Another Society Bites the Dust

Elizabeth at Little Bytes of Life reports that her local genealogical society left no forwarding address in her blog post Another One Bites the Dust.

I took a look and the Lompoc Valley Genealogical Society Web site is still online and even includes a membership plea to "Join an exciting and involved society." The telltale tip is the "last revised" date at the bottom of the page: 18 August 2002.

Elizabeth was looking for "fellowship" which is what we are quite good at here in Oakland. Does the California Genealogical Society have any members who live down Elizabeth's way??

NEHGS Research Trip: September 21-28, 2008

It's not too early to sign up for the California Genealogical Society and Library Research Trip to the New England Historic Genealogical Society library, September 21-28, 2008.

CGS President and past NEHGS Trustee, Jane Lindsey and Jerome Anderson, long-time researcher at NEHGS will co-lead this biennial trip to Boston, Massachusetts.

Accommodations are at the John Hancock Hotel and Conference Center in the Copley Square area of downtown Boston, located about three blocks from NEHGS.

The tour begins on Sunday evening with a brief orientation. Since the NEHGS library is closed on Monday, participants will have the option that day of visiting the Massachusettes State Archives, Suffolk or Middlesex County courthouses, or other repositories, including, the Massachusettes Historical Society or Boston Public Library.

The Tour Package includes:
* Hotel room (7 nights, double occupancy)
* Daily light continental breakfast
* Sunday evening orientation
* Free day Monday to visit your choice of several repositories
* Shuttle service to and from the airport
* Two group dinners (Monday and Saturday) at local restaurants
* Optional pre-trip consultations with Jane Lindsey
* On-site lectures - to be announced

The cost is $1075.00 (airfare not included.) A deposit of $200 is required by June 28, 2008, to hold one space. The trip registration brochure (also sent with the May CGS News) gives the full details and a description of the cancellation and refund policy.

Participants at the NEHGS tour in 2006.
[Photograph courtesy of Jane Lindsey.]

The first group dinner will be on Monday evening. NEHGS is open 9:00 a.m to 5:00 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, and 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. on Thursday. The Boston Public Library, near our hotel, is open until 9:00 p.m. Monday through Thursday. The BPL has an excellent microtext department with a wonderful newspaper collection.

Update: The NEHGS Trip to Boston has been canceled. The minimum number of members did not sign up.

Portrait of Harold Roberts

On this Memorial Day holiday, I thought I would post an update on the Corporal Harold Roberts project.

As he has done in the past, Retired Army Sergeant First Class Gary McMaster ordered a flower arrangement to be placed on Roberts' grave at the Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery today from the Camp Roberts Historical Museum in the name of the Soldiers and Civilians at Camp Roberts. He plans to do this every year.

In addition, McMaster sent me this photograph of the near-completed portrait that he has commissioned to hang in the museum. The painting includes a depiction of Roberts' Medal of Honor and a background view of the village of Exermont, France.

Photograph courtesy of Gary McMaster.

Read the entire series:
Part 1 — Searching for Harold Roberts
Part 2 — Roberts: What We Found
Part 3 — Roberts' Battlefield Letter
Part 4 — A Face for Harold Roberts
Part 5 — A Hero's Final Resting Place

Blog truancy

I try to always listen to my superiors so when Jane said that I should explain my absence I decided to put aside my usual practice of keeping my various volunteer activities separate.

Last weekend was the 36th annual Oakland Greek Festival sponsored by the Greek Orthodox Cathedral of the Ascension.

We had three glorious sun-filled days of food, music, food, dance, food, shopping, and more food, including delectable pastries baked with love and the BEST lamb sandwich money can buy.

The event was the culmination of months of planning by the Festival Executive Committee (on which I sit) and weeks of hard-work by multitudes of church volunteers. You can read Angela Hill's report for the Contra Costa Times for a full overview of the event.

In case you missed Steve Morse...

Jeremy Frankel, Steve Harris, Ron Arons and Steve Morse

Photograph courtesy of Jane Knowles Lindsey, 10 May 2008

If you weren't able to attend the May membership meeting last Saturday, May 10, 2008, with Steve Morse, read the full report by Steve Danko at his blog: Steve Morse at the California Genealogical Society. Danko gives a detailed synopsis of Morse's two lectures: The Jewish Calendar Demystified and What Color Ellis Island Search Form Should I Use?

Be sure to leave a comment and tell Steve how much you appreciate his accounts of the CGS meetings and events he attends - bloggers love feedback.

If you're new to the blogosphere, Steve Danko is a CGS member and author of Steve's Genealogy Blog. Steve will be one of the speakers at the upcoming Southern California Genealogical Society Jamboree, June 27-29, 2008.