MCGG Let's Talk...Genealogy Meets THIS Wed., April 9; The Meeting is Hybrid

 MCGG Let's Talk...Genealogy discussion group meets in-person (hybrid) THIS Wednesday, April 9, 2025, at 6:30 p.m. in the Local History & Genealogy Room of the Mount Clemens Public Library. Our topic is ... Libraries That Have Helped Me.

It is National Library Week, let's talk about the libraries that have helped us further our research. Who knows it might help a fellow researcher research the same area.

Our plan is that our meetings will be hybrid meaning the meeting will be in-person with a virtual Zoom option. The Zoom meeting link (or registration link) will now be found on our Southeast Michigan Genealogy Events Calendar and our Facebook page. The link will usually be added the night before or morning of the meeting. Members will receive a reminder email with the Zoom invite or a reminder that registration is required for a meeting.

New attendees are always welcome.

See you at our favorite library!
LE

PGSM's April 26 Meeting is via Zoom; Topic is Polish Research in Michigan

The Polish Genealogical Society of Michigan's April meeting is a webinar format that is open to the public. Hosted in partnership with the Polish Genealogy Society of Connecticut and the Northeast, the meeting takes place on Saturday, April 26, 2024, at 2 p.m. Eastern Time.

Valerie Koselka will present Polish Research in Michigan via Zoom. Invitations will be emailed to PGSM members.
Registration will be open to everyone at www.pgsm.org starting April 1. Pre-registration for this webinar meeting is required

Koselka will review Michigan libraries and archives as well as discuss other sources for performing Polish research in Michigan.

Valerie Koselka has served as a PGSM officer since 2007. She is the current vice president and has served as corresponding secretary and president. She also represents PGSM as a delegate to the Michigan Genealogical Council. Valerie belongs to several local genealogical societies, including the Downriver Genealogical Society, Dearborn Genealogical Society, Detroit Society for Genealogical Research, and Western Wayne County Genealogical Society. She is on the Board of Directors of the West Side Detroit Polish American Historical Society and is a member of the Polish Genealogical Society of Connecticut and the Northeast. Valerie is a consultant at the Westland FamilySearch Center twice a month and admins several Polish genealogical groups on Facebook.

See you at our favorite library!
LE

2025 Lansing FamilySearch Seminar (Free) on April 26; Register by April 23

The Lansing FamilySearch Center is hosting a 2025 Lansing FamilySearch Center Seminar on Saturday, April 26, 2025 from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The them of the seminar is Get to Know Your Family History!

You can find a information on the various sessions offered at this link. The online registration form can be found with this link. Regular registration closes April 23. Session availability after this date are not guaranteed.

This seminar is free. Syllabus will be emailed in mid-April after registration.

See you at our favorite library!
LE

MCGG Meets This Friday at Noon for an On-Site Tour of FamilySearch Center in Bloomfield Hills

 MCGG Friday group meets in-person this Friday, April 4, 2025, at 12 p.m.
at the LDS FamilySearch Center, in Bloomfield Hills. Our topic is ... On-Site Tour of the FamilySearch Center in Bloomfield Hills.

Join us at a different time and place for an on-site tour.

Our meeting starts at Noon at the Bloomfield Hills FamilySearch Center located at 37425 Woodward Avenue. (Attendees are responsible for themselves getting to and from the tour site.)

After the tour you are free to explore the resources available and do some personal research. The FSC closes at 4 p.m. on Friday. We have learned that the center now has wireless internet for patrons' use. If you don't have a tablet/laptop, bring a USB drive in case you have a record find. There are about nine computers for patron use.

Note: This meeting will be in-person only.

New attendees are always welcome.

See you at our favorite library!
LE

MCGG's Bev Bishop to Present on April 25; Where There's Smoke ... There's Fire

MCGG Board Member Beverly Bishop will present Volunteer Firefighters 1880 – 2000: Where There’s Smoke … There’s Fire, on Friday, April 25th, at 6:00 pm in the Ray Township Community Center at 64255 Wolcott Road, north of 29 Mile Road, for the Friends of the Ray Township Library and Historical Society's special Now & Then event.

Beverly Bishop, RPh, PhD, pharmacist, historian, and speaker, will present findings from her deep dive into Macomb County’s firefighting history and will bring along a few artifacts, such as a Sanborn Fire Map and a Gamewell Alarm. In addition to MCGG, Bishop is active with the Roseville Historical Society.

