Courtesy of Islington.gov.uk Thank You! Volunteer Recognition Day is observed every year on April 20. In addition, National Volunteer Week is celebrated from April 14 to 20. During this week, volunteers are recognized for their selfless contributions to help others and promote good causes. At SKCGS we are always appreciative of the efforts of our many volunteers, regardless of the size of the job or amount of time of involvement.  As in an exquisite machine, every cog, regardless of size, is important for the smooth operation of the whole. SKCGS operates totally on the service of its volunteers.  Among those are the elected officers of the Board of Directors.  Nominations are now open for the positions of Vice President and Secretary, to be elected at the annual meeting, May 18, 2024. We are happy to announce that we have a candidate for each of the pending positions, but more nominations are welcome.    Nominees Alexis Hacker Scholz Currently Vice President of South King County Genea

We are thrilled to announce that the King County Library System is collaborating with the South King County Genealogical Society to present professional genealogist Winona Laird for a series of programs to help you along on your genealogical journey.  The series begins this Wednesday evening at 7 Pacific. Register on the KCLS website ; space is limited. You will be emailed a link no later than 24 hours before the program start time. If you do not see an email, check your Junk or Spam folder. July 12:  Starting your Genealogy Journey August 16: Vital Records, Birth, Marriage, Death and Adoption September 13: Searching the U.S. Population Census Records October 18: Supplemental Census Records November 15: Using Timelines in your Genealogy December 20: Research Techniques   Register in advance; space is limited

As Member-at-Large on the SKCGS Board of Directors, I get to do a lot of different things including head the Nominations Committee looking for officer candidates. I am happy to announce that we have a candidate for each of the pending openings for which we will have election at the May General Meeting. For Vice-President--Alexis Hacker Scholz. Alexis has served this past year, filling the position that was vacated when Valorie became President. For Secretary--Melanie Hinds. Melanie lives in Illinois and has been attending general and SIG meetings for over a year. She has been assisting us by posting items to the calendar. Nominations remain open until the election; contact me at nominating-committee@skcgs.org. Things I learned while talking to you 1.  Some people have problems finding the confirmation after registering for the general meeting.   Personally, I had problems as well until I learned to flag that confirmation email or put it in archives. I've since learned a technique

Review and Improve the Index of the 1950 United States Census https://www.familysearch.org/en/info/1950-census-community-project This is going to be fun, and we want to be part of it. South King County Genealogical Society has applied to be part of the 1950 US Census Community Project. We hope as many of you as possible register to be part of the fun as well.  Not just fun, but also important It is important because states will be released as they are marked 100% complete, and we would love Washington to be one of the first! Which is why we're hoping that all the other Washington state genealogy societies get involved as well. And, we hope to show up as one of the most active, effective and involved societies in the state.  It is important because this is the first census to be completely indexed. Complete , meaning that every field is being indexed! Can you imagine how powerful search will be, when we can narrow the search by field?  It is important because the 1950 is also the fi

Dr. Janice Lovelace was the featured speaker this afternoon, October 24, 2021, at a joint meeting hosted by the Black Diamond Historical Society and South King County Genealogical Society, on Black Miners in the West.   The event was well attended with people from all over the United States who have an interest in the heritage of the Black miners who came west in the late 1880s and early 1890s. Notes from the meeting:  https://skcgs.groups.io/g/Society/message/1934  . People who live in South King County, especially on the eastern side are familiar with the coal mining communities of Newcastle, Renton, and Black Diamond; some may even remember the names of Franklin, Cedar Mountain and other towns from long ago. Franklin WA ~ Cemetery ~Abandoned Mining Town by vikisuzan, (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0) I've had an interest in the mining operations at Franklin ever since I discovered the names of the 37 men who died in the mine fire of August 24, 1894.  That lead to other stories about Franklin i

