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You can contribute articles, stories, book reviews, etc. to our upcoming newsletter by sending your article to newsletter@eastsidegenealogicalsociety.org. The newsletter will be published from time to time via email to registered members of EGS.

Washington Pioneer Pursuit

Calling all genealogists and genealogical societies!

The Washington State Genealogical Society invites all genealogical societies, historical societies and individuals to research and document every Pioneer who resided here on or before November 11, 1889, and two subsequent generations of their descendants.

Join EGS for the Kick-Off Gathering of the WA Pioneer Pursuit Contest!

Thursday, January 19th 10am-12 pm at the FamilySearch Center (Formally known as the Family History Center) 10675 Northeast 20th Street, Bellevue, WA

Forms and directions for submissions will be provided along with tips and helps for research. Start with us and then work on your own. The full services of the FS Center will be available for our use. Use your family members or document any pioneer using the early Washington records.

Join in this project to document family histories for every person who lived in Washington Territory on or before Statehood was declared on November 11, 1889. Prizes will be awarded to individuals and to societies submitting the most entries.  Everyone who participates will receive a one-year membership to WASGS.  The contest runs from November 1, 2022 to October 31, 2023.  Contest rules, submission forms and information are available  below or at www.WASGS.org/PioneerPursuit .

EGS will be participating in this special project.  If you have family who might have lived in the WA Territory in 1889 or are just interested in documenting a pioneer, join us to collaborate and discuss your research.  Email Celia McNay for more information and to be on the email distribution list.  We will begin meeting monthly to help each other starting in January 2023.  Date, time, and place TBA. 

At the Centennial anniversary in 1889, over 4,500 names of head of households were submitted as pioneers living in the territory.  Household information was indexed and saved behind the firewall of WASGS’s website for about 30,000 – 40,000 individuals here at the time of statehood.  However, there were almost 350,000 individuals living here so this database is needing an update.  Two volumes were published with pioneer names, but not all of the family members were included.  These are among the names that could be submitted now.  We are encouraged to include special populations such as indigenous people, people of color, women, and children in the research. 

The following links will be helpful to you:

Submission Rules  https://www.wasgs.org/upload/files/Pioneer_Pursuit/Pioneer_Pursuit_Instructions.pdf

Submission Form  https://www.wasgs.org/upload/files/Pioneer_Pursuit/Pioneer_Pursuit_Submission_Form.pdf

Submission Example

Frequently Asked Questions  https://www.wasgs.org/upload/files/Pioneer_Pursuit/Pioneer_Pursuit_FAQ.pdf

Contest Rules  https://www.wasgs.org/cpage.php?pt=99

Hints and Helps for Researchers  https://www.wasgs.org/upload/files/Pioneer_Pursuit/Pioneer_Pursuit_Hints_and_Help.pdf

If you are new to genealogy, we have a Beginner’s section on our Resources page.

Library Helpers available online via Zoom Cloud Meetings.

With the library closed, the Board members have been working behind the scenes to provide programs for our members and the general public virtually.  We are excited to let you know that the Genealogy Helpers will be available thru a Zoom meeting, one-on-one.  For starters, we will have sign-ups for appointments for Wednesday afternoons, 1pm and 2pm slots.  Use the link below or go to the kcls.org website and look under Events for Wednesdays.  Our talented Library Volunteers will be hosting the help sessions.

https://kcls.bibliocommons.com/events/search/q=genealogy

You will need to download Zoom onto your phone or visit Zoom.com  on your computer.  You need a microphone and a camera on your computer.

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Did You Know?

Did you know that Eastside Genealogical Society has donated over 860 books to the Bellevue Regional Library? Here is a list of topics for your review. There is something there for almost everybody. Perhaps you will find your next big breakthrough in one of the books we donated.

