Poolside Chats: A Genealogy Webinar Series

Webinar Abstract: Our ancestors existed in a time and a place. Maps are one way to give the names and dates in our genealogical research more life, context, and excitement. Where did they live? What would they have seen? How did they get around? Cari Taplin will examine various ways researchers can use maps to trace their ancestors and their research.

Webinar Abstract: Manuscript collections can contain genealogical gems. Letters, diaries, photographs, histories, and many more information-packed wonders reside in repositories around the world. Many repositories are digitizing parts of their collections and making them available online, so we don’t have to visit the repository to access the information we’re looking for, but finding these collections can still be a challenge. Learn how to search for online collections, use finding aids to determine their usefulness for our research, and locate amazing records.

Webinar Abstract: The presentation recounts the research involved in identifying New England and Mid-West Union soldiers whose burials in St. Augustine, Florida, were lost to time. The research begins with an 1865 stereogram photograph housed at the Library of Congress. Attendees will learn methods of researching record groups for men whose names were not known. This involves working within locality related sources to identify potential men, and then verifying them through other documentation. A case study illustrates the methods and highlights some of the documentation used to solve this research problem and to connect these men to their families.

Webinar Abstract: Learn about the routes taken and the reasons for the emigration from Ireland to the U.S. and Canada before, during and after the famine. Learn how this mass movement of people can affect your research, plus what tools and records are available to trace your Irish ancestor.

Webinar Abstract: In the early 1900s, August Lawrence left his Minnesota home for a job and never returned. More than a century later, genealogy research solved the mystery of his disappearance. This talk covers strategies that can help you break down even long-standing brick walls in your own research.

Webinar Abstract: Our ancestors made themselves homes and these homes created records. Understanding how to research these records may be your answer to a difficult research problem!

Webinar Abstract: This presentation is a case study to introduce a soldier of the Union army. With state, federal, family, and generalized genealogical his story will build, record by record. We will further contextualize his experience with historical events and social history about his home, regiment, and battles to understand the type of fuller picture we can build about our ancestors. This lecture is not just a story, it is a walk through how the records were found as well. Join us to find Edward: missing—presumed dead in the American Civil War.

Webinar Abstract: This lecture will ask you to put on your “CSI” hat and use your detective skills and critical thinking abilities to solve a genealogical research problem when little information is known. Starting with a newspaper death announcement, a little social history, and a photograph, we will create a series of questions that need answers to bring our subject to life. Using the clues found in a death announcement, you will learn the strategies needed to identify the records and resources that will help solve the unknown and bring an ancestor to life.

Webinar Abstract: Feeling trapped with nowhere to go? Bad, weak or missing evidence all contribute to misleading research. Review your research findings, sharpen your techniques, evaluate your sources, and map a new course.