Spotlight on David Ouimette, CG

     David Ouimette, CG, manages Content Strategy at FamilySearch, prioritizing the acquisition and online publication of records worldwide for family history research. He has conducted research and analyzed archival materials in dozens of countries in North and South America, Europe, Africa, and Asia. David regularly lectures at national genealogical conferences and institutes. He has contributed articles to many magazines and journals and authored Finding Your Irish Ancestors: A Beginner’s Guide.

     David is the course coordinator for "Finding Immigrant Origins" at SLIG in 2015. This course covers the key historical sources and research methodologies for family historians tracing immigrant origins. Students will begin by envisioning the immigrant within the context of his family, community, and culture. The historical documents created by the pushes and pulls that motivated his journey abroad will be examined. Methodologies for analyzing and correlating information found in U.S. record sources and immigration records to discover the immigrant’s old-world origins will be reviewed. The course will also illustrate principles and practices for tracing immigrants back to many specific countries. Additionally, techniques for demonstrating effective online research of immigrant ancestors will be shown. The course explores chain migration, ethnic migration paths, surname localization, DNA evidence, cluster genealogy, and other tools to help find your immigrant’s ancestral village.

     Additional information on the course can be found at http://www.infouga.org/aem.php? lv=p&epg=68. You can register at http://www.infouga.org/aem.php?lv=r&eid=12.