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1865 New York State Census As one of its many service projects, WNYGS organized the preparation of an amended index of the 1865 New York State Census for Erie County. Many dedicated volunteers worked on this project over a number of years. While originally collected and documented on index cards, the society later created a digital version that now resides here for genealogical researchers. VIEW ERIE INDEX It is important to note that while planning and researching this project several existing printed an d online indexes for Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, and Niagara Counties were identified; those resources appear below. At the time of the project, n o censuses were available for Genesee or Wyoming Counties. Allegany 1865 Census Index of Allegany County, New York by Mrs. Charles Burton Published index available in the WNYGS Research Library [ call no. 974.7 new ] Cattaraugus Town and County index files (html and .doc formats) available for view and download online at http://sites.rootsweb.com/~nycattar/census.htm#1865 Chautauqua Selected Information from the 1865 New York State Census for the County of Chautauqua by Lois and Norwood Barris (2 volumes) Published index available for download on the Chautauqua County Historian's website at https://chqgov.com/county-historian/lois-and-norwood-barris and in print form at the Buffalo and Erie County Public Library - Grosvenor Room . Genesee Not available. Niagara Index 1865 N.Y. State Census Niagara County by the Niagara County Historian Published index available in the WNYGS Research Library [ call no. 974.7 new ] Orleans Surname and Town indexes available for viewing online at http://www.orleans.nygenweb.net/census/1865Cen.htm Wyoming Not available.

Niagara County Vital Records Dates of First Vital Statistics Records (as published in the Western New York Genealogical Society Journal ) Click the county below to view individual town and village record information: Allegany County Cattaraugus County Chautauqua County Erie County Genesee County Niagara County Orleans County Wyoming County This map shows each Western New York county's founding date and the name of its parent county. Town and Date Births Marriages Deaths Notes CAMBRIA - Incorporated 11 March 1808 12 Feb 1884 26 Feb 1884 13 Feb 1884 HARTLAND - Incorporated 1 June 1812 23 May 1848 to 12 Aug 1849, 1 June 1881 11 Oct 1848 to 27 Dec 1849, 7 Apr 1888 17 Feb 1848 to 10 Dec 1849, 15 July 1887 LEWISTON - Incorporated 27 Feb 1818 8 Jan 1847 to 6 June 1868, 21 Sept 1882 5 Jan 1847 to 14 Aug 1876, 21 Aug 1882 15 Jan 1847 to 5 May 1876, 15 Dec 1883 LEWISTON VILLAGE - Incorporated 17 Apr 1822 See Town of Lewiston records LOCKPORT - Incorporated 2 Feb 1824 27 Apr 1882 29 Jan 1908 27 Nov 1884 LOCKPORT CITY - Incorporated 26 March 1829 as Village; 1865 as city Feb 1868 3 Nov 1881 14 Nov 1881 NEWFANE - Incorporated 20 March 1824 8 Sept 1869 28 Nov 1883 10 Sept 1883 NIAGARA - Incorporated 1 June 1812 as Schlosser; 14 Feb 1816 as Niagara 14 July 1891 1 May 1908 11 May 1892 NIAGARA FALLS - Incorporated 7 July 1848 as Village; 17 Mar 1892 as City 2 Jan 1892 6 Apr 1882 23 Mar 1882 NORTH TONAWANDA - Incorporated 8 May 1868 as Village; 24 Apr 1897 as City 28 Sep 1887 9 Nov 1887 15 Nov 1887 PENDLETON - Incorporated 16 Apr 1827 3 Jan 1886 29 Sep 1886 5 Feb 1886 PORTER - Incorporated 1 June 1812 9 Jan 1884 7 Jun 1883 31 Dee 1883 YOUNGSTOWN VILLAGE - Incorporated 22 Aug 1854 7 Feb 1886 3 Mar 1886 to 8 Dec 1907 (later records kept by Town) 8 Mar 1886 ROYALTON - Incorporated 5 Apr 1817 3 Oct 1888 1 Sep 1888 25 Aug 1888 MIDDLEPORT VILLAGE - Incorporated 1859 14 Jun 1887 7 Sep 1887 28 Jul 1887 SOMERSET - Incorporated 8 Feb 1823 19 Jun 1882 2 Jul 1882 20 Jun 1882 BARKER VILLAGE - Incorporated 1908 See Town of Somerset records WHEATFIELD - Incorporated 12 May 1836 9 Jan 1879 20 Feb 1879 4 Jan 1879 WILSON - Incorporated 10 Apr 1818 1 Jun 1884 4 Jul 1884 29 Jun 1884 WILSON VILLAGE - Incorporated 25 June 1858 13 Sep 1899 see Town of Wilson records 6 Oct 1899 Source: WNYGS JOURNAL , Vol. 1, No.2, September 1974 In cases where data is not available, it can be assumed that the dates of records are similar to the other towns in the county.

