news release

Join the monthly Indian River Genealogy Society program, free and open to the public, “Digging up your Roots: Case Studies in Family History” at the Main Library, Tuesday April 9 from 10:30 AM-12:30 PM. Learn from IRGS Members Tom Simonds, Michelle Wagner and Sue Neale as they share their research tips and techniques that may help you in finding your roots.

According to Simonds, For two generations of genealogists over a span of fifty years, little was known about the pre-marriage life of Sarah “Sadie” Gilpatrick Simonds. 

This brief case study will show how the approach of researching family, friends, neighbors, and associates, as well as genetic DNA test result analysis turned what was once merely a name and two dates into a story of how the Civil War set into motion a chain of events that led a young girl from DownEast Maine to the northernmost county of New Hampshire.   Learning the who, how and why of the way my great-grandparents met at a late nineteenth century mountain resort has been one of my most satisfying research projects.

How I Broke a 40-year Genealogy Brick Wall with genealogist Sue Neale

My 3rd great-grandparents were Laban Phillips and Rebecca Garrett. According to the 1850-1870 censuses Laban was born in North Carolina. Laban and his family traveled a lot as shown in the Federal Censuses – 1820 Chatham Co., NC, 1830 Bedford Co., TN, 1840 Marshall Co., AL until he settled in Johnson Co., IL for the 1850-1870 censuses. Laban’s age in all of the censuses was fairly consistent, so I concluded that he was born about 1784. The earliest census Laban appears in is the 1820 in Chatham Co., NC when he is between the age of 26 and 44. So I began searching ALL of the Phillips’ in Chatham Co., NC in the hope of finding any mention of Laban.

The Genealogy Librarian Michelle Wagner will uncover the secret, How one word can change the whole dynamics of doing genealogy.

Bring a friend who may be curious about IRGS and the many benefits of membership. Individual membership is $25 annually. IRGS holds monthly programs, free and open to the public. For more on membership information, resources, volunteer opportunities and many areas of special interest visit the website at www.irgs.org