Calgary Alberta FamilySearch Centre

The Calgary Family History Centre is dedicated to providing education and support for the Family History community in the Calgary area. Our staff of about 30 volunteers are here to help you in your research.

Location
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Calgary Alberta Stake Centre 2021-17th Avenue S.W. Calgary, Alberta T2T 0G2


 * Location on Map

We are located on the lower level of the Calgary Alberta Stake Centre. The entrance to the Centre is on 19A Street S.W. Please park in the lot directly east of the Centre. Press the Black Button beside the double doors on the east side of the building to ring the front desk. A staff member will answer and admit you.

Phone
(403) 571-3700

Hours of Operations
Tuesday &amp; Wednesday     9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.     7:00 p.m. – 9:30 p.m. Saturday      9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

 CLOSURES 2011 

    September 3           ~    Labor Day Weekend

    October 1               ~   LDS General Conference

    October 8               ~   Thanksgiving Weekend

    Dec. 11 to Jan. 2  ~   Christmas

When the weather is inclement, please call before you come.

Policies

 * Our Centre is Fragrance Free due to some of our staff and patrons are allergic.
 * No food or drinks are allowed.
 * Children under 12 must be accompanied and monitored by an adult.

Executive

 * Director: Sheila Penner
 * Assistant Director: Valerie LeBaron
 * High Council Advisor: Larry Penner
 * Patron Services: Carol Hutchinson
 * Computer Specialist: Janice Cushman
 * Treasurer: Brien Cushman
 * Staff Trainer: Frances Swendsen

 

29 Sep 2011
Family Search and its Many Facets  Come and learn about the many facets of FamilySearch.org, including FamilySearch historical records, family trees, wiki, research courses, and much more!

Presenter - Frances Swendsen


 * Thursday - 7:00 p.m.
 * Class will be in the Scout Room

27 Oct 2011
Icons, Icons, and More Icons  ''Find out what some of the many program icons on the computer desktops at the Calgary Family History Center represent. Learn about those programs that are specific to our FHC, as well as those that you can have on your own computer.''

Presenter - Janice Cushman


 * Thursday - 7:00 p.m.
 * Class will be in the Scout Room 

26 Jan 2012
Getting Started  ''Learn how to get started in family history research. This class is designed for those with little or no previous experience.''

Presenter - Carol Hutchinson


 * Thursday - 7:00 p.m.
 * Class will be in the Scout Room 

Register for Classes
       Please Register for Classes at:

                 http://genwebworks.net/cfhc

15 Sep 2011
Opening Social

Presenters - Sheila Penner &amp; Valerie LeBaron


 * Thursday - 7:00 p.m.
 * Class will be in the Scout Room

13 Oct 2011
Come Learn about Local Family History Resouces in Calgary.

Presenters - Various


 * Thursday - 7:00 p.m.
 * Class will be in the Scout Room

24 Nov 2011
Staff Christmas Party


 * PotLuck
 * Look for the sign-up sheets in November
 * Thursday - 6:30 p.m.
 * In the Lounge

Week of Aug 28, 2011
      1. Go to familysearch.org

      2. Click on ‘What’s New?’ on the right side

              a)  Read article ‘Visit Our New Learning Center’                       i. Review from last week.                      ii. Do at least two more courses.

              b)  Read article ‘Search Feature Changes in Upcoming FamilySearch Releases’.                       i. Watch for new releases and then practice using the new features.

      3. IMPORTANT - TRAINING

              a)  Staff Trainings are on the 2nd Thursday – please mark your calendars.

              b)  Community Classes are on the 4th Thursday – please mark your calendars.

              c)  It is important that you attend as many of these trainings and classes as you can.

              d)  The more that you learn, the better prepared you will be to assist our patrons.

Week of Aug 21, 2011
      1.  Go to family.search.org and sign in.