Preservation Program Microfilming & Digitization As genealogists, historical records are essential in our understanding family and regional histories. WNYGS is committed to preserving and sharing local resources and helping document those individuals who called Western N ew York home. Our Preservation Program preserves old church, cemetery, and historical records of genealogical significance in Western New York. After project review and approval by the Board, the society will microfilm and/or digitize any records, preferably from the 19th century and earlier, that have not previously been preserved. WNYGS will staff and/or fund the project and furnish the recordholder with a copy of the materials. In return, the society will receive copies which will then be placed in the Zintz Library Collection for member and researcher use. Scanning documents for our enhanced bible and marriage records indexing project. P roject Possibilities Are you a recordholder seeking a preservation partner? Are there important or at-risk materials the society should be made aware of? Please email the Preservation Chair with any suggestions, leads, and possibilities. Preservation Chair: preservation@wnygs.org Recent Society Projects Erie & Niagara Counties: Kittinger Family Bible Click link above for full project description. St. Colu mba's R.C. Church Parishioner Index (1938-1940) (Buffalo, NY) [Compiled from Z intz Library collection holdings: 974.7 ER BUF 1938 chu sca; 974.7 ER BUF 1939 chu sca; 974.7 ER BUF 1940 chu sca] Genesee County: Church Book of the German Lutheran Concordia Church / German Evangelical Lutheran Concordia Church (Byron, NY) Church Book of the German Evangelical Lutheran St. Paul’s - Gemeinde U.A.C. of East Oakfield / Oakfield German Lutheran Church (Oakfield, NY) Conducting church record inventory prior to microfilming. On-site image capture for record indexing project. Transcription & Indexing Committee An important component of the WNYGS mission is to further member access to Western New York-related genealogy documents. Through the years, this undertaking has made a considerable amount of records available, all through the efforts of our dedicated volunteers. Are you are interested in making a difference by volunteering to transcribe or index? You are encouraged to contact the Transcriptions Committee Chair at transcriptions@wnygs.org . Transcription Chair: transcripti ons@wnygs.org Genealogists with connections to Western New York are encouraged support this important work. Whether you decide to make a charitable contribution or purchase a Lifetime Membership, your generosity makes preservation possible . SUPPORT

Sorry, it looks like this is an old link. We've recently updated our website and some of the page links have changed. Check the URL, or go back to our homepage and try again. Image of Buffalo "newsies" (newspaper boys) ready for work (1910) Source: Library of Congress Digital Collections Back to Homepage

Chautauqua County Vital Records Dates of First Vital Statistics Records (as published in the Western New York Genealogical Society Journal ) Click the county below to view individual town and village record information: Allegany County Cattaraugus County Chautauqua County Erie County Genesee County Niagara County Orleans County Wyoming County This map shows each Western New York county's founding date and the name of its parent county. Town and Date Births Marriages Deaths Notes ARKWRIGHT - Incorporated 30 Apr 1829 1 Jan 1849-31 Dec 1849, 15 Apr 1885, 1 Apr 1886- 1 Jan 1849-31 Dec 1849, 1881 1 Jan 1849-31 Dec 1849, 1885 BUSTI - Incorporated 16 Apr 1823 1872 to 1880 misc, 1 Jan 1898 - 15 Jan 1898 9 Nov 1897 Records 1882 to 1898 destroyed by fire. LAKEWOOD - Incorporated 1893 1847, 1848, 1849, 1851 (no 1850), 1898- 21 Jan 1848-31 Dec 1848, 1898- 1847, 1848, 1851, (no 1849 or 1850)1898- Records 1882 to 1898 missing - fire. CARROLL - Incorporated 1825 1847, 1848, 1849, 1881- 1847, 1848, 1849, 1881- 1847, 1848, 1849, 1881- CHARLOTTE - Incorporated 18 Apr 1829 Aug 1881 14 Jul 1882 11 Feb 1882 SINCLAIRVILLE - Incorporated 1887 1 Jan 1914 1 Jan 1914 1 Jan 1914 CHAUTAUQUA - Incorporated 11 Apr 1804 1881 1881 1881 MAYVILLE - Incorporated 1830 1882 misc 1888-1907 (Town Clerk has records 1908-) 1888 CHERRY CREEK - Incorporated 4 May 1829 1881 1881 1881 CHERRY CREEK - VILLAGE Incorporated 1893 1896 1896 1896 Records kept by Town Clerk. CLYMER - Incorporated 9 Feb 1821 22 Apr 1881 18 Feb 1886 26 Sep 1881 DUNKIRK - Incorporated 17 Nov 1859 1914 1914 1914 Earlier records destroyed by fire. DUNKIRK - City Incorporated 1880 1885 1885 1885 ELLERY - Incorporated 29 Feb 1821 Jul 1885 Jul 1885 Jul 1885 Earlier records destroyed by fire June 1885; there is a book for a year in the 1840's. BEMUS POINT - Village Incorporated 1911 Records kept by Town Clerk. ELLICOTT - Incorporated 1 June 1812 17 Jul 1881 15 Jun 1881 9 Oct 1886 CELERON - Incorporated 1896 5 Apr 1904 19 Oct 1904 15 Aug 1904 Earlier records destroyed by fire. FALCONER - Incorporated Jan 1891 Jan 1891 Jan 1891 Jan 1891 Town Clerk has earlier records. JAMESTOWN - Incorporated 6 Mar 1827, City 1886 16 Mar 1882 18 Jul 1882 9 Jan 1882 ELLINGTON - Incorporated 1 Apr 1824 27 Dec 1880 only, 16 Mar 1882- 27 Oct 1881 5 Jul 1882 FRENCH Creek - Incorporated 23 Apr 1829 misc 1847, 1848, 1849, 1883- misc 1847, 1848, 1849, 1884- misc 1847, 1848, 1849, 1882- GERRY - Incorporated 1 June 1812 22 Jan 1849, 28 Aug 1881, 18 Jul 1882- 5 Sep 1849, 12 Mar 1884- 2 Jul 1849, 14 Aug 1881- HANOVER - Incorporated 1 June 1812 1881 21 Mar 1883 31 Jul 1881 FORESTVILLE - Incorporated 1848 misc 1874 to 1891- 1891 1891 SILVER CREEK Incorporated 1848 misc 1874, 1880, 1881, 30 May 1888- misc 1874, 1880, 1881, 13 Jun 1888- misc 1874, 1880, 1881, 4 Jun 1888- Merged with Town 1902. HARMONY - Incorporated 14 Feb 1816 1882 misc 1882 misc 1882 misc PANAMA - Incorporated 1861 18 Jan 1914 none (Records kept by Town Clerk) 17 Jan 1914 Previous births and deaths kept by Town Clerk. KIANTONE - Incorporated 16 Nov 1853 22 Dec 1881 8 Dec 1881 27 Aug 1882 MINA - Incorporated 23 Mar 1824 1 Sep 1881 3 Jul 1881 16 Apr 1882 NORTH HARMONY - Incorporated 1919 1920 1920 1920 Previous Records kept by Harmony Town Clerk. POLAND - Incorporated 9 Apr 1832 10 Sep 1884 12 Sep 1882 26 Nov 1884 POMFRET - Incorporated 11 Mar 1808 Jan 1881 Jan 1881 Jan 1881 FREDONIA - Incorporated 1829 1885 1885 (Kept by Town Clerk after 1906) 1885 PORTLAND - Incorporated 9 Apr 1813 15 Feb 1881 misc, 1891- 29 Sep 1881 misc, 1891- 12 Apr 1882-Apr 1883 misc, 1891- BROCTON - Incorporated 1894 Records kept by Town Clerk. RIPLEY - Incorporated 1 Mar 1816 1847, 1848, 1849, 1850, 1881- 1847, 1848, 1849, 1850, 1881- 1847, 1848, 1849, 1850, 1881- SHERIDAN - Incorporated 16 Apr 1827 10 Jul 1875 23 Feb 1882 24 Sep 1881 SHERMAN - Incorporated 7 Apr 1832 1 Oct 1881 13 Dec 1881 26 Feb 1885 STOCKTON - Incorporated 9 Feb 1821 10 Jul 1881 3 Jul 1881 19 Jul 1881 CASSADAGA - Incorporated 1921 Sep 1923 none (records kept by Town Clerk) Sep 1923 VILLENOVA - Incorporated 24 Jan 1823 Nov 1887 Dec 1887 Nov 1887 Earlier records destroyed by fire. WESTFIELD - Incorporated 29 Mar 1829 none (Town Clerk), 1881 (Registrar) 1881 (Town Clerk), none (Registrar) none (Town Clerk), 1881 (Registrar) WESTFIELD Village Records kept by Town as above. Source: WNYGS JOURNAL , Vol. 1, No.3, December 1974 In cases where data is not available, it can be assumed that the dates of records are similar to the other towns in the county.

