__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
2002 CONFERENCE
SUBJECTS SURVEY
One of our
newsletter pages is a survey of "Lecture Topics" that John Colletta
is prepared to present. If you have
attended our August and/or September YGF meetings, you probably
have already filled one of these out so may disregard this
request.
If not, we
(we being Verba Valentine and Louise LaRue) ask that you take a few minutes and
choose 6 topics by checking or x-ing at the right of the number of your
preferences of subjects for our 2002 conference.
Then we ask
that you choose one of the following:
a. Mail the marked survey sheet to me: Louise LaRue, 1917 Ave. C, Billings, MT
59102 or
b. e-mail the numbers of your 6 choices to me at
lourue1917@juno.com or
c. Phone me with your 6 choices at (406) 252-1070
And we THANK
YOU!!! for your participation.
We will
tally the survey sheets and use the findings in choosing the subjects that will
be presented at the MSGS Conference on September 20-21, 2002 right here at the
Sheraton Hotel in downtown Billings, Montana.
John
Colletta is one of
America's most popular genealogical lecturers.
He makes searching for ancestors a journey of self-discovery. As you learn who they were, you
discover more about who you
are. We believe we have chosen a
dynamic speaker to come help us celebrate YGF's 25th anniversary year.
***
RECENT
CONFERENCE REPORT
The 2001 State Conference kicked off in Bozeman September
7th with John Wylie's keynote address on migration. Focusing primarily on forces that moved ancestors to our state,
he set the stage for what was to prove to be a very educational and inspirational
gathering. Our state and local
societies put a considerable amount of effort into our Conferences and they
need to be commended.
Educationally, the conference provided a good blend of
modern technology applied to historical contexts. Mr. Wylie's workshops focused on the benefits and pitfalls of
relying on computers and the Internet for both research and output. Ultimately his message was always
proofread! Don't assume your program is
automatically going to process your data exactly as you have imagined it to
be. Running from the ABC's of Indexing
to sharing the advantages of having "rats" in her own family's tree,
Barbara Brixey Wylie contributed a humorous, yet highly informative look at the
world of genealogical research. Her
words of wisdom included the warning to never interpret old records using
today's definitions of words. A nephew
doesn't necessarily have to be male and orphans may still have a living mother!
The BYU Molecular Genealogy Research drew blood samples
from volunteers wanting to contribute to their genetic-genealogical
database. Other highly qualified
speakers provided varied workshops ranging from
(continued
on page 2)
FROM YOUR PRESIDENT:
I cannot tell you where the time has gone since the last
Gen-Bug was published. I, like most of
you, have done a little 'traveling for genealogy', 'photographing for
genealogy' and 'visiting for genealogy'.
From time to time I make the mistake of asking my husband 'what in the
world did I do before I began working on our family histories'. Now when you 'step in it', you deserves what is said next...'ironing,
cleaning, cooking....' But then I
always answer 'it seems to have waited with no problem at all'.
We have a new program chairman! How exciting for us all.
Sharon Kennedy is eagerly waiting for our suggestions as to what
programs we would like to hear. She is
also asking genealogists to volunteer to 'do' a program. Really when you think about it...we are an
organization with MANY talented people filled with MANY genealogical
interests. While some of us are focused
for a time on 'military records', some have been working for years on 'probate
records', while others are spending much time on 'passenger records' yet others
are.......My point being, without thinking about it, we are ALL 'walking
programs'. So let's help Sharon out and
give her suggestions and an hour of our expertise! After all, who doesn't love a "captured' audience? Her e-mail address is fsm@wtp.net
Our YGF web site is fabulous! Cleve works on it constantly making it the best it can be! If you haven't added it to your 'favorites'
yet, the address is http://www.rootsweb.com/~mtygf/
Every publication needs to comment on the current affairs
in our country. Even the Gen-Bug. Yes, Sept. 11, 2001 will change all our
lives forever. We will never move with
the 'ease' that we did previously. We
will never travel without thinking of the day the terrorists attacked our most
populated city. Many of us cannot
remember where we were on our 6th birthday.
