November 27 Workshop

This week's workshop began with the annual list of tips for efficient use of Ancestry and FamilySearch. Suggestions included reading the description of the database, trying unusual names, beginning with specific records rather than a global search, and being very critical of family trees posted online.

We demonstrated various ways to locate several records for one person without returning to the original search field. Browsing a section of a census is another way to find an elusive ancestor.

Sandy reported that Jan Klein has issued an invitation to anyone who is interested to attend Saturday's meeting of the DAR at 9:30 at the downtown library in Casa Grande.

November 20 Workshop

Join the DAR Revolution! was the message from Jan Klein, who spoke at this week's genealogy workshop. She provided everyone with handouts detailing the process of finding out eligiblility and proving lineage and an application form that would help sosmeone get started. Another handout listed websites useful for genealogy research.

Jan Klein, local DAR registrar

Jan concluded her talk by showing us how to navigate the DAR website. She offers assistance with research and the application.

Part of the audience

Local Authors To Speak

The Casa Grande Public Library is presenting a Local Authors Showcase next week Tuesday and Wednesday. This event will be held at the downtown library. They are encouraging people to attend the whole meeting and not just the when the author is presenting because 1) Purchases can be made before or after the event; cash or check only. 2) Book signing and chatting with the author personally is scheduled for before or after the author speaks.They may not use up their entire 30 minute allotment.

Tuesday, Nov 27th

5:00-5:30 pm  Mr. Christopher Chapman on his engrossing memoir of his ex-army Vietnam experience (the gentleman is also a Vista Grande High School teacher!)

5:30-6:00 pm  Mr. Rod Collins on his first mystery novella. Mr. Rod is a member of Inklings the Library’s Writer’s Group.

6:00-6:30 pm  Mr. Pedro Villegas Puerto Rican is an ex-undercover narcotic agent who was responsible for the single largest hand-to-hand drug bust in the United States.



Wednesday, Nov 28th

5:00-530 pm Ms. Patricia Steele on her latest book. She’s our only returning author from last year.

5:30-6:00 pm Ms. Saskia Tepe on her memoir and mother’s escape from the Holocaust.

6:00-6:30 pm Ms. Lynne Anders, who writes novels about the Midwest.

6:30-7:00 p. Ms. Wendy Landers has published multiple books. She just submitted a screen play to Copa Shorts Film Festival (in the city of Maricopa).



Here is additional information on two of the speakers for Wednesday:

Ms. Patricia Steele delved into her ancestry to find a remarkable story which she has since published called The Girl Immigrant about the Spaniard families who immigrated to Hawaii. Apparently it happened in two or three waves. However, she will be talking about her newest book.

Ms. Sasika Tepe kept the family tree closer by digging into her mother’s story. She will be speaking about her book Surviving Brigitte’s Secrets. “A unique story of how Brigitte Langer survived the Holocaust, as well as her daughter Saskie’s own experiences as a child refugee in post war Germany, during the 1950s and beyond. It is an inspiring story of triumph over adversity, their struggles to overcome the deep emotional wounds of war and its aftermath, and how both rebuilt their lives in the UK.”—Ms. Saskia lives here in Casa Grande now.

November Notes

At the November 13 workshop members shared "places they've been," including cemeteries, libraries, local museums, and the Family History Library. More new members joined us, and there was time for research and questions. A Canada research group began working together.


This week Jan Klein, the registrar of the local DAR chapter, will be speaking about the membership process and the DAR website.


The 2019 Pinal County Genealogy Workshop will be held on Saturday, January 26. All information and registration forms should be posted on the web by December 1. More later on this event.

Craft Fair Volunteers

We were happy to have a table inside the ballroom this week. The most difficult task when you volunteer to staff our genealogy table at craft fairs is taking care of Bone-Apart.

The Maureens

Jan & Bob

Dick and Annie also were part of the volunteer crew. We welcomed several new members Tuesday evening after they had visited our table during the fair.

Directory of Irish Genealogy

George Morgan posted this information in today's Internet Genealogy Newsletter.


Persons with Irish ancestors will appreciate the Directory of Irish Genealogy Web site.

http://homepage.tinet.ie/~seanjmurphy/dir/index.htm.

First published in 1990 and online since 1998, the directory contains an excellent collection of materials to further your research. The site also includes a link to the 2017 edition of A Primer in Irish Genealogy (PDF file), edited by Sean J. Murphy. It provides an extensive introduction to Irish genealogy research with guidance to reference and general sources of all types. Another link from the site goes to a database of The Church of Ireland Gazette, 1856-1923.

November 6 Workshop

Fourteen people attended our first workshop of the season, a good group for early in November. We reviewed some basics for beginning your genealogy research, such as steps to follow and suggested forms for writing names, dates and places. We also took a brief look at the FamilyTree section of FamilySearch, as their format has changed slightly since last spring.

We took an informal survey of the group to find out which method of recording information is being used. Several members are using more than one option. Here are results:

9:  Software programs such as Family Tree Maker, Legacy, etc.       

7:  Ancestry                                                                                       

6:  FamilySearch                                                                               

Free Records on FindMyPast

Eastmans Online Genealogy Newsletter included the following article today.


The following announcement was written by Findmypast:

Findmypast makes entire collection of more than 9 Billion records and all historical newspapers free for three days.

All UK, Irish, Australian, New Zealand, Canadian and US records as well as all British, Irish and World Newspapers are free from the 9th to the 12th November 2018.

Leading British & Irish family history website, Findmypast, will be making their entire collection of world military records free for three days in honour of the 100-year anniversary of the end of the First World War.    https://www.findmypast.com/military-family/

A century on from the end of the war, family historians can explore all of Findmypast’s records and newspapers free of charge.

Over 9 billion records covering the UK, Ireland, the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, as well as Findmypast’s vast archive of British, Irish and World Newspapers, will be completely free to search and explore.


Does this seem a bit ambiguous? It is difficult to tell whether they are referring to only military records or the entire collection. If you have any free time, it's a worthwhile way to spend it!

Canada Census News

Eastman's Online Genealogy Newsletter this morning had some very good news for Canadian researchers. The clip below reports on the release of the 1926 Census of the Canadian Prairie Provinces.


"According to the Library and Archives Canada web site the 1926 Census of the Canadian Prairie Provinces, which contains over 45,000 pages, is being transferred to Library and Archives Canada. Over the summer, Statistics Canada concluded an agreement with FamilySearch to index the thousands of census entries so Canadians can find the material on the Library and Archives Canada website easily.

FamilySearch has completed the indexing and is now proceeding with quality control. On December 1, FamilySearch will send the proposed index to Library and Archives Canada to will start building a new database. The Census database will consist of a free searchable index as well as the digitized images from the 1926 Census of Prairie Provinces.

Library and Archives Canada expects to have an online database by March 2019."