Bet if I would ask you “what is the flower of December?” you would answer “the poinsettia!” But you would only be kinda-sorta-half right.
According to The Ultimate Authoritative Answer To Everything, Wikipedia: The narcissus is the December birth flower and symbolizes good wishes, faithfulness and respect. The narcissus can often be confused with the daffodil, the birth flower for March, which is a type of narcissus.
Now you know. If you wuz wondering.
| THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM’s Thursday Evening E-News Edition December 13, 2018 |
| Curious about the status of your GFO Membership? We’d love to have you as a GFO Member! |
|
For more information visit www.gfo.org. Contact us at info@gfo.org or 503-963-1932. Be sure to check the complete GFO CALENDAR. Also, don’t miss the current issue of The Forum Insider |
| Have you answered GFO’s Annual Appeal yet? |
|
You Rock! Thank you to everyone who has contributed to our Annual Appeal! We are 2/3 of the way to our grand goal of $25,000! We’re confident you can help us make it to the finish line. Please make your tax deductible donation to the GFO today! Member dues cover only 24% of our budget. Your donations are vital to GFO’s basic operations. |
| Give Today |
| The GFO belongs to the Oregon Cultural Trust. We have a Silver Star rating on GuideStar. Please check with your employer on possible matching donations, especially through Benevity. Thanks for all you do to keep GFO going strong! |
| Oregon Cultural Trust Offers Tax Credits |
| GFO is proud to be part of the Oregon Cultural Trust. Any donation you make to GFO could lead to a state tax credit (not just a deduction) if you give the same amount to the Oregon Cultural Trust. “Make your donation to the Cultural Trust by December 31st to earn the tax credit on your entire Cultural Trust donation. That’s right – you get your entire matching donation to the Cultural Trust back. Double your impact for free.” Learn more here! |
| Join Library Tour for Hispanic Heritage Resources |
| Do you have an interest in Hispanic heritage? GFO’s Mexican Ancestry Group invites you to join a tour of the Multnomah County Library’s Hispanic genealogical resources. |
| The tour begins at 12:30 p.m. on Monday, December 17th at Multnomah County’s Central Library 801 SW 10th Ave. There is paid parking across the street and in the area. PLEASE RSVP by emailing sw@gfo.org. |
| We’d Like YOU to be a part of GFO’s Open House |
| GFO’s 2019 Open House is right around the corner. Mark you calendars for March 23rd through 31st! We are looking for presenters to give 50-minute sessions on any topic that may be of interest to beginning genealogists. Opening weekend: Saturday will be devoted to Irish research and is being planned by the Irish Special Interest Group. Sunday will be a Beginners’ Boot Camp. The closing Saturday and Sunday will be DNA Days planned by Emily Aulicino and team and will feature a very special guest. Stay tuned for more information. The theme on Wednesday will be finding biological family and additional participants are being sought. There will be panel discussions and presentations relating to questions about whether to search for biological family. There will also be resources available on topics such as how to make first contact. If you are an adoptee, a biological parent, or someone seeking a biological relation and would like to share your views or provide a presentation, please contact laurel.smith@gfo.org. There are still a few presentation spots open on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. Check out the open slots at our website calendar. Again, if you can participate by leading a session at GFO’s 2019 Open House, please send a message to laurel.smith@gfo.org. Presenters will be compensated with profuse gratitude! GFO will print and provide any handouts for attendees. We don’t know of any other genealogical organization that provides a 9-day event, packed with content, absolutely FREE to all attendees. But we need your help to make it happen! |
| This week at GFO … |
| Friday, December 14th Mexican Ancestry Group 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. Finding your Hispanic ancestors from Mexico, Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, and California! This Special Interest Group (SIG) pertains specifically to Mexican ancestors from Mexico and the American Southwest (New Mexico, Arizona, Texas, and California). This will be our last meeting of the year. Lets share our successes and discoveries for this past year and what you are hoping to accomplish for 2019. I will share a few successes in my research and how I obtained records online. Also want to talk about our upcoming library tour for Monday December 17, 12:30-1:30 at Central Library downtown Portland. This will be Hispanic genealogical resources available through the library. Bring your questions for our tour guides, Enrique and Kim. They are willing to answer any additional questions and assist you in find genealogical resources after