San Mateo County Genealogical Society

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Past Monthly Meetings

On this page, we list SMCGS monthly meetings for the past several years, as well as a few that are planned for the rest of this year. You can also see a list of the most recent past monthly meetings at the bottom of the calendar page, after the future events.

2023

January	Great Estates of San Mateo County	Carmen Blair
February	Working your way to Ireland using American Records	Sheila Benedict
March	The Best of Rootstech	SMCGS members
April	Putting Flesh on the Bones	Ron Arons
May	Extracting Information from German Vital Records	Katherine Schober
June	Genealogical Gems Found in Ledgers	Diane Richard
July	Is it really a Brick Wall?	Margaret Melaney
August	summer break
September	Finding what you need....	Pam Vestal
October	Genealogy Fair at the Library: Exploring Your Roots	library team
November
December	Christmas break

2022

January	The 1890 Census	Margaret Melaney
February	San Francisco House History	Eileen Bray
March	The Best of Rootstech	SMCGS members
April	Internet Archive	Carla Cegielski
May	San Francisco Public Library	Brian Weaver/Sandra Huber
June	Farming Families	Lisa Gorrell
July	summer break
August	summer break
September	National Register of Historic Places	Peggy Clemens Lauritzen
October	Using Maps for Genealogy	Melinda Kashuba
November	Genealogy Round Table: DNA , Mid-West, Irish/British, New England, Writing your stories	SMCGS members
December	Christmas break

2021

January	Children Left Behind	Judy Fambrough Billingsley
February	DNA: Finding My Grandfather	David Brunzel
March	Sisters Unite! Two Hundred Years of Women's Suffrage	Lisa Oberg
April	Angel Island	Grant Din
May	The Importance of On-Location Research in a Digital World	Craig Siulinski
June	General Membership meeting	Kara Rosenberg
July	Using Maps to Tell Stories	Sue Long
August	No Meeting in August
September	The 1950 Census: Are you Ready?	Thomas MacEntee
October	A Tour of the SMCGS Website	Mike Davis
November	Sharing Stories	Many of YOU
December	No meeting in December

2020

January	Researching Offline: In Archives, Libraries, Courthouses	Lisa Gorrell
February	Titanic Legend [107 Year Overview] and Genealogy	Sheryl Rinkol
March	Meeting canceled
April	Meeting canceled
May	10 Reasons You Can't Find Your Ancestors	Gena Philibert-Ortega
June	Northern California Research	Sean Conley
July	Orphan Train and Home Children	Chris Bell Green
August	No Meeting in August
September	The Mystery Aussie	Pam Wong
October	Creative Hypothesis Development for Brick Walls	Jan Joyce
November	Preserving Family Photos, Stories, and Documents	Carolyn Williams
December	No meeting in December

2019

January	Blogging for Sharing Family History Stories	Craig Siulinski
February	City Directories	Pamela Brigham
March	Lies, Lies, & More Lies: Can DNA Solve My Parental Lineage?	Jeff Vaillant
April	Power of Digital Photography and Family History.	Ron Madsen
May	Mayflower	Bob Trapp
June	Sharing Stories
July	Round Table Discussions and Potluck
August	No Meeting in August
September	What you Didn't Know About Ancestry	Crista Cowan
October	Salem Witch Trials Case Study	Melinda Kashuba
November	Brick Walls	Sharon Hoyt
December	No meeting in December

2018

January	The Slave Narrative that Freed Me: How I found William Grimes	Regina Mason
February	Who's in Your Neighborhood? Meeting the Diverse
	Research Needs of Your Community	Linda Harms Okazaki
March	Making a Family Video to Share	Dr. Jan Joyce Ahrens
April	English Probate and Death Duty Record	Christine Bell Green
May	The Streets of Menlo Park	Bo Crane
June	Ireland Online	Cath MaddenTrindle
July	Round Table Discussions - Organizing Your Genealogical Research,
	Using Online Genealogical Software (e.g. Ancestry.com, FamilySearch, My Heritage)
	Using Maps in Genealogy, Irish/British/Scottish/Welsh Research
August	No Meeting in August
September	Researching Your Civil War Ancestors	Mary Boyle
October	A Year in Salem: The Witchcraft Crisis of 1692	Gay Scott
November	Prohibition	Ray Cosyn
December	No meeting in December

