Maine Families in 1790 Volume 11 is now shipping

Maine Families in 1790 Volume 11 was recently delivered from the printer. Preorders have shipped, but there's still plenty of copies left for those that were waiting to make their purchase.  With more than 18,700 names in this edition's every name index, this volume will be a most welcome addition to many researchers libraries.

For more information about this release, see our last post.

Remember, this and upcoming titles are now available to both MGS members and non-members (though members do receive a nice discount on all titles)

Maine Families in 1790, Volume 11 - Now Taking Pre-Orders!

After nearly 6 years since Volume 10, The Maine Genealogical Society is excited to announce we are now accepting preorders for volume 11 of our Maine Families in 1790 series.  This book is now at the printer and is available to both Maine Genealogical Society members and non-members for pre-ordering now!  Books are currently scheduled to arrive from the printer to MGS the week of December 13.  Pre orders will be shipped to individuals as soon as we have them, with the intention to get them to most households before the Christmas holiday.

Edited by Joseph Crook Anderson II, FASG, Volume 11 of the Maine Families in 1790 series is the biggest yet. Crammed with 800 genealogy-packed pages, this volume treats 208 new families located throughout the District of Maine. Consistent with the previous volumes, all of the families have been thoroughly researched and edited, and all facts are meticulously documented with clear source citations. Conclusions drawn from circumstantial evidence, incomplete records, or conflicting sources are fully discussed within each family sketch. With this volume, the total number of families treated in the series is now 2,895 (or 17% of all families living in Maine in 1790). The usefulness of these books for genealogical research cannot be overstated. The Maine Families in 1790 series is simply the most comprehensive and up-to-date resource on families living in the state during the late-Colonial, Revolutionary War, Federalist, and early statehood periods of Maine’s history.

Surnames of heads-of-household included in Volume 11 are:
Alexander, Allen, Andrews, Atkinson, Baker, Beal(s), Berry, Besse, Bickford, Bishop, Bixby, Blake, Bonney, Booker, Bowman, Boyd, Bradbury, Bradford, Britton, Brown, Card, Cash, Cass, Chandler, Chipman, Clifford, Colby, Collier, Colson, Cottrell, Cousens, Crary, Crommett, Davis, Dexter, Dickey, Dingley, Downing, Dutton, Ellis, Eustis, Fairbanks, Farley, Farnsworth, Fenby, Fletcher, Foster, Fowler, Frye, Fuller, Gilbert, Gilpatrick, Goodridge, Goodwin, Gould, Grant, Greeley, Griffin, Haley, Hall, Hancock, Hawes, Hicks, Hinds, Hinkley, Hopkinson, Houston, Ingalls, Jack, Jacobs, Jewell, Jewett, Jordan, Kilborn, Lackey, Lambert, Lancaster, Lanpher, Libby/Libbey, Lindsey, Longley, Martin, Mathews, Mayberry, Merithew, Metcalf, Miller, Millet, Mitchell, Moors, Neal, Niles, Nock, Norris, Odam, Otis, Patch, Patten, Peabody, Peirce, Perley, Perry, Poke, Porter, Potter, Pratt, Randall, Redlon, Reed, Richmond, Robbins, Russell, Sawyer, Shute, Small, Smith, Springer, Spurr, Staples, Stimson, Stinchfield, Stowers, Sturgis, Sturtevant, Sylvester, Tate, Thurston, Town(e)(s), True, Turner, Walker, Ward, Washburn, Wells, Weston, Whiting, Whittier, Wilder, Winslow, Woodman, Young.

As always, MGS members enjoy a substantial discount on the non-member price.  The nearly $20 
discount to members on just this book makes the $25 annual membership dues well worth the investment.

Interested to know if your Maine families are represented in the first 10 Volumes?  There is a master index of heads of households for volumes 1-11 available on the MGS website available here.

