Official Publication of the Grants Pass Genealogical Society March 2015, VOL. 13 Issue 3    

Tuesday March 10 at 1:30 PM

WRITING YOUR FAMILY HISTORY Presented by BEVERLEY WELLINGTON

Beverley Wellington is Director of the Grants Pass Family History Center and is an excellent teacher with many years of genealogy

experience. Her topic is timely and a valuable tool you can use to help preserve the information found during a research project.

QUILT RAFFLE

SEE INSIDE FOR DETAILS AND TICKETS

   

President’s Message Dear Members, I heard once that Irish, Italian and German immigrants who came to the United States are the kin of more that 80% of Americans living today. That’s true for my family line and most of the members who mention their research to me. Our speaker this month will help you write the story of your family, so that story doesn’t disappear. I look forward to Bev Wellington’s presentation and hope to have a huge audience for it on Tuesday March 10 at 1:30PM. This will be the first year the March program isn’t dedicated to Irish research hints by Janis Seaton. Each year her presentation improved and she provided more good research tools and strategies to help find Irish research. Janis asked me to tell our members that she has cancer and is undergoing chemotherapy that will interfere with her attendance for a few months, but she hopes to be back at meetings in the future. Janis is a past President and former newsletter editor and someone I depend on for advice, her research expertise and someone to run my ideas by from time to time. Please remind Janis how much you miss seeing her by sending her a card from time to time. It will be a happy day when I see her sitting in the audience again. Le Raish donated a beautiful hand-made quilt top to the Society as a fund raising project. Jeri Paradise found someone to quilt the top and we now have a beautiful king-sized quilt to raffle. Thank you Le and Jeri for taking this project on and for the absolutely beautiful quilt we will raffle off later this year. A reminder….meetings are being held in a new location. Enter the building from the East side of the building. The meeting room is on the right- the first 2 doors. The board of Directors meeting is open to all members and the meeting starts at 12:30. See meeting agenda in this newsletter. Celeste Guillory GPGS  President                                                                                                                  

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Society Contact Information Grants Pass Genealogical Society

P.O. Box 214 Grants Pass, OR 97528

Website: www.gpgenealogy.org

To contact GPGS via e-mail: grantspassgenealogy@gmail.com Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/gpgenealogy

General Meetings held on 2nd Tuesday of each month (except July, August, December) at 1:30 PM at 1969 Williams Highway (corner of Harbeck), Grants Pass, Oregon. The Board of Directors meets at 12:30 PM before the General Meeting. All are welcome to attend the Board of Directors meeting. Annual membership - $15.00 for one individual, or $20.00 for two or more individuals living at the same mailing address.

President Vice President Celeste Guillory Laura Dunwald-Uhlig Cacese36@gmail.com beagenie@charter.net Secretary Treasurer Joan Edwards Pat Heumann jjedwards@charter.net bernardsqueen1942@gmail.com Membership Committee Facebook Manager Jeri Paradise Cindy Suda jeribray@msn.com 541-955-8838 Webmistress Research CynThia Sincere Linda Kent csyncere@hotmail. lindak@cavenet.com

HAVE SOMETHING FOR THE NEWSLETTER? Send it to cacese36@gmail.com

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Rogue Valley Genealogical Society

SPRING SEMINAR

Finding Irish and Scots-Irish Roots

March 30, 2015 8:30 AM – 5 PM Jackson County Genealogy Library 3405 S. Pacific Highway Medford, OR 97501

Presenters will be Fintan Mullan, Executive Director of the Ulster Historical Foundation (UHF) in Belfast, Ireland, and Gillian Hunt, Research Officer from the UHF.

Check-in and Browsing Book Table Welcome and Introductions Introduction to Irish and Scots-Irish Family

History Research, Part 1 A broad overview of Scots-Irish and Irish research, benefiting beginners and seasoned genealogists alike, it is practical, wide- ranging and informative using visual aids and exploring the major collections, the destruction of records in 1922, and the importance of place and administrative divisions in Ireland, the importance of doing your homework of records and how to access them.

History Research, Part 2 Records Related to the Different Churches in Ireland This session explains in some detail the church records available for the main Christian denominations in Ireland: Church of Ireland (Anglican), Presbyterian and Roman Catholic, as well providing an understanding of the differences between the different Protestant denominations. It makes the important point that there are other valuable records (usually of church administration) relating to churches which can document family history and which are not baptisms, marriages, burials or gravestone inscriptions. The presentation also looks at the value of annotations found in Catholic Church records, which can be of great benefit the family historian.