the tour. If you know of any other people interested in Hispanic genealogy tell them about the group. They don’t have to be a GFO member to participate. For questions or comments, please email Vince at sw@gfo.org. SUNDAY, December 16th Library Work Party 9:00 a.m. – Noon There’s another work party at the GFO library today for those of you who can come. There’s lots to do and we’d love to have your help. Doors open at 9 and work usually wraps up around noon. Some people come for just an hour or so; others work the full time. You are welcome to do either. Any time you can share is valuable. Hope to see you there. Family Tree Maker Users’ Group 1 – 3 p.m. Join other users who want to work through the 2017 Companion Guide to Family Tree Maker. Bring your laptop with 2017 version of FTM installed and an empty USB thumb drive. Facilitated by Joyce Grant-Worley, who can be contacted at FTM@gfo.org. WEDNESDAY, December 19th DNA Q&A 1 – 3 p.m. Lisa McCullough leads a discussion on various DNA related subjects, with each meeting focused on a particular subject. General questions are welcome at the end of each planned discussion. Questions? Send Lisa a note at dna_lm@gfo.org. |
| P.O. Box 15329 Seattle, Washington 98115-0329 10 December 2018Dear Members and Friends, The Seattle Genealogical Society celebrated a milestone this year, reaching the grand age of 95 on October 18, 2018. We thank you again for your generous donations in the past and request your support as we continue to improve access, lend assistance and supply resources to the ever wider community of those seeking to discover and preserve their family history. A few recent accomplishments: The SGS Library has over 17,000 catalogued items and just this year acquired almost 400 new books. The library is open to the public six days a week at no charge. Come take a look! The library is now a FamilySearch affiliate. When you visit you may access, at SGS computer workstations or on your own portable computer, the extensive digitized microfilm records of the LDS Family History Library, many of them not generally available online. SGS launched successful online classes in introductory genealogy and DNA, and received an FGS Directors award for our nationally recognized online Certification Discussion Group Series. We’ll be rolling out a new website in early 2019 – watch for individual accounts for each SGS member, a convenient new page listing upcoming education and events, and exclusive online access to the indexes and databases our volunteers have been busy putting together this year. Our popular Seminars, Interest Groups, and Second Saturdays continue – next up: “Ins and Outs of Indexes” on Jan. 12, 2019, and our first-ever Japanese Genealogy Seminar, Feb. 2-3, 2019.Please make a tax-deductible contribution today to provide much-needed sustenance for SGS as we look forward to the even grander age of 100! Fill out the form below and return it with your check or money order. Or make your donation online with a credit or debit card at the link below. Thank you, President Donate Now Seattle Genealogical Society is a 501(c)3 nonprofit, charitable organization registered in the state of Washington. Tax ID#91-0850085. Contributions are tax deductible. ————————————————————————————————————————- Please send this form with a check or money order payable to: Seattle Genealogical Society, P.O. Box 15329, Seattle, WA 98115-0329 ———————————————————————————————————————— Yes! I would like to support the Seattle Genealogical Society with a gift of: Benefactor $250 and up □ ___________________ □ My employer (Enter name): Patron $100 – $249 □ ___________________ Sponsor $50 – $99 □ ___________________ ___________________________ Contributor up to $49 □ ___________________ will match my contribution to SGS. My gift is in memory of (Please Print) _______________________________________________________________________ Your Name (Please Print) _______________________________________________________________________□ Check if you do not want your name to be published. |
Today, a most delicate subject. Most of us in our ancestral pedigree, have a history of one or more of our male ancestors being termed a drunkard. Perhaps this has seemed shameful to you at worst, or most uncomfortable at best. But today I invite you to think of this in another way.
Think of our modern medicine today…….. we have fixes for arthritic knees and hips. We have medicines for most any ailment all with the aim of making the patient better and more comfortable. Prior to 1900 our ancestors had no real help at all for their ailments and surely they did suffer the same ailments as we do today, don’t you suppose? And on the whole, our ancestors had to work physically way, way, WAY harder than we do today. Don’t you suppose they were in pain lots of the time? Yet, they had to get-up-and-go and resume work for no down time was available to them. (Cows had to be milked, etc. A mother of 6 under 10 in a snowbound cabin with a migraine? A coal miner barely making a living?)