News From The Maine State Archives

Archives Month events to include UMA professor’s presentation on Maine’s highways

AUGUSTA – Dr. Tom McCord will give a presentation on Maine’s highway system at the Maine State Archives on Oct. 20, highlighting how the Archives’ holdings helped him in his research.

“Detours and Details: Unearthing the History of Maine Highways at the Archives and Elsewhere” will be presented to the public on Tuesday, Oct. 20, at 5:30 p.m. in the lobby of the Maine State Archives in the Cultural Building, 230 State St., Augusta. The event is part of the Maine State Archives’ celebration of American Archives Month, an effort to spread the word about the resources and role of the bureau.

McCord teaches history at the University of Maine at Augusta, where his courses include “History of Maine” and “The United States Since World War II.” A longtime editor at the Bangor Daily News, he earned his doctorate in American history from the University of Maine in 2013. His primary research has been on urban renewal in Maine, with emphasis on redevelopment of downtown Bangor, reuse of the former Dow Air Force Base and housing reform.


In addition to this special event, the Maine State Archives will also be marking American Archives Month with these offerings:

October, the Research Room will be open every Tuesday evening until 7 p.m. and every Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Regular hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Public tours of the Maine State Archives, including areas not normally accessible to the public, will be offered Tuesday, Oct. 13, at 5:30 p.m.; and Saturday, Oct. 31, at 10 a.m. To reserve your spot on a tour, please call or email Communications Director Kristen Muszynski (626-8404) with your full name and phone number. Reservations will be made on a first-come/first-served basis and the tours will be capped at 20 participants. No large groups, please.

The Maine State Archives is a bureau of the Department of the Secretary of State. Visit www.maine.gov/sos/arc or our Facebook page, Maine State Archives, for more information and updates about our plans for Archives Month this October.

2015 Fall Conference Registration Extended

If you thought you missed the September 1st deadline for registering for the 2015 Fall Conference, there's still time to sign up and join us in Brewer on September 19th at Jeff's catering, where we will welcome Michael Strauss, AG, as our keynote speaker and his lecture: “All in a Day’s Work: Occupational Genealogical Research”. Mr. Strauss is the principal owner of Genealogy Research Network and an Accredited Genealogist since 1995. He is a native of Pennsylvania and a resident of Virginia and has been an avid genealogist for more than 30 years. Strauss holds a BA in History and is a United States Coast Guard veteran.  In addition to his keynote, Strauss will be discussing various topics related to discovering valuable genealogical insight from often overlooked sources.

For more information and to register by September 11, 2015 visit the conference website:

http://conference.maineroots.org/

NOW AVAILABLE: Vital Records of Newcastle, Maine

Vital Records of Newcastle, Maine, special publication #72 of the Maine Genealogical Society (MGS) is now available exclusively through MGS.

The town of Newcastle is located in Lincoln County on the peninsula between the Sheepscot and Damariscotta Rivers. The town was originally called Sheepscot Plantation and settled in 1630 by fishermen. The town was attacked and destroyed in 1676 during the King Philip’s War but many residents returned when the War ended. During another French and Indian War in 1688 the town was again destroyed with residents not returning for about 30 years. The name of the town was changed to Newcastle in 1730 and incorporated on 23 August 1775 as the 30th town in Maine. The population of the town increased from the first census in 1790 when there were 787 residents to its high point in 1850 when there were 2,012 residents. After that, it dropped each year to a low point in 1930 of 914, rising in 1940 to 994 residents.

The vital records for the town of Newcastle have been transcribed for this book from the microfilms located in the Maine State Archives as digitized on two CDs available from Picton Press. Also included are Delayed Records of Births and Marriage Intentions which were transcribed from two original volumes located in the Newcastle town office, neither of which have been microfilmed. The quality of the microfilmed records is quite good with only a few pages having sections either too faint or too dark to read but were found to be more readable in the original record volumes found in the Newcastle town office.

Vital Records of Newcastle includes Birth, Marriage, and Death records as transcribed from images of microfilms held at the Maine State Archives. Also included are records from the journal of Ebenezer Webb.

