Welcome to Your New Home!
by
Pat Friesen, Governor of the California Mayflower Society
Linda Okazaki, President of the California Genealogical Society
by
Pat Friesen, Governor of the California Mayflower Society
Linda Okazaki, President of the California Genealogical Society
The California Mayflower Society has a new home, directly across
the hall from CGS! How exciting it is to have such a rich resource just steps
away from our own library. After residing on Fourteenth St. in Oakland for 17 years,
they officially moved into their present location on March 29.
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Linda Okazaki, Pat Friesen, Richard Kehoe
Photo by Carolyn Schwab
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Many genealogists have a sense of pride when they document that
elusive ancestor. Others want to join a lineage society, such as the Daughters
or Sons of the American Revolution. For those who have an ancestor who sailed
on the Mayflower, there is truly a sense of history and connection to the past.
The California Mayflower Society is affiliated
with the larger General Society of Mayflower Descendants, located in Plymouth,
MA. Each state has a state society. There also is a group in Canada and in
Europe. Applicants must prove their lineage to one of the 51 passengers who had
descendants and survived the journey on the Mayflower, arriving in Cape Cod in
1620. There are about 2500 members in California. The state society has an
elected Board of Assistants holding about 5 meetings a year and a bi-annual
membership meeting. The meetings alternate between northern and southern California.
Prospective members pay an initial fee to join, after which there are annual
dues of presently $40.
The California Society has 13 colonies, 7 of which are located in
northern California and 6 are in southern California. Each colony has its own
elected officers and holds meetings throughout the year usually at a local
restaurant with lunch and a speaker. Both the California society and the
general society have quarterly publications, for members only.
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| Photo by Linda Okazaki
This is the only Mayflower library for the state, and is open on Mondays from 9:30am-2pm, Thursdays from 10am-4pm, and other times by appointment 510-451-9599. It is always a good idea to call ahead before planning your visit.
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| Carolyn Schwab, Dianne Sweeney, and Pat Friesen Photo by Linda Okazaki |
Just like the California Genealogical Society library, the California
Mayflower library is staffed entirely by volunteers. The collection primarily
contains New England-based histories, vital records, family histories, and newsletters.
Although open to the public, the library caters to those seeking membership. Dianne Sweeney, also a CGS member, currently serves as the
librarian. Carolyn Schwab is actively scanning all their records.
Pat Friesen, the current “Governor” of the California Mayflower
Society, is a long-term member of the California Genealogical Society, and avid genealogist. Pat discovered her Mayflower ancestors (John Alden and Priscilla
Mullins) quite by accident while researching her family history at Sutro
Library a number of years ago. Her initial interest in joining “Mayflower” was
simply to hang a certificate on her wall. At the time, she was president of the
Marin County Genealogical Society and went to her first Redwood-Empire Colony
meeting. Pat was hooked and later became historian (most other organizations
call this position registrar). Pat became co-historian in 2000, and has remained
in that position ever since. There are three other co-historians: Linda
Longley, Myrtle Savage, and Ken Whittemore.
Pat enjoys helping others with their genealogy and has even been
leading an annual research group to Salt Lake City for the past 30 years.
Though her term as Governor ends this June, she looks forward to helping more
people with their lineage applications.
Be sure to stop by their new library sometime
soon. Since both libraries are open on Thursdays, you might plan to make a day
of it and visit both places. Bring your friends, plan on having lunch in one of
the new restaurants in vibrant uptown Oakland, and find some ancestors along the way. An open house
is being planned for sometime this Fall.
Linda Okazaki is a descendant of Edward Fuller and his son,
Samuel. Her Mayflower application is in progress.
Address:
2201 Broadway, LL3, Oakland, CA 94612-3031
Hours:
Mondays from 9:30am-2pm
Thursdays from 10am-4pm
Other times by appointment
Phone:
510-451-9599
Copyright © 2017 by California Genealogical Society
2 comments:
Excellent article.
Congratulations on your new headquarters.
David Lawrence Grinnell
Your Mayflower Library was most informative, but you forgot one member of the library staff and that was Bob Trapp who has the library duty on Monday's. Bob is very knowledgeable on New England research and is a descendant of about 30% of the passengers on the Mayflower along with also having a ancestor who was part of the original colonist in the Jamestown Colony in Virginia.
Bob use to present seminar lectures at the CGS Seminars and the Digging Your Roots Seminars in Concord. He is one of the team leaders at the Oakland Family Search Library on Tuesday nights where he has been on staff for over 27 years.
He is willing to sit down and help any who may venture into the Mayflower Library on any Monday. Please stop in and say "Hi" to him.
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