The Chula Vista Genealogical Society events for June 2012 include:
** Saturday, 2 June, 1 p.m.to 3 p.m., Bonita-Sunnyside (County) Library (4375 Bonita Road) -- Outreach Workshop meets in Community Room. Shirley Becker will present "Organizing for Research."
** Wednesday 13 June, 12 noon to 2 p.m., Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library (365 F Street) -- CVGS Research Group meets in the Library Conference Room, led by Randy Seaver. We will review the latest genealogy news, share success stories and information, and discuss members research problems, and potential solutions, based on the collective knowledge and wisdom of the group.
** Wednesday, 20 June, 12 noon to 1:30 p.m., Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library (365 F Street) -- CVGS Computer Group meets in the Library Computer Lab, led by Shirley Becker. Sharpen your computer skills and investigate online genealogy resources.
** Wednesday, 27 June, 12 noon to 2 p.m., Chula Vista South Branch Library (389 Orange Avenue) -- General Society Meeting meets in the Conference Room. The program will be "The History of the U.S. Flag" presented by George Zingheim. There will be a society business meeting before the presentation.
The Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library is located at 365 "F" Street in Chula Vista - between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue, midway between I-5 and I-805 (take the "E" Street exit from the freeways).
The Bonita-Sunnyside (County) Library is located at 4375 Bonita Road in Bonita - just west of the Otay Lakes Road intersection with Bonita Road, on the north side of Bonita Road.
The Chula Vista South Library is at 389 Orange Avenue (southeast corner on Fourth Avenue) - parking lot is off of Orange east of Fourth.
We welcome guests and visitors to our CVGS programs and events - if you are in the greater San Diego area and want to attend our events - please come and introduce yourselves.
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Sunday, May 27, 2012
"Genealogy in the Cloud" Program on Wednesday, 30 May 2012
MAY 30th PROGRAM MEETING
from 12 Noon to 2 p.m.
at Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library (365 F Street) in the Auditorium
“Genealogy in the Cloud”
Panel: John Finch, Gary Brock, Shirley Becker, Randy Seaver
Our May program will be a panel discussion of doing genealogy research, organization, data storage and communication in the “Cloud.”
“Cloud computing” includes using Internet-based programs and services instead of programs based on your desktop or laptop computer. Typical genealogy applications include email, document sharing, online family trees, information resources, data backup and storage, social media, productivity aids, and mobile devices.
The topics to be discussed in some detail with John Finch acting as the Moderator are:
- Gary Brock: What is the Cloud, why do I need it, and how do I use it?
- Shirley Becker: Using Dropbox for Data Backup and Storage.
- Randy Seaver: Using Mobile Devices for Genealogy
After the three presentations, the panel will answer questions from the Moderator and the audience.
The panelists and moderator are long-time CVGS members and former Presidents of the society.
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
"Ohio Gem" by Olive Lenane
Had
I packed everything I needed? Had I contacted everyone I should
contact? What had I forgotten? My mind was whirling as I went
through security and was getting ready to board the plane for my
first genealogical research trip.
Yes,
I had written to the Darke Conty Genealogical Society and given them
the surnames I was researching Yes, I had responded to their note
informing me they would let Karen Besecker know I was coming. I told
them no need since she was my niece and I was staying with her.
On
the first day, with directions to the Garst Museum where the Darke
County Genealogical Society was located, I started out not knowing
what to expect. When I arrived I checked in at the reception desk.
They were expecting me
and a lady from the society met me and gave me the tour of the
society rooms. Yes, rooms!
My mouth must have been wide open as I followed her to her office,
signed in the log book, toured the first book room, and then the
second book room and research center.
Two walls of a
the second 12 x 20 room were lined with four drawer file cabinets.
The cabinets were filled with individual files of families who had
Darke County connections. Books, folders of cemeteries complete with
burial plots, dates, etc., books from the early 1800s of Ohio births,
marriages and deaths , census records,etc. lined the other two walls.
Above the cabinets on shelves were family books.
As
I started my research the most exciting finds were original wills and
all types of legal documents. I was then told the story. The court
house had put everything on microfilm and was going to throw out the
originals. The lady dynamo who is head of the DCGS heard about the
destruction of the original papers and told them “No, you aren’t
going to throw them away.” She rented a truck, and had six stacks
of boxes from floor to ceiling brought to the museum which graciously
let her store them until she and the society volunteers could place
them in the individual family files. The volunteers are amazing.
They cut obituaries, and other articles of interest from local
newspapers and put them in the individual family files. There are
usually two to four members “on duty” six days a week. I was
there 3 days and wish I could have stayed at least a week.
Luckily,
I discovered I had two cousins I had never met that are members of
the society and they were eager to share family information
and
pictures.
One of the cousins had the same name as my niece which had caused
confusion for everyone when I notified the society I was staying with
her. My other cousin was a complete surprise from my mother’s
side of the
family for which I had very little information. She gave me
information which took the family line back to my third great
grandfather born in 1755 in Germany. He was a Hessian soldier
brought by the English to the colonies to fight the “Indians.”
When he discovered he was fighting the colonists, he deserted and
fought with the colonists.
What
a find. I can’t wait to go back. Just to be able to touch the
papers my great, great grandparents had touched was a thrill. To be
able to read the newspaper articles from years ago about family
members, and to visit graves of relatives I never dreamed I would
find was so rewarding. If you are lucky enough to have family in
Darke County Ohio, you will find a gem when you visit the Darke
County Genealogical Society.
I
have been told a few of the other county societies are just as good.
Since my ancestors have lived in various Ohio counties since the
early 18th century, I can’t wait to visit the other counties and
find out.
Note: CVGS solicited articles from the membership about Research Trips to put in a booklet displayed at the Escondido Family History Fair in March. The authors of these articles are permitting them to be printed in the monthly Newsletters and on the Chula Vista Genealogy Cafe blog.
Saturday, May 12, 2012
CVGS Research Group Summary - 9 May 2012
We had a great turnout for the Chula Vista Genealogical Society Research Group meeting on Wednesday, 9 May 2012, with 20 enthusiastic attendees ready to ask questions, share and learn.
In the first hour, Randy discussed source citations - types of sources, the need to cite sources, the different style guides including Elizabeth Shown Mills's Evidence! Explained, and how to use source templates in genealogy software to create EE-quality source citation templates. He passed around several articles about source citations, showed the two QuickSheets for EE style citations, and his own "source sheet" with sample citations that can be cut and pasted and edited.
Using Family Tree Maker 2012 (which about 10 attendees had), and RootsMagic 5 (which only 2 attendees had, Randy demonstrated creation of a new master source and using an existing source with his own data in the examples.