With over 380 pages of information, including an Every Name Index of well over 8,000 individuals, this book is a must have if you are researching families in the Newcastle area in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries.  At $39.95 for non-members,, this book is a great value for any genealogical library.

If you would like to order a copy of Vital Records of Newcastle, Maine it is only available through the Maine Genealogical Society.

Purchases can be made through our online store by visiting our website:
http://www.maineroots.org

Members of MGS receive 25% off the non-member price, a savings of $10!

*MGS membership is $25 per calendar year.  In addition to superb discounts on publications and conferences, your MGS membership gets you a quarterly newsletter with information about genealogical events and MGS chapter news from across the State, our quarterly scholarly journal, The Maine Genealogist, and a number of other benefits.  Consider joining MGS today and save on this and other upcoming publications.  http://maineroots.org/index.php/about/membership/

Genealogy Fair A Huge Success! Now onto September...

We had an overwhelmingly positive response to our first ever FREE Genealogy Fair in Augusta on July 11th.  We had more than a dozen non-profit groups represented and many of them reported gaining new members as a result of the event. And the Genealogy Brick Wall Busters was well attended.  If you were there, you know what I mean!  The State Library stayed open later than usual and the Museum had well over 200 people take advantage of their free admission throughout the day.

We definitely had some learnings and the Conference Committee will be making notes of what went well and what could use some improving.  If you attended the event and have thoughts on what you liked and what you would like to have seen done differently, or in addition to what was available, please let us know with an email to mainegenealogicalsociety@gmail.com

There have been a lot of requests to do a similar type event in the future, so we'll be discussing the feasibility of that in an upcoming meeting.

Thank you to all those groups who participated and those individuals who came out to see what our Genealogy Fair was all about. We had a great time, and we hope you did too.

Now it's time to wrap up the last minute planning for our Annual September Conference and get people signed up to join us in Brewer, Maine for a day of genealogical lectures and more vendor sales tables.  To learn more about what's happening on Saturday, September 19, 2015 in Brewer, visit our conference web page:  http://conference.maineroots.org

July 11th Genealogy Fair - Brick Wall Busters

Just 2 days left before our first FREE Genealogy Fair in Augusta, Maine.  We're excited to be offering an informal gathering of experts on Maine history and genealogy from around the State, including our friends at the Maine State Historical Society, among others.  Visitors to this event will be able to get information about the State Archives, The Maine State Library and can enjoy free admission to the Maine State Museum.

MGS will have many of our books available for sale, as will other groups.  The Cross Cafe will be open most of the day and the weather is going to amazing, so you can sit outside and enjoy some beautiful Maine weather, if you're so inclined.

On top of it all, we've assembled some folks who will be available for consultations to help YOU take another chunk out of that brick wall that's been plaguing you for years...  Or maybe you're just getting started in your genealogical journey - or don't even know where to start...  Our volunteers are here to help you get going, no matter what phase of research you are in.

Our current list of volunteers and their areas of expertise are included below. If you would like to reserve some time with one of these volunteers, please email mainegenealogicalsociety@gmail.com and we'll make sure we have some space reserved for you. If possible, please include some specifics about what you would like to talk about and we'll forward it along to the appropriate person.

Don't see what you're looking for in an area of expertise?  Send us your questions and let us know if you'll be attending the fair. We'll do our best to match you up with someone we think may be able to help you.

Our panel of experts:

Jerry Gower - Washington County Research & Maine Families in 1790
Bob Chenard - Franco American Research
Craig Siulinski - Recording Oral Histories & Sharing your Research Online
Helen Shaw - Census and Cemetery Research, Lineage Society Applications & Accessing Maine Vital Records
Nancy Milliken Mason - DNA for Genealogy
BJ Jamieson- Scottish and Irish Research

In addition MGS Officers and members will be available throughout the day to discuss getting started in your family history research and other general research related questions.

