17 December 2020

Happy Holidays from NGS!



The National Genealogical Society wishes you a joyous and hopeful holiday season.

We know many of you will not be able to celebrate with family and friends this year. To keep connected and stay safe, here are some things to do while distant:


Please Note: The NGS office will close for the holidays at 5:00 p.m. Wednesday, 23 December 2020 
and will reopen Monday, 4 January 2021, at 8:30 a.m.

 








Order NGS Holiday Special Gift Packages Now

 


Time Is Running Out to Order
Holiday Special Gift Packages from NGS

Time is running out to order holiday special packages from the National Genealogical Society for your family and friends. If you place your order before noon on 23 December, we will make sure that your gift recipient will be notified of your present before 24 December. 

All orders placed from noon on 23 December through 3 January will be processed on Monday, 4 January. Great savings on our holiday special gift packages end 5 January 2021.

These packages feature some of our most popular genealogy courses. They are ideal gifts for anyone on your holiday gift list who is interested in learning more about family history research because all of the courses are online using an e-learning system. Whether you purchase a package for a family member, a friend, or even for yourself, the recipients of your gifts can join from home or on-the-go and complete coursework at their own pace and on their own schedule.


Holiday Package #1: Save $30

Holiday Package #1 offers two online courses: Reading Old Handwriting and Transcribing, Extracting, and Abstracting Genealogical Documents.


Holiday Package #2: Save $25

Holiday Package #2 includes the War of 1812 Records course and Researching Your Revolutionary War Ancestors course.


Holiday Package #3: Save $25

Holiday Package #3 combines a DNA related online course and a video of a live-presentation lecture webinar. This package includes the course Understanding and Using DNA Test Results and the lecture, "Your Cousins Are Your Secret Weapon," by genetic genealogy expert Angie Bush, plus a four-page syllabus.

All online courses must be completed within six months of registration; however, an extension may be requested. To learn more, visit NGS. For more information about specific courses, see NGS Continuing Genealogical Studies.

07 December 2020

NGS Holiday Special Gift Packages


Holiday Special Gift Packages from NGS

The National Genealogical Society is offering holiday special packages for some of its most popular genealogy courses with great savings for our members. This holiday offer is time limited. The sale starts 7 December 2020 and ends 5 January 2021.

These packages are ideal gifts for anyone on your holiday gift list who is interested in learning more about family history research because all of the courses are online using an e-learning system. Whether you purchase a package for a family member, a friend, or even for yourself, the recipients of your gifts can join from home or on-the-go and complete coursework at their own pace and on their own schedule.


Holiday Package #1: Save $30

Holiday Package #1 offers two online courses: Reading Old Handwriting and Transcribing, Extracting, and Abstracting Genealogical Documents.


Holiday Package #2: Save $25

Holiday Package #2 includes the War of 1812 Records course and Researching Your Revolutionary War Ancestors course.


Holiday Package #3: Save $25

Holiday Package #3 combines a DNA related online course and a video of a live-presentation lecture webinar. This package includes the course Understanding and Using DNA Test Results and the lecture, "Your Cousins Are Your Secret Weapon," by genetic genealogy expert Angie Bush, plus a four-page syllabus.

All online courses must be completed within six months of registration; however, an extension may be requested. To learn more, visit NGS. For more information about specific courses, see NGS Continuing Genealogical Studies.

02 December 2020

Call for Proposals for NGS 2022 Family History Conference

 


NGS Announces Call for Proposals 

for 2022 Family History Conference


The National Genealogical Society will hold its 2022 Family History Conference, Our American Mosaic, in Sacramento, California, 25‒28 May 2022. We will open the call for proposals on 2 December 2020 and proposals will be accepted until 1 April 2021.

Across the dramatic landscape that became America, our diverse ancestors each contributed a precious piece to the colorful design of our American mosaic. In the West, Native American cultures have thrived for thousands of years. While eighteenth-century American colonists were fighting for independence from Great Britain in the East, the Spanish were establishing missions and military outposts in what is now California. The discovery of gold near Sacramento in 1848 sparked a frenzy of migration to California from Asia, Mexico, and the eastern states. The lure of western skies has continued to the present day, attracting ranchers, Dust Bowl refugees, the Great Migration of African Americans from the South, immigrants fleeing poverty or persecution, and technology entrepreneurs.

Our family histories make each of us unique, and our separate stories are a shared history within our American mosaic. Attendees at the 2022 NGS Family History Conference in Sacramento will benefit from lectures and workshops to help build skills in methodology and the use of records and resources to advance their genealogical research.

Conference tracks and topics under consideration include the following: African American research; Asian and Pacific Islander research; DNA; European and Middle Eastern research; Hispanic and Latin American ancestry; immigration and migration; methodology; Native American research; New England research; non-traditional families; records and repositories; reference services; society management; technology; the 1950s; western states; and writing.

