The society holds meetings on the third Tuesday of each month, 6:30-8:00 p.m., in the McLane Room (third floor) at Temple Public Library, 100 West Adams Avenue, in Temple.
2018 SCHEDULE
All of our programs for this year (except for December) include an on-line presentation by Lisa Louise Cooke, the owner of Genealogy Gems, a genealogy and family history multi-media company. Ms. Cooke is well respected for her genealogical expertise as a speaker and author, and her presentations are available to us through our subscription to her premium service Genealogy Gems for Societies. Each of her presentations provides valuable tips and techniques for genealogists.
March 20 - Brick Walls: Cold Case Investigative Techniques
Become a genealogical detective in this vital session. You will learn to track ancestors like a criminal cold case detective, sniffing out holes in your research, and getting missing information on the record.
NOTE: Following a 5-minute break at the conclusion of our meeting and program, we will show the 25-minute presentation "Sanborn Fire Maps" - When you want to get up close and personal in your ancestor’s neighborhood, turn to Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps. The Sanborn Map Company published maps from 1867 to 1970 to evaluate fire insurance liability in urban areas. The maps are detailed street plans on large sheets of paper—one sheet shows about four to six city blocks. You’ll learn ways to use these under-valued genealogy resources and where to find them.
April 17 - Common Surname Search Secrets
Discover tips and tricks to find your ancestors with common surnames and surnames that double as common words in the English language with Google. Learn how to weed out irrelevant search results to save time and get to what you want faster. Then save and automate your searches to run for you! You will not only improve your searches but also improve the chances that the information you post online will be found by other genealogists facilitating collaboration!
May 15 - Finding Living Relatives: Unleash Your Inner Private Eye to Find Living Relatives
Learn the techniques that Private Investigators use to track down missing people. These strategies will help you find those elusive living relatives who just may hold the key to your brick wall or possess that treasured photo you have been looking for.
June 19 - Newspapers: Getting the Scoop on Your Ancestors in Newspapers
Yearning to “read all about it?” Newspapers are a fantastic source of research leads, information, and historical context for your family history. Learn the specialized approach that is required to achieve success in locating the news on your ancestors.
July 17 - Newspapers: Getting the Scoop Part 2: Tech Tools for Newspapers
Includes three cool tech tools you have likely never used before!
August 21 - Hard Drive Organization Part 1 & Part 2
In this two-part video series, you will learn how to implement a proven hard drive organizational system ideal for genealogists. You will be spending less time searching for files on your computer, and more time searching for ancestors!
September 18 - Genealogy on the Go with the iPad
The iPad is built for hitting the road and is ideally suited for family history due to its sleek lightweight size, gorgeous graphics and myriad of apps and tools. In this class I will teach you “the tablet mindset”, the best apps for the tasks that genealogists want to accomplish, and my Top 10 list of iPad Tips and Tricks. By the end of class you will be able to turn your iPad into a family history powerhouse!
October 16 - Inspiring Ways to Captivate the Non-Genealogists in Your Life
Ms. Cooke discusses why it is important for genealogists to focus on what we want the intended audience to know to help them to understand and appreciate the family and their connections to each other.
November 20 - Google Search Strategies for the Family Historian
Google continues to evolve and change every day. In this session, Google Guru Lisa Louise Cooke will give you an update on the most recent Google changes. Then she will unleash advanced search strategies for genealogy that you probably are not using but are "must-haves" in order to get the best results possible. Here are tips and tricks you can put into practice right away.
December 18 - Christmas Party
Please join us for fun and fellowship, 6:30-8:00 p.m., in the McLane Room at Temple Public Library. Bring a side dish, appetizer, or dessert to share (for 5-6 people). Coffee and iced tea provided. Anyone preferring another beverage should bring their non-alcoholic beverage of choice.