Sunday, April 12, 2009

Big Brother at work?

OK, I'm old but I consider myself moderately "technosavvy" for my generation. I am blown away by the technology that is available today. I have a friend who works for the Census Bureau. Next year is a census year, by the way. Right now they are sending people out to canvass the entire US house by house to record GPS coordinates for each address. They go to the front door of the house or apartment and record the coordinates on a GPS device then at the end of each day they upload the data from their hand-held computers to the Census office. These data are coordinated with all the people who live at that address. Scary to think what that data could be used for.

I also recently found a free website where anyone can upload address data in excel format and it will give you your data back with columns of GPS coordinates added. It then plots the data on a google-earth map that can be viewed in map mode, satellite mode, or hybrid mode complete with color coding for whatever groups you want to divide it into. The map can also be posted to a web page and the data can be downloaded in several different formats for use in other programs.

From their website "Street level geocoding is available in United States, Canada, and the following European Countries: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, England, France, Finland, Germany, United Kingdom (UK), Luxembourg, Netherlands, Ireland, Norway, Portugal, Scotland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Wales, and Italy. Country, State, and City level geocoding is available for Europe, Asia, Central and South America. We expect Yahoo! will continue to expand coverage of their street level data to the rest of the world soon, keep checking back! The name of the coordinate system used is WGS84, this is the decimal degrees version of the coordinate system commonly used in GPS devices. "

They have a paragraph on the technology used for those who are more technosavvy than I am.

Sunday, April 5, 2009

The Cowles Family


There is also a Cowles book online that has Suzanne's ancestors in it.
A picture of Samuel Bringhurst, father of Wm. Augustus, from the book


History of the Bringhurst Family with Notes on the Clarkson, De Peyster, and Boude Families By Josiah Granville Leach

A clip about 'Wm. Augustus Bringhurst from the book.

"338 WILLIAM AUGUSTUS BRINGHURST8 son of Samuel Bringhurst7 by his wife Eleanor Beitler was born at Lionville Uwchlan township Chester County Pennsylvania 26 January 1839 married i Selinda Dalby Palmer 2 Susan A Steele 3 Mary J Stapeley Mr Bringhurst removed with his parents to Utah in 1847 an l since 1866 has resided at Toquersville in that State where he has held the offices of Assessor and Collector of Taxes High Sheriff and County Judge and is now a Bishop in the Church of Latter Day Saints "

and a picture from the book


Another version, perhaps easier to read from the American Library

History of the Bringhurst Family with Notes on the Clarkson, De Peyster, and Boude Families By Josiah Granville Leach

I found the Bringhurst book online for those who may be interested. It has a history of the Bringhurst family from a couple of generations before they came to America down to when they came to Utah.

HISTORY OF THE BRINGHURST FAMILY WITH NOTES ON THE CLARKSON DE PEYSTER AND BOUDE FAMILIES BY JOSIAH GRANVILLE LEACH LL B Vice Président of the Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania Historiographer of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania Member of the New England Historic Genealogical and Virginia Historical Societies Historian of the Pennsylvania Society of Sons of the Revolution and of the Pennsylvania Society of Mayflower Descendant 1 and Author of Memoranda Relating to the Ancestry and Family of Hon Levi P Morton 1 Memorials of the Reading Howell Yerlces Watts Latham and Elkina Families and Genealogy of Harry Alden Richardson11 printeo for private Circulation BY JB LIPPINCOTT COMPANY PHILADELPHIA MD С С С С I "