Meet the Board: Diane Huckabay

by Roxanne Lowe

Do you know who’s running the show at the Washington State Genealogical Society? Did you know we have an Executive Committee, six standing committee chairs and three appointed non-elected officers? Who are all these people? In the coming months, we’ll introduce them to you, so you can say “hi” the next time you see them.

Diane Huckabay

In today’s “Meet the Board” series, we’re introducing you to Diane Huckabay. Diane lives in Ellensburg and is WSGS’s Education and Outreach Chair. She is very active in the Kittitas County Genealogical Society, serving as President, Past President and Member-at-Large. She is also president of the Cascade Association of Museums and History (CAMAH), an organization that brings together and promotes all the museums and historical sites in Kittitas County.

Diane, her sister and brother, ca. 1966

Diane, one of three children, was born in Missouri in the 1950s, the daughter of Tom and Nannette. They gave their little daughter Nannette’s middle name, Diane. Tom and Nannette’s roots started in Oklahoma and Virginia. Diane’s other ancestral lines are in Texas, Kansas and Scotland. While she’s visited the states, Scotland is still on her Bucket List.

Diane’s interest in genealogy was sparked after she took a class so she could help patrons at the local public library. One of her most exciting discoveries was finding her grandfather’s siblings. One of her brick walls is finding more information about her great uncle Cecil Britton (1911 – 1959) who lived in Texas, Colorado and Oklahoma. If you know anything about Cecil, Diane’s looking to talk to you.

Diane’s great aunt Sisso, her grandmother and their little brother Cecil

Diane and her husband have a blended family of three sons and six daughters.

A few more interesting tidbits about Diane:
• Favorite genealogy websites: FamilySearch, Ancestry and the Digital Archives in Washington and Missouri
• Favorite color: Green
• Favorite dessert: Raspberry Lush and anything chocolate
• When she’s not doing genealogy, Diane likes to read, do art projects and dabble on the Internet.
• When asked to describe herself in one word, Diane replied, “curious.” Isn’t that a perfect word to describe a genealogist?

Now you know a little more about another of the WSGS Board members. The next time you see Diane say hello and thank her for her service to WSGS.

Barb Peterson 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 months, you will be introduced to each of the 2017 award recipients and learn why they received the 2017 WSGS Outstanding Volunteer and Team Award.

Barb Peterson

Today we’re introducing Barb Peterson of Chimacum, Washington, who was nominated by the Jefferson County Genealogical Society (JCGS). She was recognized for her expertise in maintaining the financial records of the society.

Ms. Peterson has served as the society’s treasurer since 2012. She has spent countless hours maintaining the books and financial business of the society, and always provides accurate and timely reports. The importance of having an accurate accounting of the society’s funds cannot be overstated. Ms. Peterson has provided that accuracy and confidence.

Ms. Peterson is a respected and diligent member of the JCGS, and richly deserves 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

 

Little coin-operated-table jukeboxes……. who remembers dropping a quarter into one?

According to Wikipedia, “coin-operated music boxes and player pianos were the first forms of automated coin-operated musical devices.” Jukeboxes were most popular from the 1940s through the mid-1960s, particularly during the 1950s. By the middle of the 1940s, three-quarters of the records produced in America went into jukeboxes.”

Jukeboxes were cheap entertainment and we used to calculate the popularity of new music. Like Elvis. Like so many stars of Back Then.

What was your favorite song to plug in a quarter and play as you waited for your hamburger, shake and fries???

Tri-City Genealogical Society at Family Discovery Day

by Charles Hansen
Members and Guests:
Here is an opportunity to attend a free 3 hour workshop on various classes pertaining to genealogy research and resources on March 24th.
The Tri-City Genealogical Society has been extended an invitation to set up a table to showcase our society as well as displays of various genealogy resources.
Since we have been asked to be there from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., we will need some volunteers to sit at our “booth” to help answer any questions about TCGS as well as to encourage workshop participants to view our display. If you would like to volunteer an hour or more during the above time, please let me know.
Please note that our own Margie Beldin and Richard Allen will be two of the workshop speakers listed on the agenda. Also, this workshop will be at the Richland LDS Church on Jadwin Blvd. right behind the Family History Center which is on Goethals Street.
More information will be forthcoming in regards to the times of the specific workshop sessions.
Sincerely,
Art Kelly

Tuesday Trivia

by Charles Hansen

 

Parnell, Washington, founded on 6 Aug 1889, on a site about 1/2 mile south of Hartline. Ever heard of it???

