Mennonite History and Genealogy

Yesterday, Kevin from the Hiebert Library at the Fresno Pacific Bible College was the guest speaker at the Merced County Genealogical Society meeting. His informative program was very interesting. He told us about the different groups of Mennonites who left Europe and settled in the U.S. and Canada. The first ones to settle in the U.S. were from Switzerland, they settled in Pennsylvania in the 1600s. They became known as the Pennsylvania Dutch, which was a misnomer.
The groups from Holland and Germany left their homelands for Poland and later Russia before migrating to the U.S. and Canada in the 1870s. About 2/3 of them stayed in Russia, but by 1920 decided to leave, but by then the U.S. and Canada had quotas for immigrants and so some went to South America. I wish I could remember more details of Kevin's talk. I was really impressed with his vast knowledge. There were questions from the audience and he had an answer for each one.
Then he told us about the "Grandma" file and everyone laughed when he said he was related to himself 6 different ways. So, when I came home, I decided to see how many times I am related to myself. Only five ways, so he has me beat.
I'm my own 4th cousin, once removed; 8th cousin 3 times removed; 9th cousin once removed and also 9th cousin twice removed. I'm sure this is all on the Dirks / Unruh lines.
For more information on the "Grandma" file see http://www.calmenno.org/index.htm.
To see which books are available at the Hiebert Library go to: http://geoweb.fresno.edu

GENEALOGY

Yesterday the Merced County Genealogical Society presented their beginners' class in genealogy. We had a good turn-out, about half of the people were guests. It was interesting, even for the members who don't consider themselves beginners.
Rosalie did a nice job of explaining the basics and made it interesting, interjecting personal experiences.
Next, Ann did her presentation on "Google Your Family Tree." Ann purchased the book by Daniel M. Lynch, and gave us some tips that she learned from it. With a handout and the overhead projection, she shared many useful insights on how to narrow your search when looking for your ancestors.
The book is huge and is available from Barnes & Noble and Amazon. It's a bit pricey, but I'm sure well worth the money. Ann told us that some group (I think in Fresno)is doing a series of classes, just on this book. If you look it up at Amazon, read what the customers say about it. The information within this book is also helpful for non-genealogical searches.
GENEALOGY ON TV: If you have missed the PBS series of "Faces of America" with Louis Gates, Jr, you can see the missed episodes at video.pbs.org/program/1397337072
This program is aired on Wednesdays at 8 PM. It started February 10.
ALSO: NBC will air a program titled, "Who Do You Think You Are? on Fridays at 8 PM, starting March 5. For more information see: nbc.com/who-do-you-think-you-are

MENNONITE GENEALOGY: On Saturday, March 20, the Merced County Genealogical Society will present Kevin Enns-Rempel from the Hiebert Library at the Fresno Pacific Bible College, who will speak on the Mennonite Origins in Europe, the different kinds of Mennonites and he will give us an overview of the genealogical resources at the Center of Mennonite Brethren Studies in Fresno. He will tell us about the "Grandma" (Genealogical Registry and Database of Mennonite Ancestry) project, which was created by the California Mennonite Historical Society. This database is available on CD for $30.00 and currently has more than one million individuals linked to their families. For more information on this project see http://www.calmenno.org/index.htm
The Merced County Genealogical Society meets in the Merced County Library, 21st & O Street every third Saturday at 1:00 PM downstairs in the Gracey Room. Visitors are always welcome and there is no charge.

"Grandma" file

Yesterday my exciting mail was the cookbook kit from the publisher.
Today my exciting mail is the "Grandma 6" file of 1,107,275 individuals of Mennonite ancestry from the California Mennonite Historical Society in Fresno.
People on the database are those who can trace their ancestors back to the Mennonite churches in Russia or Prussia.
They have one of my lines going back to the 1500s in Holland.
Very interesting to browse through and see who is related to whom.
If you have a Mennonite background, you may want to check it out. You can build your family tree in no time at all. They get their information from church records, census records, obituaries, information from genealogists and other sources. They are very careful and are checking and rechecking information all the time.
Click on this link to their website.
The above picture is the monument to Menno Simons in Witmarsum in the Friesland area of the Netherlands. Menno Simons was born in Witmarsum in January of 1496 and was a Catholic priest there in his early years. He later questioned their teachings and and was one of the early Anabaptists. His followers became known as Mennonites.
To learn more about Menno Simons, go to Wikipedia.