Everyone is welcome to join this free event. Light refreshments will be served. Registrations preferred by April 21, 2025, at raylibrary.org/calendar/events. Drop-ins are also welcome.

See you at our favorite library!
LE

MCGG Releases its April 2025 Meetings -- Join Us!

A reminder about our Macomb County Genealogy Group April 2025 meetings. We will release the rest of our 2025 Winter/Spring schedule when everything is set -- we are down to one meeting to lock in place.

MCGG Friday group meets in-person on Friday, April 4, 2025, at 12 p.m.
at the Bloomfield Hills FamilySearch Center, in Bloomfield Hills. Our topic is ... On-Site Tour of the FamilySearch Center in Bloomfield Hills.

Join us at a different time and place for an on-site tour. Our meeting starts at Noon at the Bloomfield Hills FamilySearch Center located at 37425 Woodward Avenue. (Attendees are responsible for themselves getting to and from the tour site.) After the tour you are free to explore the resources available and do some personal research. We have learned that the center now has wireless internet for patrons' use. If you don't have a tablet/laptop, bring a USB drive in case you have a record find.

Note: This meeting will be in-person only.

MCGG Let's Talk...Genealogy discussion group meets in-person (hybrid) Wednesday, April 9, 2025, at 6:30 p.m. in the Local History & Genealogy Room of the Mount Clemens Public Library. Our topic is ... Libraries That Have Helped Me.

It is National Library Week, let's talk about the libraries that have helped us further our research. Who knows it might help a fellow researcher research the same area.

Our plan is that our meetings will be hybrid meaning the meeting will be in-person with a virtual Zoom option. The Zoom meeting link (or registration link) will now be found on our Southeast Michigan Genealogy Events Calendar and our Facebook page. The link will usually be added the night before or morning of the meeting. Members will receive a reminder email with the Zoom invite or a reminder that registration is required for a meeting.

New attendees are always welcome.

See you at our favorite library!
LE

Congrats to the 2025 #DigMichNews Grant Winners ... 2023 & 2024 Too!

Originally posted Friday, March 21, 2025, at 11:54 a.m. Edited to include more information on St. Clair County's newspaper plans.

Congratulations to the 2025 Digital Michigan Newspaper Grant winners! 

Possibly as early as late this year, these organizations' chosen newspapers should begin appearing in Central Michigan University's Clarke Historical Library's Digital Michigan Newspapers site. This year's winners who will share the grant include: Bessemer, Eastpointe, Elk Rapids, Fennville, Pentwater, the Polish Institute of Culture and Research (Orchard Lake), and the St. Clair County Library System.

We have learned that St. Clair is planning to have the St Clair Republican from the years 1865-1871, 1877-1878, 1890-1893 and 1919-1922 digitized.

So, if you are interested in these locations find your patience and keep it at hand while we wait for the fruits of this grant.

In writing this post, we realized we had not mentioned on this blog the prior winners of the 2024 and 2023 grants since Mount Clemens won the grant in 2022 along with East Lansing. So congratulations to: Bellaire and Lansing (Capital Area) for their win in 2023; and Ishpeming, Midland, Lapeer, Zeeland, Dewitt and Alma for their win in 2024.

These digitized newspapers are every word OCRd (Optical Character Recognition) documents. Meaning it was done via a computer program. Digitizing makes these newspapers accessible to you where ever you are around the world and OCRing makes finding and pulling information in these historical galleys so much easier.

We would like to point out a few things. See our prior posts on the Digital Michigan Newspapers Grant for tips on how to better use the website when searching. Use the label #DigMichNews to find our prior posts.

Also, note that there are two lists of newspapers on the website.

The first is labeled Digital Michigan Newspaper Portal. You can clearly identify it because is has a golden map of Michigan followed below by a list of the Michigan counties and a list of newspapers under each county. This newspaper list is ... "from a variety of sources. Among these links are papers held by the Clarke Historical Library and also Michigan newspapers found in Chronicling America, a database maintained by the Library of Congress."

This is what is listed for Lapeer county on this list. This list is not up-to-date. It does not include what was digitized for last year's win.

The second list can be found from the gold menu bar at the top of the Digital Michigan Newspaper search.

Just select Counties from the gold menu bar. And then select the county you want to view.

