Monday’s Mystery

by Charles Hansen

As a city girl, this was a “mystery” to me. According to last Sunday’s edition of The Spokesman Review seven counties in Washington have more cows than people. Would that surprise YOU?

What was even more surprising to me was that I thought the taking of an agricultural census was a thing of yesterday but NOT SO. There is a 24-page form sent to Washington farmers periodically asking “how much acreage they farm, the animals and crops they raise, the sale value of products and their own demographics.” Interesting, no?

Rachel Alexander’s article concluded with “Spokane leads the state in llama population with 518. Don’t get spit on.”  Who would have guessed?

Tacoma-Pierce County Seminar Kicks Off

by Roxanne Lowe

Roxanne Lowe and Mark Lowe are still looking for their family confluence — somewhere in the hills of North Carolina.

If Tacoma-Pierce County Genealogical Society‘s kick-off Meet & Greet with J. Mark Lowe is any indication, the  main event on Saturday, April 28, 2018 is going to be a fun ride! At the Friday night event, Mark entertained the attendees while they dined on a scrumptious dessert buffet. What could be better than laughter and chocolate!

A good ol’ Southern boy from Tennessee, Mark is a born storyteller from a long line of storytellers. Every lesson he shared had a witty, entertaining story behind it — from driving sheep to Atlanta to the escapades of his pistol-packin’ grandma. For him, it’s all about the story, urging all of us to “tell your stories or they’ll die.”

You can register on-site for the Tacoma-Pierce County Genealogical Society’s Spring Seminar  at the LaQuinta Inn, 1425 East 27th Street in Tacoma. Registration opens at 8:00 a.m. with opening remarks by Cyndi Ingle at 9:00.

GENEALOGICAL FORUM’s Thursday Evening E-News

by Charles Hansen

THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM’s

Thursday Evening

E-News, Edition

26 April 2018

For more information visit www.gfo.org, contact us at info@gfo.org, or call our library at 503-963-1932. We love hearing from you!

For a complete GFO CALENDAR click here.

Also, if you missed your free copy of our monthly Insider for April 2018, you’re in luck because we saved you a copy HERE. NOTE: The Insider issues are now located under the “Learn” > “Our Publications” menu at www.gfo.org.

Curious about the status of your GFO Membership? We’d love to have you as a GFO Member!
***

Did you vote yet? Ballots are due super soon!
voting booth

Ballots were included in the April 2018 Insider!

Member Ballots for GFO’s Elections must be received by May 7th, by 5pm.

President

2-year term

▪ Vince Patton, as our esteemed Laurel Smith will be stepping down at the end of June 2018
▪ Write-In Candidate

Secretary

2-year term

▪ Geoff Smith, as LauraDenise White will be completing her term at the end of June 2018
▪ Write-In Candidate

Director-At-Large

one position, 2-year term

▪ Anne Wheeler (Incumbent)
▪ Write-In Candidate

Endowment Committee

one position

▪ Marti Dell (Incumbent)
▪ Write-In Candidate

Continue reading →

Friday Serendipity

by Charles Hansen

Today a most different kind of serendipity……… good news for genealogical societies who have a “pet” cemetery they sponsor:

The newspaper bit read: “Historic cemeteries can now apply for grants for cemetery rehabilitation and preservation through the Washington State Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation. Cemeteries must be more than 50 years old, and the funding is for capital project that assist with improving and/or preserving the cemetery.”

For more info click to: dahp.wa.gov/historiccemeterygrant

Or call Julianne Patterson at 206-624-9449 for more information.

Eastern Washington Genealogical Society May Meeting

by Charles Hansen

Saturday, May 5
The 1883 Gold Rush – The Inland Northwest’s Best Kept Secret  (EWGS Meetings)
12:30 pm to 3:00 pm
Spokane Public Library Auditorium, Downtown Spokane
 
Presenters – Tony and Suzanne Bamonte.
Tony and Suzanne Bamonte will be speaking on the 1883 gold rush, which drew thousands of fortune seekers to the confluence of Prichard and Eagle creeks in the remote Coeur d’Alene National Forest of northern Idaho. The gold seekers were met with excitement, disappointment, success, and failure, but the impact of the gold rush extended far beyond the initial hysteria. It marked the origin of the internationally renowned Coeur d’Alene Mining District (known locally as the Silver Valley), the mineral wealth from which became the economic backbone of the Inland Northwest. The initial impact transformed Spokane from a barely surviving to a thriving community, whose population simply exploded. It also gave rise to other Inland Northwest towns and supporting industries. We will touch on some of the people who brought their newfound wealth from the Silver Valley to Spokane and built numerous mansions and stately commercial buildings that still exist today. The program will include historical images to help tell the story.
Cookies & Social Time: 12:30 PM
Meeting starts at 1:00 PM

Rootsweb Lists Spring Back to Life!

by Charles Hansen

Rootsweb Lists Spring Back to Life!

