Quarterly meeting of the Clayton Library Friends Executive Board.
The Board meets via Zoom Video Conference.
Clayton Library Center for Genealogical Research Presents -
HistoryGeo: Land Ownership Maps
HistoryGeo, a map database showing over 12.5 million original U.S. landowners among 30 states, is now available remotely with an HPL MyLink card! The subscription allowing remote access is provided through the generosity of the Clayton Library Friends. Greg Boyd, creator of HistoryGeo.com, will show how to use the HistoryGeo tools and techniques to unlock genealogical mysteries, such as recreating frontier communities and tracking migrations of families across the U.S.
For registration, please click here.
This event is offered by Houston Public Library - Clayton Library Center for Genealogical Research. Please direct questions to cla.reference@houstontx.gov or 832-393-2600.
Researching African American Genetic Genealogy: A Guided and Focused Approach
Genealogy Face2Face - Presented by Clayton Library Friends
This is a weekly roundtable discussion for Clayton Library Friends members and the general public related to genealogy research.
Speaker: Melvin E. Edwards, Author of “The Eyes of Texans”
Melvin E. Edwards is a former award-winning newspaper reporter and columnist, who became a speechwriter for the highest officeholders in Texas government by the time he was 30 years old. His new book, “The Eyes of Texans: From Slavery to the Texas Capitol,” tells personal and reimagined stories from six generations of his family, going back to Isaac Bladen, an enslaved man brought from Maryland to Texas in 1844.
His book highlights the unique difficulty that African Americans face when doing genealogical research and how family stories can sometimes make that research more – not less – challenging. He will speak for 30 minutes, then answer questions for 30 minutes about the book, and about the writing and publishing processes, in general.
We encourage you to read Edwards’ book for yourself, then discuss it with him. It is available in paperback and Kindle eBook on Amazon. The audiobook will be available in mid-January. Despite the book’s serious content, it has moments of lightheartedness that will leave you feeling optimistic about the future of Texas and America.
You do not have to be a CLF member to attend the meeting.
Registration in advance of the meeting will be required. Pre-register now by following this link.
Scrapbook Preservation
Topic: "Finding Family History on eBay and Etsy" with Jessica Collins
Jessica Collins, CLF Director of Membership and co-host of Genealogy Face2Face will demonstrate her techniques for locating heirlooms and other items related to her family history at online sales sites like eBay and Etsy.
The Clayton Library Friends General Meeting will be held on Saturday, May 8, 2021.
Presenter: Reclaim the Records with Jonathan Deiss
Jonathan Deiss is a professional researcher, military historian, and genealogist. He sits on the Board of Directors of Reclaim the Records, a 501c3 non-profit dedicated to providing public-domain documents to the general public.
For more information about Reclaim the Records, please visit: www.reclaimtherecords.org
For more information about Jonathan and his research work, please visit: www.webbdeissresearch.com
Registration is required. You do not need to be a member to attend the meeting.
Register: coming soon
A Firsthand Look at Crypto Jewish Research and Sources
Topic: "Using Card Catalogs on Ancestry.com and FamilySearch.org" with Susan Kaufman
Tracing Your Indigenous Roots in Northeast Mexico and Texas
Topic: "Focus on BAGS: An Overview of BAGS Programs" with Lisa Smith
Lisa Smith is a Private Investigator and the 2021 President of the Bay Area Genealogical Society. Lisa will provide a profile of BAGS and review some of their most successful programs and services.
Topic: "J-Stor" with Gay Carter
JSTOR is an online library of hundreds of years of academic research. Use the rich JSTOR library to build out your family tree’s historical, cultural, and social contexts. Gain the knowledge and details around places, times, and historical trends. Gay Carter retired as the Government Documents Librarian at the University of Houston Clear Lake. She is a frequent presenter at genealogical events.
