For a Limited Time!
The Chicago Genealogical Society’s Quarterly Journal Special Edition 150th Anniversary of the Great Chicago Fire 1871-2021 is available in hardcopy $10.00 and pdf $5.00 for a limited time. You can purchase a copy on the CGS website under donate. www.chicagogenealogy.org ;
Reminder – Members can find a copy of the issue as a .pdf in the members only section of the CGS website.
The Chicago Genealogical Society continues to commemorate the 150th Anniversary of the Great Chicago Fire.
We proudly present our CGS EXCLUSIVE video "150 Years Later: The Great Chicago Fire, Its Impact and our Ancestors' Firefighting History" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vtW3ZIGTI8
You can also find the link on the CGS website main page. Enjoy!
The Chicago Genealogical Society publishes a Special Edition 150th Anniversary of the Great Chicago Fire 1871-2021 Quarterly Issue to commemorate this historic event that impacted so many Chicagoans.
The cover map shows how large the burnt district was. It was published for the benefit of the Relief Fund. The issue is full of articles and pictures covering during and after the fire.
CGS Members - To access the electronic version, go to the Chicago Genealogical Society’s website at www.chicagogenealogy.org. Sign into the website and select Members Only Section button on the upper right side. Select The Chicago Genealogist tab. Look for the newest version “Vol 54, No 1 2021” on the top row. Click on it and then you can read & enjoy the newest issue.
Exciting things are happening at the Chicago Genealogical Society! Announcing a special military afternoon:
4 December 1:00pm & 2:30pm –
Roll Call of Resources: Researching Revolutionary War and U.S. Civil War Ancestors
Military Doubleheader! Two military webinars in one afternoon.
Join us for this special afternoon to learn about military resources with David Allen Lambert, Chief Genealogist of the New England Historic Genealogical Society.
1:00pm – Revolutionary War
2:00pm – 30-minute break
2:30pm – U.S. Civil War
Learn the best primary resources available both online and in local and regional archives. Learn how to find from Muster Rolls to Pension files for your ancestors. Also learn how to "Adopt the Regiment" to better understand the story of your ancestors through the stories of his fellow veterans. These lectures will allow you to obtain the necessary military proof for joining an associated hereditary society.
David Allen Lambert, Chief Genealogist of the New England Historic Genealogical Society since 1993. David is an internationally recognized speaker and author on the topics of genealogy and military history. David is co-host of Extreme Genes radio show and podcast since 2015. David's expertise is New England, Atlantic Canada, British Isles and military records.
Cost: $10 members (that’s only $5/per webinar!) and $20 non-members. Register at CGS website under events. Space is limited to 100 spots. A waitlist option will be available. No refunds after November 27, 2021. The online payment service fee of $1.50 will be deducted from refunds.
How to Use Pinterest
Even if you “don’t do” Social Media, give the concept in this blog post a listen . . .
Wouldn’t it be great if you could find lists of websites that were curated by experts when you’re researching a genealogical topic? Like a list of recommended research sources for the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 that was compiled by the Chicago Genealogical Society. This is exactly what you’ll find if you go to our CGS Pinterest Board called “Recommended Great Chicago Fire Research Sources” at https://www.pinterest.com/ChicagoGenSoc/the-great-chicago-fire-of-1871-research-sources/
And wouldn’t it also be great to create your own list of your favorite websites and to borrow parts of other people’s lists that they update for you (so you don’t have to search for any new website links)?
This in a nutshell is Pinterest. https://www.pinterest.com
After you create a free account, you can search for Boards (other people’s lists of websites). When you look at a Board, instead of a bullet point list you’ll see descriptive Pins like the one at the right (small visual bookmarks with a link to a website). When you click on a Pin, your computer opens a new window displaying that website. You can always use other people’s Pins, or by clicking the red Save button inside of a Pin, you can save it to your own Pin collection.
CGS has set up its Pinterest page at https://www.pinterest.com/ChicagoGenSoc/ with nine Boards:
If you’d like to get started with Pinterest, we suggest that you visit the Pinterest Help Center at https://help.pinterest.com/en And here are some topics that can help you get started:
If you’re hesitant to join any Social Media platform due to privacy concerns, we recommend that you use a name other than your legal name, and you display a Profile photo of a sunset or other object.
We hope you’ll come visit our CGS Pinterest page and use our Boards to enhance your genealogical journey.
We're sharing our "Chicago Genealogical Society’s Recommendations for Commemorating The 150th Anniversary of The Great Chicago Fire on October 8, 2021." We hope they will help enrich your understanding of what some of our Chicago ancestors experienced.
The Chicago Genealogical Society Quarterly has been published since 1969 and the issues are loaded with genealogy gems. One such gem is church records from the Evangelical Lutheran Church of St Paul, Austin (Chicago). The church is located on Menard Avenue at Iowa Street.
A CGS member transcribed and recorded in the quarterly in the 1970s and 1980s church records. Also, included is a historical sketch that was compiled in 1961 for the 75th anniversary of the church.
The Chicago Genealogical Society published four listings:
Marriage Records – 1886-1900 (Vol. 8, No. 3, Spring 1976), information included groom and bride names & addresses, ages, birthdates, licenses number, wedding date, and attendants. A picture of the church appears on this issue’s cover. Picture above.
Birth and Baptismal Records – 1884-1900 (Vol. 16, No. 4, Summer 1984), information included name, birth date, baptismal date, and parents.
Confirmation Classes – 1887-1900 (Vol. 20, No. 4, Summer 1988), information included child, father, birthdate, and baptized.
Death Book 1 – 1886-1901 (Vol. 21, No. 1, Fall 1988), information included name, date of death, date buried, age, and survivors.
These issues are available through CARLI (Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Illinois) Digital Collections site.
http://collections.carli.illinois.edu/cdm/landingpage/collection/nby_cgs
Select “Browse all items in collection” and then look for volume and issue number.
Happy Researching!
With the 150th Anniversary of the Great Chicago Fire coming in October, maybe you are looking for a good read on the subject. Carl Smith’s Chicago’s Great Fire: The Destruction and Resurrection of an Iconic American City would be a good book to consider checking out.
Published in 2020, this book is one of the most recent books on the subject. Chicago’s Great Fire covers the agonizing experience of the fire and all the aftermath Chicagoans faced.
An added bonus, there are great maps in the book that were created by Dennis McClendon of Chicago Cartographics. Dennis gave a great webinar for CGS in October 2020. CGS Members can view the presentation in the members only section of the CGS website.
Check your local library for a copy.
Are you tired of the standard Zoom backgrounds? Want to show your love for Chicago? Would you like to impress your family and friends with a neat Chicago Zoom background?
The Chicago History Museum is offering FREE ZOOM backgrounds from their image collection. They offer several images you can download and use. There are instructions on both downloading the images and what to do on Zoom to set it up. Check out the Chicago History Museum website for more details Zooming through History - Chicago History Museum.
CGS Members,
The Latest Chicago Genealogist is Here!
See the online 2021 Summer Edition, Vol. 53, No. 4
To access the electronic version - on this website sign into the Members Only Section (button on the upper right side). Select The Chicago Genealogist tab. Look for the newest version “Vol 53, No 4 2021” on the top row. Click on it and then you can read & enjoy the newest issue.
Requested paper copies will be mailed once the printing is finished.
Chicago Genealogical Society is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. Address: PO Box 1160, Chicago, IL 60690-1160
