Greetings Everyone, As you will recall from reading your Welcome Letter when you subscribed to the Chickasaw County List.... I mentioned that I am an avid supporter & contributor to the Chickasaw County Genealogical Society (CCGS), located in New Hampton. I would like to take the opportunity to encourage List Members who are not "long distance" members of CCGS to consider a membership. I say this for several reasons: 1. Just by being a "long distance" member of CCGS you will feel more "connected" to Chickasaw County, 2. Membership dues are very reasonable (just $8 per year), 3. CCGS mails 4 Quarterlies per year to every member, 4. the Quarterlies always contain very useful information; And the Members names, addresses (and now e-mail addresses) PLUS the surnames you are researching are published in the Quarterlies (this has proven very valuable to me personally, more than once). 5. CCGS volunteers will do research for CCGS members for a mere $5 per hour + the cost of copies + postage. (Wonderful for those of you who can't get there in person.) The local CCGS volunteers know the available resources in the County and can be of great help to you in obtaining the actual records you are seeking for your research. One of the MOST valuable resources I want to tell you about is the old Newspapers Collection. The newspaper collection begins with The New Hampton Courier, dating back to 1876. The preservation and microfilming of many of the old newspapers has been a special CCGS project for a number of years... and it still continues. We can all help each other via the Mail List, but when it comes to actually obtaining vital records, obituaries, marriage notices, and countless other documents or records.... we can get that help from CCGS. That's one of their main objectives, to assist researchers, as well as preserve genealogical data for the future generations. If you are interested just do the following: Send your Name, Address, E-mail Address, and up to 20 surnames you are researching in Chickasaw County, and a check for the membership dues to: Chickasaw County Genealogical Society Attn: Mrs Betty Tylee, President P.O. Box 434 New Hampton, Iowa 50659 The hope is that this Mail List and CCGS membership are just two more ways to enhance your research success... after all, that's what it's all about, right! I hope this information is helpful and informative to many of you, since that was my intention. Good Hunting! -Jannette