Publishing a genealogy-focused quarterly for more than 45 years - Western New York Genealogist and Western New York Genealogical Society Journal. Issue previews. Contains research strategies, regional resources, field updates, and program infomation. Table of Contents. Regional authors. Article submission guidelines. Purchase of back issue collection. Society Publications The Western New York Genealogist Current Issue Preview Submission Guidelines Journal Back Issues The Western New York Genealogical Society has published a quarterly without interruption since 1974. Published in June, September, December and March, each issue contains articles relating to the eight counties of Western New York on such topics as research strategies and techniques, resource profiles, developments in the field of genealogy, and program and event information. The current name of the publication is The Western New York Genealogist , for short, the Genealogist . In the past, the publication was called the Journal . Current Issue Preview Below are the Table of Contents highlights from our current issue: T he Western New York Genealogist Volume 52 , No. 2 September 2025 p. 26 Upcoming WNYGS & Community Events p. 27 President’s Message p. 28 Select German Genealogy Resources in the Grosvenor Room by Rhonda Hoffman (3495L) p. 33 CLASSIFIED: Celebrate 200 Years of the Erie Canal with the Grosvenor Room by Libby Stengel, Local History Librarian, Buffalo & Erie County Public Library p. 36 Middleport, Niagara County, New York – A Friendly Community on the Erie Canal by Christa Lutz (3918), Village of Middleport Historian p. 38 Das Haus, EinHaus, Und Der Stall, German Heritage Museum – Hamlet of Bergholz, Town of Wheatfield, Niagara County by Elaine Timm (2325), Member of the Board of Trustees, Das Haus Museum p. 43 In Memoriam: Daniel Alan King, Historian, Brocton, NY p. 44 Historic Concordia Cemetery - City of Buffalo, Erie County, New York by Bonnie Fleischauer, Public Information Officer, Concordia Cemetery & Concordia Foundation p. 48 Poem: Dear Ancestor, Author Unknown Click to see the highlights from our previous four issues. Current Issue Preview Submission Guidelines Western New York Genealogist Submission Guidelines Western New York Counties of Interest Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie, Genesee, Niagara, Orleans, and Wyoming Material for Publication We are interested in articles for the Genealogist , especially those pertaining to Western New York research and resources. Other topics of interest include how-to articles, genealogical tools, case studies, and historical articles relevant to Western New York genealogy. Outlines or articles should be submitted to the editor for consideration. Articles on individual families generally cannot be published as they are of limited interest to our members. Material accepted or simultaneously submitted for publication by another organization should not be submitted. It is not our intent to duplicate material printed elsewhere. Format Article length: 1500-5000 words for feature articles. Software: Microsoft Word (.docx) Font: Cambria, 11 pt Footnotes font: Cambria, 9 pt Spacing: Single line; one space only at the end of sentences Page orientation: Portrait Margins: Left: .8" Right: .8" Top: 0.5" Bottom: 0.46" Images Images may be included with the submitted article. Images should be submitted separately and must meet copyright requirements. The author is required to obtain permission for publication from the image copyright holder and/or holding repository. Citations Citations should be included as endnotes following the current edition of Evidence Explained by Elizabeth Shown Mills. Deadlines for Completed Article Submissions to the Content Editor December Issue - September 1st March Issue - December 1st June Issue - March 1st September Issue - June 1st Contract If your completed article is accepted, a contract will be emailed to you to be signed and returned to the society in duplicate. The society will retain one copy and return a signed copy to the author by mail. Compensation The Genealogist is staffed by volunteers. No compensation is paid for articles. The author will receive an electronic copy of the issue in which the article appears upon request. Journal Back Issues Article Submissions or Questions? Please send all articles, outlines, and questions to the Editor. Editor: Marie-Cecile Tidwell, PhD (Interim) editor@wnygs.o rg Purchasing Back Issues of the Journal The Western New York Genealogical Society Journal Back Issue Collection (1974-2022) is now available for convenient direct download. When you order, you will receive access to one ZIP file (315.3 MB) containing the complete set of searchable PDFs for volumes 1-48 (192 issues). These files are for personal use only and may not be shared or distributed without the written permission of the Society. The emailed link is valid for 30 days. Retail Price: $60 Member Price: $30 (with 50% off promo code) ORDER ONLINE Important Discount Information for WNYGS Members: Individual issues are currently available for viewing and download at no additional cost in our website's Members Area. For those members wishing to download the entire set as one file, you are eligible to receive the collection at 50% off the retail price when you apply the special promo code listed in the Members Area.

Orleans County Vital Records Dates of First Vital Statistics Records (as published in the Western New York Genealogical Society Journal ) Click the county below to view individual town and village record information: Allegany County Cattaraugus County Chautauqua County Erie County Genesee County Niagara County Orleans County Wyoming County This map shows each Western New York county's founding date and the name of its parent county. Town and Date Births Marriages Deaths Notes ALBION - Incorporated 15 Jan 1875 ALBION VILLAGE - Incorporated 21 April 1828 2 Jul 1887 6 Aug 1887 14 Jul 1887 BARRE - Incorporated 6 Mar 1818 16 Sep 1884 16 Jan 1908 26 Sep 1884 CARLTON - Incorporated 13 April 1822 CLARENDON - Incorporated 23 Feb 1821 1 Mar 1847-1849, 9 Oct 1884 10 Feb 1847-1849, 2 Oct 1884 12 Feb 1847-1849, 29 Oct 1884 No records from 1849 to 1884. GAINES - Incorporated 14 Feb 1816 8 Apr 1884 25 Dec 1883 8 Feb 1884 HOLLEY - VILLAGE Record kept by Murray Town Clerk. KENDALL - Incorporated 7 Apr 1837 Records kept at Town Hall, Kendall, NY 14476. MEDINA VILLAGE - Incorporated 3 Mar 1832 1 Jul 1885 1 Jul 1885 1 Jul 1885 MURRAY - Incorporated 8 Apr 1808 9 Aug 1884 29 Jul 1884 17 Aug 1884 RIDGEWAY - Incorporated 6 Apr 1813 7 Feb 1882; delayed births 1869-1902. 11 Jan 1882 2 Feb 1882 Have births, deaths and marriages for 1848-1849. SHELBY - Incorporated 6 Mar 1818 1 Jun 1882 13 Jun 1882 19 Aug 1882 YATES - Incorporated ca1820-1822 Aug 1883 Sep 1883 Aug 1883 Source: WNYGS JOURNAL , Vol. 2, No. 2, September 1975 In cases where data is not available, it can be assumed that the dates of records are similar to the other towns in the county.