Email mainegenealogicalsociety@gmail.com with your Maine family or general genealogical queries and we'll work hard to get you with the right person on Saturday. If you can't make this event, you can still email us your Maine genealogy questions and we'll work to get an answer back to you as soon as possible!

July 11th - FREE Genealogy Fair

Join MGS and more than a dozen other organizations from across the State of Maine for this FUN, FREE event and learn about all the great resources available for researching your Maine roots.

Vital Records of Woolwich, Maine now available EXCLUSIVELY through MGS!

Maine Genealogical Society Special Publication #71
Vital Records of Woolwich, Maine

The Maine Genealogical society has some exciting news, and it's NOT just for members!  We are very excited to announce our latest Vital Records of Woolwich, Maine, special publication #71 of the society.

This book is available exclusively through the Maine Genealogical Society.  As our first self-published publication, you can't find Vital Records of Woolwich, Maine anywhere else.

Unlike other MGS special publications, which we could only sell to members due to contractual obligations with our publisher, this new title is available, from our website, for anyone with an interest in their Woolwich ancestry.  You do not need to be a member of MGS to purchase this title!  As with our other titles, MGS members still receive a generous discount when identifying themselves as a member at checkout. In addition, as our first self-published work we were able to continue to bring you the same high quality standards of our previous books while keeping a lower price - and we are able to offer both a paperback and hardcover edition.

 The town of Woolwich is located in Sagadahoc County, Maine, on the east side of the Kennebec River. The early name of the town was Nequasset, the Indian name of a local pond. The first settlers were John Bateman and Edward Brown who resided there in 1638. They purchased from Robin Hood, an Indian chief, most of the territory now comprised by Woolwich.

The town was incorporated 23 August 1775 as the 32nd town in Maine. The population of the town increased slightly from the first census in 1790 when there were 787 residents to its high point in 1830 when there were 1,495 residents. Since then, it dropped each year to a low point in 1930 of 671 residents, rising in 1940 to 1,144 residents.

Vital Records of Woolwich includes Birth, Marriage, and Death records as transcribed from images of microfilms held at the Maine State Archives. Also included are town meeting and miscellaneous records of interest to genealogists as well as ear marks.

With over 650 pages of information, including an Every Name Index of more than 17,000 individuals, if you have families living in Woolwich prior to the 1890s, you're sure to find something of interest in this book.

If you would like to order a copy of Vital Records of Woolwich, Maine it is only available through the Maine Genealogical Society. 

Purchases can be made through our online store using one of the following links:

Hardcover (*$49.95 for non MGS members/$39.95 for members)
http://tinyurl.com/nrozb2l
Paperback (*39.95 for non MGS members/$29.95 for members)
http://tinyurl.com/narozbd

*MGS membership is $25 per calendar year.  In addition to superb discounts on publications and conferences, your MGS membership gets you a quarterly newsletter with information about genealogical events and MGS chapter news from across the State, our quarterly scholarly journal, The Maine Genealogist, and a number of other benefits.  Consider joining MGS today and save on this and other upcoming publications.  http://maineroots.org/index.php/about/membership/

ANNOUNCING: 2015 Southern Maine Genealogical Conference - Registration is Open

The Greater Portland Chapter of the Maine Genealogical Society wants everyone to know about the 2nd Annual Southern Maine Genealogical Conference which will be held on Saturday, May 30, 2015 at Keeley's Banquet Center at 178 Warren Ave., Portland, Maine.

This year's Keynote Speaker is Margaret Dube.  Her Keynote Address is: A Home Among Yankees: turn of the century immigrants along the Maine Coast. Join her as she delves into the lives of immigrants who, at the turn of the last century, settled in seacoast Maine. Learn the challenges involved in studying those who ventured far from home and forged a new life.  Margaret is a Certified Genealogist who lives in Kittery, ME.  Through her website, Common Folk Ancestry, she connects with people who are searching for information on their ancestors.

