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As Americans, we have a unique history with the threads of many generations woven together into one diverse tapestry. This year as we begin the celebration of 250 years of American independence, we honor more than just the founding fathers—we honor every man, woman, and child who helped build this nation throughout our history.
From the earliest settlers to newly arrived immigrants, from Indigenous ancestors whose roots stretch back millennia to enslaved Africans and their descendants and to all families seeking freedom, hope, and opportunity here—America’s story is the story we tell through our family history.
With our documented research, we are guardians of the story of America through the eyes of those who are the threads of our history. Every name we save, every record we uncover, every story we preserve and share, memorializes the people who built and shaped this country—not just in the halls of power, but in its homes, fields, factories, and communities.
Genealogical and historical societies are already planning special events to aid genealogists in their quests to preserve history and encourage involvement in family history among the younger generations, whose interest may be sparked by nationwide festivities. The National Genealogical Society (NGS) has created a helpful guide full of ideas and ways societies can organize events. Individuals can also participate in our national celebration in meaningful ways.
As we begin the year of the United States Semiquincentennial, let’s double down our efforts to tell the stories that need to be told and inspire future generations to discover their place in American history.
Happy Independence Day!
Note: The NGS offices will be closed in observance of the national holiday on July 4th.
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| James Worris Moore, Archivist at the National Archives (1956-1998) |
2 JUNE 2025—The National Genealogical Society (NGS) announced the launch of the James Worris Moore Leadership Academy at its annual Family History Conference on 25 May 2025. James Worris Moore (1930-2019) was an archivist at the National Archives for forty-two years. A tireless advocate for genealogical research and record preservation, he was dedicated to ensuring public access to historical records. In the same spirit, the academy aims to shape the future of genealogy by empowering the next generation of leaders in the family history community.
The Moore Leadership Academy offers an opportunity for individuals passionate about genealogy and family history to develop the skills, knowledge, and experience to forge a pathway toward leadership in this exciting field.
The academy is now accepting applications. To apply, individuals must meet at least one of three criteria: be under forty-five years old, have three to five years of family history research experience, or belong to a group underrepresented in NGS. Successful applicants will receive
The application deadline is 30 June 2025, and the first cohort is scheduled to begin in September 2025.
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Contact: Matt Menashes, CAE
Phone: 703-525-0050
Email: mattm@ngsgenealogy.org
24 MAY 2025—The National Genealogical Society (NGS) presented awards to those whose work highlights excellence in genealogy scholarship and service at a plenary session on Saturday morning, 24 May, during its Family History Conference, Tales & Trails, at the Galt House in Louisville, Kentucky. Felicia Jamison, PhD, assistant professor of history at the University of Louisville, gave the keynote address, “Recovering Louisville’s African American History Using Genealogical Research.” Awards Committee Chair Judy Nimer Muhn presented the Awards of Merit, Awards of Excellence, and Certificates of Appreciation.
The Award of Merit is presented to an individual or non-profit genealogical or historical organization to recognize exceptional contributions to the field of genealogy over a period of five or more years. Their work must have significantly aided research or increased interest in genealogy. This year the NGS board of directors presented the award to the following distinguished leaders in our sector.
The British Isles Family History Society of Greater Ottawa (BIFHSGO) is recognized for its outstanding work to connect, educate, share, and inspire people in the pursuit of genealogy. It supports researchers in Canada and beyond with effective research methods and practices focused on the British Isles. Its broad scope of programming includes in-person meetings, online education, publications, indexes to special populations of those of British Isles descent, and access to presentations of international speakers. The BIFHSGO continues to provide its members valuable content, a vibrant community of fellow researchers, and access to high-quality resources.
Valerie-Anne Lutz, MSLIS, is president of the board of directors of the Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania (GSP) and a longtime member of NGS. Since at least 2008, Lutz has been an enthusiastic and indefatigable volunteer for the GSP. She is a past chair of its Membership Committee and currently chairs its Technology and Website Committee and the Library and Collections Committee. She has served on the GSP Board of Directors since 2011, was secretary in 2014, and is its current president.
Annie S. Mabry has dedicated more than thirty years to the field of genealogy. Her contributions have significantly aided research and increased public interest in family history. Perhaps Mabry’s greatest impact has been through her education initiatives. She has trained 3,250+ individuals in beginner, intermediate, and advanced genealogical methods. Through partnerships with the Blair-Caldwell African American Research Library, she has made genealogy more accessible to diverse communities, equipping participants with tools to uncover and preserve their family stories.