Wyoming County Vital Records Dates of First Vital Statistics Records (as published in the Western New York Genealogical Society Journal ) Click the county below to view individual town and village record information: Allegany County Cattaraugus County Chautauqua County Erie County Genesee County Niagara County Orleans County Wyoming County This map shows each Western New York county's founding date and the name of its parent county. Town and Date Births Marriages Deaths Notes ARCADE - Incorporated 6 Mar 1818 (kept by Village Clerk) Jan 1882 (kept by Village Clerk) ARCADE VILLAGE Jan 1882 (kept by Town Clerk) Jan 1882 ATTICA - Incorporated 4 Apr 1811 5 Jul 1881 14 Jul 1881 26 Jul 1881 All vital statistic records kept at Attica Village Office. ATTICA VILLAGE - Incorporated 2 May 1837 5 Jul 1881 14 Jul 1881 26 Jul 1881 BENNINGTON - Incorporated 6 Mar 1818 13 Jun 1881 5 Nov 1881 15 Aug 1881 CASTILE - Incorporated 27 Feb 1821 1847-9 and 1884 1847-9 and 1884 1847-9 and 1884 Records are kept at County Clerk's Office, Warsaw, NY. Previous records destroyed by fire. CASTILE VILLAGE - Incorporated 19 Jun 1877 All vital statistic records kept at Town Clerk's Office. COVINGTON - Incorporated 31 Jan 1817 21 Aug 1881 29 Mar 1882 22 Apr 1882 EAGLE - Incorporated 1 Jan 1823 12 Dec 1913 22 Jan 1908 3 Jan 1904 GAINESVILLE - Incorporated 25 Feb 1814 12 Sep 1913 1902 1 Feb 1914 GAINESVILLE VILLAGE - Incorporated 1897 All vital statistic records in Town Clerk's Office. SILVER SPRINGS VILLAGE - Incorporated 1897 Records are kept by the Town of Gainesville. GENESEE FALLS - Incorporated 1 Apr 1846 25 Apr 1882 6 Oct 1881 29 May 1882 PORTAGEVILLE VILLAGE - Incorporated 1866 Ceased 1874. All records with the Town Clerk. JAVA - Inc 20 Apr 1832 1885 1881 1885 MIDDLEBURY - Incorporated 20 Mar 1812 (kept by Wyoming Village Clerk) 1880 (kept by Wyoming Village Clerk) WYOMING VILLAGE - Incorporated 31 July 1875 1880 (kept by Town Clerk) 1880 ORANGEVILLE - Incorporated 14 Feb 1816 1882 1882 1882 PERRY - Incorporated 11 Mar 1814 21 Apr 1881 21 Apr 1881 21 Apr 1881 All vital statistic records are kept at the Village Hall, Perry, NY. PERRY VILLAGE - Incorporated 1830 Records are kept by the Town Clerk. PIKE - Incorporated 6 Mar 1818 1914 1909 1914 PIKE VILLAGE - Incorporated 23 June 1848 Records are kept by the Town Clerk. SHELDON - Incorporated 19 Mar 1808 1882 1882 1882 WARSAW - Incorporated 19 May 1808 1882 1882 (1901 - 1907 village records also) 1882 WARSAW VILLAGE - Incorporated 17 April 1843 1900 (kept by Town Clerk) 1900 WETHERSFIELD - Incorporated 12 April 1823 22 Jul 1881 7 Apr 1908 21 Feb 1885 Source: WNYGS JOURNAL , Vol. 2, No.3, December 1975 In cases where data is not available, it can be assumed that the dates of records are similar to the other towns in the county.

Research Links The society maintains the following list of free online resources related to Western New York genealogical research. A s the web and social media continue to change and expand, researchers are encouraged regularly explore and share available resources. Blogs and Podcasts Eastman's Genealogy Newsletter by Dick Eastman GeneaBloggers by Thomas MacEntee Genealogy Gems by Lisa Louise Cooke Genealogy Guys Podcast by George G. Morgan and Drew Smith Genealogy In Time Magazine The Genetic Genealogist by Blaine Bettinger, PhD, JD The Legal Genealogist by Judy G. Russell , JD, CG Broad Catalog/Collection Searching Worldcat: "WorldCat.org lets you search the collections of libraries in your community and thousands more around the world...search for popular books, music CDs and videos—all of the physical items you're used to getting from libraries. You can also discover many new kinds of digital content, such as downloadable audiobooks. You may also find article citations with links to their full text; authoritative research materials, such as documents and photos of local or historic significance; and digital versions of rare items that aren't available to the public." – It is important to note their website can help users to locate the closest target item using their results sorting by zip code feature. Cemetery Related Resources Association for Gravestone Studies Billion Graves Find A Grave Genealogical Societies Regional Buffalo Genealogical Society of the African Diaspora Buffalo Irish Genealogical Society Central New York Genealogical Society Chautauqua County Genealogical Society Genesee Area Genealogical Society Jewish Genealogical Society of Buffalo Italian Genealogical Society of Western New York (email only) Niagara County Genealogical Society Painted Hills Genealogical Society (covering Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua County) Rochester Genealogical Society State New England Historic Genealogical Society (including New York State) New York Genealogical & Biographical Society Polish Genealogical Society of New York State Canadian - Regional Ontario Ancestors Niagara Peninsula Branch General Resources – Genealogy Cyndi's List – New York: A categorized & cross-referenced index to the vast genealogical resources on the Internet. Family Search : Access the largest collection of genealogical records in the world. Free resources include records (electronic and microfilm), finding guides, and available services (online, at Family History Centers, and by phone). Steve Morse : Stephen P. Morse's site for the "one-step" finding of immigration records, census records, vital records. Also includes information on best practices for dealing with calendars, maps, foreign alphabets, and other applications. General Resources – New York State Genealogy BuffaloResearch.com : Cynthia VanNess' quick reference of Buffalo & Erie County resources. Site includes links to vital record repositories, maps, directories, name lists, obituaries, and more. RootsWeb - New York Resources : Varied genealogical links listed by county. New York GenWeb : A "Gateway to New York Genealogy and History" grouped at both the state and county levels. Historians: Village, Town, City, and County Association of Public Historians of New York State : Features an online database of the 1600 member town, village, city, and county historians in New York State. Government Appointed Historians of Western New York : Features links and contact information for town, village, city, and county historians that is searchable by Western New York county. Historical Societies Allegany County Historical Society Buffalo History Museum (also known as The Buffalo & Erie County Historical Society) Cattaraugus County Historical Museum and Research Library Chautauqua County Historical Society & the McClurg Museum Holland Purchase Historical Society (Genesee County) Niagara County Historical Society Orleans County Historical Association Holland Land Company Specific Resources Holland Land Company Collection @ SUNY Fredonia's Reed Library : An overview of available collection resources and targeted finding guides. Site also provides information on Holland Land Company records located at other regional and state repositories. Holland Land Office Museum Holland Land Company – Selected Resources Libraries & Research Repositories Regional Buffalo and Erie County Public Library System Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Library System Nioga Library System (Niagara, Orleans, and Genesee Counties) New York State New York Public Library : The New York Public Library "holds more than 51 million items, from books, e-books, and DVDs to renowned research collections used by scholars from around the world." It "provides patrons worldwide with powerful online tools to help them discover its extensive resources and services. On nypl.org, visitors can browse the Library’s immense collections, download e-books, and view more than 800,000 items from our award-winning Digital Gallery." New York State Library – Research New York State Archives NYHeritage : New York Heritage Digital Collections features a broad range of materials that present a glimpse into our state’s history and culture, from the colonial era to present. Over 350 libraries, museums, archives, and other cultural institutions make their collections' primary source materials available through this website. Across the Co untry Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center : Based in Fort Wayne, Indiana, the ACPLGC has "one of the largest research collections available, incorporating records from around the world." Digital Public Library of America : The DPLA "brings together the riches of America’s libraries, archives, and museums, and makes them freely available to the world. It strives to contain the full breadth of human expression, from the written word, to works of art and culture, to records of America’s heritage, to the efforts and data of science." Library of Congress : The LOC "is the nation’s first established cultural institution and the largest library in the world, with millions of items including books, recordings, photographs, maps and manuscripts in its collections." National Archives and Records Administration : NARA "is the nation's record keeper...valuable records are preserved and are available to you, whether you want to see if they contain clues about your family’s history, need to prove a veteran’s military service, or are researching an historical topic that interests you." National Archives and Records Administration – Resources for Genealogist Native American Resources – Regional Seneca Nation of Indians Tonawanda Band of Senecas, 7027 Meadville Road, Basom, NY 14013 (716) 542-4244 Tuscarora Nation, 2006 Mt. Hope Road, Lewistown, NY 14092 (716) 622-7061 Newspaper Resources Fulton History : A free searchable online collection of more than 57 million historical newspaper pages from the USA & Canada. Google Newspaper Archive : Provides searchable database of free digitized newspapers from around the world. Library of Congress – Chronicling America : Site provides information about historic newspapers and free searches of and access to select digitized newspaper pages. NYS Historic Newspapers : This project provides free online access to a wide range of newspapers chosen to "reflect New York's unique history." Organized by county.

Remembering the Last 50 Years Celebrating Our 50th Anniversary With a proud history dating back to 1974, the Western New York Genealogical Society celebrated its work, impact, and the dedication and passion of its members and volunteers in 2024. 50th Anniversary Memories As we looked back over the past fifty years of the Western New York Genealogical Society, many of our members shared memories of how they became interested in genealogy and of their time in the Society. Project Compiler: Lynda Zaky Wood Shared Memories January-March Memories Memory 1: Carolyn Dawley (#18) of Chandler, AZ [1/3/2024] Memory 2: Glenn Atwell (#13) of Buffalo, NY [1/10/2024] Memory 3: Lynda Zaky Wood (#3560L) of Buffalo, NY [1/17/2024] Memory 4: Barbara Keil (#3684) [1/23/2024] Memory 5: Beth Benson (#4034) [1/31/2024] Memory 6: Nancy Cluff Siders (#2954) [2/7/2024] Memory 7: Lois Lane (#3782L) [2/13/2024] Memory 8: Rhonda Hoffman (#3495L) [2/21/2024] Memory 9: Marie-Cecile Tidwell (#3625L) [2/28/2024] Memory 10: Doug Batt (#3098) [3/6/2024] Memory 11: Doug Batt (#3098) [3/13/2024] Memory 12: Marsha A. Smith (#3978) [3/20/2024] Memory 13: Nancy Gavin Koester (#3650L) [3/27/2024] April-June Memories Memory 14: Shirley Vivion [4/3/2024] Memory 15: William Martin [4/10/2024] Memory 16: Brian Cotton (#3512) [4/17/2024] Memory 17: Michele Bewley (#3392) [4/24/2024] Memory 18: Shawna Rose-Wickman [5/1/2024] Memory 19: Nancy Bernard Watson [5/8/2024] Memory 20: Ae Dustin [5/14/2024] Memory 21: Brenda Rainey Farrara [5/22/2024] Memory 22: Larry Naukam (#1163) [5/29/2024] Memory 23: Wilfred Vasile (#69L) [6/5/2024] Memory 24: Gale Murray (#416L) [6/12/2024] Memory 25: Delores Calandra (#3566) [6/18/2024] Memory 26: Diane Kujawski (#1764) [6/26/2024] July-September Memory 27: Pamela Bouquin (#3378) [7/3/2024] Memory 28: Suzanne Scripter Harris (#3520L) [7/10/2024] Memory 29: Dennis Gates (#1508) [7/17/2024] Memory 30: Peter Ames (#3375) [7/24/2024] Memory 31: Dr. John R. Schmidt (#3699L) [7/31/2024] Memory 32: Lois Lane (#3782L) [8/7/2024] Memory 33: Lois Lane (#3782L) [8/14/2024] Memory 34: Becky Burke (#3790F) [8/21/2024] Memory 35: Kay White (#3974) [8/28/2024] Memory 36: Fred Kester (#364) [9/4/2024] Memory 37: Fred Kester (#364) [9/11/2024] Memory 38: P. Marthia (#3970) [9/18/2024] Memory 39: P. Richard (Dick) Kreitner (#3756) [9/25/2024] October-December Memory 40: Charleen Scime (#4028) [10/2/2024] Memory 41: Mary Kay Wright (#1202) [10/9/2024] Memory 42: Gloria Osborne (#2909) [10/16/2024] Memory 43 : Lisa (Schreiner) Berta [10/23 /2024] Memory 44 : Sandy Hudson (#1461) [10/30 /2024] Memory 45 : Sandy Hudson (#1461) [11/6 /2024] Memory 46: Barbara A. Jones (#3593) [11/14/2024] Memory 47: Dave Yearke (#2380L) [11/20/2024] Memory 48: Joanne Clements (#3767) [11/27/2024] Memory 49: Jack Donohue (#3968) [12/4/2024] Memory 50a: Vincent Hazewski (#4063) [12/11/2024] Memory 50b: Lynda Zaky Wood (3560L): [12/11/2024] Click to see 1st Quarter Member Memories (#1-13, January-March 2024) Click to see 2nd Quarter Member Memories (#14-26, April-June 2024) Click to see 3rd Quarter Member Memories (#27-39, July-September 2024) Memory 50b : Lynda Zaky Wood (#3560L ) Asking a genealogist for a memory for the WNYGS 50th anniversary is nearly impossible. A genealogist isn’t worthy of the name or a grain of salt if they only have one. As our family’s historian now, memories have flashed through my mind like a dying man’s life passing before his eyes. COULD THE MEMORY BE THE BEGINNING OF MY JOURNEY. I have been working on our tree for nearly as long as the society has existed. During WWII my mom and her sister lived in New Jersey while her parents worked for the war effort; it was during that time, her journey began. My interest was piqued after reading Roots by Alex Haley and how his family’s history unfolded with the journey of Kunte Kinte, Haley’s 4th great grandfather. I’d begun to think of my family’s history. That Christmas in 1977, I gifted my mother Finding Your Roots from Doubleday Book club. The book came with worksheets to complete. Off and running, a lot of time was spent in municipality and county basements looking through musty and dusty census, birth, marriage, and death records. Not