Registration Link for November 11th Monthly Meeting, click HERE.
Click Here for more meeting information.
Registration Link for December 4th Spreadsheet Class, click HERE.
Click Here for more Class information.
Registration Link for January 13th Monthly Meeting, click HERE.
Click Here for more meeting information.
November Monthly Meeting
Speaker: Tom WilcoxTopic: Occupations of your Ancestors
Have you ever thought about the origin of your family name? Not like the location or ethnicity, but why does your family have that last name? A family name is sometimes given to a family as a result of your ancestor's occupation. Surnames were not "invented" until the 15th century and some individuals may have been called by default by their profession. If a family of blacksmiths lived in a town, they could be known as the Smiths family. It’s possible Mr. Fletcher made arrows for hunting. The townspeople may have referred to the carpenter as Sawyer.
Welcome to Pastfinders!
Welcome to the Pastfinders of South Lake County Website.
We are located in Clermont, Florida (From Gem of the Hills to Choice of Champions). The Cooper Memorial Library's (CML) Genealogy Room is our base of operation with monthly meetings, genealogy help sessions, computer users’ classes, Beginner Classes, and special events.
Pastfinders mission is to educate the public on the art and science of preserving family history. Learning about your roots, where you came from, and the struggles your family made to get you where you are today can open one’s eyes to what kind of pioneers our ancestors were.
All the classes Pastfinders of South Lake County Genealogical Society conducts are open to the public and most are free to attend. Our meetings are held from September to May.
During the summer months the only scheduled activity is a weekly Summer Genealogy Chat at the library.
Please see the event calendar on the menu bar for more detail or contact us by Email at info@pastfindersslc.org for more information.
Pastfinders Calendar of Events
All Pastfinders Events are being held using online Video Conferencing. In order to attend a SIG or Beginners Class meeting you will need to signup for each type of Event that you want to attend. You signup simply by sending an Email to info@pastfindersslc.org, the title of the email should be the name of the Event you want to attend (FTM SIG, DNA SIG, Irish SIG, Beginners Class). Several days prior to the Event, you will receive an Email with the Zoom Link.
Monthly Meetings and Special Events require REGISTRATION. You will find a REGISTRATION link in the description of the Event. Just click on the REGISTRATION Link and provide your name and Email address.
Details for each Event are shown in the Event Calendar Tab.
To view all Events, click
HERETo View just Monthly Member Meetings AND REGISTER TO ATTEND, click HERE
To View just Family Tree Maker SIG, click
HERETo View just DNA SIG, click
HERETo View just Irish SIG, click
HERETo view just Beginners Class, click
HERETo View Central Florida Genealogical Society Events, Click
HERETo View Kinseekers Genealogical Society Event, Click
HERE
Pastfinders Special Interest Groups are meeting virtually using Zoom.
Family Tree Maker SIG meets on the 1st and 3rd Tuesday each month at 2 PM
Stan Wells hosts the meetings and uses the FTM 2019 instruction manual to guide content.
DNA SIG meets on the 2nd and 4th Wednesday each month at 1:30 PM
Arlene Bird and Carolyn Gornowicz host these sessions covering a range of DNA subjects.
Irish SIG meets on the 3rd Thursday each month at 10 AM
Peter Stauder is our Irish expert and he will help you discover where and how to research Ireland.
Family Research in Beginning Genealogy meets on the 1st and 3rd Wednesday each month from 1-3 PM. Cathy Kwech presents two research methods, several online programs, and tips to search your ancestry.
The host of each SIG maintains an Email distribution list and sends the link several days before each meeting.
To join, send an Email with the name of the SIG or Beginners Class as the subject and send to info@pastfindersslc.org. If the Email link does not open your Email application, just open a new Email and type in info@pastfindersslc.org.
If you would like to start a special interest group, please contact us. You do not have to be an expert, but if you have been researching a niche and are willing to share your special knowledge, we can start other SIGs. German or British SIGs seem to be popular.
Pastfinders Fund Raising Activities
Pastfinders members can provide financial support by using the products and services of our Affiliate Partners:
Pastfinders receives a 0.5% commission for purchases using Amazon.com.
Pastfinders receives a 10% commission for the purchase of an AncestryDNA kit.
Pastfinders receives a 20% commission when you join Ancestry.com.
Further information and links are located at the Support Us menu button
