Last Night's TSGS Meeting

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Our 08 June 2010 meeting...

This is the last meeting of the 2009-10 year for TSGS. The sky turned very dark in the afternoon threatening a bad storm was on its way. We ended up with a small crowd of 16 people. We installed the elected Officers & Directors for 2010-11 that begins on 01 July. After our business was completed, everyone split off into discussion groups. No one had a camera, so I attempted to use my cell phone to get some photos. Most did not come out well... the ones posted had to be doctored to make them barely acceptable. The first two looked best in sepia-tone.
Bettie Cook led a group in discussing courthouse records. L-R: Janet Mann, Becky West, Kim Nightingale, Bettie Cook.

A second discussion group was led by Mary Lou Bevers concerning Internet online databases. L-R: Don Counts, Mary Lou Bevers, Dan Korb, Doug Korb.

Above is Doug Korb who was installed for her third term as Vice-President of TSGS.

Above is Don Counts who was installed as a Director of the TSGS Board. Don has served in the past as one of our TSGS Presidents.

Karin M. Kirsch was installed as the TSGS Recording Secretary. Karin has served in the past as a TSGS President.

- Photos taken & submitted by JGWest (we need a volunteer to take photos for the society!)

From the FIRST MATE's PHOTO ALBUM...

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2010 TSGS Annual Dinner Meeting...

With a good turn out and a great speaker, last night's event at Sirloin Stockade was enjoyed by all. In the first photo below, I had just presented Don Counts with a TSGS Certificate of Appreciation for his numerous contributions to the TSGS Cruiser Blog. From March 2009 to March 2010, Don made 40 significant contributions! In all 41 people sent in contributions during this period for a total of over 160 daily blogs which represented about 52% of the blogs that were published during that year time span! The other 48% came from me as blog master with the bulk of that as TSGS news. I am very pleased with the number of people who helped with the blog. Three others were mentioned as major contributors: Chris Myers, Linda Young-Niemeier & Taneya Koonce.

We recognized Brenda Jerome with a TSGS Certificate of Appreciation for her contributions to the Tri-State Packet and her 12 contributions to the TSGS Cruiser Blog. Three others mentioned who contibutes articles to the Packet were Larry Goss, Carol Bartlett & Gilbert Schmitt.

A Certificate of Appreciation was presented to Connie Conrad for her significant contribution to the genealogical world with her organizing & indexing records in Posey County, Indiana. Connie listed several of the people present that has helped her on this monumental project: Don Pierce, Janet Mann, Deb Travers, Vannetta McDowell


Below is pictured our guest speaker, Harold Morgan, and Claudette Pfingston (who sent me these photos). Mr. Morgan a noted local historian, lecturer, and author presented a very interesting slide program, "Evansville During the Depression."

The TSGS 2010-11 Officers Nominating Committee announced a partial list of the slate of officers and that they are seeking nominees for Secretary & Program Chair plus a few more Board Directors. If you are interested in serving or have a suggestion of someone contact any on the committee: John West, Doug Korb, Bettie Cook or Don Counts.

- Photos submitted by Claudette Pfingston

THE CAPTAIN'S LOG –TSGS News

At yesterday's TSGS Board Meeting, it was decided, at the invitation of Willard Library, to Co-Sponsor the Tree Roots Workshop later this fall.

The 2010-11 Nominating Committee appointments were announced by the President: Brenda Jerome (Chair), Don Counts, Bettie Cook & Doug Korb. They will soon be asking members to serve in offices.

The Board will recommend at the May regular membership meeting that we will change the meeting start time from 7:30 PM to 7:00 PM in order for the library to close up a little earlier. If accepted by the members present this will begin at our September meeting the first meeting for 2010-11.

Come join us at our April 13th. Dinner Meeting at Sirloin Stockade on Bellemeade near Green River Road. Harold Morgan (Historian, Speaker, Author) will present "EVANSVILLE DURING THE DEPRESSION."

John G. West, TSGS President

From the FIRST MATE's PHOTO ALBUM...

