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Welcome!
Since 1959, the Maryland Genealogical Society has been promoting genealogical study and research. Through our publications, programs, resources, and outreach, the Society can help you explore your family history.
And we hope that you'll follow us on Facebook for timely news and information.
Finding Your Roots: German Genealogy
 The Maryland Genealogical Society (MGS) and Maryland Public Television (MPT) are partnering to offer another exciting two-hour webinar — Finding Your Roots: German Genealogy - From U.S. Clues to German Research. The webinar will be held via Zoom on Wednesday, October 28, from 7:00pm-9:00pm ET.
This webinar will discuss how to use online records to research your German roots. You'll learn about the most promising sources for identifying your ancestor's German town of origin and how to find German church and civil records online. The presentation will conclude with time for questions and answers.
Whether you've just discovered you have a German immigrant ancestor or want to hone your skills in German genealogical research, this two-hour session will provide lots of helpful guidance.
The cost is $40.00.
Our Speaker
Our speaker is Debra A. Hoffman, professional genealogist, author, and lecturer, who specializes in Maryland and German research. She has a certificate in Family History from Brigham Young University and a Professional Learning Certificate in Genealogical Studies (PLCGS)-German Records from the National Institute of Genealogical Studies. She coordinated the week-long course “Maryland: Researching in the Old Line State” at the 2020 Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy (SLIG) and co-authored NGS’ Research in the States Series: Maryland. She currently serves as an MGS At-Large Board Member and is the Secretary for the Mid-Atlantic Germanic Society. She is the principal of Hoffman Genealogical Services and conducts research trips to Germany.
It's Not All Online: MCHC Library
.jpg) MGS and our partners at the Maryland Center for History and Culture (MCHC) invite you to learn about the genealogical resources available only onsite at MCHC's H. Furlong Baldwin Library.
Saturday, 7 November 2026
11:00am to 2:00pm ET
Maryland Center for History and Culture
610 Park Avenue, Baltimore, MD 21201
In addition to a discussion about the records, manuscripts, and other materials relevant to family history research, participants will explore the Library and have time for personalized genealogy research assistance from members of the MGS board.
Registration cost (which includes lunch) is $15.00. Spots are limited, so register soon!
Finding Your Roots: Death Is Only the Beginning
 The Maryland Genealogical Society is pleased to once again partner with Maryland Public Television (MPT) to offer a new beginner-to-intermediate genealogy webinar series. Finding Your Roots: Death is Only the Beginning will include four (4) two-hour sessions designed to help you use the many types of death-related records to learn not only about an ancestor but also about their families. Sessions will be held at 7:00pm ET on September 9, September 23, October 7, and October 21.
In order, the four sessions will include:
- Death Records as Doorways: What One Death Can Tell Us
- Last Words in Print: Obituaries, Death Notices, and Newspaper Accounts
- Buried, Mourned, and Remembered: Cemetery, Funeral, and Church Records
- After the Funeral: Probate Records and the Family Left Behind
Registrants will also receive a one-year introductory membership to the Maryland Genealogical Society (not applicable to current MGS members) and a one-year MPT Passport membership or membership extension.
Each session will feature a combination of lecture, small and large group discussion, and question and answer time. Handouts will be provided for each session. The webinars will be recorded. The cost of the series is $100.00. You can read more details and register on the MPT registration page.
Our Speaker
 The workshop series will be led by nationally known speaker Annette Burke Lyttle, who has been the presenter for several previous MGS/MPT workshop series. She holds the Certified Genealogist ® credential and owns Heritage Detective, LLC, providing professional genealogical services in research, education, and writing. Annette is a course coordinator for the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy and the British Institute. She is a published writer whose research interests include Quaker ancestors and ancestral migrations in the US. She is past president of the Association of Professional Genealogists and editor of The Florida Genealogist.
MGS Journal
In this issue of the Journal, we have some wonderful examples of research and storytelling.
Malissa Ruffner explores the churchyard of St. Thomas’ Episcopal Church of Owings Mills, Baltimore County, which includes a “colored cemetery”—called the North Cemetery—outside the churchyard walls. Using church records, a ground-penetrating radar study, the existing markers, death certificates, newspaper articles, wills, funeral home records, and other sources, the author was able to identify 47 of the 149 people buried there. Piecing together their family relationships sheds light on their lives and serves as a remembrance of those who are identified as well as those who remain anonymous.
The story of Jacob Schardt is related by Edward Funk. He tells the story of Jacob’s early years in Germany, where he fought as a revolutionary in the Baden Uprising, his journey to America, and his life in Louisiana, where he was a teacher, musician, vintner, sometime politician, and prominent citizen.
Carleton Weidemeyer documents the story of the Reiblich family. Brothers Heinrich and Johann Caspar, who were married to sisters, were from Germany, and settled in Baltimore County after arriving here in the mid-1800s. The author has documented multiple generations of this family.
Mike Sapp tells the story of the Lassen family from Bergen, Norway, who arrived in the United States in 1847. They initially settled in Brooklyn, but son John’s military service in the Union Army led him to Maryland, where he met his wife and raised a family. John became a ticket agent at the Baltimore and Philadelphia Railroad, but he died at a young age, leaving his widow to support herself and their children.
Finally, William Saxbe explores the case of Captain Richard Philip Francis Lee, whose brief military career led to a contentious struggle over his bounty land. Two family groups, one from Maryland and one from Georgia, claimed the rights to the land after Captain Lee’s death, but the family relationships were murky. The author has sorted them out and identified the rightful heirs.
As always, we keep you informed about recent publications in genealogy with reviews from Allender Sybert.
We hope that reading this issue of the Journal will prompt you to write your own story. We are always looking for well written and well researched articles to include in the Journal. Articles are posted on the MGS website on publication, so that all members have access to them.
July 2026 MGS News
The July 2026 edition of MGS News is now available. If you are a MGS member, you should have received the issue by email. If you are a member and haven't provided us with your email, please contact us at info@mdgensoc.org so that you can begin to receive MGS News.
Archived copies of this issue and previous issues are available in the Members Only area.
Used Genealogy Books For Sale
 MGS has an inventory of used genealogy-related books available for purchase on the For Sale page. MGS members receive a 12% discount on purchases. (Be sure to be signed in on the website as a member before ordering!) All prices already include shipping and handling. Sales are first come, first served!
In addition to books on Maryland, our current inventory includes the following topics: family histories; U.S., British, German, New England, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia research; photography, lineage societies, royalty and nobility, heraldry, and general interest. We will be adding books as they become available.
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