The Boulder Genealogical Society is here to help you with your family history no matter where you are researching. We also contribute to the greater genealogical community through local history research.
Society meetings are free and open to the public
on the first Tuesday of each month at 7:00 pm, currently by Zoom.
Registration Link: HERE
Presentation:
It can be very overwhelming when looking at your numerous DNA matches, which can number in the thousands. Where do you even begin to make sense of it all?
Join Megan Reilly Koepsell as she guides you through creative ways to think outside the box to find useful DNA matches and connect with them to help you find common ancestors and break down those brick walls.
As an added bonus, at the end of her presentation, Megan will discuss her latest book, “My Grammie is a Genealogist,” and will share ways to get your own grandchildren interested in genealogy.
Speaker:
Megan Reilly Koepsell is a retired registered nurse and lives in Highlands Ranch. She has had a life-long interest in family history and has been spending nearly every available waking moment doing genealogy since Her first book, “Listening to the Voices of Our Ancestors: A Practical Manual for Developing Your Intuitive Genealogical Abilities” was released in 2020 and quickly made the Top 10 on the list of genealogy books on Amazon. She is currently working on several sequels. Following the birth of her first grandchild, Megan was inspired to write a series of children’s genealogy books titled, “My Grammie is a Genealogist” and “My Grandpa is a Genealogist” which were released on Amazon in February 2022. Both titles are available in boy and girl grandchild versions.
Megan is a regular presenter on genealogical programs in the Denver Metro area. She is the current president of the Colorado Genealogical Society and has previously served as both past president and vice president/program chair for the Highlands Ranch Genealogical Society. She has also served as the Members’Interest Surnames chairperson for WISE.
Registration Link: HERE
Presentation:
Most genealogists know that conducting locations-based research is going to help them find information about their ancestors, but how many look at the entire community to find out how ancestors lived? How do you conduct a community-wide search? What’s involved and what can you learn? The Boulder Pioneers Project has been an on-going look at the original source materials for Boulder County to discover the people who arrived before statehood in 1876. Many interesting and surprising stories have come to light as a result of the research. A community-wide project may help you discover much more about your ancestors than what you can find looking at individual record groups alone.
Speaker:
Dina Carson has been involved in genealogy for more than three decades, and is currently the coordinator of the Boulder Pioneers Project, a comprehensive look at the original source documents for Boulder County during the Territorial period (1859-1876). She is the author of more than ninety annotated indexes of Boulder County source materials. She lectures frequently to genealogical societies throughout the state and is working with the Colorado State Archives on state-wide indexing projects. Dina is the author of 10 books about publishing and genealogy including, Publish Your Family History: A Step-by-Step Guide to Writing the Stories of Your Ancestors, and two recent books, Map Your US Research: A Workbook for Genealogists and Colorado’s Historical Assets: A Research Guide for Genealogists, Local Historians and History Buffs … . Dina brings her experience with all phases of book publishing to help first-time self-publishers create quality family or local histories that are both believable and achievable. When she’s not at a computer working on a publishing project, you can find her photographing the pioneer cemeteries of Colorado or deep in the bowels of an archive researching something.
Registration Link: HERE
Program:
On 6 December, BGS will host a Member Share event via Zoom; the first one since 2020. BGS members shown below are offering presentations on a variety of topics. These sharing occasions are typically great social events for the society and, while somewhat limited by the Zoom environment, promises to be entertaining as well as informative. Please bring your own snacks and join us on December 6th!
The speakers:
- Betty Gibbs: “Which John”
- Dorothy Coltrin: “Which Graham is Which Graham”
- Dina Carson: “Vital Records You May Not Know About”
- Kay Hartrick: “Discoveries in Quaker records”
- Lou Medal: “The Search for Nito”
Volunteers with questions should email Wes Sullivan at wbsgen45@gmail.com.
If you are unfamiliar with or would like to test Zoom’s “Share Screen” tool, we can setup a practice session.
Volunteers are asked to register as usual for the general meeting and log in about 6:45PM (MT) to test access.