to mention the deeds and search and surveys. Once a discovery was made, we recorded it in triplicate or more. MAYBE THE MEMORY IS THE PASSING OF MY MOTHER: All the family history was passed to me. Not just the title of family historian, but the physical history; every copy of each document. She’s been gone since 1993 and I’m still discovering record copies. With the age of computers and the internet, I’ve made it so that much of that information is now down to just three copies of each: hard copy, in the computer hard drive and on a flash drive as well. OR WHEN I had brick walls on both sides of our tree. I’d seen an event for WNYGS on Facebook. Mom had been a member and a director on the Board of Directors, and I remembered how much she’d learned from June Partridge Zintz, Glenn Atwell and the society. I went to a program at St. Louis RC Church with lunch at Ulrich’s where I met other members of WNYGS who would help me break some of those walls while becoming forever friends. AFTER THAT, OF COURSE, MY MEMORY COULD BE: My WNYGS journey began when I was part of the 3-person programming committee consisting of Jennifer Libre Raines and Sandi Russo. The three of us pulled together some memorable programs including researching your Native American roots and the Western New York Genealogical Conference. At the latter, I met Josh Taylor, President of NYGBS and Blaine Bettinger, The Genetic Genealogist. The day of any program, fellow programming committee member, Sandi and I would be found manning the hospitality table, greeting members and hoping to bring in more members. These programs were pre-Covid-19 and pre-zoom, so most programs were recorded and available to members to view. AND IT COULD BE. Indexing and transcribing which became my favorite past-time, either on my own or for familysearch.org . It wasn’t long before I began doing the same for WNYGS. Soon after, I was asked to join the Board of Directors. During lockdown I was asked to help with several transcription and indexing projects. Once these projects ended, I was asked to come back to the Board again, but this time serve but this time on the 50th anniversary committee as the memory coordinator. HOWEVER, The best memory by far has been accepting the founders award on behalf of my mother during the Founder’s Day luncheon this past October. I’m humbled and honored to have accepted it on her behalf. It has been my pleasure to be the memory coordinator. While I will be stepping away from the board and programming committee, I will be making more memories working on my own family tree and stories. -------------- Memory 50a : Vincent Hazewski (#4063 ) Although I only recently became a member (#4063) I have been actively researching my family history for the past 30 years. A recent experience prompted me to write it down and share. I am currently employed as the facility manager for the Center for the Arts at UB’s North Campus. I also have a part time seasonal position operating a high pressure steam plant as a stationary engineer in a mixed use facility. I was working the part time job, making building rounds. My tour takes me to the loading dock, where a large open top dumpster resides. It was filled to the top with miscellaneous items, much of it discarded items from tenants. Perched on top was a high school yearbook from 1955. I picked it up, thinking it would be interesting to leaf through during my break, which I did. And got interested in who it belonged to. The owner’s name was written inside. There were many signatures, mostly of the senior class, though the owner was a sophomore at the time. It turns out the owner’s sister was a senior and likely knew many of them. I got to thinking, did the yearbook get separated from its owner by accident, and maybe they would like to have it back? Or maybe a relative might like to have it? I just could not let it go to the landfill without making an effort to put it into the hands of someone who would appreciate having it. So I put my genealogical research skills to work to help make that happen. I found her in the 1950 US Census, so I had her parents’ names. Digging further, I learned she was employed as a junior high math teacher in Lancaster after graduating from Houghton College and marrying a dentist soon thereafter. The trail went cold for a while, finding nothing on her until I found her husband’s obituary. In it were listed the names of her daughter and two sons, both of which were noted as PhDs. I found it interesting that the obituary noted their advanced degrees. One of the sons had a spouse and son noted, so I concentrated on researching him. He got his doctorate at UB. Further research found a paper online he had authored. The paper included his email address at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab in Pasadena. Armed with this information, I emailed him, explaining the circumstances of how a found the yearbook and asking if he would like to have it. He emailed me back, informing me that his mother had just sold her home of 60 years, and he did not know of the existence of this yearbook, and would like to see it. He also noted my email sigfile had my affiliation with the CFA at UB. He asked if I had possibly met his mother, as she had been a volunteer usher at many CFA events. I had not, but our events staff (with who I shared this story) fondly remembered her. The yearbook is on its way to the owner’s son. -------------- Memory 49: Jack Donohue (#3968) Like many of you, my memories of and questions about family members started when I was young. My mother's side of the family had plenty to offer - ultimately dating back to the Mayflower. My father's side was altogether a different matter. While he grew up in South Buffalo, the second generation of Irish immigrants, with loads of family scattered around the area, he didn't have a great interest in keeping up with his family roots - or they were distorted with family lore with little basis of fact (ah, the Irish). And I'm sure like many of us, it was only after he died that I realized I hadn't been more attentive to finding out his family history. That changed when I read Tim Bohen's book "Against the Grain". I came back to Buffalo on a regular basis to explore churches, the Holy Cross Cemetery in Lackawanna, and the fabulous Grosvenor Room in the downtown library. ...And the even more fabulous people there, especially Rhonda Hoffman, who helped me find a great, great grandfather I didn't know I had (see above: "ah, the Irish"). ...And then discovering after I joined the WNYGS, my high school European Studies teacher (in 1976) was a founding member of the Society - Glenn Atwell. Congrats to the WNYGS for our first 50 years. Thanks for helping me on my genealogical journey. May the next 50 be as prosperous. -------------- Memory 48: Joanne Clements (#3767) I joined the Western New York Genealogical Society a few years ago in hopes of finding out more about my ancestors who emigrated from Germany to Niagara County in the 1800’s. Since joining, I have been introduced to distant relatives who live in Niagara County. They have been able to provide additional clues to why those ancestors emigrated in the first