Lone Star Family Trails

This episode is designed to offer the audience a glimpse of the topics and speakers that are schedule for November 1-2, as part of TxSGS Live!, an integral piece of the 2024 TxSGS Annual Conference: Navigating Your Family Tree. Each speaker has been interviewed, learning about the title of their presentation and the content that they will discuss.  In addition, the audience learns aout some of the other pre-recorded sessions that these speakers will be ofering as part of the 50 total sessions available for the conference.

Information on registration and packages is offered at the end of the podcast. 

The Genealogy and Local  History Department of Fort Bend County Libraries offers a wide array of information for those interested in the southeastern United States and surrounding Areas to Fort Bend.  As part of the George Memorial Library and Rgional Historical Resource Depository (RHRD) the Genealogy and Local History Department has many items available that can aid genealogy researchers.  Daniel Sample, the Genealogy Manager has increased the holdins, and has also helped to prioritze the Obituary Database, a searchable, online database compiled from selected reional newspapers including the Houston Chronicle.

The Archives and Information ervices Division (ARIS) of the Texas Sate Library and Archives Comission preserves documents and important records of Texas.  They have over 200 million pages of archival documents in their collection, but only about 10 million are available digitally.  So, this library becomes a place to visit for genealogists with roots in Texas.  This podcast was produced in front of both a live and a zoom audience, thanks to the help of the Waco-McLennan Library.  Questions were asked by participants at the end of the podcast, and answers provided by Jelain Chubb, The Texas State Archivist and Director of ARIS.

Located in Austin, Texas near the state capital building, individuals can use both the open source reading room and request materials held by the archives. 

The National Archives located at Ft. Worth, TX holds records created by Federal agencies and courts encompassing the states of Arkansas, Louisana, Oklahoma and Texas.  Jenny Sweeney, Archivist, gave a sens of the records that could be found in Ft.Worth for genealogists and historians.

The East Texas Research Center is Located in theh Ralph W. Steen Library on the Stephen F Austin State University in Nacogdoches Texas.  Their mission is to preserve hisotry through donations of manuscript materials, photographs, books and other items.  These are then made avilable to researchers by appiontment in their collection.  Their focus is on archival materials from the East TExas geographical region from the Gulf of Mexico north to the Red River and east of the Trinity River in Western Louisiana.

This podcast focuses on a smaller local library, the West Waco-McLennan County Library & Genenalogy Center that boasts a collection over 34,000 items, covering 34 states with a strong emphasis on Texas and the Sourthesatern United States.  In addition, the center's collection includes published family histories, immigration and passenger lists and Native America resoures, to names just a few gems.  Bill Buckner the Genealogy Supervisor gives a great overview of their resources and most importantly the emphasis they have on customer service.

The Texas Heritage Museum has three separate divisions, the Texas Heritage Museum Galleries & Collection, the Historical REsearch Center, and the Hill College Press.  Dean John Verslius announced that the Texas Heritage Mseum just received accreditation by the American Alliance of Museums, the highest recognition afforded the nation's museums.  The focus for this Lone Star Family Trails Podcast is on the Historical Research Center located in the musum.  That area is focsued specifically on military history with a primary focus on the Civil War.  The recources include an extensive collection of maps, photographic collections, microfilm and an archival repository and is considered by many to be one of the top five civil war rpositories in the nation.  

Dallas is home to one of the Top 10 Public Libraries in the United States for genealogy research, according to Family Tree Magazine.  That library is the Dallas Public Library, specifically the Genealogy & History Division, the topic of this month's podcast.  Ari Wilkins who serves as a public service specialist discusses not just why someone should come and do research at the library, but the vast array of books that are part of the Lloyd DeWitt Bockstruck Genealogy Collection.  They encompass resources from every US state and many countries worldwide; and in some cases, are the only copy of that book in a library in the United States.

At 110 East Main Street in Mt. Vernon, Texas, as part of the city square, the Franklin County Genealogical Society (FCGS) has two store fronts.  One i s devoted to meeting space (The Crescent Building); the other becomes the treasure trove of information for any genealogist. This second storefront holds the maps, family filesbooks, land records, probates and many other articles that tell the story of our ancestors in Franklin County, Texas.  Both Jana Capps, the current president of FCGS and Don Easterling, one of the volunteers talk about their holdings during the podcast this month.

The African American History Research Center is dedicated to preserving and promoting the history and culture of African Americans. It sits in the former elementary school building, The Gregory School, in the 4th Ward of Houston.  The school includes a restored classroom, as well as several gallery exhibits that show the history of the Houston African American community.  The African American Research Center is truly an archive and that is different than a genealogy library, as discussed in detail on the podcast by Miquell Ceasar, the manager.  The center provides one with the ability to gain information about their ancestors and their culture through letters, photos, funeral cards, newspapers, yearbooks, and vertical files of family history that have been donated.