This week the South King County Genealogical Society begins a new study group [1] , of the book Mastering Genealogical Proof , by Thomas W. Jones [2] . The first chapter, Genealogy's Standard of Proof , first considers What is Genealogy . I can't better Jones' measured prose, but here is why I do genealogy. Why? Solving Puzzles Doing the research is satisfying! When there is a gap in the timeline, finding the right record is like fitting in a puzzle piece! That bit of satisfaction keeps me at it, often far too late into the night. Especially when the family group or locality (or both) are unfamiliar, finding the records feels like getting to know that person and the time and place where they lived. The contrast in how the lives of some the folks in the family fall into a pattern, and those who bushwhack their own path, is often surprising.  Why? Putting Meat on the Bones So solving puzzles are fun, but genealogy is work, too. Aside from the little rewards, there is enormous

  First, some naval gazing - a look at this blog, by the numbers: Blogger also tells us where people are when they read: This annual report is an abridged version of those reports submitted to the Board in advance of our planning meeting in August. The original reports are available to SKCGS Members on request. Change If we thought things would calm down after 2020, we were wrong. 2021 was another year of change. In May elections, we elected a new President, Valorie Zimmerman, which meant that our Vice-President Valorie Zimmerman needed to step down. Michele Mattoon was re-elected as Treasurer. At the next meeting of the Board, Alexis Hacker Scholz accepted the post of Vice-President. Barbara Mattoon, the former President chose not to take the post of Past President, so MaryLynn Strickland continues as Member At Large. Barbara accepted the position of Chair of the Education Committee, where she had been ably serving in an unofficial role for some weeks. Work with KCLS and BDHS Closure

 I saw this cartoon in the past somewhere and could not forget it. No images I found online matched the image I remembered, so my talented husband Bob Zimmerman drew one for me:  Copyright Robert Zimmerman 2021. Courtesy of Bob Zimmerman The reason I love this cartoon is that we all know a simple question can open us to a new way of seeing the world, if we let it.  I felt this way at a recent presentation of the Association of King County Historical Organizations (AKCHO) called  Looking Back / Moving Forward: Getting Started with Institutional Genealogy presented by Aletheia Wittman. In that presentation, she showed us a timeline which blew my mind and got me thinking about our society in a whole new historical perspective. We formed first as a branch of Seattle Genealogical Society (SGS) in 1979, and formally as an independent non-profit in 1984.[1] Here is a portion of Aletheia Wittman's timeline; used by permission: 2. Courtesy Aletheia Wittman. Numbers in the black balls are nu

In October of 2020, a series of posts in the South King County Genealogical Society Groups mentioned the Ravensdale Cemetery.  Some photos were posted and it got my attention. It was clear that the old cemetery was sorely neglected. It had been vandalized in the 1950’s and stones had been encased by ground cover and other underbrush. I visited the cemetery for the first time, with my husband, on Saturday, 7 November 2020.  Its state was, to say the least, sad. There was evidence that people had been there. The paths were a bit trampled and burned down candles and an empty packet of cigarettes were sitting on the side of a broken and open sarcophagus. In spite of the fact that someone up to no good had recently been there, it was a peaceful place. Restoration? I was hooked.  Two days prior to my visit, I had made the suggestion to the group that restoring the cemetery might be a good project for SKCGS and I presented a hurriedly composed proposal to the Board. I was given permission to

In 2030 I'll turn 77, so it seems a good time to think ahead! Are you laying plans for the next decade? Please write about your plans in the comments. Barbara's challenge last week is what prompted this blog. Please read her blog if you haven't done so yet! Past I began asking family for information about their family and ancestors in the late Seventies. There were no private computers back then, and I doubt that the word "genealogy" was in my vocabulary. By the Eighties, I was writing letters to relatives and including a stamped, self-addressed envelope (remember those?) and Family Group Sheets. I still have many of those in my first genealogy notebook. A few lovely family members included money along with their answers! By the Nineties, I was online (sort of) and using genealogy lists such as Roots-L . I joined the South King County Genealogy Society sometime in the Nineties; unsure exactly when. The Society was meeting at the United Methodist churc