Shettleworth, Poitras to lead genealogy fair in Winslow — Living …

Taconnett Falls Genealogical Society will hold its free genealogy fair beginning at 9 a.m. Saturday, June 15, at the chapter’s headquarters in the old Winslow library at 10 Lithgow St. in Winslow.

Earle Shettleworth Jr., head of the Maine Historic Preservation Commission, will speak at 9:30 a.m. on “Civil War Monuments in Maine.”

Jean-Guy Poitras, who has compiled many volumes of Franco-American marriage and vital records, will talk about “Vital Records in New Brunswick” at 10:45 a.m. Several of his books are available at Maine State Library, Bangor Public Library and the University of Maine at Fort Kent.

I will present “What about Those Cousins?” including my cousinship to Vice President Hannibal Hamlin, World War II pilot Jimmy Doolittle and Maine artist Waldo Peirce, at 1 p.m.

The library this chapter has accumulated is truly remarkable, from books to clippings to databases. Its resources include:

— Bob Chenard’s Franco-American research.

— Somerset County Marriages, 1830-1890.

— Obituary cards, 1900-present.

— Original manuscripts and Bible records.

— Large collection of town reports, 1875 and up.

— Maine Registers, 1871 and up.

— Statewide Sons of Union Veterans Membership Cards.

— Maine Old Cemetery Association cemetery inscriptions.

— Family genealogies.

— Town and county histories.

— Miscellaneous deeds and wills.

— Family newsletters.

— Vital records.

— Correspondence and genealogical charts from Agnes Higgins Ames, Ethel Conant, Mabel Gould Demers, Hope Horne, Leona Dean Jameson, Kay Trickey, Madeline MacDonald, Jean Rodgers Patten and Harriet Warren.

The library also is open 1-4 p.m. Wednesdays and Saturdays except in winter, and opens at 1 p.m. the third Sunday of the month, prior to the 2 p.m. monthly meeting of the group.

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This is primetime for many local historical societies, so don’t overlook what you can find out through these priceless resources. The opportunity to visit beautiful corners of the state is a bonus.

Recently, I visited the Jonesport Historical Society, which will celebrate its 10th anniversary with a banquet on Saturday, July 27, at the Community in Christ Church. Visitors to the JHS home in the beautiful Sawyer Building at 21 Sawyer Square will be amazed at the resources JHS has accumulated already.

Computers at the Jonesport Heritage Center in the building boast three tremendous databases supported by a grant received from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Preserve America Initiative:

— A genealogy database, created with Family Tree Maker, with information on 70,000 people.

— A cemeteries database with information on 4,300 gravestones in 38 cemeteries in the Jonesport-Beals area.

— An archives database with more than 10,000 photos, 9,000 pages of newspaper articles, documents and more than 400 video clips.

The museum and heritage center are open 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, June to September. If you are coming from some distance, confirm that the building will be open by calling 497-2828 or 497-2395.

Public meetings are scheduled at 6:30 p.m. the fourth Thursday of the month, March to October. Donald Woodward, Bill Pliskin and other members encourage researchers to bring a picnic lunch beforehand and enjoy the “million-dollar view” from the back yard, namely the marina.

The June 27 meeting will feature a program on “Mansfield Family History” by Maralyn and Laura Mazza.

You also will find JHS resources at Peabody Memorial Library, 162 Main St., Jonesport. The library is open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday; and 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday.

The library has a website at peabody.lib.me.us, and Jonesport Historical Society has a link on the library’s website.

Membership in the Jonesport Historical Society is $5 a year, sent to Jonesport Historical Society, PO Box 603, Jonesport, ME 04649. You are welcome to send in dues for 2014 and 2015 as well, if you like. Donations are welcome, too.

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I want to give an early plug to the Wednesday, June 19, meeting of the Penobscot County Genealogical Society at Bangor Public Library. The starting time this month will be 5:30 p.m. rather than the usual time of 6 p.m.

Betsy Paradis, a knowledgeable local history librarian at the library in Belfast, will speak on “Using the Internet to Do Genealogy.”

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Sarah Elizabeth Palmer Tent, Daughters of Union Veterans; and Daniel Chaplain Camp No. 3, Sons of Union Veterans, invite the public to a Flag Day memorial service at 2 p.m. Saturday, June 15, at Elmwood Cemetery on the hill in Guilford.

A memorial service will be held for Thomas Matthews and Henry Curtis, two of Guilford’s many Civil War veterans. The ceremony will include a profile of the lives of these two men — do come and hear about Guilford’s historic past and honor our Civil War Veterans. For more information, contact Estella and Wayne Bennett at 876-3073.

For information on researching family history in Maine, see Genealogy Resources under Family Ties at bangordailynews.com/browse/family-ties. Send genealogy queries to Family Ties, Bangor Daily News, P.O. Box 1329, Bangor 04402, or email familyti@bangordailynews.com.