Local Genealogy News

Our friends at the St. Clair County [Illinois] Genealogical Society have given their website a sleek makeover. If you had pages bookmarked on the old site, you might want to visit the new site and re-bookmark those pages, as the old links may not work. In addition, you may need to opt in again for electronic messages from the society and to receive notices for their publications. The SCCGS has also been adding indexes and records to their site, so if you have ancestors from that part of Illinois, be sure to check them out. The website address is https://stclair-ilgs.org/.

Many St. Louisans are eagerly awaiting the reopening of the Soldiers Memorial Military Museum, scheduled for Saturday, 3 November. In early August, the first artifact was installed in the refurbished main gallery, the bell from the deck of the USS St. Louis, a light cruiser that protected ships transporting American soldiers to Europe during World War I. Since then, crews have been painting, cleaning, and gathering up items to move into place to get ready for the grand reopening.

Exhibits will feature many items that reflect the lives of St. Louis soldiers throughout history. The museum is keeping up with the public via Facebook and Twitter. You can see lots more of the progress on their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/SoldiersStLouis/. For those of you on Twitter, you can find the museum at https://twitter.com/SoldiersStLouis or search for them with the handle of @SoldiersStLouis.

Interested in St. Louis orphanages? Head over to the Cliff Cave Branch of the St. Louis County Library on Friday, 21 September at 10 a.m. to hear Viki Fagyal, StLGS treasurer and author of Researching Orphans and Orphanage Care in St. Louis, discuss "St. Louis Orphanages." The talk is free and open to all. No pre-registration required. You can purchase a copy of Viki's book at our online store. Click here to go to the page, but don't forget to get your member code for your discount, if you are an StLGS member.

And, finally, mark your calendar for Saturday, 29 September, and plan to visit St. Louis County Library Headquarters, where our friends in the History and Genealogy Department will be celebrating their Twentieth Anniversary!


The day begins in the auditorium, where the staff will be on hand for refreshments and a meet and greet at 10 a.m. A short program will be followed by tours of the department. Seven classes are scheduled for the afternoon. The classes are free, but they do require registration. Click here and scroll down the page that opens to see the offerings.