Learning Opportunity: Finding Your Czech/Slovak Roots Coming on March 31.

An all-day seminar for family history researchers with Czech and Slovak ancestry is being sponsored on Saturday, Mar 31, 2012 by the Genealogical Committee, an auxiliary of the Western Reserve Historical Society. It will be held in the Norton Gallery of the Society's History Center at 10825 East Boulevard, Cleveland, Ohio 4410.

Seminar leader will be John T. Sabol, who will discuss research methods he has used to find his roots, which are both Czech and Slovak. A Cleveland native, writer, and historian, Sobol has written three books plus several church histories and genealogical articles. He serves on the Board of Directors for the Czechoslovak Genealogical Society International.

The morning session will consist of two presentations stressing the ultimate goal of finding the locations in the Czech and Slovak Republics where your ancestors came from. Since research in these countries is village-based it is of central importance to know your ancestral village. Once this is known, it opens doors to a number of research avenues.

The afternoon session consists of roundtable discussions about finding your ancestral village. Participants will be able to share their successes and failures in hopes of learning from each other.  Roundtable participants are urged to bring documentation or clues regarding their ancestral origins in the Czech and Slovak Republics. Each discussion group will be moderated by a volunteer from the  Czechoslovak Genealogical Society International (CGSI).

For more information, access the detailed flyer with a registration form by clicking here. 

Big Attendance at WRHS Free Research Day

I'm a little slow in posting this followup. The attendance at Western Reserve Historical Society for the free research day in the Research Center in honor of Martin Luther King this past Monday was very good. At one point during the afternoon, all the computer work stations were occupied. I worked with several patrons, and they generally made some good finds.


The event was aimed at attracting researchers of African-American ancestry, and members of the African American Genealogical Society were on hand to assist patrons. 

Free Research Day at Western Reserve Historical Society

Hi Northeast Ohio Gen Researchers!

I’m volunteering tomorrow at the Western Reserve Historical Society Research Center (the Library and Genealogy Center renamed) when there will be free admission from 10 am to 5 pm. (All-day parking only $5.)

The occasion is Martin Luther King Day, but anyone is welcome to come on down.

In preparation, you might want to access the Society’s revamped website, go to Research and Collections, then click on Family History, and finally on Databases. NEW: A number of funeral home databases are now available for searching online. Also the largest online database of Cuyahoga County Cemetery Inscriptions. When you find records of interest, print out and bring along the particulars so you can look at the actual records during your visit to the Library, oops Research Center.

I know I am going to look up some records in between assisting Research Center visitors.

By the way, the History Center (Museum) will be open for free as well! Check out all that’s new at WRHS at www.wrhs.org.

Finding Family on Footnote

I have put the finishing touches on my PowerPoint presenation on "Finding Family on Footnote.com" for the upcoming Tri-C GO Genealogy Seminar at Western Reserve Historical Society on Saturday, 24 Oct. After discussing the features of Footnote.com of interest to NEOhio genealogists, I hope to go online to actually demonstrate typical searches, using databases with information about Clevelanders, such as city directories, naturalizations in the Ninth District Court, and Cleveland Birth returns before 1908.

Hope to see you there.

WRHS Genealogy Center Seminar: Land, Maps, and Migration Patterns

In an upcoming Western Reserve Historical Society Genealogical Institute class, John Dailey will present an intermediate level class on “Land, Maps, and Migration Patterns.” A retired surveyor, John brings his wealth of professional experience to his presentations, as well as a deep interest in the history of our region.

The 3-hr class is at noon on 26 Sep at WRHS, 10825 East Boulevard, Cleveland, Ohio 44106. Ph: (216) 721-5722

John is a member of the WRHS Genealogical Committee, an auxiliary of WRHS organized to promote genealogy and family history research.

Unfortunately, I won't be able to take advantage of John's knowledge, as I will be attending the bimonthly OGS Board meeting that day.