In case you have not checked out the new boards, I would like to encourage you to do so. Several volunteers have been entering obituaries and the size of the site has doubled in the past four to six weeks. It is a very valuable resource to researchers and is growing almost every day. There is a great search engine that picks out all of the surnames (or any word, for that matter) in the obituaries so when you do a search, you get every obit that mentions the name you are searching on. Besides being able to search on your surnames, you could actually search to find all the funerals performed by a particular minister or at a particular church or cemetery or by a particular funeral home. Check it out at: <http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec?htx=board&r=rw&p=localities.northam.usa.s tates.missouri.counties.franklin> If you have obituaries on hand, please take the time to enter them into the system so they will be available for other researchers. If they were printed in newspapers outside Franklin County (such as when someone born here died elsewhere), PLEASE enter those as they are less likely to be found by Franklin County researchers, particularly if the place of death is not known. If you would like to volunteer to enter obituaries, let me know and I will supply you with some. All I ask is that you type accurately and that you return any you are unable to enter so someone else can do so. Also, I want to be sure everyone is aware that the Franklin County Historical Society is holding the First Annual FCHS Picnic and History Fair on Sunday, September 9. It will be held at the pavilion behind the St. John's UCC Mantels Church on Highway A between Union and Washington, starting at 2 p.m. All of the historical societies in the county are invited to set up a table at the fair to sell whatever books, postcards, or other items they may have available. There will be a catered lunch ($8 per person -- paid in advance - you can contact me for info on this) Also, Gary Lucy, the well-known Washington artist who has painting numerous Missouri and Mississippi river scenes and riverboats, will be our guest speaker. He will be talking about his extensive research on the Lewis and Clark trail. Please plan to join us on that date. Thanks, Sue Cooley List Administrator and FCHS President