778 records), no images (was 19,137 records with 0 images), last updated 16-Sep-2025
England, Essex, Non-Conformist Church Records, 1613-1971 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3584542); 147,362 indexed records with 18,153 record images (was 140,738 records with 18,153 images), last updated 23-Sep-2025
England, Leicestershire, Parish Registers, 1533-1991 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2840172); 2,404,551 indexed records with 338,632 record images (was 2,404,408 records with 338,632 images), last updated 22-Sep-2025

England, Sussex, Parish Registers, 1538-1910 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1465706); Index only (1,860,912 records), no images (was 1,858,227 records with 0 images), last updated 23-Sep-2025
Idaho, Boundary, Eastport, Arrival Manifests, 1924-1956 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2072140); 230,180 indexed records with 436,334 record images (was 228,564 records with 436,334 images), last updated 23-Sep-2025
Jamaica, Civil Registration, 1878-2000 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1538386); 1,376,493 indexed records with 3,838,605 record images (was 1,373,375 records with 3,838,605 images), last updated 03-Nov-2025
Liberia, Vital Records, 1912-2018 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2100287); 112,105 indexed records with 24,406 record images (was 111,796 records with 24,406 images), last updated 01-Oct-2025
Louisiana, Confederate Pensions, 1898-1950 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1838535); 97,279 indexed records with 199,883 record images (was 96,050 records with 199,883 images), last updated 20-Nov-2025

Mexico, Nuevo León, Civil Registration, 1859-1962 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1916238); 1,425,205 indexed records with 701,908 record images (was 1,424,128 records with 701,908 images), last updated 02-Aug-2025
Mexico, San Luis Potosí, Civil Registration, 1859-2000 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1916239); 3,232,389 indexed records with 1,896,240 record images (was 3,231,603 records with 1,896,240 images), last updated 02-Aug-2025
Mississippi, Enumeration of Educable Children, 1850-1892; 1908-1957 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1856425); 6,873,237 indexed records with 211,757 record images (was 6,845,001 records with 211,757 images), last updated 22-Sep-2025
Pennsylvania, Births and Christenings, 1709-1950 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1681005); Index only (2,515,805 records), no images (was 2,514,727 records with 0 images), last updated 02-Dec-2025
Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, City Births, 1860-1915 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1951739); 1,272,816 indexed records with 139,194 record images (was 1,271,615 records with 139,194 images), last updated 12-Sep-2025

Russia, Samara, Church Books 1748-1934 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1807365); 4,754,124 indexed records with 1,909,956 record images (was 4,713,729 records with 1,909,956 images), last updated 16-Sep-2025
Zimbabwe, Archdiocese of Bulawayo, Catholic Church Records, 1896-2022 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000106); 9,121 indexed records with 63,643 record images (was 8,070 records with 63,643 images), last updated 31-Oct-2024
Zimbabwe, Catholic Church Records, 1897-2022 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4475014); 10,730 indexed records with 64,555 record images (was 9,815 records with 64,555 images), last updated 12-Jun-2025

--- Collections with records removed ---

Arkansas, First Draft Registration Cards, 1940-1945 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1875142); 499,726 indexed records with 1,003,703 record images (was 500,274 records with 1,003,703 images), last updated 13-Jun-2024
British Newspaper Archive, Family Notices (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2562514); 4,012,326 indexed records with 271,979 record images (was 4,014,549 records with 271,979 images), last updated 03-Nov-2025
Canada, New Brunswick, Provincial Marriages, 1789-1950 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1824707); 252,025 indexed records with 268,525 record images (was 256,385 records with 268,525 images), last updated 02-Dec-2025
Canada, Nova Scotia, Deaths, 1956-1957 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2251301); 1,074 indexed records with 12,185 record images (was 11,869 records with 12,185 images), last updated 14-Jun-2024
Canada, Nova Scotia, Delayed Births, 1837-1907 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2241429); 117,028 indexed records with 70,782 record images (was 117,044 records with 70,782 images), last updated 12-Jun-2025