place. I have also learned more about the history of Buffalo and surrounding areas. I have relatives buried in the Concordia Cemetery and have been interested to read about the Concordia Cemetery project. By being on the Board of the Society, I have met several wonderful people who have been able to give suggestions and tips for further research. Thank you WNYGS! ---------------- Memory 47: Dave Yearke (#2380L) I had always wondered about the origin of the name "Yearke." There were various surnames that sounded similar and had similar spellings, but as far as I knew only people in our direct family spelled it that way. So, in 1985, I decided to start investigating. I wrote to some relatives, who were quite helpful in other ways, but none had an answer on this issue. I pursued this on and off for a few years, but not diligently. I went to various places and looked up records, but didn't have any luck. On July 29th, 1993, I hit paydirt. I was in the basement of Erie County Hall, looking through marriage records, and found license applications for my great-grandfather and all of his siblings, except for his brother Charles, the eldest sibling. After going through all the indexes of males, I decided to look for his wife in the indexes of females and found a record showing her husband as "Charles Gierke." I started looking for that last name, and in a short amount of time had a marriage license for his mother, who remarried after my g-g-grandfather died, as well as for a sibling who remarried. The dates and details checked out, so I knew I was on the right track. Charles is listed with the last name "Yearke" in the 1884 Buffalo city directory, and this is the earliest use of that spelling I can find, other than a William Yearke in the 1883 directory, and for whom I am still trying to establish a relationship with our family (if any). All of his siblings started using the same spelling in 1887, after their father died the previous year. I don't know if they were trying to make the name more phonetic, or if it was a spelling error they just decided to keep, or if there was a reason they were trying to distance themselves from the original spelling. It's still a mystery to me. Since then, I have used that spelling to find newspaper articles, census records, and other interesting items for the early family. I know now my g-g-grandparents probably came from Prussia, but I have not yet found any records from that area. I guess more searching is in order. ---------------- Memory 46: Barbara A. Jones (#3593) It was the early 1990s and my son asked me some questions concerning his ancestors. I knew my paternal grandparents were buried in the cemetery across the street but so were my gr grandparents. But then a brick wall on that line. I can now trace the paternal line to 1637 in colonial MA. In my research I experienced a few unique events. 1 - I was at the LDS library in the early 1990s when a man who was doing research for the first time. The volunteer was very helpful but when she finished I mentioned he might try Surrogate's Court. I had found this helpful since at that time census records were on microfilm and knowing an address helped narrow the search. I had just found my grandfather’s uncle who passed away in 1899. The new person recognized the Surname Hauser. He said his aunt married a Hauser and mentioned his name. I couldn’t believe it but he was the 6 month old on my microfilm reader. He mentioned his aunt was still alive and another nephew had researched the Hausers. I couldn’t believe it. The researcher was a college professor who taught religious German studies. He was kind enough to share his research back to a town in 1500s in Germany, now a B&B. 2 - Also about 1990 I was at the WNYGS library on South Park. I showed the volunteer my gr grandfather’s death certificate. It stated he died in Johnsburg NY. The volunteer stated she thought it was Johnsonburg. Sure enough, she was correct. It is what allowed me to break through. I would have never found him since my gr grandmother was born in Bath NY and my grandfather was born in MI. I just figured his father was from MI. I would never have looked in Wyoming County. This broke the brick wall for my Coburn line. Another surprise was that on the census was a Fullington family who were neighbors of the Coburn family and connected through a marriage. This was mid 1800s. In 1940s my Dad married my mom, a Hauser and her sister married a descendant of the Fullington family. Johnsonburg is located about an hour by car from the Hauser family in north Buffalo. I spent over 20 years looking the Kromer surname in Cleveland where my grandmother was born. Finally found them on a Google search since my gr grandfather’s brother was a famous singer. He preformed at Carnegie Hall and the White House. I feel the most interesting aspect is the part my ancestors had in the history of Buffalo. A Coburn and Wolfe (from the Hausers) married into the Rumsey family. In fact Mary Coburn was the mother in law of Ansley Wilcox. Thank you for all you do. I might still be looking for Coburns had it not been for a very helpful volunteer who was willing to help me. -------------- Memory 45: Sandy Hudson (#1461) Many years ago, while reading my newly delivered copy of the Journal I noticed an article written by one of our members stating that she had been given a very old family bible from a friend who had purchased it at a flea market. He thought that she might be able to find someone in the society who would be related to this family. I could hardly believe my eyes when I read the names of my great-great grandparents. I immediately made a phone call explaining that I was interested in purchasing the bible that was mentioned in the Journal. She then invited me to her home and said that as long as I could show her proof of my relationship, she would be delighted to turn it over to me. Her friend who purchased the bible did not want any compensation in return but thought that perhaps making a donation to the society would be nice. Wow. How unbelievable and wonderful! Over the years I have been able to show the bible to other members of my family who were just as excited as I was to see this family treasure that we probably never would have known existed had it not been for the kindness of those two individuals. -------------- Memory 44: Sandy Hudson (#1461) Many years ago, while reading the newspaper I came across an article that mentioned The Western New York Genealogy Society. What? I didn't realize that there was a genealogical society in WNY. Had I known, I definitely would have attended that very first meeting 50 years ago. My interest in family history began when I was about 12 years old. One Sunday afternoon while visiting my grandparents after church I was playing a card game with my grandma and during a lull in the game I asked her the names of her mother and father, and then I wanted to know when they came to America, and then I asked her what country they emigrated from, etc. I wrote down everything she told me that afternoon on a tiny piece of paper before heading home. Over the next 65 years that tiny piece of paper has grown to twenty-three 3-ring binders, trees