In the second hour, we opened it up to sharing for research problems, how-to questions, and success reports. The attendees offered:
* Armando was a visitor, and has Texas heritage from the 1840 time period in the Amarillo area. His family thinks they have Native American ancestry, but he can find very little about his family in this region. The group suggested working his way back in time using vital records and census records, trying to find records that note native ancestry. There may be distant cousins who have family papers, there may be online message boards and forums that can help for with surname or locality queries, and there may be genealogical or historical societies that can provide records or guidance.
* Ralph, a new member, has Mexican ancestry, and has been using the church records on FamilySearch.org to extend his known ancestry back in time. He noted that it is difficult to use these records because they are not indexed, and the user has to know the state and village to find families of interest. The group noted that they are from the FHL microfilms and were even more difficult to access and use in years past. He is also using the Ports of Entry records to find records of his family.
* The group suggested that the FamilySearch Research Wiki (https://wiki.familysearch.org) and Research Forums (https://www.familysearch.org/learn/forums/en/index.php) may be helpful to learn what records are available in specific places and to request help or advice on researching different groups, countries and states.
* Kitty, a new member, obtained the Social Security Application for her grandfather, and has found census records back to 1910, but cannot find anything earlier. The group suggested obtaining vital records for the family members, local newspapers for articles of interest, and using alternative names, including wild cards, on the 1900 and earlier census records on Ancestry and FamilySearch.
* Marie asked about where to find which newspapers were published in a city/town in a specific time frame. Randy noted that the Chronicling America site (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov) has lists of every newspaper published since 1690. Some of them may be available at the Chronicling America site, on GenealogyBank, or Ancestry.com.
* Sam wondered if he was using the FamilySearch results page correctly. He has been clicking the down arrow on the right for each match, then clicking on the link for the match to gain access to the image if there is one. The group indicated that he was doing what needs to be done.
* Bobbie knew the death date and location of a second great-grandparent, but not a burial site. She found an online site that provided the burial site plus a physical description of her ancestor. She is working to prove a second Daughters of the King ancestry, and determined that this is her mitochondrial DNA line. She hopes to attend the 350th Daughters of the King celebration in August 2013 in Quebec.
* Mary Lou found information on Find-a-Grave for her third great-grandparents and two of their sons in Ohio.
* Karyn was reading obituaries, noted a family connection, wrote a letter to the family and planned a get-together.
* Randy noted that two distant cousins with San Diego roots had contacted him in the last two weeks, and he found many articles in the San Diego Union on GenealogyBank from the 1920-1950 time frame about the family.
The next Research Group meeting will be at 12 noon on Wednesday, 13 June in the Computer Lab at the Chula Vista Branch Library.
In the first hour, Randy discussed source citations - types of sources, the need to cite sources, the different style guides including Elizabeth Shown Mills's Evidence! Explained, and how to use source templates in genealogy software to create EE-quality source citation templates. He passed around several articles about source citations, showed the two QuickSheets for EE style citations, and his own "source sheet" with sample citations that can be cut and pasted and edited.
Using Family Tree Maker 2012 (which about 10 attendees had), and RootsMagic 5 (which only 2 attendees had, Randy demonstrated creation of a new master source and using an existing source with his own data in the examples.
In the second hour, we opened it up to sharing for research problems, how-to questions, and success reports. The attendees offered:
* Armando was a visitor, and has Texas heritage from the 1840 time period in the Amarillo area. His family thinks they have Native American ancestry, but he can find very little about his family in this region. The group suggested working his way back in time using vital records and census records, trying to find records that note native ancestry. There may be distant cousins who have family papers, there may be online message boards and forums that can help for with surname or locality queries, and there may be genealogical or historical societies that can provide records or guidance.
* Ralph, a new member, has Mexican ancestry, and has been using the church records on FamilySearch.org to extend his known ancestry back in time. He noted that it is difficult to use these records because they are not indexed, and the user has to know the state and village to find families of interest. The group noted that they are from the FHL microfilms and were even more difficult to access and use in years past. He is also using the Ports of Entry records to find records of his family.
* The group suggested that the FamilySearch Research Wiki (https://wiki.familysearch.org) and Research Forums (https://www.familysearch.org/learn/forums/en/index.php) may be helpful to learn what records are available in specific places and to request help or advice on researching different groups, countries and states.
* Kitty, a new member, obtained the Social Security Application for her grandfather, and has found census records back to 1910, but cannot find anything earlier. The group suggested obtaining vital records for the family members, local newspapers for articles of interest, and using alternative names, including wild cards, on the 1900 and earlier census records on Ancestry and FamilySearch.
* Marie asked about where to find which newspapers were published in a city/town in a specific time frame. Randy noted that the Chronicling America site (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov) has lists of every newspaper published since 1690. Some of them may be available at the Chronicling America site, on GenealogyBank, or Ancestry.com.
* Sam wondered if he was using the FamilySearch results page correctly. He has been clicking the down arrow on the right for each match, then clicking on the link for the match to gain access to the image if there is one. The group indicated that he was doing what needs to be done.
* Bobbie knew the death date and location of a second great-grandparent, but not a burial site. She found an online site that provided the burial site plus a physical description of her ancestor. She is working to prove a second Daughters of the King ancestry, and determined that this is her mitochondrial DNA line. She hopes to attend the 350th Daughters of the King celebration in August 2013 in Quebec.
* Mary Lou found information on Find-a-Grave for her third great-grandparents and two of their sons in Ohio.
* Karyn was reading obituaries, noted a family connection, wrote a letter to the family and planned a get-together.
* Randy noted that two distant cousins with San Diego roots had contacted him in the last two weeks, and he found many articles in the San Diego Union on GenealogyBank from the 1920-1950 time frame about the family.
The next Research Group meeting will be at 12 noon on Wednesday, 13 June in the Computer Lab at the Chula Vista Branch Library.
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Saturday Workshop on 12 May - "Who Is/Was Your Neighbor?"
The
Chula Vista Genealogical Society Workshop in May will be on Saturday, 12 May from 1:00 p.m. To
3:00 p.m. at the Bonita-Sunnyside Library (4375 Bonita Road) in the
Community Room. Susi Pentico will present “Who Is/Was Your
Neighbor?”
To
learn more about each other in the society, we are going to be
doing some 5 generation charts and learning who is researching where,
what surnames and times one is looking at. It has been brought to
our attention that there is probably a connecting kin within our own
society we have not discovered. Genealogy is always more fun when
shared with others.
