General Information...
Our general meetings are held on the third Tuesday of each month, except the months of June, July, August and December.
Meetings are held at the Forest View Educational Center in Arlington Heights at 7:30 pm and are open to the public. Donations are always welcome!
meetings for the current year...
September 16, 2008 - Wilmette Family History Center - Spotlight on Illinois Resources - Family History Center Staff. This research center's collection includes over 11,000 microfilms and microfiche on extended loan. Many of these films cover European countries that patrons frequently research—Poland, Germany, Italy, England, and Sweden, for example—and its collection of Chicago and Cook County films is extensive, including Chicago births to 1915, marriages to 1916, deaths to 1947, Catholic parish records to 1915, and city directories. Six internet-connected computers provide free access to select subscription databases including Footnote and World Vital Records.
October 21, 2008 - Camp Douglas : Chicago's Civil War Prision - John Jeffers is a member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans (SCV), which is a lineage society with about 30,000 members who are the descendants of the military and politicos of the Confederate States of America. All of the members have had to prove their lineage before being able to join the society. No one who has an ancestor who either took the oath of loyalty, or deserted prior to April 12, 1865, can become a member.
November 18, 2008 - Chicago and Northwestern Railroad - Craig Pfannkuche, is on the Board of Directors for the McHenry County Illinois Genealogical Society and the Chicago Genealogical Society. He has received his Bachelor and Master of Arts from Northern Illinois University. He is the Genealogical Archivist for the Chicago and Northwestern Railway Historical Society. He is also mentioned as a railroad resource person in the book “The Source.” Craig not only has given workshops and conference presentations, he has published many articles. The most recent “Death on the Oregon Trail” in TRACER magazine for the McHenry County Illinois Genealogical Society.
Happy Holidays!!!!
January 20 , 2009 - Clarify, Verify and Pass It On : Insights Into Documenting and Sharing Your Family History - Carole Magnuson, has been researching her family history since 1981, and published books covering her maternal and paternal lines in the late 1980’s. After she retired in 2002, Carole began working as a professional genealogy researcher. She has also presented lectures to the DuPage County (IL) Genealogical Society and the South Suburban Genealogical & Historical Society. She is an active member of both societies. She is also the Midwest representative of the Jefferson Project, makers of Passage Express software.
February 17, 2009 - Local Historical Societies : What's There for YOU? - Shari Caine, is the Archives Manager at the Des Plaines History Center, will present a program on Local Historical Societies. In addition, she will speak about the more generic topic of how local historical societies can assist or enhance genealogical research. Ms. Caine will also speak a little on researching your home and property and will give an example of a research area where the Des Plaines History Center helps local residents.
March 17 , 2009 - Irish Genealogy- Kathy O'Learywill give an informative presentation on Irish Genealogy. Along with information on civil registration, censuses, church records and census substitutes, Kathy will cover information on Irish libraries, government offices and county family history societies. She’s been to Ireland several times to do genealogy research and spent a summer working in Dublin---so her hands-on experience is a pot-o-gold!
April 21, 2009 - The WPA : Its Records and Its History - Kathryn Barrett, is a genealogy researcher, teacher and lecturer at the local, regional and national level using her 35 years of genealogy experience. Kathryn has been a volunteer at the National Archives & Records Administration (NARA) at the Great Lakes Regional Center for more than 15 years. Kathryn is a professional member of the National Genealogical Society (NGS), the Federation of Genealogical Society (FGS), and the Wisconsin State Historical Society. The recipients of Kathryn’s presentations include various genealogical societies, libraries, conferences, and other special interest groups. Kathryn has recently organized a local homeowner association genealogical group and makes monthly presentations on a wide variety of genealogical topics.
May 19, 2009 - The Civil War : Its Impact on Women's Lives- Barbara Blair is a member of the Order of the Confederate Rose, a ladies organization that is an auxiliary of the Sons of Confederate Veterans. Besides helping the Sons of Confederate Veterans in their projects when needed, the ladies perform their own projects. At this time they are gathering information on all the Confederate Soldiers that are buried in the State of Illinois.