2017

January	Onomastics: Using Naming Patterns	Martha Wallace
February	The Missing Man: Solving a Mystery with Genealogy	Sharon Hoyt CGSM
March	Case Study: A complete genealogy starting from nothing	Stephen Morse
April	British Genealogy on the Internet	Christine Bell Green
May	Sharing Stories	Hosted by Cath Trindle
June	The Berryessa Family: A California Legacy	Anthony Ray
July	SMCGS 35th Anniversary
	The Lives of the Clagstones	Glenne McElhinney
August	Indexing SMC Obituaries
September	Focused Research: Using Research Plans	Lisa Gorrell
October	Using Maps in Genealogical Research	Melina Kashuba
November	Round Table: DNA, Finding Females, Photo Organization,
	Writing Family Stories, and SMC First Families.

2016

January	United States Land Records	Martha Wallace
February	Transcribing Old Documents	Richard Rands
March	JRI-Poland: Go for the Record!	Robbinn Magid
April	Genealogical Proof Standard	Sharon Hoyt
May	Lost Cemeteries of San Mateo County	Margaret Melaney
June	The Story of Camp Fremont	Barbara Wilcox
July	Immigration to the U.S. before 1820	Chris Green
August	Indexing Event	workday
September	The Life and Times of Dennis Martin	Bo Crane
October	SMCGS/CSGA joint meeting	Janice Sellers/Cath Trindle
November	Round Table: Irish, Mid West, DNA, and Book Publishing

2015

January	Immigration Records	Ralph Mize
February	Finding your ancestors on eBay	Evie Rice
March	23andMe	Kasia Bryc
April	The Great Pacific Railroad Survey - 1853-1855	John Gleed
May	Wyatt Earp, Josephine Marcus, and Hills of Eternity Memorial Park	Mike Casey
June	Using directories	Chris Green
July	What's new at FamilySearch	Margaret Melaney
September	Peripatetic Germans	James Baker
October	Members' Night
November	Family & Homes /19th Century American West	Nicole Martin

2014

January	DNA	Steve Morse
February	Organizing your research	Patricia Burrow
March	English Research after 1750	John Gleed
April	Heritage Societies	various societies
May	Hispanic Heritage	Lucy Sweeney
June	Angel Island Immigration	Grant Din
July	Reading Old Tombstones	Martha Wallace
September	Becoming a Professional Genealogist	Chris Green
October	Brick Wall Challenge	SMCGS members
November	Breakouts (Member's Day): English, Irish, New England, DNA

2013

January	Territorial Lands and Records	Vern Dale & Martha Wallace
February	Territorial Lands and Records	Vern Dale & Martha Wallace
March	Getting Organized	Chris Green, replacing Debbie Shields
April	Choosing Genealogy Software	Debbie Shields
May	The Erie Canal	John Gleed
June	Genealogy Research in Pennsylvania	Richard Ferman
July	Find My Past vs Ancestry.com	Maggie, John, Patrick
September	World War I Draft Registration Cards	Susan G Johnston
October	The Lost Ships of Point Sur	JoAnn Semones
November	Writing Family Stories	Marcia Holstrom

2012

January	Getting Ready for the 1940 Census	Steve Morse
February	DNA	Steve Danko
March	California families?	Linda Lorda
April	Victorian Marriage & Mourning Customs	Jen Roger
May	Wills, Estates, Probates	Cath Trindle
June	Church of England Parish Records	Chris Green
July	Records from the War of 1812	Susan G. Johnston
September October November	Newspaper Articles Using Historical Maps and Photos in our Ancestors Stories Carville by the Sea	Janice Sellers Ken Lajoie Woody LaBounty

2011

January	Newspapers Online	Janice Sellers
February	Beyond the US Federal Census	Gayle Simons
March	Passenger List Annotations	Kay Speaks
April	Black Sheep	John Gleed
May	Social Networking	Marcia Holstrom
June	Power of Google (cancelled)	Chris Green
July	Raking the Ashes	Nancy Peterson
September	Genealogy Blogs	Steve Danko
October	Power of Google (rescheduled)	Chris Green
November	Brick Walls	panel