Monday, May 7, 2012
The program,
“Who is in Your Family Tree?” was presented by four Chula Vista Genealogical Society members
at Norman Park Center on April 26, 2012. The program was intended to
introduce attendees to genealogy, and to the Beginners Class taught
by Susi Pentico. It was well received by 22 attendees.
Susi Pentico
spoke about the upcoming Beginning Genealogy classes she will be
teaching at the Norman Park Center on May 3, 10, 17 and 24, 2012.
Randy Seaver’s presentation topic was “Genealogy - Be An Ancestor
Detective,” John Finch’s topic was “Your Family Tree, Heroes
and Horse Thieves,” and Janice Nevills rounded out the program by
sharing the story of her infamous great aunt and giving details about
Chula Vista Genealogical Society and the many programs and workshops
available.
This program for beginning researchers and CVGS inquirers was organized by CVGS Public Relations co-chairs Olive Lenane and Janice Nevills as part of the CVGS Outreach program to the Chula Vista community.
Monday, April 30, 2012
Genealogy Days in Chula Vista in May 2012
The Chula Vista Genealogical Society events for May 2012 include:
** Wednesday 9 May, 12 noon to 2 p.m., Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library (365 F Street) -- CVGS Research Group meets in the Library Conference Room, led by Randy Seaver. We will review the latest genealogy news, share success stories and information, and discuss members research problems, and potential solutions, based on the collective knowledge and wisdom of the group.
** Saturday, 12 May, 12:30 p.m.to 3 p.m., Bonita-Sunnyside (County) Library (4375 Bonita Road) -- Outreach Workshop meets in Community Room. Susi Pentico will present "Who's Your Neighbor?"
** Wednesday, 16 May, 12 noon to 1:30 p.m., Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library (365 F Street) -- CVGS Computer Group meets in the Library Computer Lab, led by Shirley Becker. Sharpen your computer skills and investigate online genealogy resources.
** Wednesday, 30 May, 12 noon to 2 p.m., Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library (365 F Street) -- General Society Meeting meets in the Auditorium. A panel of CVGS Members (Gary Brock, Susi Pentico, Shirley Becker and Randy Seaver) will present "Genealogy in the Cloud." There will be a society business meeting before the presentation.
The Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library is located at 365 "F" Street in Chula Vista - between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue, midway between I-5 and I-805 (take the "E" Street exit from the freeways).
The Bonita-Sunnyside (County) Library is located at 4375 Bonita Road in Bonita - just west of the Otay Lakes Road intersection with Bonita Road, on the north side of Bonita Road.
The Chula Vista South Library is at 389 Orange Avenue (southeast corner on Fourth Avenue) - parking lot is off of Orange east of Fourth.
We welcome guests and visitors to our CVGS programs and events - if you are in the greater San Diego area and want to attend our events - please come and introduce yourselves.
** Wednesday 9 May, 12 noon to 2 p.m., Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library (365 F Street) -- CVGS Research Group meets in the Library Conference Room, led by Randy Seaver. We will review the latest genealogy news, share success stories and information, and discuss members research problems, and potential solutions, based on the collective knowledge and wisdom of the group.
** Saturday, 12 May, 12:30 p.m.to 3 p.m., Bonita-Sunnyside (County) Library (4375 Bonita Road) -- Outreach Workshop meets in Community Room. Susi Pentico will present "Who's Your Neighbor?"
** Wednesday, 16 May, 12 noon to 1:30 p.m., Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library (365 F Street) -- CVGS Computer Group meets in the Library Computer Lab, led by Shirley Becker. Sharpen your computer skills and investigate online genealogy resources.
** Wednesday, 30 May, 12 noon to 2 p.m., Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library (365 F Street) -- General Society Meeting meets in the Auditorium. A panel of CVGS Members (Gary Brock, Susi Pentico, Shirley Becker and Randy Seaver) will present "Genealogy in the Cloud." There will be a society business meeting before the presentation.
The Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library is located at 365 "F" Street in Chula Vista - between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue, midway between I-5 and I-805 (take the "E" Street exit from the freeways).
The Bonita-Sunnyside (County) Library is located at 4375 Bonita Road in Bonita - just west of the Otay Lakes Road intersection with Bonita Road, on the north side of Bonita Road.
The Chula Vista South Library is at 389 Orange Avenue (southeast corner on Fourth Avenue) - parking lot is off of Orange east of Fourth.
We welcome guests and visitors to our CVGS programs and events - if you are in the greater San Diego area and want to attend our events - please come and introduce yourselves.
Friday, April 27, 2012
CVGS Program Summary - Dr. Steven Baird
Dr. Steven Baird presented "Diseases That Ravaged Our Ancestors" at the Chula Vista Genealogical Society program meeting on Wednesday, 25 April 2012. Steve's CV was published in CVGS Program Meeting on 25 April - Dr. Steven Baird.
As noted in his CV, Steve writes and sings songs about science. He treated us to "Intelligent Design" accompanied by his guitar. Steve's website is www.scientificgospel.com.
Dr. Baird started his presentation with a list of the top ten causes of death in the USA in 1860, and compared them to 1900, 1970 and 1990. Many of the earlier causes (tuberculosis, diarrhea, cholera, infantile convulsions, diphtheria, dysentery, scarlet fever) have been significantly reduced or eliminated by 1970, and replaced by heart disease, cancer, accidents/suicide, diabetes, arteriosclerosis and cirrhosis.
Next was a review of some of the Great Killers of the Past, with photographs of disease presentation in gruesome living color. Treated were the Plague, Syphilis, Influenza, Tuberculosis, Smallpox, Cholera and Bubonic Plague. He noted that Syphilis was transported from the Americas to Europe after 1492, but that Smallpox was transmitted the other way. Steve also discussed the transmission of diseases between humans and animals.
As noted in his CV, Steve writes and sings songs about science. He treated us to "Intelligent Design" accompanied by his guitar. Steve's website is www.scientificgospel.com.
The last part of the presentation was a survey of the state of the art in genetics. He discussed how genealogists can use the results of Y-chromosome, mitochondrial and autosomal DNA tests. Lastly, Steve discussed the potential for curing diseases through genetic manipulation. He recommended that concerned persons should talk to their doctors about genetic treatments.
This talk was both entertaining and fascinating because of the subject, and Dr. Baird's expertise and presentation skills (both oral and visual). Steve's PowerPoint presentation was offered to attendees with a flash drive.
Sunday, April 22, 2012
CVGS Program Meeting on 25 April - Dr. Steven Baird
The April 25th Program meeting of the Chula Vista Genealogical Society will be held at the Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library (365 F Street) in the Auditorium, starting at 12 Noon.
