THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM OF OREGON’S Wednesday Evening E-News

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THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM OF OREGON’S Wednesday Evening E-News

3 February 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-Feb.pdf. Look for the April 2016 Insider coming out next month. Check our website for the link on our Newsletter page.

Global RootsTech Conference Announces Free Online Broadcast Schedule
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THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM OF OREGON Wednesday Evening E-News

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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 our monthly Insider, you’re in luck because we saved you a copy at http://www.gfo.org/insider/16-Jan.pdf.

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Hurry! Hurry! Hurry! There’s still time before Jan 31st!

2015-12-30 1845
Take a walk down your ancestors’ memory lane. Continue reading

THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM OF OREGON’S Wednesday Evening E-News

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THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM OF OREGON’S Wednesday Evening E-News

20 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.

House Histories Workshop? Time’s a Tickin’!!

HouseHistory

The GFO would like to cordially invite you to come hear our very own Connie Lenzen, author, researcher and board-certified genealogist, teach about the histories of the brick and mortar we all call home.

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.

Continue reading

THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM OF OREGON’S Wednesday Evening E-News

GenForum

THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM OF OREGON’S Wednesday Evening E-News

13 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.

Reminder about the January Monthly Program

GFO proudly presents Stephen Hanks, author of Akee Tree, Saturday, January 16th, 2pm – 4pm.

This event is free to the Public…so no excuses!

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.

Save the Dates for October 15 – 16, 2016

We understand that planning ahead is important, and we’d love to be first on your list of exotic places to visit, especially since we have the best views, activities, events, and of course the best company! Continue reading

Genealogical Forum of Oregon Wednesday E-News

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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!!

Akee

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.

NY

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.

©2015 Genealogical Forum Of Oregon | 2505 SE 11th Ave., Suite B-18, Portland, OR 97202

Genealogical Forum of Oregon Wednesday News

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THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM OF OREGON Wednesday Evening E-News 30 December 2015

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 our monthly Insider, you’re in luck because we saved you a copy at http://www.gfo.org/insider/16-Jan.pdf.

Monthly Program and January’s Seminar

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2015-12-30

Monthly Program on Saturday, January 16th, 2pm – 4pm

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.

House Histories Seminar, Sunday, January 31st, 9:30am – noon

Come hear our very own Connie Lenzen, author, researcher and board-certified genealogist, teach about the fascinating histories of houses. Don’t forget to register early, as this session is limited to 50 attendees! Click here for a registration form.

*** Continue reading

Genealogical Forum of Oregon Wishes you Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas
The Genealogical Forum of Oregon would like to extend our warmest wishes to all our members, patrons and supporters for a safe and lovely Christmas holiday.

GFO’s Research Library will close at 5 p.m. today, December 23rd, and will be closed again from 1 p.m. on Thursday, December 24th, until 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, December 26th.

We will also be observing the world’s most recent revolution around the sun the last week of this month. In other words, the Library will be closed from 1 p.m. on Thursday, December 31st, until 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, January 2nd.

*** Continue reading

Genealogical Forum of Oregon Wednesday News

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THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM OF OREGON’S

Wednesday Evening E-News

16 December 2015

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/15-Nov.pdf. Look for the January 2016 Insider coming soon! Check on our website for the link on our Newsletter page.

Annual Appeal – End of the Year Donations

Don’t forget that as a 503(c)(3) non-profit organization, all gifts, devices and contributions made toward the GFO are tax deductible!
Consider giving before the end of the year for a tax break on your 2015 filing.

Click here for a link to our Annual Appeal letter for more information. Or simply donate via your Paypay account by sending any amount to payments@gfo.org.

Holiday Hours – What are you still doing here? Go celebrate the season!  

Please remember to be safe out there, and happy holidays to all from the GFO!

The Library will be close at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, December 23rd, and from 1 p.m. on Thursday, December 24th, until 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, December 26th.

We will also be observing the world’s most recent revolution around the sun the last week of this month. In other words, the Library will be closed from 1 p.m. on Thursday, December 31st, until 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, January 2nd.

January Seminar – “Discover Your House History”
 

HouseHistory

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.

So register early, and be quick about it, as this session is limited to 50 attendees! Click here for a registration form.

What’s Happening this Week at the GFO?

Hunting and Gathering – Saturday, December 19th, 9:30am – 11am

Join us for a monthly support group where we help each other find information about a family line. We will share expertise about resources and search strategies. We will learn to do a reasonably exhaustive search and develop research plans. The focus will shift depending on the needs of the group. Free to members. Visitors may request a guest pass at education@gfo.org.

Library Work Party – Sunday, December 20th and 27th, 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 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.

Don’t forget: GFO Book Group to meet Saturday, January 9th, at 11:45am – 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. There are 3 copies of the book available at the library. Please call the front desk (503-963-1932) to ask if any are still available, as they’re goin’ fast!

Announcement, announcement – Class hours have been changed!
Don’t let the printed version of the January Insider fool you. We’re shaking a couple things up.

Firstly, some sad news. Our “Photoshop Elements” class will be MIA in January, but we’ll keep you posted on the February schedule.

Secondly, some awesome news! For lovers of our “Learn & Chat” sessions with Connie Lenzen, these 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., but don’t forget to pop on upstairs for a snack in between.

©2015 Genealogical Forum Of Oregon | 2505 SE 11th Ave., Suite B-18, Portland, OR 97202

Genealogical Forum of Oregon Wednesday Evening E-News

GenForum

THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM OF OREGON’S Wednesday Evening E-News

9 December 2015

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/15-Nov.pdf.

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Suplus Books are 50% off now through December 24th! Did someone say Holiday shopping?

Looking for the perfect gift this holiday season? All of our Surplus books are 50% off now through December 24th.

Search our available titles on our website here!

To find just the item you’re looking for, please remember that our Surplus Books List is organized by geographical location. For faster searching, however, users may want to try holding down the “Ctrl” key on their keyboards and tapping the “F” key and then type in a search term, such as “England”, “Soldiers”, “Passengers” or “Dutch”.

To order books from the list, please email booksales@gfo.org, and include the ID, title and price. Payments may be made on PayPal or by check.

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Genealogical Forum of Oregon Newsletter

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THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM OF OREGON’S  Wednesday Evening E-News

2 December 2015

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/15-Nov.pdf.

That’s right, you heard it here: Genealogy in the News!

Ever wonder what use handwritten letters might have in the future?

Will anyone want to cherish these scraps of paper the way you feel they should be cherished? Will anyone care at all to read and study the tales of family history contained in their ink-stained pages?

An article from The Guardian, November 08, 2015 shows just how valuable long lost letters can be, both to scholars of general history, but also to genealogical research.

Did someone say census data??

Portland State Univesity has created a wonderfully insightful and interactive collection of maps and graphs showing “Oregon’s Road to 4 Million” via census records data from 1859 to current. Researchers with Oregon genealogy in their history can find some very telling information just by viewing the trends in population growth and migration changes over the last 150 years.

Announcing, not one, but TWO new indexes at the GFO!

Indexes

Try to contain your excitement, folks, but not too much, because the GFO’s Friday Morning Data Extraction Team needs a huge three cheers of thanks.

Because of the hard work of the Extraction Team, we now have two new indexes of Oregon State Divorce records.

The new indexes are available at $10 each and may be purchased as eityher a CD or on a USB drive.

Come get them while they’re still hot:
•Volume 1: Oregon State Divorces 1925-1929
•Volume 2: Oregon State Divorces 1930-1934

The team is currently working on divorces from 1935-1939 (expected index availability is 2016) and is in the early stages of working on divorces from 1940 – 1945. Continue reading