—Italian Ancestry Stream

San Marino (photo © Donna Di Lello)

Please note: OGS Conference 2010 is now over.

The Saturday program of Conference 2010 will include a specialized stream for researchers with ancestry in Italy.

The day will begin with an exclusive lecture (limited to registrants in the Italian or Dutch streams) by one of North America’s most popular genealogical speakers, John Philip Colletta. The Italian stream will continue with an in-depth two-part lecture on specific record groups and research strategies. These foundational sessions will be followed by a case-history presentation that will highlight research techniques and sources in Italy, and how they were used to trace a family’s origins.

Registrants who opt for the Italian stream are expected to attend all four Italian sessions
(I1-I4) on Saturday, and then, if they wish, choose from the concurrent lectures from the regular Conference program for each of the remaining two sessions of the day.

NOTE: To attend the Italian Ancestry stream, register for the Saturday Package or the Full Weekend Package, then select the appropriate Italian sessions. Be sure to read over the complete Conference program before deciding. There’s lots that might interest you on other days.

OGS Conference 2010 is grateful for the support of:

Saturday, May 15: Schedule

8:30 am – 9:30 am
Session I1: How to Prepare for Successful Research in European Records – John Philip Colletta
This lecture will discuss how to prepare on this side of the Atlantic for successful genealogical research overseas—whether that research is conducted through correspondence or in person. Using numerous examples, it will address the facts that are needed to get started on European research, how to break through language barriers, become familiar with the records of the target country and learn to read old script. It will explain the importance of writing letters of introduction, knowing the historical and cultural context in which the old records were created, and planning transportation and lodging in advance.

10:00 am – 11:00 am
Session I2: Italian Records, Part 1: The Foundation for Successful Research – John Philip Colletta
This lecture will focus on laying a firm foundation for research in Italian records by first making the most of resources available at home. Researchers can prepare by: interviewing relatives and utilizing family heirlooms; using censuses, passenger arrival and naturalization records; using vital records and local sources such as church records and cemetery monument inscriptions; and making full use of published materials on the Internet and in libraries. This lecture will discuss ways to access Italian records: 1) in person; 2) by mail; 3) on microfilm via the Family History Library; 4) through the Internet; and 5) by hiring someone in Italy. A summary of Italy’s civil and church records will be included; a detailed examination will follow in “Italian Records, Part 2.”

11:30 am – 12:30 pm
Session I3: Italian Records, Part 2: A Detailed Examination, One by One – John Philip Colletta
This lecture will discuss the civil and Roman Catholic records of Italy in detail. Birth, baptismal, marriage, death and burial records will be examined line by line in light of Italian culture and tradition. Italy as a united nation is young and astoundingly diverse in its topography, customs, dialects, cuisine and people. An Italian heritage may mean many different things, depending on where your ancestors lived. The emphasis of this lecture will be on the nineteenth century.

12:30 pm – 2:00 pm
LUNCH BREAK

2:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Session I4: Tracing the Origins of the Zorzi Family of Toronto: From Lonca to Passariano (Udine, Italy) and Beyond – Olga Zorzi Pugliese
This in-depth case study illustrates how systematic research revealed the Italian origins of an immigrant family. Zorzi (Latin Georgi), the surname of a noble Venetian family, is common throughout northeastern Italy. Immigrants named Zorzi from the province of Udine arrived in Ontario in the early 1900s. Research carried out in the State Archives of Venice and Udine, and especially in the parish archives covering their town of origin (Lonca), shows that these immigrants’ ancestors were from Passariano, a nearby town that grew around the Villa Manin, the country estate of the Manin family that gave Venice its last doge. Evidence gathered points to a connection with the villa and the artisans who worked on its construction and renovation. However, as this case study will demonstrate, the place of origin (Venice? Trento?) of these Zorzi craftsmen, who arrived in Passariano in the late 17th/early 18th centuries, remains difficult to determine.

ITALIAN STREAM ENDS. CHOOSE FROM THE FOLLOWING CONCURRENT SESSIONS FROM THE REGULAR CONFERENCE PROGRAM, IF YOU WISH.

3:30 pm – 4:30 pm

Session 16: Online Family Trees – Rick Crume
Someone has probably researched your family history already, so why repeat work that’s already been done? Check online family trees, such as Ancestry Member Trees, the GenCircles Global Tree and Genes Reunited, and you might even tie into a family whose history has already been traced back many generations. This presentation will point you to the largest online family trees, as well as several ethnic and foreign family trees. The speaker will share tips for searching family trees, verifying what you find and dealing with copyright issues, and will show you how to contribute your own family information, while addressing concerns you might have about retaining ownership of your research.