Elizabeth Swanay O’Neal, CG, has been active in the genealogy community for the past decade. Since 2019, she has served in a volunteer capacity as the director of the National Genealogical Society Quarterly (NGSQ) Study Groups, which meet monthly to discuss the publication’s case studies. O’Neal is a leader in the Association of Professional Genealogists and has served as president of the South California Chapter since 2021. She is a past president of the Second Life Chapter and served as vice president and president of the Second Life Virtual Genealogical Society. She is currently the education and programs director for Santa Barbara County Genealogical Society. She was the Genealogical Speakers Guild secretary and a ProGen Study Group Coordinator. For the Daughters of the American Revolution, she has acted as genealogy consultant, national chair of Congress Online, and national chair of Volunteer Information Specialists.
Ilmo. Sr. D. Pablo Antonio Pérez was born in Argentina and began researching his family history at the age of 14. He is dedicated to preserving the genealogy records, heraldry, history and ethnography from the island of Chiloé (Chile) as well as from Spain and other regions under historical German influence. He holds a Diploma in Genealogy, Heraldry and Nobility from the Instituto Español de Estudios Nobiliarios as well as Master in Nobility and Awards Law, Heraldry and Genealogy from the Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia, Spain. Pérez is a prolific researcher and writer. He researched and published the first genealogies of Indigenous families from Chiloé, and has published three books and numerous scholarly articles in academies, universities, institutes, and research centers. His research has been published in ten languages and fourteen countries.
Donna Potter Phillips has been a strong supporter and volunteer of the Eastern Washington Genealogical Society since 1975. She has held multiple leadership roles on the Board and initiated the Annual Board Retreat. She launched online classes and multi-class workshops and spearheaded an Obituary Project. which added over 100,000 records to the society’s online research index. She led the Walking with Ancestors event for several years and taught many beginning genealogy classes. Phillips has been a guest speaker at local sister societies and is a published author of her former newspaper column, Heritage Hunting, which ran for ten years.
Allen Thomas, a former Clerk of Court in Laurens County, Georgia, undertook and completed a herculean, fifteen-year project to preserve the records found three cardboard boxes in an old vault at the courthouse, which held 31,895 original documents from the nineteenth century. Original documents such as these have great historical value. The majority of the documents are estate records. Numerous other types of documents included guardian bonds, sheriff bonds, jury commissioner oaths, oaths of numerous elected officials, etc. These documents were bundled in separate categories. Thomas rearranged the documents into 3,800 files based on given and family names. He then spent years keying an abstract of each document into the computer. The documents are now housed at Laurens County, Georgia Public Library, where they are available for historical and genealogical research six days a week.
Barbara West, is a ninety-three-year-old volunteer who has been actively involved in the Roscommon County Genealogical Society of Michigan for over twenty years. A trustee on the Executive Board, she administers the society’s research center on Mondays and Wednesdays, offering her years of expertise and knowledge to patrons needing assistance. West recently retired as editor of the society’s quarterly newsletter. Over the years, she has collected and maintained a regional surname file sorted alphabetically and recorded on a database. When a historian in France contacted the center, West helped her trace the family a soldier who had landed the beaches of Normandy in WWII. The historian had found the soldier’s duffle bag and wanted to return it to his family. Thanks to West, the society was able to contact the man's family and put them in touch with the historian.
Awards for Excellence
Awards for Excellence are presented for a specific, significant single contribution in the form of a family genealogy or family history book, a publication discussing genealogical methods and sources, or an exemplary article published in the NGS Quarterly. The winners demonstrate scholarship and excellence in genealogy.
Genealogy and Family History Book
First place: Jenifer Kahn Bakkala and Eileen Curley Pironti (co-authors), Ancestral Lines of Iain W.F. Shepherd and Helen Waugh (Gray) Shepherd. Boston: Newbury Street Press, an imprint of American Ancestors, 2023.
Methods and Sources Book
First place: Jane E. Wilcox. New York State Archives Guide for Family Historians, Biographers, and Historical Researchers. New York: New York Genealogical & Biographical Society, 2024.
Second place: Mary Blauss Edwards. Plymouth County, Massachusetts, Freeperson Families in 1790. Boston: Newbury Street Press, an imprint of American Ancestors, 2024.
National Genealogical Society Quarterly Article
The article recognized for this award is selected from all of the articles submitted in the previous year and is chosen by the NGSQ staff team. The 2025 winners are Patricia Lee Hobbs, CG and Barbara J. Garrison, PhD, for the March 2024 article, “DNA Merges Families of Stephen Stilwell of Dutchess County, New York; Cornwall, Upper Canada; and Coshocton County, Ohio.”
Certificates of Appreciation
The conference team from the Sons of the American Revolution (SAR) were awarded Certificates of Appreciation for their volunteer work in preparing for the conference. The conference would not have been possible without their efforts and commitment. The honorees included Publicity Chair Drew Hight, Local Events Chair William Burchfield, and Local Host Society Chair Rae Ann Sauer. Volunteer Chair Melissa Thatcher, with FamilySearch, was also honored with a Certificate of Appreciation.
