Olympia Genealogical Society March Meeting

by Charles Hansen

CIVIL WAR PARLOR TALK presented by the Washington Civil War Association at the Olympia Genealogical Society’s March meeting. Join us on Thursday, March 14 from 7:00 to 9:00 pm at the Thurston County Courthouse, Building 1, Room 152.  www.OlyGenSoc.org  or Kathy Erlandson 360) 754-6230

Thank-you    JOYCE OGDEN, PUBLICITY

========================================================
Joyce T. Ogden
jtogden@comcast.net

Wednesday Nostalgia

by Charles Hansen

Everybody loves chocolate! Well, almost everybody. Chocolate seems to be the universally favorite candy flavor, doesn’t it?

On our recent trip in the West Indies, I learned something about where chocolate comes from. First off, it’s cacao and cacao trees only grow along the equator.

The cacao pods grow right on the branches of fairly good sized trees:

See the green vines and long brown pods? Did you know that vanilla comes from pods produced by the Vanilla Orchid flower and vines? Nice growing partnership, don’t you think?

Stay tuned for Part 2 next week.

Senate Ways and Means Committee Public Hearing Closing Vital Records Bill 5332

by Charles Hansen

At 3:30 today was the public hearing in the Senate Ways and Means committee. TVW Archive here: Bill number 5332 starts at 1:20. Only one person testifying in favor of the bill, a coroner that wants the increased fee for certified certificates. The Health department issues 500,000 certificates a year so local governments will get about $1,000,000 more in income from their $2 increase in fees. The other $3 goes to the state for their state crime lab. They still say genealogist have agreed to the informational death certificates without a cause of death.

I don’t really care about the increase in the fee for a certified copy, nor the removal of the social security number if the certificate has that, I want a true copy of the record I am looking for.

Tuesday Trivia

by Charles Hansen

Does your city have an official tree? Does any city where your ancestors lived have such? Is Spokane really unique in that arena?

It was explorer David Douglas who, in 1826, identified and named the pinus ponderosa or Ponderosa Pine. Now it’s The Official Tree of the city of Spokane.

Using Wikipedia, I found this factoid:


During Operation Upshot–Knothole in 1953, a nuclear test was performed in which 145 ponderosa pines were cut down by the United States Forest Service and transported to Area 5 of the Nevada Test Site, where they were planted into the ground and exposed to a nuclear blast to see what the blast wave would do to a forest. The trees were partially burned and blown over.

All I can say to that is DUH!

Lower Columbia Genealogical Society March Meeting

by Charles Hansen

WE ALL NEED HELP WITH OUR RESEARCH, AND THEREFORE LOOK FORWARD TO OUR MARCH MEETING

WITH ADVICE BEING PROVIDED BY TRACY REBSTOCK FROM THE WASHINGTON STATE ARCHIVES. COME AND SEE HOW MAPS AND LAND RESEARCH CAN HELP WITH YOUR GENEALOGY AND FAMILY HISTORY. SHE WILL BE SHARING DIFFERENT RESOURCES AND WHERE THEY CAN BE LOCATED.

LOWER COLUMBIA GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY

http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~walcolgs/

SOMERSET RETIREMENT APARTMENTS

2025 TIBBETTS DRIVE, LONGVIEW

DINING ROOM 7:00 PM

MARCH 14, 2019

Visitors are welcome and encouraged to attend.

International German Genealogy Conference

by Charles Hansen

4 months to go … still time for wine-ing 

If you’re coming to Sacramento in June for the International German Genealogy Partnership conference, have you left some free time to explore the California wine-growing regions?

In 2016, the state grew 4 million tons of wine grapes, including more than 110 varieties. And it’s all for the visiting with a short road trip from Sacramento, or by signing up for the pre-arranged day-long adventure tour to the wine country.

What goes well with wine? Cheese, of course! The California Cheese Trail runs through several of these regions. Visit discovercaliforniawines.com for a roundup of travel information.

You could even combine your German heritage research with a visit to San Benito County, where German and French immigrants planted the first grapes in the mid-1800s.

Some wine and cheese would help everyone relax at the end of a busy conference day. We’re planning Connections 2 Discoveries sessions to link you with others interested in similar topics. Keep checking the website for updates.

But that doesn’t mean you can’t make it up as you go. If you connect with others during the day, invite them to gather in a quiet spot. Sorry, wine and cheese are not included in your conference registration. <smile>

Review the program for the weekend, decide which programs are of interest and then register.

Contact the hotels for your reservation. All conference sessions are in the Hyatt Regency – the Marriott is only a couple blocks away.

Have questions? Email the conference team. Need to update your registration? Contact the help desk for assistance.

We look forward to seeing you in 4 short months!

Your hosts, the Sacramento German Genealogy Society and the International German Genealogy Partnership, encourage you to learn more about the products and services offered by conference sponsors.
We thank them for their support.