If I’ve ever prepared for a monthly meeting of WMGS, it’s this month’s meeting. It will be our 4th virtual meeting, each with an increasing level of technology and the resultant learning curve.
English: British genealogist and heraldist Sir Arthur Vicars (1862–1921), Ulster King of Arms and Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
We’ve had some high profile guests in virtual environments over the past year interspersed with local genealogists. For example, Maureen Taylor, the Photo Detective, was our guest late in our 2013-2014 season. Big success! Great program! We’d love to have her again!
A few months later, our next virtual guest was Dick Eastman, genealogist and publisher of the monthly Eastman’s Online Genealogical Newsletter. You can subscribe to the basic account at no charge with a small fee for the “Plus Edition.” He spent the evening helping our members understand how far MyHeritage has grown and the ins and outs of using it as a research resource. Very informative and helpful. And he’s right…MyHeritage has grown by leaps and bounds and through that growth is challenges the “big guns” such as Ancestry.com.
Last November, we were challenged to organize our research in 12 months with one project per month by “DearMYRTLE, your friend in genealogy.” She had 12 challenges with 3 bonus challenges that were handed out at random to 15 WMGS members. They each took the “hot seat” to be personally challenged by DearMYRTLE to tackle the project they had been handed when they walked in the door. in addition to her genealogical community, you can visit her public Facebook page.
Keep in mind that these guest presenters were nowhere near our meetings which take place at the Agawam Senior Center in Agawam Massachusetts. They were each sitting comfy at home while they talked to us in real time and we were able to interact with them. What a world!
This Wednesday, 4 February 2015, our guest will be Judy G Russell, the Legal Genealogist. I’ve
Judy G Russell, JD, CG, CGL
heard Judy speak many times and I’m always impressed. She’s a trained attorney and a highly respected genealogist. You can tell from her post-nominals: JD, CG and CGL. JD is her law degree, “Doctor of Jurisprudence“. CG is her designation as a Certified Genealogist, not a small feat! CGL refers to Certified Genealogical Lecturer, another professional milestone. I always have told my genealogy research classes that the easiest ancestor to research is a criminal. Judy is here to prove that concept with “Rogues, Rascals and Rapscallions: The Family Black Sheep.” Can’t wait for this one!
She’ll be visiting with us via Google+ Hangouts on Air. Our membership is certainly invited to come to the meeting in person, of course. But if anyone cannot make it for any reason whatsoever, they can sit at home and actually participate live! Most of our members belong to our “WMGS Google+ Community” as well as having paid memberships in the Society. Only paid members will have access to the program after it is archived at YouTube.
If you haven’t experienced a Google+ Hangout or joined a Google+ Community, it’s worth
thetime…there are thousands that cater to nearly every interest. You should take a look at the technology and the different types of Hangouts: private, one-on-one hangouts, business meetings, applicant interviews, educational broadcasts…all with FREE technology!
If you can be with us Wednesday night, great! We’d love to have you.
One more thought: If your in or near New England, please consider attending the New England Regional Genealogical Conference, April 15 – 18 in Providence, Rhode Island. Get the details here: NERGC.
I wish there were much more free sites for people to search their roots.
Genealogy is becoming a big thing but everywhere you turn they want money for this or that.
I do not have money and it leaves me stuck without being able to go further in my Russell research.
My ggg grandfather was John Russell born abt 1758 in England, lived in New Carlisle Bonaventure Quebec,married a Marie josephte Bergeron. I can only find their seven kids birth records from 1795 to 1812 in Bonaventure Quebec.
Hello Heidi! I certainly agree with you as someone who spends a small fortune on subscriptions to support my genealogy research business.
I have a couple of suggestions for you. First, Facebook can be an amazing source of fellow researchers and even “long lost cousins” with whom you may have ever known! Use the search feature from any Facebook page and be creative. Anything from “Russell Family” to “Descendants of Deacon Samuel Chapin (1598-1675)” would bring up more pages than you could ever need! Ask a question and most of the time, someone will offer an answer or a suggestion. Did you know there are about 4,500 FB pages devoted to genealogy and about 2,500 devoted to Canadian genealogy.
Second, Google+ Communities are also very helpful. If you have a (free) Gmail account, you can click on the Google+ link which is (I think) in the upper right hand corner. There are also a substantial number of “Communities” devoted to all manner of genealogical subjects. “Communities” at Google+ are much like “pages” at Facebook. If you don’t have a Gmail account and simply don’t want one, get it anyway and just don’t give anyone the email address. But you’ll need it for the “Communities.”
That’s a start! I think I’ll post some blogs on the subject of “free” research. I have a few more ideas. You should contact me at dave@oldbones.info.
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