Presentations at CVFHRG on Sept 25, 2010

Here's the program for the second event during my September visit to British Columbia, to the Comox Valley Family History Research Group. This day I share the presentations with my Ottawa friend and colleague Lesley Anderson.

My presentations are:

"Researching Early 20th Century British Immigrants to Canada" The talk is motivated by the huge immigration to Canada from the UK, and elsewhere, that peaked in 1912. The talk, suitable for all levels, shows how to use Canadian and British records together to track down that elusive ancestral family. One of the case studies is of a BC woman celebrity of days gone by. Can you guess who? If so please don't tell.

"Some lesser-known websites for British family history" In four years of writing my blog, Anglo-Celtic Connections, and even longer working on my British family history, I’ve seen an explosion of British family history websites. While many are commercial, accessed by subscription or pay per view, with relatively familiar offerings from the census and civil registration indexes, others are hidden gems.

"Find Your Family History in Newspapers Online" Chances are there's information about your family history recorded in a newspaper that, when discovered, will be news to even the most diligent researcher. Digital and optical character recognition technology, still imperfect, is now making millions of frames of newspaper microfilm searchable online. Learn how digitized newspapers can help your family history search.

Lesley's presentations are:

"Searching Effectively on Ancestry" Lesley will explore some of the key Ancestry databases and will demonstrate the best strategies for searching Ancestry sites; various approaches to finding records; types of information to include in searches; how to use names and locations effectively in searches; how to use search forms and wild cards to refine searches; what to do when you find a record; Ancestry hints; and how to add alternate information and updates to your ancestors’ records.

"Census records online – A goldmine of information" The Canadian censuses are a key starting point for Canadians interested in discovering their family story. They provide vital details such as names of spouses, immigration years, occupations and so much more. Ancestry.ca has indexed and linked all of the years from 1851 to 1911.

"Directories – What are they and how to use them" Directories are an invaluable primary source for historians. Using City, County and Provincial directories, we will explore how they provide first hand data about local communities, their infrastructure and the individuals inhabiting those communities. Directories can also be used to help fill in any missing gaps as they are published more frequently than the census.

The meeting is being held at the Rotary Hall, Evergreen Seniors Club, Florence Filberg Centre, 411 Anderton Avenue in Courtenay. Doors open at 8am.

Registration is $55 including a light lunch and the opportunity to win some great door prizes. There's even an opportunity to attend a pre-event on Friday evening. See the website at http://cvfamilyhistory.org/Seminar2010.htm and the brochure linked from it for more information.