Genealogy Program Presented at Crossroads July 15

The Door County Historical Society will host its Saturday afternoon yesteryear programming “Getting Started with Genealogy,” presented by Laura Kayacan on July 15 at 2 pm in the lower level of the Collins Learning Center at Crossroads at Big Creek.

This presentation will provide an introduction to the basic tools and information used in genealogy, and help participants learn how to use family tree data sheets, databases like Ancestry.com, FamilySearch.org, and more.

According to Kayacan, “My interest in genealogy was influenced by family stories and an interest in local history passed on to me by my parents and relatives.” One of her relatives, Dorothy Straubel Wittig, helped to establish Heritage Hill State Historical Park in Green Bay. Kayacan is a trained reference librarian, which has helped her develop the skills necessary to understand research methods, including those used in genealogy research.

As the field of genealogy continues to grow, the number of clues grows as well. Whether professional or amateur, genealogists can discover detailed family histories using today’s advances in technology. Currently, Kayacan works as a reference librarian at the Door County Library in Sturgeon Bay. Libraries provide access to the internet and valuable tools used in researching genealogy and local history. For her, “The Door County Library Newspaper Archive, which provides historic Door County newspapers online, free, and searchable to the community” is especially exciting.

The Collins Learning Center is located at 2041 Michigan St. in Sturgeon Bay, adjacent to the society’s Heritage Village. This program does not have an admission fee, but an offering will be taken to support the Heritage Village at Big Creek maintenance projects. The Heritage Village is open for tours prior to the presentation beginning at 10 am. For more information, call 920.421.2332 or email [email protected].