Extreme Genes - America's Family History And Genealogy Radio Show & Podcast

  Fisher opens with a recap of this week's episode of Who Do You Think You Are? featuring Modern Family's Jesse Tyler Ferguson.  (Once again, an ancestor was accused of a crime!)  Rachel McAdams is featured this week.  In this week's "Family Histoire News..."  With the centennial of the start of World War I, a lot of new resources for researching your ancestor, as well as books about the experiences are out.  Fisher talks about "Wyndham's War," from the diaries of a British man who was vacationing in Germany when the war began, and was held there for four years.  Also, New York Mayor Bill DeBlasio is visiting his ancestral hometowns in Italy, and are they rolling out the red carpet!  (If you've ever taken that kind of trip, you'll be SO jealous of the treatment!)     Then, our guest for two full segments is 89 year old Ralph Gates.  Ralph's father served in World War I and shares some of his story.  Ralph himself served in World War II.  As a teenager, he was assigned to work on the Manhattan Project!  What w

    Fisher reveals survey results of the question on your oldest heirlooms.  "How old are they?!"  Find out in the first segment.  In Family Histoire News, Fisher reports on the first episode of this season's "Who Do You Think You Are?" on TLC.  "Sex and the City" star Cynthia Nixon learns about her ancestral past.  Also, a DNA study may be adding another branch to the Parker family.  That same family that settled in Texas in the 1830s, and whose daughter became the mother of a Comanche chief!  You'll love this story!  And, a 150 year old photo has emerged of the woman who was stranded behind enemy lines... in Virginia... in the Civil War, and became the housemaid to the First Family of the Confederacy!     Tom Kelleher, curator of Old Sturbridge Village in Massachusetts, joins Fisher to talk about the myths about early America we've generally come to accept.  He has a debunking answer for most all of them.  Everything from people's height to why houses had no closets, longevity... you name it... is on the li

Fisher opens the show with an explanation of his electrolysis experiment with two family daguerreotypes.  He reveals how it went and how to do it... if you dare!  He also reveals the name and age of a man from Brazil that just might make him the oldest man on the planet... perhaps ever!   David Allen Lambert of the New England Historic Genealogical Society joins the show to talk about the "Colonial Wars," those conflicts that happened on this continent in the 150 years before the Revolution.  He also tells you what sources are out there to help you learn whether your ancestors were involved.  There were a lot of wars!  Chances are, if you have early American ancestry, your people were in the thick of things.   Joy Shiver joins us from North Carolina to talk about her amazing creation... a site called JustAJoy.com.  It's the place you can go to find original family artifacts, such as family Bibles, and letters written by your ancestors.  It's crazy cheap, but has already brought many unique pieces back to thei

Fisher continues Extreme Genes' first anniversary month with two stories about boys photographed in dresses around the turn of the last century.  Family Histoire News includes the release of over 1,000 love letters from one time President Warren G. Harding to his mistress!  The oldest living American is now 116.  The braids of a uniformed British Naval Officer that were cut from his uniform when he was tended to after losing his arm in World War I has been returned to the family.  Wait til you hear the story behind this one!  Plus, students in Britain find the 1,700 year old bodies of a family of Romans!  It may change the narrative of those early times.   Jennifer Utley from Ancestry.com talks about that company's recent release of prison records.  What times and places do they cover and what can we expect to find in them?  Listen to find out.   And the guys who call themselves "Task Force History" in Alabama come on to talk about their latest find.  What was it?  And where was it found?  And what happened w

Fisher ushers in July and the first anniversary of Extreme Genes!  Fisher shares something new he learned in the past week... how to tell if that child in the dress from the 19th and early 20th centuries is a boy or a girl!  And just why did boys wear dresses?  There was actually a very good reason for it.  He'll explain. Guest Craig Scott, CEO of Heritage Books, then gives some incite on sources for investigating your Revolutionary War ancestors.  There are stories waiting to be found!   Then listener Suzanne Anderson talks about her research journey into her grandparents-in-law, their escape from Russia, and what she learned they left behind!   Tom Perry, our Preservation Authority from TMCPlace.com returns to give you some more ideas on that new camcorder... including one that you can use underwater!  Some even now have built in WiFi!