2010

January	Getting children interested	Sue Allen
February	New hardware, software, online	Steve Danko
March	Citing evidence	Susan Johnston
April	Santa Clara Library resources	Mary Hanel
May	Evaluating Evidence	Barbara Leak
June	Truth in Family Myths	Chris Green
July	What’s new at family search	Ralph Mize
September	Copyright Issues	Cath Trindle
October	Reefs of Point Montara	JoAnn Semones
November	Sharing your family Hx	panel

2009

January	Ancestry & Pilot	John Gleed
February	Organizing Your Stuff	Richard Rands
March	One Step Website	Steve Morse
April	Visiting Ancestral Homes	Margaret Melaney
May	DNA	Steve Morse
June	local archives	panel
July	Westward Migration	Marcia Holstrom
September	Mapping (cancelled)	Ron Arons
September	Civil & Church Records in Ireland	Cath Trindle
October	Fall Seminar
November	Mapping (rescheduled)	Ron Arons

2008

January	Ancestry & Pilot	John Gleed
February	Organizing Your Stuff	Richard Rands
March	One Step Website	Steve Morse
April	Visiting Ancestral Homes	Margaret Melaney
May	DNA	Steve Morse
June	local archives	panel
July	Westward Migration	Marcia Holstrom
September	Mapping (cancelled)	Ron Arons
September	Civil & Church Records in Ireland	Cath Trindle
October	Fall Seminar
November	Mapping (rescheduled)	Ron Arons

2007

January	Genealogy Resolutions	Steven Friedman
February	Raking the Ashes	Nancy Peterson
March	Finding Living Relatives	Charlotte Greig
April	Using Maps	Marcia Holstrom
May	WWI Draft Cards	Gayle Simons
June	Free Internet Resources	Ron Filon
July	Matrimonial Alliances/US-Europe	Michael Svanevik
September	Timelines: Life events	Chuck Knuthson
October	San Mateo Hx	Mitch Postel, County Historian
November	Share memories of holidays	Chris Green

2006

January	Microfilming LDS Records	Gayle Simons
February	SMCGS Organization, Task Force meeting	Lynne Parmenter and Husband, Facilitators
March	Solving Genealogical Problems of our Members	Patrick Gilbride
April	The Records of Scotland	Cath Madden Trindle, CG
May	Exploring English Census Indexes	John Shellabear Gleed
June	Introduction to Basic DNA Testing	Nancy Key Davenport
July	Naturalization and Passenger Records	Patrick Gilbride
September	National Archives – Original Holdings	Dan Ledrum
October	Members Book Reports	Carol McGraw - Mayflower, Pat Gilbride - Problem Solver Book, Janet Prochazka - A Family Book, Diane Smelker - on Lincoln, Bev Thivierge - St. Lawrence Co., N.Y. History, Judy Fulmer - book on Maps
November	“I remember when…” 9 members signed up	Chris Green

2005

January	Unclutter	Cath Trindle
February	California Gold Rush	Chuck Knuthson
March	Publishing a Family History	Linda Schogren, Jan Miller & Donna Farmar
April	Military Records in the National Archives	Rosemary Kennedy
May	History of Photography, Dating Photographs, etc.	Ron Willis
June	What I Found and How I Found it	Patrick Gilbride & Diane Smelker
July	Finding the Signatures of our Ancestors	Gayle Simons
September	Archival Preservation of Family Papers, Books & Other Artifacts	Eric Narveson
October	“Give Me Land, Lots of Land”	Annette Hulse
November	Writing & Publishing your Family Histories	Bob Delzell, Anna Lynn Wagner, Natalie Friend

2004

January	Using Census Records	Bob Trapp
February	Once Upon a Time - Storytelling	Cath Trindle
March	Genealogical Research in the Midwest	Annette Hulse
April	English Wills of American Colonists	John Shellabear Gleed
May	DAR and Other Heritage Societies	Bette Kot
June	Bring a genealogy item of interest to share	SMCGS members
July	San Mateo County from Its Formation to the Earthquake (cancelled)	Mitch Postel
September	San Mateo County from Its Formation to the Earthquake	Mitch Postel
October	A History of Angel Island	.John Soennichsen
November	Ideas for German Genealogy	Doris Newbury

