Genealogy Collections at Two Central Ohio Libraries

Let me introduce you to Nancy Messier, Guest Blogger. She writes a blog called My Ancestors and Me and is from Central Ohio. We had plans to write a post about some of the resources that are available at the Columbus Metropolitan Library and the Ohio Historical Society. Nancy has graciously agreed to let us reprint her post.

During the early months of my genealogy efforts I learned that the State Library of Ohio had a genealogy section. It contained genealogy books for Ohio, of course, but also for all the other states. Some states had books for every county. The library also offered some online databases free of charge.

Just as I was learning my way around the holdings of the library and getting ready to delve into its resources, I learned that Ohio legislators had decided that the State Library of Ohio was no place for genealogy research. All the books were removed and the online databases cancelled. What a shock. The library was a very comfortable place to research.

Hallelujah, though! All books (unless there were multiple copies) were moved to the downtown building of the Columbus Metropolitan Library (CML). The library already had part of a floor devoted to genealogy research. The collection from the State Library increased CML's collection, which also offers the same online databases at no cost to patrons.

CML has extensive resources for the City of Columbus and for Franklin County, including many newspapers on microfilm. They have books for every state and many of the counties in those states. There are collections to support research in other countries, though they fewer in number than the local and states collections. They have other general history and research books which are available for loan. I found it a great place to begin searching.

I especially like the fact that all the books are on the shelves and open to patrons. I can search by call number or browse if I choose. They have helpful and knowledgeable staff members who can answer questions and find resources when the need arises.

The Columbus Metropolitan catalog is available online where you can search by title, author or subject and offers a link to the library's main webpage where you can find hours of operation, phone number, etc.

- o - o - o - o - o - o - o - o - o - o - o -

The Archives Library of the State of Ohio is housed at the Ohio Historical Society. It's a larger library than CML but most of their books, pamphlets, and other holdings are hidden from view. They must be paged after finding the call number, filling out a request card, and turning it in at the desk. I find their online catalog less than user-friendly.

The resources that are readily accessible include city directories for cities throughout Ohio from time periods as early as the mid-1800s through the late 1900s. Also easily accessible are county histories and books of transcriptions of county records.

They have an extensive microfilm collection. I've found deed indexes, government records, and newspapers. Their newspaper collection comprises more than half of their microfilm collection. It includes dates beginning from about the time the state was formed through the late 1900s, for cities and towns throughout Ohio. I know many newspapers are available online now, searchable with OCR (optical character recognition), but it seems that many of the newspapers from the areas where my families lived in Ohio are not yet online. So I trek to OHS and search the newspapers there. They also have paper copies of some newspapers.

There is no charge to use this library. At the Archives Library's website you can find more information about the holdings available there.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
This post was written to participate in Amy Coffin's 52 Weeks of Abundant Genealogy which is hosted on Geneabloggers. The theme will change weekly and may be posted any day of the week. I invite you to join in if you'd like.

This week's theme was Genealogy Libraries: Genealogy libraries (and dedicated departments in regular libraries) are true treasures in the family history community. Tell us about your favorite genealogy library. What or who makes it special?


Note:  Nancy Meissner, Guest Blogger, sent me a link to another post on this topic written by Shelley Bishop for her Sense of Family blog. Here is a link to Shelley's blog and her post on what is available at the Columbus Metropolitan Library. It's interesting to see the different way bloggers approach the same topic.  
Kathy Reed

Please be aware that Nancy retains the copyright for this post. Feel free to contact her through her blog. Thanks, Nancy.

.

Lost in the Mail ....

UPDATE!!!! Good news! The checks and research requests that were 'Lost in the Mail' arrived today, 27 February - nearly a month after their initial mailing. If you have already sent a replacement check, we will mark it 'Void' and return it to you. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

Library of Congress

Perhaps a sled and dog team would be a more reliable way for the HCGS to send mail between board members! A recent mailing of checks, membership renewals, new member applications, research requests, book orders and a donation to the J. Richard Abell Fund has been lost by the post office.

