Van Zandt County Genealogical Society
P.O. Box 1388, Canton, TX 75103http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~txvzcgs/vzgs.htm
Vol. VI, No. 1...... E Newsletter ............Editor: Sibyl CreaseyJanuary 2013
January Program The January 26, 2013 program will be the installation of society board officers for the coming year. Since this is the second year for most of them, only one change will take place. We lost Laurie McDonald as recording secretary, to our regret. She is tied up with other things at the moment and gave up the job for the time being. She is a good member and we hope to have her back on the board one day.
Taking her place is another good member. We welcome Sandra Jones and know that she will do an excellent job. Board members for 2013 are as follows: Sherrie Archer, president; Scott Fitzgerald, first vice president and program chairman; Beth Gordon, second vice president and membership chairman; Ellen Wheeler, treasurer; Sandra Jones, recording secretary; Sibyl Creasey, corresponding secretary; Lisa McKinney, publication chairman; Sue Wilkinson, quarterly editor; Shirley Fuller and Jan Crow, at large members; and Kitty Wheeler, parliamentarian.
These society members are not only responsible for society work but also the job of managing and maintaining the Library of Genealogy and Local History. This library is an off-site department of the main county library and has grown to be one of the best of its kind in the State of Texas.
The monthly meetings of the society are always held at the main county library at 2 p.m. Please join us if you can and support our hardworking members!
Membership Dues Are Due! Annual membership dues for the Van Zandt County Genealogical Society remain at $10 for an individual and $12 for a family. With prices of everything going up and up, this is still a bargain.
Remember, if you wait until after March 15 to pay your dues, we ask that you add an additional $5 because of mailing quarterlies individually. The extra $5 does not apply if you are able to pick up issues at the Library of Genealogy and Local History.
The society takes new memberships all through the year.
We mailed dues reminders around the second week of January. If you received a reminder and you have already paid your dues, just disregard. These things pass in the mail sometimes.
"Our Heritage" Sue Wilkinson has the February quarterly almost ready to take to the printer so it will go out on time as usual. If you have any family information to share, Sue would be happy to hear from you. Email her with submissions at: suegen@vzinet.com
VZC Publications "Early Obituaries and Death Notices of Van Zandt County, Vol. V and Vol. VI" have been completed, published and are selling very well. In addition, Elvis Allen and Linda Mays book of "Commissioners Court Minutes, Vol. C, 1872-1881," is also doing just as well. Each Book is available for $35, plus $4 per order for shipping, if mailed. If several books are purchased at one time and have to be mailed, the shipping cost would still be only $4.
Society members were very busy in 2012 preserving county history for the benefit of those who can't visit. These books will make fine additions to any Van Zandt County collection!
Vol. V covers the period from 1919 to 1922 and contains obituaries from all the county newspapers that were microfilmed. Vol. VI continues and covers the years 1923 to 1926.
The Commissioners Court Minutes contain very valuable information for the researcher with roots in Van Zandt County. Linda Mays and Elvis Allen are meticulous researchers and writers.
For further information on any of the books published by the society, please check the society website.
Future Publications! Other genealogical resource books are in the process of being compiled. Jan Crow is working on "Ministers of Van Zandt County." Benja Mize has begun a book on "Sacred Harp Music Conventions." This book will contain never before published obituaries and will give researchers unique information about their ancestors and their activities.
Also in the works is Kitty Wheeler's book "Post Offices, Cities, Towns and People." She had part of her book published in "Histories and Biographies of Van Zandt County, Vol. II" published in 1991. She has found further information that will add to the history of the county and its people.
Other projects in the planning stages are "Marks and Brands of Van Zandt County" and "Early Wills of Van Zandt County."
Good Luck, Researchers! One of our greatest joys here in Van Zandt is helping researchers find that missing information or clue that leads them to finding more about their families.
If you need anything, just let us know and we will do our best to help you find it.
We can also post your queries in the society's quarterly "Our Heritage." Sometimes it takes a while for responses but you never know who is out there with the family information you need. When requesting help, please send your address!
Also, please remember, don't send multiple research requests to multiple people.
******** From Martha Heard's File Our wonderful Martha Heard always has something to read to begin our monthly meetings. Sometimes it is a bit of history or an interesting story and often a poem regarding our passion, genealogical research! Sometimes, if we are very lucky, it will be an original poem written by Martha herself. Our Martha is indeed talented! The following poem is an original and we are positive everyone can relate to it!
Blessed Are The Packrats
by Martha HeardBlessed are the packrats,
Those wonderful creatures!
Now here is a list
Of their infinite features:
There are papers and pictures
And clippings galore;
There are scrapbooks and cookbooks
And ads from the store;
There are postcards and letters
And boxes of cards;
There are checkbooks and statements
And bills by the yard;
There are announcements of weddings,
Graduations and births;
There are Bible and magazines,
Who knows what they're worth!
There are maps and directions
And booklets on cures,
Encyclopedias, textbooks,
And travel brochures.
And insurance policies for
Whatever we need.
Every drawer, every closet,
Every desk holds a clue
Just waiting to be discovered
By someone like you.
So, blessed are the packrats,
The genealogists' friends!Good Luck in 2013! The holidays are over, things are settling down for the time being which means we can all get back to researching our family histories! We hope you have good luck in finding those tidbits. We know how precious they are! If we can help in any way, just let us know. We are always happy to help researchers.
Familysearch If you haven't accessed familysearch, then you are really missing something! This site, created by the Mormon Church, has grown and is still growing. It has an amazing amount of genealogical research material on it. You have to open an account with a user name and a password if you need to view some records and print them off but this is free.
Go to: https://www.familysearch.org
On the home page, scroll down below and on the left side click on either "All record collections" or "United States." This will take you to an index page with either all that pertains to the United States or world wide. You don't have to access the list when you are researching a name but you can see what a massive amount of material is located on this site. Material is being added all the time so check often.
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This page last updated January 22, 2013Van Zandt County Genealogical Society Website maintained by Sibyl Creasey
