Vol 8 No 11 ...Editor: Gail Gilbert ...November 2001
South Orange County California Genealogical Society
P. O. Box 4513, Mission Viejo, CA. 92690
Monthly meetings are held on the third Saturday of each month from 10:00 a.m. to Noon at the Mission Viejo Family History Center Institute Building, 27978 Marguerite Parkway, Mission Viejo, between Medical Center Drive and Hillcrest Drive. Membership is open to anyone wishing to join. Yearly membership fees are $20 per calendar year for individuals, $25 for joint membership. SOCCGS is not affiliated with the LDS Family History Center.
PRESIDENT'S COLUMN
SERENDIPITY or PERSEVERANCE? Certainly a blend of each is involved in tracking our ancestors. Was it serendipity that led Leon Smith, who spoke to us at the October meeting, to finally establish the correct link to his Revolutionary War Ancestor, Thomas G. Moore? I suspect so, but not without fifteen years of perseverance.
Serendipity was most definitely behind my discovery of a Mayflower passenger on my family tree. While at the Orange Family History Center I was bored with my regular researching and decided to "read up" on the Mayflower. I knew there was an "uncle" ancestor, Edward Winthrop, who came over in 1620, but it never occurred to me to search for a direct line to the
Pilgrims. In the index of the book "Marriages of the Mayflower" I found the name George Lewis, which happens to be the name of my five-great grandfather. Further research has proved his wife, Mary Davis, to be my direct link to John Howland, the thirteenth signer of the Mayflower Compact.
Is it any wonder that genealogy is the second most popular hobby in the
United States and that sites pertaining to genealogy are the second most
visited on the Internet?
***General Meeting Notes: In the coming months we are going to ask for more member-participation at our meetings. I am sure that we all enjoyed hearing about Leon Smith’s genealogical journey at the October meeting and, in November, Shirley Fraser will be sharing a favorite story. Are you next on the list? I may be calling!
Be sure to check out our ever-expanding CD collection at the library. New books are on order also! The Surname Registry is ready for your perusal at the docent desk. Also, Herb Abrams has put it online at the SOCCGS site. You can add your names to this registry at any time. Simply send your list to Herb or me. Those of you who have already submitted your information, and have additions or corrections, may do the same.
Remember, you will have fun, be informed and enjoy treats if you attend the monthly meetings. You might even find a "cousin"! The next meeting is November 17. See you there.
Mary Jo McQueen
17 November 2001 Our Society will be honored to welcome George Washington as our guest at the November meeting. President Washington is the delightful interpretation by Ted Alexander who has been giving re-enactments of this historical personage for some time now. It promises to be an entertaining and informative program.
In addition, the SOCCGS will hold elections at this meeting to select the Officers for the upcoming year, 2002.
15 December 2001At this meeting the new Board Members will be installed. As is our custom, this meeting is reserved for informal socializing with other members. In the past we have all felt our Holiday meeting to be very special because it gives us ample time to get around to everyone and chat. Refreshments will be served, and members are certainly welcome to share their special treats with the group.
The docent staff at the SOCCGS genealogy section of the MV Library has increased by four new volunteers. We heartily welcome Bill Bluett, Sandy Crowley, Eileen Merchant and Virginia Makielski to the staff. Anyone interested in joining this select group should contact Janet Franks or Mary Jo McQueen. More hands are always needed.
Thanks to Fred Roberts who has donated a cd of his research concerning the Russian Railroad Services Corps, 1917 - 1919
The November SAFARI will be to visit the Cole Library in Carlsbad. Please call Janet Franks for details.
The nominees for the year 2002 are:
President, Mary Jo McQueen
Recording Secretary, Joe Barney
Vice President, Judy Deeter
Corresponding Secretary, Pat Weeks
Treasurer, Ruby White
Mary Jo McQueeen and Herb Abrams have been working diligently to compile a list of surnames that our SOCCGS members are researching and are willing to share their findings. To date, Herb has type a list of over 600 entries with dates and locations. An example of an entry would be:
"Boyer – 1650-1900, France>Canada>Illinois>Missouri" followed by an identification number of the submitter and how to contact that person. Please submit your names to Herb and be included in this database.
OCTOBER GUESTS
Guests are our October meeting were: Caroline Phelps, Janeth Carpenter, Shirley Dipsiner, Earl Allison, Rhoda Klein, Ray Nienburg and Robin Springer.
3 November 2001 This Saturday the Hemet-San Jacinto Genealogical Society will hold a seminar featuring Dr. George K. Schweitzer. He will speak on "Rivers to Trails to Roads to Canals to Trains", transportation and genealogy, frontier religion and its effects. This seminar will be held at the Hemet Elks Lodge, 1305 W. Florida Ave., Hemet CA (SW corner of Florida and Elk Streets, parking in the rear). Registration begins at 8 am. Lunch available with pre-registration only, and pre-registration closed October 19th. At the door registration is $25.
10 November 2001 Judy Deeter and Adrienne Kirkey will present the program "Stories from Beyond the Stucco Walls" sponsored by the Mission Viejo Cultural Arts Series. Judy has photographed and studies symbols and designs used in local buildings that are representations of historical happenings. Her partner, Adrienne Kirkey, is both a singer and a songwriter and will perform songs to accompany the slides and stories related. Admission is FREE, donations will be gladly accepted at the door. The program begins at 7:00 pm, at the Sherry Butterfield Community Room at the MV Library. Seating is limited but you can make reservations by calling 470-3061, 8 to 5. Those with reservations are asked to arrive at 6:30 to pick up the tickets. By 6:50 there will be open seating, if available.
