Family History Month Coming to WRHS

October 2005 will be Family History Month at Western Reserve Historical Society. A month-long exhibit and some special events are being planned for the Society's Library and Museum by the Genealogical Committee, an auxiliary of the Society.
The committee’s objective is to publicize what the Western Reserve Historical Society and its Library offers in the way of resources for people throughout Northeastern Ohio to research their family history.
Details will be forthcoming by mid-summer.

Learn how to publish your genealogy

Brent Morgan, a professional genealogist based in Northeastern Ohio, will discuss "Using Your Computer To Publish a Family History" at the July 9 meeting of the Northeast Ohio Computer-Aided Genealogy Society. He will share his experiences in creating his recent publication, "Shapard, A family History," a 466-page book included family genealogies, favorite recollections and stories and photographs.
NEOCAG meets from 9:00 am-12:30 pm at Bartholomew Episcopal Church,435 SOM Center Road,Mayfield Village, Ohio.

The society's website is at : http://neocag.net

2005 OGS Chapter Management Seminar

The Ohio Genealogical Society 2005 Chapter Management Seminar will be held on 27 August at the Batavia Church of Christ, 2170 Old State Route 32 at Bauer Road, Batavia. The host chapter is the Clermont County Chapter.

The program features eleven highly-knowledgeable speakers, including Curt B. Witcher of the Allen County Public Library in Fort Wayne, IN.

The objectives of the seminar are to provide ideas for running an OGS Chapter more smoothly and effectively, pass along ideas from experienced OGS volunteers and OGS chapter volunteers, and enable chapter representatives to network with representatives from other OGS chapters.

This seminar is free for members of OGS and OGS chapters. There is a $25.00 fee for non-members.

To view the schedule and hotel information, go to OGS Chapter Management Seminar on the OGS website.

Sep 17 meeting of Summit County Chapter OGS moved to branch library

The following announcement appeared on Jun 28 on the blog of the Summit County Chapter, Ohio Genealogical Society. ”The September 17 meeting of the Summit County chapter of the Ohio Genealogical Society has been moved to the Goodyear Branch Library, 60 Goodear Blvd. because the regular meeting room at Akron-Summit County Public Library will not be available.” “Topic of the meeting will be ‘Historical Privy Salvage and Bottle Excavation’ by the Lacy Family of Ashtabula, Ohio. Many artifacts used by our ancestors will be displayed at the meeting which begins at 1 p.m.” The chapter’s blog can be accessed at http://summitogs.blogspot.com/

West Central Ohio Workshop to Feature George K. Schweitzer

The West Central Ohio Genealogical Workshop Group, comprised of Mercer, Allen, Auglaize, and Hardin Counties, will host speaker George K. Schweitzer, PhD, from Knoxville, Tenn., on Saturday October 22, 2005, at the St. Marys Theatre in downtown St. Marys, Ohio.

Dr. Schweitzer uses historical reenactment to teach genealogy and dresses in period costume to fit the lecture. He has lectured to over 200 genealogical and historical societies in the US, Canada, England, and Germany and has authored 19 genealogical guidebooks.

Dr. Schweitzer's lectures will be:

1. Rivers to Trails to Roads to Canals to Trains (migration lecture)

2. Researching in Burned out Counties

3. Civil War Genealogy

There will be a question and answer period following the last lecture.

Exhibitors will be selling genealogical material and lunch is included. Doors open at 8:00 a.m.

Pre-registration is $30, $35 the day of the event. Pre-registration is due October 15. A box lunch is included.

Send registration to: West Central Ohio Genealogical Workshop, P.O. Box 298, St. Mary, OH 45885

Free admittance to WRHS Library

If you have been putting off researching at the Western Reserve Historical Society because of the admission fee, put it off no longer. As of June 15, the admission fee has been waived--and this continues throughout the summer until September 15. Also, in case you missed the reduction in parking fees in the Society's guarded lot a few months ago, they now are only $5.00 for the day. Otherwise, you have to park on the street and remember to feed the parking meter.
If you haven't been to the Society, you need to know that it was one of the first institutions in America to collect genealogical materials and is, today, one of the larger family history research centers in the country. Although the focus of the collections is on source materials for the region east of the Mississippi River, major sources for other states are collected.
The Society's Library is the largest American history research center in northern Ohio. Its holdings consist of 235,000 books; 25,000 volumes of newspapers; 30,500 rolls of microfilm, 1,000,000 prints and photographs; and more than 3,000 collections of manuscripts and archives that comprise more than six million items. The Library is the principal repository for histories, records, and papers relating to the growth and development of Cleveland and that portion of northeastern Ohio once known as the Connecticut Western Reserve.
The Library's holdings can be searching on line at www.wrhs.org. Click on "Search the Collections" in the left-hand menu panel on the home page.
The Society Library is at 10825 East Boulevard, Cleveland, Ohio 44106. The telephone number is (216) 721-5722. Be aware that the Library is closed on Sunday and Monday, but it is open 9 to 5 on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. On Wednesday, it is open from 9 to 9.
By the way, the Society is now featuring a a new café, where you can choose from a variety of sandwiches and salads in a deli-style café. It is located in the Reinberger lobby.