If you have not sent in your registration for the Eaton County Genealogical
Society Seminar on 17 April 2004. Fawne was with us last year and we had
many requests to bring her back so that she could share some more of her
wonderful information and insight with us. I would ask that you forward
this to your friends that might be interested. Seating will be limited so
don't miss out.
The deadline has been extended until April 10th. After that date you should check for
availability.
Go to our website at <
http://www.rootsweb.com/~miecgs/workshop2004.htm> for
further information.
This year's annual workshop is sure to be a full day of important
information. Both primary records and online sources will be discussed at
length. Prepare yourself now for a summer of research by arming yourself
with the most up-to-date information.
CROWN LAND RECORDS
For those who attended last year's workshop and heard Fawne speak on Land
Registry Office records you will know the importance of understanding land
records. This year Fawne will tell us all about crown land records - those
lands that brought immigrants to a new world in search of free government
land! For those who did not attend last year but have those ancestors that
you cannot find before they come to Michigan, they may well have spent time
in Ontario working for a grant of crown land to no avail before coming here.
Many thousands of early settlers in the province inhabited crown lands
through renting, leasing, squatting, government grants and sales. However,
hundreds and even thousands of these early settlers never received the
actual patent to the land from the government. Fortunately, records of the
initial request for land, or attempts to settle crown land were still
generated. In some instances, these records represent the only evidence of a
settler's existence in the province before they died or moved on to other
areas of Canada or the US. This discussion will provide researchers with a
sound understanding of the land granting process, the availability of a
variety of crown land records and resources. This is an important source of
records for anyone doing Ontario research.
USING MAPS IN FAMILY HISTORY RESEARCH
Maps are critical research tools for family history research. Maps both old
and new are important resources to help researchers track down facts about
their families; offer the names of individual landowners or residents; show
the location of a home on a specific lot; illustrate the relationship of
settlers to local institutions; reveal changing place names and; even show
changes in the boundaries of nations, provinces, counties, administrative
areas (important to early record keeping). An understanding of geographic
locations and the relationships illustrated with maps will help family
historians locate potential sources of records about their families. This
lecture will both explain and visually illustrate the importance of maps for
family history research. By attending this year's workshop you will also
have an opportunity to see copies of rare Ontario maps.
ONLINE SOURCES FOR FAMILY HISTORY RESEARCH
Are you trying to do your research online? This session will provide an
overview of helpful online resources for researching your family history.
Particular attention is given to finding primary sources online and
information for those searching in the ancestral homelands of England,
Ireland, Scotland and Europe. What tools are there to help you? What
obstacles will you encounter? What pitfalls should you watch for? Discover
how to connect your primary research with online resources and information.
Due to the popularity of this lecture, it has been expanded beyond the 1
hour allotted during the workshop which means participants will receive even
more valuable information than originally planned. It also means the
schedule for the day could run a little bit over. Don't miss this important
information to help you search online effectively!
FAMILY HISTORY RESEARCH IN THE 21ST CENTURY
Today we stand as participants and witnesses to the infant years of a new
century and a new millennium. In the same way that technology has
revolutionized the way we live, the hobby (or should we say "obsession") of
family history is also in the throws of revolutionary change. But what does
this mean to the way in which we conduct our research? More importantly,
what will be the legacy of modern family historians for future generations?
This session is designed to help researchers identify and balance the
information and resources available both online and in traditional
institutions in order to make the most of them and ensure that our family
history research is a lasting legacy for future generations