Past Programs 

 

 

 

Past Programs

This page contains the past programs for Westchester County Genealogical Society.

 

2022-2023 Season

Sep 10, 2022 Melissa A. Johnson, CG Going Paperless: Digitizing Your Genealogical Research
Oct 8, 2022 Janeen Bjork My Go-To Websites for Genealogy
Nov 12, 2022 Susan Olsen Going to Woodlawn Cemetery & Beyond
Jan 14, 2023 Toni McKeen Visas, Passports, Alien Registration, & How to Request Documents
Feb 11, 2023 Judy Russell Don’t Forget the Ladies
Mar 11, 2023 Susan Miller Practical Tips for Finding NYC Online Vital Records
Apr 8, 2023 Michelle Dowd Torosian House History
May 13, 2023 Marian Wood Researching Military Records & More on Fold3
Jun 10, 2023 Sarah O’Connor How to Clean A Gravestone

 Back to top of page.

 


 

2021-2022 Season

Sep 11, 2021 WCGS WCGS Needs You to Step Forward to Move Forward
Oct 9, 2021 Susan Olsen Where’s the Family From?
Nov 13, 2021 Michelle Dowd Torosian Using DNA Testing in Your Family Tree Research
Jan 8, 2022 Susan Miller Five New York Genealogical Records to Find
Feb 12, 2022 Janeen Bjork Hiring a Pro OR Getting Hired as a Professional Genealogist
Mar 12, 2022 Patrick Raftery Cemeteries of Manhattan
Apr 9, 2022 Marian Wood Ready for the 1950 US Census Release?
May 14, 2022 Toni McKeen Putting Flesh on the Bones of Your Ancestor
Jun 11, 2022 Jeanette Sheliga Navigating FultonHistory.com

Back to top of page.

 


 

2020-2021 Season

Sep 11, 2020 Toni McKeen Documenting CoVid-19 for Our Future Generations
Oct 10, 2020 Al Fiacre The Collection at the Godfrey Library
Nov 14, 2020 Alec Ferretti Finding the Living!
Jan 9, 2021 Janeen Bjork Write Your Family Story
Feb 13, 2021 Jerry Coleman A Genealogist’s Long Journey Home to Ireland without leaving the
United States
Mar 13, 2021 Marian Wood The Insider’s Guide to Genealogical Cousin BaitL
Apr 10, 2021 Patrick Raftery The Cemeteries of The Bronx
May 8, 2021 Susan R Miller Accessible and Essential Records from Kinship
Jun 12, 2021 Susan Olsen Unusual Places to Research

Back to top of page.

 


 

2019-2020 Season

Sep 14, 2019 Janeen Bjork Using Newspapers to Track Your Family, Character by Character
Oct 12, 2019 Toni McKeen Naturalization and Women
Nov 9, 2019 Joseph Lieby Your Ancestors Paid Taxes Too!
Jan 11, 2020 WCGS Members Member Share / Member Exchange
Feb 8, 2020 Sara Lyons Davis U.S. Federal Census Held at the National Archives
Apr 11, 2020 Virtual Meeting Open Forum – Open Discussion
May 9, 2020 Susan R Miller NYC Municipal Archives Collections
Jun 13, 2020 Susan Olsen Before the Internet, How 19th Century Genealogists Put the Pieces Together
Jul 11, 2020 WCGS Members Websites – What New Ones? What has Changed? *EXTRA MEETING
Aug 8, 2020 Colleen Fay 100th Anniversary of the Women’s Vote *EXTRA MEETING

Back to top of page.

 


 

2018-2019 Season

Sep 8, 2018 Janeen Bjork DNA Testing for Everyone
Oct 13, 2018 Marian Wood Do the “Write” Thing for Genealogy
Nov 10, 2018 Toni McKeen Finding Your Elusive Female Ancestors
Jan 12, 2019 Guy R. Fairstein The Cartoonist’s Ride on Pelham’s Toonerville Trolley: Using Genealogical Resources to Identify the Trolley’s “Skipper”
Feb 9, 2019 Sara Lyons Davis Genealogical Resources Available at the National Archives
Mar 9, 2019 Patrick Raftery Photos found in Westchester Archives **Meeting at Westchester County Archives
Apr 13, 2019 Jolene Mullens French Canadian Research
May 11, 2019 Angelique Piwinski Patron Saints of Yonkers specifically, the Smith-Cochran family of Carpet Factory Fame
Jun 8, 2019 Susan R Miller What is New in Online Records

Back to top of page.