Fisher’s Family Histoire News talks about a real life “Saving Private Ryan” family.  Only they weren’t American.  And it wasn’t in World War II.  He’ll tell you all about it.  Plus, there is one nation in the world with solid family records going back over a thousand years, minimal immigration, and a population that generally came from the same place.  No research challenge there!  But geneticists love this place.  Fisher will tell you just what country we’re talking about.   Family memorabilia can often lead us on a journey through a family’s history.  Stan Lindaas of HeritageConsulting.com returns to tell us the remarkable story about the journey of a locket of hair from Ludwig von Beethoven, and the family that owned it.  Stan did some of the research on this project, and you’ll want to hear it. Just about anyone who has ever started a family history research project can tell you, rarely does it go in the direction you expect.  It was certainly that way for Janet Lancaster of Modesto, California who was as

Fisher’s Family Histoire News covers the passing of the last of the 29 original Navajo Code Talkers, whose unique code was never broken by the Japanese in World War II.  Plus, the original words to what became our National Anthem have been reunited with the flag the inspired them.  Learn where you can see this remarkable display.   Photo expert Ron Fox returns to the show.  Ron was on just a few weeks ago talking about collecting things relating to your ancestors.  Fisher took his advice and, recognizing he was letting an opportunity slip away, went to work.  The result was a haul of family history treasures, some dating back over 160 years, that left him speechless.  Fisher and Fox discuss the particulars and how you could potentially do the same thing.   Dr. Mark Shriver from Penn State then joins the show by phone to discuss his experiments into how DNA might one day soon be able to “predict” your ancestor’s face!  Sounds like science fiction, but Dr. Shriver says not so.   And Tom Perry, the Preservation

Fisher talks to a Michigan woman about the discovery in Wales of something that once belonged to her late father who served in World War II and the invasion of Normandy.    DNA is the big thing these days in identifying long deceased ancestors as well as unknown living relatives.  Fisher talks with guest Bennett Greenspan, President of FamilyTreeDNA.com, about how it all came about.   The other great family history tool of the 20th century is digitized newspapers.  Fisher visits with Tom Trynisky, a New York man who has devoted years of his life to providing us access to over 27 million digitized newspaper pages, most dealing with New York City and State… all on his dime and time.  If you’ve had ancestors that came out of New York, you’ll want to visit Trynisky’s site… FultonHistory.com.  It’ll cost you nothing!   Preservation Authority Tom Perry, from TMCPlace.com, is back to talk about staying legal in your family reunion plans.  Got a question for Tom?  Email him here, at AskTom@tmcplace.com. 

Fisher has more news on the corpse of King Richard III.  The modern day discovery of his body under a parking lot was well timed, as a CT scan and a 3D printer have revealed something people had only guessed about in the past.  Learn what it is.   Guest Daniel Swalm of Minnesota will get you looking through your database to find out… could your grandmother have died without her American citizenship as his did?  He’ll tell you about the obscure law he discovered and the path that led him to the floor of the United States Senate!  This is a truly amazing tale!   Family history super sleuth Ron Fox returns to talk about “collecting” your ancestors and finding their memorabilia on places like eBay!  Both Fisher and Ron have done it, and you can too!   Preservation Authority Tom Perry from TMCPlace.com returns with news of the latest invention to make your outdoor family reunion safer.  You’ll be amazed at what it is!  He’ll also fill you in on the latest news surrounding 3D printers.   Episode 45/ First aired 6/7

Fisher talks about learning of the auction of a silver 1776 “Continental Dollar” that sold in New York.  It is believed to have been created to experiment in the creation of “American” currency, an important issue if the United States was to be recognized as an independent nation.  Learn how much the coin went for and why Fisher has a special interest in this unique coin.  Fisher visits with former Munsters star, Pat Priest… “Marilyn”… about her family’s special history, which, coincidentally involved ties to American currency.  In Family Histoire News this week, the National Archives have digitized unique “Artistic Family Records,” from the post-Revolutionary era.  Hear why they were created.  (Maybe your ancestors left one behind for you to find!)  And, King Richard III is back in the news!  Hear what the British High Court has had to say about who can do what with his body.   Guest Janet Horvorka from FamilyChartMasters.com talks about the challenges of sharing family history with other family members when