Speakers who wish to submit lecture proposals may submit up to eight proposals electronically. The speaker compensation is described in detail on the website. Please visit the website for details about required speaker information and each submitted proposal.

NGS has a free webinar, Becoming a Better Conference Speaker: Proposals and Preparations, which can be found on the National Genealogical Society YouTube channel. Speakers are encouraged to view the webinar before beginning the proposal process.

NGS members will receive first consideration as speakers. Notifications for acceptance will be issued in the fall of 2021. Syllabus material, due 1 February 2022, is required for each lecture or workshop presentation and will be included in the syllabus distributed to all conference registrants. Speakers are expected to use electronic presentation programs and provide their own digital projector, laptop or tablet, and connector to the projector cable. NGS will provide projector support, which consists of a VGA or HDMI cable, cart, and power strip. Internet connections will not be provided in lecture rooms.






25 November 2020

Happy Thanksgiving from NGS!


The National Genealogical Society wishes you and your family a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday.

In this very memorable year, we celebrate the strength of family connections. We are grateful to be connected to you.

Thank you for your continued support throughout the year. And an extra dose of gratitude to the many volunteers who make our success possible.

Be safe and stay well,

The NGS Staff and Board of Directors

Please Note: The NGS office will close for Thanksgiving at 3:00 p.m. Wednesday and will reopen Monday with normal business hours.




We thought you might enjoy Thanksgiving Goes Virtual: How to Carve Out New Traditions Amid the Ongoing Pandemic from the Washington Post. It includes suggestions from NGS on sharing family stories.













24 November 2020

New Books for Arizona and Nevada Research from NGS

 NGS Introduces Two New Research in the States Books: Arizona and Nevada


NGS is pleased to announce the publication of two new books as part of its Research in the States series, which now covers research in twenty-nine states. The newest volumes are Research in Arizona by David E. Rencher, AG, CG®, FUGA, FIGRS, and Research in Nevada, by Stefani Evans, CG. The books are available in the NGS store in both PDF and print versions.

Both guidebooks provide detailed information on a wealth of resources, including:
  • Archives, Libraries, and Societies
  • Atlas, Gazetteers, and Maps
  • Business, Cemetery, Ethnic, Institutional, Military, and Naturalization Records
  • Organizational Records, Directories, and Newspapers
  • Probate, School, State, Tax, and Vital Records
  • Railroads, Religious Records, Women, and more
The authors include the website address, physical address, and telephone number for each resource.

In Research in Arizona, Rencher also provides detailed information for those researching Native American ancestors, which include Apache, Hopi, Navaho, and Pueblo of Zuni tribes. The guidebook covers Arizona’s pre-territorial, territorial, federal, and Indian censuses. For those researching Spanish and Mexican ancestors, Research in Arizona offers helpful information on finding records from the state’s pre-territorial periods when it was ruled by Spain (1562–1821) and Mexico (1821–1853).

The author also includes out-of-state repositories for Arizona related records.

Rencher is the director of the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah, and the chief genealogical officer for FamilySearch, and serves on the NGS board of directors as chair of the Development Committee. He is the Irish course coordinator and instructor for several prestigious genealogical institutes. He also is the past chair of the joint committee for Record Preservation and Access and a Fellow of Utah Genealogical Association.

Research in Nevada discusses Nevada’s land records and the Desert Land, Homestead, and Taylor Grazing Acts. Water and mining records are noted as are records from the Great Depression including the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) Enrollee Records and works created by the Works Projects Administration. Evans also includes records of brands as well as resources to aid genealogists interested in researching ancestors who worked on the construction of the Hoover (Boulder) Dam or lived in Boulder City during that time.

Evans has served as an NGS director, Board for Certification of Genealogists (BCG) trustee, BCG Education Fund trustee, and Nevada Delegate for the Southwest Oral History Association. She chaired the NGS 2013 Family History Conference in Las Vegas and has written for the NGS Quarterly, NGS Magazine, and the NYG&B Record.

Research in the States series is edited by Barbara Vines Little, CG®, FNGS, FVGS, a former NGS president and editor of the Magazine of Virginia Genealogy. Research in Arizona and Research in Nevada are available for purchase in the NGS online store in both PDF and print versions.


 


11 November 2020

NGS Introduces New Course: Reading Old Handwriting

 

NGS Introduces New Online Course: Reading Old Handwriting


The National Genealogical Society introduced today the newest course in its Continuing Genealogical Studies series, Reading Old Handwriting. This illustrated course is essential for everyone researching their family tree. It offers family historians tips to understand hard-to-read handwriting in documents such as wills and deeds. Its practice exercises teach how to read and interpret handwritten land records, probate files, and, of course, your ancestors’ personal letters.

