Exciting change and movement is happening at JewishGen.org. During this talk you will find out first-hand about significant new technology and features that will help you in your research, major impacts that JewishGen has had upon the broader Jewish community, and recent developments within the leadership team. Second Talk: Jewish Migration Patterns: Jewish Life in … Continue reading Avraham Groll -What’s New at JewishGen? and Jewish Migration Patterns →

(Feldberg Meeting Room, lower level) Registration is now closed. Research Sundays are an opportunity to: Get help with using your genealogy software Consult experienced researchers for help with your research questions in 30-minute scheduled appointments Work with a strategist to plan your next steps Get translation help with documents written in various foreign languages in … Continue reading Research Sunday →

The religious life of immigrant American Jews at the turn of the 20th century was in part transplanted from Eastern Europe, while some fascinating new religious phenomena emerged in the American context. Dr. Dan Judson describes trends such as “mushroom synagogues” popping up for the High Holidays, the “chazan craze” in which some cantors attracted … Continue reading Dan Judson – Welcome to America!: The Religious Life of Jewish Immigrants →

Members Bring a Friend For Free A visit to an abandoned Polish Jewish cemetery in 1993 launched Dan Oren on a 20-year search to solve the mystery of “Who is Buried in Sarah’s Tomb?” A visit with a cousin unearths a breathtaking photo of a Berlin family wedding from 1926 and leads to discovering their … Continue reading Dan Oren – The Wedding Photo: Genealogy Puzzles Discovered and Solved →

Janeen Bjork shows how searching through newspapers can augment our genealogy research. She explains how newspaper searches are done and how to manipulate your query to find results. She presents a very useful and often underappreciated tool that researchers can use. TV researcher and genealogy teacher Janeen Bjork has been obsessed with the information historical newspapers contain … Continue reading Janeen Bjork – Finding Your Family in Online Newspapers, One Character at a Time; and Spotlight Talk: John Simon – Finnish Jews: Strangers in a Stranger Land →

(Feldberg Meeting Room, lower level) Research Sundays are an opportunity to: Get help with using your genealogy software Consult experienced researchers for help with your research questions in 30-minute scheduled appointments Work with a strategist to plan your next steps Get translation help with documents written in various foreign languages in 20-minute scheduled appointments Learn … Continue reading Research Sunday →

Due to a family medical emergency, Joan Nathan will not be presenting her program. Are you considering taking a DNA test? Have you taken a DNA test to learn about your ancestry?  Are you confused by the results?  This workshop covers the kinds of tests available, the major DNA testing services and the differences between … Continue reading PROGRAM CHANGE: David Ellis – DNA Basics Workshop →

Genetic genealogy is particularly daunting for endogamous populations including Ashkenazi Jews and other groups who have married among themselves for generations.  Trying to identify actual relatives among the mass of distantly-related DNA matches can be frustrating.  Drawing on case studies, Lara Diamond will explain how you can succeed in spite of these obstacles.   Lara Diamond’s work has helped reunify family branches thought … Continue reading Lara Diamond – DNA Successes In (and Despite) Endogamy →

Are you considering taking a DNA test? Have you taken a DNA test to learn about your ancestry?  Are you confused by the results?  This workshop covers the kinds of tests available, the major DNA testing services and the differences between them, and how to interpret your results to get the most out of them. David Ellis … Continue reading David Ellis – DNA Basics Workshop →

Many of us have ancestors who began their American Experience in New York City. The five boroughs of the city offer many genealogical resources. Between the American Revolution and the Civil War, NYC’s population increased strikingly, from about 33,000 people in 1790 to more than one million in 1860. New York's population continued to grow (and create more … Continue reading Michael Strauss – Two Talks: New York City Research: Navigating Through the Five Boroughs; and The Great War: Researching Your World War I Ancestors →

Have you ever used the Russian Empire Revision Lists to research your ancestors? The lists contain census type data which may provide you with information not found elsewhere. Rhoda Miller’s presentation will discuss:  How to follow family histories between different Revision Lists and similar documents Research strategies involving multiple languages Historical and geographic changes to the area … Continue reading Rhoda Miller – Finding Families in the Russian Empire 1795-1917: Census Records and More →

Representatives of the Massachusetts Archives, the Boston City Archives, the Jewish Heritage Center and the JGSGB describe the records they hold, discuss how these records can be useful in your genealogical research, and explain how you can access them. Marty Crilly is the Archivist for Reference and Outreach, at the Boston City Archives, where she manages their … Continue reading The Genealogical Riches of Massachusetts’ Archives featuring a Panel of Local Archivists →

Designing and writing a family history book is a great way for you to put together the genealogy records and stories you have gathered, to enable you to share them with your family and with future generations. During this talk, you will learn techniques for organizing information, laying out pages, combining text with images, and using software for creating … Continue reading Elayne and Steve Denker – Sharing Your Family Genealogy and History →

Germany’s boundaries have changed markedly over time. This talk works backwards from today’s Germany to the early 19th century, emphasizing historical events and their impact on Jewish life. Before 1871, Germany was composed of dozens of separate states.  Where (in what states) were my ancestors located?  What records were kept where? What was the legal status of … Continue reading Roger Lustig – Jewish Genealogy in the Germanies →

Are you confused by documents saying your ancestors were from Austria?  It’s likely they came from Galicia, which was in the Austrian Empire before World War I and now is split between parts of Poland and Ukraine.  This talk is geared to those new to Galicia research and covers: Changing borders Marriage and naming traditions Identifying … Continue reading Renee Steinig – Galicia Basics: What Every Galitzianer Needs to Know →

At its program year end, JGSGB is putting on a special two-part program unlike anything we’ve ever done before: a reenactment of the immigrant experience of our ancestors! The event will take the viewer from getting tickets to filling out paperwork to boarding a steamship and then pick up at Ellis Island with the various … Continue reading Year-end Program on Ellis Island Features Reenactment and Two Talks by Joel Weintraub →