In addition to Margaret's address there will be 9 workshops/sessions throughout the day as well as a delicious luncheon.  The workshops/sessions include DNA Genetic Genealogy, Franco-American, Italian, Irish and Scottish genealogy resources, help in preparing for a genealogical site visit, working with immigration files, organizing your research, and using deeds in genealogy research.

The cost for the conference is $55 which includes the luncheon and other refreshments throughout the day.

To register either online or through a mail-in registration, go to: http://www.gpcmgs.org
For more information, please contact Paul Doucette at pdoucette3@gmail.com.

Query: Redford Dennis TALLMAN

Philip Smith is hoping someone can help:

Looking for some evidence that might be acceptable to Mayflower Society that Redford Dennis Tallman, born Oct. 17, 1800, was the son of Holder Tallman (1766-1830) and Drusilla Taber Tallman (1767 - 1852).

If you have some information that may help Philip, email him at  pfsmith66@att.net

February TMG Is In Homes Now

By now members of The Maine Genealogical Society should have received their February 2015 edition of The Maine Genealogist (TMG). The TMG is the Society's quarterly scholarly journal and is always packed with interesting articles concerning different problems (and resolutions) faced during genealogical research of our Maine ancestors, and sometimes we are lucky enough to see some transcription projects as well. 

The February 2015 Issue of the TMG is nearly 50 pages in length and includes the following articles:

• Clark Drew of Maine and Vermont
  by: Carole Gardner
• A Tidbit From the Massachusetts Archives: Lucretia Larrabee, First Wife of John Owen (d. 1753) of Falmouth, Maine
  by: Brent Owen
• Assembling The Pieces Of The Puzzle: The Family of Ebenezer Day Jr. of Wells and Kennebunk, Maine
  by:Edward G. Hubbard
• The Parentage of Solomon Bray of Polan, Harrison, and Monson, Maine
  by: Joseph C. Anderson III
• Nineteenth-Century Records of the First and Second COngregational Churches of Wells, Maine (continued)
  submitted by: Priscilla Eaton

If you are an MGS Member and have not received your copy ofThe Maine Genealogistyet, let us know.  If you are not already a member, its not too late to join to take advantage of this and other benefits that come only by joining our organization.

Roots 2015 : Quebec Family History Conference

Many of Maine's French speaking communities can tie their roots back through Canada to France. Names like Morin, Trepanier, Theriault and Bouchard all straddle both side of the border. If you're interested in Franco-American research, you may be interested in attending Roots 2015 in beautiful Montreal, Quebec.  This is a 3 day international conference on family history in the Quebec area being held from June 19-21 on the campus of McGill University.  For those of us not fluent in French, we're in luck. Roots 2015 is described as the largest English language genealogical conference held in Quebec.

For more information about the conference and the Quebec Family History Society, who will be hosting the event, go to http://www.qfhs.ca

Query: John OWEN and Polly WATSON

The following query came in from one of our members:

I'm a descendant of John Owen b. 19 MAR 1759 Cumberland, ME d. 1844 Litchfield, ME.  married Polly Watson  1769-1837  John Jr. is son of John Sr. of b. Falmouth 1723 - d 1787 Topsham, Me

Any assistance on family records, deeds, trying to document family group.  Have looked at Cumberland Co. Deeds online.

If you can help, comment here, or email sandrafisher@msn.com

Query: Henry PUTNAM of Reading, MA

One of our newest members has asked us to post the following query:

Does anyone have documentation on Henry Putnam, born 1778/85 in Reading, MA, and died after 1850 in (probably) Harrington? His lineage is Deacon Henry Putnam, Deacon Daniel Putnam, Rev. Daniel Putnam, Capt. Benjamin Putnam, Deacon Nathaniel Putnam to John Putnam, born 1579 or 80 in England. I have extensive information on Maine Putnam/Ficketts and most of these Salemite Putnams which I'd love to share.

Responses can be sent to M. Steward at NoseyParker@comcast.net

MGS 2015 Conference Call For Papers

Proposals for talks are now being accepted for the MGS Fall Conference, September 19, 2015, at Jeff’s Catering in Brewer. There are three openings for one-hour presentations. Speaker compensation is $100 plus registration and lunch the day of the conference.