Using Land Records: Griffith’s Valuation, Tithe and Estate records This session covers the major land collections including, Griffith Valuation, tithe applotment

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books and tithe defaulters lists, the published Ordnances Survey Memoirs and OS maps. It also explores some other census substitutes for the nineteenth and late eighteenth centuries.

Emigration from the North of Ireland to North America and the Sources for Its Study The story of the Scots-Irish and their experiences in Ireland and the New World are discussed in this presentation. Using a range of documentary evidence, this presentation will touch upon, the causes for migration, push and pull factors, the patterns of migration, the estimated size of the exodus implications and its for the development of American colonial societyThe Ulster This talk will look at those sources which can throw light on Ulster families in the seventeenth century. It identifies documents relating to the Ulster Plantation (1610-41) which can be used to construct profiles of settler families. It also considers sources from the second half of the seventeenth century, such as hearth money rolls, the Civil Survey and poll books, which are of use to genealogists working in this period.

Solving Your Brick Walls/Q&A With the huge explosion of online records on the internet, we have found in recent years the ‘solving your brick walls’ to be an important part of the programme. This session can help the beginner and the seasoned genealogist alike. The speakers use a range of online resources (including the most important ppv sites like rootsireland.ie) and their local knowledge to offer participants practical tips about Irish and Scots-Irish research. The session combines straightforward Q&A interspersed with searches in real time online etc., for specific research queries submitted by the participants.

Early bird registration for this full day event: before March 15: $45 for members, $55 for non-members. Standard registration: $55 for members and $65 for non- members. Click here for the Registration Form, Irish Seminar Registration. See registration application on next page

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San  Mateo  County  Genealogical  Society  Spring  2015  Seminar    

 Four  Lectures  With  

Warren Bittner, CGSM    Warren  Bittner,  CG  SM  is  a  nationally  known  genealogy  speaker  with  30  years  of  research  experience.    He  is  the  owner  of  "Lost  and  Found",  a  small  genealogical  research  firm.    For  six  years  he  was  the  German  Collection  Manager  for  the  Family  History  Library  in  Salt  Lake  City.    In  2010  he  was  assistant  director  of  the  Salt  Lake  Institute  of  Genealogy  and  is  a  former  member  of  the  board  of  directors  for  Utah  Genealogical  Association.    Warren  was  the  first  place  winner  of  the  2010  National  Genealogical  Society  Family  History  Writing  Contest.    He  delivered  the  Chuck  Knutsen  Memorial  Lecture  for  the  Federation  of  Genealogical  Societies  in  2012.  

     

 

Saturday,  May  2,  2015  -­‐  9am-­‐3:15pm    

Menlo  Park  LDS  Church  -­‐  1105  Valparaiso,  Menlo  Park  Doors  open  at  8am  -­‐  Registration,  Book  Sales  &  Silent  Auction  

Family  History  Center  will  be  open  during  breaks,  lunch  and  after  the  Seminar    

         

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   NAME:  ____________________________    PHONE:  ________________          EMAIL:    

 REGISTRATION:      Members:  ___    $36.00      Non-­‐Members:  ___    $42.00      LUNCH:  ___  $8.    

Registration  Deadline  Friday,  April  24,  2015  -­‐-­‐-­‐Walk  Ins  $48.00  Become  a  new  member:  ___  @  $25  for  1  Year  &  signup  for  this  seminar  at  the  Member  Rate  

Note:  Registration  includes    SYLLABUS                                

Make  your  registration/lunch  check  payable  to  SMCGS  Seminar  -­‐  Mail  Registration  to:  Patrick  Gilbride,  153  Occidental  Avenue,  Burlingame  CA  94010-­‐5219        

OR      Register  via  PayPal  on  our  website  smcgs.org    

Check  SMCGS  Website  -­‐  www.smcgs.org  and  SMCGS  Blog  -­‐  http://smcgs.blogspot.com/    

for  information  about  SMCGS  Programs,  Library  &  Databases  SMCGS Spring 2015 Seminar Schedule ~ Saturday, May 2, 2015 – 9:00am –

3:15pm

“Immigration & Ancestral Customs ~ Warren Bittner CGSM

   8:00  –  9:00   REGISTRATION  &  Time  to  Browse  our  Silent  Auction  Items  &  Book  Sales  

   9:00  –  9:15     INTRODUCTIONS      9:15  –  10:15          LECTURE  ONE   “Complex  Evidence:    What  It  is,  How  It  Works,  Why  It  Matters”    

The  Genealogists’  goal  is  to  establish  identity  and  prove  relationships.    Complex  evidence  is  the  ONLY  way  to  do  this.    Follow  a  case  study  of  clues  from  multiple  sources  to  solve  a  problem.  

