Heritage Quest Research Library Working your Way to Ireland

Sheila Benedict
Sheila has a varied educational background to support her many years of genealogical research, from a BA in Political Science to languages, history and Forensic Genealogy. She is a frequent lecturer at national conferences as well as teaching at a local community college.

Working Your Way to IRELAND Using American Records First

This presentation will focus on what an American researcher has to do to be successful. It is not as easy as it sounds, especially when you are working with records that are different then what you are used to here. What lies beyond ancestry charts and family group sheets is more important than you think. They are the skeleton and you need to put meat on the bones before you hop the flight to Dublin, Shannon, Cork, or Belfast.
March 16, 2023
1:00 – 2:00 PM

ZOOM
Members: $20
Non-Members $25
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Larry Noedel Named One of 2022’s Outstanding Volunteers

Since 2003, the Washington State Genealogical Society has recognized over 600 outstanding volunteers and teams, nominated by their local society or genealogical organization for their service and dedication. These volunteers are the backbone of their local society, giving their time and expertise, to the organization and the field of genealogy. In the coming months, you will be introduced to each of the 2022 award recipients and learn why they received the 2022 WSGS Outstanding Volunteer and Team Award.

Larry Noedel

Today we’re introducing Larry Noedel of Bainbridge Island, Washington, who was nominated by the Bainbridge Island Genealogical Society (BIGS).

Larry brings enthusiasm and creativity, offering ideas about new ways of doing things, helping clarify goals and ways to achieve them. Larry offers a skill set to the board to gather and analyze information to deliver better services.

Larry has been instrumental in helping BIGS deal with the switch to virtual meetings. He initiated the effort to determine how to provide hybrid meetings once in-person meetings become possible again.

As director of society outreach, Larry made a major contribution to BIGS by growing their relationship with Kitsap Regional Library.  As a result of this collaboration, BIGS offers an opportunity for members of the public to consult with experienced BIGS members, which has led to new memberships. Larry led the board in a more proactive approach to the 2021 renewal process to understand and address pandemic impacts on members.

For more information on the WSGS Outstanding Volunteer Award program, visit the Recognition page of the WSGS website or contact Info@wasgs.org. Please type “Volunteer Award” in the subject line.

Let’s Talk About….Vicksburg, Part 3

 On this trip down the Mississippi, I carried a small notebook and scribbled notes furiously. Visiting this national park, I was especially overcome by the enormity of this battle. The notes are mine and the facts as I understood from our guide.

After the battle, some 17,000 Union dead were buried in a cemetery near the battlefield, now part of the Vicksburg National Park. We were told that the upright stones were for the identified soldiers and the “stubby flat” stones were for the 13,000 unidentified. The Confederate dead were buried in trenches.

The Vicksburg National Military Park was established on 21 February 1899 to preserve and protect the areas associated with the defense and siege of Vicksburg. The park covers over 1800 thousand acres. During the battle, the hills were stripped of trees. During the 1930s, the CCC men replanted many trees. In 1917, veterans were invited to return to the site and point out just where their units stood and fought and some 8800 showed up! Markers were placed at these designated sites.

As men came from 28 of the then 34 states, each participating state was invited to place a monument at the Park. Each state monument is planned and paid for by the state and then given to the Park to be placed. Most Union monuments were erected by World War II. The Confederate states’ monuments were placed much later (they were financially decimated remember).  Some Southern states have yet to place a monument; neither has Vermont.

Vicksburg Trivia:

I’ve read that more Americans died in the Civil War than all other American wars combined; the slaughter was that terrible.

The Confederate President was Jefferson Finis Davis….. he was the last of ten children; hence the “Finis.” His only descendant was a granddaughter.

Mary Todd Lincoln’s brother, David Todd, fought for the Confederacy.

Often the Union and Confederate lines were “merely a stone’s throw apart.”

The average age of the Civil War soldier was 27.

The northwestern part of Virginia pulled early from the Confederacy to fight for the Union; this was 18 months before West Virginia became a state in 1863.   

