NEXT MEETING
Special Members Only Field Trip, Nov 16
No Meeting in December
January 22, 2020 -- Genealogy Roadshow TBD
List of 2019 Meetings
January 23, 2019 Round-table discussion - bring your problems and questions
February 27, 2019 Find Answers with the FamilySearch Affiliate Library
by Ryan Henrie, Director of the Cranberry Family History Center
Come learn how you can access FamilySearch at the Cranberry Public Library as well as the Cranberry Family History Center.
Ryan Henrie will use demonstration and case studies to illustrate how to access various collections on FamilySearch, new features for displaying your ancestry, and ways to explore and search FamilySearch.org with greater research success.
March 27, 2019 - Talk by Rich Venezia - The Aliens Are Coming: USCIS Record Sets
A-Files? AR-2 Forms? C-Files? Oh my! Wade through the alphabet soup of the five record sets the U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services holds to find where your recent immigrant ancestor may be hiding. (Note this lecture mainly applies to 20th-century immigrants.) Audience Level: Intermediate
In addition to handling current immigration into the USA, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) holds indispensable genealogical records for anyone with immigrant ancestors who arrived from the late eighteenth-century forward. This lecture explores a bit about how USCIS came to be, but more importantly, the valuable records it holds. Participants will learn who is likely to show up in which USCIS file set, how the index searching and ordering process works, and see examples of each record set held by USCIS. The files that will be discussed are:
· A-Files (Alien Files) (including which files are held at NARA and which are held by USCIS)
· AR-2s (Alien Registration Forms)
· C-Files (Naturalization Certificate Files)
· Registry Files
· Visa Files
April 24 - Mary Jane Kuffner Hirt - Crossing the Pond from Northern Ireland to America
Mary Jane Kuffner-Hirt is back from a recent trip to Ireland, further enriching her ancestral story of James Leech. She will share James’ 1763 Irish passport and Pennsylvania and Virginia land, tax and militia records and maps that she used to trace the migration of her Scots-Irish ancestors from Northern Ireland through Lancaster and Cumberland Counties and later to Rockbridge County Virginia. She will also discuss the resources and repositories where the records were found.
Our presenter - Dr. Kuffner-Hirt, has published in Familia, the journal of the Ulster Genealogical and Historical Society, and presented at the 2017 FGS conference; and in 2016, to an international migration studies conference in Northern Ireland. Now retired from positions at IUP and city and state government, she is applying her research skills to family history.
May 21-22, 2019 - Events Co=sponsored with North Hills Genealogists.
Genealogical Clues in Family Photos
Maureen Taylor is an internationally recognized expert on history photograph identification, photo preservation and family history research. Sought out by clients all over the world, from as far away as New Zealand, her pioneering work in historic photo research is unprecedented, evidenced by her success in solving photo mysteries. She has been featured in numerous publications and was dubbed "the nation's foremost historical photo detective' by The Wall Street Journal. Maureen has spoken on photo history, photograph preservation and family history at historical and genealogical societies, museums, conferences, libraries, and other organizations across the U. S. and in London and Canada. Her focus is on helping people rediscover their family history one picture at a time, and is passionate about getting folks to dig deep into their family history to tell the story of their ancestors.
Ms. Taylor's live webinar is supported by the North Hills Genealogists; and co-sponsored by the Cranberry Library and Cranberry Township Historical Society.
June - July 2019
GRIP Evening Presentations
Cemetery Walk - Return to the Zelienople Cemeteries.
August 28, 2019 - Preserving Research with Genealogical Software
Susan Ennis will present an overview about using software to store, record, organize and publish one's genealogical research. She will include pros and cons of using software and feature a variety of companies. The second part of the presentation will offer attendees a chance to discuss the software they use, and highlight their favorite features or reasons they like that option.
September 25, 2019 - Beaver County Genealogy and History Center
Learn about the vast resources available to genealogists in the Beaver County Genealogy & History Center, it is located to the former county 911 center at the Beaver Station Cultural & Event Center. The space is an undergrounds bunker - and well suited to preserving the collection. In addition to regular classes, the center is staffed by a team of expert volunteers. Newspapers, civil records and court records, cemetery records, church records, high school yearbooks, and so much more - all carefully cataloged and indexed. Many documents are searchable online. Jim Teapole, vice president of the group, will share an overview of what you discover when visiting the center. If you have any Beaver County, Pennsylvania connections, don’t miss this meeting!
October 23, 2019 - Digging Deep with Wills and Estates
Wills and estate files can hold valuable clues for your genealogy research. Many helpful facts can be recorded in these papers, including dates of death, family members, married names for women, affiliations, occupations, and more. Learn more about finding and using these unique records. Margaret Hewitt, Special Collections Librarian, at the Butler Area Public Library will be our guest presenter.
November 16, 2019 - Special Event - Saturday, November 16, 10:30 AM - 12:00 Noon
A visit to the Pennsylvania Department of the Main Carnegie Library in Oakland.
Marilyn Holt, Library Services Manager for Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh’s Pennsylvania Department, which focuses on local history and genealogy, will guide us through the department's resources as they relate to genealogists. This is a great opportunity to tap Marilyn's expert knowledge of the department's holdings and procedures.
December - no meeting due to the proximity to Christmas. Happy Holidays!
Last revised 2 November 2019
February 27, 2019 Find Answers with the FamilySearch Affiliate Library
by Ryan Henrie, Director of the Cranberry Family History Center
Come learn how you can access FamilySearch at the Cranberry Public Library as well as the Cranberry Family History Center.
