Learn About the Midwest (and More!) at FGS Conference in Fort Wayne

IGS Proudly Sponsors Midwest Track at FGS 2018 Conference

The Federation of Genealogical Societies is having its annual conference in Fort Wayne, 22-25 August 2018. The Indiana Genealogical Society is proud to be the sponsor of the Midwest Research track on Thursday. Those sessions include:

• "Indiana Genealogy: The Crossroads to America" by Melissa Tennant 
• "Illinois Digital Resources" by Tina Beaird
• "Mitten Roots: Family History Research in Michigan" by Kris Rzepczynski
• "Midwestern Treasures on Ancestry" by Juliana Szucs. (This session is sponsored by Ancestry.)

Need more Midwest sessions? Here are the Midwest Research sessions on Friday and Saturday:

• "Bibles, Beds and Bobbins: Early Indiana Laws" by Judy Russell
• "Finding Treasures in the Hoosier Courthouse" by Michael Lacopo
• "Buckeye Beginnings: An Introduction to Ohio Research" by Amy Johnson Crow
• "Michigan Online: Tools for Genealogists" by Kris Rzepczynski
• "Using Midwest Adjutant General Records in Your Military Research" by Tina Beaird
• "'Hoosier Daddy?': Tales of a Reluctant Blogger and How Blogs Can Enhance Your Genealogical Research" by Michael Lacopo
• "Using Indirect Evidence to Identify the Father of a Great Great Grandmother" by Jan Alpert 
• "Clues in Missouri Migration" by Pamela Boyer Sayre

The Federation of Genealogical Societies annual conference is open to anyone who is interested in improving their genealogy research. You do not need to be a member of any genealogy society to attend.

FGS 2018 has more than 100 sessions and workshops to choose from, for researchers of all skill and experience levels.

This year's conference will be at the Grand Wayne Convention Center, directly across the street from the Allen County Public Library. (The Genealogy Center in the library will have extended hours for conference attendees.)

Click here for more information about the FGS conference and to register. We'll see you in Fort Wayne!

IGS Appoints New Benton County Genealogist

The Indiana Genealogical Society is pleased to announce that Latisha Provo has been appointed Benton County Genealogist. A former Deputy Clerk for Benton County, she is currently the Director at the Otterbein Public Library and is active in the Indiana Genealogical Society and the Benton County Historical Society. Her years of research and knowledge of public, courthouse, and library records have helped many in their quests to find the missing pieces in their family history. IGS welcomes Latisha to her new role as Benton County Genealogist.

She may be reached at 765-532-0445 or at email address director@otterbeinpubliclibrary.org.

The Indiana Genealogical Society appoints qualified individuals to be an Indiana County Genealogist (ICG) for each of the 92 counties in Indiana. Indiana County Genealogists act as a liaison between the IGS District Director representing that area and the local societies and individuals in that county. You can find a full list of Indiana County Genealogists on the IGS website.

Query: Wilbur Ellis Jones, North Manchester

Trying to find my Great-Grandfather's data. His name was Wilbur Ellis Jones. He went to his grave and never told anyone in our family about his background.

We know he was born either 8/12/1891 or 1892. On the 1930 census he claims 1892 (possibly trying to cover up a pregnancy out of wedlock). A military record says he was born in N. Manchester, IN in 1891. Registered in Cassia County, ID.

He married Emma (Sater?); Children were Darrell, Muriel and Robert. 

Shelsea Weems

Sandy,OR

r_sweems@msn.com

Query: Sarah Shively, Orange County

I'm looking for Shively Family Files, specifically a will linking Sarah "Sally" Shively to her father Henry "John Heinrich" Shively, who died 14 Jun 1842 and is buried on a farm outside Paoli, Orange County.  Sarah "Sally" was married to Michael Mavity, who died in Orange County in 1855. She died in Orange County in 1877.

These Family Files were used by a Colonial Dames XVIIC genealogist, who cited them on an approval of an application.

Carol Wiltbank

16555 NW 206th Drive

High Springs, FL

5350@windstream.net

Query: Martha Susan Park Mann, Native American?

My paternal grandmother was Martha Susan Park Mann, DOB: June 1881, DOD: Dec 4 1916; Parents: John T. Park 1836-1010, Elizabeth Maria Baxter 1840-1921

All the information I have gleaned through Ancestry.com shows she and her parents as being "white." I had always been told that she was 1/2 Native American. No tribe mentioned as this was not a good thing to confess. Do I just need to take a DNA test to verify information? I don't see that anyone on the census reports is listed as anything but "white"

Martha Mann Smith

2501 Horse Trail Road

Edmond, OK 73012

basketsfullofjoy@cox.net