 


 

2017-2018 Season

Sep 9, 2017 Jacquelyn Graziano Finding Original Records
Oct 14, 2017 Marian Wood Free or Fee Genealogy: Finding Free Records, Deciding When It Makes Sense to Pay
Nov 11, 2017 Toni McKeen The Immigration Experience
Jan 13, 2018 Guy R. Fairstein The Joy of Cemeteries
Feb 10, 2018 Marcia Case Digging into DNA
Mar 10, 2018 Patrick Raftery Postcards from Westchester Archives **Meeting at Westchester County Archives
Apr 14, 2018 Jolene Mullens Public Use of the Databases of Daughters of American Revolution
May 12, 2018 Cathy Horn How to Use the Family History Center* at the Family History Center, 60 Wayside Lane, Scarsdale
Jun 9, 2018 Philip Hayes More Photo Fixings

Back to top of page.

 


 

2016-2017 Season

Sep 10, 2016 Marian Wood Planning a Future for Your Family’s Past
Oct 8, 2016 Michael Cassara Cemetery Crowdsourcing
Nov 12, 2016 Guy R. Fairstein The Surrogate’s Court and its Records
Jan 14, 2017 Michelle Tucker Chubenko Evernote for Genealogy
Feb 11, 2016 Toni McKeen Navigating Ship Manifests
Mar 11, 2017 Patrick Raftery Four Hundred Years of Westchester History **Westchester County Archives
Apr 8, 2017 Jolene Mullens A Prosopography of a Cemetery
May 13, 2017 Gretchen Maresco I “heart” NY–Even for Genealogy
Jun 10, 2017 Philip Hayes Photo Fixings

Back to top of page.

 


 

2015-2016 Season

Date Guest Speaker Topic
Sep 12, 2015 Maryanne Roy LeGrow French-Canadian Genealogical Research
Oct 10, 2015 Guy R. Fairstein Stuff Happens in Genealogy & How to Cope
Nov 14, 2015 Joe Santacroce Hudson Fulton Celebration of 1909
Jan 9, 2016 Brian Jennings Researching in Rockland: Sites and Sources
Feb 13, 2016 Kari Weis How To Join a Lineage Society
Mar 12, 2016 Patrick Raftery The Cemeteries of The Bronx **Westchester County Archives
Apr 9, 2016 Marian Burk Wood Using Facebook for Genealogy **Flynn Room, Grinton I. Will Branch, Yonkers Public Library
May 14, 2016 Anthony Lauriano Finding Your Ancestor’s Occupation
Jun 11, 2016 Philip Hayes Digitizing & Managing Your Treasured Photo Collection

Back to top of page.

 


 

2014-2015 Season

Date Guest Speaker Topic
Sep 13, 2014 Toni McKeen Tips & Tricks on using Find-a-grave
Oct 11, 2014 Filomena Abys-Smith Share Your Memories – A Bit of Myself** Irvington Public Library
Nov 8, 2014 Christine Crawford-Oppenheimer Getting the Most from an Obituary
Jan 10, 2015 Guy R. Fairstein Portrait of a Musical Russian Jewish Family
Feb 14, 2015 Francoise Lampe French Genealogy in France and in the French Province of Quebec
Mar 14, 2015 Patrick Raftery African-American Cemeteries of Westchester **Westchester County Archives
Apr 11, 2015 Toni McKeen The Immigrant Experience
May 9, 2015 Lance Ashworth Researching and Preserving the Fishkill Supply Depot
Jun 13, 2015 Philip Hayes Getting the Most out of Digital Newspapers Search

Back to top of page.

