Webinars, Webinars ... Learning Opportunities in 2016 are Plentiful!

For 2016 there are genealogy/history learning opportunities just about everywhere you look. This is the time of year when genealogy/history webinar hosts announce their schedules for the coming year.

Some webinars are for a fee but many of them are free. If you really like the webinars of a particular host or want to see an older, archived webinar the cost of membership is not very high for many of these webinar hosts.

Legacy Family Tree Webinars

Legacy Family Tree Webinars has released its 2016 webinar schedule. Several months ago the company redesigned its website. (It looks/acts more like a tablet/smartphone app now.) Unfortunately, there is no longer a way to see all the upcoming webinars in one convenient list. You can only view them by month and must click on each webinar image to learn more and to register. Also gone is registering for multiple webinars at one time.

Legacy Family Tree webinars are mostly held at 2 p.m. on Wednesdays though there are a few Friday afternoon and Wednesday evening webinars. They are free to view live and for almost a week afterwards at which time they become accessible to webinar subscribers only. There are well over 100 webinars archived for members to view. (Some archived webinars remain free for all to view.) Handouts are available only to webinar subscribers/members. Legacy webinar membership is currently $9.95/month or $49.95/year. (Note: If you view a webinar, there is often a discount code word which will get you 10 percent off items from the store, including webinar memberships.) Webinar members get an additional 5 percent off when signed-in.

Southern California Genealogical Society

The Southern California Genealogical Society (SCGS) has released its 2016 webinar schedule. The webinars, held the first Saturday and third Monday of the month, are free to live viewers and handouts are included. After the live webinar, only SCGS members can view the archived webinars. SCGS membership is $35/year and includes other benefits.

Illinois State Genealogical Society

The Illinois State Genealogical Society has released its 2016 webinar schedule.  The webinars are held the second Tuesday of the month at 9 p.m. ET and are free to live viewers and handouts are included. After the live webinar, only ISGS members can view the archived webinars. ISGS membership is $35/year.

Wisconsin State Genealogical Society

The Wisconsin State Genealogical Society will be releasing its 2016 webinar schedule soon. The webinars are held the third Tuesday of the month at 8 p.m. ET and are free to live viewers and handouts are included. After the live webinar, only WSGS members can view the archived webinars. WSGS membership is $35/year.

Minnesota Genealogical Society

The Minnesota Genealogical Society also hosts webinars. The society lists its webinars on its Events page. The 2016 schedule has not been announced yet. The webinars are usually held on the first Wednesday of the month at 8 p.m. ET and are free to live viewers and handouts are included. After the live webinar, only MGS members can view the archived webinars. MGS membership is $35/year.

Florida State Genealogical Society

The Florida State Genealogical Society also hosts webinars. The society announces its webinars on its upcoming webinars page. So far only one webinar in the society's 2016 schedule has been announced so check back for more. The webinars are held the third Thursday of the month at 8 p.m. ET and are free to live viewers. Handouts are usually for members only. After the live webinar, only FSGS members can view the archived webinars. FSGS membership is $25/year.

FamilySearch

Last year, the Family History Library (FHL) in Salt Lake City, Utah, began broadcasting the genealogy classes held in the library. Information about these free webinars are located at the FHL's page on FamilySearch. Only classes through January 2016 have been listed so check back often. Sometimes additional webinars are added to the current month. Most of these webinars include handouts. Previously recorded webinars are listed under Past Webinars. You may find some archived in the FamilySearch Learning Center.

The societies and company listed above are not the only online webinar opportunities out there.

GeneaWebinars is a blog that hosts a calendar specializing in keeping track of the numerous genealogy webinars being held. About 35 organizers/hosts list their webinars in the calendar. Organizers/Hosts use a variety of webinar delivery systems from GoToWebinar to Google Hangouts to Twitter. Most entries have links taking you to the registration page for that webinar or the website of the host.

So if you want to learn something new or review a specific topic, there is likely a webinar out there for you. But you might have to find some patience if the webinar is not scheduled until later in the year.

Have fun learning.

See you soon at the Mt. Clemens Public Library!
LE