Ryan Henrie will use demonstration and case studies to illustrate how to access various collections on FamilySearch, new features for displaying your ancestry, and ways to explore and search FamilySearch.org with greater research success.
March 27, 2019 - Talk by Rich Venezia - The Aliens Are Coming: USCIS Record Sets
A-Files? AR-2 Forms? C-Files? Oh my! Wade through the alphabet soup of the five record sets the U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services holds to find where your recent immigrant ancestor may be hiding. (Note this lecture mainly applies to 20th-century immigrants.) Audience Level: Intermediate
In addition to handling current immigration into the USA, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) holds indispensable genealogical records for anyone with immigrant ancestors who arrived from the late eighteenth-century forward. This lecture explores a bit about how USCIS came to be, but more importantly, the valuable records it holds. Participants will learn who is likely to show up in which USCIS file set, how the index searching and ordering process works, and see examples of each record set held by USCIS. The files that will be discussed are:
· A-Files (Alien Files) (including which files are held at NARA and which are held by USCIS)
· AR-2s (Alien Registration Forms)
· C-Files (Naturalization Certificate Files)
· Registry Files
· Visa Files
April 24 - Mary Jane Kuffner Hirt - Crossing the Pond from Northern Ireland to America
Mary Jane Kuffner-Hirt is back from a recent trip to Ireland, further enriching her ancestral story of James Leech. She will share James’ 1763 Irish passport and Pennsylvania and Virginia land, tax and militia records and maps that she used to trace the migration of her Scots-Irish ancestors from Northern Ireland through Lancaster and Cumberland Counties and later to Rockbridge County Virginia. She will also discuss the resources and repositories where the records were found.
Our presenter - Dr. Kuffner-Hirt, has published in Familia, the journal of the Ulster Genealogical and Historical Society, and presented at the 2017 FGS conference; and in 2016, to an international migration studies conference in Northern Ireland. Now retired from positions at IUP and city and state government, she is applying her research skills to family history.
May 21-22, 2019 - Events Co=sponsored with North Hills Genealogists.
Genealogical Clues in Family Photos
Maureen Taylor is an internationally recognized expert on history photograph identification, photo preservation and family history research. Sought out by clients all over the world, from as far away as New Zealand, her pioneering work in historic photo research is unprecedented, evidenced by her success in solving photo mysteries. She has been featured in numerous publications and was dubbed "the nation's foremost historical photo detective' by The Wall Street Journal. Maureen has spoken on photo history, photograph preservation and family history at historical and genealogical societies, museums, conferences, libraries, and other organizations across the U. S. and in London and Canada. Her focus is on helping people rediscover their family history one picture at a time, and is passionate about getting folks to dig deep into their family history to tell the story of their ancestors.
Ms. Taylor's live webinar is supported by the North Hills Genealogists; and co-sponsored by the Cranberry Library and Cranberry Township Historical Society.
June - July 2019
GRIP Evening Presentations
Cemetery Walk - Return to the Zelienople Cemeteries.
August 28, 2019 - Preserving Research with Genealogical Software
Susan Ennis will present an overview about using software to store, record, organize and publish one's genealogical research. She will include pros and cons of using software and feature a variety of companies. The second part of the presentation will offer attendees a chance to discuss the software they use, and highlight their favorite features or reasons they like that option.
September 25, 2019 - Beaver County Genealogy and History Center
Learn about the vast resources available to genealogists in the Beaver County Genealogy & History Center, it is located to the former county 911 center at the Beaver Station Cultural & Event Center. The space is an undergrounds bunker - and well suited to preserving the collection. In addition to regular classes, the center is staffed by a team of expert volunteers. Newspapers, civil records and court records, cemetery records, church records, high school yearbooks, and so much more - all carefully cataloged and indexed. Many documents are searchable online. Jim Teapole, vice president of the group, will share an overview of what you discover when visiting the center. If you have any Beaver County, Pennsylvania connections, don’t miss this meeting!
October 23, 2019 - Digging Deep with Wills and Estates
Wills and estate files can hold valuable clues for your genealogy research. Many helpful facts can be recorded in these papers, including dates of death, family members, married names for women, affiliations, occupations, and more. Learn more about finding and using these unique records. Margaret Hewitt, Special Collections Librarian, at the Butler Area Public Library will be our guest presenter.
November 16, 2019 - Special Event - Saturday, November 16, 10:30 AM - 12:00 Noon
A visit to the Pennsylvania Department of the Main Carnegie Library in Oakland.
Marilyn Holt, Library Services Manager for Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh’s Pennsylvania Department, which focuses on local history and genealogy, will guide us through the department's resources as they relate to genealogists. This is a great opportunity to tap Marilyn's expert knowledge of the department's holdings and procedures.
- If you want to carpool, meet us at 9:00 AM in the Cranberry Mall parking lot just below Jason's Deli. We will leave at 9:15 AM sharp.
- If you'd like to stay longer after the presentation to get some research done, you can drive alone or with a like-minded friend.
- Parking options include the Carnegie Museum lot at $7 all day, Soldiers and Sailors underground lot at $5 all day, or on-street parking (variable rates starting at $3 per hour.)
- Food related option: drive to Pamela's Diner in the Strip District for breakfast before the event. We would leave Cranberry at 8:00 AM. If interested, e-mail us at info@cranberrygenealogy.org.
- There are several restaurants in the area near the Carnegie Library if attendees would like to have lunch before returning to Cranberry.
December - no meeting due to the proximity to Christmas. Happy Holidays!
Last revised 2 November 2019