 


 

2013-2014 Season

Date Guest Speaker Topic
Sep 14, 2013 Sara Lyons Davis The New NY Archives
Oct 12, 2013 Toni McKeen Tips & Tricks for using Ancestry.com **Greenburgh Library
Nov 9, 2013 Jolene Mullen Five Basic Record Types
Jan 11, 2014 WCGS members “Meet the Ancestors”
Feb 8, 2014 Madeline Kearin, Susan Ross, Laurie Kimsal Mount Kisco Episcopal Cemetery Project
Mar 8, 2014 Patrick Raftery Treasures of Westchester **Westchester County Archives
Apr 12, 2014 Toni McKeen Tips & Tricks for using Family Tree Maker
May 10, 2014 Joseph Coen, C. A. Records of St. Malachy’s Home, an orphanage in Brooklyn Diocese
Jun 14, 2014 Philip Hayes Fire Up Your Research… The Digital Genealogist Is Here

Back to top of page.

 


 

 

2012-2013 Season

Date Guest Speaker Topic
Sep 8, 2012 WCGS Members Celebration of WCGS 30th Year
Oct 13, 2012 Joe Schiavone A Fond Look Back at the Ol’ Put
Nov 10, 2012 Roni Liebowitz Researching Your Jewish Roots
Dec 8, 2012 Kathy Lenerz The Trans-Atlantic Voyages of Our Ancestors
Jan 12, 2013 Melinda Hunt The Hart Island Project: Twenty Years Later For more info on
Hart Island visit the site
Feb 9, 2013 Toni McKeen Tips & Tricks for using Ancestry.com **MEETING CANCEL SNOWSTORM**
Mar 9, 2013 Laura H. Congleton Civil War Research
Apr 13, 2013 Philip Hayes Blogging Your Genealogy
May 11, 2013 Tony Lauriano Finding Your Female Ancestors
Jun 8, 2013 Joseph Lieby Kleindeutschland: Researching Your Ancestors in Manhattan’s Little Germany

Back to top of page.

 


 

2011-2012 Season

Date Guest Speaker Topic
Sep 10, 2011 Patrice Kane Preserving Genealogical Documents
Oct 8, 2011 Joe Schiavone The Last of the Old Put – New York Central’s Putnam Division
Nov 12, 2011 Toni McKeen 20th Century Military Records
Dec 10, 2011 Patrick Raftery The Cemeteries of Westchester County
Jan 14, 2012 Nora Galvin Special Schedules of the U.S. Census
Feb 11, 2012 Tony Lauriano Overcoming the Brick Walls in Your Research
Mar 10, 2012 Joe Buggy Researching Irish Ancestors in New York City
Apr 14, 2012 Marian Wood Genalogy Web Message Boards & Blogs
May 12, 2012 Maureen Wlodarczyk One Thing Leads to Another: The Continuing Journey of Genealogical Discoveries
Jun 9, 2012 Christopher Zarr Searching the 1940 U.S. Census

Back to top of page.


 

2010-2011 Season

Date Guest Speaker Topic
Sep 11, 2010 Tom Maxson Stone Chambers of Putnam County
Oct 9, 2010 Susan Olsen What can you find at Woodlawn Cemetery
Nov 13, 2010 Joe Schiavone The Ol’ Put
Dec 11, 2010 Dr. Nathan Reiss Finding People, Living or Dead, on the Internet
Jan 8, 2011 Janet Butler Munch The New York Catholic Protectory
Feb 12, 2011 Tony Lauriano Navigating Key Genealogy Websites
Mar 12, 2011 Leslie Albrecht Huber The Journey Takers
Apr 9, 2011 Debra Braverman New York City Vital Records
May 14, 2011 Christopher Zarr Exploring the 1940 US Census
Jun 11, 2011 Janice Parker Controlling Your Genealogy Computer Files

Back to top of page.

