17th Century English Research with The Society of Genealogists, UK

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Presented by Else Churchill, Genealogist of the Society of Genealogists
Saturday, February 1, 9:30 AM - 3:30 PM
American Ancestors Research Center, 99-101 Newbury Street, Boston
Cost: $85 (includes four lectures, breakfast, and lunch)

More than 20,000 individuals migrated from England to New England between 1620 and 1640. Today, there are tens of millions of Americans who descend from these early settlers. Genealogist Else Churchill of the Society of Genealogists—the premiere and largest genealogical society in the United Kingdom—will lead this full-day seminar that explores English roots prior to 1700. Moving beyond parish registers, Else will provide practical research strategies, an overview of essential and lesser-known resources, and illustrative case studies to take your research to the next level. She will also share ways in which to conduct research from a distance—and on the ground—with the Society of Genealogists in London.

About the Speaker:
Else Churchill has been the Genealogist at the Society of Genealogists (SoG) in London, England since 1998. She has more than thirty years of experience as a professional genealogical librarian and researcher. Formerly the Librarian of the Institute of Heraldic and Genealogical Studies, Else now leads the SoG's education and publishing programs as well as being the Society's subject specialist. She has appeared on both the UK and American television show, Who Do You Think You Are? and on Find My Past on the Yesterday Channel. A regular columnist for Your Family Tree, she has written many articles for the British genealogical press, national media, and of course the Society's own Genealogists Magazine. Else composed the modules on advanced genealogy techniques and sources for the BBC History Family History website and has acted as a genealogical consultant for the BBC's web based genealogical enquiries and newsgroup. She lectures regularly for the Society of Genealogists, The National Archives, and for local groups around the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand, and the USA. Her main interests lie in the seventeenth century and sources for people who lived through the English Civil Wars, but Else also specializes in researching prior to the Victorian Censuses.

Agenda:
9:30 – Check-in and refreshments

10:00 – Lecture: Researching Before 1700  - This talk will look at some 17th century sources that might supplement the deficiencies of contemporary parish registers, including State Papers, tax records, heraldic visitations, quarter sessions, Protestation Returns and records of recusants and other dissenters as well as soldiers of the English Civil Wars. It will use case studies and examples from sources to illustrate what might be found.

11:00 – Lecture: 17th Century Problems: Strategies and Searches - This session will look at the possible sources that might help extend research back in England.

12:00 – Lunch (provided)

1:00 – Lecture: English Church Courts - Often described as the "bawdy courts" or "court of scolds" these records illustrate the moral and religious constraints that governed communities in the sixteenth, seventeenth, and eighteenth centuries. English family historians are familiar with church court records relating to wills and marriage licenses, but much more information can be found amongst the records of the church courts.

2:00 – Break

2:15 – Lecture: The Society of Genealogists at a Distance - A guide to discovering what the Society of Genealogists holds on the surnames and families you are researching by using the new SoG website and the various catalogues and lists contained therein, along with the online data provided from the library. This talk also looks at what can’t be obtained online, but which can examined either on a personal visit of through the search/copy service.

3:15 – Final Q&A

3:30 - Conclude