Worcester Chapter
Meetings are generally held on the second Tuesday night of the month at 7:00 PM except that winter meetings (December-March) are held on the first Saturday of the month at 10:00 AM. Check the calendar below. See in particular the change of date and venue for October 2011.
Meetings are frequently held at the Auburn Public Library, 369 Southbridge Street (Route 12) at the intersection of Brotherton Way. Brotherton Way runs from Southbridge Street to Auburn Street between the Library and the Auburn Mall.
(DIRECTIONS TO AUBURN PUBLIC LIBRARY: Take Exit 10 from the Massachusetts Turnpike and follow the signs for Route 12 North. The Library will be on your right just after the Auburn Mall.)
MSOG is made up of chapters throughout Massachusetts: Bristol, Martha's Vineyard, Merrimack Valley, Middlesex, and Worcester. Each chapter has its own governing board of officers, an annual meeting, and an election. Each chapter is a member of the state board and is represented by the chapter's president. Chapters do not meet during the months of July and August.
Officers
President: Jane Cain
Treasurer: Seema Kenney
Membership:Peggy St. John
Program Committee: Denise Driscoll, Judy Goodwin, Sandy Goodwin, Susan Hosker, Shelly Merriam, Linda Pelletier, Kay Sheldon, Mary Toomey
Chapter News
Schedule of Speakers 2011-2012
| Date/Time | Speaker/Topic | Location |
| September 13, 2011, 7:00-9:00 |
Michael Brophy is a professional genealogical researcher, columnist and lecturer in the Boston area. He is Program Director for the Massachusetts Genealogical Council and past Publicity Director. He served as Treasurer of the New England Association of Professional Genealogists. He holds an MBA degree from Suffolk University and a BBA from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. Michael was the lead researcher in Massachusetts for the recently released book from St. Martin's Press, The Remains of Company D, A Story of the Great War, by James Carl Nelson. Recently he completed research for the popular NBC television program Who Do You Think You Are?
Genealogists anxiously await for the release of the 1940 census. Find how this census was taken, how the information gathered can benefit your research, and what you can do now to prepare for the release. Find out what information can be gathered from the census, as well as some ideas of doing research in the 1940s and beyond. This video will be available in the Members-only section until November 8th. |
Auburn Public Library, Auburn, MA |
| October 29, 10:00 a.m. NOTE CHANGE OF DATE | Bill Wallace, Executive Director, Educator, and Advocate for Local History, Worcester Historical Museum. Members of the Worcester Chapter will enjoy a tour of the Worcester Historical Musem. There will be a one hour (about) lecture and probably a small tour, depending on the number of attendees, followed by time to research. The research area only fits 10-15 people. Worcester Chapter members will be given a voucher (valued at $5.00) up to a limit of 40 people, to return and research another day. The facility is open to the public. MSOG, non-Worcester chapter members, can attend the meeting for free, but will not receive a free voucher. If the public attends, there is a $5 admission to the museum. | Worcester Historical Museum, 50 Elm St., Worcester NOTE CHANGE OF VENUE |
| November 5, 9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. | MSOG Annual Meeting |
Littleton LDS, 616 Great Road, Littleton, MA 01460 |
| December 3 | Christmas Meeting: Following presentations by the Summer Cemetery Project volunteers, we will hold our annual Christmas Yankee Swap. | Auburn Public Library, Auburn MA |
| January 7 |
Eileen M. Angelini, Ph.D. A Little Known History of Discrimination in New England: The Klu Klux Klan Attacks on Franco-Americans in the First Half of the 20th Century- Dr. Angelini will discuss the influx of over one million French Canadians from Quebec, who came seeking positions in New England textile mills and moved into largely English Protestant communities. Many expected to return to Quebec someday and thus remained loyal to their own traditions, culture, and Roman Catholic beliefs. However, some Protestant communities became fearful of these foreigners and formed branches of the Klu Klux Klan which tormented French Canadians from Massachusetts to Maine. At one point, Dr. Angelini states, New England KKK members outnumbered those in the South. View the video of this program . The video is being made available with the generous permission of Dr. Eileen M. Angelini. |
Worcester Historical Museum, Worcester, MA |
| February 11 | Lisa Louise Cook: "Google Earth for Genealogists Webinar and Workshop" Members are encouraged to bring their laptops if they'd like (tables will be set up) to view and practice along with this pre-recorded webinar. Please pre-load Google Earth onto your laptop. Society members will be available to offer assistance. |
Auburn Public Library, Auburn, MA |
| March 10 | Sandra Goodwin: "Disaster Management" Disaster Management: Digitally Organizing and Preserving Your Genealogy Materials- Come Hell or high water, are your genealogy materials protected against natural or man-made disasters? Discover how to digitally organize your materials to make reconstruction of your files as painless as possible. Learn steps to take now to prevent your life's work from literally going up in smoke. |
Auburn Public Library, Auburn, MA |
| April 10, 7 p.m. | Shelley Merriam: Know Your Ancestors-Dead or Alive! Looking for depth rather than breadth in your genealogy search? Want to know more about the characters in the family, or your family character? Learn how to ask the right questions, entice writers in the family to share their stories, and make the most of family reunions or nursing home visits. Hear ways you can share your own experiences and interactions with family members, dead or alive. | Auburn Public Library, Auburn, MA |
| May 8 | Linda Pelletier: "Yearbooks." | Auburn Public Library, Auburn, MA |
| June 12 | Dick Eastman |