If you have questions about the classes below or would like to suggest topics for future classes, email Education Committee Chair Lois Abromitis Mackin at mgseducation@gmail.com! For instructor bios, click here.

March

3 - Zotero - The Internet Researcher's Swiss Army Knife, 10:00 - 11:30, MGS
Tom Rice, CGSM
Zotero is a software tool for capturing, organizing and annotating information found on the Internet. As a standalone program or a Firefox browser extension, it allows researchers to highlight or annotate portions of text captured from web pages and to capture source citations and plug them directly into Word. This class will show you how to use Zotero to make your Internet genealogy research more efficient. You may wish to download a free copy of Zotero before the class (http://www.zotero.org) and install it on your laptop so you can follow along during class.

Cost: $25 for MGS members/$30 for non-members
Click here to register.

10 - Genealogy Topics at MHS, 10:00 - 12:30, MHS
Alice Eichholz, Ph.D., CGSM
Family History Research Focus on Women
The patriarchal nature of life in the Colonies and later the United States make researching female ancestors challenging. This workshop uses women as the focus for research-Wives for Husbands, Fathers for Daughters, and the role women's lives as "social glue" can play in helping to solve challenging research problems. Bring a research problem focused on women in your family or just come and help others think through research problems. This is a hands-on, working seminar.

Cost: $28 for MGS/MHS members/$32 for non-members.
Register at www.mnhs.org. Go to Calendar and click the class date.

13 - Members Morning on Tuesday Night!, 6:30-8:30, MGS

Cost: Free
No registration required.

17 - Beyond Obits: Finding Family History in Newspapers, 10:30 - 12:00 , MGS
J. H. Fonkert, CGSM
Historical newspapers are community diaries. They reported more than marriages and deaths. Newspapers reported social news and gossip and chronicled the doings of the civic groups, churches, schools and businesses that were the fabric of our ancestors' lives. Newspapers give us a glimpse of what was on our ancestors' minds, be it work, weather or war. This class will show you how to find newspapers in libraries and online, and give you tips for using them to enrich personal family histories.

Cost: $25 for MGS members/$30 for non-members
Click here to register.

17 - Genealogy 101, 1:00 - 4:00 p.m., MGS
In this five-session course (March 17, 24, 31, and April 14 and 21) you will learn five steps for beginning (and continuing) your family history research. You can take course sessions individually or all together. If you take all five sessions, you can complete a research project with the guidance of the instructors during the Easter break.
Christine Rose's Complete Idiot's Guide to Genealogy (second edition) is the textbook for the course. You can purchase a copy for $12.89 when you register for classes.
Click here to register for the entire course.
Lois Abromitis Mackin, Ph.D., John Schade, David Suddarth
Step 1: Write Down and Organize What You Know
Learn to recognize and gather information from personal knowledge, family members, and genealogical sources you find at home. Learn how to organize information about families in family group sheets and pedigree charts, and review effective ways to organize paper and electronic files.

Cost: $12 per session for MGS members and non-members, $70 for the course.
Click here to register for Step 1 only.

24 - Genealogy 101, 1:00 - 4:00, MGS
Lois Abromitis Mackin, Ph.D., John Schade, David Suddarth
Step 2: Decide What You Want to Learn
Genealogists often scatter their research efforts, resulting in incomplete information on many family lines. This session shows how to focus research efforts by selecting an achievable research objective and creating a research plan. It also provides an overview of the library and online resources you can use to answer your research questions.

Cost: $12 per session for MGS members and non-members, $70 for the course.
Click here to register.

31 - Genealogy 101, 1:00 - 4:00, MGS
Lois Abromitis Mackin, Ph.D., John Schade, David Suddarth
Step 3: Locate a Useful Source
Beginning genealogists need to master five essential types of genealogical sources: birth, marriage, and death records; census records; church and cemetery records; immigration records; and naturalization records. View examples of each type; learn where to find them in original form, in print, and online; and practice tools and techniques for identifying gaps in your research of these records for each ancestor.

Cost: $12 per session for MGS members and non-members, $70 for the course.
Click here to register.

April

14 - Genealogy 101, 1:00 - 4:00, MGS
Lois Abromitis Mackin, Ph.D., John Schade, David Suddarth
Step 4: Learn from the Source
Learn how to take useful notes and capture the source information you need. Practice extracting information from records, creating source citations, getting the most out of each record, and identifying clues for further research.

Cost: $12 per session for MGS members and non-members, $70 for the course.
Click here to register.

17 - Publishing Your Family History, 6:00 - 8:00, MGS
Three-part course continues April 24, May 1
Bergetta F. Monroe
You've spent years gathering facts and stories about your ancestors. What's the best way to share it all with your extended family? This three-part class (six hours total) shows you how to publish an attractive and readable family history book. You'll get tips about how to organize the stories of multiple branches of your family, how to insert photos, and how to choose between publishing options-hard copy, e-book, print-on-demand, or all of the above. You'll also learn about indexes, tables of contents, chapters, page numbering, ISBN and Library of Congress numbers, and much more.

Cost: $50 for MGS members/$75 for non-members.
Click here to register.

21 - Genealogy Topics at MHS, 10:00 - 12:30, MHS
Lois Abromitis Mackin, Ph.D.
Federal and State Census Records
When most genealogists say, "the census," they mean the federal population schedules. This lecture tours you through the federal census from 1790 to 1930, tells you where to find copies, and shows you how to get the most out of them. It also gives you a taste of less well-known census resources, including the U.S. agricultural, manufacturing, and other non-population schedules, Indian census, special census, and state census.