Denmark, Census, 1834 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2771431); Browse 39,570 Images only, no index (was 1,042,384 records with 39,570 images), last updated 14-Jun-2024
El Salvador, Civil Registration, 1704-2001 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1821208); 3,129,559 indexed records with 1,381,210 record images (was 3,296,811 records with 1,381,210 images), last updated 16-Sep-2025
England, Hampshire, Portsmouth, Baptisms, 1538-1940 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4469393); 534,166 indexed records with 45,104 record images (was 535,242 records with 45,104 images), last updated 23-Sep-2025
England, Hampshire, Portsmouth, Burials, 1538-1926 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4469392); 309,678 indexed records with 17,442 record images (was 311,181 records with 17,442 images), last updated 23-Sep-2025
England, Hampshire, Portsmouth, Marriages, 1537-1930 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4469394); 390,716 indexed records with 54,670 record images (was 392,578 records with 54,670 images), last updated 23-Sep-2025

England, Northumberland, Non-Conformist Church Records, 1613-1974 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3648677); 349,847 indexed records with 48,186 record images (was 363,173 records with 48,186 images), last updated 23-Sep-2025
England, Northumberland, Parish Registers, 1538-1950 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2353070); 2,594,769 indexed records with 280,015 record images (was 2,601,979 records with 280,015 images), last updated 23-Sep-2025
England, Shropshire, Parish Registers, 1538-1922 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3155854); 898,887 indexed records with 62,897 record images (was 904,814 records with 62,897 images), last updated 23-Sep-2025
England, Somerset, Church Records, 1501-1999 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4380193); 4,486,050 indexed records with 4,776,791 record images (was 4,532,246 records with 4,776,791 images), last updated 23-Sep-2025
England, Surrey, Parish Registers, 1536-1992 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2475028); Index only (1,776,903 records), no images (was 1,778,512 records with 0 images), last updated 23-Sep-2025

England, Wiltshire, Church Records, 1518-1990 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4380174); 2,502,214 indexed records with 189,689 record images (was 2,570,836 records with 189,689 images), last updated 23-Sep-2025
England, Yorkshire, Parish Registers, 1538-2016 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4439317); 10,994,894 indexed records with 933,231 record images (was 10,995,346 records with 933,231 images), last updated 23-Sep-2025
Georgia, World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1940-1945 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1880573); 836,654 indexed records with 1,682,137 record images (was 837,843 records with 1,682,137 images), last updated 03-Nov-2025
Ghana, Census, 1984 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1615258); 729,534 indexed records with 904,488 record images (was 761,161 records with 904,488 images), last updated 01-Oct-2025
Iowa, County Marriages, 1838-1934 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1805551); Index only (2,309,289 records), no images (was 2,314,574 records with 0 images), last updated 13-Jun-2024

Iowa, Marriages, 1809-1992 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1674842); Index only (191,286 records), no images (was 192,124 records with 0 images), last updated 23-Sep-2025
Iowa, Old Age Tax Assistance Records, 1934-1958 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2573700); Index only (922,767 records), no images (was 926,046 records with 0 images), last updated 14-Jun-2024
Italy, Births and Baptisms, 1806-1900 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1708706); Index only (1,150,938 records), no images (was 1,151,133 records with 0 images), last updated 05-Aug-2025
Italy, Catania, Arcidiocesi di Catania, Catholic Church Records, 1515-1941 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2013622); 1,159,099 indexed records with 1,762,909 record images (was 1,160,421 records with 1,762,909 images), last updated 19-Nov-2025
Italy, Grosseto, Diocesi di Grosseto, Catholic Church Records, 1521-1983 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000381); 172,846 indexed records with 88,318 record images (was 175,966 records with 88,318 images), last updated 19-Nov-2025

Italy, Macerata, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1808-1814 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2152678); 57,378 indexed records with 93,143 record images (was 57,835 records with 93,143 images), last updated 18-Sep-2025
Italy, Marriages, 1809-1900 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1711678); Index only (277,109 records), no images (was 277,147 records with 0 images), last updated 05-Aug-2025
Italy, Matera, Civil Registration (State Archive), 1809-1925 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2819382); 912,986 indexed records with 1,323,614 record images (was 913,957 records with 1,323,614 images), last updated 11-Nov-2025
Italy, Rovigo, Rovigo, Civil Registration (Tribunale), 1871-1937 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1482864); 828,399 indexed records with 1,082,856 record images (was 828,557 records with 1,082,856 images), last updated 20-Nov-2025
Kansas, Marriages, 1840-1935 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1674845); Index only (304,636 records), no images (was 306,042 records with 0 images), last updated 16-Nov-2023

