THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM’s Wednesday Evening E-News

THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM’s Wednesday Evening E-News 5 April 2017

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!

Also, if you missed your free copy of our monthly Insider for February 2017, 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 our new website (still gfo.org).

Curious about the status of your GFO Membership?? We’d love to have you as a GFO Member!
We’ve recently received a lot of questions from our wonderful members asking when their membership expires and how they can track this.

In response, we’re now providing your membership information right here with our weekly e-news blasts. If you want to forward our weekly e-news blasts to a friend, you can also delete your personal information before forwarding the message.

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Labelers Needed for Sunday’s Library Work Party!

Sunday, April 9th, at the GFO, 9am – noon
We’re planning another amazing and busy Library Work Party this coming Sunday.

Our focus will be on getting a mounting plethora of new book labels on the Washington state collection.

All those interested should come out to lend a hand to our President, Laurel Smith, and the other library volunteers! We’d be so excited to see you, and to share with you the ins and outs of this whole re-labeling project.
As always, thank you for all you do in support of the GFO Library!

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Don’t forget the Colletta Spring Seminar! Sat. April 29th

REGISTER for SATURDAY’s SEMINAR

There are still PLENTY of seats available for the Saturday Session!!
Online registrations, in-person registration at the GFO Library, or mailed registration. Whatever way is easiest for you!

When APRIL 29TH, 10am – 4:30pm

Where THE MILWAUKIE CENTER

Who JOHN PHILIP COLLETTA

What OUR ANCESTORS FROM OVERSEAS

How It’s so simple! Just click HERE to register right now online.
Please note, the Saturday Seminar is NOT sold out yet. Click HERE to register your seat!
John Philip Colletta is one of America’s most popular genealogical lecturers. Knowledgeable, experienced and entertaining (what a genealogical catch!), he is a faculty member of the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research and the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy. For twenty years, he worked part-time at the Library of Congress and taught workshops at the National Archives.

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Dual Citizenship Allowance?? When did this start?

We recently received a patron question about U.S. regulation regarding these two topics and how they interact.
A great resource on these topics can be found HERE.

The specific question was when the U.S. government began allowing dual citizenship so that people originating in another country would not have to renounce their citizenship from their native land?

So when did all this get sorted as far as the U.S. allowing dual citizenship for naturalized immigrants?

Here’s an article about the history of the issue across both Europe and in regards to the U.S. law and practice.

Further specifics, and at the heart of answering the when question noted above from our patron last week, can be found via a look at the U.S. Supreme Court’s Afroyim v. Rusk ruling in 1967.

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Portland’s African American Heritage Project…


Rutherford Home, 1920, 833 NE Shaver, First home of the NAACP Credit Union.

The Architectural Heritage Center is currently welcoming submissions of photos, stories, or other documentation that may aid in the documentation of African American historic resources. To share your information, please contact Stephanie Whitlock, AHC Executive Director (stephanie@visitahc.org, tel. 503-231-7264) or Cathy Galbraith, MPD project lead (tel. 503-543-6813).

A community open house will be held on April 29, 2017 to collect additional stories and share progress on the project. To keep informed of this event and receive other information about this project, sign up for the AHC newsletter and follow them on Facebook.

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This Week at the GFO…

SATURDAY, APRIL 8th
Illinois Group 9:30 – 11:30am

The Illinois Interest Group is open to all interested researchers. Just drop in and share the workshop when you can and when you are interested.

At all the meeting times you will receive handouts and/or work sheets for each topic we cover. We focus on the state of Illinois, but the research techniques can be used on all states. This is the thirteenth year that this group has been meeting. The group leaders are Kristy Gravlin, call 630-621-5166 or email hannah @teleport.com, and Harlene Patterson.

Writers’ Forum 1 – 3pm

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 peggyrbaldwin@gmail.com or 503-916-9410.
SUNDAY, APRIL 9th
Library Work Party 9am – Noon

There will be lots to do this Sunday at the GFO’s Library Work Party! This weekend we’re focusing on getting the Washington state books and other items outfitted with brand new labels! We’d love to see you there!! Any time you can spare is always a tremendous help.