NGS Education Director Angela McGhie states, “…the ability to read old handwriting is a foundational skill for understanding many of the documents family historians discover in their research. Being able to read old handwriting is the first step in interpreting genealogically relevant facts. Our new course Reading Old Handwriting complements NGS’s course, Transcribing, Extracting, and Abstracting Genealogical Documents, which was released in June 2020.”

The course guides genealogists through ten modules. Every module has multiple hands-on exercises to help family historians develop expertise in reading documents from a variety of locations and time periods. Course author Carla S. Cegielski is a freelance genealogical researcher and author of the Tech Tips column in the quarterly NGS Magazine.

For more information and to register, visit Reading Old Handwriting on NGS’s website.

07 October 2020

Nominations Open for NGS 2021 Awards and Competitions

 


Nominations Open for NGS 2021 Awards & Competitions


The National Genealogical Society (NGS) invites individuals, societies, and organizations to participate in its 2021 Awards and Competitions program. NGS annually recognizes excellence in the field of genealogy. This year we have expanded our program to reflect our merger with the Federation of Genealogical Societies. The deadline for submission of nominations is 15 December 2020.

The NGS Awards program recognizes scholarship, service, excellence, and achievement in the fields of genealogy, history, and biography by presenting awards to individuals, societies, and organizations. The Society’s competitions include

  • Family History Writing Contest
  • Award for Excellence: Genealogy or Family History Book
  • Award for Excellence: Genealogical Methods and Sources
  • Award for Excellence: NGSQ
  • The NGS Newsletter Competition
  • The Rubincam Youth Writing Competition

NGS also inducts one person each year into its National Genealogy Hall of Fame. See a full description of the awards and competitions and access nomination forms on the NGS website.

“We encourage family historians and genealogists to nominate an organization they know or an individual they work with, research with, or admire for an award or competition,” said Janet L. Bailey, chair of the award committee. “There are so many outstanding individuals, societies, and organizations that deserve national recognition. We hope their peers will consider nominating them before December 15."

06 October 2020

The October-December 2020 Issue of NGS Magazine is Now Online

NGS Magazine cover

The October–December 2020 issue of NGS Magazine, Volume 46, Number 4, has been mailed to members and is available online in the Members Only section of the website. This issue's theme is "Research from Home."


EDITOR'S NOTE by Deb Cyprych

Six months after the COVID-19 pandemic led to lockdowns around the world, many libraries and archives have limited access. The National Archives, the Library of Congress, and the Family History Library are still closed as this issue goes to press. Libraries and archives that have reopened will likely have restrictions for some time. In these circumstances, research from home has become a primary method for genealogists tapping into digitized books, scanned records, and databases online.

Claire Mire Bettag tells a story of persistence and amazing payoffs. After a twenty-year search for the origins of her ancestor, she found a tip referring to a digitized administrative report that eventually led her to information about three generations in notarial records. While serendipitous, her story is not unique. Genealogists who continue to search broadly may find such treasures online, too—perhaps even a virtual tour of an ancestor’s neighborhood, as Claire found.

FamilySearch continues to increase access to digitized records. Its new system, Explore Historical Images, publishes images faster than ever before, so quickly that many are not yet indexed by name or listed in the catalog. Robert Raymond explains how to locate and view them in Explore Historical Images by searching for place, date, and life event. He also discloses the next innovation for FamilySearch: Computer Assisted Indexing of historical records.

All researchers can view the results of research projects published by students at Brigham Young University’s Center for Family History and Genealogy. Jill Crandell describes the topics: European emigrant records, script tutorials for eight languages, pre-1841 British census records, Chester and Lancashire marriages, Discovering English Ancestors, Kinship and Poverty in Early Modern Britain, the Nauvoo Community Project, and Welsh Mormon History.

Kathy Petlewski uses two search terms to explore and compare four free digital libraries of interest to historians and genealogists: Google Books, HathiTrust, Digital Public Library of America, and FamilySearch Digital Library. Carla Cegielski discusses the scope of the Internet Archive, a digital library where reading is just one of the twenty-one useful and even entertaining activities for genealogists.

In this issue’s other articles, David Lambert provides an overview of the most recent scholarship for the Mayflower passengers’ descendants and the prime sources for researching Plymouth Colony families; Paul Woodbury demonstrates how to establish a strong foundation for future genetic genealogy research success by creating a detailed profile, preparing lists of ancestral surnames, and uploading a family tree; and Debbie Smyth shows how learning skills in transcribing, abstracting, and extracting can enable genealogists to overcome obstacles and achieve more accurate research and analysis results.