 


 

2009-2010 Season

Date Guest Speaker Topic
Sep 12, 2009 Joseph Coen, CA Genealogy Related Records in the Brooklyn Diocesan Archives
Oct 10, 2009 Toni McKeen Acquiring Italian Records from Italy
Nov 14, 2009 Eddie Dee Growing Up in Yonkers
Dec 12, 2009 Holiday Party Special Interest Groups / Study Groups Meeting
Jan 9, 2010 Debra Braverman 20th Century Probate Research: Confirming Relationships & Finding Family
Feb 13, 2010 Dr. Raymond E. Phillips The History of the Hudson River and Henry Hudson
Mar 13, 2010 Patrick Raftery The Cemeteries of Westchester County
Apr 10, 2010 Jo Heffernan What’s Up Doc?
May 8, 2010 Joe Lieby Who were the parents of ……?
Jun 12, 2010 Tony Lauriano Writing the Family Narrative

Back to top of page.

 

 


 

 

2008-2009 Season

Date Guest Speaker Topic
Sep 13, 2008 Msgr. Thomas Shelley Slovaks on the Hudson: Most Holy Trinity Church**
Holy Trinity Russian Orthodox Hall
Oct 11, 2008 Libby McKee Genealogy Opens Doors of Hospitality to the DAR
Nov 8, 2008 Jo Heffernann Gravely Speaking: the Who, What, When, Where & Why of Effective Cemetery Research
Dec 13, 2008 Holiday Party Special Interest Groups / Study Groups Meeting
Jan 10, 2009 Mary Hoar Return of the Ring
Feb 14, 2009 Vincent D’Aquino Hauntings of the Hudson River Valley
Mar 14, 2009 Toni McKeen City Directories
Apr 11, 2009 Gordon L. McDaniel Getting the Most out of the US Census on Ancestry.com
May 9, 2009 Leslie Albrecht Huber Voyage to America
Jun 13, 2009 Debra Braverman NYC 1890 Police Census

Back to top of page.

 

 


2007-2008 Season

Date Guest Speaker Topic
Sep 8, 2007 Msgr. Thomas Shelley History of the Catholic Church in NY – 200th Anniversary
Oct 13, 2007 Elizabeth M. Macfarlane Researching Family Roots and DNA
Nov 10, 2007 Leslie A Huber Crossing the Ocean with the Internet
Dec 8, 2007 Holiday Party Special Interest Groups / Study Groups Meeting
Jan 12, 2008 Jean Zimmerman Women of the House*** Philipse Manor Hall,
Co-sponsored by the Friends of Philipse Manor Hall.
Feb 9, 2008 Laura Lee Keating How We Looked – Who We Were ***
Yorktown Museum / Yorktown Community and Cultural Center, 1974 Commerce Street,
Yorktown Heights, NY
Mar 8, 2008 Joe Lieby The Trail Our Ancestors Followed in Becoming Citizens
Apr 12, 2008 Peter Savigny Every Age Has a Story to Tell
May 10, 2008 Vincent D’Aquino The Story of Sybil Ludington – American Revolutionary War Hero – the Female Paul Revere
Jun 14, 2008 Christopher DiPasquale An Object of Great Importance: The Hudson River During the American War for Independence

Back to top of page.


2006-2007 Season

Date Guest Speaker Topic
Sep 9, 2006 Roselyn Kendrick-Jones Scrap booking – Shaping the Way You Remember
Oct 14, 2006 Bob Boyle An Intro to the Colin T. Naylor Jr Local History Archives at the Field Library
Peekskill-Field Library
Nov 11, 2006 John Lozito Researching 20th Century Military Service
Dec 9, 2006 Holiday Party Interesting Ancestor, Place, or Story
Jan 13, 2007 Jerome Coleman How to Find Your Ancestor’s Townland in Ireland
Feb 10, 2007 Katharina Cerreta The Story of the Standard House of Peekskill
Mar 10, 2007 Tom Phelan Ireland’s Forgotten Heroes: A Look at Ireland’s World War I Soldiers
Apr 14, 2007 Risa Neuwirth Preserving Your Family’s Memories on DVD
Grinton I. Will Library
May 12, 2007 Elizabeth Vallone Italian Immigration thru the Ports of New York & New Orleans
Jun 9, 2007 Edith Glass Incorporating Memoirs into Fiction

Back to top of page.