The program features Dr. Steven Baird on the subject of “Modern Terminology for Diseases and Causes of Death on Certificates.”
Dr. Baird will discuss some medical terminology and diseases lumped together in olden times that are differentiated today. He will also explain a few diseases to which some ethnicities are predisposed. There will be an emphasis on the health, politics and world history with regard to the 1918 Spanish Flu epidemic. You will receive a handout of many diseases and their definitions (old and new) and most likely a song or two to illustrate his topic.
Dr. Stephen Baird graduated from Stanford University with a degree in Biology and Stanford University School of Medicine. He is an Emeritus Professor of Clinical Pathology at UCSD School of Medicine. He received the highly respected Distinguished Teaching Award from the University of California's San Diego Division of the Academic Senate, the UCSD Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Teaching, as well as three UCSD Medical School's Kaiser Teaching Awards.
Dr. Baird's research interests are in lymphomas and leukemias but he has also spent a good deal of time studying creation stories, Biblical and modern, as well as the genetics of human diseases and the genetic variations found in all modern human beings. His interests in genealogy relate to how family trees could be used to study inheritance of various traits, both normal and disease processes.
Based on his love of music and science, he has written many scientific folk songs, now performed on CDs. His newest endeavor consists of 35 ballads written about his family's migration from Europe to America encompassing the years from William the Conqueror up to the present! He has been known to sing his own compositions and play his guitar to illustrate the salient points of each lecture.
The meeting will include a short business meeting before the presentation. Snacks and drinks will be provided before and after the meeting at the back of the Auditorium.
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Our Trip to North Dakota - September 2011, by Bobbie Lane
My hubby,
Dennis, has German-from-Russia ancestors, who lived in Volhynia,
Ukraine. Some immigrated to the United States and lived in North
Dakota beginning in the 1880s.
Last year we
went to the Wells County Historical Museum in Fessenden for Dennis to
finally meet a second cousin, once removed. They compared family
notes for two hours, and I regret that we did not have a tape
recorder with us. Dennis found his first photo of one set of his
great grandparents, and the cousin gave him a 2011 book of plat maps
and directory for Wells County. We also went to the German Baptist
Cemetery, where Dennis found a great-great grandmother’s grave
(1831 – 1914), but not her husband’s grave.
Our
next stop was at the genealogy archives of North Dakota State
University in Fargo. They were
housed at the Institute for Regional Studies, located in the Skills
and Technical Training Center just north of the main NDSU campus and
the Fargo Dome. We spent a day there gathering about seventy copies
of photos, plat maps, and historical data. The best find was the
German Baptist Church Registry called “God Was There.”
Note: CVGS solicited articles from the membership about Research Trips to put in a booklet displayed at the Escondido Family History Fair in March. The authors of these articles are permitting them to be printed in the monthly Newsletters and on the Chula Vista Genealogy Cafe blog.
Sunday, April 15, 2012
April 2012 CVGS Newsletter is Available Online
The April 2012 issue of the Chula Vista Genealogical Society Newsletter is available on the CVGS website - see http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cacvgs2/Newsletters/12_04apr.pdf.
The Table of Contents includes:
page 1 -- April 25th Program Meeting
The Table of Contents includes:
page 1 -- April 25th Program Meeting
page 2 -- President’s
Message
page 3 -- Beginner's
class in May at Norman Park Center
page 3 -- April
Workshop on Sunday 15 April
page 3 -- Lemon
Grove Research Group News
page 3 -- CVGS
Historian Project News
page 3 -- CVGS
Cemetery Project News
page 4 -- Research
Group News
page 4 -- Computer
Group News
page 5 -- March
28th Program Review
page 6 -- 1940
Census Released in Digital Format
page 6 -- CVGS
Members Can Help Index the 1940 Census
page 6 -- Our
Research Trip to North Dakota, by Bobbie Lane
page 7 -- Spring
Seminar Review
page 8 -- CVGS
Library Book Collection Donations
page 9 -- CVGS
Society Information
page 9 -- San
Diego Genealogy Events
page 10 -- Genealogy
Days in Chula Vista
Friday, April 13, 2012
CVGS Research Group Summary - 11 April 2012
The Chula Vista Genealogical Society Research Group meeting on Wednesday, 11 April was in the Computer Lab at the Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library, so we took advantage of the 12 computer stations there.
Randy Seaver reviewed the available 1940 U.S. Census options on www.MyHeritage.com/1940census, on www.Ancestry.com/1940census/, on www.FamilySearch.org/1940census/ and on the NARA 1940census.archives.gov site. He noted that the Ancestry site had the Steve Morse ED Finder tools available, and demonstrated their use. His conclusion was that the Ancestry.com site was the easiest and fastest to use. He noted that Ancestry has two states completely indexed, and that FamilySearch is in the process of indexing all states, but none are yet complete. As an example, the 1940 U.S. Census for Susi's father was easily found once we identified the correct Wyoming county.
In the second hour, the attendees discussed their 1940 census successes and challenges.
* Karen found lots of her families in Maryland, and found that her father made $748 in 1939 wages.
* Virginia found herself in Indiana, but her age was wrong.
* Helen found her brother, but not her parents at the address where they lived. She checked the whole ED and found her parents on Page 61 (the returns to enumerate those not at home previously).
* John found his folks in Butler County, Nebraska.
In the last half hour, we discussed the successes and problems doing the research in general.
* Gary transcribed and analyzed the Yates County NY Estate file for Timothy Roff, which named his siblings, nieces and nephews, including Solomon Roff, Gary's ancestor. Solomon was named as a son of Phillip, and a marriage record of one of Solomon's sisters names her parents. Phillip Roff's gravestone indicates that he is a Revolutionary War soldier who died in 1835, so there may be a Revolutionary War Pension File available.
* Helen found a Hamburg passenger list in German which named her ancestor's home town.
* Virginia was happy that a "shaky leaf" on Ancestry.com provided information for nine more generations in her Bland line, from Moses back to Adam, in a book. Adam Bland was a minister in England who was burned at the stake by Queen Mary.
* Ralph joined CVGS today. He said he was just starting his research, enjoyed the Spring seminar and the Research Group, and looked forward to the other CVGS activities.
The next meeting of the CVGS Research Group will be on Wednesday, 9 May, at the Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library (365 F Street in Chula Vista). We will be meeting in the Conference Room on the East Hall. Randy will demonstrate how to create Source Citations using RootsMagic source citation templates.
