Mount Vernon Genealogical Society - Founded 1991
Founded 1991

1500 Shenandoah Road
Alexandria, Virginia 22308
Telephone:  (703) 768-4101
  Pat Trader and Cynthia Dailey Enjoy the Outer Banks Declaration

2019 MVGS Christmas Party

 
 
DO  NOT FORGET THE ANNUAL MVGS CHRISTMAS PARTY
 
HOLLIN HALL ROOM 112
NOON 17 DECEMBER 2019
 
PLEASE BRING A DESSERT TO SHARE
and
SOME CASH FOR RAFFLE TICKETS
 
 
If you plan on attending go to the "MVGS Store" and record your attendance 


November 2019 Monthly Meeting

Shannon Combs-Bennett; Genealogy, DNA, and Unknown Parentage Cases: Strategies for Success.
 
Discussion:  Whether you are adopted or simply do not know the parentage of an ancestor there are strategies for using DNA with your genealogy to bring greater success in these cases. In this lecture you will learn tips for successfully incorporating your DNA results into traditional genealogy research, how to reach out to matches, plus learn about the pitfalls and setbacks which can come with this type of research.
 
Shannon is an award-winning author, presenter and lecturer on topics ranging from genealogy methodology to DNA. Shannon has a BS in Biology with an emphasis in genetics from Indiana University. She also completed the Boston University certificate program, earned her PLCGS – American Records from The National Institute for Genealogical Studies, and is a recent graduate of the Glasgow University of Strathclyde masters program studying Genealogical, Heraldic, and Paleographic Studies.
 
If you are a member you have access to a video of her presentation after logging in.


2019 Writing Contest Winners

The winners of the 2019 writing contest were announced at the 15 October meeting and they are:
 
¨ 1st place was “Clara’s Life Before and After” by George McKittrick
¨ 2nd place was “Clues from Grandpa” by Janet Palfey
¨ 3rd place was “My Mother as an Artist” by John Cross.
 
Congratulations to all the winners, and thank you to everyone who submitted their entries.  Another big thank you to Amy Breedlove who managed the contest and those “unknown” judges who graded the papers.
 
Remember that MVGS members are able to read these winning stories in the next three editions of the Society newsletter.
 


Library Catalog Always Online!

The Mount Vernon Genealogical Society library catalog has now been ported to the website as a fully functional interactive on-line application. The cataloging system software in the Research Center was no longer supported by the developer.
 
You now have access to all the information in our library holdings from anywhere you have internet connectivity. A number of features, not found in the index system previously online, are now available to members and the public. Searches by “Subject”, “Location” and “Media Type” can now be made on almost 2800 holdings in the library. Further searches can then be done on “Title”, “Author” and “Call Number”. Once the desired list of records is found they can be “printed” to a PDF document by clicking on the “PDF List” icon.  Additionally, each record can be viewed and printed by clicking on the “eye” icon. Clicking on the “Broom” icon will clear the information in the selection or search box. In addition to searching the database for individual records by "Call Number", "Title", and "Author", the entire database or any filtered selections can be sorted by "Call Number", "Title", or "Author" by clicking on the word at the top of each column.
 
Clicking on the “View Categories” icon provides another method of search for desired material. Categories of holdings can also be filtered by “Subject”, “Location”, and “Media Type”
 
The library catalog will always be current now because library accessions are available for viewing as soon as they are put into the online system. Previously the indexes were only updated periodically.
 
This additional Society benefit would never have been possible without the hard work of volunteers who planned and executed the library database conversion; thank you Jeanne Wilson, Anne Barber, and Gerry Ward.
You can find the library catalog HERE.
 


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NARA Guides
EVENTS
November 21
Church Records for Genealogical Research
Instructor:  Chuck Mason.   Note - This class was originally scheduled in Nov 2018 but was cancelled due to snow.   Many of the early settlers of the American Colonies came to find religious freedom.  The church was an important part ...
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December 2
Using Familysearch.org Workshop
Instructor:  Linda MacLachlan.   Purpose of the workshop is to learn how to use the Familysearch.org website more effectively.   Workshop is limited to 10 folks.  There are 6 computers in the room for folks to use.  If the workshop is ...
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December 2
African American Genealogy Study Group
Instructor:  Steve Walker   Join fellow genealogists researching African American ancestors in this facilitated study group.  Share your brick wall challenges and research success stories.  We'll learn from each other.  Centreville & Virginia Room program.   Follow the Virginia Room genealogy program HERE. ...
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December 5
New England SIG: Early New England Research
Moderator:  Linda MacLachlan   Webinar entitled "Top Ten Published Resources for Early New England Research."  
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December 17
MVGS Annual Christmas Party
“An Olde Virginia Yuletide Celebration”   A Lunch of Traditional Virginia Fare Will Be Provided   Please Bring:      Dessert To Share      Canned Goods For Hollin Hall Food Donation      Cash For Raffle Tickets - $1.00 Each or Six ...
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