Get Acquainted With… 1 – 3pm

This week’s topic is…the GFO’s brand new website! Learn about navigation, new features, and the wealth of resources available to you. Presented by Laurel Smith.
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 12th
Photoshop Elements 1:30 – 2:30pm

Join us to learn the basics of Photoshop Elements software to preserve, repair and present family history. Through the course of these meetings, held on the second Wednesday of each month, we will learn how to scan and organize photographs so they can be presented in your family history documentation, or displayed in your family décor. Taught by Sarah Holmes.

Get Acquainted With… 6 – 8pm

Missed the Sunday session? No problem at all!! This week’s topic continues to be all about the GFO’s brand new website! Learn about navigation, new features, and the wealth of resources available to you. Presented by Laurel Smith.

Yakima Valley Gen Soc and WSGS Partner for Recognition Awards

Featured speaker Jay Fonkert

The WSGS Annual Meeting, which includes the announcement of the Outstanding Volunteers and Teams, Outstanding Communication and Project awards, WSGS President’s Award for Outstanding Achievement and Innovative Grant winners, will be Saturday, April 22, 2017 during the lunch period of Yakima Valley Genealogical Society’s Spring Seminar. The seminar and awards event will be held at the Mt. Olive Lutheran Church in Yakima. The seminar’s featured speaker will be professional genealogist Jay Fonkert, a renowned authority on 19th Century Midwest research. His presentations will be:

  • Genealogy Detective Skills: Following Clues from the Census
  • Finding Your Pre-1850 American Ancestors
  • Why Were They There?
  • Who’s on First: Merging and Separating Identities in Family History Research

The YVGS Spring Seminar flyer, including a registration form, can be downloaded here: YVGS Spring Seminar flyer or visit the YVGS website.

JEFFERSON COUNTY GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY April Seminar

JEFFERSON COUNTY GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY (JCGS)
PO Box 627
Port Townsend, WA 98368
Contact for this press release:  Judy Tough 385-3065 or tough@olympus.net
FOR RELEASE:  April 3 -14

Genealogy Tools for the 21st Century: Facebook and Google
Jefferson County Genealogical Society (JCGS) invites the public to their full-day Seminar comprised of two 1 ½ hour professional programs, Saturday, April 15, 9:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Tri-Area Community Center, 10 W. Valley Rd, Chimacum. In addition, JCGS will host Heritage Quest that will be offering for sale a large selection of genealogy books that will help individuals to find the story of their ancestors. Bring your own lunch and a $10.00 donation. <www.wajcgs.org>

Back by popular demand, Master Genealogist, Mary Kathryn Kozy, will make the two presentations. During the morning session, Mary Kathryn will demonstrate how to use Facebook to locate and find unknown cousins and their family research. During the afternoon session she will demonstrate how to use Google to enhance our research efforts. This may well be the only place such information is available.

Genealogical Serendipity in Aberdeen

The “ah ha” moment as captured by photographer Elaine Anderson.

You never know when you’re going to experience one of those stranger-than-fiction “genealogical serendipity” moments that happen ever so often.

While speaking at the Grays Harbor Genealogical Society‘s Spring Workshop recently, professional genealogist Janet Camarata displayed an old Osborne County, Kansas land map of her ancestor Elzy Emmet Curry during her “Mapping an Ancestor” presentation. As she talked about Elzy (who married Ella Adeline Shull in 1890), Patty Olsen, Washington State Genealogical Society Region 4 representative and member of the Lewis County Genealogical Society, exclaimed, “That’s my ancestor, too!” After the initial shock, attendees witnessed the newly discovered cousins finding their common roots through Patty’s husband’s ancestor Ella Adeline, Elzy’s wife.

You never know when or where you’ll meet your long-lost cousin!

