PCGS Virtual Beginning Genealogy Course 2021

We will be starting a new session of our Beginning Genealogy Course on January 19, 2021. This course is intended for the new genealogist or those that are restarting after a long absence and wish to learn how to conduct genealogical research in the most efficient way. At the end of this 10-session course, students will come away knowing how to organize and record their research, conduct efficient research on the internet, where to find vital records and their substitutes when they are unavailable, and conduct research in census, church, cemetery, and other records. The course is free for members of PCGS and $15 for nonmembers.

The beginning course will meet weekly on Tuesday evenings, 6:30 – 7:30 pm, via Zoom. The course will begin on January 19 and go until Mar 23, 2021. The schedule is:

January 19, 2021
Tuesday, 6:30pm – 7:30pm
Getting Started, Organization & Software
Google Searches, Google Books, Google Scholar
Instructor: Amy Urman

January 26, 2021
Tuesday, 6:30pm – 7:30pm
Home and Local Resources:
Types of Sources, Recording Information, Forms
Instructor: Denni Ann Gershaw-Smith

February 2, 2021
Tuesday, 6:30pm – 7:30pm
Creating Genealogy, Not Mythology – Strengthen Your Family Tree with Source Citations
Instructor: Nicole Dyer

February 9, 2021
Tuesday, 6:30pm – 7:30pm
Vital and Substitute Records
Instructor: TBA

February 16, 2021
Tuesday, 6:30pm – 7:30pm
Searching on FamilySearch
Instructor: Bob Black

February 23, 2021
Tuesday, 6:30pm – 7:30pm
Searching on Ancestry
Instructor: Sherri Hessick

March 2, 2021
Tuesday, 6:30pm – 7:30pm
Gems in the U.S. Federal Census
Instructor: Ken Castle

March 9, 2021
Tuesday, 6:30pm – 7:30pm
Record Types: Church and Cemetery
Instructor: Bob Black

March 16, 2021
Tuesday, 6:30pm – 7:30pm
Newspapers Research
Instructor: Nicole Dyer

March 23, 2021
Tuesday, 6:30pm – 7:30pm
Squeezing out the clues: Extracting information and Hands-on examination of documents
Instructor: TBA

Participation is limited to 20 students, but a wait list will be kept. The presentations will be recorded and the recordings will be available for student viewing for 60 days following the end of the course.

Participants are expected to complete and submit all homework assignments by noon, Sunday prior to the following class.The homework will not be graded. Students will need a Google account to submit their homework.

EXPECTATIONS
Students will receive a certificate of completion if they have attended at least nine of the ten class sessions and submitted all the required homework.

Part II

Students that have successfully completed this course will be eligible to continue with the Beginning Genealogy Course, Part II, when it is released. The Part II course will consist of the following subjects:

  1. Developing a Research Plan
  2. Locality Report and Ancestor Timelines
  3. Courthouse Records
  4. Collateral Research/FAN Club and
  5. Finding Records in Archives and PERSI
  6. Land Records
  7. Military Records
  8. Immigration and Naturalization
  9. Special, Non-population, and State Censuses

COST
The tuition is free for members of PCGS and $15 for nonmembers. Register by emailing registrar@azpimagensoc.org. We will send you the link to register and pay (if a nonmember) if you are one of the first twenty to send in the request.  Registration and payment deadline is January 17th.