The Genealogy Society of Cobb County Georgia is offering its annual Genealogy 101 course for beginners on Saturdays, Jan. 28-Feb. 25.
The five classes will run 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Check-in is at 9 a.m. on the first class day. The first four classes will be held at the First Presbyterian Church of Marietta, 189 Church St., Marietta.
Subjects for the first four classes include: getting started, census records, vital records, ancestor’s occupations, ancestral places, genealogy record types, DNA for genealogy, military records and African-American genealogy research.
The final class will meet in the Georgia Room at the Charles D. Switzer Public Library in Marietta to explore the published genealogy materials from all over the country found there.
Registration is required, either online or by mail. See registration information at cobbgagensoc.org/wrkshp_sem1.htm. Early registration deadline is Jan. 11. Classes are free, but the cost is $39 per set of optional course materials by Jan. 11, or $49 afterward. For further information, call 770-316-7109.
Courthouse restoration
The restoration of the the 1881 Hancock County Courthouse — which burned in 2014, was rebuilt and reopened this past August — is the theme of the Jan. 13 Georgia Archives Lunch and Learn lecture at the archives in Morrow.
Speakers will be Ben Carter and Joe Watkins, architects with Carter Watkins Associates Architects, who managed the project. It’s at noon and is free; bring your own lunch.
While the building has been restored and looks much as it did before the fire, there was a significant loss of historical records. Microfilm copies of the recorded copies of most of the 19th century records can be found at the Georgia Archives, and at sites in the county and some other libraries. The Georgia Archives also has original courthouse records from Hancock County that can be seen only in a visit to the building. These “loose papers” were luckily brought in before the fire.
For further information, check georgiaarchives.org or call 678-364-3710.
Twisted Twigs
Twisted Twigs is a website mentioned by some readers as a good place to get expedited copies of pensions and other documents from the National Archives, both in Washington as well as branches in St. Louis. It's worth checking out at twistedtwigsgenealogy.com.
There are always new sites cropping up and it’s buyer beware, as we can’t guarantee how long they will be around.