      2.  Click on Learn.

      3.  Scroll down to Research Courses.

      4.  Click on 'View the Courses.              a)  Under What’s New '                    Do the class – Getting Started with Family History Research.

             b)  Under Most Popular                     Look at the 5 Minute Genealogy Episode.

             c)  Under What are you Looking for                    Choose a country and do at least one of the courses. 

Week of Aug 14, 2011
Wiki ~ Part Two

Go to https://wiki.familysearch.org/en/Calgary_Alberta_Family_History_Centre

(This is the Home Page for our Family History Centre on the Wiki.)

''      1. Save this as a favorite on your home computer so that you can find it easily. 2. Check out the class schedule and register for ALL of the classes. a) It is important for all of the staff members to attend all of the classes,''

''                       even if it is not an area that you personally are interested in. b) You will learn many ideas and tips for helping our patrons when they come to the centre''

''                       to do their own research. 3. Check out the Staff Training              a)  Remember, it is important for all staff to attend these meetings in order to stay on''

''                       top of things. This way you will be able to offer excellent help to our patrons. b) Mark the Staff Christmas Party on your calendar.''

On the right side of the page, click on Browse by Country

  Click on the letter ‘E’ and then choose England

''      1. See what is available to help with research in England. 2. On the map of England, click on one of the Counties. a) Now you have specific tips for researching that county.              b)  Check this out too. 3. Other countries can also be broken down into smaller areas. a) Canada – Provinces              b)  USA – States              c)  Scotland – Counties              d)  Switzerland – Cantons              e)  See what other countries can be broken down into smaller areas.''

Week of Aug 7, 2011
Wiki ~ Part One

Learn How to use Wiki in FamilySearch

      1.  Go to the Wiki https://wiki.familysearch.org/en/Main_Page.

      2.  Sign in using your LDS user name and password.

      3.  On the right side is a box “New to the Research Wiki?”

              a)  Click on Learn More               b)  Learn more about how to use the Wiki

      4.  Using the back arrows, go back to the Home Page of the Wiki.

      5.  In the Search box, type in Calgary Alberta Family History Center.

''              a)  There is some information on this site now.               b)  More information and pictures are going to be added soon. c) Check back often to see what is “NEW” at our Centre.''

      6.  Using the back arrows, go back to the Home Page of the Wiki.

''              a)  Click on List All Countries.               b)  At the top, click on the letter G and then go to Germany. c) On the left side, scroll down to Language and Languages.               d)  This is where you can find a German Word List. e) Go back to the Home Page for Germany and follow other links''

                       and learn how to do research in Germany.

      7.  Learn how to use the Wiki and be able to find many valuable tips on researching in many

                       countries.

Week of Aug 1, 2011
Let's Find Out about the Places of Your Ancestors

      1.  Choose a place where one of your Ancestors are from.

      2.  Go to Google Maps and put the name of the place in.

                 Notice what other towns, rivers, lakes, mountains are nearby.

      3.  Look at the Aerial view to see the look of the area – trees, farmland, lakes, rivers, mountains.

''      4.  Go to Google Images and put the place name in quotes. e.g. ''"Ballybay, Ireland"

      5.  See what pictures you can find of the town.

''                 Often you can find Period pictures of some places. e.g. Glasgow, Scotland''

      6.  Try many different places of your ancestors.

Week of July 25, 2011
Census Records

      1.  Pick one of your ancestors and trace them through the years in the Census Records.

      2.  Find them with their parents and siblings.

      3.  Find them with their spouse and children.

      4.  See what information you can find out about your family –

                 occupations, birth dates, immigration information, birth places of parents, religion,

                 land owned, literacy etc.

      5.  Choose another ancestor and keep going.

      6.  Put the information that you find in your Personal Genealogy Program.

                  e.g. PAF, Roots Magic, Legacy etc.

Collections

 * Family History Library Catalog:Microfilms from the Family History Library Catalog can be ordered online from home and can be viewed at this centre.