Louisiana Second Registration Draft Cards, 1948-1959 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1921443); 202,408 indexed records with 490,208 record images (was 243,676 records with 490,208 images), last updated 01-Oct-2024
Mexico, Aguascalientes, Catholic Church Records, 1601-1962 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1502404); 905,705 indexed records with 618,532 record images (was 907,909 records with 618,532 images), last updated 01-Aug-2025
Mexico, Baja California and Baja California Sur, Catholic Church Records, 1750-1984 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1506640); 60,085 indexed records with 29,943 record images (was 75,472 records with 29,943 images), last updated 13-Jun-2024
Mexico, Baja California and Baja California Sur, Civil Registration, 1860-2004 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1916086); 39,433 indexed records with 110,234 record images (was 41,762 records with 110,234 images), last updated 01-Aug-2025
Mexico, Campeche, Catholic Church Records, 1638-2003 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1473200); 469,525 indexed records with 189,697 record images (was 566,457 records with 189,697 images), last updated 01-Aug-2025

Mexico, Chiapas, Catholic Church Records, 1557-1978 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1616412); 1,357,719 indexed records with 968,865 record images (was 1,487,143 records with 968,865 images), last updated 02-Aug-2025
Mexico, Chihuahua, Catholic Church Records, 1632-2005 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1521780); 1,085,966 indexed records with 378,612 record images (was 1,117,955 records with 378,612 images), last updated 01-Aug-2025
Mexico, Coahuila, Civil Registration, 1861-1998 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1916233); 1,867,979 indexed records with 1,179,899 record images (was 1,876,519 records with 1,179,899 images), last updated 02-Aug-2025
Mexico, Colima, Catholic Church Records, 1707-1969 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1508604); 335,002 indexed records with 228,566 record images (was 343,067 records with 228,566 images), last updated 01-Aug-2025
Mexico, Colima, Civil Registration, 1860-1997 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1916241); 319,506 indexed records with 225,991 record images (was 323,296 records with 225,991 images), last updated 01-Aug-2025

Mexico, Deaths, 1680-1940 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1473013); Index only (257,827 records), no images (was 260,793 records with 0 images), last updated 02-Aug-2025
Mexico, Distrito Federal, Catholic Church Records, 1514-1970 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1615259); 4,076,396 indexed records with 4,263,289 record images (was 4,100,661 records with 4,263,289 images), last updated 29-Nov-2025
Mexico, Durango, Catholic Church Records, 1604-1985 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1554576); 1,512,340 indexed records with 504,812 record images (was 1,607,381 records with 504,812 images), last updated 02-Aug-2025
Mexico, Guanajuato, Catholic Church Records, 1519-1984 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1860831); 10,935,753 indexed records with 4,584,983 record images (was 11,057,682 records with 4,584,983 images), last updated 22-Sep-2025
Mexico, Guerrero, Catholic Church Records, 1576-1979 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1823323); 2,359,066 indexed records with 1,584,621 record images (was 2,502,193 records with 1,584,621 images), last updated 05-Aug-2025

Mexico, Guerrero, Civil Registration, 1860-1996 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1918291); 1,709,104 indexed records with 1,550,638 record images (was 1,721,757 records with 1,550,638 images), last updated 02-Aug-2025
Mexico, Hidalgo, Civil Registration, 1861-2001 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1919702); 2,098,389 indexed records with 1,575,430 record images (was 2,104,064 records with 1,575,430 images), last updated 02-Aug-2025
Mexico, Michoacán, Civil Registration, 1859-1940 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1916243); 2,394,046 indexed records with 1,337,669 record images (was 2,397,449 records with 1,337,669 images), last updated 01-Aug-2025
Mexico, Morelos, Catholic Church Records, 1598-1994 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1837907); 914,908 indexed records with 531,787 record images (was 934,680 records with 531,787 images), last updated 05-Aug-2025
Mexico, México, Catholic Church Records, 1567-1970 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1837908); 8,350,332 indexed records with 4,823,124 record images (was 8,394,844 records with 4,823,124 images), last updated 05-Aug-2025