2003

January	Resources and Research Through the New England Historical and Genealogical Society	Annette Hulse
February	Using English Censuses in the New Millennium	John S. Gleed
March	Round Tables	Rose Kennedy - NARA, Peter Delgenos - Sutro, Bette Kot - CGS, Grace Schmidt - Santa Clara, Bardee Stein - Menlo Park FHC, Larry Wynne - Scanner Tech.
April	Cemetery Research	Pamela Dallas
May	The Blue and Gray of It	Bob Trapp
June	Principles of Good Documentation or How to Eliminate Junk Genealogy	Richard Rands
July	My Favorite Ancestor -- Someone you have never met	SMCGS Members
September	Time Lines	Pamela Erickson
October	Using Sutro Library to the Maximum	Peter Dolgenos
November	Major Advances in the English Genealogy on the Internet	Dr. Inge Harding-Barlow

2002

January	Accessing Academic Library Resources	Barry Hinman
February	Preparation for Using the 1930 Census	Helen Crisman
March	Successful Use of new Technologies in Genealogy	Karen Clifford
April	Trolling the Web for Big Fish	Dr. Inge Harding-Barlow
May	Surname Distribution and Finding Ancestors' Homes	John Gleed
June	Problem Solving Roundtables:	John Gleed - English Research, Cath Trindle - Irish Research, Doris Newbery - German Research, John Maltby - New England Research, Helen Crisman - National Archives
July	My Favorite Photograph	SMCGS Pot Luck
September	Surname Distribution Studies to Find Ancestral Homes	John Shellabear Gleed
October	Colonial Maps of New Netherlands	Priscilla Hexter
November	Copyright Law	Cath Trindle

2001

January	Beyond Genealogy: Preserving Oral and Family Stories	Steven Friedman
February	Twentieth Century Research	Sandra Shafer
March	Twentieth Century Immigration	David Abrahams
April	The Sequel " Preserving Oral and Family History	Steven Friedman
May	Indiana and Illinois Research	Judy Svoboda
June	Restoring and Preserving Old Photographs	Ron Willis
July	My Favorite Document	SMCGS Pot Luck
September	The Social History of Irish Migration to North America	Charlotte Angin Scoble
October	How the Erie Canal Catalyzed the Civil War	John Shellabear Gleed
November	Finding ancestors Through Siblings and Spouses	Jane Lindsey

2000

January	Transcribing and Abstracting: The Techniques and Legalese	Christine Rose
February	Planning and Organization of a Research Trip	David Abrahams
March	Round Tables	Helen Crisman - Federal Archives, John Gleed - Migration Trails, Barbara Moll - SMCGS Library, Vern Turner - Writing your Family Story, Carol Ann Turner - Canada and New England Research, Joe Rick - CD Holdings at SMCGS Library
April	Documentation for The New Millennium	Richard Rands
May	Pot Luck and Show and Tell - Bring a Genealogy related item to share	SMCGS
June	"He Took the High Road/ She Took the Low Road"	Judy Svoboda
July	Civil War Research - 1/2 day seminar, no meeting	Grace Marie Hackwell
September	U.S. Federal Census	Bob Trapp
October	Historical Research for the Genealogist	Charlotte Angin Scoble
November	Genealogy and Serendipity - Never Lose Heart in Research	Dr. Gordon Seely

1999

January	Creating A Genealogical Atlas	Judy Svoboda
February		The San Francisco Columbarium
April	Titanic & the Unsinkable Molly Brown	Muffet Brown
May	Heroines of the American Revolution	Patricia Mosely Stanford
June	Historical Landmarks	Gail Wooley
July		SMCGS Picnic & Ice Cream Social
September	The Use of Photographs in Genealogy	Ron Willis
October	The History of Music	Joe Marchi
November	St. Alban's Border Crossing Records & Quebec Research	Carol Ann Turner

1998

January	Overview of the Genealogical Collection at the Santa Clara City Library at Homestead	Judy Svoboda
February	Preparing for Self-Publishing	Ramona Medeiros
March	New York State History & Records	Sandy Schafer
April	Adorably Pretty Flora: The Complicated Family Line of Florence Emily Sharon	Michael Svanevik
May	Small Group Discussions	Questions & Answers:
June	Demystifying Computers & the Internet	James Rice
July	Potluck & Show & Tell	16th Anniversary Potluck
September	New England Research	Jane Knowles Lindsey
October	Anglo-American Migration Establishing the U.S. from Atlantic to Pacific (1607-1887)	John Gleed
November	Problem Solving with Military Records	Christine Rose