Randy Seaver reviewed the available 1940 U.S. Census options on www.MyHeritage.com/1940census, on www.Ancestry.com/1940census/, on www.FamilySearch.org/1940census/ and on the NARA 1940census.archives.gov site. He noted that the Ancestry site had the Steve Morse ED Finder tools available, and demonstrated their use. His conclusion was that the Ancestry.com site was the easiest and fastest to use. He noted that Ancestry has two states completely indexed, and that FamilySearch is in the process of indexing all states, but none are yet complete. As an example, the 1940 U.S. Census for Susi's father was easily found once we identified the correct Wyoming county.
In the second hour, the attendees discussed their 1940 census successes and challenges.
* Karen found lots of her families in Maryland, and found that her father made $748 in 1939 wages.
* Virginia found herself in Indiana, but her age was wrong.
* Helen found her brother, but not her parents at the address where they lived. She checked the whole ED and found her parents on Page 61 (the returns to enumerate those not at home previously).
* John found his folks in Butler County, Nebraska.
In the last half hour, we discussed the successes and problems doing the research in general.
* Gary transcribed and analyzed the Yates County NY Estate file for Timothy Roff, which named his siblings, nieces and nephews, including Solomon Roff, Gary's ancestor. Solomon was named as a son of Phillip, and a marriage record of one of Solomon's sisters names her parents. Phillip Roff's gravestone indicates that he is a Revolutionary War soldier who died in 1835, so there may be a Revolutionary War Pension File available.
* Helen found a Hamburg passenger list in German which named her ancestor's home town.
* Virginia was happy that a "shaky leaf" on Ancestry.com provided information for nine more generations in her Bland line, from Moses back to Adam, in a book. Adam Bland was a minister in England who was burned at the stake by Queen Mary.
* Ralph joined CVGS today. He said he was just starting his research, enjoyed the Spring seminar and the Research Group, and looked forward to the other CVGS activities.
The next meeting of the CVGS Research Group will be on Wednesday, 9 May, at the Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library (365 F Street in Chula Vista). We will be meeting in the Conference Room on the East Hall. Randy will demonstrate how to create Source Citations using RootsMagic source citation templates.
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
CVGS Seminar Review - "British Isles to America and Migrating West"
The Chula Vista Genealogical Society Spring Seminar on Saturday, 31 March was very informative and entertaining for the 100 attendees. The Family roots Publishing book sale, the opportunity drawings, the door prizes and silent auction were highlights throughout the day. An excellent served luncheon, plus morning and afternoon snacks, provided energy for the audience to enjoy the four presentations throughout the day.
The picture above shows Bill Dollarhide, CVGS member Randy Seaver and Leland Meitzler (photo courtesy of J. Paul Hawthorne).
After a brief introduction by CVGS President Gary Brock, Susi Pentico gave a brief keynote "Making New Friends" talk and introduced the two speakers. Bill Dollarhide and Leland Meitzler made four presentations:
1) The first presentation by Bill Dollarhide, a well-known author and conference presenter, was titled "British Migrations America, 1629-1775." Bill framed his talk around the four main migration groups described in the book Albion's Seed by David Hackett Fischer. There were two main parts to this talk:
* A dissertation on the Kings and Queens of England and how the royal, civil, religious and social events in England influenced migration from England to America. The disputes between the Catholic Church and the Church of England, the English civil War (1649-1660) were covered in significant detail.
* The folkways of the East Anglia Puritans (1629-1640) of about 21,000 immigrants, who settled in New England, and of the Cavaliers and their servants from southwest England to the Chesapeake Bay region (1641-1675), about 45,000 immigrants.
2) Leland Meitzler's first presentation was "American Migration Routes of Our Ancestors." He described, using maps and text, the early American Post Roads (e.g., the Boston Post road, the King's Highway, the Fall Line road, etc.), Early American Colonial roads (e.g., Cumberland Road, Wilderness Road, Mohawk Trail), Roads to the Midwest (e.g., Chicago Road, Midwest Road) roads to the Ohio Country (e.g., Zane's Trace, Nashville Road), and roads to the Old Southwest (e.g., Natchez Trace, Federal Road). Because of time constraints, he could not cover the Roads to the West (e.g., Santa Fe Trail, Trail of Tears, Oregon Trail).
After the delicious lunch, which included time to buy books from Family Roots Publishing and bid on the Silent Auction items, the program continued with:
3) Bill Dollarhide's second presentation dealt with the Quakers and German Palatine Settlements (1675-1725) and the Scots-Irish Borderers (1717-1775) migrations. The Quakers and German Palatines settled in the Delaware Valley (Pennsylvania and New Jersey) and had about 23,000 immigrants. The Scots-Irish settled west of the Fall Line Road east of the Appalachian Mountains, and had about 250,000 immigrants.
4) Leland Meitzler's second presentation was "Newspaper Research in the 21st Century." He described the history of American newspapers, with many visual examples. He noted that three developments changed newspaper production and distribution - the invention of the power printing press, the railroads expansion to the West, and the increasing demand for news resulting from increased literacy. Leland listed items to look for articles and notices about family members for birth, marriage, death, anniversary, insurance firms, etc. events.
All in all, this was an excellent day-long seminar by two well-known and dynamic presenters on subjects of interest to American researchers. Many attendees took advantage of the books offered by Leland's company.
The picture above shows Bill Dollarhide, CVGS member Randy Seaver and Leland Meitzler (photo courtesy of J. Paul Hawthorne).
After a brief introduction by CVGS President Gary Brock, Susi Pentico gave a brief keynote "Making New Friends" talk and introduced the two speakers. Bill Dollarhide and Leland Meitzler made four presentations:
1) The first presentation by Bill Dollarhide, a well-known author and conference presenter, was titled "British Migrations America, 1629-1775." Bill framed his talk around the four main migration groups described in the book Albion's Seed by David Hackett Fischer. There were two main parts to this talk:
* A dissertation on the Kings and Queens of England and how the royal, civil, religious and social events in England influenced migration from England to America. The disputes between the Catholic Church and the Church of England, the English civil War (1649-1660) were covered in significant detail.
* The folkways of the East Anglia Puritans (1629-1640) of about 21,000 immigrants, who settled in New England, and of the Cavaliers and their servants from southwest England to the Chesapeake Bay region (1641-1675), about 45,000 immigrants.
2) Leland Meitzler's first presentation was "American Migration Routes of Our Ancestors." He described, using maps and text, the early American Post Roads (e.g., the Boston Post road, the King's Highway, the Fall Line road, etc.), Early American Colonial roads (e.g., Cumberland Road, Wilderness Road, Mohawk Trail), Roads to the Midwest (e.g., Chicago Road, Midwest Road) roads to the Ohio Country (e.g., Zane's Trace, Nashville Road), and roads to the Old Southwest (e.g., Natchez Trace, Federal Road). Because of time constraints, he could not cover the Roads to the West (e.g., Santa Fe Trail, Trail of Tears, Oregon Trail).
