Genealogical Society of Santa Cruz County

Celebrating Over 50 Years of Family History

Deciphering Old Writing with Cathy Andrews

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Guest Speaker: Cathy Andrews
Deceiphering Old Writing

Genealogical Society of Santa Cruz
County Lecture Series
Cohosted online by GSSCC  and the Santa Cruz Public Libraries
LIVE IN PERSON -OR- ZOOM FORMAT!!
Online registration through the SCPL website is required for home viewing  of this event. To register, please type in
https://santacruzpl.libcal.com/event/11972678
OR ATTEND LIVE IN PERSON (no registration required)  in the upstairs meeting room of the downtown library

Many original sources we rely on in researching family history are handwritten. The older the handwriting, the more challenging it can be to understand. This presentation will provide practical tips about styles and materials used, as well as some historical context, clues which help genealogists to build strong deciphering skills. The program will focus on handwriting found in American documents from the 1700s to the mid-1900s.

Cathy Andrews is Senior Librarian for Adult Services with the Salinas Public Library, where she teaches the “Genealogy Basics” series and oversees genealogy resources, services, and programming. Growing up in a family where stories and details about ancestors were woven into every family gathering, she has a deep appreciation for genealogy’s challenges and rewards

Why Santa Cruz Isn’t Los Angeles – YET, Ross Eric Gibson, speaker

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Register Here:

https://santacruzpl.libcal.com/event/11393075

Santa Cruz is the County people love, a mountain-fenced Shangri-la, where nature is dominant and the architecture is beautiful, to the delight of its artists and people who love the outdoor lifestyle. Agriculture, tourism and academia are its leading economies. Yet today’s quality of life was due to hard-fought battles against freeway-centric planning, suburban sprawl, and over-development. Can we retain what we love if developers are exempt from respecting community character?

Ross Eric Gibson is the County historian for the Santa Cruz Sentinel newspaper. He has written numerous history reports as an historic architectural consultant, served on the Santa Cruz Historic Preservation Commission, the County Landmarks Committee, the County Museum Board of Trustees, and the 1989 earthquake recovery committees for Vision Santa Cruz, working on design guidelines for the waterfront, downtown, and Branciforte neighborhood. He writes books, plays and musicals, and has presented numerous local lectures and tours.

Ross participated in a PBS documentary about Boardwalk history; was a consultant during the restoration of the 1917 movie, “Mothers of Men,” which was shot in Santa Cruz; and collaborated with “Ukulele Dick” McKee on the release of an album of old songs about Santa Cruz County places. He has won awards from General Dwight D. Eisenhower for an essay, two awards for newspaper cartooning and poster design from Charles Schultz, and an award in 2003 from the California Preservation Foundation for his part in helping to restore the Del Mar Theater.

You can join in online from any location via the Zoom link or you can attend in-person in the Downtown Library in the Community Meeting Room upstairs.

 

Drawing Out Yoir Memories with Gail Burk

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Genealogical Society of Santa Cruz
County Lecture Series
Cohosted online by GSSCC
and the Santa Cruz Public Libraries
LIVE IN PERSON -OR- ZOOM FORMAT!!
Online registration through the SCPL website is required for home viewing
of this event. To register, please type in
https://santacruzpl.libcal.com/event/11766588 .
OR ATTEND LIVE IN PERSON (no registration required)
in the upstairs meeting room of the downtown libraryTuesday, January 2, 2024 1:00 PM PST

Please note new attendance options: THIS WILL BE A LIVE PRESENTATION in the downtown library’s upstairs meeting room (with no registration required) -OR- view at home via Zoom (with registration required).
DRAWING OUT YOUR MEMORIES
Guest Speaker: Gail Burk

In addition to researching and recording details about the lives of our ancestors, we genealogists are also the stewards of our own history, recording the details of our own lives for our descendants. This program will use a variety of prompts to help participants to draw a floor plan of their childhood home. This exercise will aid in triggering early memories so that we can then share those memories with our family.

Gail Burk is a long-time member of the Genealogical Society of Santa Cruz, and has served in a number of Board positions, including President. Currently, she co-chairs the Society’s DNA Special Interest Group, and she is a volunteer staffer for the Society in the Genealogy Room at the downtown Santa Cruz Library. Gail has delivered a variety of programs in the Monterey Bay area. Gail graduated from the University of California at Santa Barbara, where she majored in art and minored in history. She has been an active genealogist for more than 40 years.

 

Holiday Luncheon

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It’s party time.
Thursday, December 7th
11:30 meet – 12:00 eat
Let’s fill the room!

The Holiday lunch this year is supplemented by the Society keeping pricing to attendees at $25 per person!

We have a new venue:

Seascape Golf Club
610 Clubhouse Dr.
Aptos, CA 95003

Your lunch includes sliced baguettes & butter, salad, dessert, and choice of coffee, hot or iced tea.  You must indicate your choice of entrée between:
Tri tip in Mushroom Sauce
Chicken Castroville
Pasta Primavera

Make checks payable to GSSCC, $25 per person, mail to GSSCC, PO Box 72, Santa Cruz, CA 95063, remember to indicate your entrée.  Please sign up early so that we can alert the restaurant, final date to reply November 29th.As in previous years please bring un-expired can goods or socks for charity.

 Light entertainment will be provided.

 Getting the Most Out of Your  MyHeritage DNA Results 

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Genealogical Society of Santa Cruz
County Lecture Series
Cohosted online by GSSCC
and the Santa Cruz Public Libraries
ZOOM FORMAT!!
Online registration through the SCPL website is required for home viewing of this event.

To register, click here:
https://santacruzpl.libcal.com/event/11273251

OR ATTEND LIVE STREAM (no registration required)
in the upstairs meeting room of the downtown library

Tuesday, October 3, 2023
1:00 PM PST
VIA ZOOM at home -OR-Please note “hybrid” viewing option:
streaming in the downtown library’s upstairs
meeting room!

Guest Speaker: Pamela Brigham
Getting the Most Out of Your
MyHeritage DNA Results

MyHeritage has several great tools available for evaluating your DNA results. We’ll look at everything from ethnicity results to how to use the tools for evaluating your relationship to your DNA matches. We’ll also look at their Chromosome Browser, Auto Cluster, and the Ethnicity Map. All of these tools can help you with evaluating your DNA results. Come learn how these tools can help you!

Pamela Brigham is the President of the Silicon Valley Computer Genealogy Group. She has been using technology to advance her research into her family’s past. She believes in using technology as a tool to help break through brick walls and effectively document her genealogy.

Pamela worked in the technology industry for almost 20 years, and ever since she started researching her genealogy years ago, she has applied her technology skills to effectively document her family history. She enjoys teaching genealogical classes about using Family Search, Ancestry, MyHeritage, FindMyPast and newspaper research. She is a frequent presenter at the Ancestor Roundup in Seaside. Pamela received a certificate in genealogy from Boston University

Genealogist Helping Genealogist Focus Group

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Join us on the Second Tuesday of each month!

Downtown Library, Genealogy Room

The Focus Group will meet in a small group environment with fellow genealogists to discover new strategies, share knowledge, spark new ideas and shed light on genealogy topics.