1997

January	Without A Will, There’s Still A Way	Judy Svoboda
February	Historical Samplers: A Stitch in Time	Marian Soss
March	U.S. Military Records	John Gleed
April	Small Discussion Groups	Research Questions:
May	Oral Interviews	Linda Scott Lilles
June	Surnames	Sandy Schafer
July	Potluck & Show & Tell	15th Anniversary
September	Pennsylvania Research	Helen Graves
October	Computer Mail Lists, NORCAL Genealogy Index WWW Site, & Naturalization Records	Ken Tessendorf
November	Federal Land Records: The Amazing Records They Create	Christine Rose

1996

January	A Preponderance of Evidence	Christine Rose
February	How to Do Research in the Boston Area	Rick Sherman
March	English Genealogy Holdings of the Menlo Park Family History Library	John Gleed
April	How to Use PERSI (Periodical Source Index)	Bette Kot
May	Half Moon Bay Genealogy & History	Carol Alexander, et al
June	Historical Newspapers	Jim Lyons
July	Show & Tell	14th Anniversary
September	Memories are Forever: Painless Autobiographies	Grace-Marie Hackwell
October	Deciphering Old Handwriting	Mary Ann McKennon
November	Preponderance of Evidence: When Can It Be Used?	Christine Rose

1995

January	Courthouse Research	Christine Rose
February	Union Cemetery & St. John’s Cemetery	Jean Cloud
March	Migration of Germans into Wisconsin	Maralyn Wellauer
April	Preserving Family History & Memories	Denise Mason
May	Jewish Genealogical Research in the Bay Area	Robert Weiss
June	Exploring Multi-Generational Family Patterns	Kathryn Baron & Irene Lazarus
July	A Civil War Re-enactment; Point of View of South	Lisa Christy & David Rodgers
September		Annual Show & Tell
October	Wales: Genealogy & History	Eryl Aynsley
November	How to Read Property Descriptions & Township Grids	John Newbery

1994

January	Uncovering Military Records: Post Revolutionary War through Pre Civil War	Christine Rose
February	National Civil War Association: California Hundreds, Union Cavalry Unit	Gary Petrini
March	Self-Publishing of Family Histories	Jane Steiner
April	Records of National Archives	Daniel Nealand
May	My Experiences as a Holocaust Survivor	Michael Thaler
June	Research Responsibilities & Experiences	Mary Lou Grunigen
July	How to do Kentucky Research Here and There	Rick Sherman
September	Royalty Research	Barry Hinman
October	Most Effective Use of Sutro Library	Bette Kot
November	The World of Genealogy	Ron Bremer

1993

February	Our ancestors at the hands of witch hunters	Graves/Grunigen
March	Panel Discussion	Bedow/Scott
April	Census Records	Barbara Edkin
May	Hugenot Migration Patterns (Part 1)	Paul Hawkins
June	Writing a Family History	Elizabeth Zilen
July	Hugenot Migration (Part 2)	Paul Hawkins
September		Show & Tell
October	My wife’s elusive Pilgrim ancestor	Dana Leslie
November	Old Northwest Territories	Judy Svoboda

1992

January	San Mateo County Records	Warren Slocum
February	Irish Research	Dwight Radford
March	Adoptee’s Identity Discovery	Neil Kelly
April		Workshop Meeting
May	Deciphering Old Handwriting	Mary Ann McKennon
June	Sutro Library	Frank Glover
July	Show & Tell	10th Anniversary
September	U.S. Migration Patterns	Judy Svoboda
October	Oral Histories	Barbara Norris
November	Canadian Research	Dwight Radford

1991

January	Migration Patterns in Eastern Europe	Art Flegel
February	Workshop	Anne Robinson
March	County Records	Robert Grant
April	Getting results instead of frustration	Christine Rose
May	Useful records in Irish Research	Sandra Shafer
June	Oregon-California Emigrant Trails	Thomas Hunt
July		9th Show & Tell
September	Photography	Maureen & Ron Willis
October	ABC’s of Genealogy	Judy Svoboda
November	Showbox to Showcase	Lyn Johnson

