2009 Finds at the Family History Library

by Kathryn Doyle (4/8/2009)

The ninth annual CGS Tour to Salt Lake City came to a successful close with the traditional Saturday night dinner at Lamb’s Grill. Members regaled each other with the stories of their successes and lauded leaders Jane Knowles Lindsey and Nancy Simons Peterson after an exhausting but satisfying week.


Here’s a short list of some of the discoveries:

Jane Knowles Lindsey went back three more generations on her HUND family in Germany.

The 1850 U.S. Census Mortality Schedule of Peoria County, Illinois gave Sandy Jones Fryer insight into why her great-grandmother, Elizabeth Taylor, knew so little about her family of origin. The youngest of ten children, little Elizabeth was only three years old when her parents both died in 1849 of typhoid fever.

Judy Bodycote Thomas traced her Gilbert Cooke family of Leicestershire, England back two more generations.

Shirley Buxton Williams struck gold in German records, finding six generations of her SCHNECKENBURGER family in Baden.

Bill Bryant’s first trip to Salt Lake City was an adventure as he, Jane and Nancy traced his paternal Uncle Gustav through England and France, finally finding his marriage in Constantinople.

Cathy Merrill Paris ventured into German records and located Joseph BALS and learned that the original records have so much more information than the IGI.

Alison Kern Shedd discovered eight pages of bible records for the Clark HALL family of Orleans County, New York.

Bill O’Neil has tracked his wife’s grandfather Wilson from Jacksonville, Illinois to a homestead in Nebraska to Denver Colorado. He finally found him in the 1920 census living with a daughter in Los Angeles.

Susan Nourse Peterson found a physical description of her great-grandfather, Glenn Lamb, in the 1894-1896 Great Register of California Voters: 5’9″ with auburn hair and blue eyes. Susan and daughter Sharon have become regulars on the annual trip.

Gloria Hanson completed her full Norwegian “to-do” list, crossing off the last item on the last day. She also did a bit of research for a friend and learned they may be related.

Laura Spurrier used land records to prove that Richard Spurrier with wife Elizabeth and Richard B. Spurrier with wife Eliza, contemporaries in 19th century Morgan County, Ohio, were two different men. The former couple moved to Iowa; the latter stayed in Ohio and were her great-great grandparents. She also learned more about his middle initial “B” and may have a new clue about an earlier generation.

Honored as One of the Top 25 Genealogy Blogs

by Kathryn Doyle (4/6/2009)

The CGSL blog is proudly displaying a new badge in the sidebar. ProGenealogists, Inc. announced their list of the 25 Most Popular Genealogy Blogs and we made the cut! CGS is represented by two other blogging members who made the list – Steve Danko and Craig Manson.

Top 25 Genealogy Blogs as of 3 April 2009:

  1. About.com Genealogy (Kimberly Powell)

  2. Eastman Online Newsletter (Dick Eastman)

  3. Genea-Musings (Randy Seaver)

  4. Creative Gene (Jasia)

  5. Dear Myrtle (Pat Richely)

  6. AnceStories (Miriam Midkiff)

  7. Genealogue (Chris Dunham)

  8. footnoteMaven (Anonymous)

  9. Genetic Genealogist (Blaine Bettinger)

  10. Tracing The Tribe: Jewish Genealogy Blog (Schelly Talalay Dardashti)

  11. GenaBlogie (Craig Manson)

  12. Olive Tree Genealogy Blog (Lorine McGinnis Schulze)

  13. Steve’s Genealogy Blog (Stephen J. Danko)

  14. 24-7 Family History Circle (Juliana Smith)

  15. TransylvanianDutch (John Newmark)

  16. GenDisasters (Stu Beitler)

  17. Genealogy Insider @ FamilyTree (Diane Haddad)

  18. Think Genealogy (Mark Tucker)

  19. California Genealogical Society and Library Blog (California Genealogical Society)

  20. The Genealogy Guys (George G. Morgan and Drew Smith)

  21. CanadaGenealogy, or, ‘Jane’s Your Aunt’ (Diane Rogers)

  22. Ancestry Insider (Anonymous)

  23. GenealogyBlog (Leland Meitzler)

  24. Ancestor Search Blog (Kathi)

  25. Tie Hugh Watkins Genealogue (Hugh Watkins) [tie]

  26. Legacy News (Legacy Tree Software) [tie]

Leland Meitzler posted the full press release which also includes this year’s list of the 50 Most Popular Genealogy Websites for 2009.

Thanks very much to ProGenealogists, Inc. for the honor to be listed among so many excellent genealogy blogs!

Coats of Arms, Crests and Heraldry: A Genealogist’s Overview – May 9, 2009

by Kathryn Doyle (4/3/2009)

May Membership Meeting with Jim Terzian
A Genealogist’s Overview: Coats of Arms, Crests and Other Heraldry that is Part of Family Heritage

Saturday, May 9, 2009, 1:00 p.m.
California Genealogical Society Library
2201 Broadway, Suite LL2
Oakland, California 946121

Kings and courtiers, gentlemen and family groups have borne coats-of-arms for over thirty generations. Yet most of us, even extremely experienced genealogists, know very little about them or how to use them in our research. What exactly are coats-of-arms and crests? Who has them, when did they develop and where does a family get them? What resources exist to help you use heraldry as a tool in your research?

Join CGS for a ninety-minute presentation by Jim Terzian, Executive Director of the Heraldry Foundation and Secretary-Treasurer of the “Royal Bastards” – Descendants of the Illegitimate Sons and Daughters of the Kings of Britain.

For almost forty years, Jim Terzian has been a student of heraldry and genealogy, representing the United States as a delegate to the International Congresses of Genealogical and Heraldic Sciences since 1996, serving as a member of the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society Heraldry Committee from 1995 to 2004 and serving as Executive Director of the Heraldry Foundation since 2003. Professionally Mr. Terzian is principal of the Terzian International Group, a 21-year-old Silicon Valley firm that develops and launches technology start-up companies, products and services.

Please note that the short membership meeting starts promptly at 1:00 p.m. Mr. Terzian’s’ talk follows at about 1:20 p.m. Please arrive early.