Mt. Diablo Genealogical Society

11/24/2024

Mt. Diablo Genealogical Society has gone inactive and will no longer be holding monthly meetings at Rossmoor.
If you would like to join another Society, please check out Contra Costa County Genealogical Society - East Bay Area, CA https://cccgs.net/ or
San Ramon Valley Genealogical Society https://srvgensoc.org/
They are both doing Zoom Meetings and have said they would welcome our members.

CCCGS promotes genealogical research and education to members of all skill levels by helping research and trace family trees, educating on tools and techniques and advancing best practice principles.

11/11/2024

***Notice***
Unfortunately, this will be the last meeting for Mt Diablo Genealogy Society. We are going inactive and will no longer be holding monthly meetings.

The attendance at our meetings has dropped this year.
Our current dues paying membership has dropped from past years.
The Rossmoor room rental costs are increasing next year.
The current board members have been in their jobs for three plus years. We have not been able to find anyone interested in being a board member.

We thank everyone for your past support. If you are interested in joining another group, there are two active societies in our area:
Contra Costa Genealogical Society,
San Ramon Valley Genealogical Society

Mt Diablo Genealogy Society
FINAL MEETING: November 15, 2024
Gena Philibert-Ortega

“Finding Her Online: Digital Collections”

Learn about the types of websites that offer digital collections and how to find what you need for your research, often for free.
Unique collections that focus on female ancestors
will be explored.
Gena Philibert-Ortega is an author, researcher, and instructor specializing in the use of social history and material culture
to tell the story of historical women's lives.

Date: Friday, November 15, 2024
Time: 10:00 AM
Location: Club Room, Creekside Clubhouse, 1010 Stanley Dollar
Drive, Walnut Creek, CA 94595

Speaker: Gena Philibert-Ortega

MDGS Non-resident Club Members
Due to tightening Security at the Rossmoor gate, clubs are asked to submit a list of non-resident members who will be attending meetings. If you plan to attend, please send your name three days prior to the meeting, to mready001@yahoo.com and ask to have your name put on the non-resident list. Thank you.

10/29/2024

10/22/2024

Mount Diablo Genealogical Society November 15th Meeting Announcement


The November MDGS meeting will be an in-person meeting only with no remote Zoom capability.
The meeting will be held on Friday, November 15th at 10am in the Club Room of the Creekside facility
in Rossmoor.

The MDGS speaker is Ms. Gena Philibert-Ortega, and the title of her talk is
“Finding Her Online: Digital Collections”. Digital collections offer the researcher a variety of records
and resources, often for free. In this presentation, learn about the types of websites that offer digital
collections and how to find what is needed. Unique collections that focus on female ancestors will
be explored.

Gena Philibert-Ortega is an author, researcher, and instructor specializing in the use of social history
and material culture to tell the story of historical women's lives. She holds two Master's degrees: one
in Interdisciplinary Studies (Psychology and Women's Studies) and the other in Religion.

As an author, Ms. Philibert-Ortega has published two books, “Cemeteries of the Eastern Sierra” (Arcadia
Publishing) and “From the Family Kitchen” (F+W Media), and hundreds of articles in print magazines and
online publications. Her writings can also be found on her two blogs, Gena's Genealogy and Food.Family.Ephemera, as well as the GenealogyBank and Legacy Family Tree Webinars blogs.

Prior to the main presentation, MDGS board member Gail Wherritt will tell a short, amusing family story
entitled “Two Grandfathers”.

Following the meeting, MDGS will arrange for lunch for meeting participants at Creekside.
Unfortunately, our speaker will not be able to attend. If you wish to attend the lunch,
please RSVP to Sue Fernstrom at 510-215-0873 at least three days prior to the meeting.

The meeting is open to members and nonmembers. Due to security gate entry requirements,
non-Rossmoor residents planning to attend should advise MDGS of their intent at least three days
in advance at Mready001@yahoo.com and be prepared to present their driver’s license identification
at the Rossmoor gate.

MDGS welcomes new members and is now accepting dues for 2025. Any dues paid now for 2025 will
include full membership for the remainder of 2024. Annual dues are $20 for a single membership and
$25 for a multi-person membership. Please remit checks either to the MDGS drop-box at the Rossmoor
Gateway center or send them to Gail Wherritt, Membership Chair, at 109 Marsha Place, Lafayette, CA, 94549.

The Society is also seeking more participation by its members in its leadership and administrative
responsibilities. It is possible that, in the near future, MDGS will cease to exist without such support.
Interested members should contact the Society at the email address noted above to become involved
or contact a board member at the monthly meeting.