Mexico, México, Civil Registration, 1861-1941 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1916244); 3,057,215 indexed records with 1,339,715 record images (was 3,058,651 records with 1,339,715 images), last updated 01-Aug-2025
Mexico, Nayarit, Catholic Church Records, 1596-1967 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1883377); 725,410 indexed records with 499,694 record images (was 760,175 records with 499,694 images), last updated 22-Sep-2025
Mexico, Nuevo León, Catholic Church Records, 1544-1982 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1473204); 1,112,254 indexed records with 447,381 record images (was 1,148,399 records with 447,381 images), last updated 05-Aug-2025
Mexico, Puebla, Catholic Church Records, 1545-2009 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1837906); 6,354,491 indexed records with 6,124,553 record images (was 6,431,957 records with 6,124,553 images), last updated 15-Sep-2025
Mexico, Querétaro, Catholic Church Records, 1590-1970 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1881200); 2,519,647 indexed records with 1,380,077 record images (was 2,531,604 records with 1,380,077 images), last updated 30-Sep-2025

Mexico, San Luis Potosí, Catholic Church Records, 1586-1977 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1860864); 4,546,336 indexed records with 2,162,812 record images (was 4,573,278 records with 2,162,812 images), last updated 06-Aug-2025
Mexico, Sinaloa, Catholic Church Records, 1671-1968 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1473206); 836,682 indexed records with 521,512 record images (was 882,678 records with 521,512 images), last updated 01-Aug-2025
Mexico, Sonora, Catholic Church Records, 1657-1994 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1473203); 593,340 indexed records with 383,518 record images (was 614,875 records with 383,518 images), last updated 02-Aug-2025
Mexico, Tabasco, Catholic Church Records, 1803-1970 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1909106); 116,767 indexed records with 121,509 record images (was 130,207 records with 121,509 images), last updated 02-Aug-2025
Mexico, Tamaulipas, Catholic Church Records, 1703-1964 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1790934); 805,637 indexed records with 199,328 record images (was 838,867 records with 199,328 images), last updated 02-Aug-2025

Mexico, Tlaxcala, Catholic Church Records, 1576-1994 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1837905); 1,719,101 indexed records with 1,012,693 record images (was 1,743,018 records with 1,012,693 images), last updated 02-Aug-2025
Mexico, Veracruz, Catholic Church Records, 1590-1978 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1883382); 3,795,751 indexed records with 2,563,917 record images (was 3,870,475 records with 2,563,917 images), last updated 22-Sep-2025
Mexico, Yucatán, Catholic Church Records, 1543-1977 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1909116); 2,942,005 indexed records with 1,234,534 record images (was 2,960,561 records with 1,234,534 images), last updated 02-Aug-2025
Mexico, Zacatecas, Civil Registration, 1857-2001 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1916240); 2,849,292 indexed records with 1,371,091 record images (was 2,867,222 records with 1,371,091 images), last updated 01-Aug-2025
Micronesia, Pohnpei, Civil Registration, 1948-2009 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1886069); 75,431 indexed records with 79,408 record images (was 75,594 records with 79,408 images), last updated 13-Jun-2024

Minnesota, Naturalization Card Index, 1930-1988 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2120721); 69,090 indexed records with 86,132 record images (was 71,366 records with 86,132 images), last updated 14-Jun-2024
Nebraska, Naturalization Records, 1855-1989 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/3241361); 142,654 indexed records with 140,784 record images (was 144,058 records with 140,784 images), last updated 15-Jun-2024
Nebraska, World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1940-1945 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2759156); 205,382 indexed records with 297,841 record images (was 310,174 records with 297,841 images), last updated 14-Jun-2024
New Zealand, Auckland, Albertland Index, 1862-1962 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2212661); 19,931 indexed records with 30,652 record images (was 22,580 records with 30,652 images), last updated 14-Jun-2024
New Zealand, Central Otago, Cemetery Gravestones, 1861-2009 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2115582); 3,640 indexed records with 6,615 record images (was 8,128 records with 6,615 images), last updated 15-Oct-2025

