Promote genealogical scholarship
Preserve source material
Exchange family histories
Welcome to our community
Connecticut Ancestry Society members are responsible, ethical genealogists and family historians who share a special interest in southwestern Connecticut and its neighborhood, either by living there, or by having ancestry there, or both; who pursue genealogical scholarship through networking, educational programs, and publication of reference materials and research results; and who extend full cooperation to other genealogical organizations, record repositories, and public record custodians.
In support of the Society's above mission we sponsor workshops and lectures throughout the year. The Society's scholarly journal, Connecticut Ancestry, is published quarterly in August, November, February and May. All the work of the Society is done by volunteers with both professional and amateur genealogists actively participating.
Come join us!
Contact persons
Nora Galvin, CG
Our Publisher
Janeen Bjork
Our Town Crier
Janeen Bjork advertises our meetings both in person and online. She is always looking for volunteers and would love to hear from you if you have some time to offer to this wholly volunteer run society.
Upcoming meetings this year
Access to meetings via Zoom are a CAS membership benefit. All those whose memberships are current will be sent the Zoom link to the event.
The CAS membership year runs from June 1st to May 31st.
Please renew or join by PayPal, saving our volunteers from trips to the Post Office and the bank.
"Finding and Using Connecticut Vital Records" with Jennifer Zinck, CG
Saturday, September 18, 2021, 10:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Networking at 10 a.m.
From early town books to post-1897 certificates, Connecticut has a rich collection of vital records. Maximize your ability to find and use the records that serve as the foundation for Connecticut genealogical research as we take a deep dive into various forms of vital records, the information they contain, and the laws governing their creation and use.
Jennifer Zinck is a Certified Genealogist® who is currently serving her third term as the President of the Connecticut Professional Genealogists Council. She is an instructor in the Boston University Genealogical Research Certificate Program. Jennifer enjoys sharing her passion for family history with all ages, from school children to seniors.
"Reasonably Exhaustive Research: Do You Know All the Online Resources for Connecticut?" with Nora Galvin, CG
Saturday, June 5, 2021, 10:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Networking at 10 a.m.
The Genealogical Proof Standard’s first step is to perform reasonably exhaustive research. How can we do that if we don’t know all the resources available to us? This lecture will help you zero in on Connecticut resources online at sites like FamilySearch, Ancestry.com, AmericanAncestors.org and the State Library website. Make sure you are taking advantage of these accessible databases.
The program is a CAS member benefit. All those whose memberships are current will be sent the ZOOM link to the event. The society's membership year is June 1st to May 31st.
New England Regional Genealogical Consortium
April 1 - May 31, 2021
There will be no Connecticut Ancestry Society meeting in April, 2021, as we will be attending, and are encouraging all our members to participate in, the all-virtual New England Genealogical Regional Consortium conference. Look for a combination of live and on-demand events, including three programs from our own Nora Galvin.
Learn more: https://nergc.org/2021-conference-2/
Download the conference brochure from below:
CAS Annual meeting + monthly program, "Member Show & Tell"
Saturday, May 15, 2020, 10:30 a.m.
Networking at 10 a.m.
Annual Meeting
Please join us for Connecticut Ancestry Society’s Annual Meeting. The short business portion of the meeting will include committee reports and election of officers. We will also be interested in hearing ideas from members about future projects and programs you would enjoy. Any member interested in joining the Board of Governors should contact us at info@connecticutancestry.org. We need additional volunteer support to continue the mission of the Society.
Our program will be a "Show & Tell." Since the NERGC Conference will still be under way, we thought a non-lecture program would be a nice change. Please find an interesting artifact or story you can share with the group. Your time will be limited to approximately 5 minutes. Email us at info@connecticutancestry.org to let us know you are participating so we can have an orderly session.
"Mining DNA Results" with Janeen Bjork
Saturday, March 6, 2021, 10:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Networking at 10 a.m.
Using case studies of two adoptees who were looking for their biological families, Genealogy teacher Janeen Bjork will demonstrate some of the tools and strategies that are available for making the most of DNA results, particularly the tools for Family Tree DNA, ancestryDNA, MyHeritage and 23andMe.
"Cruising Long Island Sound" with Fred Hart Jr.
Saturday, February 6, 2021, 10:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Networking at 10 a.m.
THE PROGRAM
This is a narrated introduction to the Long Island Sound region’s impact on the genealogy of families throughout its surrounding land areas. This regional aspect has had a major impact on family history ever since the earliest colonial times. The talk is illustrated with multiple examples of actual individual and group migrations from state-to-state and from town-to-town throughout the region. Any researcher of families in any of the shoreline towns, regardless of county or state, will want to consider this regional aspect and incorporate it into their research plans.
THE SPEAKER
Fred Hart is a native of Norwalk, Connecticut, and a graduate of Dartmouth College (AB, 1958) and the Thayer School of Engineering (MSEE, 1960). His engineering career was with the Connecticut Light and Power Company and its successor Northeast Utilities (now part of Eversource Energy), where he held a progression of engineering, supervision and management positions until his retirement in 1995. He has held the Certified Genealogist credential since 1993 and was elected a fellow of the American Society of Genealogists in 2007. He has held the position of genealogist with Connecticut Ancestry Society for many years, and is a member of the Connecticut Professional Genealogists Council, the New England Historic Genealogical Society and the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society where he serves on the Editorial Board of its journal, and where he was elected a Fellow of that Society in October 2015.
Meetings last year
Genealogy Story Slam: "American Idol" meets "Finding Your Roots"
CAS Annual meeting + monthly program, "Reclaim The Records and You" presentation
"Insiders Guide to Genealogical Cousin Bait" with Marian Wood
"You Should Write a Book!" with Shelley Lowell and Janeen Bjork
“Genealogy and Technology: Problems, Pitfalls, and Lots of Promise” with Rob Locke
“Think Like a Reporter to Avoid Genealogy Mistakes” with Jennifer Mendelsohn
Saturday, November 21, 2020,10:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. Networking at 10 a.m.
Think Like a Reporter to Avoid Genealogy Mistakes; More than two decades of journalism experience has helped Jennifer as a genealogist, both to zero in on reliable information and not to be duped by unreliable information. She’ll talk about using the “Law and Order” method (follow the “dun duns!”) to track down information and how relying on simple principles like Occam’s Razor – that the most likely scenario is the least complicated – and logic grids can help you get further. We’ll go over pitfalls like not blindly using Ancestry hints, assessing the credibility of sources, not being wedded to spelling, (hello, wildcard searches!) and why genealogy is like playing Concentration: you always have to remember the cards you’ve seen and turned over.
Jennifer Mendelsohn is a seasoned journalist and ghostwriter whose work has appeared in numerous local and national publications including The New York Times, The Washington Post, Time, People, Slate, and USA Today.
A native Long Islander now based in Baltimore, Mendelsohn serves on the board of the Jewish Genealogy Society of Maryland and is the administrator of Facebook’s Jewish genetic genealogy group. A member of the Association of Professional Genealogists, she is the creator of the movement known as #resistancegenealogy, a project that uses genealogical and historical records to fight disinformation and honor America’s immigrant past. Her work has received international media attention, including being featured on CNN.com, The New Yorker, and The Washington Post.