Even Grandma Google couldn’t find anything on this bitsy place! Seems it’s been forgotten? (There were several hits for folks named Parnell Washington, oddly enough.)

Parnell was established because of the need to survey the line for the railroad…..which failed to materialize. So the hopeful founding fathers, Brower & Reeves, moved their merchandise store from Parnell to Hartline and indeed, the Northern Pacific Railroad did come through Hartline a bit later. The town of Hartline was named by John Hartline on 28 Jul1890.

Anybody in WSGS have an ancestral connection to Parnell or even Hartline???

Eastside Genealogical Society April Meeting

by Charles Hansen

The Eastside Genealogical Society will meet on Thursday, April 12, 2018 in the Bellevue Regional Library (Room 1), 1111 – 110th Ave NE, Bellevue, WA 98004 at 7 pm, with doors opening at 6:30 pm for networking.

 

Topic: A panel of experienced researchers will help people break down their family research brick walls.  Come learn their tips.

 

See our website for FREE genealogical help and other Special Interest Group meetings. Visitors are always welcome at all meetings. More Information click here

 

Monday’s Mystery

by Charles Hansen

Roberta Sunday.  Does that name ring a bell with anybody? How about Robert Martin of Coeur d’Alene, Idaho?  When Robert served in Vietnam in 1970, his platoon rescued a baby girl among the dead and in the remains of a bombed out bunker. They turned the baby over to the Catholic orphanage and when asked for her name, and of course not having one, the platoon suggested naming her after Robert: Roberta. And Sunday since she was found on a Sunday. Now 48, and perhaps living in New Zealand, Robert wants to much to find out what happened to her……….. Any WSGS readers know anything??

I read about this in the 7 Feb 2018 edition of The New Zealand Herald (Auckland) and found that my paper, The Spokesman Review, had published the story back on 23 Jun 2017.

So, I wonder, have Robert and Roberta connected? Anybody know anything??

German Interest Group of The Eastside Genealogical Society (EGS) March Meeting

by Charles Hansen

The German Interest Group of The Eastside Genealogical Society (EGS) will meet on Friday, April 6, 2018, from 1 to 3 pm in the Relief Society Room of the LDS Church at 10675 NE 20thSt, Bellevue, WA 98004 with doors opening at 12:45 pm for networking. Visitors are always welcome at our meetings.       

Topic: “A travelogue through ancestral German homelands, with a little side trip into World War II France”

   Join Jon and Marilyn Schunke as they travel through Germany discovering the origins of Jon Schunke’s paternal immigrant ancestors – Schunke in Sachen-Anhalt, and Himmelsbach and Stumpf in Bavaria. Along the way, you’ll see how using information at home led them to the correct research facilities in Germany to search for birth records and land locations.

   Their study of maps, current and historical, was critical in finding the right locations…and oh the benefits of visiting the local Landeshaupt. Is it Bobbe and Wulfen or Bobbau and Wolfin? It makes a difference of 25 miles.

Discover why you should “like” Facebook pages and join Facebook groups. This led to learning about the recent discovery of the German origins of Jon’s maternal “Volga German” or “Germans from Russia” ancestors. The Conrad and Anna Margaretha “Reuswig” family emigrated to Norka, Russia, on the Volga River in 1766. See a “Pleve Chart” which shows their descendants down to the three generations of their “Reispich” descendants who immigrated to America in 1878. Jon’s “Reisbick” grandparents migrated to Portland, Oregon, by 1901. Prime example of why you can’t say spellings of names don’t change over time.