2005-2006 Season

Date Guest Speaker Topic
Sept 10, 2005 Judith Berdy History of Roosevelt Island
Oct 8, 2005 Harlan R. Jessup When the Records are Wrong: Identifying Errors in the Sources

Dobbs Ferry Public Library
Nov 12, 2005 Edith Glass Memoir Writing: Rescuing the Past
Dec 10, 2005 Holiday Party Interesting Ancestor, Place, or Story
Jan 14, 2006 Joan Jennings How Yonkers Grew Up Around the Saw Mill River
Feb 11, 2006 Kathleen S. Dodds The Use of Catholic Sacramental Records in Genealogy Research
Mar 11, 2006 Professor Angela D. Danzi Ellis Island and Beyond: Immigration to the United States
Apr 8, 2006 Larry Fermi Uncle Sam Wants You! – 20th Century Military Research
May 13, 2006 Allan J. Warnecke Putnam County History
June 10, 2006 Robert Kornfeld, Jr The Story of the Old Croton Aqueduct

Back to top of page.


2004-2005 Season

Date Guest Speaker Topic
Sept 11, 2004 Jim Logan Sleepy Hollow Cemetery: Past & Present
Oct 5, 2004 A’Lelia Bundles Special Meeting Your Story: Discovering Family History – Sponsored by NYS Archives Region 9 RAC’s Archives, co-hosted by
Westchester County Genealogical Society and Westchester Historical Society.
Oct 9, 2004 Gray Williams National Register Sites of Westchester
Nov 13, 2004 Beth Potter House Tales – Uncovering the History of your House
Dec 11, 2004 Holiday Party Ancestors of Interest
Jan 8, 2005 Anita Lustenberger Land Records – A Gold Mine of Information
Feb 12, 2005 Bill Newell Making History for Your Ancestors
Mar 12, 2005 Larry Fermi Welcome Aboard!- Passenger Lists & Those Annotations
Apr 9, 2005 Christopher Tompkins Changing Faces of the Croton River Valley
May 14, 2005 Heather Ianucci The Philipse Family in America: Lords and Loyalists***
Philipse Manor Hall,
29 Warburton Ave (at Dock Street), Yonkers, NY.
Co-sponsored by the Friends of Philipse Manor Hall.
June 11, 2005 Donna Moughty Researching in Ireland

Back to top of page.


2003-2004 Season

Date Guest Speaker Topic
Sept 13, 2003 Thomas Casey Bronx Views: A Postcard Collection
Oct 11, 2003 Donna Moughty Irish Research: Where to Begin
Nov 8, 2003 Karen Lamberton Unusual Military Records in the 20th Century
Dec 13, 2003 Holiday Party My Favorite Ancestor
Jan 10, 2004 John Favareau Genealogy Resources at the Yonkers Riverfront Library**
Co-sponsored with the Yonkers Historical Society
Feb 14, 2004 John Konvalinka Discovering London’s Genealogical Treasures
Mar 13, 2004 Larry Fermi Crossing the Pond – Finding Immigrant Origins
Apr 10, 2004 Patricia Kaufman, Director The New Mahopac Library
May 8, 2004 Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak Real World DNA Testing
June 12, 2004 Susan Rogers Family History Web Page Design

Back to top of page.


2002-2003 Season

Date Guest Speaker Topic
Sept 14, 2002 WCGS Members Celebration of the 20th Anniversay of WCGS
Oct 12, 2002 Brother Harry Dunkak The American Revolution Comes to Westchester
Nov 9, 2002 Judith Ranta Finding Your Roots at the White Plains Library
Dec 14, 2002 Holiday Party My Favorite Ancestor
Jan 11, 2003 Patricia Dohrenwend What is New at the Westchester County Archives
Feb 8, 2003 Arlene Jennings Tracking Westward Ancestral Migrations
Mar 8, 2003 Joe Fibel Tracing Jewish Roots
Apr 12, 2003 John Celardo The 1930 Census
May 10, 2003 Penny Hartzell Baptismal Records Help Trace Your Pennsylvania German Ancestors
June 14, 2003 Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak Reverse Genealogy: Techniques for Finding Your Lost Loved Ones

Back to top of page.