10:15-­‐  10:40   BREAK    10:40  –  11:40      LECTURE  TWO  

“Impossible  Immigrant!”  See  how  the  principle  of  “Reasonably  Exhaustive  Research”  is  used  to  find  a  “brick  wall”  immigrant  family  despite  repeated  dead  ends  and  misleading  clues.  

11:40  –  12:45      LUNCH   LUNCH  –  Time  to  check  out  the  Silent  Auction  Items,  Book  Sales  and  the  Family  History  Center  

12:45    –    1:45      LECTURE  THREE  

“Beat  Children  with  a  Fresh  Birch  Stick  So  the  Animals  Don’t  Get  Worms”  Reading  for  Historical  Context  Read  to  understand  your  ancestors  in  their  own  world  on  their  

   

own  terms.  How  to  find  books  about  the  cultural,  political,  social,  and  occupational  lives  of  your  ancestors.  See  examples  from  some  fascinating  books.  

 1:45    –    2:00      BREAK    2:00    -­‐      3:15      LECTURE  FOUR  

“The  Bittner  Bastards  of  Bavaria”  -­‐  Understanding  and  Researching  Illegitimacy  See  new  light  on  nineteenth  century  morality.  Follow  a  couple  with  three  children  born  during  a  ten-­‐year  wait  for  marriage.  You’ll  be  amazed  to  learn  what  happened.  This  lecture  is  based  on  Mr.  Bittner's  Master's  Thesis,  and  also  the  material  used  in  his  award-­‐winning  article.    

 

               

   

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                                 Directions  to  Menlo  Park  LDS  Church                                            1105  Valparaiso  Ave.,  Menlo  Park  

 From  101  North  or  South:    Exit  101  at  Woodside  Rd,  proceed  west  to  the  El  Camino.    Turn  left  onto  the  El  Camino,  proceed  south  through  Redwood  City  &  Atherton  to  Menlo  Park,  turn  right  at  Valparaiso.    Proceed  for  5  left  turn  only  blocks.    Just  past  Arbor  Rd.  on  the  left  is  the  LDS  Church.        From  280  North  or  South:    Exit  280  at  Sand  Hill  Rd  east,  proceed  east  to  the  El  Camino.    Turn  left  onto  the  El  Camino,  proceed  through  Menlo  Park,  turn  left  at  Valparaiso.    Proceed  for  5  left  turn  only  blocks.    Just  past  Arbor  Rd.  on  the  left  is  the  LDS  Church.      

   

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Bend Genealogical Society

2015 Spring Seminar

Featuring Thomas MacEntee

Active Genealogist and Speaker at National Conferences

Thomas has a passion for genealogy! He is bringing his innovative ideas and research techniques to Bend for a full-day Seminar.

Applicable for all beginning & advanced genealogists Learn to work “smarter” instead of “harder”

Do you want to say, “WOW, I learned a lot” on April 25? Come to the BGS Seminar for Thomas’ presentations:

x 7 Habits of Highly Frugal Genealogists – Who said genealogy and the hunt for your family history has to be expensive? Just as in any other industry, there are some tricks to getting the best deals and bargains in the genealogy marketplace. With 7 Habits of Highly Frugal Genealogists, you’ll learn the tricks, and how to think like a savvy, frugal genealogist!

x You Use WHAT for Genealogy? Wonderful Uses for Unusual Tools — Have you ever wondered if you’re missing out on how some genealogists are using tools such as Evernote, Word/ Excel, Google & more? Learn what’s hot in the world of apps & websites, and how YOU can use them!

x After You’re Gone: Future Proofing Your Genealogy Research — Have you ever considered what will happen to your years of genealogy research once you’re gone? Learn how to ensure that your hard work carries on. Through a combination of planning, common sense, and new technologies, we’ll review how to create an action plan for preserving your genealogy research.

x Managing the Genealogy Data Monster — It is so easy to let the large amounts of data involved with genealogy overwhelm you — to the point that family history research is no longer fun! Learn how to tackle the three main problem areas of genealogy data: research data, project data and file data, so you can put the FUN back in your research!