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Photos taken by Brenda Jerome of our Christmas Social last night. Despite the terrible rainy night most of the TSGS officers and some of our local members made it out to Willard Library to enjoy holiday snacks & treats and fellowship with each other. Larry Goss brought his Keystone steropticon that shows pictures in 3-D... really cool. This gadget was the front runner of the View Master with its round disks.
L-R: TSGS Treasurer Bettie Cook; Board Director Janet Mann; John Scherer.

L-R: TSGS Corresponding Secretary Sue Hebbeler, Vice President Doug Korb; Dan Korb; President John G. West (laughing at something Larry Goss was joking about).

L-R: TSGS Board Director Becky West; Program Chair Mary Lou Bevers; Treasurer Bettie Cook; Board Director Janet Mann; John Scherer.

L-R: TSGS President John G. West (who probably should go on a diet!); Board Director Larry Goss; Board Director Rena Goss; Board Director Becky West. Other officers attending, but not pictured were TSGS Board Director Don Counts & Secretary Brenda Jerome (photographer for the night). And also attending was Lyn Martin (TSGS Ex Official Board Member representing Willard Library). Many of our members and officers take a quick punch & snack break and then back to researching! Some sat around and told jokes & stories.

I told the story that happened at my mother's funeral in 1997. Mom and her brothers were all Catholic, but Dad was not... so all of us were not raised Catholic. When the Priest came to the visitation at the funeral home to perform the Rosary... Mom's three brothers and families (all Catholic) slipped out the back door. I looked around and suddenly noticed there were no Catholic visitors present. I went to the Priest and introduced myself and informed him that the only Catholics present was my mother & him. The Preist said, "You mean the only two Catholics here is me and the deceased?" He laughed and said this will be a first! He gave as good a Rosary as I had every heard, but he did cut it short.

- Photos taken & submitted by Brenda Joyce Jerome, CG. Commentary by JGWest

THE CAPTAIN'S LOG –TSGS News

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TSGS salutes all U.S. Veterans today!

Ancestry.com has announced that it is providing free search on its U.S. Military Collection through 13 Nov. in honor of America's veterans.

Last night's TSGS meeting...

We had a nice turn out with about 25 people. [Please click on photos to get a larger image... I apologise for the clarity of these photos.*]


Photo of some of those in attendance: first table Colonel John Wesley Powell & Karin Marie Kirsch - second table TSGS Vice President Doug Korb & her husband Dan Korb.

TSGS Treasurer Bettie Cook presenting the Treasurer's Report. Bettie also presented a brief overview of Probate Records later in the meeting.

Willard Library's Special Collections Director [Genealogy & History] Lyn Martin gave a report on library news and upcoming events. TSGS President West is to the left and TSGS Secretary Brenda Jerome is seated to the right.

Above, John G. West is leading the discussion group for Genealogical DNA Testing. Mary Lou Bevers, TSGS Program Chair, conducted a discussion group in the Bayard Room concerning Geographical Boundary Changes.

[*I asked a friend to take photos for me last night with my camera which is not easy to use without blurring photos - these were the best. There is a trick to avoid the photos from blurring with my camera which is not easy to do, but the best bet will be for me to get a better camera! - JGW]

THE CAPTAIN'S LOG –TSGS News

TSGS Monthly
Membership Meeting
Highlights - 09 Jun 2009

TSGS President John G. West conducting the last meeting of the 2008-2009 Fiscal Year. To the right (seated behind desk) is TSGS Secretary Lyn Martin. The 2009-2010 Proposed Budget was approved by the members. Also, the TSGS members voted to donate $50 as a "Gift Of Appreciation" to the Willard Library Staff Association for their service and dedication to the public genealogical community and TSGS members.

2009-2010 Officers Installation: Standing in the back row (L-R) - Vice President Douglas Korb; Treasurer Bettie Cummings Cook, CG; Corresponding Secretary Sue Hebbeler; Membership Chair Don Pierce; Program Chair Mary Lou Bevers; Director Becky West. Seated in front row (L-R) - President John G. West; Recording Secretary Brenda Joyce Jerome, CG; Director Donald R. Counts; Director Karin Marie Kirsch; Director Janet Breivogel Mann. Not present for photo: Tri-State Packet Editor Brenda Legate; Directors Larry Goss, Gloria Strott & Rena Goss.

