Toronto Branch, Ontario Genealogical Society

Fall 2018 courses and workshops

Registration is now open for the next semester of Toronto Branch educational activities, beginning in September 2018.

In store this fall: four courses, two workshops and one tour, with learning opportunities for both new and seasoned family historians.

On Thursday afternoons in September, join instructor Carol Nichols for Using Ancestry.ca Library Edition & FamilySearch.org, a hands-on three-week course on how to get started with two of the largest free databases of Canadian and international records.

If you’re just beginning your research or looking to upgrade your skills, sign up for our eight-week course on Tuesday evenings in October and November on Basic Genealogy and Family History, led by instructor Jane E. MacNamara.

No longer a beginner? Learn how to move to the next level and tackle online databases like a pro, with our three-week course on Advanced Research Skills with instructor Marian Press on Wednesday afternoons in November.

Interested in using the results of your autosomal DNA testing to confirm and expand on your family tree? Consider our three-week Introduction to Genetic Genealogy course with instructor Linda Reid on Wednesday evenings in November.

And don’t miss our tour of the extensive Genealogy Collection at the Toronto Reference Library on the morning of Saturday November 10.

If you have English ancestors, mark your calendar for the last weekend of October! We’re planning an exciting two days of learning devoted to English genealogy.

Cotswold cottage, photo by Shari Read

International author and lecturer Paul Milner will lead a mini-workshop covering two key topics in Advanced English Research on the afternoon of Friday October 26—“Navigating the English Probate System” and “Finding 17th Century Ancestors in England”. And Paul will be joined by our own Branch expert James F.S. Thomson on Saturday October 27 for a full-day workshop on English Genealogy Before 1837: Researching pre-Victorian Records. Learn how to move back in time and trace your English roots before civil registration and censuses.

Visit our Learn with Toronto Branch pages for full details and to sign up online. Space is limited in all of our educational events and they can fill up quickly. Please register early to avoid disappointment.

June 2018 meeting

Our last Toronto Branch meeting before the summer break will take place on Monday, June 25 starting at 7:30 pm at Lansing United Church in North York.

Our featured speaker Bonnie Bell will commemorate the all too short life of a young man who grew up in Toronto, enlisted with the Air Force as a teenager, and died in World War II when his plane was shot down in the skies over Belgium. Don’t miss her talk, Yes, There Was an Argument! After our mid-meeting break, Janice Nickerson will close out the evening with a short presentation titled Great Grandma’s Social Media: 100-year-old Postcards.

If you can, come early and join the Members Network in advance of the main meeting, beginning at 6:15 p.m. — share your family history experiences and questions in a friendly informal setting. All Branch members are welcome, regardless of level of knowledge or area of interest.

Lansing United Church is located two blocks south-west of Sheppard and Yonge, at Poyntz Avenue and Beecroft Road (enter from Poyntz). It’s a short walk from the Sheppard-Yonge subway station, which also links to frequent bus service. If you are driving, parking on local streets is free after 6:00 p.m., and there are pay parking lots close by. The few spaces in the church parking lot are reserved for members with accessibility needs.

There will be no Branch meetings in July and August… but get set for a special member Show and Tell evening on our return in September!

Toronto Branch meetings are free to attend and open to all. Visit our Meetings page to find out more.