Genealogy Gems Podcast episode 233 with Lisa Louise CookeSeptember 2019 In this episode: Today we’re going to take a look at what so many records and record collections have in common: they are often Lists. Now that may sound pretty straight forward, but there’s a lot more to Lists than meet the eye. A list of names, places or other information has a lot to tell us and can be used in unique ways. Professional genealogist Cari Taplin joins me in this episode for a conversation about what is so lovely about lists.   My Summer Vacation If you’ve been following me on Instagram – you can find me or by searching for genealogy gems podcast in the free Instagram app – then you know that I’ve spent a bit of my time this summer getting a taste of some of the work many of my ancestors did and probably that many of your ancestors did: farming. Bill and I have a close friend who owns his great grandfather’s 1904 homestead in North Dakota. A few years back Bill went up there to help them open it back up and get things up and running. This year we helped them harvest their crop of oats. (They even have a sign in the field that says “These oats will grow up to be Cheerios.”) Of course, we used equipment that our ancestors may not have had. I learned to drive the combine, and I disked the field with the tractor. But in many ways, things haven’t changed all that much. One of the things that really struck me was how the farming community out there pulls together. Now to put this in perspective: the 240-acre homestead is about two miles down a dirt road for Canada. The house has fallen into disrepair over the decades, so our friend bought an old farmhouse in the nearby town where he grew up. That town has a population of just over 50 people! So, we’re talking about a pretty remote location, and folks are scattered on various farms miles apart. But when a tractor was in need of repair, within the hour a neighbor would be pulling up ready to crawl under it alongside our friend to work on it till it was fixed. When a piece of equipment was needed that he didn’t have, it would soon be rolling down the road from a neighboring farm to pitch in. Everyone had one eye on the sky at all times to watch the ever-changing weather, and there was such a commitment by all to make sure no neighbor was left with unharvested crops before a storm hit. So even though the combines of today are motorized massive machines with air conditioning and stereos, the work ethic, the commitment and the community was unchanged from when his granddad first filed his homestead claim. Bill and I felt really blessed to be a part of it. Think of us next time you eat your cheerios.   GEM: Tapping into the Power of Lists with Cari Taplin If you’ve been doing genealogy for any length of time, then you have probably encountered a list. They come in all shapes and sizes, and at first glance they may seem very straight forward. Cari Taplin, a certified genealogist out of Pflugerville, Texas, says it’s worth taking the time to really examine lists carefully because there may be more there than meets the eye. Cari  currently serves on the boards of the Association for Professional Genealogists and is the Vice President of Membership for the Federation of Genealogical Societies. As the owner of , she provides speaking, research, and consultation services, focusing on midwestern and Great Lakes states and methodology.   Types of Lists Nearly every time we sit down to do genealogy research we run into a list. There are loads of them out there. Here’s just a starter list of the lists you might run into: indexes of any kind city directories tax lists petitions censuses church membership members of a club or society fraternal organization member lists community groups committees lists in newspapers like hotel registrations, letters at post office hospital admittances and discharges cemetery books event participants jurors estate sales militia rolls voter lists land lottery winners school cla