ROOTS & BRANCHES

Genealogy programming has gone through several phases in the last few years as a result of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

First there was the cancellation—like a string of dominoes one after another—of conference after conference in spring 2020.

Then came the “Great Age of Virtual” in which every society from local outfits and their monthly meetings up to and including the National Genealogical Society fired up a Zoom or GoToWebinar account and produced—some better and some worse—a proliferation of online-only programming so immense (much of it free!) that some family historians burned out from watching it all. In the process, many organizations found their “distance members” activated by the prospect of being involved in programming without traveling.

I got way deep into that “Great Age” when I co-chaired the eight-day, all-virtual International German Genealogy Partnership’s conference in July 2021. We were the first genealogy conference to use the Whova event platform and participants gave that conference rave reviews for being the closest virtual thing to connecting in person with other registrants.

Now, with COVID receding but the wish to keep programming accessible to the greatest number of people, hybrid events are springing up.

And in my role as interim executive director of Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania, well, yes, I’m involved in this programming iteration, too.

That’s because GSP is co-sponsoring with Historical Society of Pennsylvania “Family History Sampler: Different Strategies for Diverse Ancestors” from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, May 20, at HSP, 1300 Locust St., Philadelphia, PA 19107.  Attendees can register for either in-person or virtual; HSP and GSP members receive a discount on their registrations.

“Family History Sampler” has a powerhouse lineup of speakers who are coming to HSP to present:

• Rich Venezia, a nationally recognized genealogist and genealogical lecturer who is an expert in the research of 20th-century immigrant ancestors,  will be the opener and closer of the seminar with his presentations “Naturalization Know-How” and “Discovering Your Immigrant’s Origins.”
• Rick Sayre, who coordinates various family history institute courses–including one on advanced military records—will lecture on “Researching Revolutionary War Soldiers.”
• LaBrenda Garrett-Nelson, an author, lecturer, and teacher, as well as Fellow of the American Society of Genealogists, will talk on “Correlating Indirect Evidence to Identify Enslaved Parents.”

A special perk for Saturday’s registrants will be the opportunity for library access on Friday, 19 May, from 1 to 4 p.m.

Also on Friday, registrants can add a workshop titled “Genealogy Records: Show, Tell and Interpret” with HSP’s Genealogy Director Katy Bodenhorn Barnes and your “Roots & Branches” columnist representing GSP. This workshop will be available onsite only.

HSP and GSP hope that “Family History Sampler” turns out to be a style of program that allows genealogists to take part in a seminar with top presenters—no matter where the registrants live nor limiting those who want an in-person experience.