TABLE OF CONTENTS

Features

  • Developing Genealogical Skills in Transcribing, Extracting, and Abstracting by Debbie Wilson Smyth
  • Never Give Up! Never! Never! Never! by Claire Mire Bettag, CG, FUGA, FNGS
  • Explore Historical Images on FamilySearch by Robert Raymond
  • Research Projects of the BYU Center for Family History and Genealogy by Jill N. Crandell, MA, AG
  • Resources for Researching Mayflower Descendants by David Allen Lambert

Departments

  • PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE Welcome to the New NGS by Kathryn M. Doyle

  • NGS NEWS
    • Call for Proposals for NGS 2022 Family History Conference

    • NGS 2021 Family History Conference: Welcome to Virginia! by Robin Dwyer-Maurice and Teresa Kelley


  • REFERENCE DESK
    • Researching in Digital Libraries from Home by Kathy Petlewski, MSLS
  • TECH TIPS
    • Twenty-One Activities for Genealogists in the Internet Archive by Carla S. Cegielski
  • DNA DISCOVERY
    • Foundations for Genetic Genealogy Success: Profiles and Family Trees by Paul Woodbury

NGS Magazine is published quarterly to update members of the National Genealogical Society on NGS activities and to provide genealogists with special information and guidance on conducting effective genealogical research. The magazine is sent to libraries by subscription. Online access to NGS Magazine is available only as long as membership is active.

25 September 2020

NGS Announces Results of Board of Directors Elections


NGS Announces Results of

2020 Board of Directors Election 


The National Genealogical Society announced the results of its 2020 Board of Directors election at its annual meeting on 1 September 2020. The incoming slate includes three new positions to reflect the upcoming merger of NGS and the Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS) on 1 October 2020. These new board positions are Vice President for Society & Organization Management and two directors at large drawn from FGS ranks.

Outgoing President Benjamin B. Spratling, JD, of Birmingham, Alabama, announced the results of the election and the incoming board members who will be seated on 1 October.

NGS Officers (1 October 2020 – 30 September 2022)

  • President: Kathryn M. Doyle, California
  • Vice President: Ellen Pinckney Balthazar, Texas 
  • Vice President of Society & Organization Management: Cheri Hudson Passey, South Carolina
  • Secretary: Ed Donakey, Utah
  • Treasurer: Deborah Lebo Hoskins, Pennsylvania
NGS Directors serve four-year terms that are staggered so that the entire slate does not turn over in one election cycle.

NGS Regional Directors
  • Director of Region 2: Faye Stallings, Texas
  • Director of Region 3: Janet L. Bailey, Virginia
  • Director of Region 4: Bernice Alexander Bennett, Maryland
Directors at Large
  • Janet A. Alpert, South Carolina
  • Colleen Robledo Greene, California
  • Marlis Humphrey, Florida
  • Andre Kearns, Washington, DC
  • David Rencher, Utah
Continuing their terms on the Board of Directors are Angie Bush, MS, Director of Region 1, and Ronald V. Hodges, PhD, Director at Large.

“I congratulate the incoming Board members,” Spratling said, “And I extend my sincere gratitude for their commitment and service to the National Genealogical Society. I also thank the Nominating Committee, including Jordan Jones, chair; Deborah A. Abbott, PhD; B. Darrell Jackson, PhD, CG; Darcie Hind Posz; CG, and D. Joshua Taylor, MA, MLS, for their excellent work.”


The entire 2020 NGS Annual Meeting can be viewed on YouTube. It includes a short video about the upcoming merger of NGS and FGS, which will be finalized on 1 October 2020, and features outgoing President Benjamin B, Spratling, FGS President Faye Stallings who has been newly elected to NGS Board, incoming President Kathryn M. Doyle, and Executive Director Matt Menashes.

21 September 2020

NGSQ September 2020 Issue is Now Online!

Oliverel Eves "O.E." Guillory (1875–1944)


The September 2020 issue of the National Genealogical Society Quarterly, Volume 108, Number 3, is available online in the Members Only section of the website. Members should see the new edition in their mailboxes in the next few weeks.

Although not obvious by the titles, one of this month's articles features sibling research and Y-DNA to support the conclusion. Another inferential case determines the identity and parentage of an African American women born in the 1850s, despite her many name changes.

CONTENTS:

FEATURE ARTICLES
  • “A Father for Walter Griffith of Tuscarawas County, Ohio” by Ann Raymont, CG
  • “A Woman of Many Names: Henrietta Dixon of Baltimore City, Maryland” by Nicole Gilkison LaRue, CG
  • “The Case of the Missing Moffetts of Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts” by Pamela Lyons Brinegar, CG

NOTES AND DOCUMENTS
  • “The Records of the English Chancery Court Revisited: A New Search Paradigm” by Ronald A. Hill, PhD, CG Emeritus, FASG, FNGS

COMMUNICATIONS

EDITORS’ CORNER
  • Only a Name Survives

ADMINISTRATION

SIDELIGHTS
  • Housekeeping 1870s Style
  • There Goes the Neighborhood   4
  • Women Lawyers
  • A Burglar Caught Napping
  • Victorian Social Distancing?
  • Achieving Equality in Marriage

REVIEWS


The National Genealogical Society Quarterly (NGSQ) is published four times per year, in March, June, September, and December. The journal is edited by Nancy A. Peters, CG®, CGLSM, and Allen R. Peterson, AG, CG®.





