WCGS Meeting - January 2012 and Upcoming February Meeting

WCGS VP Pat Goebel sent the last meeting's update my way to post, so here's some info!

The Williams County Genealogical Society had the first of 2 Monday nights at the movies at the Williams County Public Library Annex, in the Harmon Room.  A DVD of The Orphan Trains was presented.

 Ethel Lambert was a volunteer for the Children’s Aid Society in New York. She took it upon herself to preserve the Society’s newspaper article because she felt they would have historical value someday. Upon studying the architect of the building, she discovered a hidden closet, which housed many records, diaries, scrapbooks of newspapers and letters written by the children of the Orphan Trains.

Between 1854 and 1929, the Children’s Aid Society in New York and other East Coast charities, sent more than 150,000 children to farming communities to begin new lives with foster families.  Interviews with elderly survivors and old letters from children helped paint a picture of what life was like for these orphan children.

In the early 1900’s, America's vision of childhood was changing. The emphasis was shifting from the virtues of work to the benefits of play. So on May 31, 1929, the Children’s Aid Society’s last of the orphan trains left New York and headed to Sulfur Springs, Texas. The era for child labor for families in the West was over.

The next meeting will be Monday February 13, 2012 at the Williams County Public Library Annex, Bryan, Ohio. The meeting will start at 6:30 pm.  The DVD will be Ellis Island.  Ellis Island opened in 1892, as a federal immigration station and closed in 1954. Millions of immigrants passed through the station during that time. Jane Kelly will have many interesting books about Ellis Island that you may browse through. Popcorn will be provided.  Bring your own drink.  The public is invited to join us for this enlightening evening.

The purpose of WCGS is the preservation of county records and family research.  Monthly meetings are held on the second Monday of each month, excluding July and August, at 6:30pm, in the conference room of the West Annex of the Bryan Public Library. The public is invited for all the meetings.

For further information concerning WCGS, visit the Website at www.wcgs-ogs.com or write to WCGS, P.O. Box 293, Bryan, Ohio 43506.