Topics# of books
African Americans8
Alabama2
Alaska2
Arkansas1
Asia1
Australia2
Australia, Irish migration to1
Austria1
Belgium1
Bibliography4
British Americans1
California7
Canada8
Canada, Alberta1
Canada, Atlantic Provinces2
Canada, British Columbia1
Canada, Census1
Canada, French1
Canada, Immigration1
Canada, Manitoba, Metis1
Canada, New Brunswick1
Canada, Newfoundland & Labrador1
Canada, Ontario2
Canada, Passports1
Canada, Quebec2
Census, U. S.4
Census, U.S.4
China1
Church records, baptismal1
Church records, Baptist1
Church records, Catholic1
Church records, Catholic (Nebraska & Iowa)1
Church records, Catholic (Pacific Northwest)3
Church records, Methodist1
Civil War5
Civil War, Confederate1
Civil War, Union4
Colonial America9
Colorado1
Connecticut10
Czech Americans6
Danish Americans1
DAR1
DAR Library1
Delaware4
Delaware River Valley1
Denmark1
District of Columbia1
District of Columbia, libraries & archives1
Draper Manuscripts1
Dutch Americans1
England6
England, Gazetteer1
Estonia1
Europe, Eastern2
European Americans2
Female ancestors1
Finland1
Finnish Americans1
Forensic genealogy1
French Americans4
French Canadians1
Genealogical societies2
Genealogy, dictionary2
Genealogy, how-to17
Genealogy, how-to, dates1
Genealogy, medical terms2
Genealogy, psychic aspects of1
Genealogy, psychology1
Genealogy, translation2
Genealogy, writing and publishing5
Genetics1
Georgia7
German & Swiss Americans1
German Americans9
German Americans, Iowa1
German Americans, North Dakota1
German Cooking1
German, dictionary1
Germans1
Germans from Russia1
Germany14
Great Britain13
Greece1
Greek Americans2
Handwriting, American2
Handwriting, German1
Heraldry, Irish1
Hispanic Americans2
Huguenots5
Hungarian Americans1
Hungary1
Idaho3
Illinois6
Immigration7
Immigration, passenger lists2
Immigration, steamship lines1
Indiana7
Indiana, Quakers1
Iowa3
Ireland13
Ireland, Cork1
Ireland, Donegal1
Ireland, Dublin1
Ireland, Galway1
Ireland, Gazetteer1
Ireland, Londonderry1
Ireland, Northern3
Ireland, Palatines1
Irish Americans12
Italian Americans7
Japan, heraldry1
Japanese Americans1
Jewish Cemeteries1
Jews4
Jews, Israel1
Jews, Ukraine & Moldova1
Kentuckians3
Kentucky13
King Philip’s War1
Lineages1
Louisiana3
Loyalists2
Loyalists, American3
Loyalists, Canadian2
Maine2
Maine and New Hampshire1
Maryland30
Massachusetts25
Michigan6
Middle Atlantic States2
Military Pensions1
Minnesota4
Mississippi3
Missouri11
Montana2
Mormons1
National Archives3
National Archives, military records2
National Archives, passenger lists1
Native Americans5
Naturalization1
Naturalization records, U. S.2
Nebraska5
Netherlands1
Nevada1
New England19
New England Historic Genealogical Society1
New Jersey6
New Mexico2
New York35
New York City13
Newspapers2
Newspapers, columns1
Newspapers, missing persons1
North and South Carolina3
North Carolina12
North Dakota1
North Dakota and South Dakota1
Norway1
Norwegian Americans7
Ohio13
Ohio River Valley1
Oklahoma3
Oregon3
Oregon, women pioneers1
Pennsylvania41
Periodicals1
Photographs3
Poland1
Polish Americans5
Quakers3
Quakers, Ireland1
Quakers, North Carolina1
Quakers, Pennsylvania2
Revolutionary War10
Rhode Island3
Romanian Americans1
Russia1
Scandinavia1
Scandinavia, Denmark & Norway1
Scandinavian Americans3
Scotland5
Scotland, Gazetteer1
Scots-Irish8
Scottish Americans16
Sicily1
Slovak Americans1
Slovakia1
South Carolina4
Sweden3
Swedish Americans6
Switzerland1
Tennessee10
Texas4
Tombstones1
U.S.3
U.S., atlases & gazetteers3
U.S., court records1
U.S., estate inventories1
U.S., families of royal descent1
U.S., fire insurance maps1
U.S., land records3
U.S., marriage notices1
U.S., Midwest1
U.S., migration routes2
U.S., military2
U.S., railroads1
U.S., Southeast1
U.S., tax lists2
Ukraine2
Vermont4
Virginia34
Virginia & West Virginia1
Virginia, War of 18121
Wales2
Washington, archives and libraries5
Washington, atlas1
Washington, Bellevue4
Washington, census1
Washington, centennial1
Washington, Island Co.1
Washington, King Co.10
Washington, King County2
Washington, Kitsap Co.1
Washington, Kittitas Co.6
Washington, Lewis Co.1
Washington, oral history1
Washington, Pacific Co.1
Washington, Pierce Co.2
Washington, pioneers4
Washington, Seattle10
Washington, Skagit Co.10
Washington, Snohomish and Island Co.1
Washington, Snohomish Co.5
Washington, Thurston Co.2
Washington, Whatcom Co.1
West Virginia4
Wisconsin3
World War I1