Friday, January 31, 2014

NSGS February Meeting

The North Suburban Genealogical Society invites the public to attend its Saturday, February 8th meeting at the Northbrook History Museum. Guests are welcome and are invited to bring a friend and enjoy refreshments.

The meeting will feature Tina Beaird presenting on Military Genealogy. Tina will explain the significance behind using original records for tracing your ancestor's military service. Records from the American Revolution to WWII will be discussed as well as some sources for modern records. Learn what types of documents are available within federal, state and local archives.

 The meeting begins at 1:00 PM and is free and open to the public. There will be snacks.

Thursday, January 30, 2014

Genealogy First Tuesdays

Join us in the Genealogy & Local History Room this Tuesday from 6-8:30pm for our drop-in genealogy group. Bring your questions and get one-on-one help, meet other enthusiasts, and share research tips with the group.

Monday, January 20, 2014

Immigration Records Class

Looking for your immigrant ancestors? Come to my class this Wednesday, January 22 at 10am to learn about immigration records! You can register online or call the Reference Desk at 847-729-7500 x7700.

Sunday, January 19, 2014

Early Education in Glenview

Old Rugen School located at Shermer Road and Lake Avenue -- 1912
Glenview History Center
The Glenview Journal recently ran an article called What Education Was Like in Glenview's Early Years. The author spoke with Bev Dawson from the Glenview History Center about some of the first schools and school teachers in Glenview. Ms. Dawson also explains how Glenview's current school earned their names.

Friday, January 17, 2014

More on organization

Need more help getting your research organized? Here are some resources that may help:

Cyndi's List has a great list of websites devoted to organization.

You can also watch this 5 Minute Genealogy video about organizing records. And this lesson from the New England Historic Genealogical Society discusses what types of forms to use, how to properly fill them out, and what kinds of software can help you get organized.

The library also has books that can help with your organization:

Organizing Your Family History Search by Sharon DeBartolo Carmack


Monday, January 13, 2014

Get Organized!

If you made a New Year's Resolution to get organized this year, here are few tips to get you started sorting through your mass of genealogy records. Remember that you should organize and document your research as you go.

Many prefer to color code their research. An easy way to do that is to assign each of your grandparents' families a color. For example, your paternal grandfather would be coded "red" and all of your research relating to his family line will be kept in red folders or folders with red labels. Keep all of your red files together and arrange them alphabetically by surname.

One of the simplest organization methods is to create a family group record for each married couple and then assign each family group to a file folder. The family group will be comprised of the married couple and their children. All of the family group's genealogical records created after the marriage will be kept in that folder. So the first document in the folder might be the couple's marriage certificate followed by the birth certificates of their children, family census sheets, etc. Note that the married couple's birth records should be kept in their parents' folders. You will also want to keep your research logs and notes in your family group folders. The FamilySearch Wiki has a really great description of of family group records and how to use them.

You can also organize your files by family name and record type. For instance, you might have folders for JONES: Birth, JONES: Census, JONES: Marriage, etc. Number each document included in the folder. At the front of each folder, create an index listing family members with the corresponding number(s) assigned to their document(s).

There is no right or wrong way to organize your research but, hopefully, this can get you started. As you get further along in your research you'll discover a system that works for you.



Thursday, January 2, 2014

Genealogy First Tuesdays

Drop by the Genealogy & Local History Room on Tuesday, January 7, anytime between 2:00-4:30. Meet other genealogy enthusiasts, get to know our genealogy collection, receive one-on-one help, or discuss your brick walls with others.