Genealogy Research Clinic
2019-08-22 18:00 - 20:00, 2019-08-15 18:00 - 20:00 (America/New_York) | 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
2019-08-07 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

History Camp 2019
2019-07-27 00:00 | MA
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

Genealogy Research Clinic
2019-07-25 18:00 - 20:00, 2019-07-18 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.

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
2019-06-27 18:00 - 20:00, 2019-06-20 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 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 Board Meeting
2019-06-10 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
Board meeting for the Officers of WMGS. Members are welcome to attend the meetings which are held at the Agawam Senior Center in the Board Room.

Partitions of Poland, or How a Major European State was Wiped Off the Map of Europe
2019-06-08 13:00 - 15:00 | Chicopee Public Library & Online, 449 Front Street, Chicopee, MA, 01013, United States
Saturday, June 8, 2019 – 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm
The Polish Genealogical Society of Massachusetts invites you to The Partitions of Poland: or, How a Major European State Was Wiped Off the Map of Europe, featuring speaker and historian Dr. Patrice M. Dabrowski.
This program is free and open to the public. Held at the Chicopee Public Library, 449 Front Street in the Community Room.

Holyoke Tours of Cemeteries
2019-06-08 10:30 - 11:50, 2019-05-25 10:30 - 11:50, 2019-05-11 10:30 - 11:50 | Holyoke Cemeteries
Sponsored by Holyoke Historical Commission, Friends of Historic Cemeteries and Monuments, and Holyoke History Room. All tours are free to the public. Please register at Eventbrite.com

May 11, 2019 – Calvary Cemetery (opened 1882) and Elmwood Cemetery (Est 1755)
10:30-11:50, Park at Calvary Cemetery
May 25, 2019 – St Jerome’s Cemetery (Est 1864)
10:30-11:50, Park on St Jerome Street
June 8, 2019 – Smith’s Ferry Cemetery (Originally part of Northampton, purchased by Holyoke 1909)
10:30-11:50, Park in Delaney House lot off Rte 5

Skills Night
2019-06-05 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
June 2019 Meeting – Skills Night
Our 2nd annual Skills Night will be held at our June 5th meeting this year. This is an opportunity to explore a variety of topics, tools, and resources that will assist you in your genealogy research. It is an informal event with attendees being able to freely move around stations, with facilitators at each station to chat and answer questions. We’ll be set up in the Dining Room this year, allowing us to spread out more.
We’re bringing back some of the topics from last year, but we’ll also have a few new ones. There will be something for everyone, whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned pro. Need help with general research? We’ll have tips, techniques and search methods. Are you having difficulty finding ancestors in early census records? Or, perhaps you’re having difficulty finding military records for those who served our country. We’ve got these covered!
Would you like to know more about capturing family memories and recording methods? We’ll cover that with displays of photo & document scanning tools. Want to learn about an easy-to-use online tool to help you make sense of your DNA results?
Do you focus your genealogical research on Ireland, Quebec and other provinces in Canada, Western Massachusetts, upstate New York, or Palatine research? Do you need general resources? Or, would you like to chat about a specific research problem? If so, bring a description of the problem and you’ll be able to talk with researchers who might be able to help.
Perhaps you want to plan a research trip, but it seems overwhelming. We’ll provide information on what you should do in advance, so that you’ll make the most of your time and maximize your chances of finding what you need.

Habitants to Immigrants: The Sansoucys, the Harpins, and the Potvins
2019-06-01 13:00 | Chicopee Public Library & Online, 449 Front Street, Chicopee, MA, 01013, United States
This presentation traces the history of the French-Canadian people through the lives of two families that evolved into three branches, from their settlement by soldiers in the Richelieu Valley of Quebec in 1665, to their immigration to the
mill towns of Massachusetts at the turn of the twentieth century.
This program is free and open to the public. Held at the Chicopee Public Library, 449 Front Street.

Genealogy Research Clinic
2019-05-23 18:00 - 20:00, 2019-05-16 18:00 - 20:00, 2019-04-25 18:00 - 20:00, 2019-04-18 18:00 - 20:00, 2019-03-28 18:00 - 20:00, 2019-03-21 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States

WMGS Board Meeting
2019-05-13 18:00 - 20:00, 2019-04-17 18:00 - 20:00, 2019-03-11 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States

WMGS Annual Survey
2019-05-03 - 2019-05-11 | MA
Our Annual Survey is being distributed via separate email to all of our members. We hope that you will take the time to click on the link and complete the survey. During the last year, WMGS officers, board members, and volunteers have been working hard to improve our society, to provide quality programs that meet y our needs, and to increase our membership. We value your input to let us know how we’re doing, your ideas to move us forward, and your participation.
The Annual Survey will be available until May 11th. If you did not receive this survey via email, please let us know at westmassgen@gmail.com. You can also find a link to the survey on the Members Only page.
Please take the time to respond to the survey as we want to hear from you!

WMGS May Monthly Meeting
2019-05-01 18:00 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
Our May 1st meeting is our annual meeting but after all the administrative tasks, we will be having a presentation on the Sons of the American Revolution (SAR) by Dave Robison and the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) by Hillary Schau. You know our two presenters as the WMGS president, Dave, and our Newsletter Editor, Hillary. Each of our presenters is very knowledgeable about their organization. If you have branches that go all the way back to the 1700’s and were curious about the process of applying to the SAR or DAR, there will be a Q&A session after their presentation. If your ancestors do not go back that far in the US, there are many other lineage societies that you can consider. Cyndi’s list here is a good place to explore.
Dave Robison and Hillary Schau are both professional genealogists working as speakers on genealogical topics and as researchers for individual clients. On top of this, both Dave and Hillary volunteer with their respective lineage societies to help prospective members to assemble documents for their applications. Dave Robison is the Registrar in the Pomeroy Chapter of SAR. Hillary Schau has been the Registrar at the Mercy Warren Chapter of DAR for the past three years.

WMGS April Monthly Meeting (starts at 6:30 p.m. in "Veteran's Room" on upper level)
2019-04-10 18:30 - 20:00 | Agawam Senior Center, 954 Main Street, Agawam, MA, 01001, United States
Kathy Kaldis will be our April speaker on the 10th (note the change in date) and her talk will be “What’s in a Name? Strategies for Identifying Maiden Names”. Why is it so difficult to identify maiden names? ~The Recipe for Success in Finding Maiden Names: Practical Skills; Analytical Skills; Creative Use of Evaluating Evidence.
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 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.

NERGC 2019
2019-04-03 - 2019-04-06 | MA
Join us for the New England Regional Genealogical Consortium’s 15th conference!
NERGC 2019 will feature special tracks on Wednesday and regular conference presentations Thursday through Saturday.
When you’re not attending sessions, check out the Exhibit Hall, Ancestors Road Show, Society Fair, and other fun and educational events.
Manchester is a vibrant city with world-class entertainment and fine dining, all within walking distance of the conference hotel. Explore museums or visit a spa in the mill district along the riverfront, or take in live music and nightlife at Irish, Mexican, Asian, and American establishments.
For more information, go to nergc.org. We look forward to seeing you at the conference!
