Genealogy Research Clinic
2019-06-27 18:00 - 20:00 (America/New_York) | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
Come to one of our research clinics! WMGS offers research clinics on the 3
rd & 4th Thursdays of each month from 6pm-8pm at the Agawam Senior Center. This is a free benefit for WMGS members, with a $10 fee for non-members.

WMGS July Monthly Meeting
2019-07-10 18:30 - 20:30 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
July 10, 6:30 p.m. – – Not July 3, 6:00 p.m.
Our July 10th presenter will be Kathleen Reilly, local History and Melville Collections Supervisor at the Berkshire Athenaeum in Pittsfield, MA. Kathy’s presentation will focus on the extensive and rich collection of genealogical resources at the Athenaeum.
The Berkshire Athenaeum has long been a popular place to conduct research, because of its extensive New England state resources, and French-Canadian parish repertoires and other resources.
When the Sylvio Conte Branch of the National Archives in Pittsfield closed in 2011, the Berkshire Athenaeum acquired the books, finding aids, and microfilm collection of that branch. The microfilm collection includes US & State census records, naturalization indexes, compiled service records for Revolutionary war solders, Revolutionary war pension and bounty-land warrant applications, index to New England naturalization petitions from 1796 to 1906, ship manifests, and more.
The Athenaeum is also a FamilySearch affiliate library providing access to many FamilySearch databases that are only accessible at a center. Kathy’s presentation will pique your interest and help you to maximize a research trip there.
Please note that due to the Independence Day holiday, our July meeting will be held on July 10th at 6:30pm in the Veterans’ Room at the Agawam Senior Center.

Genealogy Research Clinic
2019-07-18 18:00 - 20:00, 2019-07-25 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
Come to one of our research clinics! WMGS offers research clinics on the 3rd & 4th Thursdays of each month from 6pm-8pm at the Agawam Senior Center. This is a free benefit for WMGS members, with a $10 fee for non-members.

History Camp 2019
2019-07-27 00:00
History Camp is the un-conference dedicated to all things history. Everyone is welcome to attend, but registration is required, and anyone can present, assuming we have a time slot open. More information on History Camp, including photos, quotes, and the profile of attendees from earlier History Camps, is here. The goal of History Camp Pioneer Valley is to break even – there are no paid staff, no paid speakers, and no one will profit. We will charge the lowest possible fee to cover the costs of the venue and lunch, but to allow the greatest number of people to attend. This year the fee is $26.
There will also be plenty of opportunities for networking and an exhibit area for selling books and other history-related products.
Registration began on Patriots Day (April 15). To Register to Attend or Present, go to: http://historycamp.org/pioneer-valley For more Information, contact us at: pioneervalleyhistory@gmail.com

WMGS Monthly Meeting
2019-08-07 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
Do you have boxes of old family photographs just sitting in your closet? Are they fading, yellowed, damaged, water stained, or do they have mold damage? The solution is to scan them and then restore them, turning them into digital files. Does the idea of tackling that project overwhelm you? Do you even know how or where to start?
At the August 7 WMGS monthly meeting, Dave Lapierre, WMGS Vice President and Website Coordinator, will do a presentation/demonstration on “Photo Scanning and Restoration”. If you were at Skills Night on June 5, you may have had a chance to watch some of the photo scanning features Dave was demonstrating.
He will be expanding his presentation from Skills Night to include information on:

what file format to save scanned photos in
what’s the difference between a JPG and a TIFF file, and which format should you use when
the steps to take when tackling that box of photos
software programs for photo editing & photo restoration (there is a difference), and
the options available for saving/storing your scanned images

Genealogy Research Clinic
2019-08-15 18:00 - 20:00, 2019-08-22 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
Genealogy Research Clinics are free to WMGS members. There is a $10 fee per session for non-members.

The Cities That William Pynchon Built – Emphasis Ludlow, MA
2019-08-15 18:30 - 20:00 | Hubbard Memorial Library, 24 Center St., Ludlow, MA, 01056, United States

WMGS Monthly Meeting
2019-09-04 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
Genealogist Melanie McComb will present on September 4 on the resources available at NEHGS and AmericanAncestors.org- NEHGS: Who We Are, What We Do, How We Can Help.
Melanie assists library visitors at NEHGS, both on-site and online, with their family history research. She also provides lectures on a variety of genealogical topics. Melanie holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the State University of New York at Oswego. Her areas of research interest include Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Kansas, Prince Edward Island, Québec, and Ireland, and she is experienced in DNA, genealogical technology and social media, Jewish genealogy, and military records.

