Monthly Program

Monthly Program

Save the Date!

Join us for a presentation by Jim Jackson.

Session 1:  Putting it All Together

Most lectures focus entirely on a particular type of record or research methodology, i.e. family records, church and civil records, census research, land records, military service, etc. This presentation follows one the Ingall and Wilder pioneer families, through their travels 'Out West', examining the many records that were generated and left behind - just like your family.

Session 2:  Michigan Biographical Index 

An overview of this website that was selected as one of the 75 best state websites of 2025 by Family Tree Magazine. Along the way, this is an opportunity to analyze the methodology of working with a very large project (this site has over 1,500 merged sources and over five million names). The scope of this session includes breaking the entire project into manageable tasks; ongoing maintenance; measuring progress; and how to successfully sort records.

Presenter Bio:   Michigan Biographical Index

I have been interested in Genealogy and Local History since the mid-70s, and served as President of the Detroit Society for Genealogical Research, Inc., the Oakland County Genealogical Society and the Calhoun County Genealogical Society. I have been the index editor of the DSGR Magazine since 1994, and the Past-Camp Commander for Camp #22 of the Sons of the Civil War (SUVCW) in Battle Creek, MI.
In addition to articles published in Genealogical Computing, Genealogical Helper, Heritage Quest and Keywords (published by the American Society of Indexers), I have written The Guide to the First Fifty Years of the DSGR Magazine, (selected as one of Michigan's 50 best genealogical resources by Michigan's HAL (History, Arts and Libraries), and The List of Pensioners on CD-ROM published by Heritage Quest. Additional works may be found on Amazon.com or by clicking the eStore link to the left.
I was honored to receive the 2006 Lucy Mary Kellogg award from the Michigan Genealogical Council for "significant contribution to the preservation and education of Genealogy and History."
My website, Michigan Biographical Index (michlist.com) was once again selected as one of the 75 Best State Websites of 2026 by Family Tree Magazine. This is a cumulative full-name index merging more than 1,500 publications and manuscripts, that currently includes over five milltion citations.
I have taught classes and presented talks to various local and national societies, including the Great Lakes Conference, Fort Wayne, IN; the American Society of Indexers Conference in Philadelphia, PA; the Local History Conference, Macomb Community College, MI; the Ohio Genealogical Society in Cincinnati, OH; the Ontario Genealogical Society in Oshawa, Ontario; and the National Genealogical Society (NGS) Family History Conference in Grand Rapids, MI.
Member of Genealogical Speakers Guild and a life member of the SUVCW.

PRESENTER's WEBSITE:  https://michlist.com

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