The theme this year is “Records & Resources.” Proposals should focus on how to locate and use a particular type of record including those that are digitized and on-line. The emphasis should be on original material. Types of records might be newspapers, military & pension records, church records, cemetery records, probate documents, land records & deeds. Proposals for other, less known & used records are encouraged. Records need not be Maine specific.

Proposals should include the following:
1. Speaker’s name
2. Contact information (including mailing address, e-mail, & phone number)
3. Prior speaking experience
4. Brief biography (about 50 words)
5. Title of the talk
6. Summary or outline of the talk (about 200 words)
7. Intended audience level (beginner, intermediate, advanced, or all levels)

Please send proposals to Helen A. Shaw either by mail (77 Pascal Ave., Rockport, ME 04856) or as a pdf attachment (hashaw@earthlink.net). Proposals must be received by 1 March 2015.

Upcoming Genealogy Classes in Brunswick

There are a number of new genealogy classes starting up around the State being taught by Maine Genealogical Society members. If you have been interested in working on your family tree but don't know where to start, you may find one of these classes of particular class of interest:

Craig Siulinski will be teaching a beginner and advanced course in genealogical research through Merrymeeting Adult Education in Brunswick.  The beginner class starts on Feb 3, so you'll want to sign up soon, before the seats are full, if you you're interested in this course:

The popular television series, Who Do You Think You Are, highlights the genealogy of famous people, but what about the rest of us?  This course will guide you on a path to researching and documenting your ancestral past.  The course will cover both online and in-person strategies for doing the work of genealogy, and will very likely reveal fascinating family facts and stories.

Topics include creating a starting point pedigree chart, showing where and how to research (both online and offline), and how to organize the data and records that get collected over time.  Topics to explore include finding records in these categories: Immigration, Census, Directories, Newspapers and Churches.

Beginner Genealogy starts Feb 3, 2015. Register using the link below:
https://merrymeeting.coursestorm.com/course/genealogy-i-beginner-getting-started?page=4

Advanced Genealogy starts on Mar 24, 2015.  Register with the link below:
https://merrymeeting.coursestorm.com/course/genealogy-ii-advanced-topics?page=4


Craig is also teaching a class called "Blogging For Family History"

Blog writing can be an easy, enjoyable, and effective way to share family history content with a large audience.  This course will offer a starting point for creating your own blog, and support for learning the platform provided by blogger.com.  Emphasis will be placed on supporting the creation and development of one’s own blog.  Before class completion, participants will have published three to five blog posts.  Having access to a laptop for classroom use is recommended, and a gmail account is necessary.  

Blogging For Family History starts on Feb 4 and runs for five weeks.  Register using the link below:
https://merrymeeting.coursestorm.com/course/blogging-for-family-history


For more info about Craig Siulinski and his adventures in genealogy education, check out this article on the California Genealogical Society & Library blog.

Waterville, Maine 1890 Census now available through the Taconnett Falls chapter!

Many genealogists have run into the conundrum over the years of trying to find their ancestors in the 1890 census only to learn most of the census for that year was destroyed during a fire many years ago.  Researchers looking for their Waterville ancestors may be surprised to know a copy of the 1890 census still exists and was recently published through the hard work of the Tacconnett Falls chapter of the Maine Genealogical Society and Sam Teddy Publishing.  The paperback book contains nearly 300 pages (including index) and is a must have for anyone researching their 1890's Waterville families.

Thanks so much to the folks at the Taconnett Chapter for bringing this vital resource to print!

If you're interested in purchasing a copy, you can contact the Taconnett Falls chapter of MGS at taconnettfalls11@yahoo.com for more information.

For more information about how this resource came to be available, check out this Bangor Daily News article by Roxanne Saucier:

http://bangordailynews.com/2014/12/07/living/1890-census-records-for-waterville-gets-reprinted-as-new-284-page-book/