Kansas Council of Genealogical Societies Moves Web Site

Kansas Council of Genealogical Societies has moved their web site to http://www.kcgs.us/ . Information on the 2014 Annual Conference is posted there. To be held in McPherson, KS, the speaker this year will be Valerie Eichler Lair.

Sumner County Historical & Genealogical Society meeting

On Monday, November 26th, Frank Korte, Wellington attorney and Vietnam veteran will present the program “The Normandy Invasion” to members and guests of the Sumner County Genealogical & Historical Society in meeting room A at “The Rock” restaurant, 1311 East 16^th (east Highway 160), Wellington. 

The meeting begins at 6:30 p.m.; meal begins at 5:30 p.m.. Reservations are not necessary for the meal. Contact "The Rock" in case of inclement weather for cancellation information.

In 1968, Frank Korte’s National Guard unit was activated and they were sent to Vietnam on January 3^rd, 1969.  In the years since his military service, Korte has become interested in both Civil War era and World War II battles and the preparations that led up to them.

“I’ve always kind of had an interest in the military,” Korte said.

“WW II was the first war we fought with Armored machinery,” Korte said, adding “we woke up about 1939 and realized that they (the Germans) had tanks and had developed artillery and fighter aircraft, and we still had an army equipped to fight WW I.”

I’ve always been fascinated by that transition,” Korte said, “and by where we started and where we’ve come to today.”

 “In 1939 we got busy converting to a WW II Army. It was the infancy of how we fight today” Korte said, “we do a lot of the same things we did then, but we have much better equipment.”

Korte will share maps and photographs of the area at Normandy, including German bunkers that still exist today.  And while his talk will encompass the tremendous battle fought at Normandy Beach, he also plans to touch on what led up to the Normandy invasion, including “Operation Fortitude” the operation that was created to deceive the Germans into believing that the main attack would be elsewhere.

“The whole name of the game was to isolate the beaches and keep the Germans off of them so we could get on the beaches,” Korte said, “that operation really threw the Germans off.  Rommel was at Normandy trying to defend the beach with one-third of his Army.”

Contact info: Sherry Kline – 620-326-3401
skline09@gmail.com

KCGS Annual Meeting and Conference

June 23, 2012

2012 KCGS Annual Meeting and Conference will be June 23, 2012, in the Kanza Room of the Memorial Union at Emporia State University, co-hosted by Flint Hills Genealogical Society.
Our Speaker will be Julie Miller of Colorado. She will present the following lectures:
The 5 Steps of Genealogical Proof
Make the Census Work for You
When Grandpa Went Off to War: U.S. Military Records
An Ounce of Prevention: Making a Genealogical Disaster Plan

Registration and additional information

Kansas Genealogical Society to Host The Second U. S. Volunteer Infantry: Galvanized Yankees

Kansas Genealogical Society will host The Second U.S. Volunteer Infantry: Galvanized Yankees*, a presentation by Stan Reed, 2 PM Thursday, April 12, 2012 in the upper level meeting room next to GNC, Village Square Mall, 2601 Central, Dodge City.

Stan Reed is a retired Army Major and Vietnam Veteran with 2 Purple Hearts. Former Superintendent of the Kansas Old Soldiers Home at Ft. Dodge, Stan has 42 years experience speaking and teaching genealogy and American History. His primary focus has been on U.S. Civil War history and the U.S. westward expansion.

The public is invited to attend this program. There will be time for questions and answers and refreshments will be served. For more information contact KGS at 620-225-1951, Tuesday through Friday, 1:30 to 5 PM.

MHGS Announces Programs

January 2012
"Party Lines, Smudge Pots and LP Records --- Stepping Back in Time" presented by Annette Schmidt, MHGS Recording Secretary and Board Member
Saturday, January 28 at 10:00 a.m. at Midwest.
In the first month of the new year, it's the perfect time to reflect and wax nostalgic about the "good old days." Join Annette for a lively interactive discussion involving some of our fondest, most foolish and funniest memories from the past. It's pop culture gone retro!

February 2012
"Evaluating Sources" presented by Margaret Lucas, MHGS Librarian and Board Member
Saturday, Feb 11 at 1:00 p.m. at Midwest.
It's going to be more than just a discussion on primary and secondary sources, but also on evaluating sources, finding out how to determine the difference between information, knowledge and sources; the difference between a theory and proof of that theory; justifying a conclusion based upon indirect or conflicting evidence; how to intelligently argue with pieces of information--that is, looking for inherent flaws, biases, and contradictions.