Seattle Genealogical Society Tip of the Week

TIP OF THE WEEK –   ANCESTRY ACADEMY VIDEOS NOW FREE

Check out the dozens of free how-to videos Ancestry has made available to the general public on a range of topics from Ancestry Products  (of course), to Records (census, probate, military), Methodology, and Locality-Ethnicity Research.  Videos range in length and subject complexity; everything from “Needle & Thread: Piecing Together African American Families” at almost 2 ½ hours to “1920 Census : An Overview” at only 2 ½ minutes. The latter is in their Short Course Videos series.

There is plenty of subject here to help novice genealogists as well as more seasoned ones.   Find your way to : www.ancestry.com/academy

Seattle Genealogical Society News

SCANNING STATION FOR PATRONS OF SGS

The new scanning station is up and ready for use. There are two new scanners for SGS patrons. One is for high speed scanning via a document feeder and the other is an overhead book scanner. The book scanner has image correction technology which flattens and corrects curve distortion, as well as a point retouch function allowing fingers inadvertently captured in the image during scanning to be removed. Pretty cool.

Bring in your documents or fragile photos for scanning and take advantage of this new equipment. Paul Wade has become our expert on the use of these scanners. He is usually in the Library on Wednesdays and would be glad to help you get started.

GiveBIG IS COMING SOON!

GiveBIG Seattle is a one-day online giving event sponsored by the Seattle Foundation to raise funds for nonprofit organizations serving Greater Seattle. In 2016, SGS received over $4000 via this one-day program!

The Seattle Foundation provides matching funds to encourage donations to SGS and other participating non-profits; last year the matching percentage was 6.3%. Even more impressive, over 80% of SGS donors paid the processing fee charged by the vendor, increasing our receipts even further.

These donations are vitally important to SGS each year, and are an important component of our annual budget.

This year, GiveBIG is Wednesday, May 10, from midnight to midnight. We’ll provide more information as the event gets closer, including easy instructions for donating online.  For more information now, visit www.givebigseattle.org .

NEW FAMILY TREE SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP
 TO MEET AT SGS

On February 25, Lou Daly gave a presentation at SGS titled “Family Tree on FamilySearch”.  This is a  FREE cloud-based genealogy application developed by the folks at Familysearch.org.

Lou’s introduction received rave reviews from the 15 attendees. So we’ve decided to create a Users Group on this subject that will meet at SGS.

If you are interested in exploring Family Tree on FamilySearch, join us at the SGS Library to find out how simple and yet how intricate this phenomenal new Wiki based Family Tree can be.

As one of the largest databases in the genealogical world, it is a marvelous tool for your research. We will discuss simple and advanced features and have time for questions and problem solving.

The meetings will be held at our SGS library on :
•Saturday, April 8, 10:15 am  – 12:15 pm
•Saturday, May 6,    1:00 pm  –  3:00 pm
•Saturday, June 10, 10:15am  – 12:15 pm

If a weekday evening meeting is better for you, a similar special interest group for Family Tree on Familysearch meets at the Fiske Genealogical Library on the second Wednesday evening of every month (April 12, May 10 and June 14) from 7:00-9:00 p.m. Fiske is located at 1644 43rd Ave E, Seattle, street level entrance. See http://www.fiskelibrary.org  for directions.

SGS ONLINE CATALOG IS UP-TO-DATE

The online catalog is now up-to-date! The new format is simpler to navigate and use. Members who have tested it call it  “Easy, even for a novice.”  It features a “Book Bin”. Make a selection and place it in the “bin”; then print out this list of what you want to look at on your next visit to the SGS Library.

SAVE THE DATES

Read ‘Em or Weep, Promises and Pitfalls in Newspaper Research,
 Stillaguamish Valley Genealogical Society,
 6111 – 188th PL. NE,
 Arlington, WA 98223
 Tuesday, April 11, 2017,  1:00 pm

The Stillaguamish Valley Genealogical Society will be hosting a free presentation entitled Read ‘Em or Weep, Promises and Pitfalls in Newspaper Research.  The presenter will be Mary Kircher Roddy.  Mary is a member of the Puget Sound Association of Professional Genealogists and has written articles for Family Chronicle and Internet Genealogy magazines. Open to society members and the public.