Session 17: Citations for Canadians – Alison Hare
Why is there such a buzz about citations? Not that long ago many genealogists paid no attention to them; now their importance is stressed to even the newest beginner. Why all the fuss? Many genealogists understand that a citation will allow them to find a record again if they need it, but good citations involve more than that. This talk will explain why citations are so important and discuss the ins and outs of writing them. What elements are essential? How should elements be ordered? How important is style and punctuation? What are the pros and cons of footnotes versus endnotes? Is a bibliography sufficient? How should online sources be cited? Examples for commonly used Canadian genealogy sources will be presented and explained.

Session 18: Destination Canada: Immigration and Related Records – Dave Obee
The decision to move from one country to another is one of the most important decisions in a person’s life—and in family history research, immigration is as important as births, deaths and marriages. Since the vast majority of Canadians descend from immigrants, it is critical to find out as much as we can about the migrations of our ancestors. This lecture will provide an overview of what is available—ship passenger lists, border crossing records, naturalization and citizenship documents, and much more—and how to use migration information effectively. The speaker is the author of the finding aid Destination Canada, a new edition of which will be published in April 2010.

Session 19: Social Networking for Genealogists: Should We Be Doing It Just Because It Is New? – Marian Press
Many genealogists have already embraced social networking websites such as Facebook, Twitter, Delicious, Flickr and Second Life, and made them uniquely their own for family history. Other social networking sites, such as Geni.com, FamilyHistoryLink and GeneTree, have been developed by genealogists for genealogists as a means of bringing related individuals together. In addition, some traditional genealogy sites, such as Ancestry, FootNote and Genes Reunited, are adding social networking features to their existing services. Is social networking more useful than other tools—GEDCOM sites, mailing lists, etc. —in uniting family historians? Which sites are most likely to be around in the long term? At the very least, genealogists should explore what social networking has to offer, since it pays to advertise one’s ancestors in as many ways as possible.

Session 20: How Do You Solve a Mystery like Marie? A Complex Case Study – Elayne Lockhart
This case study will show how public and private records from Switzerland, England and Ireland were used to uncover the unique story of the life of Marie Richenet (1797-1862). This is a story that evolved through unpredictable twists and turns from the 1600s until the mid-1800s and included town and canton records that provided insight into the lives of single mothers. The social history of Switzerland provided the backdrop for the start of a new life for Marie in Ireland and England, where her 40-year relationship with a leading aristocratic family opened up other avenues of research. The presentation will illustrate the value of searching parallel lines and locating present-day descendants.

4:45 pm – 5:45 pm

Session 21: Newspapers in Family History Research – Dave Obee
Newspapers can be a wonderful source for people trying to learn more about the lives of their ancestors. They can help to provide context to a family history and can be used to fill in gaps or correct errors in official records. Newspapers can also provide the basics—obituaries and announcements of births and marriages. This presentation will offer research tips from someone who has been a journalist for more than three decades, starting with an example of a case where newspapers helped push through a brick wall, and continuing with a variety of ways that newspapers might help a family history project. It will include ways to find and search newspapers on the Internet, on microfilm and in print.

Session 22: Tap into Your Inner Private Eye: Tracking Down Living Relatives – Lisa Louise Cooke
It is easy to get caught up with finding dead relatives, but it is the living ones who can share their personal stories, their boxes of photos in their attic, and their address books. It is imperative that you find and talk to these relatives while you still can. But finding a living person can prove quite a challenge in today’s identity security-conscious society. This presentation will offer tips and techniques from private investigators who are in the business of locating people. Participants will learn how to track down those elusive living relatives who just may hold that treasured photograph, or the key to a brick wall.

Session 23: Reading Immigrant Clues in Photographs – Maureen A. Taylor
Family historians often overlook the ethnic evidence that is hidden in their photograph albums. Using case studies and examples, this presentation will demonstrate how researchers can spot and interpret immigration clues in family photographs.

Session 24: New Toronto Research Tools – Various Speakers
Research in a big city presents its own set of benefits and problems. On the plus side, there were likely more records created with which to document your ancestors—and a better chance of archives and libraries to preserve the records. But on the other hand, it is really easy to lose track of your ancestors in all those records. This session will showcase several new projects—diverse in both content and method—to gather, organize, annotate, and make accessible important Toronto records and historical information. Several presenters from OGS Toronto Branch and partner organizations will provide the latest news on these projects.

Session 25: From Oysters to Riches: A Study of the Auger Family from Burnham on Crouch in England – Gary Schroder
This lecture will examine how you can use church registers, wills, picture postcards, and local English historical societies to gather a sea of information on a family living in a small village in Essex from the 1750s till the 1950s.

6:00 pm – 7:00 pm
SOCIAL HOUR: EVERYONE WELCOME (Cash bar)

7:00 pm – 10:00 pm
CONFERENCE 2010 BANQUET (Optional ticketed event)
Banquet address – Author, historian and archaeologist Karolyn Smardz Frost will tell us about the 20 years of historical detective work in researching the stories of fugitive slaves Thornton and Lucie Blackburn for her Governor General’s Award winning book, I’ve Got a Home in Glory Land: A Lost Tale of the Underground Railroad.