THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM OF OREGON’S Wednesday Evening E-News
6 January 2016
For more information visit www.gfo.org, contact us at info@gfo.org, or call our library at 503-963-1932. We love hearing from you!
For a complete GFO CALENDAR go to www.gfo.org/calendar.htm.
Also, if you missed your free copy of last month’s newletter, the Insider, you’re in luck because we saved you a copy at http://www.gfo.org/insider/16-Jan.pdf. Look for the February 2016 Insider coming soon! Check our website for the link on our Newsletter page.
Don’t miss the January Monthly Program!!
GFO proudly presents Stephen Hanks, author of Akee Tree, Saturday, January 16th, 2pm – 4pm.
Free to the Public
Come spend the afternoon with us as we indulge in a talk by fellow genealogist and author, Stephen Hanks, who spent over 10 years tracing his paternal African American family line. He will be discussing the research behind his most recent book, Akee Tree: A Descendant’s Quest For His Slave Ancestors on the Eskridge Plantations.
The book is written as a narrative, so readers can experience the “thrill of the hunt” and follow along with Hanks’ research methodology to get a peek at the records he discovered in his search for ancestry in the United States as well as Africa.
Digital historical resources for all; all 180,000 of them!
Explore turn-of-the-century New York City apartment floor plans, or see what your ancestors’ Fifth Ave of New York City looked like in 1911.
The New York Public Library announced yesterday that they have released some 180,000 out-of-copyright items from their Digital Collections as high resolution downloads. These resources are free for all to use, no permissions needed as the Library’s confirmed these are all now in the public domain.
January Seminar – “Discover Your House History”
Come hear our very own Connie Lenzen, author, researcher and board-certified genealogist, teach about the histories of houses.
Have you ever wondered who lived in your home or building before you? Have you ever wondered when your house was built, and maybe WHY?? Connie will lead us through the process of researching the history of your house. While her examples will begin from Multomah and Clackamas County, the principles are applicable to any location you might be curious about.
You should really hurry up and register quickly, as this session is limited to 50 attendees! Click here for a registration form.
What’s Happening this Week at the GFO?
Illinois Group – Saturday, January 9th, 9:30am – 11:30am
All interested researchers are welcome to join us. Just drop in and share the workshop when you can and when you’re interested. Meetings include handouts and/or worksheets for each topic we cover. We focus on the state of Illinois, but the research techniques can be used in all states. The group leaders are Kristy Gravlin and Harlene Patterson. For more information call (630) 621-5166 or email hannah@teleport.com.
GFO Book Group – Saturday, January 9th, 11:45am – 12:45pm
Author Harold Hinds will lead the discussion about his book Crafting a Personal Family History. A Guide Plus a Case Study: Three Generations of the Hinds Family in New York’s Adirondack Mountains. Please call the front desk (503-963-1932) to ask if copies are still available at the GFO, as they’re goin’ fast!
Writers’ Forum – Saturday, January 9th, 1pm – 3pm
This is a peer group of genealogists, who meet to learn about writing and to share our writing with each other. Peggy Baldwin facilitates this group and can be reached at peggy.baldwin@family-passages.com or (503) 916-9410.
Library Work Party – Sunday, January 11th, 9am – noon
There’s another work party at the GFO library today for those of you who can come. There’s lots to do and we’d love to have your help. Doors open at 9 a.m. and work usually wraps up around noon. Some people come for just an hour or so and you’re welcome to do the same. Any time you can share is valuable. Hope to see you there.
Announcement, announcement – Class hours have changed!
Don’t let the printed version of the January Insider fool you. There have been some changes.
Firstly, the “Photoshop Elements” classes for this month have been postponed until February. Keep an eye out for more updates soon!
Secondly, our “Learn & Chat” sessions with Connie Lenzen, held on the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of every month, will now be held the same days as our “DNA Q&A” classes with Lisa McCullough. So come spend the day, we dare you! Start with Connie’s class from 10 a.m. to noon, and move right into Lisa’s class from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., and feel free to pop on upstairs for a snack in between.
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cemetery headstones. She will discuss much more than fraternal symbols placed on headstones. Stories will unravel as she goes into the detail of why certain flowers were used in decorative grave markers and explain the use of certain wording patterns used when providing information about the deceased.