 

Here is where you can see what was digitized for Lapeer's win. This capture also happens to show what was digitized for Midland and of course Macomb County. The staff at Mount Clemens Public Library has continued having additional newspapers and/or years digitized. So this list shows what is currently included and if you compare this second list to the first list for Macomb County you can see much has been added.

Have fun searching!

See you at our favorite library!
LE

MCGG Let's Talk Genealogy is THIS Wed., Mar. 12; Let's Talk about RootsTech 2025

MCGG Let's Talk...Genealogy discussion group meets in-person (hybrid) Wednesday, March 12, 2025, at 6:30 p.m. in the Local History & Genealogy Room of the Mount Clemens Public Library. Our topic is ... What Did We Learn from RootsTech 2025?

Let's share and talk about the online sessions you watched or have marked to watch from the RootsTech 2025 conference held March 6 to 8th. We'll also talk about the new things announced and if any conference sale are still taking place. Keep an eye on this blog during the conference in case we pass on any news.

 

Our plan is that our meetings will be hybrid meaning the meeting will be in-person with a virtual Zoom option. The Zoom meeting link (or registration link) will now be found on our Southeast Michigan Genealogy Events Calendar and our Facebook page. The link will usually be added the night before or morning of the meeting. Members will receive a reminder email with the Zoom invite or a reminder that registration is required for a meeting.

New attendees are always welcome.

See you at our favorite library!
LE

MCGG Meets This Friday, March 7; Digitize and Enhance? Yes, YOU Can!

 MCGG Friday group meets in-person (hybrid) Friday, March 7, 2025, at 1 p.m.
in the Auditorium B/C of the Mount Clemens Public Library. Our topic is ... Digitize and Enhance? Yes, YOU Can! presented by Lisa Eschenburg.

An overview of how you -- yes, YOU -- can digitize your family photos and enhance them. You may already have these simple photo tools available to you and not realize it.

Our plan is that our meetings will be hybrid meaning the meeting will be in-person with a virtual Zoom option. The Zoom meeting link (or registration link) will now be found on our Southeast Michigan Genealogy Events Calendar and our Facebook page. The link will usually be added the night before or morning of the meeting. Members will receive a reminder email with the Zoom invite or a reminder that registration is required for a meeting.

As members were reminded last month, in times of bad weather check for an email or look for a post here or on our Facebook page if bad weather (or anything else) requires us to go all virtual. And, if the library closes due to weather or another reason on the date of our meeting, we will let you know if we will switch to all virtual or just cancel the meeting.

New attendees are always welcome.

See you at our favorite library!
LE

RootsTech 2025 Starts Tomorrow! and Runs March 6 to March 9

RootsTech 2025 Starts Tomorrow!

RootsTech 2025 -- the genealogy and technology conference takes place March 6 to March 9, 2025, in Salt Lake City, Utah, but it also has an online component as well for those unable to attend in-person.

Participation in RootsTech 2025 Online requires registration and the cost is ... FREE! Participating online gives you access to 200+ online sessions in over 26 languages; the ability to join keynote sessions live from where ever you are that day with internet connection;  the ability to chat with other online participants; and access to syllabi and class handouts.

Use your free user account to FamilySearch.org to sign-in at the RootsTech website before you register.

Once you are registered, you can create a schedule for yourself for each day of the conference. And, even if you can't attend every session each day, most sessions are recorded and can be viewed after the conference ends. Note that some sessions will be only available after the conference for a few months before they are removed. But the vast majority will stay up for later viewing.

See you at our favorite library!
LE

MyHeritageDNA "Grandfathered-In Sale" Now thru Mar. 9; Upload for Free Get Advanced DNA Tools Free Forever

It is RootsTech time again and that means there is a higher chance for the return of one particular rare sale. The elusive "Grandfathered In DNA Transfer" at MyHeritage where DNA uploads are free and the standard $29 unlock fee for advanced DNA features is waived making these advanced features free forever.

This rare Special Promotion is indeed taking place right now, March 2 through March 9, 2025. Note: this "sale" does not apply to previously uploaded DNA tests. It is only for new uploads made this week.

Have you taken a DNA test at another testing site (i.e. AncestryDNA, FamilyTreeDNA, 23andMe, etc.)? If so, you can download your DNA data from that site and transfer/upload it to MyHeritageDNA.

Why? It gets your test(s) into another DNA pool to fish for matches -- you never know where someone has tested. See some other reasons listed further down below.

