Lineage & Hereditary Socieites Workshop on November 13, 2018

Please note: All units of the Beaufort County Library are closed Monday, November 12, 2018 in observance of Veterans Day. 

Regular hours resume on Tuesday, November 13th. The Research Room will re-open at 9 AM that day and we have an extra special family history workshop in the afternoon! 

Have you been putting off joining the Daughters of the American Revolution, the Sons of Confederate Veterans, the Society of the Cincinnati, or another ancestor-based lineage or heritage society because you don't know where to start or how to gather the necessary evidence of your ancestral lines?  Do we have the perfect workshop for you - and even better yet - there's no need to register for this free program!

Join  BDC staff at the St. Helena Branch Library on Tuesday, November 13, 2018 at 4:00 PM for a “Lineage & Hereditary Societies: What are they and how do you join them?” Workshop with Bonnie Wade-Mucia.

Wade-Mucia is a Professional Genealogist and owner of Keeper of the Past Genealogy, LLC. As a native New Englander, she became fascinated with her family history and has been researching her genealogy for over 30 years. Bonnie is a graduate of the Boston University Genealogical Certificate program and the ProGen Study Group. She successfully completed the 2018 course specializing in DNA at the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy. She is the Lineage Chair and Librarian for the Emily Geiger chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution as well as the state Vice-Chair for the Volunteer Genealogy Committee for DAR. She is the former Governor of the South Carolina Mayflower Society. She is a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists, the National Genealogy Society, and the Genealogical Speakers Guild. Bonnie resides in Bluffton, SC with her husband, Joseph.

The workshop will include discussion of the various types of lineage and hereditary societies, what the requirements are to join some of the best known ones and how to put together your application with your documented proof of descendant. She will also be covering how you can use DNA as proof in your lineage society applications. Participants are encouraged to bring along their lineage society questions and applications to work through during the workshop.

The Workshop is free and no registration is required. 

Holiday Schedule

All units of the Beaufort County Library will be closed:

Monday, November 12 for Veterans Day

Wednesday, November 21: All units close at 5 pm and will remain closed on Thursday, November 22 and Friday, November 23rd. Happy Thanksgiving to all.

November 2018 Schedule and Programs

October was so busy with programs, talks for community groups, and the imminent departure of Amanda, that I didn't have time to write even a weekly post over the past two weeks.
Now that November is upon us, here's what is on tap:


The Beaufort County Historical Society is coming to visit its archives in the Beaufort District Collection on Thursday, November 1st at Noon. The meeting is free and open to the general public. I've been busy preparing a short talk about the content of their records.

Organizational records can be tricky. A lot of the content is functional in nature and often not particularly exciting. On the other hand, underneath can lie some controversial matters. The trick will be in making rather routine information seem interesting - without offending anyone who is a current member or whose family members were once members of the Society.

On Friday, November 2nd, the BDC heads back to Bluffton Branch. This time the topic is the largest industry that Beaufort District ever had - phosphate mining - as told by Dr. Shepherd McKinley, University of North Carolina Charlotte, the award-winning author of one of the best titled history books Stinking Stones and Rocks of Gold. Join us at 2 pm in the large meeting room for this free and informative lecture.

There's a slight change regarding the scheduling of the next Beaufort History Museum / Beaufort County Library local history series lecture. It will be held on a Thursday, November 8th rather than our customary Tuesday. (Tuesday is Election Day and we encourage all to exercise their ballot). Registration is required and opened 25 October.

Now that Amanda is gone, Kristy and I are holding down the fort until we get another Preservation Associate. We are receiving applications and scheduling interviews but it may be awhile before we get the right person on board to help cover our 40 hours a week public service schedule. We will do our best to minimize interruptions to our usual and customary schedule but we do have a known shortage on Tuesday, November 6th. I will be out of the office so I will be unable to cover Kristy's lunch period. Accordingly, the Research Room will be closed from Noon to 1 pm on Election Day.