Ohio, County Births, 1841-2003 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1932106); 4,072,188 indexed records with 1,431,304 record images (was 4,072,562 records with 1,431,304 images), last updated 22-Sep-2025
Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-2016 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1614804); 5,783,466 indexed records with 1,547,844 record images (was 5,784,355 records with 1,547,844 images), last updated 21-Apr-2025
Rhode Island, Town Deaths and Burials Index, 1639-1932 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2301758); 132,993 indexed records with 27,903 record images (was 134,187 records with 27,903 images), last updated 15-Jun-2024
Rhode Island, Town Marriages Index, 1639-1932 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2301760); Index only (58,340 records), no images (was 58,342 records with 0 images), last updated 14-Jun-2024
South Africa, Cape, Probate Records of the Master of the High Court, 1822-1990 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2517051); 2,004,994 indexed records with 1,167,010 record images (was 2,014,794 records with 1,167,010 images), last updated 01-Oct-2025

South Africa, Church of the Province of South Africa, Parish Registers, 1801-2004 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1468076); 1,214,127 indexed records with 355,318 record images (was 1,236,063 records with 355,318 images), last updated 01-Oct-2025
South Africa, Methodist Parish Registers, 1822-1996 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1463648); 45,432 indexed records with 18,726 record images (was 46,270 records with 18,726 images), last updated 01-Oct-2025
South Africa, Netherdutch Reformed Church Registers (Pretoria Archive), 1838-1991 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2155416); 241,951 indexed records with 140,942 record images (was 340,005 records with 140,942 images), last updated 03-Nov-2025
Spain, Barcelona, Municipal Records, 1387-1986 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2015324); 912,265 indexed records with 1,615,372 record images (was 913,381 records with 1,615,372 images), last updated 14-Jun-2024
Sweden, Household Examination Books, 1874-1931 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2790465); 46,971,569 indexed records with 87,177 record images (was 46,977,151 records with 87,177 images), last updated 09-Dec-2025

Texas, County Marriage Index, 1837-1977 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1803987); 1,579,466 indexed records with 127,811 record images (was 1,581,544 records with 127,811 images), last updated 14-Jun-2024
Texas, Marriages, 1837-1973 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1681052); Index only (1,155,237 records), no images (was 1,156,501 records with 0 images), last updated 22-Jul-2021
United States, Public Records, 1970-2009 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2199956); Index only (875,600,958 records), no images (was 875,600,984 records with 0 images), last updated 04-Dec-2025
United States, Residence Database, 1970-2024 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/5000290); Index only (413,859,496 records), no images (was 413,859,547 records with 0 images), last updated 22-Jun-2024
United States, World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1968530); 32,587,072 indexed records with 24,999,338 record images (was 32,592,786 records with 24,999,338 images), last updated 09-Sep-2025

Uruguay, Baptisms, 1750-1900 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1520616); Index only (113,842 records), no images (was 113,953 records with 0 images), last updated 15-Sep-2025
Uruguay, Catholic Church Records, 1726-2000 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/4134697); 1,053,680 indexed records with 293,845 record images (was 1,068,815 records with 293,845 images), last updated 15-Sep-2025
Utah, Death Certificates, 1904-1966 (https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1747615); 325,026 indexed records with 301,799 record images (was 326,544 records with 301,799 images), last updated 14-Jun-2024

===================================

My friend and SDGS colleague, Marshall, has come up with a way to determine which collections are ADDED, DELETED or UPDATED, and to alphabetize the entries in each category. Thanks to Marshall for helping me out here!

Marshall notes that there are:

  • 2 removed entries
  • 3  added entries 
  • 88 updated entries
  • 20 entries with more or fewer images 
  • 106 entries with more or fewer records

The FamilySearch website says there are 3,431 total entries on the list (after signing in). Marshall's list says there are 3,431 (after signing in).  They are definitely in-sync this week.

==========================================

See previous FamilySearch-related blog posts in     https://www.geneamusings.com/search/label/FamilySearch

Copyright (c) 2025 Randall J. Seaver

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