Dear Family Historians,

Janette and I are long-standing members of the Eastern Washington Genealogical Society and over the years we have compiled seven books on the history of our families.  One of those books dealt with the heraldry of my ancestors.

Recently I prepared a presentation on what I learned about heraldry at one of our society’s annual workshops.  The focus of this presentation was, of course, all about heraldry, but also how the genealogist/family historian might be able to use heraldry to learn more about their ancestors.  I use many examples from a ten-year search of my ancestors’ crests and coats of arms and what the many images, forms, and colors mean.

We are offering to share this presentation with other family history/genealogy-based societies and groups.  It is easily one hour or longer in length depending on interest and questions and I bring along our own overhead projector.

We are willing to travel up to 200 miles from Spokane to share information on this exciting topic and there is no fee.   A two-page summary is provided on request.

Please contact me if there is interest.

Anthony (Tony) Birch

12230 S. Gwendolyn Lane

Cheney, WA 99004-8533

509-448-4847

da3mj4@gmail.com

The Seattle Municipal Archives recently added a guide to SMA’s genealogical resources and how to find your ancestors in city records. The guide is available on their website.

The Seattle Municipal Archives is located on the third floor of Seattle’s City Hall at 600 Fourth Avenue in downtown Seattle. The building is between Fourth and Fifth Avenues and James and Cherry Streets. The Archives is co-located with the Office of the City Clerk.

For more information about the SMA, contact Jeanie Fisher, Reference Archivist, Seattle Municipal Archives at Jean.Fisher@seattle.gov.

Moorshead Magazines, publishers of three terrific genealogy-helpful magazines, is offering WSGS members a wonderful opportunity…wouldn’t you enjoy a subscription to one of these magazines as a gift from your kids rather than a sweater, a tie or a box of candy???

Ed Zapletal and Rick Cree and I have been friends for years and when I approached them with this idea, they gave a resounding “thumbs up.”

And here is the great news! For each subscription to any one of these magazines, Ed and Rick will issue a $3 “rebate” check back to WSGS. What could be better than such a win-win??

Here’s what you must do: Click to www.internet-genealogy.com or www.yourgenealogytoday.com  and sign up for a specially discounted $20 subscription (6 issues, one year, each magazine). Rick cautioned me that “it is imperative that they indicate the code WSGS. This will have to be put in the area where we ask for their ID number (the actual wording on the box is: if available, please include your subscription ID number when renewing your subscription)…”  And yes, you can pay by credit card.

So plan to enjoy your special Christmas gift and know that while you are enriching your mind, you’re helping to fund the educational projects of WSGS.

The Washington State Genealogical Society thanks all who participated in our Digital Archives indexing effort throughout Family History Month (October). Whether you indexed one record or 1,000, each is appreciated and valued. So, let’s keep it up! There are still thousands of records to be indexed so a future researcher can benefit from your efforts.

We’d like to know if you indexed any Digital Archives records during the month of October. Just leave a comment on this posting to let us know. Thanks for your continued efforts!

Centralia has a most unusual founding story. A black man, George Washington, born a slave in 1817 in Virginia, is given the credit for founding of Centralia. This Lewis County town claims the distinction of being the only town in the west founded by a person of color. George’s story was highlighted in 2017, the 200^th anniversary of his birth and when he was remembered as a leading African American pioneer in the Pacific Northwest.

George was born to a white English woman but his father was a slave that was sold away when George was an infant. His mother, wanting her child to be free, gave him to her friends, James and Anna Cochran, to raise. The Cochrans were good, honorable people, and took George with them as they migrated to Ohio and then Missouri. There, in 1843, George became a “free and legal citizen” of Missouri by a special act of the Missouri legislature. Even with this document, fearing he might lose his freedom after the passage of the Compromise of 1850, George and the Cochrans took the famous trail to Oregon. Once there, and even then, he could not establish a land claim for himself when the family settled near the confluence of the Chehalis and Skookumchuck rivers and the Cochrans claimed land in 1852. When Washington Territory was split from Oregon Territory in 1853, the new territory’s laws did not preclude Negroes from owning land and the Cochrans sold their land to him. George cared for his adoptive parents the rest of their lives.

Anticipating the arrival of the Northern Pacific railroad in 1872, George platted the city of Centerville (now Centralia) on his land, naming the streets after Biblical references and setting aside land for a park and churches of many denominations. Centerville/Centralia was incorporated in 1886.

Despite facing some racial prejudice at the hands of newcomers…many of whom migrated from the segregated post-Civil War south), George supported the town in all ways clear until his death in 1905.

It is right and fitting that Lewis County, and certainly Centralia, celebrated George Washington, the founder of their town.

References:  Patty Olsen, who lives in Centralia, first shared news of this story with me and sent me several copied references. Thanks, Patty!

I’m just back from a wonderful trip along the coast of Maine and New Brunswick. At the border (Calais, ME and St. Stephens, NB), and on the Maine side, there is Fort Knox. This fort was constructed for a war that never really came….between 1812 and the Civil War. Now here’s the point:  “Our” Isaac Stevens was the first engineer on this project in 1846…. long before he came west. I found that most interesting. Also, in October virtually all of Maine decorates for Halloween and there are pumpkins everywhere and on every stoop. Thought you’d like to know this too.

Hello, I’m recently re-located back to my roots here in Port Orchard and have been doing some research on my great-great grandfather Perry Summerfield, he lived in the Puyallup area I would say around 1890-1930’s ? Any info would be great. I am planing a drive down there soon, oh and he used to work with Ezra Meeker, a farmer, and something to do with the Wash Fair.
Thanks
Charles Summerfield <1973lespaulrr@gmail.com>
907-841-5327