We cannot recall what we paid for our second car. Many of us cannot recant our 2 lines from
our first school play. Yet we are
reminded every year to think about what we were doing on the day that Pearl
Harbor was bombed by the Japanese. Each year we are forced to recall exactly
where we were when John F. Kennedy was assassinated. Tho numerous occasions are forgotten, many events are chiseled in
our minds for eternity. For me, I will
NEVER forget Sept. 11th, the day I realized that so much history was happening
in my present. I pray I will always
remember the image of my 3 year old grandson gazing at the flag of the United
State of America, holding his little hand somewhere on the trunk of his body
and declaring 'GOD BLESS AMERICA'.
Your
president, Suzanne McPherson
***
Recent Conference Report, continued
county records, Yellowstone National Park Archives,
regional history, and dating old photographs.
Senator Ed Butcher from Winifred spoke at the banquet,
enlightening us to the political process and our group's importance in
protecting our county records.
Besides being extremely educational, the 2001 State
Conference also proved to be inspirational.
The opportunity to join with others who share the vicissitudes of our
quest to unravel the past is something anyone serious about genealogy shouldn't
miss. You can bet I'm making plans to
attend next September in Billings!
Shawna Valentine
***
THANK YOUS FROM
PATRICIA MARCHINGTON
Both the YGF
and PAF societies received nice thank you's from Patricia Marchington,
thanking us for generous donations.
Patricia made numerous phone calls and trips to Helena from Livingston
supporting Senate Bill 443 to preserve public records.
If you are
interested in being informed when local governments will be disposing
of records, sign up as follows: 1. You can send an e-mail message to join-recordsdisposal@lists.state.mt.us.
2. You will need
to confirm the e-mail address you should have just received (this is to confirm
you want to join AT NO COST). Make sure
your message is addressed to: lyris-confirm-33710@lists.state.mt.us
3. To un-scribe
anytime, send an e-mail to: leave-recordsdisposal-33710@lists.state.mt.us
To change an e-mail address, just unsubscribe your old
e-mail address, and then re-subscribe with your new e-mail address.
***
HOW
I SOLVED IT
After
talking to family members, other genealogists said the first record to acquire
was census' because of the information they contained. We knew great grandpa was in Scranton, PA
because Mom, Enid Purcell, had mailed for and received a response from the
Catholic Church there. It stated he married
there. The clue came from the book,
"History of Montana" that included biographies (grandpa's).
So while in
the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, I started through the 18 rolls
of microfilm for Scranton City. It took
6 days at 9 hours per day. No luck!
We returned
home and re-evaluated. Were we sure he
lived in Scranton? Many times a couple
married in the wife's parish especially if Catholic. We couldn't search for her as we didn't know her father's
name. So I would not find her on the
1840 Federal census because it only lists "head of household" with
children in sex and age categories.
What record
notes where great grandpa lived when? A
record I had used before to locate people in MT for my business, Montana
Lineage Search, were City Directories. I ordered a microfilm of them through LDS Ward library for Luzerne
County, PA which includes Scranton.
Counties were carefully checked as Luzerne was formed from Lackawanna County during the time frame I was
researching. Always another
glitch! By systematically reading the
films year by year I eliminated Scranton and checked neighboring towns and
crossed each off on a state map.
Finally in 1860 in the town of Wilkes Barre, 5 miles south of Scranton,
there was a listing for Pat Purcell, great-grandpa!
Now I check
other sources to be sure a person is living in a specific place during census
years before I spend my time searching census.
Ann Ferguson
***
1. INDEX TO
WEDDING ANNOUNCEMENTS, PARK CO., MT, 1964-1989. Donated.
2. THE MICHELS
FAMILIES by Fred E.
Michels.
Donated.
Ellen
Cushing, our librarian, would like to remind YGF members that we need metal
file drawers that hold 4 X 6" cards.
Keep your eyes open at garage and estates sales or any other places
selling them at reasonable prices and purchase. We need many files to hold the 1994-2000 obits that have been
returned after microfilming at Salt Lake City.
This
obituary collection is one of our finest and easiest to use resources. When filing drawers have been obtained and
the seven years of cards are inter-filed, our collection will cover
1982-2000! Our THANKS to everyone who
has contributed to this collection.