1990

January	Importance of Primary Source Information	Beatrice Valentine
February	Library Information Night	Hinman & Scott
March	Southern Research	Dwight Radford
April	Oral Histories	Barbara Norris
May	Maps	Jack Mostrum
June	Organizing your Genealogy	Bette Kot
July	Show & Tell
September	Victorian Funeral Customs	Dale Seuss
October	1906 Earthquake	Myron Genschesen
November	Citing Your Sources	Carol Harless

1989

January	Probate Records & Their Use	Judy Svoboda
February	Evening of Workshops	Hinman, Smith, Graves
March	Palatine Families of New York – 1709ers	Henry Jones
April	Santa Clara Public Library	Jane Power
May	The Lineups: Lineage Societies	Marian Hopiak
June	San Mateo Co. Archives	Marion Holmes
July	Bring an Ancestor Night	7th Anniversary
September	What’s new at FHC’s of LDS Church	Pearl Terry
October	Organizing Your Genealogy	Bette Kot
November	Computer Genealogy	Warren Sturven

1988

January	Making Tombstones Tell a Story	Jean Cloud
February	Fun I’ve had with genealogy	Margaret Wiltshire
March	Preservation Demonstration	Mariam Hopiak
April	Successful Research from a Distance	Christine Rose
May	How to Research U.S. & British Military	John Langton, Jr.
June	S.F. National Archives	Waverly Lowell
July		Show & Tell
September	1710 German Tar Migration	John Dern
October	Preservation of Family Photographs	Steve Pearl
November	Genealogy Resources at new Redwood City Library	Jane Light

1987

January	Fire Insurance Maps for Research	Vlad Shkurin
February	Are you a Mayflower Descendant?	Edith Thomas
March	This is Your Life (in video)	Ken Bender
April	Southern Family Research	Maxim Coppage
May	Photography	Ron Willis
June	101 Ideas	Carol Harless
July	Show & Tell	5th Anniversary
September	M.P. Branch LDS Library	Alice Malquist
October	What you can learn from languages	Frank Carrel
November	Evening of Workshops

1986

January	San Bruno Archives Resources	Rose Mary Kennedy
February	Early California Tombstones & Their Carvers	Mary Ellen Jones
March	Microfilming of Records	Shirley Bronte
April	Encountering Dead end Research	Carlton Smith
May	Religious Influences on the Development of Colonial America	Mel Pratt
June	Evolution of Hugenot Names	Paul Hawkins
July	Virginia Colonial History	John Hale Stutesman
September	Mini-workshop: New York, Missouri, Peen, Maryland
October	NEHGS plus ONE	Dorothy Annesser
November	Researching Ancestors in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany	Irma Whipple

1985

January	Computer programs: Roots	Howard Nurse
February	Genealogy Workshops
April	Naming Patterns	Roberta Gaynor
May	Deciphering old English Handwriting	Mary Ann McKennon
June	Using History for your Genealogy	Judy Svoboda
July	Show & Tell
September	Recent Changes at Sutro	Frank Glover
October	Hand Computer	Judy Svoboda
November	Attic Treasures	Installation of Officers

1984

January	Mini Workshops
February	Willis Photo Lab
March	Preservation of Books & Documents	Sarah Buchanan
April	Ireland	Joan Roach
May	U.S. Passenger arrival Lists	Lavona Ness
June	Naturalization Records	Lavona Ness
July		Show & Tell
September	Early American Period of San Mateo County	Mitch Postel
October	Genealogical Resources at U C Berkeley	Barbara Hill
November	Attic Treasures, Installation of Officers

1983

January	Local Resources & Beginning Genealogy	Dorothy Hayes
February	New England (5 states- groups)	Locality Workshop
March	How to use the Public Library for Genealogical Research	Samuel Chandler
April	The Joys of Keeping a Journal	Keith Merrill
May	Locality Workshop
June	New Sutro	Frank Glover
July		Show & Tell
September	Ohio	Workshop
October	Migration of Middle European People	Art Flegel
November	Attic Treasures Night, Officer Installation

1982

November

United Irish Cultural Center – S.F.

Pat Dowling

San Mateo County Genealogical Society

SMCGS is a 501(c)(3) organization

PO Box 230
San Mateo, CA 94401-0230
https://smcgs.org

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