We are thrilled to have Dr. Ted Rosengarten premiere his lecture about how he would write his award-winning book, Tombee: Portrait of a Cotton Planter, originally published in 1986, now given the changes in historiography over the past 30 years.

His primary field of research and writing is African-American history so this lecture is entitled "Tombee Revisited: Managing Enslaved Labor on a Sea Island Cotton Plantation." We have room for 70 people for this Beaufort History Museum/Beaufort County Library local history lecture so register before all the seats are taken: https://beauforthistorymuseum.wildapricot.org/event-3112504. The lecture will be closed when full. 

Veterans Day falls on a Sunday this year so Beaufort County government will observe it on Monday, November 12th. All units of the Library will be closed Monday, November 12. Regular hours will resume on Tuesday, November 13.

Lineage & Hereditary Societies is the topic of Bonnie Wade Mucia's workshop on Tuesday, November 13 at St. Helena Branch Library.  She will be going over the various types of lineage and hereditary societies, what the requirements are to join some of the best known one and how to put together your application with your documented proof of descendant. Wade will discuss where to look for vital records and other proof along with tools for Pre-1850s research and how to get past difficult brick walls. She will also be covering how you can use DNA as proof in your lineage society applications. Who accepts DNA and which types of testing you will need. So, bring your lineage society questions and applications to work through some of your questions and problems.

Bonnie Wade-Mucia is a Professional Genealogist and owner of Keeper of the Past Genealogy, LLC. As a native New Englander, she became fascinated with her family history and has been researching her genealogy for over 30 years. Bonnie is a graduate of the Boston University Genealogical Certificate program and the ProGen Study Group. She successfully completed the 2018 course specializing in DNA at the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy. She is the Lineage Chair and Librarian for the Emily Geiger chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution as well as the state Vice-Chair for the Volunteer Genealogy Committee for DAR. She is the former Governor of the South Carolina Mayflower Society. She is a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists, the National Genealogy Society, and the Genealogical Speakers Guild. Bonnie resides in Bluffton, SC with her husband, Joseph.

The holiday season continues with all units of the Beaufort County Library closing at 5 pm on Wednesday, November 21st and staying closed on Thursday, November 22 and Friday, November 23rd for Thanksgiving and Heritage Day. Regular hours resume on Saturday, November 24th.

BDC Schedule October 16, 2018

Hours of operation will be slightly different on Tuesday, October 16th on account of a staff shortage. Come do your research from 9 AM to 1 PM and again from 2 PM to 5 PM. The Research Room will be closed for lunch from 1 PM to 2 PM that day. 

BDC Celebrates Archaeology Month 2018

Update: 8 October 2018 - Dr. Poplin is sending his able associate, Jeff Sherard, to fill his place on Saturday.  Also, a heads up : The Beaufort District Collection Research Room will be closed from 1 PM to 2 PM on Tuesday, October 16th for Amanda to get her lunch. We'll be short staff that day.

October also is Archaeology Month. Due to the re-scheduling of "Altamaha and the Yamasee Indians," we actually have two programs - both with Dr. Eric Poplin -  on tap to celebrate this year. He'll drive down on Tuesday for his lecture about Altamaha and return on Saturday, October 13 for the ever popular artifact identification session.

The Beaufort History Museum / Beaufort County Library local history series Season 3 opening lecture is focusing on the archaeology done at the site of the Yamasee Indians most important town, Altamaha. Dr. Eric Poplin was the lead archaeologist on the excavation and is said to be bringing along some actual artifacts from the dig for program participants to see.

Hurricane Florence caused us to re-schedule this lecture. Registration opened to the general public on September 25. Check this link:  https://beauforthistorymuseum.wildapricot.org/event-3073818 for seats that might still be available.

We will have another archaeology related program on Saturday, October 13th. Dr. Jon Leader, the State Archaeologist, and Jeff Sherard of Brockington & Associates will hold court that day to conduct our 6th Annual "What the Heck IS it? Artifact Identification Session." 