SATURDAY – April 25, 2015 gh 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM At the Bend Golf & Country Club

Registration Required – Seating is Limited – See Registration Form for Cost

Call BGS at (541) 317-9553 for more information Find the Registration Form Online at: www.orgenweb.org/deschutes/bend-gs

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Thomas’ Blog Site: GeneaBloggers

   

LAURA KNOWS INTERESTING

WEBSITES by Laura Dunwald-Uhlig

http://www.genealogyblog.com/?p=34241    -­‐  A  GENEALOGY  BLOG  MENTIONING  A  30%  DISCOUNT  FOR  AARP  MEMBERS    http://blog.dearmyrtle.com/2015/02/ngs2015-­‐live-­‐streaming-­‐classes-­‐unearthed.html    http://blog.dearmyrtle.com/2015/02/dna-­‐more-­‐about-­‐my-­‐transfer-­‐to-­‐ftdna.html    http://blog.mocavo.com/category/research-­‐tips      http://blog.mocavo.com/category/michael-­‐leclercs-­‐genealogy-­‐news    From Kimberly Powell, your Guide to Genealogy How to Research Your Ancestor's Occupation Researching ancestral jobs and occupations can teach you a great deal about the people who make up your family tree, and what life was like for them. An individual's occupation may give insight into their social status or to their place of origin. Occupations can also be used to distinguish between two individuals of the same name. Certain skilled occupations or trades may have been passed down from father to son, providing indirect evidence of a family relationship. It's even possible that your surname derives from the occupation of a distant ancestor.   Glossary of Old Occupations and Trade Names The world of work has changed greatly from the times of our ancestors, causing many occupational names and terms to fall into disuse. If you found your ancestor named as a ripper, seinter, hosteler, sperviter, dobber, or pettifogger, would you know what it meant? This free glossary of old occupations explains the function of hundreds of old occupations, trades, and job titles.   Researching Old Railways and Railroad Records Learn how and where to locate old railroad histories, employee records and other information for your railroad ancestors.  Search Related Topics: railroad history us railroads ancestral occupations

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 Update      Are  you  using  our  Facebook  page  to  assist  you  with  your  family  history  research???    We’ve  got  two  new  followers  this  past  month,  up  to  65  Total  Page  Likes.    There  were  113  posts  in  February  with  a  total  reach  of  1,846  views,  with  260  engaging  by  clicking  on  a  link,  liking  or  sharing  one  of  our  posts.    This  is  a  dramatic  increase  from  January,  yet  there  were  several  posts  that  were  only  seen  by  4  to  6  people.    Our  most  popular  posts  were  about  RootsTech,  where  one  post  was  seen  by  93!.  We  thank  you  for  helping  to  get  the  word  out  about  our  facebook  page  &  for  sharing  the  genealogy  links  with  your  friends.  It  is  a  valuable  resource  in  your  family  history  toolbox!      Facebook  was  abuzz  with  photos  &  videos  coming  from  RootsTech  2015  &  I  posted  lots  of  links  about  how  to  access  the  live-­‐streamed  conference  sessions,  how  to  download  handouts  &  about  much  of  the  fun  &  excitement  taking  place  at  the  world’s  largest  genealogical  gathering!  You  can  still  view  the  terrific  array  of  recorded  sessions  available  by  following  the  link  shared  on  our  Facebook  page.  Being  able  to  share  up-­‐to-­‐the-­‐minute  news  is  one  of  Facebook’s  strong  points.  Besides  monthly  meeting  reminders,  we  are  able  to  share  meeting  room  changes  &  other  news  to  keep  you  in  the  know.  Several  free  access  weekends  were  written  about,  Five-­‐Minute  Finds  video  education  opportunities  were  posted  about,  along  with  links  to  get  several  wonderful  free  e-­‐book  downloads  on  getting  organized,  DNA  &  genetic  information  and  Surname  Search  Tips.  Other  not-­‐to-­‐miss  topics  in  February  include  a  wonderful  dictionary  of  old  medical  terms,  50  free  genealogy  sites  to  search  today,  20  different  how-­‐to  genealogy  sites,  mapping  migration  in  