Fisher opens the show with word of a new scent that’s on the market to make you smell “like a Viking!”  It’s the real deal!  Fisher visits with Academy Award nominee Edward James Olmos who shares his family’s remarkable path.  In “Family Histoire News,” a museum in Norwich, Connecticut is lauding “Benedict Arnold… Hero!”  It’s all about his contributions to the cause of freedom before turning traitor.  Find out what that’s all about.  And, a Seattle man recently found a box full of color slides taken on his grandparents’ 1939 honeymoon in England.  You’ll want to see the links to these gorgeous pictures taken just before the outbreak of World War II.   This week’s expert guest is Judy Lucey of the New England Historic and Genealogical Society who gives some great advice about things to consider when looking at contributing your family history treasures to an institution or archive.  It’s something many of us will have to think about at some point.   And Pat Mulso of Minnesota has solved a 164-year-old family

Fisher's Family Histoire News talks about the discovery of the wreck of Columbus' flagship, the Santa Maria.  Could it be true?  What will it teach us about what really happened in 1492?  Plus, an Oregon man has received a postcard mailed to his great grandmother in 1940 by a relative!  How was it lost?  How was it found?  It's a fascinating tale.  Fisher also chats with former Monkee drummer/singer Micky Dolenz about his family history.   Nick Baum, founder of StoryWorth.com talks about the founding of this remarkable web site that will help you assemble the stories of your seniors in a way that just might surprise you by its simplicity.  Give Nick's visit a listen.   Listener Kelly MacFarlane then talks about his remarkable heirloom pickup... an 1838 sampler created by an ancestor that became an oil rag!  The sampler cryptically maps out the names of family members.  You won't believe how it survived and how he obtained it!  Check out the photo.   And Tom Perry, Preservation Authority extraordinaire, answer

On this weeks show, Fisher shares the news of two new podcast apps now available free in your Android or iPhone store.  Twin sisters have reunited after 78 of separation.  We’ll have the happy story for you.  Letters written from the European Theater in the heat of battle in World War II have been found in a storage locker and returned to the man’s son.  Hear how it all came about.  Fisher also gets a family history story out of Charles Fleischer, the voice of Roger Rabbit.  You won’t believe this guy’s background!  Kathy Kirkpatrick of gentracer.com and Adrian Benjamin Burke, a New York researcher, talk about what’s happening in Italian ancestry research in 2014, with some great stories from the trail.  And, you’ll meet Hyrum Veach… expert genealogist… when he’s not in elementary school!  Hear what this 12-year-old has to say.  (He’s already been at it for five years!)  Preservation Authority Tom Perry has filled you in on disks the last few weeks… now… what’s the best format your needs?  He’ll tell you. 

Fisher visits with Star Wars actor Jeremy Bullock about his ancestry.  This week's “Family Histoire News” talks about eight World War II vets who have finally been recognized as true POWs.  Learn why it took 70 years for these men to receive this recognition.  Also… virtually all early Irish census records are coming on line.  Unfortunately, it doesn’t amount to what any Irish descendant would hope for.  We’ll explain. And, a man has written a book about three generations of his family and their lives in what became East Germany.    Guest Steve Young, producer of the show “Our American Family” on numerous PBS stations talks about the show’s development and growth.  Fisher talks about what a great job it does in showing how family’s can get their seniors to share great stories from the past.     Guest Valerie Atkisson, who can best be described as a family history artist, talks about how moving around the country grounded her to her ancestry much more than any single place.  This led to her connecting with her

Fisher visits with Butch Patrick, better known as “Eddie Munster.”  Butch has made a most ironic family history find and tells Fisher all about it.  Fisher’s “Family Histoire” news takes us to England where a virtual “time capsule” full of effects of a fallen soldier will soon be on display to help recognize the 100th anniversary of the start of World War I.  Hear what was among the soldiers belongings.  Also, might some of your Civil War ancestors’ possessions be found where a shopping mall will soon be built?  Hear about the race against time for one group of archaeologists.  Plus, a 200 year old handwritten recipe book has been found, researched, and now returned to a descendant of the original owner.   Claire Brissen-Banks of TimelessGen.com tells us all about “Forensic Genealogy.”  What is it?  How could it impact your life?  Claire will explain.   Suzanne Hansen, an Extreme Genes listener, shares the remarkable finds she has made following a lengthy quest in Pennsylvania.  You won’t believe the haul