2001-2002 Season

Date Guest Speaker Topic
Sept 8, 2001 Alan Benedict Undertakers Aid to Genealogists
Oct 13, 2001 John Konvalinka What’s New & Hot on the World Wide Web
Nov 10, 2001 Rhoda Miller Organizing Your Genealogical Materials
Dec 8, 2001 Holiday Party My Favorite Ancestor
Jan 12, 2002 Sharon Mills St Paul’s Church; Mt Vernon, NY
Feb 9, 2002 Leslie Corn Marriages Made in NY; Finding Certificates, Licenses, and Elusive Marriage Records
Mar 9, 2002 Gray Williams Sacred to the Memory
Apr 13, 2002 Anita Lustenberger Research in Upstate NY; There is Hope
May 11, 2002 Tom Riley The Orphan Train
June 8, 2002 In-House Meeting Stories from WCGS members

Back to top of page.


2000-2001 Season

Date Guest Speaker Topic
Sept. 9, 2000 Business Meeting The Upcoming Year for WCGS?
Oct. 14, 2000 Carolyn Graham Stifel Research at the NY G&B Society Library
Nov. 11, 2000 Gail M. Parzyck & Walter Storms Colonial Societies & Their Genealogical Relevance
Dec. 9, 2000 Holiday Party My Favorite Ancestor
Jan. 13, 2001 John LaBarre , Alycia Mellgren,John Conley Military Records
Feb. 10, 2001 Lisa Lipkin How to Tell Your Story
Mar. 10, 2001 Kristin Liddle Doing Research in Westchester County
Apr. 14, 2001 Christine Crawford-Oppenheimer Are Your Ancestors in an Archive?
May 12, 2001 John Konvalinka How to Find Living Relatives
June 9, 2001 Col. James M. Johnson The American Revolution Along the Hudson River

Back to top of page.


1999-2000 Season

Date Guest Speaker Topic
Sept. 11, 1999 Elder Donald R. Snow www.FamilySearch.com
Oct. 16, 1999 Brian G. Andersson Ellis Island Story
Nov. 13, 1999 Jordan Auslander NYC Voter Registration Records
Dec. 11, 1999 Holiday Party My Favorite Ancestor
Jan. 8, 2000 In-House Meeting Study Groups
Feb. 12, 2000 Brent Belnap Writing a Personal History
Mar. 11, 2000 Leslie Corn Genealogical Resources at the NY County Clerk’s Office/ Division of Old Records
Apr. 8, 2000 Laura DeGraziaKathleen McGee Standing on a Stray Sod: Irish Genealogical Research for BeginnersIreland’s National School Records: Their Use as a Census Substitute
May 13, 2000 Susan M. Rogers A Journalist’s Approach to Family History Web Page Design
June 10, 2000 Thomas F Howard Class Yearbooks: The Class of 20th Century Overlooked Genealogical Resources

Back to top of page.


1998-1999 Season

Date Guest Speaker Topic
12 Sept 1998 Art Sniffen Home Sources: It May be Time to Revisit Your Records
17 Oct 1998 Christine Crawford-Oppenheimer Has Someone Already Done Your Research for You?
14 Nov 1998 John F. Walter Grandpa was a Drummer Boy
12 Dec 1998 Holiday Party Show and Tell About a Family Object
9 Jan 1999 In-House Meeting Study Groups
13 Feb 1999 Jeanne Sutherland Columbo Makes It Look So Easy! or Tips on Solving Genealogical Mysteries When You Have the Information but Not the Answer
13 Mar 1999 Laura A. DeGrazia, C.G. A Detailed Look at Griffith’s Primary Valuation
10 Apr 1999
all day meeting
Cathy Horn Using the Internet for Genealogical Research
David Kleiman
Cathy Horn
Designing and Planning Your Own Web Page
David Kleiman
Cathy Horn
Creating Your Web Page
8 May 1999 June C. DeLalio, C.G. Leaping Across the Atlantic – Using Italian Civil and Church Records
12 Jun 1999 Karolyn Wrightson Ethnic & Industrial Development in the Westchester’s Hudson Valley

 

Westchester County Genealogical Society

P.O. Box 518
White Plains, NY 10603-0518