   

the  US,  charting  your  variant  name  spellings,  clues  from  probate  inventories,  marriage  &  divorce  resources,  tips  for  finding  a  married  daughter  a  few  households  away,  how  “old  man”  frats  got  their  names  &  symbols  plus  a  great  article:  Are  Your  Family  Treasures  at  the  National  Archives?    Newspapers  were  a  popular  topic  with  links  to  Illinois  Online  Historic  Newspapers,  Utah  Digital  Newspapers  &  3  Free  Newspaper  Archives  shared.  The  Missouri  Digital  Heritage  site  was  linked  to,  along  with  Civil  War  Records  &  Illinois  Civil  War  Soldiers  Photos  On-­‐line.    Across  the  pond,  articles  included  Free  Sites  for  Researching  in  England,  Scotland,  Wales  &  Ireland,  along  with  links  on  United  Kingdom  Wills,  Irish  Land  Records,  Irish  Roots  on  the  Orphan  Trains,  Old  WW  II  Maps,  mapping  your  “German”  ancestors,  Soviet  Union  calendar  dates  &  the  sad  news  of  a  fire  in  a  major  Russian  library  that  destroyed  1  million  records.      Please  check  out  our  Facebook  page  frequently—and  remember  that  all  these  topics  are  available  to  you  by  scrolling  back  down  our  page.  When  you  get  to  a  place  that  says  “Highlight,”  just  click  on  it  &  a  drop-­‐down  box  will  give  you  an  option  to  see  “All  Stories”  that  are  archived  on  our  page.  As  always,  I’m  happy  to  assist  you  if  you  have  any  questions  about  our  Facebook  page.  Wishing  you  many  happy  discoveries  to  your  family  tree.      Regards,  Cindy  Suda,  Facebook  Coordinator  www.facebook.com/gpgenealogy            

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Grants Pass Genealogical Society !Board Meeting!1969 Williams Highway Grants Pass, Oregon!Tuesday February 10, 2015 12:30PM! ! Roll Call of Officers and appointed Board Members!Officers Appointed Board Members!Celeste Guillory (present) Jeri Paradise (present)!Laura Dunwald-Uhlig (late)! ! Susan Duncan (present)!Joan Edwards (present)! Cindy Suda (present)!Pat Heumann (present) CynThia Syncere (absent)!! ! ! Beverly Wellington (absent)!! Approve minutes of the special board meeting held on January 2, 2015! (published in the newsletter)!A motion was made by Cindy Suda to accept the minutes for the January 2 meeting and seconded by Jeri Paradise.!! Treasurer’s Report-Pat Heumann!January 2015 financial report : income= $175.00 and $49.48 was paid.!Report on 2014 audit: 5 Jan 2015 Laura Dunwald-Uhlig, Pat Heumann and Jeanette Dickson did a spot audit. The running total from Dec 31, 2014 is $851.85 but the balance forward is $856.84 leaving a discrepancy of $4.99.!Bills outstanding? A check for $21.00 will be mailed to Celeste for today’s program.!Pat Heumann will compose an audit 2014 letter for Jeanette Dickson to sign. She will notify Celeste when it’s completed. Letter will go into 2014 audit packet.!Pat has petty cash and will give Celeste report on it.!! Membership Report-Jeri Paradise/Pat Heumann!Members as of 2-10-15 Pat did not count them but there are 18 members who have not paid their dues. Dues must be paid by 1 Mar 2015. Pat needs to contact via email, letter or phone those who have not paid.!There is 1 new member.!! Programs: V/P Laura Dunwald-Uhlig!March: Bev Wellington is going to talk about writing one’s life story.!April: Bev Wellington or Shannon Agee-from Roseburg will discuss Roots Tech. ! (the roots tech from 2014 is at the FHC and you can download info to thumb drive!May: Diana Hale, Regent with Daughters of the American Revolution, is going to talk about how you can prove you are a DAR descendent.!June: possibly computer tips for use in the Family History Center or possibly computer tips in general!! Website Report-CynThia Syncere (absent)!No changes except for the home page and calendar have been made. It is a work in progress and in the future, newsletters will be put on.!!! ! !!

   

Last  but  not  least  –  a  2004  GPGS  newsletter    

 

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