Rootsweb was offline for some months, and is now coming back online,one piece at a time. First to return was World Connect:
https://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/ and t he Message Boards have continued to work and were not offline.
http://boards.rootsweb.ancestry.com/

Now lists have been upgraded and restored, and the archives are being re-filled from backups. Find your way here:
https://mailinglists.rootsweb.ancestry.com/listindexes/. Create a new login here: https://mailinglists.rootsweb.ancestry.com/lists/setupmail. Once you have set up your account, you will be able to control list mail and how you receive it. Remember to link older email accounts as well.

Washington State lists are here:
https://mailinglists.rootsweb.ancestry.com/listindexes/USA/Washington/ — including the WSGS lists.

If you would like to support this effort, why not become a listowner?
Create a login: https://mailinglists.rootsweb.ancestry.com/lists/setupadmin and then head over to http://home.rootsweb.ancestry.com/lists/orphanedlists to adopt one. There is even a list for new listowners: https://mailinglists.rootsweb.ancestry.com/listindexes/search/NEWBIE-LISTOWNER

Once lists are working perfectly, the websites will return too!

Olympia Gen Soc Hosts Successful Seminar

by Roxanne Lowe

Keynote speaker Lisa Alzo and OGS President Nancy Neville Cordell

It comes as no surprise that the Olympia Genealogical Society‘s Spring Seminar was a resounding success. Lisa Alzo, professional writer, lecturer and genealogist rolled into one terrific presenter, entertained and educated more than 110 attendees on Saturday, April 7, 2018. Her topics included:

  • Immigrant Cluster Communities: Past, Present and Future
  • Silent Voices: Telling the Stories of Your Female Immigrant Ancestors
  • Diseases, Disasters and Distress: Bad for Your Ancestors, Good for Genealogy
  • Murder, Mayhem and Town Tragedy Making Those Skeletons Dance: Exploring Your Family’s Dark Side

Roger Newman from Shelton won one of the raffles. Photo by Patty Olsen.

Always a first-rate affair, Olympia’s Spring Seminar also included book sales and fabulous raffle baskets. It was also a great opportunity to welcome and network with fellow genealogists from the area.

There are a number of upcoming seminars in the region. Check out this blog post for a list.

Societies: If you’d like to promote your workshop or seminar on the WSGS Blog, send a flyer or paragraph to WSGSBlog@wasgs.org. We’d love to share it with our readers!

John Jay Winsor Awarded 2017 Outstanding Volunteer Honor

by Roxanne Lowe

Since 2003, the Washington State Genealogical Society has recognized over 500 outstanding volunteers and teams, nominated by their local society or genealogical organization for their service and dedication. These volunteers are the backbone of their local society, giving their time and expertise, to the organization and the field of genealogy. In the coming weeks, you will be introduced to each of the 2017 award recipients and learn why they received the 2017 WSGS Outstanding Volunteer and Team Award.

John Jay Winsor

Today we’re introducing John Jay Winsor of Marysville, Washington, who was nominated by the Stillaguamish Valley Genealogical Society (SVGS). He was recognized for his dedicated volunteerism at SVGS for the many years he was a member of the society.

Always greeting everyone with a pleasant smile and good cheer, Mr. Winsor’s willingness to pitch in with any manual labor that the society was in need of will never be surpassed. The society’s only regret is that this award must be given posthumously, due to his sudden passing January 28, 2017.

Mr. Winsor was truly a humble and wise man who quietly donated to the Northwest Genealogy Conference scholarship program. Members of the SVGS are grateful for the time they had with him.

His dedication and willingness to help where needed illustrate why he richly deserved being a recipient of a 2017 WSGS Outstanding Volunteer Award.

For more information on the WSGS Outstanding Volunteer Award program, visit the Recognition page of the WSGS website or contact Roxanne Lowe, Interim Recognition Chair, at Roxanne@thekeeffes.com.

Wednesday Nostalgia

by Charles Hansen

My daughter, Jane, has a thriving re-purposing business. She hunts up rusty old discards, buys them, changes them a bit and resells them. Like tiered locker baskets from a high school gym….. folks love those for sorting kids’ toys or for a mud room.

Take this old bedsprings I spotted in a salvage yard in Tacoma. “Carman’s Guaranteed for 20 years” with Carman Manufacturing Company in Tacoma, Spokane, Portland and Seattle. WELL! Spotting this was cool enough but then I Googled those words……… and found out that back on 12 June 1907 in the San Francisco Call (newspaper) a headline screamed: “Portland Furniture Magnates Plead Guilty!” The “Carman Manufacturing Company of Tacoma” was one of 20 members of the furniture trust who appeared in court charged with conspiracy to monopolize trade.

There is history everywhere!!  Even in salvage yards in Tacoma!

And why was this notice in a San Francisco paper, I wondered?