For Immediate Release
- Press Contact:
- Bren Landon
- [email protected]
- (202) 572-0563
DAR Resources Featured in Local PBS Genealogy Segment
WASHINGTON, DC - The genealogical expertise of DAR Headquarters was recently called upon by WETA, the local Washington, D.C. PBS station, to contribute to the WETA Extra segment Genealogy 101 on tips for tracing family heritage. The WETA Extra is a program just over two minutes long that will be aired in the greater Washington, D.C. area following the nationally televised PBS program African American Lives on February 1 & 8, 2006 at 9:00 pm.
While the WETA Extra Genealogy 101 segment will only be aired locally in the Washington, D.C. region, it will be available for viewing nationally online at http://www.weta.org/tv/extras.php shortly after the initial airdate.
The short piece is designed to give a quick how-to for those wanting to get started in genealogy and where to find good local and online resources. The piece is a broad overview of genealogical research and not specifically about the DAR, but much of the material used in the segment was provided by the DAR. Terry Ward, DAR Genealogy Director, was interviewed for the piece and serves as the narrator describing beginning steps of genealogical research. The piece will also feature a number of genealogical resources from DAR Headquarters including old lineage charts, family histories, hand drawn maps and other documents.
African American Lives, which will precede the WETA Extra piece, is a four-part PBS series using genealogy, oral history, family stories and DNA analysis to trace lineage through American history and back to Africa. The WETA Extra segment supplements the program by mentioning the top genealogical resources available in the Washington, D.C. area, including the DAR Library, and notes the DAR Librarys collection of African American genealogical resources.
While the WETA Extra piece is only a couple minutes long, its production required the cooperation and materials of many of the different DAR departments. The DAR genealogy department provided guidance on resources to highlight, the DAR Library hosted the televised interview, the DAR Americana Collection provided historic documents for filming, the DAR Library and Museum provided genealogy related materials to be used as visuals, and the microfiche machines were used from the DAR Seimes Technology Center.
For more information about the WETA Extra Genealogy 101 piece featuring the DAR or the PBS program African American Lives visit the WETA Web site at http://weta.org/africanamericanlives/.
The DAR Library is one of the largest genealogical research centers in the United States. Since its founding in 1896, the library has grown into a specialized collection of American genealogical and historical manuscripts and publications and recently added powerful on-site ancestry databases to its collection. The DAR Library collection contains over 180,000 books, 300,000 research files, thousands of manuscript items, and special collections on Native American, African American and womens history, genealogy and culture. Nearly 30,000 family histories and genealogies comprise a major portion of the book collection, many of which are unique or available in only a few libraries in the country. The DAR Library, located at 1776 D St. NW, is open to the public for a $6 research fee Monday Friday 8:30 a.m. 4:00 pm and Saturday 9:00 a.m. 5:00 p.m. The DAR Library is closed Sundays, Federal holidays, and for one week during the DAR annual meeting during the summer. For more information on the DAR Library, visit www.dar.org/library or call (202) 879-3229.