And Why Now? From now until March 9, 11:59 p.m., when you upload your DNA test data to MyHeritageDNA you get the advanced features (normally $29 to unlock) for FREE FOREVER! Thus what many genealogists like to call the Grandfathered In Sale.

Haven't tested yet but would like to? MyHeritage is currently having a Global DNA Sale for autosomal DNA test kits which ends today. The DNA test itself is regularly $89 and is on sale for $39 plus taxes and shipping. 

This particular sale is offering a 30-Day Complete Free Trial to its website option also for the sale price of $39 plus taxes and shipping. But note that after the 30 days, the complete subscription will auto-renew unless you cancel the auto-renewal a couple days before the renewal date. For this initial renewal you will get 50% off ($149 instead of $299) the first year and additional years will be at the current regular price. You can cancel at any time.

The "Grandfathered In" Transfer Sale does not happen every year so when it happens catch it while you can. MyHeritage has guides to help you download your DNA data from whichever website you tested at originally. And, don't worry your original test stays on that original site.

MyHeritageDNA is becoming a "must be at" for its DNA tools. Its customer base is more international. MyHeritage has chromosome browser feature and made its internal member messaging feature free. It also offers an ethnicity/admixture report and a list of DNA matches. Being grandfathered-in, means no data subscription is needed to see/use all the DNA matching features including its AutoCluster feature. Additional features include a very recent update to its ethnicity estimates and genetic groups including viewing the genetic groups of your match and seeing what you have in common.

See you at our favorite library!
LE

MCGG Meets Friday, March 7; The Topic is Digitize and Enhance? Yes, YOU Can!

MCGG Friday group meets in-person (hybrid) Friday, March 7, 2025, at 1 p.m.
in the Auditorium B/C of the Mount Clemens Public Library. Our topic is ... Digitize and Enhance? Yes, YOU Can! presented by Lisa Eschenburg.

An overview of how you -- yes, YOU -- can digitize your family photos and enhance them. You may already have these simple photo tools available to you and not realize it.

Our plan is that our meetings will be hybrid meaning the meeting will be in-person with a virtual Zoom option. The Zoom meeting link (or registration link) will now be found on our Southeast Michigan Genealogy Events Calendar and our Facebook page. The link will usually be added the night before or morning of the meeting. Members will receive a reminder email with the Zoom invite or a reminder that registration is required for a meeting.

As members were reminded last month, in times of bad weather check for an email or look for a post here or on our Facebook page if bad weather (or anything else) requires us to go all virtual. And, if the library closes due to weather or another reason on the date of our meeting, we will let you know if we will switch to all virtual or just cancel the meeting.

New attendees are always welcome.

See you at our favorite library!
LE

RootsTech 2025/March Month-long Sale of Vivid-Pix Photo Restoration Software

Vivid-Pix is already advertising its RootsTech 2025 Sale. The company has grown a bit since we first talked about it at some of our meetings and it now offers a bit more than its two photo correction software applications. Vivid-Pix has bundles for institutions, professionals, and the home-user.

Not sure if the Restore software is for you or a loved one? Come into our favorite library's Local History and Genealogy Room and try the Restore software in-person on the new scanning station that replaced the BookScan station. Or, some of Vivid-Pix's software have free trial periods that allow you to test drive the software (with some limitations) first.

First a caution. Make sure you are seeing the sale pricing you are expecting. If you simply go to the website's Gift Guide you will not see the website's RootsTech pricing. So instead make sure you are on the website's RootsTech Sale page. And be sure to enter the RT2025 coupon code before completing a purchase. This sale/coupon code ends March 30, 2025.

The sale page is a little confusing because it mixes the products for institutions, caregivers and home-users together. All three levels have bundles with scanning equipment and then just the software packages to add to your existing computer/scanner system. So Tip #1 for most genealogists is look to the home-user level. We'll note the mostly likely items on sale that may be of interest to our genealogy members.

What is on sale?

The Vivid-Pix Restore (this is the software) which provides one-click correction that can be fine tuned with sliders for scanned prints, slides, documents and digital camera images focusing on general photography and restoring faded pictures and documents. The regular price is $49.99 but for the RootTech 2025 sale the price is $39.99 -- saving you $10. [The lowest price was $29.99 this past Black Friday/Cyber Monday/Giving Tuesday for reference.] To learn more about the software, check out the company's website and view the overview and tutorial videos.