Kentucky and Missouri were split states…….. men from these states fought for both sides.

The Illinois monument, modeled after the Roman Pantheon, has sixty unique bronze tables lining its interior walls, naming all 36,325 Illinois soldiers. Our guide explained that it was erected in 1904 when the citizens of Illinois taxed themselves to finance the project.

The Alabama monument, placed in 1953, is the only one showing a “fighting” woman. It was meant to show the women’s support of their men during the conflict.

When Grant realized that the Confederates were filling their canteens from a certain creek, he dumped dead animals into that creek to pollute the water; it worked and caused many a Confederate to die a miserable death.

Joke:  Difference between a Confederate and Union cannon? The way it’s pointed! So quipped our tour guide.

While I did thoroughly enjoy learning the history of the Mississippi River and its connection to the Battle of Vicksburg, I certainly did realize I was treading and viewing hallowed ground when I was privileged to visit the Vicksburg National Military Park during my cruise on the Mississippi River (from St. Paul to New Orleans) in October 2022.  

Legacy Family Tree Webinars in March

We have some fantastic free webinars from Legacy Family Tree Webinars in March, in particular, one this coming Tuesday, March 14 by yours truly “RootsTech Recap

Check out the details below and let your audience know about March 2023’s live webinars:

  • Written in Stone: In-Depth Study of a Gravestone by Gena Philibert-Ortega
  • An Introduction to Using WordPress to Build a Blog or Website by Elizabeth Swanay O’Neal
  • Exhausting Research to Find an Impossible Immigrant! by Warren Bittner
  • Padrones of the Past: Colonial-era Censuses of Mexico by Joy Oria
  • Les statistiques familiales sur MyHeritage by Elisabeth Zetland
  • Uncovering Immigrant Origins Through Cluster Research by Dana Palmer, CG, CGL
  • PERSI 2.0: The New PERSI for Everyone by Sunny Morton
  • New Developments of MyHeritage DNA by Gal Zrihen
  • 3-2-1 data backup is great, but first, you need to find all of your data by Andy Klein

Click here to register.

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The Best of Elizabeth Shown Mills: Genealogy Problem Solving – a member’s only webinar series

Join us each month as Elizabeth encores her top-12 most beloved classes, teaching us how to break down our genealogy problems and create solutions with innovative strategies and sound methods.

On Friday, March 24 Elizabeth will teach “Margaret’s Baby’s Father & The Lessons He Taught Me”. Visit www.FamilyTreeWebinars.com/esm to learn more or to register.

Be sure to spread the news far and wide so your friends and followers don’t miss out on this fantastic content! 

Tacoma Pierce County Genealogical Society March Meeting

Tacoma Pierce County Genealogical Society General Membership Meeting

Tuesday, March 14 from 6:00 pm to 7:50 pm Hybrid In-Person and via Zoom

Our speaker will be Sara Cochran, presenting “When Irish Eyes are Smiling.”Using vital records to discover information about your Irish heritage. She spoke to us in October and is a thoroughly enjoyable and knowledgeable speaker.

Note: This zoom/hybrid meeting will be in the smaller Conference Room at the Parkland Spanaway PC Library, located at 13718 Pacific Ave, (SR7) just north of Papa Murphy’s Pizza, so we do ask that it be limited to 6-8 in-person attendees, please RSVP to VP-Programs@tpcgs.org. Our next meeting in April is planned to be in their Meeting Room which is larger. The library closes at 8pm.  

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86718143644?pwd=S0FjYU5acVVKbDEyamdXWWZVekFjdz09

Meeting ID: 867 1814 3644

Passcode: 630507

One tap mobile

+12532050468,,86718143644#,,,,*630507# US

+12532158782,,86718143644#,,,,*630507# US (Tacoma)

Dial by your location

        +1 253 205 0468 US

        +1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)

Meeting ID: 867 1814 3644

Passcode: 630507

Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kcFbCNTY39

Tacoma Pierce County Genealogical Society Book Club DNA Never Lies

Tacoma Pierce County Genealogical Society Book Club Meeting

Saturday, March 18 at 3:00 pm via Zoom

Please join us as we discuss a genealogical murder mystery.