Fisher has some incredible stories in this episode.  Imagine a stranger knocking at your door to tell you the grandfather who died before you were born had left a message… 101 years ago!  It happened in Germany.  Fisher shares the amazing details.  Plus, a Red Cross worker sketched soldiers in Holland in 1945.  Photos of roughly 100 of those sketches were recently found by family, and an effort is now on to locate descendants of these World War II heroes.  We’ll tell you where to find out more.  Could one be of your ancestor?  The Vatican Library has begun digitizing.  What’s in the collection that you could soon be viewing on line?  We’ll fill you in.  And free Civil War records are available on line through the end of April 2014.  Who?  Where?  Remain calm!  It’s right in the podcast. Guest John Mitzel from New Hampshire joins the show and explains how he never was able to get his late father to adequately share his stories from World War II.  Hear how John would not be defeated, and went about making frie

Fisher welcomes new radio stations to the family of affiliates.  News this week includes a conclusion that Hitler may have married a Jewish woman!   Hear how the DNA trail of Eva Braun led to this remarkable story.  Also, plans for major freeway construction has led to the discovery of remains of a 250 year old French settlement in St. Louis.  And, an alumnus of Virginia Military Institute has been tracking down descendants of VMI Civil War soldiers who fought in the Battle of New Market.  Find out why. Research Authority Stan Lindaas, from HeritageConsulting.com, returns with great advice on how to break down “walls”… those lines that just can’t seem to be extended over long periods of time.  Stan talks about one of his own walls, and the remarkable story behind how he cracked the case! And Tom Perry from TMCPlace.com, our Preservation Authority, continues his discussion on reliable drives, the long term viability of various disks, and tells us about a new disk that is just around the corner that will blow

Fisher talks about how some listeners got “got” on April Fools’ Day and innocently tried to share the news with Extreme Genes listeners.  Hear what one story said and where it came from!   Fisher also has a source of common baby names and what they really mean.  If you’re naming a child anytime soon, you may want to listen!  Would you ever rely on information three-quarters of a century old to solve your 21st Century problems?  One British woman did.  Listen to how she solved her obesity and financial problems with a pamphlet from World War II! Guest Judy Russell, “The Legal Genealogist,” joins the show.  In her first segment, she explains how it is that our family stories are typically lost forever in just three generations.  She’ll also tell you what you can do about it.  She lays out her case brilliantly… just like the attorney she is.  In her second segment, Judy explains what legal traps we need to avoid as family history researchers and writers.  The danger is real, and you won’t want to miss what she

Fisher’s family history news coverage begins with a story about a new science, targeted for police work, where DNA can be used to create a “predicted” face of the suspect!  Could there be applications for “genies” everywhere?  Also, Yale has discovered that the man they thought was the first African-American to graduate from Yale wasn’t.  How was the real “first” found?  Genies everywhere will appreciate the story.  Cemeteries are going GREEN!  (Aren’t they already?)  We’ll tell you just what that means.  And… Abe Lincoln’s cryptic letter of 1860 has been “decoded.”   Find out how and what it meant. Guest Gary Boyd Roberts, a colorful and renowned family history researcher and writer makes his first appearance on the show, talking about “Gateway Ancestors,” ancestors most of us have that have proven lines to royalty.  Gary says there’s more than just “snob appeal” to have royal ancestors.  He’ll explain the reason you should want to know.  Gary also talks about the social mobility that makes it possible f

Fisher talks about the latest science in following the migration patterns of our ancestors… “language family trees.”  Find out what these trees have taught us about the origins of Native Americans, and how this technique might teach us about the migration of other ancient groups.  Fisher also has the story of a Delaware man who lived a long life, but couldn’t resist leaving one final message to family and friends… his own hysterical obituary.  Fisher will share some of what he wrote.  Plus, what are the most disliked new baby names?  With the boys, especially… there’s a pattern! Guest Karen Zach, a coordinator for two GenWeb sites in Indiana, joins Fisher to talk about just what GenWeb sites are.  They’re a gold mine of information, but cost you nothing.  This could be a valuable segment for you. Fisher reprises his conversation with Robbie from Michigan, who, in 2013, talked about some major discoveries she made after listening to Extreme Genes.  Her finding was something descendants had sought for abo