10/12/2024

Mount Diablo Genealogical Society October 18th General Meeting Announcement

The October MDGS meeting will be an in-person meeting only. We will not provide a remote Zoom capability. The meeting will be held on Friday, October 18th at 10am in the Club Room of the Creekside facility in Rossmoor.

Our speaker will be Ms. Madeline Yanov. The title of her talk will be “Marriage by Blacksmith: Gretna Green Marriages”. This unusual title refers - originally - to a small town in Scotland where young couples, facing disapproval from their parents over their marriage, could get married very easily and with few controls. There are many towns in the United States that have followed this “marriage model”. Ms. Yanov will delve into the history of these towns and how they came to the US.

Ms. Yanov is the owner of Time Travel Genealogy and has more than 30 years of genealogy experience specializing in American research. Since most Americans are descendants of immigrants, she is familiar with European genealogy, specifically Irish, British, the Slovak region, and Russian with a little German on the side. She also has been instrumental in locating and helping to reunite adoptees with their birth parents.

In her “other life”, prior to becoming a full-time genealogist, Ms. Yanov was a paralegal whose expertise included the “discovery” phase of trial cases. This experience helped her in genealogy in analyzing what to search for and how to find it.

In addition to our main MDGS program, we would like to begin having short presentations by meeting participants concerning relevant genealogical topics. These shorter talks will occur prior to the main presentation. Anyone interested should approach an MDGS representative at the meeting to discuss a possible talk.

Following the meeting, MDGS will arrange for lunch for meeting participants at Creekside.
Unfortunately, our speaker will not be able to attend. If you wish to attend the lunch, please RSVP to Sue Fernstrom at 510-215-0873 at least three days prior to the meeting.

The meeting is open to members and nonmembers. Due to security gate entry requirements,
non-Rossmoor residents planning to attend should advise MDGS of their intent at least five days in
advance at Mready001@yahoo.com and be prepared to present their driver’s license identification at the Rossmoor gate.

MDGS welcomes new members and is now accepting dues for 2025. Any dues paid now for 2025 will include full membership for the remainder of 2024. Annual dues are $20 for a single membership and $25 for a multi-person membership. Please remit checks either to the MDGS drop-box at the Rossmoor Gateway center or send them to Gail Wherritt, Membership Chair, at 109 Marsha Place, Lafayette, CA, 94549.

10/01/2024

Mount Diablo Genealogical Society October 18th General Meeting Announcement

The October MDGS meeting will be an in-person meeting only. We will not provide a remote Zoom capability. The meeting will be held on Friday, October 18th at 10am in the Club Room of the Creekside facility in Rossmoor.

Our speaker will be Ms. Madeline Yanov. The title of her talk will be “Marriage by Blacksmith: Gretna Green Marriages”. This unusual title refers - originally - to a small town in Scotland where young couples, facing disapproval from their parents over their marriage, could get married very easily and with few controls. There are many towns in the United States that have followed this “marriage model”. Ms. Yanov will delve into the history of these towns and how they came to the US.

Ms. Yanov is the owner of Time Travel Genealogy and has more than 30 years of genealogy experience specializing in American research. Since most Americans are descendants of immigrants, she is familiar with European genealogy, specifically Irish, British, the Slovak region, and Russian with a little German on the side. She also has been instrumental in locating and helping to reunite adoptees with their birth parents.

In her “other life”, prior to becoming a full-time genealogist, Ms. Yanov was a paralegal whose expertise included the “discovery” phase of trial cases. This experience helped her in genealogy in analyzing what to search for and how to find it.

In addition to our main MDGS program, we would like to begin having short presentations by meeting participants concerning relevant genealogical topics. These shorter talks will occur prior to the main presentation. Anyone interested should approach an MDGS representative at the meeting to discuss a possible talk.

Following the meeting, MDGS will arrange for lunch for meeting participants at Creekside.
Unfortunately, our speaker will not be able to attend. If you wish to attend the lunch, please RSVP to Sue Fernstrom at 510-215-0873 at least three days prior to the meeting.

The meeting is open to members and nonmembers. Due to security gate entry requirements, non-Rossmoor residents planning to attend should advise MDGS of their intent at least five days in
advance at Mready001@yahoo.com and be prepared to present their driver’s license identification at the Rossmoor gate.

MDGS welcomes new members and is now accepting dues for 2025. Any dues paid now for 2025 will include full membership for the remainder of 2024. Annual dues are $20 for a single membership and $25 for a multi-person membership. Please remit checks either to the MDGS drop-box at the Rossmoor Gateway center or send them to Gail Wherritt, Membership Chair, at 109 Marsha Place, Lafayette, CA, 94549.