March 2012
Before there was a Sedgwick County, before there was a Wichita, there was a First Presbyterian Church… "Preserving History Through Its Archives" with Gary Huffman, Archivist at First Presbyterian Church
Saturday, March 3 --- exact time to be announced at later date --- will meet at the First Presbyterian Church, 525 North Broadway Street.
The history of First Presbyterian Church is interwoven with the history of the county and the city. Many of the early church members were movers and shakers in the community. Come visit so you can share in a rich community resource.

KCGS Annual Meeting and Conference

2012 KCGS Conference will be June 23, 2012, in the Kanza Room of the Memorial Union at Emporia State University, co-hosted by Flint Hills Genealogical Society. The Speaker will be Julie Miller of Colorado. She will present the following lectures:

The 5 Steps of Genealogical Proof

Make the Census Work for You

When Grandpa Went Off to War: U.S. Military Records

An Ounce of Prevention: Making a Genealogical Disaster Plan

Kansas Ancestor Fair

Welcome!

Join us in celebrating Family History Month at the Kansas Ancestor Fair, October 8th, 2011 at the Kansas State Historical Society in Topeka, Kansas!

Whether you're just wondering where to start, or are an experienced researcher, we'll have lots of information and learning opportunities for everyone. Representatives from Ancestry.com will be on-site, providing mini-sessions and tips for using their website.

Genealogy Inspired Crafts

"Genealogy-Inspired Arts and Crafts Projects " — Saturday, September 24th @ 1:00 p.m.
Helen Bortz, presenter — former Midwest president, current MHGS Webmaster, and long-time crafter and dedicated genealogist.

An interesting array of ideas for arts and crafts projects, inspired by and created from Helen's own family research and photo collections, will be presented. Whether you're an amateur crafter or the most experienced artist, this program will show you ways to take your genealogy discoveries and memorabilia and turn them into visually appealing designs to enjoy, share with and make for your family and friends for generations to come. Preserve your treasures with an aesthetic twist! This presentation is open to the public at no charge.

Organizing Your Photos

Organizing Your Photos

Saturday, August 27, 2011

10:00 a.m. — 12:00 p.m.

If your daughter asked you for her high school graduation picture, could you find it? How about your parents’ wedding picture — or last year’s Christmas pictures?

Do you know how many pictures you have? Have you inherited pictures?

Let’s get those pictures ORGANIZED!! We will be looking at organizing printed pictures, slides and digital pictures and how we can organize them so we can find them anytime.

You can keep your albums as they are, you can digitize them, and you can do both or a combination. Plus you WANT to get your pictures out of “magnetic” photo albums that were popular in the 1970s and 1980s!

Do you want to find out WHERE to start, HOW to keep them (in albums or digitizing) and HOW to find a particular picture?

Join us Saturday, August 27^th at Midwest Historical and Genealogical Society at 10:00 a.m. for a 2-hour program on “Organizing Your Photos.” After a short break for lunch, scanning of photographs will be available from 1:00-3:00 p.m. ($0.10/each for MHGS members; $0.15/each for non-members — all at 300 dpi; limit of 250 pictures per person. (Margaret and Francene, see separate attachment for more information.)

Midwest Historical and Genealogical Society will also be hosting a “Scanning Saturday” on July 30^th from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

A follow-up program on “Editing Your Digital Pictures” will be held IF there is interest.

2011 Kansas Ancestor Fair

Saturday, October 8, 10am - 3pm. 2011 Kansas Ancestor Fair, at the Kansas Historical Society, 6425 SW 6th Street, Topeka, KS. Mini-sessions, preservation consultants, "Ask-the-Experts" consultations, informational displays by local chapters of lineage societies and organizations with historical/genealogical interests. Co-sponsored by Topeka Genealogical Society, Kansas Historical Society, Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library, and the Topeka Family History Center of the LDS Church. All events are free and open to the public. For questions, email president1@tgstopeka.org.

Social Networking for Genealogy Societies

While thousands of genealogists and family historians have discovered new ways to expand and improve their genealogy endeavors using social networking, there is a dire need for genealogy societies to understand and begin using these same communication tools. This webinar will give genealogy society leaders and members an overview with real examples of how genealogy societies are successfully leveraging social media websites and applications to attract new members and expand their member services.
If you think Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites are “just for kids” then think again. Most businesses and non-profits are learning how to attract new customers and members merely by having a “presence” on many of these sites. In this webinar you’ll learn about the latest websites and tools available for free and how some genealogy societies are already using them. These same societies are not only attracting new members but they are also effectively marketing their events and services to the genealogy community and beyond.
This webinar will be presented by FGS board member and nationally-recognized genealogy educator Thomas MacEntee. MacEntee is a professional genealogist specializing in the use of technology and social media to improve genealogical research and as a means of interacting with others in the family history community.
https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/401693254

