Finding Your Ancestors Through Latino/Hispanic Genealogy, A Two-Part Series

Sheila Prader

California Genealogical Society Library
2201 Broadway, Suite LL2
Oakland, California 94612

July 23, 2011 and August 6, 2011
Both sessions 11:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Join professional genealogist Sheila Lee Prader and Dr. Ellen Fernandez-Sacco for two Saturday workshop sessions on finding your Latino/Hispanic ancestors.

Session I – Beginning Research in Spanish Records: An Introduction
Saturday, July 23, 2011, 11:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Getting Started:

• Family and original sources: ecclesiastic, civil, immigration records

Getting Organized

• Handwriting, commonly used words and phrases, interchangeable letters
• Forms and extracts: family group sheets, parish records, civil records

Parish Records

• Determining location
• Overview of content
• Hands-on exercise: Sample extract. Try it yourself

Bring your questions, family group sheets and a document if applicable. Specific areas will be addressed based on registrant feedback and the time available.


Session II – Digging Deeper: Record Types and Specific Locations of Origin
Saturday, August 6, 2011, 11:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Focus On Record Types

• Baptism/birth, death/burial, marriage, dispensas
• Other types of documentation

Focus on Records for Specific Locations

• California
• Mexico
• Caribbean & Latin America
• Spain

• Hands-on exercise

• Guided assistance in group setting

Bring your questions, your family group sheets and a document, if applicable. Specific areas will be addressed based on registrant feedback and the time available.

The workshop is limited to twenty participants and is a free benefit of membership. Non-members fee is $20.00 for each session (non-refundable) and can be applied towards membership on the day of the workshop.

Preregistration is required. Walk-ins will not be admitted. Registration confirmations will be sent to the first twenty participants to register. Additional names will be collected and placed on a waiting list in case of cancellations.

Register online.

Sheila Lee Prader began researching her own early California and Mexican genealogy in 1983. She has conducted considerable research in the records of Spain, the Azores, Mexico and early California, and continues to research Hispanic ancestry for herself and for clients. She maintains a great interest in the local history of Santa Cruz, Monterey, San Benito and southern Santa Clara counties in California. She has the Certified Local designation from Professor/Historian Sandy Lydon.

Ellen Fernandez-Sacco’s involvement with genealogy started in 1999, when she began researching the oral history of her family in Moca, Puerto Rico. She has traced her background to Mallorca and Galicia, Spain and is also of Taino Amerindian descent. She has a Ph.D. in Art History and is a co-founder and chair of Sociedad Ancestros Mocanos, a Yahoo! Group, whose focus is the genealogy and oral history of Northwest Puerto Rico.  Dr. Fernandez-Sacco will provide support and assistance during the workshop.


Copyright © 2011 by Kathryn M. Doyle, California Genealogical Society and Library