After the delicious lunch, which included time to buy books from Family Roots Publishing and bid on the Silent Auction items, the program continued with:
3) Bill Dollarhide's second presentation dealt with the Quakers and German Palatine Settlements (1675-1725) and the Scots-Irish Borderers (1717-1775) migrations. The Quakers and German Palatines settled in the Delaware Valley (Pennsylvania and New Jersey) and had about 23,000 immigrants. The Scots-Irish settled west of the Fall Line Road east of the Appalachian Mountains, and had about 250,000 immigrants.
4) Leland Meitzler's second presentation was "Newspaper Research in the 21st Century." He described the history of American newspapers, with many visual examples. He noted that three developments changed newspaper production and distribution - the invention of the power printing press, the railroads expansion to the West, and the increasing demand for news resulting from increased literacy. Leland listed items to look for articles and notices about family members for birth, marriage, death, anniversary, insurance firms, etc. events.
All in all, this was an excellent day-long seminar by two well-known and dynamic presenters on subjects of interest to American researchers. Many attendees took advantage of the books offered by Leland's company.
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Genealogy Days in Chula Vista - April 2012
The Chula Vista Genealogical Society events for April 2012 include:
** Wednesday 11 April, 12 noon to 2 p.m., Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library (365 F Street) -- CVGS Research Group meets in the Library Computer Lab, led by Randy Seaver. We will review the latest genealogy news, share success stories and information, and discuss members research problems, and potential solutions, based on the collective knowledge and wisdom of the group.
** Sunday, 15 April, 12:30 p.m.to 3 p.m., Bonita-Sunnyside (County) Library (4375 Bonita Road) -- Outreach Workshop meets in Community Room. Shirley Becker will present "Citing Sources."
** Wednesday, 18 April, 12 noon to 1:30 p.m., Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library (365 F Street) -- CVGS Computer Group meets in the Library Computer Lab, led by Shirley Becker. Sharpen your computer skills and investigate online genealogy resources.
** Wednesday, 25 April, 12 noon to 2 p.m., Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library (365 F Street) -- General Society Meeting meets in the Auditorium. Dr. Steven Baird will present "Modern Terminology for Diseases and Causes of Death on Certificates." There will be a society business meeting before the presentation.
** Thursday, 26 April, 10 a.m. to 12 noon, Norman Park Center (270 F Street) -- Presentation in Room 9: "Who Is In Your Family Tree?" by Randy Seaver, John Finch, Ann Stevens and Janice Nevills. This is targeted for persons interested in starting genealogical and family history research.
The Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library is located at 365 "F" Street in Chula Vista - between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue, midway between I-5 and I-805 (take the "E" Street exit from the freeways).
The Bonita-Sunnyside (County) Library is located at 4375 Bonita Road in Bonita - just west of the Otay Lakes Road intersection with Bonita Road, on the north side of Bonita Road.
The Chula Vista South Library is at 389 Orange Avenue (southeast corner on Fourth Avenue) - parking lot is off of Orange east of Fourth.
We welcome guests and visitors to our CVGS programs and events - if you are in the greater San Diego area and want to attend our events - please come and introduce yourselves.
** Wednesday 11 April, 12 noon to 2 p.m., Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library (365 F Street) -- CVGS Research Group meets in the Library Computer Lab, led by Randy Seaver. We will review the latest genealogy news, share success stories and information, and discuss members research problems, and potential solutions, based on the collective knowledge and wisdom of the group.
** Sunday, 15 April, 12:30 p.m.to 3 p.m., Bonita-Sunnyside (County) Library (4375 Bonita Road) -- Outreach Workshop meets in Community Room. Shirley Becker will present "Citing Sources."
** Wednesday, 18 April, 12 noon to 1:30 p.m., Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library (365 F Street) -- CVGS Computer Group meets in the Library Computer Lab, led by Shirley Becker. Sharpen your computer skills and investigate online genealogy resources.
** Wednesday, 25 April, 12 noon to 2 p.m., Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library (365 F Street) -- General Society Meeting meets in the Auditorium. Dr. Steven Baird will present "Modern Terminology for Diseases and Causes of Death on Certificates." There will be a society business meeting before the presentation.
** Thursday, 26 April, 10 a.m. to 12 noon, Norman Park Center (270 F Street) -- Presentation in Room 9: "Who Is In Your Family Tree?" by Randy Seaver, John Finch, Ann Stevens and Janice Nevills. This is targeted for persons interested in starting genealogical and family history research.
The Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library is located at 365 "F" Street in Chula Vista - between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue, midway between I-5 and I-805 (take the "E" Street exit from the freeways).
The Bonita-Sunnyside (County) Library is located at 4375 Bonita Road in Bonita - just west of the Otay Lakes Road intersection with Bonita Road, on the north side of Bonita Road.
The Chula Vista South Library is at 389 Orange Avenue (southeast corner on Fourth Avenue) - parking lot is off of Orange east of Fourth.
We welcome guests and visitors to our CVGS programs and events - if you are in the greater San Diego area and want to attend our events - please come and introduce yourselves.
Saturday, March 31, 2012
CVGS Program Review - Joel Weintraub
Joel Weintraub, PhD, was the presenter at the Chula Vista Genealogical Society meeting on Wednesday, 28 March at the Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library. The 40 attendees saw an excellent 90 minute presentation on "Here Comes the 1940 Census." Joel's talk had two main parts:
1) An Overview of the 1940 US Census:. Joel provided a description of the different census schedules, and particularly the population schedule, which is the only one that was microfilmed and will be available as digital images on 2 April 2012. The schedule is two-sided, and has 40 lines per side for all persons to answer 34 questions, and then two of those 40 persons had to answer 16 more questions. Joel described each of the columns on the population schedule, and how the enumerators were instructed to fill them out.
2) Online 1940 Resources: The 1940 U.S. Census digital images will be available at 6 a.m. PDT on Monday, 2 April 2012 at the http://1940census.archives.gov National Archives website. There is NO name index for this census at the present time (FamilySearch, Ancestry.com and MyHeritage.com will have different indexes later in 2012).