11 November 2001 The Jewish Genealogy Society of Orange County will sponsor a free workshop on this date from 1 to 4 pm. It is to be held at Clubhouse 1 Art Gallery, Gate 1, Leisure World, Laguna Woods. There will be maps, US records, translators, and reference books available for use. You can learn more by calling (949)855-4692 or look at their website: <http://www.jewishgen.org/jgsoc>
17 November 2001 A Special Program on "The Molecular Genealogy Research Project of Brigham Young University" will be presented from 10 am to 2 pm at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 1981 Chestnut Avenue, Carlsbad, CA. Sponsored by the North SanDiego Co. Genealogical Society and the Church of LDS, this program will also offer the opportunity to participate in this DNA project by submitting a blood sample and a 4 generation pedigree chart. The presentation will be at 10 am and the blood drawing will run from 11:15 to 2 pm. This is a unique opportunity to learn about this new field of genetic genealogy and one which I don't think we will want to miss.
13-14 April 2002 Southern California Genealogical Society’s Annual Genealogical Jamboree will be held at Pasadena. Info: (818)843-7247 or http://www.sogsgenealogy.com
7-10 August 2002 The 2002 Federation of Genealogical Societies Conference will be hosted next summer by the CA State Genealogical Alliance at the Ontario Convention Center. The conference will celebrate the ethnic diversity of this country since its founding, and lectures and activities will emphasize all the many cultures in our society today and how they influence the work of today's genealogists. Details will be posted on the FGS Website at http://www.fgs.org. You can also write FGS, PO Box 200940, Austin, TX 78720-0940.
1. Continuous classes are offered at the Mission Viejo Family History Center at 27976 Marguerite Parkway. To register call (949) 364-2742. The Center no longer has a website to consult.
2. The Fall schedule for NARA workshops follows. To register call (949) 360-2641. Nov 3 Sat 9:30 a.m. Preparing for the 1930 CensusNEW AT THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES
1930 Census finding aids are now available at our local National Archives. They include T1224 – Enumeration District Descriptions, Rolls 61-90 and M1930 – Enumeration District Maps, Rolls 1-36.
In addition, naturalization records for the U.S. District Courts of Tucson (1915-1991), Phoenix (1929-1991), Las Vegas (1956-1991) and the Arizona (1864-1915) Territorial Courts are now housed at the Laguna Niguel NARA site.
DO THINGS LOOK DIFFERENT?
No, I’m not talking about the leaves changing color! I mean, the newsletter has resorted to old hands for a few months. Acting editor, Gail Gilbert, has again been hospitalized and will be recuperating from surgery. So they begged and pleaded and I agreed to substitute for a few months. Please hurry up and get well Gail, or I might be joining you! Pat Weeks
USING THE LOCAL NEWSPAPERS
A big thanks to Nancy Giles for her splendid talk on newspaper research last meeting. I am an avid fan of this tool because that is how the researcher gets the excitement into genealogy and learns the temperature of the community. It is such information found that puts some color into those long deceased ancestors’ images.
I feel I must further emphasize that newspaper microfilm can be ordered, but only through a local library on an inter library loan program.(ILL). And the microfilm must stay in the library and be read at that library. It cannot be ordered at a FHC, or by an individual and delivered to your home. UCI only provides ILL service to currently enrolled students or staff members. Saddleback College will order, but their equipment is as difficult to use as that at the MV Library. We already have one SOCCGS member maimed with tennis elbow trying to read microfilm using the Saddleback College equipment! I don’t want to be next!!
COMPUTERIZED GENEALOGY
The following databases are available at our local Family History Center, and are free to use:
*1851 British Census – 1.5 million, of Devon, Norfolk and Warwick
*1881 British Census – 30 million names. England, Wales, Scotland, Channel Islands and Isle of Man
*1880 United States Census – 50 million names
*Freedman’s Bank Records (1864-1871) 480,000 ex-slaves and others
*Mayflower Descendents
*Pedigree Resources Files 9PRF) 1+ million individuals per CD
*Vital Records Index – Scandinavia (1620-1905) 4.5 million, Denmark (1630-1905), Finland (1656-1890), Norway (1650-1903), Sweden (1610-1888)
*Vital Records Index – Australia (1708-1905), 4.5 million, New South Wales(1788-1888), Tasmania (1803-1899), Western Australia (1841-1905), Victoria (1837-1888)
*Vital Records Index – British Isles (1500s-1888) 5+ million
*Vital Records Index – Middle America: Mexico (1659-1905) 2+ million
*Vital Records Index – North America (1631-1888) 4.6+ million
*Vital Records Index – Western Europe (1500s-1905) 12.5 million
*Jewish Ancestry Database (available only in Salt Lake City)
A Little Humor
From a friend employed at Washington University, St Louis Mo. –" Latest news reports advise that a cell of 4 terrorists has been operating at Washington University. Police advised earlier today that 3 of the 4 have been detained. A security guard spokesman stated that the terrorists Bin Sleepin, Bin Drinkin and Bin Fightin have been arrested on immigration issues.
The spokesman further advises that they can find no one fitting the description of the fourth cell member, Bin Workin, in the building. Police are confident that anyone who looks like Workin will be very easy to spot."
South Orange County California Genealogical Society
Membership/Renewal Application
( ) New 1 Year ( ) Individual, $20 ( ) Jt. Members, same address $25
( ) Renewal Membership Number(s) _______________ ___________________
Name(s) ________________________________________________________________
Address _________________________________________________________________
City ____________________________ State_____Zip__________Phone ___________________
Make check payable to: SOCCGS (South Orange County CA Genealogical Society) Check No. __________________
Mail with application to: SOCCGS, P.O. Box 4513, Mission Viejo, CA 92690-4513 Date Rec'd__________________