09/19/2024

09/16/2024

Mount Diablo Genealogical Society
September 20th General Meeting Announcement

The September MDGS meeting will be an in-person meeting only. We will not provide a remote Zoom capability. The meeting will be held on Friday, September 20th at 10am in the Club Room of the Creekside facility in Rossmoor.

Our speaker will be Evan Wilson, and the title of his talk will be “Pinpointing Your American
Ancestors on a Map”. ‘Place’ is a crucial but underappreciated ingredient in genealogical research. Whether your goal is to overcome a brick wall in your research or to better understand your
ancestors’ lives, it is often essential to know exactly where they lived. Evan’s talk will guide
us through this process.

Some of the key topics he will cover include: finding and interpreting land records, sourcing relevant maps online, navigating urban records, and (briefly) how to map a land parcel. You are encouraged to come with a laptop and one American ancestor whose location you'd like to pinpoint.

Mr. Wilson is a professional genealogist who grew up in Birmingham, Alabama, but has lived all over the US, including now in Oakland, California. He first caught the genealogy bug from his grandmother, a dedicated local historian in Panola County, Mississippi. Genetic genealogy has helped him answer questions that she spent years working on with documentary research in the pre-Internet era. He loves the process of using DNA to open up our family stories, whether those stories took place in 1970 or 1770.

Evan's interest in family histories is undoubtedly connected to his background in the academic study of medieval European literature and history (he has a PhD). He also has a certificate of genealogical research from Boston University.

Following the meeting, MDGS will arrange for lunch with our speaker at Creekside. If you wish to attend the lunch, please RSVP to Sue Fernstrom at 510-215-0873 at least three days prior to
the meeting.

The meeting is open to members and nonmembers. Due to security gate entry requirements, non-Rossmoor residents planning to attend should advise MDGS of their intent at least three days in advance at Mready001@yahoo.com and be prepared to present their driver’s license identification at the Rossmoor gate.

MDGS welcomes new members. Annual dues are $20 for a single membership and $25 for a multi-person membership. Please remit checks either to the MDGS drop-box at the Rossmoor Gateway center or send them to Gail Wherritt, Membership Chair, at 109 Marsha Place, Lafayette, CA, 94549.

09/02/2024

Mount Diablo Genealogical Society
September 20th Meeting Announcement

The September MDGS meeting will be an in-person meeting only. We will not provide a remote Zoom capability. The meeting will be held on Friday, September 20th at 10am in the Club Room of the Creekside facility in Rossmoor.

Our speaker will be Evan Wilson, and the title of his talk will be “Pinpointing Your American Ancestors on a Map”. ‘Place’ is a crucial but underappreciated ingredient in genealogical research. Whether your goal is to overcome a brick wall in your research or to better understand your ancestors’ lives, it is often essential to know exactly where they lived. Evan’s talk will guide us through this process.

Some of the key topics he will cover include: finding and interpreting land records, sourcing relevant maps online, navigating urban records, and (briefly) how to map a land parcel. You are encouraged to come with a laptop and one American ancestor whose location you'd like to pinpoint.

Mr. Wilson is a professional genealogist who grew up in Birmingham, Alabama, but has lived all over the US, including now in Oakland, California. He first caught the genealogy bug from his grandmother, a dedicated local historian in Panola County, Mississippi. Genetic genealogy has helped him answer questions that she spent years working on with documentary research in the pre-Internet era. He loves the process of using DNA to open up our family stories, whether those stories took place in 1970 or 1770.

Evan's interest in family histories is undoubtedly connected to his background in the academic study of medieval European literature and history (he has a PhD). He also has a certificate of genealogical research from Boston University.

Following the meeting, MDGS will arrange for lunch with our speaker at Creekside. If you wish to attend the lunch, please RSVP to Sue Fernstrom at 510-215-0873 at least three days prior to the meeting.

The meeting is open to members and nonmembers. Due to security gate entry requirements, non-Rossmoor residents planning to attend should advise MDGS of their intent at least three days in advance at Mready001@yahoo.com and be prepared to present their driver’s license identification at the Rossmoor gate.

MDGS welcomes new members. Annual dues are $20 for a single membership and $25 for a multi-person membership. Please remit checks either to the MDGS drop-box at the Rossmoor Gateway center or send them to Gail Wherritt, Membership Chair, at 109 Marsha Place, Lafayette, CA, 94549.

08/20/2024

OTD in 2018, the original Find a Grave website layout said goodbye. Find a Grave was started in 1995 by creator Jim Tipton as a way for people around the world to document and record burial information. Even though the layout has changed our mission still remains the same. Who remembers the original site layout? You can view the memorial here: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/192415894/original_find_a_grave