Aspirin as a pain reliever, plain simple aspirin, was not introduced until 1897. What did our ancestors use for pain relief before that year? Yes, there were homeopathic remedies and quack potions and pills. But for real relief, what did our ancestors do??
They drank. Alcohol was about the only pain killer available to them.
I’m not saying that pain relief was the object of every man who guzzled down too much booze, but I do think it was a big factor. And I am asking with this post that you pause to reflect on why your ancestor was termed a drunk. Think kindly of them.
At our January 5 2019 meeting of EWGS we will have three functions.
***We will honor our past presidents who will be with us at the meeting.
***We will install our new 2019 officers including Dolly Webb and those who will serve with her.
***We will experience a live webinar with Diahan Southard entitled: “Three Next Steps for Your DNA Test Results.”
Please arrive at the Fosseen Room at Mukogawa by 11:30 so we can start promptly and complete our full agenda. Thank you!
This all takes place at the Fosseen Room at Mukogawa (4000 W. Randolph Road). We will dine on a soup, sandwich and salad bar for $20.00 which includes tax and gratuity. The Webinar will be visible on two large monitors in the room so they should be easily visible.
There are 2 registration options: To pay with a credit card go to EWGSI.ORG and click on the upcoming Meetings and Events menu on the left side. The first event on the page is this meeting. The button at the bottom of the event will allow you to pay the $20.00 with a credit card (through PayPal) so it arrives right away. You can send a check to EWGS, PO Box 1826, Spokane, WA 99210-1826 for $20.00 Please make your payment as soon as possible so the correct number of lunches can be provided. December 15th is the cut off date for registration and we will only be able to accommodate 80 people, so please register now so you don’t miss out!
What is one of Washington’s best known and least liked animals???
SLUGS! They may be nature’s ultimate recycler but to most of us they are icky.
“One of Washington’s best-known molluscs is a slug….a very big slug, to be exact. The honorable banana slug is commonly 4 to 6 inches long and sometimes can reach 10 inches. Slugs are most active at night and in dim, humid conditions because they need the humidity to replenish liquid that is consumed in their prodigious production of slime. Slime is very important to the slug. It provides both traction and lubrication and also protects the slug’s sole.”
(This bit comes from The Washington Almanac, by Andrea Jarvela, 1999.)
According to author Jarvela, “banana slugs can be eaten. Fry them after removing the slime by soaking the slugs in vinegar. They taste just like the more expensive French escargots….”
Have you ever chomped a fried banana slug?????
Okay, you travel detectives, where is this? And what is this?
If you travel north on I-5 and take exit 207 (just north of Marysville) you’ll see this relic of the past……………a stump house!
Yes, in days of yore in Washington, when logging was king and giant cedars trees prized above all, the cutting of these woody monsters left huge stumps. These stumps were often hollow in the middle and so all an enterprising settler needed to do was put a roof over the stump and viola! Home sweet home. Kinda. Sorta.
Google the words “stump homes Washington” and then images, and you’ll be amazed at those old images of our pioneer ancestors’ ingenuity.
