Baby Gardens and Potters' Fields: Burying Babies and Poor People

With Halloween around the corner, this week seems like a good time to talk a bit about burial customs for the most vulnerable of our ancestors. In the past, we have covered several related topics, and you might want to check out some of them before we move into looking at how some infants, children, and poor people were treated at the ends of their lives.

“Did Our Ancestors Trick or Treat?” 25 October 2021

“Funeral Rituals and Traditions, Part 1” 19 April 2021

“Funeral Rituals and Traditions, Part II” 26 April 2021

“Broken Mirrors and Spilled Salt: Some of our Ancestors’ Superstitions,” 26 October 2020

Registration Open for the 2023 StLGS Annual Family History Conference!

 51st Annual Family History Conference!

Explore Unique Pathways to Smash Brick Walls!

Saturday, 6 May 2023

Featuring Judy Russell, JD, The Legal Genealogist®

Also: Jen Baldwin, John Dougan, Greg Hilton, and Christina Miller

Maryland Heights Community Center, 2300 McKelvey Road, St. Louis, MO 63043

This will be held as a hybrid event. Join us for a full day of lectures, exhibitors, and a chance to chat over morning coffee or lunch. If you can't attend in person, join us via Zoom. All the lectures will be recorded, and everyone will have access to all eight lectures after the conference. For those coming to the Maryland Heights Community Center, a box lunch can be purchased for an optional fee.

Saturday's Program (All times are Central Time Zone)

9:30 a.m.: Doors open

9:50 a.m.: Opening Remarks 

10:00 a.m.: "Through the Golden Door: Immigration After the Civil War," by Judy Russell

AND "Documents to Databases: Using the Missouri State Archives' Newest Resource," by John Dougan

11:15 a.m.: "Advertising the Law: The Gems in the Legal Notices," by Judy Russell 

AND "Documents to Databases: Using the Missouri State Archives' Land and Judicial Databases" by Christina Miller

1:15 p.m.: "Of Delinquents and Common Scolds: Women, Children, and Criminal Justice," 

by Judy Russell AND "Findmypast: Your Source for British and Irish Research," by Jen Baldwin

2:30 p.m.: "After the Courthouse Burns: Rekindling Family History Through DNA," by

Judy Russell AND "Why You Should Care Where Your Family Bible Is," by Greg Hilton

Complete details of each lecture and speaker bios are on our website. When you go to the conference page, be sure to click on the links to the Lectures and Speakers pages. (Those links are in the upper right-hand corner of the page.)

Registration for the Conference

Registration for the 2023 Family History Conference is now open. The cost is $60 for StLGS members and $70 for non-members. All of the information you need to register is on our website. 

Once you have registered, you will receive an invitation to the FHC via the email address you provide. (Note: The email will come to you during the week before the conference.) Those attending in person will receive a paper syllabus. Everyone will have access to the syllabus as a downloadable PDF from a link on our website as well as all eight digital recordings.

Questions? Send an email to programs@stlgs.org and the vice-president for programs will get back to you. 

We can't wait to help you "Explore Unique Pathways to Smash Brick Walls!"