Decoding Secret Societies: Finding Your Male Fraternal Ancestors

The United States Postal Service can trace its roots to 1775 to the Second Continental Congress; where Benjamin Franklin was appointed the first Postmaster General. Officially created in 1792; and elevated to a cabinet department in 1872; and changed in 1971 to an official Government agency. These records are an overlooked genealogical source to locate family members who may have worked with the postal system.

Do you have ancestry with membership in the Eastern Star? The Daughters of Rebekah? or another woman’s fraternal organization. This lecture focuses on those female fraternal auxiliaries and the rich genealogical material of family members who may have belonged to one or more of these secret societies.

This lecture focuses on records of the Canadian Expeditionary Forces; including the C.E.F. personal files, Commonwealth grave registry, Regimental Nominal Rolls, and American’s fighting for Canada during this conflict and other records of the Royal Navy and Marines.

Sometimes referred to as the twentieth centuries “Forgotten War” The Korea War has been overshadowed by the larger conflicts both before and afterwards-namely World War II and Vietnam.

This lecture focuses on genealogical and historical materials to finding ancestors who fought during this conflict.

This second session will be broken into two groups of records that relate to your ancestors who fought in the Civil War.

This opening session brings into the lecture some of the causes and effect of why the Civil War was fought. As

This third session will cover genealogical and historical material that relates to organizations outside of the United States and Confederate Armies.

This final session begins with the end of the Civil War and the start of Reconstruction in 1865.