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Contact: Matt Menashes, CAE Phone: 703-525-0050 Email: mattm@ngsgenealogy.org ____________________________________________________________________________
Founded in 1903, the National Genealogical Society inspires, connects, and leads the family history community by fostering collaboration and best practices in advocacy, education, preservation, and research. We enable people, cultures, and organizations to discover the past and create a lasting legacy. A 501(3)(c) charitable organization, NGS is the premier national society for everyone, from the beginner to the most advanced family historians and genealogists.
25 MAY 2025—This evening at the National Genealogical Society (NGS) 2025 Family History Conference, Tales and Trails, at the Galt House in Louisville, Kentucky, Judy Nimer Muhn, Chair of the NGS Awards Committee, presented several awards during the 2025 SLAM! Idea Showcase. The Showcase recognizes outstanding projects and programs by societies, libraries, archives, museums, and other institutions (SLAM). Fittingly, the awards included the Filby Award for Genealogical Librarianship, NGS Newsletter Competition, and the winners of the Rubincam Youth Writing Competition. This year’s SLAM! Idea Showcase winner was also announced.
Filby Award for Genealogical Librarianship
Dennis L. Meldrum, MLS, received this year’s Filby Award for Genealogical Librarianship. As regional manager for the FamilySearch Book Scanning Project, Meldrum led teams whose work resulted in the FamilySearch Digital Library. His goal was to make source materials as widely available as possible. Over the years, his teams were comprised of FamilySearch colleagues, partners in dozens of libraries worldwide, and hundreds of volunteers. Today, the digital library of genealogy and local history materials is the largest in the world. It features more than 635,000 free, searchable, and downloadable digital books, and is a testament to the value of Meldrum’s work and support of librarians, family historians and researchers throughout the world.
Created in 1999 by NGS, the award is named for the late P. William Filby, former director of the Maryland Historical Society and author of many genealogical reference tools that genealogists have relied on for decades. It is presented annually at the NGS Family History Conference. This year’s award is sponsored by FamilySearch, sharing its commitment to empowering researchers and libraries around the world.
The winners of the 2025 NGS Newsletter Competition, honoring excellence in newsletter editorship by genealogical/historical societies, family associations, and related member organizations in two categories, are:
Newsletter for a Small Society with less than 500 members
Winner: St. Clair County Genealogical Society Quarterly, St. Clair County Genealogical Society, Belleville, Illinois Editor Greg Wade
Newsletter for a Large Society with more than 500 members
Winner: Italian Genealogical Group Newsletter, Italian Genealogical Group, Bethpage, New York Editor Richard Graziano, Ed.D.
SLAM! Idea Showcase
Justice for Greenwood for “Know Your Roots: Genealogy 101 Workshop” was the winner of the NGS 2025 SLAM! Idea Showcase. The hybrid event was designed to help the Tulsa, Oklahoma, community, the Tulsa Race Massacre descendants, and others research ancestors and bridge gaps in their family history. It combined hands-on instruction from experts, storytelling circles, and exhibits that successfully engaged visitors of all ages.
Rubincam Youth Writing Competition was established in 1986 to encourage and recognize our youth as the next generation of family historians. It honors Milton Rubincam, CG, FASG, FNGS, for his many years of service to NGS and to the field of genealogy.
Junior Rubincam Youth Award
Winner: Isabelle Hailey Kee, “Tracing Roots, Finding Purpose”
Honorable Mention: Yasmeen Fahs, “Delicious Legacy of my Family”
Senior Rubincam Youth Award
Winner: Jennifer Duong, “A Redhead and A Dream”
Honorable Mention: Sadie Hall Kraft, “Four Generations of the Hall Name”
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Contact: Matt Menashes, CAE Phone: 703-525-0050 Email: mattm@ngsgenealogy.org ____________________________________________________________________________
Founded in 1903, the National Genealogical Society inspires, connects, and leads the family history community by fostering collaboration and best practices in advocacy, education, preservation, and research. We enable people, cultures, and organizations to discover the past and create a lasting legacy. A 501(3)(c) charitable organization, NGS is the premier national society for everyone, from the beginner to the most advanced family historians and genealogists.
Research in Hawaii provides genealogists with detailed information about valuable resources and repositories, including:
The author also includes discussions of
Author Darcie Hind Posz says of this guide, "Each repository and family history society in Hawaii is discussed and their wonderful resources. Also, new sections not seen in the RIS states series before: horticulture, natural disasters, and oral histories. A focus on Hawaii-specific records such as the Kingdom of Hawaii and Aliʻi (chiefs), the Kūʻē Petition (anti-Annexation), and land records."
Readers will find the website address, physical address, and telephone number for each repository. This book can be purchased as a PDF or paper copy at the NGS website.