Please join us on Sunday, October 19 at 2pm to hear Questing Heirs’ president Bob Prager, who will be giving a presentation titled Locating Mary Dalton’s Home.
About the Presentation
Bob will talk about how he found the location of the cottage his great-grandmother Mary Dalton grew up in in Ireland. He’ll cover some general sources of Irish genealogical information, explain how he used them to determine the exact location, and present some photographs of the (still- standing) cottage he took when he visited Ireland a few months later.
Please join us on Sunday, September 21 at 2pm to hear our speaker Barbara Coakley, who will be giving a presentation titled From Binders to Bytes: Organizing Genealogy with OneNote.
About Barbara Coakley
Barbara is a family history researcher, speaker, and author. Her interest in family history began over 35 years ago when she was given an envelope of family papers. Over the years, she traveled extensively throughout the U.S. and Europe, visiting the homelands of her ancestors and conducting research. Her current focus is sharing the stories of her ancestors.
Barbara retired from teaching Continuing Education classes in Genealogy for Collin College in 2022 and now lectures on a wide variety of genealogy topics. Her genealogy education includes all of the major institutes, ProGen 49, and numerous conferences. Barbara is President of Genealogy Friends of Plano (TX) Libraries, and volunteers for the Texas State Genealogical Society and the Dallas Genealogical Society. She belongs to the DAR and national, state, and local genealogical and historical societies across the U.S.
Please join us on Sunday, August 17 at 2pm to hear our speaker Sara Cochran, who will be giving a presentation titled There’s a Lineage Society for That!
About Sara Cochran
Sara Cochran has been conducting genealogical research for over 25 years with her research taking her into nearly every state in the USA as well as Ireland, Italy, Austria, and Britain.
She holds a Boston University Genealogical Research Certificate, a Bachelor Degree in Library Science, and is an alumnus of the ProGen Study Group.
Sara began her career as a professional genealogist in 2016 after spending over 11 years working for a pre-employment background check company.
She especially enjoys breaking down brick walls for her clients, discovering the stories of black sheep ancestors, and helping individuals preserve their photographic legacy.
Was your ancestor a tavern keeper, postal worker, or teacher? There are lineage societies for that! What’s a lineage society, and why should you consider them? This class reviews the benefits of joining these societies, provides tips for leveraging their resources, resources for finding societies you’re eligible for, and tips for preparing your application.
Please join us on Sunday, May 18 at 2pm to hear our speaker Sara Cochran, who will be giving a presentation titled From a Box in the Closet to a Treasured Family Heirloom.
About Sara Cochran
Sara’s passion is telling the stories of the people in the family tree. Genealogists do this best by recording the stories of our elders, locating and preserving the photos and stories our ancestors left behind, and researching the records created by and about our people.
Sara has Bachelor of Science (Liberal Arts/ Library Science) and Associate of Science (Library Science) degrees, along with many certificates from various continuing education programs. She has been researching for 25+ years and is affiliated with many groups including the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG) and the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR).
About the Presentation
If you’re overwhelmed by the collection of photos your family has accumulated, you’re not alone! After a brief history of photography, we look at organizing techniques, digitization basics, and options/ideas on what to do with your photos so they can be enjoyed by generations to come, instead of collecting dust in the box.
Please join us on Sunday, February 16 at 2pm to hear our speaker Megan Clark Young, whose topic will be Pruning Your Family Tree.
About Megan Clark Young
Megan Clark Young is a professional genealogist based in western Pennsylvania. She is employed as a forensic genealogist, specializing in heirship research for mineral rights.
She is also the owner of MACY’s Genealogical Research and is the current president of the Western Pennsylvania Genealogical Society. She has over 25-years of experience researching her own Scots-Irish, English, German, and Swedish roots. Having made a lot of mistakes along the way, she enjoys presenting and blogging about her experience in the hopes that others will be able to avoid making similar mistakes.
Please join us on Sunday, November 17 at 2pm to hear our speaker Barbara Coakley, whose topic will be Getting Around the Fire at the Military Records Center: WWI – Corporal John L. Coakley.
About Barbara Coakley
Barbara Coakley’s interest in family history began over thirty years ago when she was given an envelope of family papers. Her journey to discover the stories of her ancestors has taken her to homelands across the US and Europe. Barbara is President of Genealogy Friends of Plano Libraries and volunteers for TxSGS and the Dallas Genealogical Society. She is an alumnus of ProGen, IGHR, TIGR, GRIP, SLIG and GenFed. Barbara taught genealogy continuing education classes at Collin College from 2008 to 2021. She does presentations for libraries and genealogical societies throughout the U.S. and U.K.
About the presentation
It is possible to reconstruct service for a WWI soldier whose file was destroyed in the fire at the Military Records Center. Learn about alternative sources available through a case study.
Please join us on Sunday, October 20 at 2pm to hear Shannon Combs-Bennett speak on Roadmaps Tell You More Than How to Get From A to B: Creating a Research Plan With DNA Testing.
About Shannon Combs-Bennett
Shannon Combs-Bennett, QG, is an author, researcher and lecturer based in the Washington, D.C. metro area. She regularly speaks and writes about various aspects of genealogy from genetic genealogy to methodology. Her blog Trials and Tribulations (T2) Family History chronicles her genealogical journey and family exploration. She is working toward her Ph.D in History and Genealogic Studies.
About the Presentation
We are taught in Genealogy 101 to create research plans as part of a genealogist’s toolbox. Research plans are a way to guide our research thoughtfully and methodologically to solve our genealogical questions.
Most people consider that with books, websites, and paper research. Well, in the 21st Century, that now includes DNA testing. This presentation will demonstrate how to include genetic genealogy results, testing strategies, analysis, and proof arguments in your research plans.
You are invited join us on Sunday, August 18 at 2pm to hear Barbara Coakley speaking on Digging up Deeds.
About Barbara Coakley
Barbara Coakley’s interest in family history began over 30 years ago when she was given an envelope of family papers. Her journey to discover the stories of her ancestors has taken her to homelands across the US and Europe. Barbara is President of Genealogy Friends of Plano Libraries and volunteers for TxSGS and the Dallas Genealogical Society. She is an alumnus of ProGen, IGHR, TIGR, GRIP, SLIG and GenFed. Barbara taught genealogy continuing education classes at Collin College from 2008 to 2021. She does presentations for libraries and genealogical societies throughout the U.S. and U.K.
About the Presentation
U.S. Land records are some of the earliest and most complete records available. They contain clues to relationships, economic standing, migration, and much more. Learn about transactions between individuals using case studies to demonstrate how to find and understand different types of deeds.
You are invited join us on Sunday, May 19 at 2pm to hear Alistair McGowan speak on Reasons Why Your Research Is Going Nowhere.
About Alistair McGowan
Originally from London with roots spread across the British Isles (I have a grandparent born in each of Scotland, Ireland, Wales and England); I now live in Markham, Ontario.
I hold a Postgraduate Certificate in Genealogical, Paleographic and Heraldic Studies from the University of Strathclyde in Scotland as well as an MBA from the Open University in England.
About the Presentation
We all hit brick walls sooner or later; our genealogy research comes to a complete halt and we can’t go any further. I thought it might be helpful to present a few reasons why this might have happened and why your genealogy research on a particular line isn’t going anywhere.
