SPRING CCGS CLASSES
FREE BEGINNING CLASSES
Getting Started Tracing Your Family Tree with Larry Dean Tuesday, May 2, 10:30 a.m. to 12 noon. This class will be held in the CCGS Education Center.
REGULAR CLASSES
All regular classes will be held in the CCGS Education Center, 715 Grand Blvd, Vancouver, WA. Fee for each class: $12.00 members, $15.00 Non-Members. Fee can be paid with registration or at the door. Exact cash amount or check at the door is appreciated. Although walk-ins won’t be turned away, if you want to take a class, please register at least a week in advance. Classes with insufficient registration one week in advance will be cancelled. Those registered will be notified and any fee paid will be refunded. To register for a class, see the registration form on the website http://ccgs-wa.us3.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d43d7894b8591a05db4fa440b&id=ceca5d30ee&e=b278fc7627
Get Your Ducks in a Row: Genealogical Housekeeping, 201
Tuesday, March 3rd, 10 a.m. to 12 noon. Instructor: Jane Germann
Still tearing your hair out over the piles and stacks of paper? Know your cousin emailed you Aunt Stella’s obituary but it’s lost on your computer somewhere? Jane will show you some easy and painless (almost) ways to keep track of your genealogical files. Jane has been a member of CCGS since 1984. She has been a mainstay of education, teaching classes from introductory to courthouse research to publishing and everything in between. A vigorous researcher, Jane leaves no stone unturned, except cemetery headstones. Those she leaves standing.
Obituaries and Newspapers: Windows to the Past
Tuesday, March 17th, 10 a.m. to 12 noon. Instructor: Lethene Parks
Obituaries can be jam-packed with relationship information often listing the living and the dead relatives and their connection to the deceased. Knowing how and where to access these valuable pieces of your family history can seem a bit daunting, not to mention confusing. Historically, newspapers published items of community interest as well as the latest calamity. How thrilling to read that your ggrandfather returned to the Willamette Valley after a sojourn to mining country east of the mountains. You didn’t see that on any ten year census snapshot! But how do I find them? Lethene to the rescue!! Our treasure, Lethene Parks, has been a serious genealogist for over fifty years. She loves sharing her knowledge with everyone. Her passion for scholarly research is surpassed only by the thrill of the hunt. Lethene currently serves as the CCGS President.
City Directories and Area Histories: Tuesday, March 31st, 10 a.m. to 12 noon. Instructor: Elsie Deatheridge
Isn’t it a thrill to see your ancestor’s name in print? Directories make them just a little more real as you track their household as well as their employment from year to year. Area histories were very commonly published in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s as barely disguised promotion pieces for developing towns and cities. But, they also contain great background information and the occasional surprise as you find your ancestor profiled. Elsie will entertain us with some interesting finds and help in ferreting out your location. Elsie was born in Colville, WA, and graduated from Inchelium High school. She earned a BS in secondary education and a Masters in Adult Education, both from WSU Pullman. Elsie has attended many week-long courses at the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy and is a frequent participant in national genealogy conferences.
What’s New in Family Search? LOTS! Tuesday, April 7th, 10 a.m. to 12 noon. Instructor: Alice Allen
Family Search is a major go-to site for genealogical research. In addition to continuously adding searchable records, Family Search is constantly improving how we access those records. Alice is a “power user” of Family Search and will share her insights as to how to make this site “dance” for you. Alice Allen has been doing genealogical research off and on since 1968 (raising six children was her main focus). When she got her first computer in 1995, genealogy and family history became a passion. She became a member of the USGenWeb Project in 1996 and was thus privileged to be a part of the beginning of online genealogy research. She has been a CCGS member since 1998 and is involved in many other community and social activities.
Leaping the Pond: strategies for locating your ancestors pre-America Tuesday, April 21st, 10 a.m. to 12 noon. Instructor: Brian Runyan
Sooner or later we’re all going to discover ancestors who did not originate in North America. As comfortable as we might get researching in the good ol’ U S of A, it’s a whole different ballgame when we try to “cross the pond”, any pond. How they get here? From where did they sail? Where did they live prior to setting sail? Brian will take us through some strategies for answering these questions. Brian started “doing” genealogy back in the “lick a stamp and pray” days of the 1970s. After a 40 year hiatus, he picked it up with a vengeance in 2012. Wow, talk about future shock! He says, “I got more done in the first three months than I had been able to accomplish in six years, previously”. Brian is currently serving as the Chair of the Education Committee at CCGS.