O Canada: Children of a Common Mother
 Heritage Weekend and Genealogy Seminar
 in the Skagit Valley
 Friday thru Sunday, April 21-23, 2017

The Skagit Valley Genealogical Society invites you to enjoy a special heritage weekend.  The O Canada theme is in honor of Canada’s 150th Anniversary of Confederation coming up July 1.

There are activities on Friday evening and Sunday morning to complement the full day seminar on Saturday. Plus, remember the valley will be ablaze in tulip color and the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival has activities that weekend that your family can enjoy while you attend the Saturday genealogy seminar and Sunday historic Burlington walking tour.

You can find more information, the flyer, and online registration at: SkagitValleyGenealogy.org

Yakima Valley Genealogical Society,
 Spring Seminar featuring Jay Fonkert,
 7809 Tieton Dr,
 Yakima, WA 98908
 Saturday, April 22, 2017   8am – 5pm

Jay Fonkert is one of America’s foremost genealogists.  To register, or read more about his credentials and the seminar, visit the YVGS website www.yvgs.net  and follow the links.

Tacoma-Pierce County Genealogical Society –  Spring Seminar
 La Quinta Inn and Suites,
 1425 East 27th St,
 Tacoma, WA
 April 28-29, 2017

Speaker will be  The Legal Genealogist,  Judy G. Russell, JD, CG, CGL and the emcee will be Cyndi Ingle. Some of the topics will be :

•No Vitals? No Problem! — Building a Family through Circumstantial Evidence

•When Worlds Collide: Resolving Conflicts in Genealogical Records

•Don’t Forget the Ladies — A Genealogist’s Guide to Women and the Law

•Beyond X and Y: The Promise and Pitfalls of Autosomal DNA Testing

Additional Information available on the TPCGS website at: http://www.tpcgs.org/seminar.html

Seattle Genealogical Society Spring Seminar,
 Voices from the Past with Lisa Alzo,
 Fairview Christian Church
 844 NE 78th St
 Seattle, WA
 Saturday, May 20, 2017   9am – 4pm

Doors open at 8am – welcome at 9am. Did you receive the brochure in the mail? Registration and further information also available online at seattlegenealogicalsociety.org

SGS CALENDAR OF EVENTS

Unless otherwise indicated all programs will be at the SGS Library, 6200 Sand Point Way NE, Seattle. Check the SGS Web Site for additions, changes, and corrections.  Programs may be canceled or postponed because of inclement weather. The library will close May 27-29 for Memorial Day weekend.

APRIL

Saturday, April 1, 10:15 am – 12:15 pm, Canadian SIG, David Robert, leader

Tuesday, April 4, 12:30 pm – 3:00 pm, Technology Tuesday, Bring your laptop or mobile device, and enjoy discussions centered around technology and genealogy – software, genetic genealogy, internet research and more.  Hosted by Lisa Chan.

Saturday, April 8,  10:15 am – 12:15 pm, Family Tree on FamilySearch, new special interest users group led by Lou Daly exploring FamilySearch’s Family Tree application.  See feature article above in this issue.

Saturday, April 8,  1:00 pm – 3:00 pm, Family Tree Maker Users Group, members helping one another with FTM, led by Reiley Kidd and Betty Ravenholt

Sunday, April 9, 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm, DNA Workshop, Led by Cary Bright with first hour on a specific topic, and the second hour open for sharing DNA issues with focus on GenomeMate Pro.

Saturday, April 15, 10:15am – 12:15 pm, Irish Interest Group, with Jean Roth who will present “Who are the Scots-Irish?”