Topic: "FamilySearch Wiki " with Sue Yerby
The Family History Research Wiki provides handbook reference information, and educational articles to help genealogists find and interpret records of their ancestors. It is a free-access, free-content, online encyclopedia on a wiki, hosted as part of the FamilySearch site. Sue will tell us about her favorite features of the FS Wiki. Sue Yerby is Past President of Clayton Library Friends and a FamilySearch Expert Trainer.
Topic: "Linkpendium" with Barbara Richards
Linkpendium.com is a 10,000,000+ resource directory to everything on the Web about families worldwide and genealogically-relevant information about U.S. states and counties. This website covers both free and subscription sites, with a strong emphasis upon free resources provided by libraries, other government agencies, genealogical and historical societies, and individuals. Barbara Richards is CLF Director of Volunteers and Hospitality and the 2020-2021 President of the Houston Genealogical Forum.
Topic: "Wide World of Periodicals" with Joy Oria
Underused and somewhat daunting, periodicals can actually yield rich rewards. Discover the genealogical gold hiding in magazines and journals and learn how to obtain articles for your research. Joy Oria is a Senior Library Services Specialist and the Outreach and Programming Coordinator for the Clayton Library Center for Genealogical Research.
The Clayton Library Friends General Meeting will be held on Saturday, August 14, 2021.
Our featured speaker will be Susan Kaufman, Manager of the Clayton Library Center for Genealogical Research. Sue will be presenting the Annual State of the Clayton Library Presentation 2021.
Registration is required to attend this meeting online.
Register: a registration link will be posted soon.
Topic: "Fold3 Search Basics" with Jessica Collins
Fold3 features premier collections of original military records. These records include the stories, photos, and personal documents of the men and women who served in the military. Many of the records come from the U.S. National archives, The National Archives of the U.K. and other international records. Jessica Collins is CLF Director of Membership and co-host of Genealogy Face2Face.
Topic: "Lineage Society Books: You don’t have to be a member to use lineage society books." with Melissa Hayes
Obscure, outdated and defunct lineage societies books can help you find your missing ancestor. Don’t pass up that lineage society book because you think only members will be listed. Come on open the cover and sneak a peek. Melissa did!
Melissa Hayes, MLIS is the Assistant Branch Manager, for the Houston Public Library, Clayton Library Center for Genealogical Research
Topic: "The Texas and Local History Collection (TLHC) of the Houston Metropolitan Research Center (HMRC)" with Joanna “Jo” Collier
The TLHC consists of books, periodicals, maps, and vertical files that can be used in the reading room area of the archives. Like Clayton the books do not check out. Much of these materials are not duplicated in the Clayton Library collection and can help you contextualize the events that took place in the lives of your Texian ancestors.
Jo Collier is the Collection Development Librarian at HMRC Fourth Quarter
Topic: "Historic Preservation and Genealogy" with Randy Pace
Historic buildings reveal many stories about the people who have lived and worked in them. Documents are often available which tell us about the former occupants and the architectural details of the building.
Randy Pace was formerly the Manager of Historic Preservation for the City of Houston and currently serves as the CLF Director of Publicity and Public Relations.
Topic: "Overview of Houston Genealogical Forum Programs"
The Clayton Library Friends Annual Meeting will be held on Saturday, November 13, 2021.
Presentation: Proving Long-Lost Family the Indirect Way: Finding the Ancestors of F. N. Raymond by Patti Gillespie
Sometimes we must go all the way around before we can prove what is right in front of us. This is a presentation chock full of records and research with a resolution to a mystery that has been misunderstood for decades. Hold on for the ride as this presentation demonstrates the use of “long way round” research strategies while offering hope for those with direct brick walls.
Patti Gillespie, B.A., M.S. is a Professional Genealogist & Personal Historian with over 30 years of experience. She is the owner of Family Lines & Stories and specializes in Wise County, Texas and U.S. Research
Face2Face will be taking a Holiday Hiatus starting in late November and all of December. We hope too see you again in 2022!
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