We are contacting as many people as possible via e-mail and regular mail.  The requests were received between January 18 and January 26, 2012. If you made a request during this time period and have not received a response from us, please contact us at hcgsohio@gmail.com or 513-956-7078. We will provide further directions to you on receipt of email or a phone call.

Please note that if you were a renewal member, your renewal has been processed for 2012. Your Tracer will arrive on schedule. However, we will need to receive another check. Please contact us as noted above if you believe you may have been affected by the lost mail packets.


Picture Credit:
"Mail Team before the Railroad Came" digital image, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Online Catalog (http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/99614286/ : accessed 23 February 2012).

This message is from the Hamilton County Genealogical Society. If you are receiving this blog-post via an email subscription, you are missing a wonderful photograph from the Library of Congress depicting a sled and dog mail team on the Skenna River.

Hamilton County Records Preservation

Hamilton County Recorders Office

Jim Dempsey Director-at-Large has been working with the Hamilton County Recorders Office on records preservation. The Recorders Office is continuing to upload deed indexes and post them on their website as they become available. Some illegible deed indexes will be rescanned from the originals and put online. Also Jim is working with the Recorder to include other materials such as WPA cemetery maps. All non-deed indexes prior to 1900 will be put online on the Recorders Office website. Typed indexes by HCGS will be put on the Chapter website eventually. The online information will include a link to Bill Graver’s book Hamilton County, Ohio, Guide to Recorder's Indexes and Documents, 1794-1988 to demonstrate how it can be used in conjunction with the information included in the indexes.

                                                          

His work at the Probate Court has expanded from just a name and page index to include, case number, year of record and year of recording, names of executors, administrators, guardians and parent if given. The information will be put into a searchable database.

National Archives Puts Genealogy Lectures Online

For the first time, the National Archives has launched online videos of its most popular genealogy “how to” workshops. These videos cover “hot topics” in genealogical research such as census, immigration and military records. Now, these popular workshops led by National Archives experts are available on the National Archives YouTube channel www.youtube.com/user/usnationalarchives.


The National Archives-produced Know Your Records video shorts cover the creation, scope, content, and use of National Archives records for genealogical research. "The National Archives is proud to make our most popular genealogy lectures available online and ready for viewing by anyone, anywhere, at any time," said Diane Dimkoff, Director of Customer Services.

After clicking on the youtube link, look in the menu to the right for "Know Your Records." This will take you to a screen similar to the one below. Choose the video of interest to you.

You may want to bookmark this site or subscribe to it to stay on top of some of the valuable resources available to genealogists.  Thanks to Barbara Wegley, Recording Secretary, for making us aware that these lectures have now been made available to all online.

Find A Grave

www.findagrave.com

Have you heard of "Congenealogy?"  This is a friendly group of genealogy buffs who meet once a month in Northern Kentucky.  It is sponsored by the Kenton County Library and led by librarian Jan Mueller.  Several HCGS members have ventured across the Ohio River to take advantage of the wonderful programs they offer. In fact, Mary Ann Faloon, Chair of our Irish Interest Group, was one of their guest speakers when she spoke about Griffith's Valuation at one of their meetings last May.

This month Debra Jacks, a longtime volunteer for Find-a-Grave, will share her knowledge and experience on this very worthwhile—and free—resource!  I'm not very familiar with this resource, but HCGS member Deb Eddy, has convinced me that this is a resource I need to consider using.  So I, along with several other members of our Chapter, are planning to attend.

Due to the extensive renovation project that is taking place at the Covington Mary Ann Mongan Branch, meetings are being held at the Baker Hunt Arts and Cultural Center.  The meeting will take place Monday, January 30th, beginning at 6:30.  Direction to Baker Hunt are listed below.

Come once and I promise you'll come again.

