26 September 2008

FGS Tampa Meeting for 18 October 2007

The Florida Genealogical Society is pleased to announce its program for Saturday, 18 October 2007. Debbe Hagner will be presenting an excellent program at the meeting about German genealogical research. Even if you have ancestors from other European countries, Debbe will be presenting information that is germane to other European locations, specifically using the resources of the Family History Library (FHL) in Salt Lake City and the local Family History Centers (FHCs) in this area.

The meeting will be held in the auditorium of the John F. Germany Library at 900 N. Ashley Boulevard in downtown Tampa, beginning at 10:30 AM. You don't want to miss Debbe's informative presentation.

The elegant brass commemorative paperweights and magnifiers for the Florida Genealogical Society's 50th anniversary will be on sale at the meeting for $15.00, and you will definitely want one for you own collection and use. They are a cherished and useful addition to your personal collection!

We look forward to a great attendance at this great seminar!

21 September 2008

Imperial Polk Genealogical Society: Dr. George K. Schweitzer

The Imperial Polk Genealogical Society is pleased to announce a one-day seminar with Dr. George K. Schweitzer. The seminar will be held on Saturday, October 18th, from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM in the Alumni Room of the Charles Thrift Center at Florida Southern College in Lakeland, FL. Dr. Schweitzer will present three lectures. Pre-Registration is $40.00 and registration at the door is $45.00, and includes continental breakfast and lunch. A registration flyer is available at http://www.ipgs.org/2008_flyer.html and you can call (863) 686-9794 for more information.

News from Other Societies - South Bay Genealogical Society

The Manasota Genealogical Society will meet on Tuesday, October 7th, from 9:230 AM to Noon, at the Manatee Central Library, 1301 Barcarrota Blvd., West Bradenton, FL. The presentation topic will be "The Paper Trail: Florida's Courthouse Holdings."

For information call (941) 722-5156 or visit their website at http://www.rootsweb.com/~flmgs.



The South Bay Genealogical Society will meet on Tuesday, October 21st, at the restaurant at Little harbor in Ruskin, FL. Lunch is served at Noon (available at a cost) and the presentation begins at 1:00 PM. The topic for this meeting will be "Jamestown, Virginia: Its History and People," presented by Barbara Schultz.

Please contact the society at South-Bay@juno.com for more information.

16 September 2008

Florida State Genealogical Society Conference

The Florida State Genealogical Society's 32nd annual Conference will be held at the beautiful Sheraton Orlando North in Maitland, Florida, on Friday and Saturday, November 14 & 15, 2008. The featured speaker is Jana Sloan Broglin, CG, a member of the board of the Federation of Genealogical Societies, author, speaker, and professional genealogical researcher. She will present four excellent lectures.

Seven other speakers will join Ms. Broglin. They are: Ann Bergelt, Pamela J. Cooper, Amy Larner Giroux, CG & CGL, George G. Morgan, Donna M. Moughty, Mary P. Parker, Drew Smith, MLS, and C. Ann Staley, CG.

Registration for the full conference is $88.00. The hotel rooms are $88.00 per night (and can accommodate up to four persons). There are eight terrific speakers. And there will be a good selection of vendors and exhibitors. The EIGHTS are GREAT in 2008!

The Florida Chapter of the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG) will again hold their "Ancestor Road Show" in which APG members will allow attendees to schedule consultations to discuss brick walls and suggest methodologies.

In addition, the Florida Genealogical Society (Tampa) will be recognized on the occasion of its 50th anniversary year. Please consider joining us in Maitland for this great two-day conference and cheer our society!

More information and a registration brochure are available at the FSGS website at http://www.flsgs.org/.

News from Other Societies - Charlotte County Genealogy Society

The Charlotte County Genealogical Society, Inc., is proud to present its Fall Family History Symposium on Saturday, 22 November 2008, from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM featuring genealogical author, columnist, speaker, and educator George G. Morgan. He will deliver four topics that day: Climbing Your Family Tree: Effective Genealogical Research; Planning A Very Successful Cemetery Research Trip; Genealogical Research on the Internet; and Genealogical Research Methods for the Internet. The event will be held at the Association of Realtors at 3320 Loveland Boulevard in Port Charlotte. The registration fees are $30.00 for members and $35.00 for non-members, and includes seminar materials and lunch. For more information, visit the CCGS website at http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~flccgs/ or contact Ken Merriman at km1386@embarqmail.com or Barbara Powell at bepowell2001@yahoo.com.

News from Other Societies - Southern Genealogist's Exchange Society

Dear Sister Societies,

We are delighted to invite you to attend a full day seminar On October 11th, 2008 in the city of Jacksonville, Florida. The Southern Genealogist's Exchange Society, Inc. in conjunction with The Jacksonville Public Library, Genealogy Department, will co-host an event featuring cream of the crop speakers from the SGES society. The conference, in recognition of Family History Month, will focus on "Celebrating Family History." In times of rising costs we are pleased to offer you this occasion at NO CHARGE. Four well known speakers for the day: Dick Cardell presents:"Documentation, Proving your lineage and Your family Stories." Jon Ferguson,"Where Might My Family Be Hiding in the Courthouse?" Karen Rhodes, "Quirks of the 1945 Florida Census"; and Jim Vearil,"The War and Its Hardship: The Effects of the Civil War on an East Florida Farm Family". Optional tours of the Genealogy Department are offered at 12:00 PM and 4:00 PM by Laura Minor. Registration begins at 9:00 AM and program commences at 9:30 AM. Program ends 4:00 PM Pre-registration is recommended for benefits of advance name tags; no waiting in line to register; and forward reserved seating in the conference. Lunch on your own at nearby eateries. Call (904)778-1000 for questions, more information or registration. You may also register online at: www.sgesjax@com Free parking in the parking garage on Duval Street. Bring your parking ticket into the library for validation. Register soon to reserve your spot as we expect a large crowd. Don't miss this excellent day provided by the City of Jacksonville, through the Public Libraries, Genealogy Department Downtown & The Southern Genealogist's Exchange Society. Separately, to recognize Family History Month in October, we have elected Tuesday, October 21st, 2008 as a night to "Share Your Family History at Home".

