Tuesday, July 27, 2010

August Morning Meeting

Join us for the morning EGS meeting, August 3, 2010, at Gail Borden Public Library at 9:30 am. Our speaker, Jerry Allen, will be presenting “Researching Civil War Ancestors”. I’m told he’ll come to us in period dress.
Even if you don’t have Civil War Ancestors, I’m sure you’ll enjoy this talk.
Here’s hoping we’ll see you there!!

Saturday, July 24, 2010

Genea-Musings: Genealogy Message Board Searcher

Check out Randy Seaver's Genea-Musings post about a great new message board search engine specifically for genealogy! It's an add on for Google. Give it a try!!

Genea-Musings: Genealogy Message Board Searcher

Friday, July 16, 2010

Wonderful July Evening Meeting

I hope everyone enjoyed last night’s meeting as much as I did!!

First, we were pleased to present a $1,000 scholarship check to this year’s recipient, William Holderfield. William is currently working towards his doctorate in Public History at Loyola University. He shared some of the surnames from his personal genealogical search and also his goals for the future. We wish him the best and are pleased we can be of some small help.

Pictured: William Holderfield and President Larry Pepper



Then, we heard from our speaker, Tim Pinnick. He gave us such an enthusiastic and educated talk that whether one had coalminer ancestors (Tim would say “yet”) or not, the insights Tim presented carry over to any research project.

He suggested we not overlook the “gold mine” to be found in thesis and other published student papers. If you can find such papers written on you subject, you’ll find most of your research already done for you!

If you are looking for information on coal mining or even a specific coalminer, check out Tim’s website. He has wonderful helps and links to help you in your search. Also, don’t be misled by the URL, Tim has lots of general mining tips and hints for all to use. Look for him at www.blackcoalminerheritage.net.

If you ever get a chance to hear him speak, take advantage of it. He is a joy to the ears and he lightens the heart!!

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Historical County Boundaries

Newberry Library (Chicago) has put their Atlas of Historical County Boundaries online. What a wonderful resource for genealogists! Check out changes in boundaries to make sure you're looking for information in the correct county. Also, don't assume your ancestor's records will all be in the same county just because he/she never moved. It's just possible the county did!!

Be sure to bookmark this site in your favorites so you can return to it whenever you need it.

My daughter’s fingernails : Billy Coffey

My daughter’s fingernails : Billy Coffey

This isn't genealogy; more about keeping memories. Hope you enjoy this as much as I did.

July Evening Meeting

You'll not want to miss our meeting Thursday, July 15, 2010 at 7:00 pm at Gail Borden Public Library!! Nationally known speaker, Tim Pinnack will present "Coal Dust in Your Veins:  Tips, Strategies, and Resources to Bring Your Coal Mining Ancestor to the Surface".

Tim has spoken at many genealogical conferences across the country, taught at the Genealogy Institute at Samford University in Alabama and will be speaking at the upcoming Illinois State Genealogical Conference in Peoria. We are fortunate to have him with us for the evening.

Whether you have coal mining ancestors or not, you'll want to join us for this interesting talk.

See you there!!

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Thanks

Leah and Ann would like to thank all EGS members who came to the tailgate treat fest. Thanks to you the left overs were manageable.

July Morning Meeting Review

MY BAD!! Sorry about giving the wrong program information in my last post. Thanks to Ann for making the correction.
However, if you came to the meeting you know what an interesting and fun gathering it was!! Gail Hershenzon presented Do's and Dont's of Cemetery Research with great enthusiasm, expertise and humor. She shared her personal experiences as a volunteer at the Woodmere Cemetery in Detroit, Michigan. She handles all the cemetery's genealogy requests and, also, has placed burial information on their website. If you have Detroit ancestors, you might want to check out www.woodmerecemeteryresearch.com . She also suggested using the Michigan website for death certificates 1897-1920 and much more. (Use the SEEK section of the website.)


Since our normal meeting rooms were being used, we met in the library's meeting room 1 upstairs. This is a brand new very comfortable meeting room; however, Not Treats Allowed. Well, that was simply not acceptable; how can genealogists meet without some food involvement??!! Our hostesses for the day came to the rescue and created a wonderful tailgate party for us. As you can see, we had a fun, ad hoc, Independence Day feast!!

July meetings

the morning meeting is Cemetery Research

the evening meeting is Coal Dust in my Viens

Monday, July 5, 2010

July Morning Meeting

The July 6, 2010 morning meeting looks to be a great one. Tim Pinnack presents "Coal dust in your veins".
Be sure to join us at Gail Borden Public Library, 270 N. Grove, Elgin, IL. The doors open at 9:00 am and the meeting begins at 9:30.
Hope to see you there!!

Friday, July 2, 2010

Revolutionary War Documents on Footnote

Revolutionary War Documents on Footnote

Have Revolutionary War ancestors? Looking for something to do over this 4th of July weekend?

Revolutionary Was Documents on Footnote free through July 7!!