Also for the home-user is: 

Photo Reminiscence Therapy (pRT) For Families and Loved Ones – Joshua Freitas, PhD [No Certification] Designed for paid and unpaid caregivers, this course provides instruction to implement pRT – as described by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), “Reminiscence Therapy (RT) involves the discussion of past activities, events and experiences with another person or group of people, usually with the aid of tangible prompts such as photographs, household and other familiar items …” Regular price $79.00 it is on sale for $49.00 -- a savings of $30.

Memory Station Home Edition Software Patent-pending software, with intuitive interface and large buttons, makes it easy to scan, restore photos and documents, record memories and combine to create stories. (Includes Vivid-Pix RESTORE software.) Reminiscing about life pulls memories from shoeboxes and memory banks. Individual and Multi-generational re-living of yesterday and yesteryear provides connection and understanding through photo-based activities that are fun – and provide social and health benefits. Rather than buying the scanner and the software bundle, this is the software only to install on your existing computer/scanner system. Regular price $199.99, it is on sale for $99.99 -- a savings of $100.

Or get the Photo Reminiscence Therapy (pRT) For Families and Loved Ones course and the Memory Station Home Edition Software bundled together in this RootsTech sale. Regular price is $199.99, it is on sale for $129.99 -- a savings of $70.

If you don't have a scanner and are interested in the Vivid-Pix Memory Station Home Edition bundle, it includes: Windows; one ScanSnap SV600 Scanner / Home Edition Memory Station Software (600 ppi TIFF scanning, MP3 audio recording, MP4 video stories, JPG output, Free software updates) which includes Vivid-Pix RESTORE Software; and Ricoh software provides book-scanning and PDF creation with OCR search capability. Regular price is $799.95 with the coupon code the sale price is $699.95 for this sale.

We don't know if there will be any additional savings during RootsTech 2025 (March 6 to 8) itself so keep an eye out just in case.

See you soon at our favorite library!
LE

PGSM's March Meeting on Digitizing Michigan Probate Records

The Polish Genealogical Society of Michigan's March meeting is a webinar format that is open to the public.

The Archives of Michigan's Kris Rzepczynski will present Digitizing Michigan Probate Records - Wayne County and Beyond on March 15 at 2 p.m. via Zoom. Invitations will be emailed to PGSM members.
Registration will be open to everyone at www.pgsm.org starting March 1. Pre-registration for this webinar meeting is required

Rzepczynski will discuss the Archives of Michigan’s efforts to digitize historic probate records from across the state, including a project overview, current status, future counties, and an exciting update on Wayne County records. Attendees will also see how to navigate the FamilySearch website to find and search in the Archives’ collection.

See you at our favorite library!
LE

Washington Township & Washington Historical Society Celebrate their Anniversaries on April 11, 2025

The Washington Township’s 198^th Anniversary and the Washington Historical Society’s 50^th Anniversary Celebration at The Abbey on Main on Friday April 11, 2025 recognizes six honorees who made a positive impact on our community while also remembering the individuals who established and fulfilled the Society’s mission to save the old 1916 Washington High School, promote the cultural arts, and collect and preserve the artifacts of Washington Township and the surrounding community.

The 2025 honorees are:

Paul Poljan, Lifetime Achievement Award for service to Washington Township, contributions to preserving our history, and longstanding business presence that strengthened our community.

Mark Fobare, Youth Ambassador Award for stewardship of the John Dyer-Hurdon Scout Museum inside our Historical Museum and supervision of Eagle Scout projects.

Ruth Heidebreicht, Community Supporter Award for generous support of non-profit organizations including the Society’s Furnace project,

Smith Family Farm, Centurion Award for its multi-generational homestead and agricultural heritage which gives back to the community.

Four County Community Foundation, Organization of the Year Award for support of community projects including the Society’s Raise the Roof and Stair Lift projects.

Raven Oaks Farm, Business of the Year Award for the restoration of the historic farmhouse and barn into an organic farm and the longtime support of local historical societies.

The evening features music, cocktails, dinner, award presentation, and raffles. The Society will also acknowledge the efforts of past officers and members from its first 50 years. Anyone with information or photographs pertaining to the Society are asked to share them with the Society. 

Tickets are available for $60 per person if reserved before March 15^th or $75 after March 15^th.  Proceeds benefit the Washington Historical Museum upgrades and programs. Registration and Sponsorship forms are available at the Washington Township Offices and on the group's website, WashHistSoc.org

To make reservations or explore sponsorship opportunities see the attached flyers. For additional information, please contact President Sam Previti at (586) 206-5185 or email sspreviti@hotmail.com. 

