Cheryl Gowing of UM Libraries and the Scottish American Society of South Florida joined us at the Pinecrest Library and discussed how to get started searching for the records of your Scottish Ancestors - across the pond and in the States. Resources and links were shared to her favorite sites. Dinna Fash! You’ll be tracing family in no time.

Do you want to share your love of genealogy with the young people in your family? Get them excited about their history!

Sometimes family lore suggests you are descended from royalty or Mayflower passengers, but Tavernkeepers, you say? Debbie Duay will join us at the Pinecrest Library to discuss lineage and the various types of ancestors you may find in your tree!

Matthew Bunch of "This Day In Miami History Podcast" will join us at the Pinecrest branch library to discuss how he became interested in finding answers through history and genealogy, and what question he was asking that led to creating his podcast. How do you come up with the questions to conduct research when you didn't even know you had them?

2023 - Dade County Tax Rolls Transcription Challenge Results

Approximately 75 hours and almost 600 indexed records have been contributed by volunteers, including training, to transcribe and/or review 60 pages from the original Dade County Tax Rolls from 1868-1885.

If you struggle with procrastination, perfectionism, or paralysis when you sit down to write up your hard-won family history research, this is the session for you! We'll explore why we need to keep good research notes, how to accomplish it without overwhelm, and strategies for getting from a blank page to the first rough draft.

Lisa Louise Cooke discussed a wide variety of rich resources are available for free through Google. Google’s empire includes a great collection of free online tools that are all powered by the same Google search engine, and many are brimming with historical information.

P.J. Elias discussed how he has used online Eastern European records to research his family, and which resources allowed him to trace them through early 1900s Immigration records to the U.S. Don't have ancestors from this part of Europe? Many other immigrants followed this path, no matter their country of origin!

Kelly McMahon, CG discussed two colonial(ish) Virginia Jerry Springer-worthy family Mysteries. She described how she located two direct-line males who consented to take Y-DNA tests to help solve non-paternal events.
This lecture discussed how to locate records that provide proof of a non-paternal event, how to track down living heirs, and build out trees.

Matthew Storey, Archives Historian at the State Archives of Florida discussed genealogical resources available at the State Archives of Florida, what you can and cannot find online via Florida Memory, and how their staff can help patrons at any stage of their research!
Hear also how volunteers can help Transcribe new images such as Tax Rolls from the 1800s throughout Florida!

Research Specialists from FamilySearch.org joined us to discuss International Archives in their areas of expertise, including Canada, the UK, Spain and Western Europe, with an overview of how to visit various archive locations.

As we approach Veteran’s Day, help us honor those who have served, and hear how genealogists play a role in repatriating MIA/POWs in cooperation with the Department of Defense. Certified Genealogist Catherine Desmarais will discuss how Finding Families helps in this effort.

Don’t get overwhelmed! There’s much to explore at each of the DNA testing sites before - and after - we try the hottest third-party tools.

Learn about migration patterns to the Caribbean, and how to find records for both Jewish and Gentile populations.

Avoid the pitfalls of accepting incorrect information as fact. Learn how to identify myths and mistakes, and how to correct them and share the information with others using a variety of modern methods.