10 Essential Books In My Genealogy Library X 4 + 6

The 56th Edition of the COG hosted by Lori Thornton of Smoky Mountain Family Historian asks for 10 essential books in my genealogy library.

My office has books stacked from the floor to the ceiling and in every nook and drawer. I never met a book I didn't want for one reason or another. So selecting ten? Can't do it.

I consider myself a family historian and while that designation encompasses genealogical research, I break "family historian" into four categories; research, writing, history, and because of my family - photography. So I'm giving you my essentials in the four categories. I will not be including a description. The truth is I'm tired from so much Smiling For The Camera. Just know that I love each and every one listed.

In all four categories I must list Google Books and Safari Books Online at the Seattle Public Library. I could not live without them. The things I find in those two places continues to surprise and amaze me.

RESEARCH:

1. The Oxford Guide to Library Research by Thomas Mann
2. Organizing Your Family History Search: Efficient & Effective Ways to Gather and Protect Your Genealogical Research by Sharon Carmack
3. The Researcher's Guide to American Genealogy, Third Edition by Val D. Greenwood
4. Handybook for Genealogists 8TH Edition by Everton Publishers
5. Printed Sources: A Guide to Published Genealogical Records by Kory Meyerink
6. Professional Genealogy: A Manual for Researchers, Writers, Editors, Lecturers, and Librarians by Elizabeth Shown Mills
7. The BCG Genealogical Standards Manual by Board for Certification Of Genealogists
8. Carmack's Guide to Copyright & Contracts: A Primer for Genealogists, Writers & Researchers by Sharon Debartolo Carmack and Karen Kreider Gaunt
9. Reading, Writing, and Researching for History: A Guide for College Students Patrick Rael, Bowdoin College - This book is online and I love it!
   
10. Saving Stuff: How to Care for and Preserve Your Collectibles, Heirlooms, and Other Prized Possessions by Don Williams and Louisa Jaggar

WRITING:

1. Evidence Explained: Citing History Sources from Artifacts to Cyberspace by Elizabeth Shown Mills
2. The Chicago Manual of Style: The Essential Guide for Writers, Editors, and Publishers (14th Edition) by Chicago Editorial Staff
3. Legacy : A Step-By-Step Guide to Writing Personal History by Linda Spence
4. You Can Write Your Family History by Sharon Debartolo Carmack
5. Your Life as Story: Discovering the "New Autobiography" and Writing Memoir as Literature by Tristine Rainer
6. Oxford American Writer's Thesaurus by David Auburn
7. Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 11th Edition by Merriam-Webster Plus 13 dictionaries from the 1800s to 1940s.
8. The 2,548 Best Things Anybody Ever Said by Robert Byrne
9. Keep It Real: Everything You Need to Know About Researching and Writing Creative Nonfiction by Lee Gutkind
10. Truman by David McCullough - Just For Inspiration!
    

HISTORY:

1. City People: The Rise of Modern City Culture in Nineteenth-Century America by Gunther Barth
2. America 1900: The Turning Point by Judy Crichton
3. The Encyclopedia of New York City by Kenneth T. Jackson
4. The Historical Atlas of New York City: A Visual Celebration of 400 Years of New York City's History by Eric Homberger and Alice Hudson
5. New York State Censuses & Substitutes by William Dollarhide
6. The World of Carnegie Hall by Richard Schickel
7. Finding Your Chicago Ancestors: A Beginners Guide To Family History In The City Of Chicago by Grace Dumelle
8. Atlas of American Migration by Stephen A. Flanders
9. Encyclopedia of Etiquette by Emily Holt - A Book of Manners For Everyday Use 1915
10. Philharmonic: A History of New York's Orchestra by Howard Shanet

PHOTOGRAPHY:

1. Biographies of Western Photographers 1840-1900 by Carl Mautz
2. Photographers: A Sourcebook for Historical Research by Richard Rudisill, Martha A. Sandweiss, and Peter E. Palmquist
3. Pioneer Photographers from the Mississippi to the Continental Divide: A Biographical Dictionary, 1839-1865 by Peter E. Palmquist and Thomas R. Kailbourn
4. Pioneer Photographers of the Far West: A Biographical Dictionary, 1840-1865 by Peter Palmquist and Thomas Kailbourn
5. Dressed for the Photographer: Ordinary Americans and Fashion, 1840-1900 by Joan L. Severa
6. Collector's Guide to Early Photographs by O. Henry Mace
7. Card Photographs: A Guide to Their History and Value by Lou W. McCulloch
8. Cartes de Visite In Nineteenth Century Photography by William C. Darrah
9. The Victorians: Photographic Portraits by Audrey Linkman
10. The Expert Guide To Dating Victorian Family Photographs by Audrey Linkman
11. Preserving Your Family Photographs: How to Organize, Present, and Restore Your Precious Family Images by Maureen A. Taylor
12. Uncovering Your Ancestry through Family Photographs by Maureen Taylor
13. Scrapbooking Your Family History by Maureen Taylor
14. Adobe Photoshop Restoration & Retouching (3rd Edition) (Voices That Matter) by Katrin Eismann and Wayne Palmer
15. Photoshop Masking & Compositing (VOICES) by Katrin Eismann
16. Another 20 Photography Books

This does not include the magazines I read in each category and the historical magazines and catalogs I collect. Another day.

Perhaps I can see why Mr. Maven wants a divorce.