29 July 2020

NGS Member Discount for FGS Virtual Conference Plus NGS-FGS Merger Updates

The Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS) has offered NGS members a $10 discount on registration for their virtual conference, which begins 2 September 2020. See more exciting details about their virtual program below or visit the FGS conference website. Details and the discount code have been emailed to members. And if you register before 15 August, you will save $40 on a regular registration with the NGS Member and Early Bird discounts combined.

NGS-FGS Merger Updates
The NGS merger with FGS continues to move forward. NGS and FGS recently met three significant milestones on the way to the merger. First, the NGS Board modified its bylaws to allow genealogy societies and organizations to be members of NGS with full voting rights (one org/one vote). Previously, societies and organizations had no membership voting rights and were only eligible to "subscribe" to NGS publications and programs. Second, the boards of both NGS and FGS approved the legal documents necessary to merge. Finally, the FGS membership vote on the merger, which is required under Illinois law, is now underway. All of these steps are milestones on the path to creating the "New NGS." The next step will be the announcement of the slate of candidates for the NGS Board. The slate includes a new Vice President for Society & Organization Management and additional at-large directors from the FGS ranks. Both organizations remain on target for the final merger that will occur on 1 October 2020.

FGS Virtual Conference Plus NGS Discount
In recognition of the upcoming merger of NGS and FGS, FGS has graciously offered NGS members a $10 discount on registration for its virtual conference. The FGS virtual event will begin with FGS "Live!" on 2 September 2020, starting at 11:00 a.m. (EDT) and concluding at 7:00 p.m. (EDT). In addition to the live event, all conference registrations will include a collection of sixteen society management sessions assembled by FGS and more than thirty sponsored sessions.

The registration packages also allow you to select ten, twenty, or forty-five sessions from the On-Demand content, including more than eighty sessions by leading genealogists from which to choose. All registration packages provide online access to the digital conference syllabus. A special commemorative goody bag is included with the forty-five-session package and you will be entered for a chance to win one of two free registrations to the May 2021 NGS Family History Conference in Richmond, Virginia. If you had already registered for the FGS conference in Kansas City, your registration will convert to the twenty-session conference package. For more information, visit the FGS conference website.


The FGS Live! event will feature lectures from some of the most popular genealogy speakers:
  • David E. Rencher, “FGS: Celebrating the Past and the Future”
  • Judy G. Russell, “Quarantined! Genealogy, The Law & Public Health”
  • Ari Wilkins, “Scaling the 1870 Brick Wall in African American Research”
  • Thomas W. Jones, “Building a Respectable Genealogy, One Documented Biography at a Time” 
  • CeCe Moore, “Strategies of ‘The Genetic Detective’”
  • Lisa Louise Cooke, “The 2020 Genealogist’s Google Search Methodology”

The FGS Live! event will also include special presentations from our two Platinum sponsors:
  • Ancestry’s “Journey to ‘Roots Less Traveled’”
  • Ron Tanner of FamilySearch, “What’s New at FamilySearch”

An online chat will take place during the Live! event and there will be a Q&A session following each session.

The following two-hour workshops will also be held on 3-4 September:
  • Angie Bush, “Using the ‘What are the Odds’ (WATO) Tool” on 9/3/2020
  • Cari Taplin, “Using Google’s My Maps as a Planning & Analysis Tool” on 9/3/2020
  • Angie Bush, “Latest Developments in Company Tools for DNA” on 9/4/2020
  • Pam Vestal, “What the Heck Does That Say” on 9/4/2020

For a full description of the registration packages, a list of the available On-Demand content, a list of all of the free sessions, and much more information, visit the FGS conference website. To learn more, visit fgs.org.

16 July 2020

Announcement Brochure for 2021 NGS Conference Now Online


National Genealogical Society Announces Plans 
for its 2021 Family History Conference

We are pleased to announce that our 2021 Family History Conference is scheduled to take place 19-22 May 2021 in Richmond, Virginia, at the Greater Richmond Convention Center. Information about the Conference’s program—Virginia: Deep Roots of a Nation—and the many genealogical resources in Richmond are now available online as a downloadable brochure.

Conference Committee Chair Janet A. Alpert, FNGS, said, “We are acutely aware that we have to build contingency plans for any eventuality. Though we hope COVID-19 will not be a factor next spring, we are already preparing options to insure the health and safety of registrants, sponsors, exhibitors, and staff. We’re confident that we will have a strong and enriching program for everyone interested in family history research.”

