Genealogy Club

The Genealogy Club will meet Wednesday, April 23, at 10 a.m. for a general membership meeting. Everyone is welcome to bring treats to share during social time, starting at 9:30 a.m. in Clubhouse 3, Room 9. This will be a hybrid meeting with Sara Cochran, who will present “Grandma Said What?”

Membership renewal is still $15, which is a great value for using the genealogy library, including computer access to Ancestry.com, Fold 3, and Newspapers.com paid subscriptions. Pay in person in the Genealogy Library or mail to Treasurer Janet Lessin at 1351 Weeburn Rd, 74-J, Seal Beach, CA 90740. Make sure to include a name, address, phone number and email address. Make checks payable to LWGW.

The club holds Theme Thursdays from 1:30-2 p.m. in the Genealogy Library. Upcoming topics include:

• April 10: What can you do on Family Search besides searching for records?

• April 17: Great Britain

• April 24: Reading old handwriting, it’s not pretty! Individuals with ideas for future topics or who would like to give a presentation are encouraged to reach out.

The Genealogy Library is currently open Monday-Friday from 1-4 p.m.; Saturday from 11 a.m.-2 p.m.; closed Sunday.

To volunteer or sign up as a substitute, call 714-390-4213 or email lisnhow@gmail.com. The club is always in need of new volunteers.

Would you believe? Going back eight generations, most people will have a whopping 256 ancestors. This is called an “outbred” family tree. Charles Habsburg, however, known as Charles II of Spain (1661-1700), was so inbred that he had only 29 ancestors, and he suffered from great physical disabilities as a result.

Ellis Island did not change the names of immigrants coming into the United States. If your surname was changed from its original spelling, it was your ancestor who shortened it, dropped a few letters, translated it into English, or maybe even unintentionally misspelled it once they came to America. —Mary Romero