Colonial Immigrants: Who They Were and Where They Came From

Before the Revolutionary War, geography, topography and a strong indigenous people presence shaped migration patterns. This webinar covers the dominant push-pull forces and challenges for colonial migration. Using maps and other graphics, the major migration routes by region will be described: New England, mid-Atlantic and southward from Virginia. Famous paths such as the Kings Highway, the Great Valley Road, and the Fall Line Road as well as less well-known paths such as the Greenwood Path and the Forbidden Path will be covered. Using a set of case studies, the process of locating clues in local histories, land records, and vital records is unfolded.

Researching ancestors who lived in colonial New England can be challenging. This webinar begins by tracing settlement patterns, setting the stage for understanding key records and where to find them. For the 17th century, many unique published resources exist to help the family researcher. During the colonial years, several conflicts such as King Philip’s War and the Seven Years War affected settlement and thus the surviving records. The 18th century culminated in the Revolutionary War, but also saw the continued growth of settlement and ultimately resources for the family historian.

Have you lost an ancestor between 1780 and 1840? Often connecting our ancestors to colonists can be quite a task. Learn how to employ probate, land, census, tax, and other compiled records to help bridge the gap.

Imagine leaving everything you and your family has known for generations for an unexplored, unfamiliar, possibly hostile "New World." Who were these people of unbounded courage, faith, and resiliency who ultimately laid the foundation for the America as we know it? What stories they must tell! What do the records…

While many 17th-century Connecticut colonists have been researched and written about, there remain research challenges: distinguishing people with the same name, deciphering hard-to-read handwriting, understanding unique record sets, and more. This class examines the beginnings of Connecticut, New Haven, and Saybrook Colonies and the people who inhabited the lands prior to colonization. The class reviews published genealogical resources and record transcriptions and then presents strategies to locate and utilize primary sources. The webinar concludes with tips on overcoming common research challenges.

As a major center of American history and starting point for westward migration, Philadelphia has much more to offer genealogists than just tourist sites. The greater Philadelphia area is home to a variety of underrated libraries and archives that should not be missed by serious family historians.

What are the secrets to finding New England vital records today? If you understand how they were made, and all the things that have happened to them since, you will bring new skills and insight to your vital records research. Also, let's develop some strategies for those times when the record cannot be found.

This class will briefly explain the different types of DNA (autosomal, Y-DNA and mtDNA) and provide helpful tips for analyzing your DNA matches to identify your strongest matches to help you go back to your immigrant ancestor. A few examples of using this approach will be shown through mini case studies.

The Oregon Trail extended approximately 2,000 miles from Independence, Missouri to Oregon City, Oregon from 1840 to 1869. More than 50,000 people traveled to Oregon and a great number died on the journey. This talk will cover resources for conducting research on the people and their lives along the trail.