See you at our favorite library!
LE

MCGG Releases its March 2025 Meetings -- Join Us!

A reminder about our Macomb County Genealogy Group March 2025 meetings. We will release the rest of our 2025 Winter/Spring schedule when everything is set -- we are almost there with just two meetings to lock in place.

MCGG Friday group meets in-person (hybrid) Friday, March 7, 2025, at 1 p.m.
in the Auditorium B/C of the Mount Clemens Public Library. Our topic is ... Digitize and Enhance? Yes, YOU Can! presented by Lisa Eschenburg.

An overview of how you -- yes, YOU -- can digitize your family photos and enhance them. You may already have these simple photo tools available to you and not realize it.

MCGG Let's Talk...Genealogy discussion group meets in-person (hybrid) Wednesday, March 12, 2025, at 6:30 p.m. in the Local History & Genealogy Room of the Mount Clemens Public Library. Our topic is ... What Did We Learn from RootsTech 2025?

Let's share and talk about the online sessions you watched or have marked to watch from the RootsTech 2025 conference held March 6 to 8th. We'll also talk about the new things announced and if any conference sale are still taking place. Keep an eye on this blog during the conference in case we pass on any news.

Our plan is that our meetings will be hybrid meaning the meeting will be in-person with a virtual Zoom option. The Zoom meeting link (or registration link) will now be found on our Southeast Michigan Genealogy Events Calendar and our Facebook page. The link will usually be added the night before or morning of the meeting. Members will receive a reminder email with the Zoom invite or a reminder that registration is required for a meeting.

As members were reminded last month, in times of bad weather check for an email or look for a post here or on our Facebook page if bad weather (or anything else) requires us to go all virtual. And, if the library closes due to weather or another reason on the date of our meeting, we will let you know if we will switch to all virtual or just cancel the meeting.

 

New attendees are always welcome.

See you at our favorite library!
LE

MCPL Local History & Genealogy Dept. Hosts Programs on Cemeteries, Amelia Earhart, Genetic Genealogy, Photography & Mt Clemens History, UFOs and More!

Mount Clemens Public Library's Local History & Genealogy Department is hosting some events that might interest our members and other genealogists.

On Thursday, Mar. 13, at 6 p.m. in Auditorium A
Bringing Historic Cemeteries to Life
Thomas C. Henthorn, Ph.D (Wyatt Endowed Professor of Public History, University of Michigan - Flint) will discuss why bringing cemeteries to life through preservation, advocacy, and programming is so important.

 

On Friday, Feb. 21, at 11 a.m. in the Local History & Genealogy Room
Preserving Your Family History
Drop-in to learn how to use the Local History & Genealogy Department's digitization equipment to digitize your family history, whether it be film negatives, home movies, or oral histories!

On Monday, Feb. 24, at 11 a.m. in the Local History & Genealogy Room
Historic Database Workshop
Drop-in to the Local History and Genealogy Room if you have any questions on how to use the historical databases the library offers.

 

On Tuesday, Mar. 18, at 6 p.m. in Auditorium BC
Seeking Dead People: Cemetery Research with Katherine R. Willson 
In this one-hour presentation, we will discuss the history of cemeteries, the history of cemetery stone choices, and the types of burial records that have been generated. We will then discuss tips for doing cemetery research online and offline. A Q&A period will follow the presentation, and a handout will be provided.

This is the rescheduled event from Nov 6, 2024.

Katherine R. Willson of Dexter, Michigan is an engaging and dynamic genealogy lecturer at regional and national events; a full-time researcher for clients; and a genealogy educator for 25+ years, including courses for the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy and the Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh. She is the founder & past President of the Virtual Genealogical Association, past President of Michigan Genealogical Council, and past board member of the Association of Professional Genealogists.

Her website (SocialMediaGenealogy.com) contains valuable resources for genealogists, including links to family interviewing questions, a catalog of almost 17,000+ genealogy/history links on Facebook, a catalog of 190+ genealogy YouTube channels, and a catalog of 76 genealogy podcasts.

 

On Tuesday, Apr. 8, at 6 p.m. in Auditorium BC
When Amelia Came to Michigan 
When Amelia Came to Michigan is the real life story of Amelia Earhart’s adventures in Michigan. Our many years of research indicates she was here more than 25 times promoting the aviation industry and opportunities for women in this field. Our lecture and visual presentation begins with her childhood at the turn of the century, her family life and education, early flying experiences, the world records and her 8 years of adventures in Michigan.
 

