“Tips & Talk” at Oakland FamilySearch Center

CGS and OFSC volunteers host a series of fun, informal discussions on a variety of topics. These free in-person gatherings will be held on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

Come to the FamilySearch genealogical library, meet other family history researchers, and learn to use the library’s databases, scanning and digitizing equipment, and many other resources!

August topics:

• Wednesday, August 30: "Beyond Online Resources - Where Else to Look for Your Family" Jane Lindsey

September topics (all at 11:00 am, unless otherwise noted):

• Tuesday, September 12: "FamilySearch Skills 1" Join Denise Plaskett, OFSC volunteer, as she guides the group through the FamilySearch “Show Me Slides” available on thefhguide.com. These slides start with the basics and build your skills and your confidence. This course will be given in the computer classroom and is limited to 14 hands-on students, so drop-ins are welcome but registration via Eventbrite is encouraged. Topics will be covered at the pace of the attendees. First session topics: thefhguide.com, Navigation, View Details, Spouses and Children – Have you gotten lost navigating around your family tree in FamilySearch? What do those blue boxes and red question marks mean? This first class in the FamilySearch Skills series will teach you how to view your tree and view details on your ancestors. You will even learn about the “About” tab!

• Wednesday, September 20: “Intro to Genealogy: Getting Started Part 1 - Gathering Information" Jane Lindsey, CGS member & OFSC volunteer will discuss where & how to find records at home, tips for contacting relatives, and what is needed to properly fill in a basic Pedigree Chart and Family Group Record. We will begin to discuss genealogy terminology and ways to organize your research. BYO lunch and chat with others, then receive additional assistance. NOTE: Part II of this class will be October 4th.

• Wednesday, September 20 6:00 pm: "A Project That Took on a Life of Its Own: Talking Story-Immigrant Arrivals at Hawai'i Sugar Plantations, 1876-1946" Cindy Thomson, CGS member No matter where you are researching, genealogists of all levels will enjoy hearing how a simple search for her own Korean ancestors turned into a major project that will be of great help to families whose ancestors immigrated to Hawaii to work on the sugar plantations. Hear how Cindy began this project, how it morphed to include over 15 ethnic groups, and how those groups shaped plantation life and the culture of Hawaii.

• Tuesday, September 26: “FamilySearch Skills 2" with Denise Plaskett. Limited to 14 hands-on students; registration via Eventbrite is encouraged. Second session topics: Find and Recents Menu, Alternate Views - You know a relative is on your family tree, but you can’t find them! And you were just working on that relative last week! Part 2 of our FamilySearch Skills series will help you find that relative easily. You will also be introduced to the TreeFind site which helps you analyze your tree and identify areas needing further research. This session will additionally explore several ways to view your tree and the benefits of each view.

October topics (all at 11:00 am, unless otherwise noted):

• Wednesday, October 4: “Intro to Genealogy: Getting Started Part 2 - Basic Research Strategies" Jane Lindsey, CGS member & OFSC volunteer will explain the proper methods used to compile a genealogy, how to verify and record information, and what records can easily be found to expand your tree. NOTE: This class is also a good review for people getting back into genealogy. BYO lunch to chat with others and then stay to receive additional assistance.

• Tuesday, October 10: “FamilySearch Skills 3" with Denise Plaskett. Limited to 14 hands-on students; registration via Eventbrite is encouraged. Third session topics: Change Info—So far in this series, we have been navigating and looking, but not changing anything. This session will teach you how to make changes, standardizing dates and places, and explaining why you made the change (so you will remember a year from now why you made that change and so others will understand your logic!). You will learn how to add facts and events to your ancestors that maybe only you know and that may not be available in existing historical records.

• Wednesday, October 18: “Census Records 1790-1950"–Jody Harle, OFSC volunteer, will present information about US census records and why they are so helpful, will share tricks to find families when names are spelled wrong, and will show you often overlooked information that will help find additional information. BYO lunch and stay to share info with others and receive additional assistance

• Wednesday, October 18 6:00 pm: "A Project That Took on a Life of Its Own: Updating the Genealogy of the Families of Macao--Robert Leitão, frequent visitor to OFSC, has ancestors from Macau. He knew about Familias Macaenses published in 1996 and revised in 2017 because Macanese families were solicited through the social clubs around the world to contribute their information. And all before the internet! In 2015 Robert began the ambitious task of expanding and updating these family genealogies to the present day by finding descendants, new records and lots of photos to add to his project. Learn how he began and what his results have been so far!