This month’s book is DNA Never Lies by Sue George

Amazon: DNA Never Lies

We will also choose future books. 

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81999213610?pwd=Qkk2WFZTZ2Rzdzc1Z0szN1AzdEZCUT09

Meeting ID: 819 9921 3610

Passcode: 479394

One tap mobile

+12532050468,,81999213610#,,,,*479394# US

+12532158782,,81999213610#,,,,*479394# US (Tacoma)

Dial by your location

        +1 253 205 0468 US

        +1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)

Meeting ID: 819 9921 3610

Passcode: 479394

Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/keibNHDdyf

Florance Nelson Named One of 2022’s Outstanding Volunteers

Since 2003, the Washington State Genealogical Society has recognized over 600 outstanding volunteers and teams, nominated by their local society or genealogical organization for their service and dedication. These volunteers are the backbone of their local society, giving their time and expertise, to the organization and the field of genealogy. In the coming months, you will be introduced to each of the 2022 award recipients and learn why they received the 2022 WSGS Outstanding Volunteer and Team Award.

Today we’re introducing Florance Irene McDonald Nelson of Buena, Washington, who was nominated by the Yakima Valley Genealogical Society (YVGS).

Florance Nelson

Florance joined YVGS around 2005 when she retired and moved to the Yakima Valley.  Always willing to help, she was appointed historian of the society in 2012 and served as such ever since. This is a job requiring her to maintain the society’s scrapbooks of events, photos, etc.

She has been involved in many aspects of YVGS and is a staff volunteer librarian devoting every Friday and one Saturday a month at the library. She helps with the hospitality committee and assists in publicity for the society.  She shows up for every fundraiser and can work circles around many of the members.

Florance took over as temporary corresponding secretary in 2019 for an ill member and was elected to that position this year.  Members like Florance keep YVGS strong. 

For more information on the WSGS Outstanding Volunteer Award program, visit the Recognition page of the WSGS website or contact Info@wasgs.org. Please type “Volunteer Award” in the subject line.

Let’s Talk About…. Vicksburg, Part 2

On this trip down the Mississippi, I carried a small notebook and scribbled notes furiously. Visiting this national park, I was especially overcome by the enormity of this battle. The notes are mine and the facts as I understood from our guide.

Soon after Christmas, 1862, Grant, under orders from President Lincoln, came down personally from Memphis “to get the job done!” His 43,000 man army was on the west side of the Mississippi and it took two days to ferry the troops, horses and armaments, across the river.  It did help Grant’s cause that the Confederate generals were in-fighting; Johnston abandoned the town of Jackson as Grant approached. But Pemberton’s troops were well entrenched in a semi-circle around Vicksburg. As well as the Confederate army, there were 3500 citizens there. As the Union forces fought their way to Vicksburg, the net closed around the town, the resistance and battlements repulsing Grant four times. But Grant had way more men and Lincoln was re-supplying him with everything and anything he needed… “with bodies for the fire.”  Finally, after losing many men, Grant decided upon a siege as his only option.

On 25 May 1863, the siege of Vicksburg began. Grant held the superior position; he could call for help. Pemberton was just the opposite; his army was trapped and he had all those civilians to think about. Grant had 200 canons and they commenced firing one by one, every fifteen seconds around the clock. The 3500 non-combatants fled the city down to the bluffs along the river to live in tents and caves, anything to avoid the canon fire.  Survival was on their minds, not battles nor politics. (Pause to imagine life in a muddy cave, with nothing to eat or drink, hearing cannon balls tearing your home and city apart.)

First the cows disappeared, then the horses. Next were the dogs and when, after 47 days, the troops and the citizens were reduced to eating rats, Pemberton surrendered on 4 July 1863,  the same day as the Battle of Gettysburg ended, signaling the end of the war. Union deaths from start to finish during the taking of Vicksburg were about 10,000 men. The Confederates lost about 9000.  These figures might reflect men killed, wounded or AWOL.