Kansas Genealogical Society Annual Meeting

The Kansas Genealogical Society annual meeting and seminar will be Thursday October 7, 2010, V/S Lower Level Meeting Room, Village Square Mall, 2601 Central, Dodge City, Kansas. Registration and coffee starts are 9 A.M. Lunch is on your own from 12:00 to 1:15 P.M. The featured speaker is Mary Clement Douglass of Salina. Mrs. Douglass revised the “Kansas” chapter in Ancestry’s Red Book, 2004 Edition. She is the director of the Association of Professional Genealogists and the past director of the Genealogical Speakers Guild. She was curator for the Smoky Hills Museum in Salina for ten years. Mrs. Douglass will speak on 1) Help! I’ve Fallen Under my Genealogy Notes & I Can’t Get Up; 2) Read That Deed for All It’s Worth! Are You Using All the Clues Found in A Land Transfer? and 3) More Than Just Pretty Pictures: Effectively Use Maps in Research.

KCGS Annual Meeting and Conference 2011

Kansas Council of Genealogical Societies will hold it's annual meeting and conference June 18, 2011, with Riley County Genealogical Society as the co-host, in Manhattan, KS. The featured speaker will be Anne Staley, Jacksville, Florida.

Midwest Historical & Genealogical Society Trip to OK City

OKC HERE WE COME — And You're Invited

We're headed for Oklahoma City on the bus! Join us for a one-day genealogical research road trip to the Oklahoma Historical Society Research Center (www.okhistory.org/research) on Monday, August 2nd. Our bus loads between 6:30 and 6:50 a.m. from Midwest's parking lot at 1203 N. Main in Wichita. We arrive back that night to the same spot between 9:30 and 10:00 p.m. The cost is $40 for members and $50 for nonmembers.

Of special interest: Book Collections of 85,000 bound books with information on all 50 states with emphasis on Oklahoma, the West, and Native American Indians; American Indian Archives with 3.5 million documents plus over 6,000 volumes including records of the Five Civilized Tribes; Photograph Collections from 1840 to present of 8 million images; Newspaper Archives with more than 4,000 titles — over 90% of all OK newspapers; 8,000 Oral Histories; Map Collections of 15,000+; the 1890 Oklahoma Territorial Census, and much more.

The Oklahoma Historical Center is a beautiful state-of-the-art facility with its comfortable genealogical library and friendly staffers, lockers to hold any of your valuables or extras you like to keep close by, a cafe to kick back and relax in for breaks and lunch, a fun gift shop for browsing and book buying, and a history museum to get lost in. This promises to be a great excursion!

Reserve your spot today and register with MHGS. The first 25 registrations received will be entered in a drawing for half-price on our next one-day trip. Registration and full payment are due no later than Saturday, July 24, so don't delay. (Please note: Meals are not included in the registration fee. The cafe will be open for lunch there and a stop will be made on the way home for dinner.) Questions? Contact Sara Jones at 316-682-5209 or e-mail at gjones63@cox.net.

Beat The Dog Days of Summer — Join Us!

Bus Trip to Oklahoma Historical Society

August 2, 2010 - Midwest Historical and Genealogical Society plans a bus trip to Oklahoma City - Oklahoma Historical Society. Leave MHGS Library at 7AM, Arrive Oklahoma Historical Society at 10AM, Leave Oklahoma Historical Society at 5PM, Dinner TBD, Return to MHGS Library approximately 9:30 PM. Contact Sara Jones at 264-3611 for more information.

Kansas Council of Genealogical Societies Conference

June 19, 2010 - Kansas Council of Genealogical Societies Annual Meeting and Conference, Co-hosted by Sumner County Genealogical Society. Wellington High School, 1700 E 16th St, Wellington, KS. Speaker will be Maureen Taylor, the Photo Detective.
A Spokesperson with Credentials and Media Presence

For public relations professionals who need the perfect spokesperson for their genealogy or photo-related product, brand, or launch, Maureen Taylor is an ideal solution. She has a wealth of experience as a genealogist, historian, and photo expert. Plus, she has a face for TV, a voice for radio, and numerous interviews with top-tier media to her credit.

Maureen knows photographs. As the Photo Detective, her focus is photography—from the little details that date a 19th-century picture to dealing with digital overload. As an author, sought-after speaker, and corporate spokesperson, Maureen shares her photo expertise with all who want to learn more about preserving their past.

Her interviews, books, and articles reach millions each month. Her passion for photography and genealogy resulted in Maureen researching Meredith Vieira’s family tree for a segment of The View and Timberly Whitfield’s family for Hallmark’s New Morning Show.