News from Other Societies - Pinellas Genealogy Society

The Pinellas Genealogy Society will meet on Saturday, 20 September, at 11:00 AM in the Jenkins Room of the Largo Library. It will be preceded at 9:45 by their popular Q&A session on computers in genealogy.

This month's speakers will be Ellen Babb and Joyce Pickering. They will talk on the subject "Houses Have a Genealogical Past Also." We all know that our homes and those of our ancestors can hold clues to our family genealogy. Finding those clues can be challenging, however. This program may help in that discovery process.

Other classes of interest by PGS this month are:

Searching with Ancestry.com--Basic techniques for using this huge collection of online databases--Wednesday, 24 Sep, 10:00 AM
Getting the most out of Rootsweb.com--an introduction to the features and techniques of using this huge free source of genealogy information--Monday, 29 Sep, 6:00 PM

Call to Action: Preserving Historic Records Bill

The Preserving the American Historical Record (PAHR) is a bill to provide federal formula grants to every state for projects that preserve historical records and make them more accessible. House Resolution (H.R.) 6056 has a stated purpose “To authorize the Archivist of the United States to make grants to States for the preservation and dissemination of historical records” and was introduced by Reps. Maurice Hinchey (D-NY-22) and Chris Cannon (R-UT) and referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform on May 14.

This bill, if passed, can conceivably result in grants to states to fund records preservation and access initiatives, all of which may benefit genealogists and historians.

The time has come to rally support for this important legislation that will provide resources for archival repositories and cultural heritage institutions that house primary resources genealogists and other historical researchers use. We hope that you will consider preparing a letter to send to your congressman. Please visit the Preserving the American Historical Record (PAHR) website to learn more. There also is a draft letter there which you can download to your computer in RTF (Rich Text Format, readable by every word processor), and customize to your specific thoughts and concerns. You can send it to your U.S. Senator and Representative. For a list of these individuals, please visit http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm for Senators' contacts and https://forms.house.gov/wyr/welcome.shtml for Representatives.

With the slashing of library and archive budgets in Florida as a result of the passage of Proposition One in February 2008, this is an ideal opportunity to help obtain critical funding to help these insititutions continue their invaluable work.

Thank you for your support!

George G. Morgan
Director
FGS (Tampa)

13 September 2008

FGS' 50th Anniversary and Fall Seminar

We have had a WONDERFUL 50th anniversary celebration for the Florida Genealogical Society (Tampa) this past weekend! Our gala 50th anniversary dinner on 12 September was limited to the first 50 registrants, and we had an almost full complement at the lovely Valencia Garden Restaurant in Tampa. The food was absolutely top-notch, and we were greatly entertained by Paula Stuart-Warren's talk about "Murphy's Law and Genealogy Research Trips."

We then presented our annual Fall Seminar on Saturday, 13 September, in the technologically state-of the-art Student Services Building Auditorium at Hillsborough Community College Campus on Dale Mabry Boulevard (across from Raymond James Stadium where the Tampa Buccaneers play and the site of the next Super Bowl on 2 February 2009). Almost 100 attendees enjoyed four excellent talks by the stellar Paula Stuart-Warren: 20th and 21st Century Genealogical Research; Railroad Records and Railroad History: Methods for Tracking; Organizing Your Genealogical Materials: Methods to Keep it Current; and Untrod Ground: Sources You May Not Have Encountered.

A great group of vendors and other genealogical societies were present in the exhibit hall, as well as a vast collection of free books, historic genealogical magazines, and more. FGS presented a commemorative display of its first fifty years, including special proclamations from Florida Governor Charlie Crist, Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio, and Generations Network CEO Tim Sullivan. These framed commemorative documents will be on permanent display in the Ceta Rodgers Armitage Room adjacent to the History and Genealogy Department of the John F. Germany Public Library in downtown Tampa.

In addition, FGS had more than $1,100.00 in door prizes of all types from Ancestry.com (The Generations Network), RootsMagic, Everton's, Family Tree Magazine, Family Roots Publications, the Florida Genealogical Society, the Estate of Melvin O. Brown, George G. Morgan, GenerationMaps.com, the Pasco Genealogical Society, and local society member Ann King! It was a rich treasure trove for our attendees!

Volunteers pins were awarded to a number of society members in recognition of their great service to the society. The annual Volunteer of the Year Award was bestowed upon Shirley Evans Besch. Shirley provides the society's "Ask a Genealogist" service at the John F. Germany Library in downtown Tampa on the first Saturday morning of each month. She has served on the FGS Board for the last year, providing inteligence, excellent ideas and suggestion for membership, great humor, and wonderful camaraderie. She produced (with husband Rick Besch) this year's elegant FGS Member Directory, and she unselfishly volunteers her time and energy to help other researchers and to promote the success of the society. Shirley is the embodiment of charm, grace, and volunteer spirit!

The Florida Genealogical Society declared our 50th Anniversary and Fall Seminar a great success. We sincerely thank Paula Stuart-Warren for her excellent presentations and her unselfish sharing of time to answer every question posed by every attendee. We are grateful to Paula for making this year's seminar another winner!