After Vicksburg, Lincoln realized that Grant had the guts to fight, versus so many other of his appointed Union generals (due to in-fighting and politics) that Lincoln appointed Grant to be General of the Army to finish the job of causing the Confederacy’s will to fight to crumble.

This is the field our guide was referring to. As we bus-toured the Vicksburg battlefield, our very knowledgeable guide paused at one point to help us imagine it as it was: Imagine a hilly-up-and-down field covering several football fields in length. You are told to charge (RUN!) from here to there in the sweltering July heat, carrying your nine pound rifle, being rather weak from too little food, and with iron balls fired from both sides raining down on you. The slaughter was horrible, “utter insanity,” said the guide.

(( TO BE CONTINUED))

Olympia Genealogical Society 2023 Spring Seminar

2023 OGS Spring Seminar

Date: Saturday, April 15, 2023

Speaker: Judy Russell

Printable 1-page flyer (8-1/2 x 11 pdf)

Registration (required):

— OGS Member Registration ($40; must be logged into OGS website to access this page.)

— Non-Member Registration ($50)

— Your payment receipt will be your registration confirmation. As the Seminar approaches, registrants will receive additional information via email.

— A recording of each presentation will be available for 30 days after the Seminar for those who register.

Seminar Program Outline:

— Where There Is – or Isn’t – a Will

— Property Rights and Wrongs – African-Americans at the Courthouse

— Linking the Generations with Court and Land Records

— “Don’t Forget the Ladies” – A Genealogist’s Guide to Women and the Law

Detailed Agenda (download/print agenda)

Information for Registered Attendees

Questions: Email us at Events@OlyGenSoc.org

Seminar Program:

Where There Is – or Isn’t – a Will — Where there’s a will, there’s a probate. And often when there isn’t a will, there’s still a probate. Understanding the process and finding the records created when our ancestors died can help break through those brick walls.

Property Rights and Wrongs – African-Americans at the Courthouse — From being treated as property to having their children and their property stolen by those who used the law against the freedmen, African Americans’ experience at the courthouse had only one bright spot: it created records for the genealogist-descendants of enslaved and enslavers alike.

Linking the Generations with Court and Land Records — It’s the single biggest issue genealogists face: how do we connect one generation to the next with evidence we can rely on? Vital records are excellent documentation, but they often don’t exist for the time and place we’re researching. That’s when we have to find workarounds to make sure we’re not simply putting people into family lines because they share the same names. Using court and land records, we can often find the evidence we need to link the generations accurately.

“Don’t Forget the Ladies” – A Genealogist’s Guide to Women and the Law — In early America, women were all too often the people who just weren’t there: not in the records, not in the censuses, not on juries, not in the voting booth. The common law relegated women to “protected” – second-class – status, and understanding how they were treated under the law provides clues to finding their identities today.

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Speaker:

Judy Russell

Judy G. Russell, The Legal Genealogist®, is a genealogist with a law degree who provides expert guidance through the murky territory where law and family history intersect. An internationally-known lecturer and award-winning writer, she holds credentials as a Certified Genealogist® and Certified Genealogical Lecturer℠ from the Board for Certification of Genealogists®. Her blog is at https://www.legalgenealogist.com.

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Detailed Agenda:

08:30 – 08:50Zoom meeting opens
08:50 – 09:00General Announcements and Introduction
09:00 – 10:00Presentation 1: Where There Is – or Isn’t – a Will
10:00 – 10:15Break
10:15 – 11:15Presentation 2: Property Rights and Wrongs – African-Americans at the Courthouse
11:15 – 11:45Lunch break
11:45 – 12:00Questions & Answers
12:00 – 01:00Presentation 3: Linking the Generations with Court and Land Records
01:00 – 01:15Break
01:15 – 02:15Presentation 4: “Don’t Forget the Ladies” – A Genealogist’s Guide to Women and the Law
02:15 – 02:30Questions & Answers