For those of you who don't already belong to New England Historical & Genealogical Society this may be of interest. Anyone attending may wish to report tips for Middlesex County researchers after the event. Thanks in advance! Martha in Illinois Digging for Your Roots in Connecticut Saturday, November 6, 2004 This one-day seminar at the NEHGS Library in Boston will assist those just beginning their research as well as those who have found themselves mired for years. Enjoy lectures by several experts covering the history, migration, records, and repositories of each area. This intensive seminar will address basic genealogical research as well as printed sources relevant to the geographical core of the state, probate records, and the resources of the Connecticut State Library. It will conclude with several interesting case studies. Join us to enhance your Connecticut research skills! Lectures will include: An Overview of Genealogical Research in Connecticut Joyce S. Pendery, certified genealogist, NEHGS trustee, and contributor to the Connecticut research area of NewEnglandAncestors.org. This talk will provide a brief overview of genealogical resources in Connecticut from the 1630s to today with an emphasis on information that can be found in Connecticut town halls, libraries, and historical societies, as well as on the Internet and at major libraries outside the state, including NEHGS. The Connecticut Core In Print - Updated Gary Boyd Roberts, senior research scholar at NEHGS. The "Connecticut Core" is the area bounded roughly by New London, New Haven, Hartford, and Woodstock, within which area sources are superb and a majority of genealogical problems can probably be solved through printed sources. Outside this geographic core are western or "pioneer" Litchfield County ("on its way to Duchess County, New York") and Fairfield County in the south, now largely suburban New York City. Negotiating the Maze of Connecticut Probate Records Barbara Mathews, certified genealogist specializing in colonial Connecticut research, contributor to the Connecticut research area of NewEnglandAncestors.org. This lecture reviews the types of estates and documents found in Connecticut probate records, including testate, intestate, and insolvent estates, as well as documents such as wills, inventories, bonds, guardianships, and distributions. The presentation identifies where probate was recorded at different periods in Connecticut history and closes with examples of how to locate the records on microfilm. Resources of the Connecticut State Library Richard C. Roberts, head of the history and genealogy department of the Connecticut State Library. The Connecticut State Library maintains and provides access to comprehensive collections of materials on the history of Connecticut and its people. Learn more about its services and genealogical resources such as the Barbour Collection of Vital Records, the Hale Collection of Cemetery Inscriptions, and the Church Records Index. Some Connecticut Case Studies: Thinking Out of the Box Helen Schatvet Ullmann, CG, FASG, associate editor for the Register, author of Descendants of Peter Mills of Windsor, Connecticut (1998); Congregational Church Records Of Naugatuck,Connecticut (1987); A Mills and Kendall Family History; and compiler of an index to The Connecticut Nutmegger. Compiled genealogies and vital, church, cemetery, newspaper, and probate records are usually consulted first when starting genealogical research. In Connecticut many ancestors have fallen through the cracks of the box of what is typical. This lecture will review several case studies which venture outside the box of expected research tools to explore other options and solutions. Download a registration form at http://www.newenglandancestors.org/download/WordConnNov2004.pdf