• Tuesday, October 24: “FamilySearch Skills 4" with Denise Plaskett. Limited to 14 hands-on students; registration via Eventbrite is encouraged. Fourth session topics: Add Ancestors, Add Sources—In the last FamilySearch Skills class, we learned how to edit the information we found on our ancestors. This week we will add ancestors to our family tree-parents, children, siblings, and even other unconnected people. We will also explore the Sources tab and examine how to dig into the historical records that are already attached to our ancestors.

November topics (all at 11:00 am, unless otherwise noted):

• Wednesday, November 1: “Intro to the Basics of DNA" – Sue Severson, OFSC volunteer, has had a lifelong passion for genealogy and science! She will explain the types of DNA, the tests available, comparison of labs and how to use the DNA for family history research. NOTE: A more in-depth class series on how to use your DNA results to break through genealogy brick walls will be offered Spring 2024. AND remember that DNA kits are a good Christmas gift and are usually on sale this time of year!

• Tuesday, November 7: “FamilySearch Skills 5" with Denise Plaskett. Limited to 14 hands-on students; registration via Eventbrite is encouraged. Fifth session topics: Record Hints, Attaching Sources, Notes—Those little blue boxes that show up on your family tree and on your ancestors’ pages are historical record hints. You need to verify that the record is indeed for your ancestor and, if so, attach it to your ancestor, extracting all of the great information that you can get from it. This session focuses on doing that and also will examine the “Collaborate” tab on your ancestors. A benefit of the FamilySearch family tree is that it is striving to be the family tree of the entire human population—doing that requires collaboration with others. Learn how to do that this week.

• Wednesday, November 15: “Expand your Family Tree" with OFSC Volunteers in the Computer Lab--They will help you fill in your tree, find vital records and census records as well as other online resources. Feel free to bring your laptop. Attendees can use FamilySearch family tree, Ancestry.com, or we can show you how to add to a database program on your computer.

• Wednesday, November 15 6:00 pm: "How to Leave Your Genealogy: Don’t Let It Get Thrown Away!" –Well known lecturer, CGS member, and OFSC volunteer Lisa Gorrell will present “How to Leave Your Genealogy: Don't Let it Get Thrown Away!" (a fear many genealogists have!) Lisa will give suggestions and provide solutions to assure your research will be preserved. AND you might get an idea for a Christmas present!

• Tuesday, November 28: “FamilySearch Skills 6" with Denise Plaskett. Limited to 14 hands-on students; registration via Eventbrite is encouraged. Sixth session topics: View Memories, Upload and Tag Photos, Add Documents—Family history work is more than names, dates, and places. In this session we will explore the many ways to view memories (photos, documents, and audio clips) in FamilySearch and also how to add memories to our ancestors. Doing this will bring your ancestors to life and can provide inspiration to you and future generations.

December topics (all at 11:00 am, unless otherwise noted):

• Wednesday, December 6: “Orientation to Scanning Options at OFSC"—Hands on help from OFSC Volunteers Discover what devices OFSC has to assist you in saving photos, recordings, videos, scrapbooks, and more. These memories can be uploaded to your FamilySearch family tree and Ancestry.com (among other websites and programs). They can be shared with your family and friends through emails and social media. They can be used to create books about your family. Stay and do some scanning or make an appointment to use the equipment on another day.

• Tuesday, December 12: “FamilySearch Skills 7" with Denise Plaskett. Limited to 14 hands-on students; registration via Eventbrite is encouraged. Seventh session topics: Merging—Since the FamilySearch family tree is a collaborative effort, unknowingly I can add an ancestor and my 4th cousin once removed might also add the same ancestor. This creates a duplicate of that ancestor. And this happens all of the time. But the goal is to have only one version of each ancestor. Merging is the process that takes those two and combines them into one. Great care must be taken to make sure the right ancestors are being merged. This class will discuss how to determine if the two ancestors are really the same and then, if so, how to merge them and clean up the collaborative family tree.

The Oakland FamilySearch Center is located at 4766 Lincoln Avenue. OFSC Directions and Parking

For more information, call 510-531-3905 or email [email protected].

Note: Separate registration required for each session.

 CGS Members and Non-Members are free.

Register for each session separately.

You can purchase a $45 one-year CGS Basic membership when you check out. To sign up for other membership options go to our web page: CGS Membership application

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Oakland FamilySearch Center, 4766 Lincoln Avenue, Oakland, United States

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