In order to find families in the NARA census page images, users will have to know the location (town in rural areas, street address in larger towns and cities) of their families in 1940, and then have to find the Enumeration District (ED, two numbers, like 62-180) for that address. Enumeration District maps and boundary descriptions are available on the NARA Online Public Access (OPA) website at http://www.archives.gov/research/search/. When you are on the NARA site, and input the state and ED number, you will see the first page of the census page images for that ED. The user can browse the pages one-by-one or can download the entire ED (it may be 50 or 60 images or more) to their computer hard drive.
The Steve Morse One-Step website has a 1940 Census ED Finder tool at http://stevemorse.org/census/quiz.php. Researchers can use this tool to determine the Enumeration District for rural areas and towns, and for large cities if they know the address, the cross street and back street of the block the family lived on. Joel and his team have defined the streets in each ED for over 80% of the urban areas in 1940. The ED Finder identifies one ED number, which the user can then input to the NARA image site.
Joel recommended these steps for finding the 1940 U.S. Census entry for your families:
* Identify the location of your families (town and county in rural areas, street address in larger towns and cities) using information in other records. See How Can I Find Out Where My Folks Lived in 1940? for ideas. Find the address on the NARA ED maps or on a Google Map, and note the cross and back streets for the block the family resided.
* Use the Steve Morse 1940 Census ED Finder tool to identify the Enumeration District. For larger towns and cities, input the street name, cross streets and back street to identify the ED.
* Go to the National Archives 1940 U.S. Census site (http://1940census.archives.gov), input the state and ED number, and see the first page of census images for that ED.
* Download the entire set of census page images for the Enumeration District to your computer hard drive.
* Review the census page images on your hard drive to find your family in the records using your image program.
* Shout Eureka! when you find them.
This was an excellent presentation and the audience appreciated Joel's expertise, humor and information.
1) An Overview of the 1940 US Census:. Joel provided a description of the different census schedules, and particularly the population schedule, which is the only one that was microfilmed and will be available as digital images on 2 April 2012. The schedule is two-sided, and has 40 lines per side for all persons to answer 34 questions, and then two of those 40 persons had to answer 16 more questions. Joel described each of the columns on the population schedule, and how the enumerators were instructed to fill them out.
2) Online 1940 Resources: The 1940 U.S. Census digital images will be available at 6 a.m. PDT on Monday, 2 April 2012 at the http://1940census.archives.gov National Archives website. There is NO name index for this census at the present time (FamilySearch, Ancestry.com and MyHeritage.com will have different indexes later in 2012).
In order to find families in the NARA census page images, users will have to know the location (town in rural areas, street address in larger towns and cities) of their families in 1940, and then have to find the Enumeration District (ED, two numbers, like 62-180) for that address. Enumeration District maps and boundary descriptions are available on the NARA Online Public Access (OPA) website at http://www.archives.gov/research/search/. When you are on the NARA site, and input the state and ED number, you will see the first page of the census page images for that ED. The user can browse the pages one-by-one or can download the entire ED (it may be 50 or 60 images or more) to their computer hard drive.
The Steve Morse One-Step website has a 1940 Census ED Finder tool at http://stevemorse.org/census/quiz.php. Researchers can use this tool to determine the Enumeration District for rural areas and towns, and for large cities if they know the address, the cross street and back street of the block the family lived on. Joel and his team have defined the streets in each ED for over 80% of the urban areas in 1940. The ED Finder identifies one ED number, which the user can then input to the NARA image site.
Joel recommended these steps for finding the 1940 U.S. Census entry for your families:
* Identify the location of your families (town and county in rural areas, street address in larger towns and cities) using information in other records. See How Can I Find Out Where My Folks Lived in 1940? for ideas. Find the address on the NARA ED maps or on a Google Map, and note the cross and back streets for the block the family resided.
* Use the Steve Morse 1940 Census ED Finder tool to identify the Enumeration District. For larger towns and cities, input the street name, cross streets and back street to identify the ED.
* Go to the National Archives 1940 U.S. Census site (http://1940census.archives.gov), input the state and ED number, and see the first page of census images for that ED.
* Download the entire set of census page images for the Enumeration District to your computer hard drive.
* Review the census page images on your hard drive to find your family in the records using your image program.
* Shout Eureka! when you find them.
This was an excellent presentation and the audience appreciated Joel's expertise, humor and information.
Friday, March 30, 2012
CVGS Spring Seminar is Saturday, 31 March 2012
The theme of the Chula Vista Genealogical Society Spring Seminar is:
British Isles To America And Migrating West
3) Bill Dollarhide: "The Scots-Irish Invasion of America"
4) Leland Meitzler: "Newspaper Research in the 21st Century"
This is an all-day paid event with many exciting features. The registration fee is $35 through March 20. After, and at the door, is $40. This fee will include morning refreshments, a keynote address, two main sessions, a fully catered lunch, afternoon light refreshments, opportunity drawings, door prizes and a silent auction.
Our speakers will have books and CDs on sale throughout the day.
The registration form can be downloaded at
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cacvgs2/Flyers/2012_03_Seminar.pdf
British Isles To America And Migrating West
Special Spring All-day Saturday paid Seminar
Saturday, March 31 2012, 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Chula Vista Golf Course
4475 Bonita Road, Bonita, CA
Saturday, March 31 2012, 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Chula Vista Golf Course
4475 Bonita Road, Bonita, CA
There are four talks, two each by nationally known speakers Leland Meitzler and Bill Dollarhide. They are:
1) Bill Dollarhide: "The Main Migration groups from the British Isles to America prior to the Revolutionary War"
2) Leland Meitzler: "Migration Routes of Our Ancestors"
1) Bill Dollarhide: "The Main Migration groups from the British Isles to America prior to the Revolutionary War"
2) Leland Meitzler: "Migration Routes of Our Ancestors"
3) Bill Dollarhide: "The Scots-Irish Invasion of America"
4) Leland Meitzler: "Newspaper Research in the 21st Century"
This is an all-day paid event with many exciting features. The registration fee is $35 through March 20. After, and at the door, is $40. This fee will include morning refreshments, a keynote address, two main sessions, a fully catered lunch, afternoon light refreshments, opportunity drawings, door prizes and a silent auction.
Our speakers will have books and CDs on sale throughout the day.
The registration form can be downloaded at
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cacvgs2/Flyers/2012_03_Seminar.pdf
Family Roots Publishing at CVGS Seminar on Saturday
The Spring Seminar of the Chula Vista Genealogical Society is tomorrow, Saturday, 31 March, at the Chula Vista Golf Course (4475 Bonita Road in Bonita). The announcement of the "British Isles to America and Migrating West" was highlighted in CVGS Spring Seminar is Saturday, 31 March. The program features Bill Dollarhide and Leland Meitzler.