Our Family History Centre has an extensive collection of research materials, including:

CANADA  Ontario Vital Records Indexes    Birth 1869 - 1912     Marriage 1869 - 1927     Death 1869 - 1937 Ontario Marriage Registrations 1869 - 1914 Ontario Early Marriage Registers Ontario Land Record Indexes (fiche) Nova Scotia B/M/D Indexes 1864 - 1877 Quebec Marriage Index (Loiselle, Rivest, Drouin) Quebec Family Index (Jette, Tanguay) Alberta Homestead Record Index Southern Alberta Cemetery Records

BRITISH ISLES  England/Wales Civil Registration Indexes    Birth 1837 - 1960     Marriage 1837 - 1960, 1972, 1973     Death 1837 - 1976, 1980, 1983 England - Boyd's Marriage Index 1800 - 1837 England Probate Indexes 1383 - 1858 England/Wales National Burial Index 1538 - 2010 Ireland Civil Registration Indexes     Birth 1864 - 1921     Marriage 1845 - 1921     Death 1864 - 1921 Eire / N. Ireland B/M/D Indexes 1922 - 1958 Ireland Marriage License Index 1629 - 1864 Ireland Index to Griffith's Valuation 1848 - 1864 Scotland Civil Registration Indexes     Birth 1855 - 1932     Marriage 1855 - 1925     Death 1855 - 1955 Scotland Old Parochial Register (O.P.R.)

EUROPE  Hamburg Direct and Indirect Passenger Lists St. Petersburg - Lutheran Church Records 1833 - 1885

LDS  Crossing the Ocean Index 1840 - 1885, 1889 - 1925 Crossing the Plains Index 1847 - 1869 LDS European Card Index 1840 - 1925 Alberta Temple Records 1923 - 1949

Databases &amp; Software
In our Centre we have Free Access to premium family history software and websites that generally charge for subscriptions.

 FHC PORTAL 


 * 19th Century British Library Newspaper Digital Archive
 * Access Newspaper Archive
 * Alexander Street Press – The American Civil War    Research Database / Letters and Diaries / Images, Photographs, Posters &amp; Ephemera
 * Ancestry.com
 * Find My Past
 * Fold3.com (Footnote.com)
 * The Genealogist
 * Genline FamilyFinder
 * Godfrey Memorial Library
 * Heritage Quest Online
 * Historic Map Works Library Edition
 * Paper Trail
 * World Vital Records

Hardware and Equipment

 * 8 Computer Workstations with Printer access
 * 9 Microfilm Readers (45 mm)
 * 4 Microfilm Readers (16 mm)
 * 2 Microfilm/Microfiche Reader/Printers
 * 4 Microfiche Readers
 * Digital Imaging System
 * Photo Copier 

 

 

Staff Research Specialties
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RESOURCES IN OUR LOCAL AREA

 * Alberta Family Histories Society

        712 – 16 Avenue NW  (Calgary)

        Phone # 403 - 214 - 1447                 http://www.afhs.ab.ca/


 * Glenbow Museum

        130 – 9 Avenue SE (Calgary)

        Phone # 403 - 268 - 4100                 http://www.glenbow.org/


 * Calgary Public Library (Main Branch)

        616 Macleod Trail SE  (Calgary)

        Phone # 403 - 260 - 2600                http://calgarypubliclibrary.com/


 * University of Calgary Library (MacKimmie Library)

        2500 University Drive NW  (Calgary)

        Phone # 403 - 220 - 8895                http://library.ucalgary.ca/

LINKS
'Here are some websites that might be of interest to you. '


 * Automated Genealogy (Canadian Census 1851, 1901, 1906, 1911)

http://automatedgenealogy.com/site.html


 * Library &amp; Archives Canada

http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/index-e.html


 * Ontario Cemetery Finding Aid

http://ocfa.islandnet.com//


 * Find the graves of ancestors.

http://www.findagrave.com/


 * Cyndi’s List

http://www.cyndislist.com/

VOLUNTEER AT THE CENTRE
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