About Ancestor Roundup

Hello, and welcome to my corner of cyberspace. My name is Dawn Bingaman, and I’m the author and researcher behind the Ancestor Roundup blog. My main goal at Ancestor Roundup is to share my genealogical research with extended family and to demonstrate sound research techniques and technology tools that other researchers can follow, using my own family research as a jumping-off point.

Although employed full-time in the Information Systems and Technology field, I spend the bulk of my free time as a genealogical researcher and mentor, based in the Seattle area. My particular areas of interest are United States military records, land records, maps, and period newspapers, although I allow the research to take me into whatever record group is necessary to answer my research question.

I compiled my first five-generation pedigree chart for a Girl Scout badge, and have never tired of hearing the family stories and looking at old family photographs over the years. I am particularly grateful to my father and maternal grandmother for starting me down the path to what has become a deeply fulfilling hobby.

From 2007-2010 I chaired the Computer Interest Group of the Seattle Genealogical Society (SGS-CIG). I ultimately left that position to devote more of my energy to transitioning from serious hobbyist to professional genealogist. Part of that transition includes attending week-long genealogical institutes. I have attended all four major genealogical institutes available in the United States. They are:

SLIG
Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy – Salt Lake City, Utah
Advanced Methodology (2011), course coordinator Dr. Thomas W. Jones, CG, CGL, FASG, FUGA, with Claire Bettag, CG.
Advanced Research Tools: Land Records (2012), course coordinators Rick Sayre, CG, and Pamela Sayre, CG.
Bridging the 1780-1830 Gap: From New England to the Midwest (2013), course coordinator D. Joshua Taylor, MA, MLS.
Researching New York: Resources and Strategies (2016), course coordinator Karen Mauer Jones, CG, with Jane E. Wilcox.
Virginia from the Colonial Period to the Civil War: Her Records, Her People, Her Laws (2017), course coordinator Barbara Vines Little, CG  with Victor Dunn, CG.
The Pennsylvania German and Research in the Keystone State (2018), course coordinator Dr. Michael Lacopo, CG, with Michael Strauss, AG, and Luana Darby, AG.
Maryland: Researching in the Old Line State (2020), course coordinator Debra Hoffman, with Rebecca Whitman Koford, CG, Malinda Ruffner, JD, CG, and Judy G. Russell, JD, CG.

IGHR
Institute of Genealogical and Historical Research – Birmingham, Alabama
Military Records Research II (2011) and Military Records Research III  (2012) courses coordinated by Craig R. Scott, CG. This series of classes covered United States military records from the colonial period through World War I.
Metes & Bounds & Land Plats (2016), course coordinator Gerald “Jerry” Smith, CG, with Kimberly Powell and Rick Sayre, CG.

NIGR (now Gen-Fed)
National Institute on Genealogical Research – Washington, D.C.
Held annually at the National Archives in Washington, D.C., this is an intensive week-long series of classes focusing on Federal Records, Completed July 2013.

GRIP
Genealogy Research Institute of Pittsburgh – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Gateway to the Garden State: Sources and Strategies for New Jersey Research (2017) with instructor Melissa A. Johnson CG, and Michelle Chubenko.

Answering the Call of Uncle Sam: Research in Military Records (2021) with Jonathan Webb Deiss and Sandra Rumble. Focus on military records from Colonial times through the Philippine Insurrection of 1899.

Selected Workshops & Seminars
BCG Education Fund Workshop – Putting Skills to Work (2023) Robbie Johnson & Teresa Steinkamp McMillin
DNA Skills Workshop (2023) Diahan Southard
Probate Records Workshop (2022) Melissa Johnson & Michelle Tucker Chubenko
Tools & Strategies for Creative Problem-Solving (2021) Kimberly Powell

My roots are primarily based in the Pacific Northwest, American Midwest, Mid-Atlantic, and New England states, and I am usually planning one of my vacations based on where I need to research next. To date, I have conducted on-site research in twelve U.S. states, and in Washington, D.C.

October 2019 update: I finally took the research trip to New Jersey that I had been dreaming about for a decade. I spent nearly three weeks in Newark and Trenton to further explore my Carson family roots and their environs. I gathered enough material during the trip to keep me busy for the foreseeable future. One thing I think I learned is who my direct ancestor is NOT related to, so a bit of a good news/bad news situation.

Current Genealogical Affiliations
Association of Professional Genealogists (APG) since 2010
Maryland Genealogical Society (MGS) since 2021
National Genealogical Society (NGS) since 1997
New England Historic Genealogical Society (NEHGS) since 1997
Genealogical Society of New Jersey (GSNJ) since 2003
New York Genealogical and Biographical Society (NYG&B) since 2015
North Carolina Genealogical Society (NCGS) since 2020
Ohio Genealogical Society (OGS) since 2022

Published print articles:
“Skill-building II: Introducing the Chronicling America Historic Newspaper Website.” Seattle Genealogical Society Bulletin 62 (Spring 2013): 87-93.
“War of 1812 Bounty Land: Legislation and Records.” Seattle Genealogical Society Bulletin 63 (Winter 2013-2014): 21-30.