In addition, her numerous television, radio, and print media interviews include Better Homes & Gardens, The Boston Globe, Claritin’s Moment of Clarity, Creative Memories Lasting Moments, Dear Myrtle, DIY:Scrapbooking, Life Magazine, Martha Stewart Living, MSNBC, PBS Ancestors,and Satisfaction Magazine. She also shares her tips and techniques in energetic lectures on family history and photography that encourage participants to ask questions about a wide range of concerns from finding their roots to caring for great-grandmother’s scrapbook.

In 1999-2001, Maureen represented Genealogy.com. In 2003, Maureen acted as a consultant for Picasa, Google’s software for organizing and sharing photos. Her work as a national corporate spokesperson on marketing campaigns has included:

• Satellite TV and radio media tours
• National and local television appearances
• Interviews with national magazines

Midwest Historical & Genealogical Society

The Journals on the 2nd floor of the library are a rarely used treasure. Anyone can tap into this rich source of specialized articles. Find out how to "treasure-hunt" family histories, county and state histories and "how-to" articles from the best, most experienced genealogical researchers around.
Margaret Lucas, Tuesday Librarian presents "How to Use Journals to Accelerate Research" on Feb 13, 2010 (second Saturday) at 1pm at the MHGS Library, 1120 Main. St., Wichita, KS. The class is open to the public, but limited to the first 10 applicants. Call 264-3611 to leave a message, or sign up at the MHGS front desk.
The class will consist of a 15 min presentation followed by 30 minutes of supervised hands-on. Please bring your laptop and some research questions that really "bug" you. Punch and Valentine cookies provided.

Kansas Genealogical Society Fall Seminar

The Kansas Genealogical Society Annual Meeting and Seminar will be held 08 October 2009, Lower Level Meeting Room of the Village Square Mall, 2601 Central, Dodge City, KS. Registration and coffee at 9:00 A.M. Lunch on your own from 12:00 – 1:15 P.M.
The featured speaker will be Alice A. Walker, Blue Mound, KS. Alice is a certified genealogist. She has conducted many workshops of various kinds including how to prove genealogical steps. Alice is an author, having written two well documented family genealogies.
“Back to New England”, will be featured at the morning session, and “New York – Impossible?” in the afternoon. Fee prior to 1 October 2009 is $15.00. At the Door is $20.00. Handouts, prizes and refreshments. Non-members are always welcome to join us.
For additional information call 620-225-1951.

Atchinson County Genealogical Society

MEET THE AUTHORS, SATURDAY, JULY 18, 2009, ATCHISON LIBRARY: CAROL AYERS, 9:30 A.M. - "LINCOLN IN KANSAS". BILL MCFARLAND, 10:30 A.M. "KEEP THE FLAG TO THE FRONT"
“Lincoln in Kansas” is the story of Lincoln’s historic campaign stop in northeast Kansas where he tweaked his famous Cooper Union Address along this particular leg of the presidential campaign. Ayers is a Leavenworth resident and based her research from a rare document collection archived at the University of St. Mary.
“Keep the Flag to the Front” is the story of the Eight Kansas Volunteer Infantry during the Civil War, traveled 10,750 miles, participated in 17 battles and was the last Kansas regiment to be discharged after the war. McFarland has taught in the public school system for over 30 years has been a Civil War reenactor for more than 15 years.
REGISTRATION 9:00. THE PROGRAM IS FREE TO THE PUBLIC with REFRESHMENTS and DOOR PRIZES

Did Granny Tell You There Was an Indian in Your Past?

Family History Month Seminar by Robert Winter Owl Vann, Genealogical Lecturer and Native American Storyteller with session topics: Climbing the Family Totem Pole, Geographical Migrations of Native Americans, Government Records for Indian Research and Methods of Organization and Records Management. (Sessions are intended for beginning genealogists and those just starting their Native American Research.
Active in genealogical research since 1963, Robert Winter Owl Vann has taught genealogy classes to church groups as well as adult Community Extension classes through Sam Houston State University. He is an LDS Family History Center Associate Director, a Beta tester for the new familysearch.com program, a family Church Services Missionary, and is the current President of the Walker County (AL) Genealogy Society.
Mr. Vann has national experience as a Native American Historian and Storyteller, and regularly does workshops and lectures on things Cherokee. His three-issue article on Cherokee research was published in the Valley Leaves Quarterly of the Tennessee Valley Genealogical Society.
Join Midwest Historical and Genealogical Society on Saturday, October 11, 2008 from 8:15 AM to 4:30 PM at the Eugene M. Hughes Metropolitan Complex at Wichita State University, 5015 East 29th Street N, Wichita, KS. Reservations made by September 30 will include a box lunch at no additional charge. $25 for MHGS members, $35 for non-members. For reservation contact MHGS at 316 264-3611 or by e-mail.
Funded in part by a grant from the City of Wichita.