   And finally, they’ll take a look at Marilyn’s most recent ancestor, her father, who landed on Omaha Beach 13 days after D-Day. They’ll journey through Normandy and along the Brittany coast. While retracing her dad’s footsteps, they discovered firsthand how the French have not forgotten the American servicemen.

 

Presenter: Marilyn A. Schunke has been researching her family for 20 years. She is a graduate of the University of Washington’s Genealogy and Family History Certificate Program. She is currently a member of the New York Genealogical Society, Washington State Genealogical Society, Eastside Genealogical Society (EGS), as well as South King County Genealogical Society (SKCGS).  She has supported genealogy education in Puget Sound as Education Coordinator at Heritage Quest Research Library for several years and presenter of a Microsoft Windows 10 class. Marilyn is currently serving as co-leader of the EGS Legacy Special Interest and on the SKCGS Board as circulating librarian.

For more information, kindly visit our website

GENEALOGICAL FORUM’s Thursday Evening E-News

by Charles Hansen

THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM’s

Thursday Evening

E-News, Edition

8 March 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 February 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!
***

Clocks go one hour forward on Saturday night…
DaylightSavingTime
***

Only Three Days Left of GFO’s Open House!

Be sure you don’t miss out on all the fun that’s left through this weekend at GFO’s Open House this year.

A full schedule with detailed class descriptions is located HERE, or you can also view our online CALENDAR for all the events.

FRIDAY, March 9th

Intro to Researching your Mexican Ancestors • Google for Genealogists • Making the Most of Your Time (10am – 3:30pm)

SATURDAY & SUNDAY, March 10th & 11th

DNA! DNA! DNA! DNA! Come on out to learn all you could ever want and more about this amazingly hot topic in genealogy.

Saturday: Comparing Three Testing Companies • Y-DNA & mtDNA Basics • atDNA Basics • Organizing Data & Contacting Matches • Dealing with NPEs • Q & A (9am – 5pm)

Sunday: Convincing People to Test and Why • Four Autosomal Testing Companies • Case Study Using atDNA • GEDmatch • DNAGEDCOM • Q & A (9am – 5pm)
***

Special Location: Writers’ Forum Moves on March 10th
GFO-SIG-Writers

Due to the Open House this week, the GFO Writers’ Forum will meet in a conference room on the main floor of the Ford Building, Room 136.

The meeting time is Saturday, March 10th, 1 – 3pm.

This is a peer group of genealogists, who meet to learn about writing and to share their writing with each other.

Peggy Baldwin facilitates this group and can be reached at peggyrbaldwin@gmail.com.
***

Newest SIG at the GFO – French Canada
GFO-SIG-FrenchCanada

The French Canadian Special Interest Group (SIG) will have its first meeting on Sunday, March 18th, 3:30 – 5pm.

Bob LaMarche will be our fearless facilitator.

Please check the GFO CALENDAR for updates and more information.

We will discuss topics of interest in French Canada as well as Acadian genealogy and history.
***

Genealogy Problem Solvers – March 17th
AnnaRosettaFrenchSullyPortrait

Join this month’s Genealogy Problem Solvers (GPS) on Saturday, March 17th, 9:30 – 11:30am

This month’s brick wall is the 3rd great grandmother, Anna Rosetta (Halverson) French of one of our members.

The only documented fact is her death at age 36, and her marriage to William French in 1812 in Philadelphia. Only her mothers’ first name and married surname are known, and her sea captain father is said to be anything from a Slave Trader to a shipper of Catholics to the Colonies. He is dead before 1800.

GPS is a monthly support group where we help each other find information about a family line. We will learn to do a reasonably exhaustive search and develop research plans. The focus will shift depending on the needs of the group. Several experienced researchers have volunteered to help. Beginners and intermediate researchers are encouraged to submit problems to work on. For more information contact Katie Daly at GPS@gfo.org.

All of the GFO’s Special Interest Groups are FREE and OPEN to the PUBLIC.