Leland is bringing his book selling business, Family Roots Publishing, to the seminar. Attendees are encouraged to buy books of interest at the seminar and save the shipping costs. Over 2000 great genealogy guidebooks can be found on the website, including:
* Regional guidebooks for most countries, American states, and Canadian provinces
* Guides on writing, and recording genealogy, photography, DNA research, genealogy dictionaries, computer use, immigration, migration, and more
The company publishes many books, and also sells books published by others. Leland's blog, GenealogyBlog, features book summaries every day - see http://www.genealogyblog.com/.
I don't know exactly which books Leland is bringing, but I recommend that attendees buy books that interest them, and also consider the QuickSheet and Genealogy at a Glance series of laminated folders that are introductory summaries to complex subjects.
Leland is bringing his book selling business, Family Roots Publishing, to the seminar. Attendees are encouraged to buy books of interest at the seminar and save the shipping costs. Over 2000 great genealogy guidebooks can be found on the website, including:
* Regional guidebooks for most countries, American states, and Canadian provinces
* Guides on writing, and recording genealogy, photography, DNA research, genealogy dictionaries, computer use, immigration, migration, and more
The company publishes many books, and also sells books published by others. Leland's blog, GenealogyBlog, features book summaries every day - see http://www.genealogyblog.com/.
I don't know exactly which books Leland is bringing, but I recommend that attendees buy books that interest them, and also consider the QuickSheet and Genealogy at a Glance series of laminated folders that are introductory summaries to complex subjects.
Monday, March 26, 2012
CVGS Meeting on Wednesday, 28 March: Joel Weintraub on 1940 census
MARCH 28th PROGRAM MEETING
from 12 Noon to 2 p.m.
at Chula Vista Civic Center Branch Library (365 F Street in Chula Vista) in the Auditorium
“Here Comes the 1940 Census” by Joel Weintraub, PhD
Joel Weintraub's presentation is “Here Comes the 1940 Census.” He will discuss what's in the 1940 United States census and how to search the census for family members by location, since there will not be a name index when it becomes public on the http://1940census.archives.gov website.
Joel is a past National Archives volunteer and an emeritus Biology Professor. He has produced census tools since 2001, and in 2002 teamed up with Stephen Morse. These utilities, for searching federal and NY State censuses by location, are freely available at http://stevemorse.org in the census folders.
If you want a head start on the talk, use http://stevemorse.org/census/quiz.php
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
"My Trip to Illinois - March 2011" by John Finch
This article was written by CVGS member John Finch, and appeared in the March 2012 CVGS Newsletter:
Last year, in March, I had an opportunity to travel to the Chicago area. Our eldest grandson had enlisted in the Navy and was graduating from Recruit Training, more commonly referred to as “Boot Camp”, at Great Lakes, Illinois.
This event was of special interest to me as it marked almost 50 years to the date of my own, nearly identical, rite of transition. As a retired Chief Petty Officer, I was filled with pride.
Of further interest to me was that two of my family lines could be traced to an area near Chicago, in Lee County. Traveling to this region of the country seldom presents, so I had every intention of taking advantage of this trip.
I set about planning my trip to include genealogy research. I contacted the Lee County Genealogical Society ahead of time and advised of the family lines of interest to me. I wondered if I wasn’t expecting too much for the time I had allotted or if I could accomplish the many tasks that I hoped for.
I arrived at the town of Dixon, in my rental car at about noon. Dixon is the County seat for Lee County and the location of the Lee County Genealogical Society office and library. I met with librarian, Rita Welsh, who had prepared several references of the very surnames that I had requested.
Nearly all my questions were either answered at the Lee County Genealogical Society or in the marriage records I was able to copy at the old courthouse. I spent some time walking in the cemetery and found the graves of several ancestors. I located the tombstone of my Emmanuel Depue, a GAR headstone. He had died 20 November 1865. I couldn’t help thinking that he had survived the Civil War only to die here at his home just a few months after the war had ended. Although the marker was yet in very good condition and readable, it had been tilted to near toppling from the roots of a nearby tree. I thought to myself that the stone should be righted and resolved to make it happen.
I returned home. Now with a wealth of new information to sort through, analyze and add to my family history data base. Old history blended with new as I developed photographs of that graduation ceremony at Great Lakes. I contacted the Lee County Genealogical society and told them of my project to right the monument of Emmanuel Depue. They referred me to a local Monument Company and I contacted them for arrangements. A couple of months later I received both an invoice and the before and after pictures showing that a new concrete base had been poured and the stone reset, straight as can be.
I cannot begin to tell you of the wonder, the fulfillment and the rewards that this trip yielded. I could not have imagined how very much can be accomplished, simply by being there.
Sunday, March 18, 2012
March 2012 Issue of CVGS Newsletter is Online
The March 2012 issue of the Chula Vista Genealogical Society Newsletter is online at http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cacvgs2/Newsletters/12_03mar.pdf in PDF format:
The Table of Contents includes:
page 1 - March 28th Program Meeting
page 2 - President’s Message
page 2 - Escondido Family History Fair Report
page 3 - Spring Seminar Announcement
page 4 - Research Group News
page 4 - Computer Group News
page 5 - February 29th Program Review
page 5 - CVGS Members Can Help Index the 1940 Census
page 6 - Who Do You Think You Are? On NBC
page 6 - Finding Your Roots on PBS
page 6 - CVGS Library News
page 6 - Lemon Grove Research Group News
page 6 - CVGS April Workshop Program
page 6 - May Beginners Class
page 7 - Online and Offline Resources for Genealogy Research
page 8 - My Trip to Illinois, by John Finch
page 8 - Seminar Speaker Biographies
page 9 - CVGS Society Information
page 9 - San Diego Genealogy Events
page 10 - Genealogy Days in Chula Vista
The Table of Contents includes:
page 1 - March 28th Program Meeting
page 2 - President’s Message
page 2 - Escondido Family History Fair Report
page 3 - Spring Seminar Announcement
page 4 - Research Group News
page 4 - Computer Group News
page 5 - February 29th Program Review
page 5 - CVGS Members Can Help Index the 1940 Census
page 6 - Who Do You Think You Are? On NBC
page 6 - Finding Your Roots on PBS
page 6 - CVGS Library News
page 6 - Lemon Grove Research Group News
page 6 - CVGS April Workshop Program
page 6 - May Beginners Class
page 7 - Online and Offline Resources for Genealogy Research
page 8 - My Trip to Illinois, by John Finch
page 8 - Seminar Speaker Biographies
page 9 - CVGS Society Information
page 9 - San Diego Genealogy Events
page 10 - Genealogy Days in Chula Vista
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