WMGS Board Meeting
2019-09-09 18:00 - 20:00, 2020-01-13 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States

Facebook for Genealogy
2019-09-19 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
This is the first in our series of new Training Sessions. Although not required, you may want to bring your laptop.
Training Sessions are held in the Handcraft Room on the 1st floor of the Agawam Senior Center.
We’ll briefly cover the basics of setting up and maintaining a Facebook account and talk about privacy and security features. Then, we’ll focus on how to use Facebook for genealogical research and sharing. We’ll discuss the difference between Facebook Pages and Groups and explore the incredible variety of pages and groups available to genealogists to solve research problems. We’ll also show you how to set up a family page to share information, family history, memories, photos, and more. We’ll also learn how to follow WMGS and other sites to learn about free resources, webinars, and discounts.

French Canadian Special Interest Group (SIG)
2019-09-26 18:00 - 20:00
This is the first in our series of new Special Interest Groups (SIGs). Although not required, you may want to bring your laptop.
SIGs are held in the Handcraft room on the 1st floor of the Agawam Senior Center.
Are you just beginning research on your Canadian ancestors? Or, do you have a Canadian ancestor that you can’t find?
Our agenda will cover a brief outline of conducting research in Canada, including major databases, websites, and online & print resources. There’ll be plenty of time for questions and answers, and brick wall challenges.
If you’d like help with a research problem, bring your ancestor’s name and whatever facts that you have discovered, such as date & place of birth, marriage, death, spouse’s name, children, and parents.

WMGS Monthly Meeting
2019-10-02 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
Our October 2nd meeting will feature Maria Beiter-Tucker, the Visitor Center Manager at Quabbin Reservoir who will present Exploring the History of The Quabbin Valley Through Gravestones. Maria will take our members on a virtual walk through the Quabbin Park Cemetery to explore the history of the former Swift River Valley Towns and some of its residents. The Quabbin Park Cemetery was developed in the early 1930’s for the reinterment of those who were buried in cemeteries in the flooded towns of Dana, Enfield, Greenwich, and Prescott. Nearly 8,000 graves were moved from the four towns’ 34 cemeteries, but not every family chose to have their ancestors buried in the newly created cemetery. Maria will tell us what happened to them. Before any graves were moved, detailed information was recorded about each grave, including mapping where it was located and photographing the gravestone. Maria will describe how to access that information and will tell us about the ongoing Quabbin Park Cemetery Digital Commonwealth project. Maria’s presentation will provide resources to help you locate ancestors who lived in the Swift River Valley. Whether or not you have ancestors who lived there, her presentation will be intriguing to anyone with Massachusetts roots.

Excel for Genealogy
2019-10-17 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
We’ll explain the various ways to use Excel in genealogy research. Dave Lapierre will teach members about basic Excel skills and explore how the program can be used to organize, sort, filter, analyze, and keep track of your research. We’ll also look at some of the built-in functions you can use to parse data into different columns, as well as combine data from different fields (example: first name in one column, last name in another, full name as a combination of the two). Excel can be used to create timelines, track census findings, create research logs & more. Although not required, you may want to bring your laptop to this session.Although not required, you may want to bring your laptop.
Training Sessions are held in the Handcraft room on the 1st floor of the Agawam Senior Center.

WMGS Board Meeting
2019-10-21 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
Board meeting moved from October 14 to October 21 due to Columbus Day holiday on 10/14.

Family Search: The Basics and Beyond
2019-10-24 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
We’ll cover the basics of using the free Family Search website, which contains the world’s largest collection of genealogy records from around the globe. Learn how to use the search engine, card catalog, wikis, and family trees to find what you need. We’ll also cover search techniques that go beyond the search engine to maximize your results, explain indexing, and look at the pros & cons of creating a family tree on the site.