Saturday, April 15, 1:00 pm  – 3:00 pm, German Interest Group, with Jean Roth who will present “What is Prussia and Who are the Prussians?”

Sunday, April 16,  EASTER , library will be closed.

Tuesday, April 18, 12:30 pm – 3:00 pm, Technology Tuesday, Bring your laptop or mobile device, and enjoy discussions centered around technology and genealogy – software, genetic genealogy, internet research and more.  Hosted by Lisa Chan.

Wednesday, April 19, 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm, Mac SIG Meeting,  Jointly sponsored by SGS, Fiske, and dBug, this group meets quarterly on the third Wednesday of every third month at the Fiske Genealogical Library in Madison Park, 1644 43rd Ave E, Seattle. Meetings are open to the public and will address topics and resources helpful for those using MacIntosh (Apple) computers and the Reunion genealogy program. Meetings are free, but donations to Fiske for use of the premises are appreciated.

MAY

Tuesday, May 2, 12:30 pm – 3:00 pm, Technology Tuesday, Bring your laptop or mobile device, and enjoy discussions centered around technology and genealogy – software, genetic genealogy, internet research and more.  Hosted by Lisa Chan.

Saturday, May 6, 10:15 am – 12:15 pm, Canadian SIG, David Robert, leader
Saturday, May 6, 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm, Family Tree Interest Group, Lou Daly, leader of this new special interest group exploring all the features of the tool Family Tree on FamilySearch

Sunday, May 7, 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm, DNA Workshop, Led by Cary Bright with first hour on a specific topic, and the second hour open for sharing DNA issues with focus on GenomeMate Pro.

Saturday, May 13, 10:15am – 12:15 pm, Irish Interest Group, with Jean Roth, an open session on Irish research using old and new resources

Saturday, May 13, 1:00 pm  – 3:00 pm, German Interest Group, with Jean Roth, an open session on German research using old and new resources

Tuesday, May 16, 12:30 pm – 3:00 pm, Technology Tuesday, Bring your laptop or mobile device, and enjoy discussions centered around technology and genealogy – software, genetic genealogy, internet research and more.  Hosted by Lisa Chan.

Friday, May 19, 11:00 am – 3:00 pm, Beginning Genealogy, Want to learn how to get your genealogy project going? Linda Fitzgerald, a past president of SGS,  will be presenting her “Beginning Genealogy Class”. Add it to your calendar.  Invite a friend.

Saturday, May 20, 9:00 am  – 4:00 pm, SGS Spring Seminar “Voices from the Past”, featuring: Lisa A. Alzo, M.F.A., is a freelance writer, instructor, and internationally recognized lecturer. At Fairview Christian School, 844 NE 78th Street,Seattle, WA  Doors open at 8:00 a.m. – Welcome at 9:00 a.m.

Society Spotlight: Yakima Valley Genealogical Society

We’re always trying to “keep it fresh” here on the WSGS blog. “Keep it fresh, you ask? According to the Urban Dictionary, keeping it fresh is “the art of acting spontaneously resulting in your actions being original and generally awesome.” Okay, so we’re going to be generally awesome here introducing a new blog feature: Society Spotlight.

Local genealogical societies are the backbone of WSGS and we’re proud to introduce our readers to each of the 30+ societies around the state. In your upcoming travels, you might want to stop by their library, meeting, ask for local assistance or visit their website.

Our inaugural article features the Yakima Valley Genealogical Society.

The Yakima Valley Genealogical Society (VYGS) is one of the largest societies in the state with approximately 300 members. That’s a long way from their humble beginnings almost 50 years ago when they started with just 18 members. While most of their members live in the Yakima County area, they attract others from as far away as England.

