Members at RootsTech 2013

Several members of the California Genealogical Society attended the third annual RootsTech conference in Salt Lake City. Amy Coffin nailed it when she tweeted "So far, the theme for #rootstech 2013 seems to be 'bigger than last year' in every aspect." With more than 6,700 attendees, it was the largest ever gathering of genealogists in the United States.

The best thing about genealogy conferences (in my opinion) is the face-to-face. I spend a lot of time in a virtual genealogy world so connecting "in person" with gen-friends and distant members is a real treat. We successfully gathered nine members together for a "CGS photo."

Linda Darby, Patricia Burrow, Sandra Benward, Nancy Schlegel, Amy Coffin, Virginia Kysh, Kathryn Doyle, Tim Cox, and Kim Cotton. 

Missing were Bill George, Gloria Hanson, Paul Hawthorne, Lisa B. Lee, Thomas MacEntee, and Gene Pennington.

Next year's RootsTech Conference will be held February 6-8, 2014, in Salt Lake City.


Copyright © 2013 by Kathryn M. Doyle, California Genealogical Society and Library.

The California Nugget, Spring 2012, Volume IV, Issue 1

The Spring 2012 edition of The California Nugget has been sent to the printer and will soon begin arriving in members' mailboxes. Editor Jane Hufft and Production Editor Lois Elling have outdone themselves with another fantastic issue filled with interesting articles.

This is the spring letter from Jane:

Dear Readers:

We have a variety of articles for you, each one an exciting account of significant discoveries. Wayne W. Padgett found a forgotten Civil War soldier in a very unlikely place and uncovered the details of his battle experiences. What started out as a quest to answer a few questions concluded with a moving ceremony involving two countries.

Last spring Chris Pattillo shared with Nugget readers, in her enthusiastic account “Thirty Days of Total Immersion in Genealogy,” what it was like to dive into the sometimes cold waters of family history research. In November 2011 Chris took the next step when she joined other CGS members and friends for her first trip to the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah. Her newest discoveries are recounted in “One Week in Salt Lake.”

Linda Okazaki was on the same trip and she will agree the stars were aligned! The startling discovery of an ancestor’s true name in a San Francisco newspaper account sent Linda’s research in completely new directions, solved a long-standing mystery and provided an astonishing story for descendants.

Without Amy Coffin, many of us would not be aware of what is happening on the frontiers of genealogy. Her insider view of the 2012 RootsTech conference gives an update on the future of family research, and it most certainly involves technology.

CGS President Jeffrey Vaillant tells all in his account of the society’s August 2011 research trip to the Allen County Public Library in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Participants met Library Manager Curt Witcher, found genealogical treasures in the stacks and microfilm collection, and sampled Fort Wayne restaurants and Indiana weather.

Write your stories and send them to us. We’d love to hear about your research, your discoveries, and your aha! moments with technology. There is space reserved in The California Nugget for your family, and, please note, you do not have to be a CGS member to submit a manuscript. Having your family history in print in a journal that is archived in libraries across the United States guarantees permanency for your research. Email me at jhufft@comcast.net for the Submission Guidelines and then take the leap. Make 2012 the year you visit a new library, learn the latest technology skills, and write it all down! 

—Jane Hufft, Editor

TABLE of CONTENTS

Twenty-First Century Genealogy
A Tombstone for Ulrik by Wayne W. Padgett
One Week in Salt Lake by Chris Pattillo
RootsTech 2.0: A Report from the 2012 RootsTech Conference by Amy Coffin

California Ancestors
Who Was Emerson Corville? by Linda Okazaki
1883 Pensioners List: Dorsey, Eliz. Eleanor to Hayes, James Compiled by Jane Hufft

For Our Readers
CGS Visits the Allen County Public Library by Jeffrey Vaillant and Nancy Peterson
Boston, Massachusetts Research Trip Information

At the Society
Book Review by Laura Spurrier
Recent Acquisitions in the Library
New Members
Index

The California Nugget, the magazine of the California Genealogical Society, is published twice a year. Its purpose is to share the unique genealogical material in the CGS library, add to the body of family history information about Californians, offer guidance and timely information to family researchers, and to provide a forum for members to share their expertise and findings. Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the society. The magazine is distributed free to members and is available to non-members for $5.00 an issue, plus postage.