Drop in with your artifacts and try to stump the learned  archaeologists. The program and information is free. Anyone who has objects that they would like to have identified is very welcomed to attend. At past sessions, we've seen "stuff" from prehistoric periods, the time of Jesus, up to relics from Home Depot! (Psst: If it turns out that you have an artifact from Home Depot, these guys will not laugh at you. They are that professional.) Here's the downside: You have do to all the hauling.  Here's the upside: The program will be held in the Beaufort Branch's Theresa Dunn Meeting Room on the first floor so no climbing of stairs or riding the elevator will be involved.

Don't have anything to bring? That's ok, too.  Even passive bystanders who come to the sessions see  interesting objects and learn interesting things - listening to what the archaeologists say about what shows up on their table from library customers. In this case, eavesdropping is not frowned upon.  

"What The Heck Is It?" Returns

It's almost time for our annual "What the Heck Is It?" Drop-In Identification session to celebrate Archaeology Month. Start gathering up items that you'd like for the experts to identify. We are honored to again host South Carolina State Archaeologist Dr. Jon Leader and Dr. Eric Poplin, Archaeologist at Brockington & Associates from Mt. Pleasant, SC. Unfortunately due to scheduling conflict we cannot host our session on "International Archaeology Day" but will do it a week earlier, on Saturday, October 13, 2018 beginning at 10 am in the Beaufort Branch Meeting Room, 1st floor, 311 Scott Street, Beaufort, SC. 


It is so much fun to see what folks have stashed away in their homes - artifactially speaking. Over the past years, we've seen arrowheads, spearpoints, fossils, Cold Charlotte, 1st century lamps, tourist produced pens (thought by the owner to be an Egyptian receptacle for poison), a Nazi flag taken during World War II, and even some 20th century concrete garden statuary from Home Depot. So there's no need to be embarrassed if what you have turns out to be entirely something else. Based on past experience, I know that the archaeologists will not laugh at you.


Anyone owning an artifact with an unknown provenance, date of origin or identification is invited to bring it to "What the Heck is It?" for identification our expert archaeologists. There is no limit of the number of items you can bring and no fee for the identification. Just understand that whatever you bring, you have to do all the lifting and toting to get it into the building and to get it back to your vehicle.

Heck, even if you don't have an unidentified item to bring, come in anyway to learn about the artifacts which have been brought in for analysis. It`s cool to see the array of items.

Please note: The Beaufort County Library is closed for Staff Work Day today, Wednesday, October 3th. Regular hours resume October 4, 2018.

Family History Month Programs and Outreach

Tomorrow begins Family History Month. Although we of cours, support what some call the most popular hobby in America, that is, searching for one's roots, every day, we make a particular effort to share information about family history materials and resources that we have in the Library during October. As usual we will be making extra genealogy related posts on our Facebook page. Plus this year, staff has three activities planned to celebrate: one opened to the general public that requires advance registration and two for community groups.

The "Tracing Your Gullah Geechee Roots" workshop being held in concert with the Center Family History of the International African American Museum and the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission is still going ahead on Saturday, October 6th - unless we have another hurricane threat.

Slots were filling fast though there might be a few seats left. Be sure to register because registration is required. There are three ways to register:

E-mail: info@gullahgeecheecorridor.org  Subject line: "Tracing Your Roots"

Call:  843-818-4587

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/380539399090450/

When we can fit it in, BDC staff like to go out into the community and reach audiences who may not use the library or who may have not been in a library since high school or college. Grace set a goal of reaching out to 400 people through July 2018 - June 2019 programs and events not held in one of our library buildings. At present, there are still 335 people left before we meet that goal. I trust that enough folks will turn out for the family history related community programs below to help me draw down that balance to less than 300 people as we go into November. 

Grace will tell the members of the Callawassie Island Genealogy Club about "Genealogy Materials and Services of the Beaufort County Library"on October 17. 

On October 27, Grace will be presenting the “Getting Started with Family History Research at the Beaufort County Library” session for the “Mind, Body, Spirit: Looking to the Future, Embracing the Past!” conference sponsored by Select Health of South Carolina.  