WMGS Monthly Meeting
2019-11-06 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
We’re pleased to be bringing genealogist Kathy Kaldis back to WMGS for our November 6th meeting to help us prepare for the upcoming 400th anniversary of the Pilgrims’ landing on our shores. Kathy’s presentation, Land Ho! Calling All Mayflower Descendants, will focus on how to find Mayflower ancestors and how to apply to a Mayflower lineage society. She’ll tell us about plans for the 400th anniversary and celebration, as well. Kathleen Kaldis fell in love with genealogy at a young age. She is a professional genealogist known as The Ancestor Finder. Her interest in genealogy started when she heard stories about how her great-great-grandfather, who was born on Cape Breton Island, came to Boston to build Fenway Park. She used to be a Genealogist at the New England Historic Genealogical Society in Boston and enjoyed working with the patrons. She holds a Certificate in Genealogical Research from Boston University, and has successfully completed many genealogical institute courses though the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy (SLIG) and the International Society for British Genealogy and Family History (ISBGFH). Kathleen is very active within the genealogical community, serving in many leadership positions within many organizations. She is a member of the Lexington DAR and personally brought in 125 new members in two years. As a lecturer her enthusiasm will show through as she shares her passion of genealogy with the audience.

Canadian (Quebec & Provinces) Special Interest Group (SIG)
2019-11-14 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
Our agenda for this session will be a hands-on exploration of research in Canada. Whether you have Quebec or Provinces ancestry, hosts Jeanne Leblond and Dave Lapierre will help you find the information that you need. This will be a hands-on exploration of Canadian resources, so bring your research questions and brick wall problems. Please bring your ancestor’s name and whatever facts that you have discovered, such as date and place of birth, marriage, death, spouse’s name, children, and parents. If you have a success story, bring that along as well, so we can share our knowledge!

WMGS Board Meeting
2019-11-18 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
Board meeting moved from November 11 to November 18, due to Veteran’s Day holiday on 11/11.

Special Interest Group (SIG) - Irish Research
2019-11-21 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
Join host Fran Malone as he explains how to find more about your Irish ancestry. Fran will explain how to find the information that’s needed to get across the ocean to Ireland. He’ll cover resources available on this side of the Atlantic, and then he’ll cover the many resources that are available for Irish research, including Ireland’s National Archives, Griffith’s Valuation, the Tithe Applotment Books, and other resources and websites. If you’d like help with a research problem, bring your ancestor’s name and whatever facts that you have already discovered. Bring your research questions and brick wall challenges!

WMGS Monthly Meeting
2019-12-04 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
We’re excited to be bringing nationally-known Thomas MacEntee, Founder & CEO of High-Definition Genealogy, LLC, to our December 4th meeting.
The title of his presentation is,
The Genealogy Do-Over tm:
A Year of Learning from Mistakes
It isn’t often that we get a “do-over” when it comes to stuff that matters in life. When you first got started researching your family history, did you do some things that now are just plain “embarrassing” such as name collecting, not citing sources and more? Well now there’s hope since genealogists from beginner to advanced are employing new research methodologies and documentation practices. Follow genealogist Thomas MacEntee as he basically starts his genealogy research from scratch but includes sound research practices and methodologies as well as new templates, tools, and the latest technology to create a better body of family history research.
Thomas will be coming to us via a webinar. We will present the webinar at the Agawam Senior Center, and will also broadcast it to members who are watching remotely. Stay tuned for webinar details as we get closer to the event.

Training: Using Twitter for Genealogy
2019-12-12 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
Stay tuned for details.

WMGS Monthly Meeting
2020-01-08 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
In January, our presenter will be Katherine R. Willson of Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Katherine is an engaging and dynamic lecturer at local, regional, and national
conferences. She’s the founder and president of the Virtual Genealogical Society, a
member of the Board of Directors for the Association of Professional Genealogists, the
Publicity Chair for the Federation of Genealogical Societies 2019 Conference, and a
member of the National Genealogical Society. In addition, she is the author of The
Genealogist’s Guide to Grand Rapids, Michigan (published in 2018 by The In-Depth
Genealogist). A noted expert on the use of Facebook for genealogy, she’s continually
updating her list of Facebook genealogy/history links on her website, with a current total of over 14,500 links.
She also maintains a list of 160+ links to instructional genealogical channels on YouTube on her site. Her website at https://socialmediagenealogy.com/resources/ contains those lists, as well as a variety of other resources.
Katherine’s presentation to us at the Agawam Senior Center is titled “They Didn’t All Come Through Ellis Island! Finding & Analyzing Passenger Arrival Lists.” As Katherine says, “If as many ancestors came through Ellis Island as families are led to believe, the island would have sunk!” She will explain the multiple points of departure from Europe, ports of entry into the U.S., how to find passenger arrival lists online, and how to analyze these lists as a means of filling in your ancestors’ life stories.
Be sure to join us for Katherine Willson’s presentation on Wednesday, January 8th, 2020!