The NGS 2021 Family History Conference program will feature a variety of lecture tracks. Session topics will include African American, Native American, and other ethnic groups research; archival records in Virginia and neighboring states; immigration and migration; researching federal and local government records as well as land, military, religious, and tax records; using DNA to trace your ancestors; and much more. In support of NGS’s merger later this year with the Federation of Genealogical Societies, a “Focus on Societies” day is also planned. The Board for Certification of Genealogists will again sponsor a skillbuilding track.

The conference will also offer family historians and genealogists an array of other events, special workshops, and a family history expo with a host of exhibitors. Registration opens on 6 January 2021. Be sure to sign up for the NGS conference blog to receive up-to-date conference news and download the 2021 announcement brochure to learn more about the Richmond conference.

In 2022, the NGS Family History Conference will be on the West Coast with the California Genealogical Society (CGS) serving as the local host. Join us in Sacramento, California, 25-28 May 2022. Details will be available in the coming months on the NGS Family History Conference website and in the NGS Magazine.

08 July 2020

The July–September 2020 Issue of NGS Magazine is Now Online



The July–September 2020 issue of NGS Magazine, Volume 46, Number 3, is available online in the Members Only section of the website. It will be mailed to members in the coming weeks.

EDITOR'S NOTE by Deb Cyprych

To paraphrase the authors of Woman Suffrage and Politics, Carrie Chapman Catt and Nettie Rogers Schuler, this issue “is dedicated on behalf of the women who have gone before to the women who come after”—and to all victims of sexism and racism.

American woman suffragists displayed astonishing determination in nine hundred campaigns to convince male voters to allow them to vote. Twenty-six countries gave women the right to vote before suffrage was finally ratified in the United States in 1920. In celebration of the centennial, dramatist Steffani Raff portrayed Emmeline B. Wells, a Utah suffragist, during the NGS Live! program; in this issue, she answers questions about how she developed her performance.

But the women’s suffrage struggle was not always based on equal rights, as Eileen Muccino points out in a history of the movement. Some leaders opposed the Fifteenth Amendment granting suffrage to African American men, in an attempt to persuade southern states to adopt women’s suffrage. For many years the national suffrage organizations rejected Black women, immigrants, and working-class women. Eventually the suffragists’ massive efforts shifted the tide of public opinion, and the Nineteenth Amendment was ratified by a one-vote margin. Some American women could not vote until long after 1920, however.

Two million women were members of the National American Woman Suffrage Association at its height. Kathy Petlewski presents resources for researching suffragists such as personal papers, newspapers, city directories, compiled publications, organizational records, and petitions. She also discusses possible reasons for lack of participation in the suffrage movement.

Voting records from before and after the passage of women’s suffrage may hold valuable genealogical information. Rebecca Whitman Koford describes uses for registration and turnout registers and provides an extensive list of digitized voting records. Her summary of the checkered history of American voting rights demonstrates sexism and racism for more than two centuries.

Thousands of women born in the United States, including many suffragists, lost their citizenship when they married unnaturalized immigrants. These women could not vote until they were repatriated, some as late ast the 1970s; others never repatriated. Rich Venezia outlines the history of the relevant laws and the records normally restricted to immigrant aliens in which native-born women appear.

In other articles, Janice Lovelace discusses diaries, letters, and records for researching the women settlers of the West, and Teresa Kelley and Robin Dwyer-Maurice profile repositories in the vicinity of Richmond, Virginia, to consider visiting before or after the 2021 NGS Family History Conference. In their columns, Paul Woodbury explains how spit samples are processed to reveal DNA results, and Carla Cegielski covers useful methods of cataloging book collections.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Features

  • NGS 2021 Family History Conference: Research Opportunities in Richmond, Virginia by Robin Dwyer-Maurice and Teresa Kelley
  • Woman Suffrage from the Revolution to Ratification by Eileen Muccino, MA
  • Buried Treasure: Voter Lists and Registrations by Rebecca Whitman Koford, CG, CGL
  • Native-Born Aliens: The Laws and Records of Expatriated Women by Rich Venezia
  • Resources for Nineteenth-Century Women Settlers in the West by Janice Lovelace, PhD

    Departments


    • PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE A Silver Lining and a Bright Future by Ben Spratling
    • NGS NEWS
      • From In-Person to Virtual Conference in Thirty Days: NGS 2020 Live! by Janet A. Alpert, FNGS
      • NGS Announces 2020 Awards and Competition Honorees by Janet L. Bailey
    • REFERENCE DESK
      • Was Grandmother a Suffragist? by Kathy Petlewski, MSLS
    • TECH TIPS
      • Keeping Track of Genealogy Books by Carla S. Cegielski
    • DNA DISCOVERY
      • From Spit to Screen: The Journey of a DNA Sample by Paul Woodbury
    NGS Magazine is published quarterly to update members of the National Genealogical Society on NGS activities and to provide genealogists with special information and guidance on conducting effective genealogical research. The magazine is sent to libraries by subscription. Online access to NGS Magazine is available only as long as membership is active.