Copyright © 2012 by Kathryn M. Doyle, California Genealogical Society and Library

The California Nugget, Fall 2011, Volume III, Issue 2

The Fall 2011 edition of The California Nugget has been sent to the printer and should begin arriving in members' mailboxes next week. It's another information-filled issue by Editor Jane Hufft and Production Editor Lois Elling.

Here is Jane's letter from the editor:

Dear Readers:

This issue of the California Nugget is arriving in your mailbox earlier than usual so we can share exciting news about two events. First, the California Genealogical Society proudly announces the publication of the newly revised Raking The Ashes, Genealogical Strategies for pre-1906 San Francisco Research. This new second edition is the finest tool available for conducting genealogical and historical research in San Francisco in the years before the great earthquake. No one knows more about work-around strategies to find cemeteries, records, repositories, unique sources, church information, land records and other genealogical and historical records related to San Francisco than author Nancy Peterson. Completely updated, painstakingly researched, carefully organized and thoroughly user-friendly, Raking the Ashes, second edition, belongs on the shelf of every California researcher. For more information and ordering information, please see page 17.

There’s more! CGS and Ancestry.com are bringing a special all-day genealogy con- ference to San Francisco on Saturday, November 5. This informative day will offer many workshops and lectures. If you can be in the area, plan on joining us. Registration information is on page 16.

In other articles, Amy Coffin’s description of the first RootsTech Conference will take readers one step further into an exciting future where technology and genealogy meet. Rachel M. Popma, editor of Indiana Genealogist, has graciously allowed us to reprint her recent article that describes how to add eBay to your toolbox of genealogy search strategies. In “California Ancestors,” Jim Sorenson recounts the unexpected results of a persistent search to find just one more cousin. Virginia Turner looks back on early days of researching at CGS, and Sheri Fenley recounts the story of a successful pioneering family in San Francisco.

One way to have your family’s history saved for posterity is to have it in print. Have you thought about submitting your family’s story to the Nugget? We are always looking for well-researched family histories as well as articles that will help our readers become better genealogists and more successful writers and researchers.

Jane Hufft, Editor

TABLE of CONTENTS
Twenty-First Century Genealogy
RootsTech: A Report from the Trenches by Amy Coffin
Using Automated eBay Searches for Genealogy by Rachel M. Popma

California Ancestors
Chasing After Cousins by Jim Sorenson
Pursuing My Spooner and Ruffcorn Legacies at CGS by Virginia Turner
David Nathan Walter: Jewish Pioneer of San Francisco by Sheri Fenley 
1883 Pensioners List: Cashman, James to Dorland, John M.

For Our Readers
November 5 Ancestry Day in San Francisco Registration Form
Raking the Ashes order form

At the Society
Recent Acquisitions in the Library
New Members
Index

The California Nugget, the magazine of the California Genealogical Society, is published twice a year. Its purpose is to share the unique genealogical material in the CGS library, add to the body of family history information about Californians, offer guidance and timely information to family researchers, and to provide a forum for members to share their expertise and findings. Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the society. The magazine is distributed free to members and is available to non- members for $5.00 an issue, plus postage.


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

The California Genealogical Society and FamilySearch on YouTube

I was disappointed not to have been able to attend the first RootsTech Conference this past weekend in Salt Lake City. Congratulations to FamilySearch.org and to the presenters and participants. I've been following the #rootstech tweets and blog posts.

One thing caught my eye on Facebook – a reference to familysearch.org on YouTube. (Thank you, Linda Herrick Swisher.) There was something I'd been waiting to see and had no idea it was posted online.

I shared some photos last August from the interviews with Jane Lindsey and Nancy Peterson and the filming FamilySearch did at the library. Now you can see the entire film on YouTube!

California Genealogical Society and Library works with FamilySearch to provide free online access to the records of funeral homes in the San Francisco area. These records are among the few collections that date back prior to 1906 and the San Francisco earthquake and are great substitutes for death records for that time period.

Thanks very much FamilySearch!

Update 3/1/11: the California Genealogical Society and Library is starting our next collaboration with FamilySearch Indexing: the 1852 California State Census Project.


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