Introducing the 1940 Census
The 1940 census becomes available to researchers April 2! When it's released, it won't be indexed yet. Learn what's in it and how to locate your ancestors' 1940 census records without an index using enumeration district maps and One-Step tools from Stephen Morse.
Cost: $28 for MGS/MHS members/$32 for non-members.
Register at www.mnhs.org. Go to Calendar and click the class date.

21 - Genealogy 101, 1:00 - 4:00, MGS
Lois Abromitis Mackin, Ph.D., John Schade, David Suddarth
Step 5: Use What You Learned
Learn how to correlate evidence from new records using timelines and spreadsheets and identify next steps for your research. Practice evaluating the genealogical evidence you find and resolving conflicts as you learn the five components of the Genealogical Proof Standard and apply the GPS to a sample research report.

Cost: $12 per session for MGS members and non-members, $70 for the course.
Click here to register.

May

12 - Planning a Genealogy Trip, 10:00 - 11:00 a.m., MGS
Cathi Weber
Are you ready to take a trip to your ancestor's homeland (or just to the county courthouse)? How do you find out what's there and plan your time? What information do you need to take with you in order to research effectively (and how do you take it)? How do you find local help and develop good working relationships with staff at courthouses and archives? What technology solutions are helpful? Learn tips and tricks make your research trip easy and enjoyable as well as productive!

Cost: $20 for MGS members/$25 for non-members
Click here to register.

19 - Genealogy Topics at MHS, 10:00 - 12:30, MHS
J. H. Fonkert, CGSM
Using Military and Pension Records to Research Your Civil War-Era Ancestor
The Civil War disrupted the lives of millions of Americans, but left a rich paper trail for family historians. This class will focus on military service records and Civil War pension files as sources of information about not only your Civil War ancestor, but also his family and associates. Learn how to locate Civil War military records and pension files and see their use demonstrated in a real-life case study.

Using Homestead Records and Other Public Land Records for Family History
From the 1860s through the 1890s, our ancestors settled on inexpensive public land in the Midwest and West. Homestead and preemption sales generated documents that tell the story of how our ancestors got started in farm and ranching life. Contested cases are especially revealing, sometimes revealing the character of the people involved. In this class, learn how to locate records in state and national archives and use them to tell the story of your ancestors' westward migration.

Cost: $28 for MGS/MHS members/$32 for non-members.
Register at www.mnhs.org. Go to Calendar and click the class date.

19 - Members Morning, 9:30-12:30, MGS
Join the MGS Beginners Group, Writers Group, and Research Study Group!

Cost: Free
No registration required.

Instructor Bios

Alice Eichholz, Ph.D., CGSM, has more 30 years of professional research experience, with specialization in New England and Colonial America. She is editor of Red Book: American State, County and Town Sources, a leading genealogy guidebook, and is a full-time faculty member at Walden University. Alice received MGS' Ambassador Award in 2009.

Bergetta F. Monroe has published three volumes of family history. An avid photographer, she began taking photos after winning a camera in 8th grade in a school fundraising contest. With her husband Tom Peters, she enjoys taking a wide variety of photos as well as editing, retouching and enhancing photos. In the last decade Bergetta and Tom started creating DVDs of their work. Bergetta is a long-time member of MGS' Board of Directors and serves on the MGS Education Committee.

Cathi Weber has been a genealogical researcher for more than 30 years. She has researched in more than 10 states, as well as at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. Cathi has taught classes for the Anoka County Genealogical Society and area libraries. She was the 2010 winner of the MGS North Star Award.

David Suddarth is a St. Paul-based genealogy researcher and educator. He has studied at the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research at Samford University and is an instructor for the MGS Genealogy 101 course. His research interests include 18th and 19th Century Virginia, Kentucky and Indiana.

J. H. ("Jay") Fonkert, CGSM, is a professional researcher and writer focusing on Midwest, Scandinavian, Dutch and English family history. He has studied at the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research at Samford University, the Salt Lake Institute for Genealogy and the National Institute for Genealogical Research. His teaching and research articles have appeared in Minnesota Genealogist and other journals.

John Schade has more than 30 years experience researching Canadian French and Native American genealogy, and has special interest in fur trade history. He is librarian for the MGS Library and Research Center, and has held offices in MGS and the Northwest Territory Canadian and French Heritage Center.

Lois Abromitis Mackin, Ph.D., focuses on Midwest, Pennsylvania, and English research and on methodology. Her Ph.D. is in history from Brown University, and she has studied with Elizabeth Mills and Tom Jones at Samford University's Institute for Genealogy and Historical Research. Lois coordinates the MGS Genealogy 101 course and writes a beginning genealogy column for Minnesota Genealogist. She is the 2011 winner of the MGS North Star Award.

Mary Wickersham is a professional genealogist. Her special interests include technology, Midwest, and Irish research. Based in the Twin Cities, she is a frequent instructor for MGS classes and co-president of Midwest Ancestor Research.

Sheila Northrop is a professional genealogist specializing technology for genealogists, as well as Irish and Midwest research. She has taught many classes for MGS and has more than 15 years of genealogical research experience. She is co-president of Midwest Ancestor Research.

Tom Rice, CGSM, is a full-time genealogy researcher, lecturer and writer and Managing Editor of The Septs, the journal of the Irish Genealogical Society. He has taught for several years in the MGS Intermediate Genealogy Course and is a past winner of the MGS North Star Award. His genealogy business is Heritage Hunters in White Bear Lake.