Why did she come here so often? Michigan had 40 airports in the 1920’s. Michigan also had the suppliers and engineering skills to support aircraft manufacturing and research. Henry and Edsel Ford invited Amelia to tour their aviation operations and the new Ford Airport. After several ticker parades in New York City and various solo flights from Hawaii to Oakland and cross country to Newark, Amelia wrote two books and became a fashion designer. Our 60 minute presentation reveals the life and times of the woman who flew for the fun of it!

 

On Tuesday, May 6, at 6 p.m. in Auditorium A
Intro to Genetic Genealogy with Kate Penney Howard
Kate Penney Howard is a genetic genealogist and has presented at Rootstech, East Coast Genetic Genealogy Conference, NAAP/RTK's Untangling Our Roots, and the International Congress on Medieval Studies. She will introduce patrons to genetic genealogy and how to use it in one's one genealogy journey.

This is a hybrid event, both in person and virtual. Kate will present remotely. Get the link on the Mount Clemens Public Library's Events Calendar.

 

On Thursday, May 8, at 6 p.m. in Mt. Clemens Public Library Bookmobile in the Roskopp Parking Lot
History and Photography Hike - Downtown Mount Clemens
Join Librarians Jade and Brittany for a history and photography night of fun. Did you know there is so much history in the buildings in downtown Mount Clemens? Librarian photographer Jade and Local History Librarian Brittany will be your tour and information guides. We will learn about the history of some of the famous buildings in Mount Clemens, along with photography tips to capture the perfect picture.

We will meet in the Roskopp Parking Lot, look for the Mount Clemens Public Library Bookmobile!

 

On Tuesday, May 13, at 6 p.m. in Auditorium BC
UFOs Over Michigan
Join us as Bill Konkolesky, State Director Michigan MUFON, discusses a historical overview of the state's biggest sightings.

See you at our favorite library!
LE

MyHeritageDNA Hot Sale Ends in 3 Days

MyHeritage is running a Hot Sale. MyHeritageDNA (autosomal) tests regularly $89 each are on sale for $36 each (plus taxes and shipping.) Orders of two or more DNA kits receive free shipping. This sale ends in three days. We don't see a specific time listed, we are guessing the usual 11:59 p.m.

There are two options for this sale for the same price. Just the MyHeritage DNA kit or the MyHeritage DNA kit and a 30-day Complete free trial* of the MyHeritage website subscription.

The trial subscription will auto-renew unless you cancel it before the renewal date. Here are the * details: *After 30 days, you'll enjoy a 50% discount and be charged $299 $149 for the first year. The Complete subscription renews annually. You can cancel anytime. You can cancel anytime. So, you get a 50 percent discount the first year of renewal but additional renewals will be charged at the current regular price.

MyHeritageDNA is becoming a "must be at" for its DNA tools. Its customer base is more international. MyHeritage has chromosome browser feature and made its internal member messaging feature free. It also offers an ethnicity/admixture report and a list of DNA matches. No data subscription is needed to see/use all the DNA matching features including its AutoCluster feature.

 

As a reminder, MyHeritageDNA also sells its test kits on Amazon.com and often at sale prices when it is having a sale. However, for this sale the MyHeritageDNA test does not appear to be available at this time on Amazon. If you do find a sale as good as from the website at some point in the future, make sure the seller shown is MyHeritage fulfilled by Amazon and not sold by a third-party unauthorized seller. Non-Amazon Prime members usually get free shipping due to the total cost and because it is fulfilled by Amazon; prime members just get quicker 2-day shipping for free.

 

Look for this before adding your item to your cart.

See you at our favorite library!
LE

Free Access to Publisher Extra on Newspapers.com until Feb. 17

Hopefully you have already heard. This weekend genealogists can explore and search the content and the Publisher Extra content of Newspapers.com website. This free access weekend at Newspapers.com ends February 17, 2025, at 11:59 pm MT. The link here take you to the Newspapers.com free access search page.

*Access to Publisher Extra papers on Newspapers.com will be free until 17 Feb 2025 at 11:59pm MT. Registration required. After the free access period ends, you will only be able to view Publisher Extra papers using a Newspapers.com Publisher Extra subscription.


Have fun searching the past.