LATEST PERIODICALS
FOR THE GEN-ROOM
July
2001--October 2001
If you have unwanted periodicals that you would like to
donate or would like to donate a subscription to a periodical, call Athna May
Porter at 259-2552 or e-mail at porter@imt.net
1. National
Genealogical Society Quarterly-Vol 89 #2, June 2001
2. NGS
Newsmagazine-July/Aug 2001; Sept/Oct 2001
3. Germans
from Russia Historical Society Heritage Review-Sept 2001
4. GRHS
Newsletter-September 2001
5. American
Historical Society of Germans from Russia Newsletter-Summer 2001 #103
6. Journal of
the American Historical Society of Germans from Russia-Summer 2001 Vol 24 #2
7. New England
Historical & Gen. Register-Vol 155 #619 July 2001
8. Great
Migration Newsletter-Vol 9 #3, Jul-Sept 2000; Vol 9 #4, Oct-Dec 2000
9. Family Tree
Magazine-October 2001; December 2001
10. History
Magazine-Aug/Sept 2001; Oct/Nov 2001
11. Heritage
Quest -Jul/Aug 2001;Sept/Oct 2001
12. New
England Ancestors-Fall 2001
13. Heritage
Quest Update Newsletter-September 2001
14. Daughters
of the American Revolution-Owned by Parmly
15. Genealogical
Helper-Owned by Parmly
Two family newsletters that we receive regularly are:
16. Bunnell/Bonnell
Newsletter
17. Gest-Guest
Quarterly
***
MORE ON BOZEMAN
CONFERENCE
The 12th
annual Montana State Genealogical Society's Conference held on Sept. 6-8, 2001
at Bozeman was a success. Carol
Woodley, 1st Vice-president, did a remarkable job of putting the schedule
together.
The speakers
were well received and presented a good mix of subjects. See the "Recent Conference Report"
by Shawna Valentine for more details on page 1. All of the classes plus 2 luncheons, a Friday eve banquet with
speeches by Senator Ed Butcher and Representative Larry Jent from Bozeman,
the MSGS Annual meeting, and the Bookworm Frolic (silent auction of donated
books) made for an enjoyable time.
Various reports such as the "First Families & Early Settlers"
and the on-going project of the Death Index at Helena makes one aware of
worthwhile projects that our state group embraces. Betty Marshall won the Anna Mae Hanson Award for her
contributions to furthering genealogy.
A Memorial Service honoring our deceased members has become an annual
tribute. Meeting and greeting old and
new friends is a fun part of these conferences. More people should have attended--the opportunity was there.
***
If it weren't for the last minute, a lot of things
wouldn't get done.
Research
Person
One of our
newest members, has jumped right in answering queries. Hats off to Jason Herman! This is a great service, especially for
people who live in another state but have ties to the Billings area. If you have a question and need help, e-mail
Jason at jherman35@home.com
***
THE STARS
AND STRIPES The
Abridged Academy Song-Book
copyright 1918
O Star-spangled banner! O red, white, and blue! The hearts of all freemen turn fondly to
you. And strong arms are ready to
strike with a will Till foes of our
freedom are humbled and still.
Invincible banner!
The flag of the free! O where treads the foot that would falter for
thee? Give tears for the parting--a
murmur of pray'r--Then, forward! The
fame of our standard to share.
O God of our fathers!
This banner must shine Where
battle is hottest, in warfare divine. O
lead us, till wide from the Gulf to the sea, the land shall be sacred to
freedom and Thee.
MEMBERSHIP
UPDATE
Welcome
new members!
Coleman, Nancy & Ralph, 2410 Shiloh Road, Billings, MT 59106, 652-4791
Oakland, Sharon, 625 S 38th St W, Billings, MT 59102, 651-0580
Robinson, Dan & Jean, 64 Nuggett Dr, Billings, MT 59102, 652-0499
ROSTER CORRECTIONS
New e-mail
addresses----
Erekson, Bob berekson@home.com
Lindgren, Lucille
Llind236@yahoo.com
Pollock, Elsie
aepollock@montana.net
New phone
number----
Lang, Thad & Connie
245-7354
New
address----
Pearsall, John, P.O. Box 30703, Billings, MT 59107
-----shared by Anita Smith