Joan, my dear, Thanks for the kind words--and the other ones, too. Since my father was my only ancestor born in Florida, my involvement with the list has less to do with looking for "civilization" than with something I heard in my Rotary Club years ago: "Service is the rent we pay for the space we occupy." I'm just trying to pay a few installments on the magnificent assistance that I have had from others over the years. Now, Good Heavens! Someone from DC and the Fort Lauderdale area talking about "civilization"? WHERE have you experienced it? Certainly not in either of those places! I've seen them both up close and personal, but stayed there only as long as necessary (National Archives excepted, of course). I was not even aware there IS a library in East Palatka (even after serving on the Library Board of Directors for seventeen long years.) I'm astonished to hear of it. Are you sure you weren't in Crescent City? The genie stuff is centrally located in Palatka, so you would indeed have seen "zilch" elsewhere. We do have a rather cute little million-dollar library in Palatka, plus four others in the county. The main library was built in 1991 and has a genealogy department with a collection which includes a computer, film and fiche reader/printers, the IGI, Family Search, PERSI in hardcopy and on CD-ROM, Germans to America, Passenger and Immigration Lists Index, The Territorial Papers, The American State Papers, the Confederate Military History volumes, the 128-volume War of the Rebellion (known here as the War of Northern Aggression, of course), Cavaliers and Pioneers, Savage's Dictionary, The Great Migration, the FL Consolidated Death & Marriage Indexes, the 1935 State Census, indexed transcriptions of all Putnam County US censuses 1850-1920--plus the 1885 State schedules--with marriage indexes incorporated into them as well, etc., etc. We're small, perhaps, but fairly powerful, I think. Do come see us; we're ecumenical here and won't hold your "place of origin" against you. We'll even overlook your 'nole traitors (Oops! We have just offended at least one list-member with a mention of mascots. So sorry!) We're about 50-50 around here, and several of us have been to college and one or two even to graduate school. We have a few traffic lights on main arteries, and most of us wear shoes--at least on Sunday. Sometimes I almost wish I'd been born here instead of in Jacksonville. Oh, well.... It was good to hear from you. --Brian Michaels in PALATKA! (Go, Panthers! <grin>) ************************************************************** JOANH954@aol.com wrote: > > Brian, > Just a note to say YOU ARE A MOST WELCOME ADDITION to the FLORIDA List!!! I > haven't seen this much "action" since joining a year ago. Course, if I lived > in Palatka guess I'd look for some "civilization" as well.....(have an uncle > in East Palatka on the river - reject from Chiefland!) me....well, I'm an > "import" from DC, originally, now retired in Coconut Creek (read Ft Lauderdale > area).... > Didn't realize Palatka had a decent library - I went to the one in East > Palatka - GREAT people there just zilch on genealogy.... > Again, WELCOME ABOARD..... > Joni Hudson (of the "famous" HUDSONs of Levy/Alachua/Gator (altho some 'nole > traitors) country (but NOT the Hudsons of East Palatka--so far as anyone > admits!)