See you at our favorite library!
LE

AncestryDNA Sale Price $49 until Mon., February 17, 2025, at 11:59 pm

Ancestry is having a Flash Sale this weekend on AncestryDNA until Tuesday, February 17, 2025, at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time. Remember taxes and shipping are extra. The regular price of an AncestryDNA test is $99.

There are three options with this sale.

Just the AncestryDNA test is on sale for $49.

For new subscribers or those without a current active subscription:

The AncestryDNA test and a World Explorer Membership for $1 has a total sale price of $50.

The AncestryDNA test and an All-Access Membership for $10 has a total sale price of $59.

These subscription memberships will renew at regular prices every three months until you cancel.

*Offers end 17 Feb 2025 at 11:59 p.m. ET. Excludes shipping. Package offers are for new and returning subscribers only and not for renewal of current subscriptions. Limit one $1 subscription per user. Your World Explorer subscription will automatically renew at $99.95 every 3 months or your All Access subscription will automatically renew at $149 every 3 months until you cancel by visiting your Account Settings or by contacting us. See our Renewal and Cancellation Terms for further details.

See our prior posts on AncestryDNA for the changes in what you can access for your DNA test without an Ancestry member subscription and what you can not. You can see past sale trends by selecting the topic label in the left column of this blog (for example, AncestryDNA) to see all past posts regarding AncestryDNA.

Good luck finding the sales you need!

See you at our favorite library!
LE

Due to Weather Our MCGG Let's Talk Tomorrow Wed, Feb. 12 will be VIRTUAL ONLY -- Stay Home & Sign In

DUE TO WEATHER NOW FULLY VIRTUAL

MCGG Let's Talk...Genealogy discussion group meets virtually only Wednesday, February 12, 2025, at 6:30 p.m. in the Local History & Genealogy Room of the Mount Clemens Public Library. Our topic is ... Food & Family Recipes Spark Memories to Capture for Your Family History.

Let's share our family food memories and talk about ways to incorporate them into our family histories.

Our plan is that our meetings will be hybrid meaning the meeting will be in-person with a virtual Zoom option. The Zoom meeting link (or registration link) will now be found on our Southeast Michigan Genealogy Events Calendar and our Facebook page. The link will usually be added the night before or morning of the meeting. Members will receive a reminder email with the Zoom invite or a reminder that registration is required for a meeting.

 

New attendees are always welcome.

See you at our favorite library!
LE

MCGG Let's Talk Meets This Wed., Feb. 12 at 6:30 pm; Topic is Food/Family Recipes as Memory Prompts -- Join Us!

 MCGG Let's Talk...Genealogy discussion group meets in-person (hybrid) Wednesday, February 12, 2025, at 6:30 p.m. in the Local History & Genealogy Room of the Mount Clemens Public Library. Our topic is ... Food & Family Recipes Spark Memories to Capture for Your Family History.

Let's share our family food memories and talk about ways to incorporate them into our family histories.

Our plan is that our meetings will be hybrid meaning the meeting will be in-person with a virtual Zoom option. The Zoom meeting link (or registration link) will now be found on our Southeast Michigan Genealogy Events Calendar and our Facebook page. The link will usually be added the night before or morning of the meeting. Members will receive a reminder email with the Zoom invite or a reminder that registration is required for a meeting.

 

New attendees are always welcome.

See you at our favorite library!
LE

MCGG Meets This Friday, Feb. 7 at 1 p.m.; DNA, AncestryDNA is the Topic -- Join Us!

 MCGG Friday group meets in-person (hybrid) Friday, February 7, 2025, at 1 p.m.
in the Auditorium B/C of the Mount Clemens Public Library. Our topic is ... You got a DNA Test for Christmas ... Now What? presented by Robert McGarry.

DNA is a popular and mysterious topic for most people venturing into Family History. Whether you are new to DNA or just want more information, this will explain what DNA results are, how to interpret them, and cover new tools at Ancestry.com that can help you analyze and interpret your results.

Our plan is that our meetings will be hybrid meaning the meeting will be in-person with a virtual Zoom option. The Zoom meeting link (or registration link) will now be found on our Southeast Michigan Genealogy Events Calendar and our Facebook page. The link will usually be added the night before or morning of the meeting. Members will receive a reminder email with the Zoom invite or a reminder that registration is required for a meeting.

 

New attendees are always welcome.

See you at our favorite library!
LE