Please note: The BDC staff can come to your organization to talk about the topics that we cover in our collection: local history, genealogy, Gullah culture, archaeology, and natural history. We have prepared talks already on Child Labor in Beaufort District; Hurricanes of the 19th and 20th centuries; Postcards; Using Ancestry Library Edition and other genealogy related resources; Downtown Beaufort in the 1940 - 1960s, and How to Talk South Carolina when it comes to place and surnames. If interested, contact us at bdc@bcgov.net or call 843-255-6468 to discuss topics and schedule options.  

Banned Books Week: September 23 - 29, 2018

For 36 years now, librarians, library customers, publishers, teachers, booksellers, journalists and reads of all ages and types have been observing "Banned Books Week" the last week of September to highlight the value of free and open access to information. It's probably fitting that the Beaufort Branch is hosting its Great American Read Book Discussion Group right in the middle of Banned Books Week.

Read more about why and where many classics that have been taken off the shelves of some school and public libraries.


Though the list of most challenged books tend to change each year, some titles are on the list virtually every year since publication. Prime examples? To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee; John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men and Grapes of Wrath; and Slaughter House 5 by Kurt Vonnegut.

Learn about this year's most challenged books - and what you can do to combat censorship -- in this video produced by the American Library Association:

Tracing Your Gullah Geechee Roots Workshop Filling Up - Seating is Limited

Join the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission,  the Center for Family History at the International African-American Museum and the Beaufort County Library for a FREE genealogy workshop on St. Helena Island. As of this writing, there are about 20 seats left for this session, so do not delay, register today if you plan to attend.

To register, send an e-mail to info@gullahgeecheecorridor.org or call 843.818.4587.

The workshop is designed to teach you how to find more of your Gullah Geechee family members and to learn why understanding aspects of Gullah Geechee culture (such as kinship-based living patterns and other customs, traditions and beliefs - some retained from their West African origins) can help to inform your research and deepen your understanding of your family's history in the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor.

You will also be introduced to the many resources that the Beaufort County Library has on Gullah Geechee history and culture. Special guests, Kimberly Morgan and Akosua Moore will share their experience researching the Binyard and associated families of Edgerley Plantation on the Marine Corps Air Station.

 

This program will take place on the beautiful Sea Island of St. Helena - a community rich with important Gullah Geechee heritage sites like its storied praise houses, the historic Brick Church and the Penn Center - one of the U.S.'s most important education and cultural institutions.

If you want additional information about the workshop, please contact the GGCHCC at info@gullahgeecheecorridor.orginfo@gullahgeecheecorridor.org or call 843.818.4587.

Please mark your calendars to reflect that all units of the Beaufort County Library will be closed on Wednesday, October 3rd for Staff Work Day. Regular hours resume on October 4, 2018. 

Re-Scheduled Programs

The evacuation of the area in light of the approach of Hurricane Florence led to the postponement of two local history programs. Both have been re-scheduled for October.

The first lecture of Season #3 of the Beaufort History Museum/Beaufort County Library's local history series is “Altamaha and the Yamasee Indians” with Dr. Eric Poplin. As before the lecture will be held at Beaufort Branch but the new date is Tuesday, October 9^th. The time remains at 2 PM. Registration opens to the general public on September 25. Everyone must register through this link:  https://beauforthistorymuseum.wildapricot.org/event-3073818. Those with reservations for September 11^th lecture should expect an e-mail from the Beaufort History Museum next week regarding the registration process. Registration closed when full.

You'll have to wait a tad longer for the re-scheduled "Correct Mispronunciations of Some South Carolina Names." The Bluffton Branch Library's large Meeting Room is heavily booked and between that schedule and what else is going on in the Beaufort District Collection, the earliest mutually agreeable date is Friday, October 26, 2018. Instead of an afternoon session, the talk with begin at 11 AM. Everyone is welcome to this free first-come, first seated local history program.

Heads up: The Beaufort County Library will be closed on Wednesday, October 3rd for Staff Work Day. Regular hours resume on Thursday, October 4, 2018.