Long-Range Planning Report

On Sunday, January 22nd, the HCGS Board held a long-range planning meeting at the home of the Chapter President, Kenny Burck.  The purpose of the meeting was to brainstorm ideas for the future direction of the Chapter and identify plans for moving forward.

Possible goals were grouped into nine categories.  Listed under each category are attendees who expressed an interest in working on a committee. Each committee will identify a time to meet, identify goals from among those suggested and report to the Board with recommendations.

So this is where YOU come in!  What are you passionate about? Which of the areas listed below are of particular interest to you?  We are looking for volunteers -- NOT experts.  If you would like to be included on one of these committees, scroll to the bottom of this post and sign up.  This is a great way to participate in your Chapter and become more aware of what other members have to offer YOU!  We believe once you become involved, you'll want to become even more involved.

Membership

Volunteers – Deb Cyprych and Karen Klaene

Survey members to identify skills, interests and meeting location preferences.

Subchapters – other states?      

Attract new members

Social aspects

Membership benefits

Retention of members

                     

                                     

Education

Volunteers – Karen Everett, Karen Klaene, Gail Burkholz and John Tholking
Meeting Locations

            Hands-on Workshops

Technology Classes

             Revisit Education

             Webinars

Liaison

Volunteers – Jeff Herbert and Gail Burkholz

             Freedom Center             

Outreach to African-Americans and other Ethnicities, Religions, Township Historical Societies and Genealogical Societies

 Access to Catholic Archives

Library Relationship

Advocate for open stacks at the Main Library

Bylaws, Policies and Procedures

Volunteers – Margie Mohr, Kenny Burck, and Kathy Reed

                Update Procedures and Bylaws

                Plan for storage of records

                Review Privacy Policy

               

Publicity

Volunteers – Barbara Gargiulo and Jean Woll (ask Jean Woll if she would be willing to serve).               

              Chapter Calendar

              Long-term look at Publishers and Publishing (Tracer and Gazette, too).

                                                      

Volunteer Projects

Volunteers – Jeff Herbert and Jim Dempsey

            Develop better volunteer projects

Develop project leaders

Finish cemetery records

Create cemetery database

Township Records

             Wills

             Probate

             Recorder

             Develop Project Leaders

             Cemetery Database

Technology

Volunteers – Liz Stratton, John Tholking, Kathy Reed, Gail Burkholz, Jenny Davis and Dave Bossart                          

Review all aspects of our online presence and use of technology within the Chapter.
Consider database similar to Miami Valley database

Finance

Volunteers - Liz Stratton, Margie Mohr and Jim Dempsey

                Plan for a balanced budget

Publications

Volunteers - Barbara Gargiulo and Deb Cyprych

    

OK -- I'm interested.  How do I sign up?

Contact Kenny Burck, President, 513-956-7078 or Kathy Reed, 513-936-8494.  You can also comment on the post below.

Cincinnati and the Great Flood of 1937

From the Collection of the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County.  Used with permission.
Pictured is the Cincinnati Water Works on and St. Rose School on Eastern (Riverside Dr.)

If you have relatives who lived in Cincinnati in 1937 they were undoubtedly impacted by the Ohio River Flood of that year.  For about two weeks, much of the city was inundated with flood water.  Even the water supply was affected as the river rose to 80 feet.  

This year marks the 75th Anniversary of this event.  The Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County has organized several events to commemorate the impact that this natural disaster had on the city.  

This Saturday, January 28th, there will be a multi-media presentation and discussion with local historian and author, Betty Ann Smiddy.  Entitled "Cincinnati's Great Disaster:  The 1937 Flood" the presentation is scheduled for 11:00 a.m. in the Huenefeld Tower Room at the Main Library.  As one whose family was directly impacted by this flood, I look forward to the new information that may help me put my ancestors in historical context.

       Picture of 2424 Eastern Ave. and Highland School during the 1937 Flood.  (This was my father's home).