Maryland Genealogical Society
Maryland Genealogical Society

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.
 
If you are already a member of the Society, you can log in by clicking on the Members Only link. If you are not already a member, we encourage you to become a member and begin receiving all the benefits of membership.  
 
And we hope that you'll follow us on Facebook for timely news and information.
 
        
    
                      

 

Webinars - Finding Your Roots Through Research

The Maryland Genealogical Society is pleased to once again partner with Maryland Public Television (MPT) to offer a new beginner-to-intermediate genealogy workshop series. Finding Your Roots Through Research will consist of four (4) two-hour virtual sessions focused on sound research practices that lead to success in uncovering information about your ancestors. Sessions will be held March 1, March 15, March 29, and April 12 from 7:00pm-9:00pm Eastern Time.
 
Session titles include: Introduction to the Research Process; Research Planning; Executing the Plan and Staying Organized; and Putting It All Together. Each session will feature a combination of lecture, small and large group discussion, question and answer time, and a homework assignment relating to your research project. Handouts will be provided for each session. 
 
Those who register also will 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. The cost of the series is $100.00. You can register on the MPT registration page.
 
The workshop series will be led by nationally known speaker Annette Burke Lyttle. Her company, Heritage Detective, LLC, provides professional genealogical services in research, education, and writing. She is coordinator of the Fall Virtual Intermediate Foundations course for the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy and leads Best Practices Study Groups for a number of organizations. She is president of the Association of Professional Genealogists and editor of The Florida Genealogist.
 

 

New DNA Webinars in Webinar Collection

The newest webinars in our Members Only webinar collection are part of a three-part series called Finding Your Roots With DNA. Originally offered in the summer of 2022 in partnership with Maryland Public Television, these webinars will introduce you to genetic genealogy and DNA testing, explain what your DNA test results mean, and help you start to make sense of all the new cousins on your DNA match list. The sessions include:
 
Part 1: Getting Started With DNA Testing
Part 2: Understanding Your DNA Test Results
Part 3: Digging Into Your DNA Matches
 
The series presenter is Tom McCarriar, MGS Board Member and President of the Anne Arundel Genealogical Society. He has been researching his family history for more than twenty years, and his interest in genetic genealogy dates back to his first DNA test in 2011. Tom is currently teaching traditional and genetic genealogy courses at Howard Community College, and at local libraries and genealogical societies.
 

 

January 2023 MGS News

 
The January 2023 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 Member's Only area
 
 
 
 

 

MGS Journal

Volume 63, Number 2, the August 2022 issue of the Journal, is now available. Members receive their copies by mail. Earlier issues of the Journal are available for sale, and members receive a discounted price. Click here for information on prices and how to purchase.
 
In this issue, Tony Nardo tells the complicated but fascinating story of the Papa/Parigi family, who immigrated to Baltimore, Texas, and New Orleans from Cefalù in Sicily. A chance conversation and a letter from 1947 led family members to discover branches of their family and connections that they had never known existed. Mike Sapp follows up his article from the last issue of the Journal, “Who Are Catherine Stinchcomb’s Parents?” (Volume 63, No. 1), with a further exploration of the Stinchcomb family in Maryland. He identifies and discusses five major sources of information on the family and delves into the original sources in order to correct some inaccuracies and resolve discrepancies. Nancy Calvert-Koyzis examines the story of Benedict Swingate Calvert, eldest son of Charles Calvert, the fifth Lord Baltimore. Benedict was a Maryland judge, politician, and planter, sent to live in Maryland as a child, but the identity of his mother has been a mystery. Dr. Calvert-Koyzis discusses several possible candidates and makes a convincing case for one, all while telling us much about the “highest ranks” of the nobility.
 
Nancy Lee Waters presents the questions surrounding her paternal great-great-grandmother, Mary Pestorf, as we resurrect our series of Brick Wall articles. Our Photo Vault article by Malissa Ruffner is about Emma D. Sudrow and Mary C. Monk, two Baltimore women whose lives were intertwined and whose stories are a great illustration of the idea of “Smalltimore.” In this issue, we introduce a new series of articles by Sandy Quick, who describes how the global positioning system (GPS) can be used by genealogists to improve our data collecting and recording techniques. Jane Burgess challenges your genealogical knowledge in the crossword puzzle, and Allender Sybert reviews current books and genealogical resources in our review section.
 
For a look at the full table of contents, click here.
 

 

Used Genealogy Books For Sale

(Image by Emma Lopez, posted on Flickr under a Creative Commons license.)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, Pennsylvania, Polish, Scottish, and Virginia research; photography; lineage societies; royalty and nobility; Norman ancestry; heraldry; and general interest. We will be adding books as they become available.
 

 

We're Looking for Your Photos!

 
Would you like to see images of your ancestors included on the MGS Web site? Members are encouraged to submit photos for inclusion in the gallery of images at the top of the page that rotate and change each time visitors go to a new page on the Web site. (Each has a caption that you can read by hovering your cursor over the image.) For more information about submitting images, click here.