Special Interest Group (SIG) - Canadian (Quebec & Provinces)
2020-01-16 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
Our agenda for this session will be a hands-on exploration of research in
Canada. Whether you have Quebec or Provinces ancestry, hosts Jeanne
Leblond and Dave Lapierre will help you find the information that you need.
This will be a hands-on exploration of Canadian resources, so bring your
research questions and brick wall problems. Please bring your ancestor’s
name and whatever facts that you have discovered, such as date and place of
birth, marriage, death, spouse’s name, children, and parents. If you have a
success story, bring that along as well, so we can share our knowledge!
SIGs and Trainings are held from 6 pm to 8 pm in the Handcraft Room at the Agawam Senior Center. The Handcraft Room is located on the 1st floor at the end of the hallway, to the left of the reception desk. Feel free to bring your laptops, as the Agawam Senior Center is wi-fi equipped.
Please join us!

Training: Be a Good Ancestor!
2020-01-23 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
How many of us wish that our ancestors left more information or clues about their daily lives! Learn how you can be a better ancestor for your family. We’ll cover some of the simple techniques that will help you to leave a lasting legacy beyond just names and dates in your database. Topics will include what to do with photos, easy ways to record memories, creating a short biography, identifying family heirlooms and treasures, organizing your research, interviewing techniques and questions, and creating a plan for your legacy after you’re gone. And we’ll discuss a few ideas to get the younger generation involved. None of this costs much money, nor does it take much time.
Join hosts Jeanne Leblond and Carol Lynne Bagley for this fun training.
SIGs and trainings are held from 6 pm to 8 pm in the Handcraft Room at the Agawam Senior Center. The Handcraft Room is located on the 1st floor at the end of the hallway, to the left of the reception desk.
Feel free to bring your laptops, as the Agawam Senior Center is wi-fi equipped.
Please join us!

WMGS Monthly Meeting
2020-02-05 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
Our February 5th monthly meeting will feature Kathryn Lake Hogan, live from Ontario,
Canada. Kathryn Lake Hogan, UE, PLCGS is a Canadian professional genealogist who
revels in teaching people how to find their ancestors in Canada. She is the founder and
owner of the Canadian-based genealogy business, Looking4Ancestors. The author of
research guides featuring Canadian genealogy, Kathryn has written articles for Family
Tree magazine, The In-Depth Genealogist, and the Association of Professional
Genealogists journal, APG Quarterly. Kathryn is the past Dominion Genealogist of the
United Empire Loyalists’ Association of Canada (UELAC), a past board member of the
Association of Professional Genealogists, and the past virtual chat coordinator of
Canadian studies with National Institute for Genealogical Studies. Most recently,
Kathryn was the producer, host, and presenter of the weekly webinar series, “Genealogy with a Canadian Twist.” Recognized for her knowledge of Canadian genealogy, Kathryn is a popular speaker and instructor at regional and national genealogical conferences and institutes throughout North America.
Kathryn’s presentation is titled, “What’s in Your Canadian Genealogy Toolbox?” Explore the top websites for researching your ancestors in Canada. Learn where to find the best online resources for Canadian and provincial record groups, history, newspapers, maps, photographs and more to help you fill your Canadian toolbox.
You might be surprised to discover that many of our ancestors spent time in Canada. Do you have Loyalist ancestors? Or provincial, Eastern Townships, or ancestors who immigrated through Canadian ports? Did your American ancestors go back and forth across the border for employment or to get married? If so, you won’t want to miss Kathryn’s presentation.

WMGS Board Meeting
2020-02-10 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
WMGS Board Meeting at the Agawam Senior Center. Open to
Members!

Training: Genealogy Writing Workshop
2020-02-20 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
Interested in writing about your ancestors, but not sure where to start? Or are you
thinking about writing your own story to pass down to your family? Join us for
an evening of writing exercises designed to get your pen moving (or fingers
typing). Host Joanne Mason will guide us through several audiovisual prompts,
including photographs and music, to see where our thoughts take us on paper.
After each prompt, we’ll write for 10 minutes, then share what we’ve written.
(Note: Sharing is not required! You are more than welcome to just listen.) The
goal of this workshop isn’t to complete a story or polish the grammar and punctuation. Instead, we’ll be working on nuggets to take home.
Please bring a notebook and pen. If you prefer typing on a laptop or tablet, that’s fine too.