The program for this meeting was presented by Willard Library's
Special Collection Director Lyn Martin.

-Photos taken by Kenneth Gilkey and submitted by JGWest

THE CAPTAIN'S LOG –TSGS News

TSGS Meeting Program 12 May 2009

During last night's Tri-State Genealogical Society monthly membership meeting (at Willard Library), Brenda Joyce Jerome, CG, presented her program on her Smithland, Kentucky Project. Researching the people of this small river city which is the county seat of County during the 1830-1850 time span. Brenda had several interesting tales and several murder cases. The program was entitled: "Smithland - Genealogy of a Kentucky River Town."

TSGS Elects Officers & Directors

for 2009-2010

Board of Directors: (Seated L-R) Janet Mann, Gloria Strott, Becky West, Karin Kirsch, Don Counts and (standing to the left) Larry Goss. Also elected a Director, but not present for this photo is Rena Goss. Officers (standing L-R after Larry Goss): [Brenda Legate - Tri-State Packet Editor not present for this photo], Don Pierce - Membership Chair, Mary Lou Bevers - Program Chair, Bettie Cook - Treasurer, Sue Hebbeler - Corresponding Secretary, Brenda Jerome - Recording Secretary, Douglas Korb - Vice President, and John G. West - President.

We had a nice attendance of about 30 people, many attended the HELP Session conducted by Mr. Mark Lammers entitled "Research at the Family History Library."

Top photo taken by JGWest with photo of officers taken by Ken Gilkey.

John G. West, President

THE CAPTAIN'S LOG –TSGS News

Quite a bit of news for our Society:


We had a Board Meeting scheduled for Sunday afternoon at Willard Library, but at 10:40 AM the weather bureau issued a “tornado watch!” We just barely had a quorum for the meeting and any type of bad weather reduces attendance. As expected, I got several calls of cancellations. I sent an an email telling everyone that the meeting will be postponed until Monday night (tonight). As an old Air Force weatherman, I was not as concerned about a “watch” since it is designed to advise you that bad weather conditions exist and we must be alert to changing conditions. I decided to go to the library in the event some show up. We ended up with five of us (Brenda Jerome, Vice President Doug Korb, Treasurer Connie Conrad, Deb Travers & myself), we had a nice group to serve as a Finance Committee to do the preliminary work for going over the finances that the Board will be talking about tonight. We have discovered that despite running a deficit for the cost of our quarterly journal, The Tri-State Packet, of nearly $750 this year... that the Treasury has been carrying forward a large sum of money. One of the purposes of tonight's meeting is to determine how much to expend on a large collection of records on microfilm that is becoming scarce and being offered at a very good price to the library and/or TSGS.

Tomorrow night's meeting (the second Tuesday of the month) is our regular Monthly Membership Meeting at Willard. We have been having what we call ”HELP” Sessions before the meeting which is free and open to the public. We had a cancellation a few days ago, but Mary Lou Bevers has agreed (almost literally at the last minute) to give a program she has developed called “Falsified Legal Records and Other Pitfalls” - I am really looking forward to attending it.

We always have a great program for our regular meeting and this meeting is no exception with the Browning Family & Associates presenting an update and new features on their Online Genealogy Database. This is an incredible, large database of Obituaries and Newspaper Clippings. I use this database along with the Evansville City Cemeteries Database nearly every day and rarely do I not find what I am looking for! If you have not used the Browning Database, you should come to see how it works. But, if you do use it, you already know you want to learn more about it!

Visitors to our regular TSGS Web Site have been from 25 different countries now and we are very close to 1000 unique visits to the site since 14 Dec 2008 (that is less than 90 days!). We have had 25 unique visits from Ireland & the United Kingdom (Ireland with 16!). Our TSGS Cruiser Blog registered nearly 3000 hits since 27 January 2009 (and that is less than 40 days!).

John G. West, TSGS President