Summary of September’s Meeting

Summary of September’s Meeting

Disclaimer: Edited for public viewing.  This summary may not contain all items discussed in the business or public meetings.  Names mentioned are limited to Officers of OCGS.

Hello Society Members,

We had to fly through September’s meeting to give us time for our presentation, Kathy Huber on the Federal Census.  

Correspondence was interesting in the a different way this last month.  One request was looking for a specific location rather than an ancestor.  The location is the “Half Moon Ranch” which was associated with his family’s story of moving into this area.  We had to turn to our Facebook friends to find out, but the ranch still exists.  Dating to 1850, and part of an original allotment, the ranch ran several thousand head of cattle at one time.  The person making the request was so glad to receive the information he gave us a VERY generous donation.  The amount and name of the donor can be found in the minutes for September. 

In addition, we received a follow-up request from someone we had helped earlier. She requested two more copies of obituaries which we were glad to provide.

Old business consisted of notifying the group the 4 NGS book purchase, approved in July, had arrived and are being donated to the Okmulgee Public Library’s Genealogy Department.

These books are part of the National Genealogical Society’s “Research in the States Series”.  Each book is dedicated to a specific state.  For each book, the NGS contracted with a local authority to provide a book about resources for a specific state, following very specific guidelines to keep all books in the series alike in format.  We purchased books for Oklahoma, Missouri, and Arkansas and a special book about the American Indians of Oklahoma.

The books are helpful by identifying both physical locations within the state, and internet websites which contain information helpful to genealogists.  They identify resources such as Archives and Libraries and other major resources which will be helpful to your search.

These books will be available for check-out to OCGS members for a short time before they are turned over to the library where they will become part of the reference books not available for checkout to the general public.  So, please take a moment and come see what the new books contain.

In new business, Traci pointed out that one of the members had loaned the group a security camera converted for webcam use over a year ago.  She suggested that since this was just on loan, the Society should go ahead and purchase a camera for use in our hybrid meetings for when we can meet in person.  Since the camera used had proven itself to be sufficient, it was suggested to keep this particular model and not experiment with others.  At a cost of only $30, it was agreed we could always upgrade as the needs of the Society changes.  The current camera is a Wyze brand 1080p color security camera.  During the pandemic, when webcams were sold out, the company provided a free method to “flash” the firmware on this camera and convert it to a webcam suitable for use in video conference calls.  Having a camera separate from the built-in one of the laptop gives us flexibility in its use.

The meeting was adjourned and we had time for a little socializing before our presentation. We enjoyed visiting with some members we had not seen for awhile and received some good feedback.

Kathy Huber (author of the 2 Oklahoma books mentioned above) then gave us a talk about what information each of the different census years records contain.  In addition, she explained how to find the Non-Population schedules which accompany the census records.  These can contain additional information not found on the census records.

October will be the end of the year Annual meeting, as we take off for the months of November and December.  Topics for the meeting will be discussion on how to proceed for the year 2022 in light of pandemic changes.  Should the library remain closed, alternatives to how those who wish to meet in person can be accomplished would be very helpful.  There is a wealth of virtual presentations and material available but our Society was founded very much on a social basis and we do not want to loose that aspect.  If you cannot attend please submit any ideas you have.  Either email us or drop by and visit with Traci at the library on the subject.  She would love to see you.

Other important topics include the position of the President for 2022.  As explained in a previous email, Barbara is wishing to step down due to health impediments.  We will discuss what is needed from the President’s position in 2022, making changes as needed, and discuss ways we can achieve this.

Finally, we will entertain and discuss any projects, goals, or other items of interest we wish to pursue as a group for 2022.

Your input, whether in person or via email, is very much welcomed.

Hope to see you next month.