BAAGSG Class — August 12, 2012 — Using FamilySearch

The Birmingham African-American Genealogy Study Group (BAAGSG), a special interest group of the Birmingham Genealogical Society, meets the second Sunday of each month (ex. May and November) in the Arrington Auditorium at the Downtown Birmingham Public Library. Guests are welcome!

Next meeting:  Sunday, August 12th at 3 p.m.

Meeting Place: LDS Family History Center

Topic:  Using FamilySearch

Speaker:  Pat Coleman

Note:  This month’s meeting will be held at the LDS Family History Center on Altadena Road.  Click the link above for the full address and directions.

1940 Census Index Complete at Ancestry.com

From Ancestry.com:

It’s DONE!!!!

Last night, we added the final states and territories to our 1940 U.S. Census index. Now you can search for anyone in the United States by name in the 1940 U.S. Census on Ancestry.com—regardless of which state or territory they lived in.

More census news

While we were busy adding our 1940 Census index, we also added a new feature to certain census records on Ancestry.com—highlighted fields complete with transcriptions making it easier than ever to see exactly who you’re looking at and follow answers across a page. Currently, this feature is available only on the 1940 and 1930 U.S. Censuses and the 1911 UK census but look for it elsewhere on the site in the not-too-distant future.

Up next…

We’ll have more census news for you coming soon as well as details about other soon-to-launch historical records and features on Ancestry.com. But for now, stop reading. And start searching!

1940 Census Indexing Status Update

From our friends at familysearch.org:

The 1940 US census index is now 99% complete! It’s hard to believe that we began just 4 months ago. Thank you for your help!

Keep reading to celebrate the “end” of the project and find out what that means, learn why it will take three to four weeks to publish all of the remaining state indexes, and find out how you can continue to make historical records searchable online as part of this amazing volunteer community.

July 28, 2012 Program Summary

Our speaker for the July 28th meeting was Karen Utz, Curator/Historian at the Sloss Furnaces National Historic Landmark.  Mrs. Utz presentation was titled “A Sense of Place: The African-American Women of Sloss Quarters.” (Note:  Ms. Utz updated the title.)  If you missed out on a monograph of the topic at the meeting, you will be happy to know that you can read the full research paper on which the program by downloading the document here from the Sloss Furnaces website.

If you were unable to attend, you missed a great presentation.  We are still confirming the August speaker.  We will update the blog as soon as it is confirmed.

Find My Past Launches in the United States with Special Subscription Price for World Collection

Find My Past has launched in the U.S. and for a indeterminate period of time you can get a monthly subscription to Find My Past World Collection for $4.95 per month (vs. the regular price of $20.83). See the GeneaBloggers blog for more details:

http://www.geneabloggers.com/findmypastcom-launches-presence-pioneer-offer/

BPL Southern History — Beyond the Basics of Genealogy – Land Records Class

From our friends at BPL Southern History:

We just wanted to let you know that there are still spots available in our
upcoming class:

8/4/12: Getting the Good Dirt: Land Records in Genealogical Research

The class will start at 10am in the east room of the Southern History
Dept. and there is a $5 fee to attend. Call 226-3665 or email us back to
register.

Southern History Department
Birmingham Public Library

BGS Meeting — July 28, 2012 — Goin’ North, the African-American Women of Sloss Quarters

The Birmingham Genealogical Society meets the fourth Saturday of each month (ex. Nov. & Dec.) at the Downtown Birmingham Public Library. Guests are always welcome!

Next meeting: Saturday, July 28th at 2 p.m.; Board Meeting at 1:15 p.m.

Meeting Room: Arrington Auditorium, 4th Floor, Linn-Henley Building

Speaker:  Karen Utz,  Curator/Historian at the Sloss Furnaces National Historic Landmark

Program Topic: Goin’ North, the African-American Women of Sloss Quarters

Karen Utz is the Curator/Historian at the Sloss Furnaces National Historic Landmark.    Goin’ North: The African American Women of Sloss Quarters will focus on the traditions
and customs the mothers, wives and daughters of ex-sharecroppers brought with them to the urban industrial landscape of Sloss Furnaces and its company housing, Sloss Quarters.   A 30 page monograph (plus 10 pages of citations) will be provided to those in attendance.