Under the leadership of President Patrick Bundy and Vice President Sue Ericksen, YVGS is among the most active societies. Besides monthly meetings featuring interesting educational programs, the society sponsors two major seminars each year,  Spring and Fall. This year’s Spring Seminar will be Saturday, April 22 at the Mt. Olive Lutheran Church in Yakima. The featured speaker will be professional genealogist Jay Fonkert, a renowned authority on 19th Century Midwest research. His presentations will be:

  • Genealogy Detective Skills: Following Clues from the Census
  • Finding Your Pre-1850 American Ancestors
  • Why Were They There?
  • Who’s on First: Merging and Separating Identities in Family History Research

An added bonus to attending YVGS’s Spring Seminar is the WSGS Recognition Awards and Annual Meeting during the lunch hour. Registration is still open. More details, including a registration form, are available here.

Assistant librarian Sue Ericksen (left) explaining some of the YVGS’s vast library holdings to WSGS President Virginia Majewski.

One of the preeminent gems of the YVGS is their genealogical research library. The 7,200 square foot library, considered one of the top genealogical research facilities in the Pacific Northwest, is located at 1901 S 12th Ave in Union Gap. Besides the main floor of the library, there are three archive rooms, a media room for microfilm/fiche research, a work room and a kitchen. Between the bound volumes on the shelf and the massive microfilm/microfiche collection, the library hosts a collection of 35,000 volumes of genealogical research material covering every state and a large number of foreign countries. Holdings also include a large number of published family histories, as well as being the designated official library for the WSGS. Check out their online book catalog here.

The library is open to the public at no charge for genealogical research. It’s definitely worth a stop if you’re in the Yakima area.

And don’t forget to visit the YVGS website. While there, you’ll learn more about YVGS’s commitment to expanding and preserving genealogical and historical research, including their outstanding Cemetery Project and Early Death Notices Index databases.

We hope you’ll visit the Yakima Valley Genealogical Society online or at 1901 S 12th Ave in Union Gap. We’re proud to call them a member of the Washington State Genealogical Society.

(Note: If  you’d like your society to be featured in Society Spotlight, please contact Roxanne Lowe at info@wasgs.org.)

Stillaguamish Valley Genealogical Society April Meeting

 

On Tuesday, April 11th at 1 pm, The Stillaguamish Valley Genealogical Society will be hosting a free presentation entitled Read ‘Em or Weep, Promises and Pitfalls in Newspaper Research.  Our presenter will be Mary Kircher Roddy.  Mary is a member of the Puget Sound Association of Professional Genealogists and has written articles for Family Chronicle and Internet Genealogy magazines. This presentation will be held at the Stillaguamish Valley Genealogical Society, 6111 – 188th PL. NE, Arlington, WA 98223 and  is open to society members and the public.
We hope to see you there!
 

THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM’s Wednesday Evening E-News

THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM’s Wednesday Evening E-News 29 March 2017

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 2017, 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 our new website (still gfo.org).

Curious about the status of your GFO Membership?? We’d love to have you as a GFO Member!
We’ve recently received a lot of questions from our wonderful members asking when their membership expires and how they can track this.

In response, we’re now providing your membership information right here with our weekly e-news blasts. If you want to forward our weekly e-news blasts to a friend, you can also delete your personal information before forwarding the message.

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No Foolin’! Early-Bird Registration for the Colletta Spring Seminar ends April 1st!

REGISTER for SATURDAY’s SEMINAR

And YES, OH YES, there are still seats available for the Saturday Session!!
Online registrations received by and mailed registrations postmarked by this Saturday, April 1st, will still be considered at the Early-Bird Registration rates.

When APRIL 29TH, 10am – 4:30pm

Where THE MILWAUKIE CENTER

Who JOHN PHILIP COLLETTA

What OUR ANCESTORS FROM OVERSEAS

How It’s so simple! Just click HERE to register right now online.
Please note, the Saturday Seminar is NOT sold out yet. Click HERE to register your seat!
John Philip Colletta is one of America’s most popular genealogical lecturers. Knowledgeable, experienced and entertaining (what a genealogical catch!), he is a faculty member of the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research and the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy. For twenty years, he worked part-time at the Library of Congress and taught workshops at the National Archives.

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