    07 July 2020

    NGS 2020 On-Demand Lectures Now Available


    National Genealogical Society’s 
    2020 On-Demand! Now Available

    Individuals interested in researching their family history can now purchase educational webinars at the National Genealogical Society’s Virtual Family History Conference. NGS 2020 On-Demand! offers three packages of ten, twenty, and forty-five lectures for purchase and streaming on PlaybackNGS.com. As a bonus, every package also includes twenty-six free webinars.

    Once an individual purchases a package, he may choose from more than eighty-five sessions that cover a comprehensive range of topics, including DNA, ethnic heritage and women, immigration and migration, records and resources, religion, and research techniques and methodology. To learn more, download the Sessions Guide for the full list of webinars.

    Registrants can view or listen to webinars on their computers or mobile devices at their convenience until 15 May 2021. Registrants also are invited to explore the NGS Virtual Expo Hall.

    The three package options at PlaybackNGS.com include:

    The “Full” Package includes streaming access to a choice of twenty NGS 2020 On-Demand! sessions from 1 July 2020 through 15 May 2021; an electronic copy of the virtual conference syllabus; and 26 bonus lectures.

    The “Works” Package includes everything in the Full Package with an additional twenty-five NGS 2020 On-Demand! sessions (a total of 45 lectures you choose); a USB with audio recordings of ALL the recorded sessions (more than 100 hours of audio content that can also be streamed to a mobile device); plus, 26 bonus lectures.

    NGS 2020 “Light” Package includes streaming access to a choice of ten NGS 2020 On-Demand! sessions from 1 July 2020 through 15 May 2021; an electronic copy of the virtual conference syllabus; and 26 bonus lectures.

    For more information about NGS 2020 On-Demand! or to register, visit PlaybackNGS.com.

    30 June 2020

    Registration Ends Soon for International & Ethnic Workshops


    Registration Ends 7 July for 
    Six International and Ethnic Workshops

    Time is running out to register for six international and ethnic workshops on German, Hispanic, Irish, Italian, Native American, and Swedish heritages, respectively. Registration ends on Tuesday, July 7. Presented live online and hosted by NGS and FamilySearch, the workshops will be scheduled between 14 July and 17 July. Each will be two hours in length. Information and registration for the workshops is available on the NGS Conference website.

    Research specialists from the world-renowned Family History Library will conduct the workshops. Several moderators will assist with the Q&A portion of each workshop as well as with technical questions.
    Reading Italian Records Workshop
    Brandon Baird, AG, will teach participants how to read Italian civil registration records and church records. Fluency in Italian is not required.
    Hispanic Research Methodology Workshop Arturo Cuellar, AG, and Lyn Turner, AG, will provide instruction on how to research ancestors in Mexico, Latin America, and Spain. This workshop for beginners will cover basic research guidelines, finding aids, and language helps, along with a case study.
    Strategies for Locating German Records Workshop
    Camille Andrus, AG, will discuss the records of your German immigrant ancestor, help you identify what records are available, where they’re located, and how to use them effectively. This workshop is for those beginning research in Germany who have identified their ancestor’s hometown and are ready to research in Germany.
    Swedish Research Strategy WorkshopGeoff Morris, AG, will lead a workshop on how to approach common problems and tackle them in an efficient way. Elements will include analysis, translation, records, and prioritizing research steps.
    Ireland: Discovering Where and How They Lived Workshop
    Craig Foster, AG, Dan Poffenberger, AG, Kori Robbins, AG, and Phil Dunn, AG, will provide insight on family history research in Ireland, a country that presents unique challenges in genealogical research. This workshop will help people understand Irish jurisdictions, as well as key record groups.
    Native American WorkshopLyn Rasmussen, CG, Forrest Emmett, and Hellen Bileen will focus on using 20th century records as the foundation for researching Native American ancestry.

    Prior to each workshop, registrants will receive an electronic handout. Event moderators and NGS staff will assist anyone who is unsure about how to participate in the virtual workshops.

    Each workshop costs $35. Register soon to reserve your spot in these expert led workshops. Registration closes at 11:59 p.m. on Tuesday, 7 July.

    For more information about the international and ethnic workshops, or to register, visit our conference website.

    24 June 2020

    NGSQ June 2020 Issue Now Online!

    Wister "Wick" Lee Garrett (1863–1928), circa 1917

    The June 2020 issue of the National Genealogical Society Quarterly, Volume 108, Number 2, is available online in the Members Only section of the website. Members should see the new edition in their mailboxes in the next few weeks.