The Library of Congress has been digitizing Sanborn maps for a few months, and they finally got to Washington State. So here is the URL for three pages of Sanborn Maps:
( https://www.loc.gov/collections/sanborn-maps/index/location/?fa=location%3Awashington )
| Curious about the status of your GFO Membership? We’d love to have you as a GFO Member! |
| THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM’s Thursday Evening E-News Edition December 6, 2018 |
|
For more information visit www.gfo.org, contact us at info@gfo.org, or call our library at 503-963-1932. Be sure to check the complete GFO CALENDAR. Also, don’t miss the current issue of The Forum Insider |
| GFO’s Annual Appeal: It’s a Time of Giving! |
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What do you call a group with no paid staff, the largest genealogy collection in the Pacific Northwest, and a library that’s open daily? You know the answer: Portland’s very own Genealogical Forum of Oregon! Did you also know that member dues cover only 24 percent of our budget? Our rent is going up $1,200 every year. Oh my! Our database subscriptions now cost almost $5,000 each year. Once a year we ask for your support. Now is that time. During this Annual Appeal we need to raise $25,000. We’re confident you can help us make it happen. Please make your tax deductible donation to the GFO today. |
| Give Today |
| The GFO belongs to the Oregon Cultural Trust. We have a Silver Star rating on GuideStar. Please check with your employer on possible matching donations, especially through Benevity. Thanks for all you do to keep GFO going strong! |
| Join Library Tour for Hispanic Heritage Resources |
| Do you have an interest in Hispanic heritage? GFO’s Mexican Ancestry Group invites you to join a tour of the Multnomah County Library’s Hispanic genealogical resources. |
| The tour begins at 12:30 p.m. on Monday, December 17th at Multnomah County’s Central Library 801 SW 10th Ave. There is paid parking across the street and in the area. PLEASE RSVP by emailing sw@gfo.org. |
| Don’t Miss It! Free Mac Class for GFO Members next Wednesday |
| Photos 101 – As genealogists, we do a lot of photo handling. Apple’s free Photos App is a great tool to edit and organize your photos to make them look their best for all archiving purposes. Don’t struggle with tasks like fixing/cropping images from sites like FindAGrave when you can get a solid grasp of the basics in this free class. The Portland Mac Users Group offers this PMUG College class on Wednesday, December 12th, from 6 to 8 p.m. at GFO’s very own library. This class is completely FREE for GFO and PMUG members. $10 for non-members. (Become a GFO member here!) More information is available on the PMUG website. |
| Boot Camp: No Boots, Tents or Experience Needed! |
| Join Laurel Smith at the GFO for a day of beginning genealogy on January 8th. There will be sessions about the census, vital records, immigration and naturalization, discussions about genealogy software and database use, organizing your research and more — all geared toward beginners. Bring a sack lunch so the discussion can continue while we eat. GFO members may attend for free, non-members $20. Here’s what attendees are saying: “Boot Camp was rocking, wow do I regret not having it before I started my work . . . such a good teacher . . . a marathon that was time well-spent . . . informative and motivational . . . with humor and positive energy . . . more than exceeded my expectations” Member or not, please let us know if you plan to attend and REGISTER ONLINE by January 3rd. A link to the class notes will be emailed on Saturday, January 5th. |
| This week at GFO … |
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SATURDAY, December 8th Writers’ Forum 1 – 3 p.m. We are currently working on Bruce Tarshis’s How to be Your Own Best Editor, chapters 10 and 11. Everyone
is welcome, whether you have participated before or not. This is your
chance to get started writing or to improve your writing, whether you
are writing for yourself or for others. We learn about good writing
techniques — write and read what we write to each other. Without
exception, everyone who has participated in this group over the last
fourteen years writes better than they did when they started. Purpose: This is a peer group of genealogists, who meet to learn about writing and to share our writing with each other. Peggy Baldwin facilitates this group and can be reached at writers@gfo.org or 503-916-9410. SUNDAY, December 9th Library Work Party 9:00 a.m. – Noon There’s another work party at the GFO library today for those of you who can come. There’s lots to do and we’d love to have your help. Doors open at 9 and work usually wraps up around noon. Some people come for just an hour or so; others work the full time. You are welcome to do either. Any time you can share is valuable. Hope to see you there. WEDNESDAY, December 12th PMUG – Mac Users’ Class 6 – 8 p.m. Portland Mac Users Group offers its college class at GFO library. The class this time will be about the Photos application, which is included on all current Macintosh systems. Free to GFO and PMUG members. More information available at PMUG’s website. |
Have you noticed the Blog banner changes every time you visit? The photos are submitted by readers like you — and Carol Ballard of Olympia. Carol recently sent us three beautiful scenic photos:
We’re always looking for scenic photos of our beautiful state for the rotating photo gallery on the blog banner. It’s easy — just send a Washington State jpg image to wsgsblog@wasgs.org with a description of the photo. The blog masters will take care of the rest!