History detectives
Society looks into people of the past
By Brian Hamlin/Senior Staff Writer

Sunday, January 09, 2005 - If you're one of those people who actually wants their past to catch up with them, a good place to get the ball rolling is the Solano County Genealogical Society.

Founded in 1981, the society is based on the second floor of downtown Vacaville's Old Town Hall, a 1906 structure where the organization does 21st century research for people who are trying to find their roots.

"We consider ourselves a museum of people, a museum of the paper trail left by Solano's pioneers," said society vice president Nancy Morebeck. "It's about family, but also history, geography, politics and travel."

To help people find their roots and research their ancestors, the society maintains a collection of more than 3,000 books and 200 compact discs. With the advent of the computer age, the society also maintains links with other genealogy groups worldwide.

"Our Web site is known in the genealogical community as one of the most inclusive," Morebeck said. "It's huge and every year it gets larger, all through the work of volunteers."

And the service is free to the public, although there is an annual $15 fee for those who wish to become members of the society.

The records contained in the group's library stretch from the mundane to the arcane.

Researchers will find everything from the 1850 California Census to the Solano County Superior Court Criminal Index from 1879 to 1956.

There's also "McKenney's District Directory" for 1878-79 and records from Benicia's Passalaqua Funeral Home from 1914 to 2000.

Funeral home and cemetery documents, Morebeck said, are a rich source of historical and genealogical information.

Some cemeteries in Solano County have even outlived the communities for which they were created, Binghamton and Maine Prairie, for example.

"It's ironic because the cemetery is somebody's ending point, but it can be your starting place," Morebeck said.

Church records, too, are an invaluable resource for those wanting to learn more about their Solano ancestors. In some cases, they are the only source of 19th century birth, death and marriage records.

The state, Morebeck said, only has such records from about 1907.

And those looking for forgotten ancestors through the organization don't have to stop at the boundaries of Solano County.

"We're here to help individuals trace their roots, whether from Solano County or from other parts of the world," said society president Jerry Goggiel. "Here we have the tools to help them."

Member Paula Sandusky said people have found that genealogical research isn't necessarily a dull, exhausting hunt through dusty tomes and obscure records.

"People actually enjoy the hunt. It's detective work - and you develop a kind of love-hate relationship with your mailman," Sandusky said.

Family research frequently leads to historical research and plenty of interesting side trips.

Who could resist a look at "Miscellaneous Solano County Marks & Brands, 1851-1934" or, perhaps, the "Suisun Detective Society & Account Book of John Lemon"?

Surprises are part of the game.

As noted in the society's monthly newsletter under "Murphy's Law for Genealogists," researchers never know when they'll stumble across a family anecdote that might best be forgotten, such as discovering "the public ceremony in which your distinguished ancestor participated, and at which the platform collapsed under him, turned out to be a hanging ..."

Brian Hamlin can be reached at courts@thereporter.com.

Solano County Genealogical Society

The Solano County Genealogical Society, 620 E. Main St., Vacaville, is open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. every Monday and the third Saturday of the month except federal holidays and the period from Thanksgiving through New Year's Day. There is no charge for use of the library, although the society will accept donations of $2 to help cover costs. For information, call 446-6869 or

e-mail SCGS@cwnet.com.