    CONTENTS:

    FEATURE ARTICLES 
    • “Parents for Isaac Garrett of Laurens County, South Carolina: DNA Corroborates Oral Tradition” by LaBrenda Garrett-Nelson, JD, LLM, CG, CGL
    • “Parents for Sarepta McMillin: Untangling the McMillin Family in Champaign and Clark Counties, Ohio” by John D. Beatty, CG
    • “Peter Wingate of Cecil County, Maryland: Son of Isabella Stoops or Sarah Johnson?” by Carol Cooke Darrow, CG

    COMMUNICATIONS

    EDITORS’ CORNER
    • Beware Things That Aren’t So
    ADMINISTRATION 

    SIDELIGHTS
    • Otto Garrett Killed by Peace Officer
    • When the Cure Was Worse Than the Disease
    • A Case of Being Two-Faced
    REVIEWS


    The National Genealogical Society Quarterly (NGSQ) is published four times per year, in March, June, September, and December. The journal is edited by Nancy A. Peters, CG®, CGLSM, and Allen R. Peterson, AG, CG®.

    23 June 2020

    New NGS Course: Transcribing, Extracting & Abstracting Genealogical Documents


    NGS Introduces New Online Course: 
    Transcribing, Extracting, and Abstracting Genealogical Documents

    The National Genealogical Society today announced its newest course in our Continuing Genealogical Studies series: Transcribing, Extracting, and Abstracting Genealogical Documents. The course is designed to teach family historians the skills needed to examine, analyze, and apply information accurately from any kind of document to further their genealogical research. It serves both as a refresher course for the experienced genealogist and as a comprehensive tutorial for those who are working to acquire these skills.

    The purpose of family history research is not merely to trace your ancestors but also to prove their relationships in your family tree. Simply duplicating documents will not accomplish these goals. The way to build a family tree accurately and successfully is through the careful examination and analysis of those documents. This can be accomplished by fully transcribing a document, extracting selected portions, or abstracting the important information while leaving the nonessential legal language out.

    In a step-by-step format, Julie Miller, CG®, CGLSM, FNGS, a full-time professional researcher, speaker, and writer, teaches how to transcribe, extract, and abstract documents along with when to use each process. The course includes multiple examples, videos, and guidelines for working with deeds and wills as well as other types of documents. The many exercises in each of the ten modules give students hands-on experience working with documents and refining their skills. To learn more about Transcribing, Extracting, and Abstracting Genealogical Documents, visit the NGS website.


    16 June 2020

    Registration Opens for International & Ethnic Workshops


    Registration Now Open for Six International
    and Ethnic Live Workshops

    Registration is now open for six international and ethnic workshops presented live and hosted by NGS and FamilySearch. The workshops, originally scheduled for the in-person NGS 2020 Family History Conference, will be live online between 14 July and 17 July and are each two hours in length. Information and registration for the workshops is available on the NGS Conference website.

    Research specialists from the world-renowned Family History Library will conduct workshops on German, Hispanic, Irish, Italian, Native American, and Swedish heritages, respectively. Each workshop will also have several moderators to assist with the Q&A portion of the workshop as well as with technical questions.


    • Reading Italian Records Workshop
      • Brandon Baird, AG, will teach participants how to read Italian civil registration records and church records. Fluency in Italian is not required.

    • Hispanic Research Methodology Workshop
      • Arturo Cuellar, AG, and Lyn Turner, AG, will provide instruction on how to research ancestors in Mexico, Latin America, and Spain. This workshop for beginners will cover basic research guidelines, finding aids, and language helps, along with a case study.
    • Strategies for Locating German Records Workshop
      • Camille Andrus, AG, will discuss the records of your German immigrant ancestor, help you identify what records are available, where they’re located, and how to use them effectively. This workshop is for those beginning research in Germany who have identified their ancestor’s hometown and are ready to research in Germany. 

    • Swedish Research Strategy Workshop
      • Geoff Morris, AG, will lead a workshop on how to approach common problems and tackle them in an efficient way. Elements will include analysis, translation, records, and prioritizing research steps.
    • Ireland: Discovering Where and How They Lived Workshop
      • Craig Foster, AG, Dan Poffenberger, AG, Kori Robbins, AG, and Phil Dunn, AG, will provide insight on family history research in Ireland, a country that presents unique challenges in genealogical research. This workshop will help people understand Irish jurisdictions, as well as key record groups.
    • Native American Workshop
      • Lyn Rasmussen, CG, Forrest Emmett, and Hellen Bileen, will focus on using 20th century records as the foundation for researching Native American ancestry. 

    Prior to each workshop, registrants will receive an electronic handout. Event moderators and NGS staff will assist anyone who is unsure about how to participate in the virtual workshops.

    Each workshop costs $35. Register soon to reserve your spot in these expert led workshops. Registration closes at 11:59 p.m. on Tuesday, 7 July.

    For more information about the international and ethnic workshops, or to register, visit our conference website.