AFRICAN-AMERICAN SOCIETY ENCOURAGES RESEARCH
(Please be aware this post was written in 2003 and published at that time in the Houston Chronicle (Houston, Texas) newspaper. Some of the news in this post, therefore, may not be current. Current and future posts on this blog may revisit and update news on this and other posts on this blog. If you have questions and/or suggestions, please send Mic a note using the comment page -Don’t forget to use the orange “subscribe” button to receive new posts-Thanks, Mic)
The Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society, Inc. is a non-profit membership organization committed to the preservation of the history, genealogy, and culture of the African-Ancestored populations of the local, national, and international community.
AAHGS stresses the importance of African-Ancestored history and genealogy by encouraging active participation in recording research and documenting personal family histories.
The society publishes a semi-annual journal and a bi-monthly newsletter. For more information contact AAHGS at P.O. Box 73067, Washington, D.C., 20056-3067 or visit their website at ~http://www.rootsweb.com/~mdaahgs/ .
AFRICAN AMERICAN SYMPOSIUM
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the LDS, is sponsoring a Uniting the African-American Family through Family History Research symposium on Saturday February 15 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The symposium will be held at the LDS Family History Center at 16535 Kleinwood Drive in Spring.
The symposium will focus on the unique challenges of African-American family history research and explain how to access and use the latest resources through workshops and exhibits. The symposium is free and open to the public. Beginners and experienced researchers are welcome.
The symposium will include a tour of the Family History Center and six workshops that will teach valuable skills and provide information that African-Americans need to explore their family trees. The workshops include: Where Do I Begin, Tracing Your African-American Roots through Pre-Civil War Records, Writing Your Family History, the Freedman’s Bank Records and the 1880 Census.
Space for the symposium is limited. For more information or to pre-register, contact Maddi Merrill of the Cypress Texas Stake, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at 281-257-9121, maddim@attglobal.net ,or visit their website at www.unitingthefamily.com .
CLF MEETS
The Clayton Library Friends will hold their annual meeting at 10 a.m. Saturday February 8 at the Bayland Community Center located at 6400 Bissonett between Hillcroft and Beechnut in Southwest Houston.
Well known genealogical lecturers Emily Ann Croom and Gay Carter will be the featured speakers. For more information visit the CLF website at http://www.hpl.lib.tx.us/clayton/clf.html
NEWS FROM THE BOOKSHELF
In celebration of Black History month, two award winning authors, Darius Aidan Gray and Margaret Blair Young will be keynote speakers at the African American symposium sponsored by the Church of Latter-day Saints mentioned above. They will share inspirational stories and remarkable insights about the challenges faced by 19th-century African-Americans who participated in the westward migration.
Gray and Young are co-authors of “Standing on the Promises,” a groundbreaking trilogy of new historical novels about Black Mormon pioneers. They will also appear at two book signings on Saturday February 15 where their books will be for sale. One signing will be at 2 p.m. at the Barnes & Noble located on FM 1960 near Champion Forest Dr. The other at 4 p.m. at Nauvoo Books in the Kroger shopping center at the intersection of Champion Forest Dr. and Cypresswood.
In addition, Gray and Young will also be the featured speakers at a special evening address on Sunday, February 16, 2003, from 7 to 8 PM, at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 16535 Kleinwood Dr., Spring, Texas. Admission is free and open to the public.