online, DNA testing, etc. ---------------- Memory 43: Lisa (Schreiner) Berta I grew up in Hamburg, NY. My father, John “Jack” Schreiner’s has Lola Kimmel as an elementary school teacher. The Kimmels were former neighbors of my paternal grandparents, Francis and Agnes (Petrie) Schreiner. Mrs. Kimmel was also my fourth-grade teacher at Charlotte Avenue Elementary School, and fostered my love of reading and science by gifting me a copy of Eleanor Clymer’s “Search for a Living Fossil: The Story of the Coelacanth.” As the end of fourth grade approached, my mother, Jane (Clark) Schreiner, said I was to have a schedule and purpose that summer break, and every summer afterwards. And she had already set it up during a parent-teacher conference. There was a schedule of mornings to pack lunch, hop on my bike, and report to Mrs. Kimmel at the Hamburg Historical Society Museum on South Park Avenue until she said my volunteer day was complete. That generally happened as the museum was locked up in the afternoon. After reporting to Mrs. Kimmel, I received assignments to clean floors, dust, clean more surfaces, help with filing, clean, clean the back room, and clean a bit more. Turns our Mrs. Kimmel had a great sense of humor that I missed as a student. WNYGS was housed in the Museum, and member of WNYGS asked for help moving huge bound books of the Erie County Independent. Over the weeks, I helped Mrs. June Partridge Zintz with more WNYGS books, reshelving with Mrs. Kimmel’s approval, or helping members find and read microfilm. Weeks later, Mrs. Zintz asked what I knew of my family tree. I had spotted my great aunt Edna (Clark) Schnautz’s book “Alanson Clark, 1807-1888," and I was excited to show her my name in the book. Mrs. Zintz encouraged me to continue researching my tree. Several years later, my genealogy binder received 4-H blue ribbons at the Erie County and New York State Fairs. I became a life member of WNYGS in 2007. Today, I’ve joined nearly 40 lineage societies and assist prospective members with their genealogy research for several societies. ---------------- Memory 42: Gloria Osborne (#2909) Even as a kid I was always interested in where my family came from. Finding time was always a problem, but in the early 1990's I began serious research. Although I lived in Michigan, my family still lived in the Buffalo area. I joined both the WNYGS and the Niagara County Genealogical Society since some of my mother's Irish family originally located in Lockport. My Dad's German family was from Buffalo and also Tonawanda and both Orleans and Genesee Counties. I returned often to visit my family, of course, but also made many stops at the Buffalo & Erie County Public Library where I found many useful resources; newspaper microfilm, filmed local church records and clippings scrapbooks among others. My mother was a wonderful source of information to get me started and the research findings provided a great rapport with her as she aged. I greatly expanded her basic knowledge and found much more that she didn't know about her family, information which she always looked forward to hearing about. I look forward to the quarterly Genealogist journal from the Society for their helpful indexes and transcriptions and local history. I made contact with a cousin who is also a member. In 2006 I compiled a book on my dad's paternal family for a family reunion and now I am currently putting all this 30-plus years of research about my mother's 4 Irish ancestor families into a book for my own family. ----------------- Memory 41: Mary Kay Wright (#1202) My memory goes back over 40 years concerning the Journal. When my husband and I joined, we volunteered to help collate and mail the Journal as a way of becoming acquainted with active members. At first, we worked in the DAR on Delaware. Collating by hand took many helpers and we soon enjoyed the task and company. Our next move was to a room in the Marine Drive apartments where Isabelle Clifford lived. Over time, the collating was handled by the printer. My late husband, Joe, had retired from the Post Office and ways of handling the mailing changed. Preparing and presorting the Journal for the Post Office was a big job. Many changes have been made over the years resulting in our current. professional Western New York Genealogist. I look back with fondness on all my fellow Journal volunteers. ------------------- Memory 40: Charleen Scime (#4038) I am a new member of WYNGS with a nearly 20 -year journey in genealogy. I am second generation Italian on one side and third generation on the other. My families came to the US around 1900. It all started in 2006 when I joined a computer club that had a SIG on genealogy. At that time using the internet for information was fairly new, and not nearly as sophisticated as it is now! We were taught how to use AOL search, Ask Jeeves, Mamma, Alta Vista and many more for our research. After a couple months I was hooked. As in many families, the “old people” did not share information. Maybe I was just too young to ask, or maybe they thought if they didn’t talk about it they would assimilate into the American culture better. All I knew is that I was Sicilian on one side of my family and Calabrese on the other side. All Italian – this will be so easy, I thought! Well, as all of you know, nothing in genealogy runs in a straight line. I had quite a bit of information on names of ancestors on my Mom’s side of the family but very little on my Dad’s. In order to get started on my Dad’s side I started writing letters in English and using a translator to add the Italian, looked up all the Scime families near my grandfather’s town, stamped the envelopes and popped them in the mail. I sent 11 letters and got answers from 3. I still had relatives in the same town! I was amazed and even more excited to see what I could learn. One of my cousins sent me a handwritten list of my grandfather and his siblings. There were THIRTEEN in all and only 4 came to the US. That was new information. I worked both ends to the middle with that information….. I followed up on the Scime family in Castelvetrano, Sicily and Springfield, Illinois in the US. I looked up those relatives on Facebook, if you can imagine! I found so many of them and we began to talk about what we knew. We created a “family” Facebook page where we could exchange that information. We relied heavily on google translate! Well, that is where it all began. I was fortunate enough to meet my cousins from Springfield, Illinois and in 2017 (and just recently in July of 2024) in Sicily. What an awesome feeling to meet second cousins and find we looked so much alike! I now teach beginning genealogy classes in Florida and in NY – showing new or aspiring genealogists and family historians some unusual places to start, how to get organized, and sources as to where to go from “here”. My hobby goes hot and cold, depending on what I have going on – but every one of us knows – once you start going down a rabbit hole….. it is very hard to come up!

Highlights from Last Four Issues Below are the Table of Contents from the previous four issues of our publication: The Western New York Genealogist Volume 52 No. 1 June 2025 p. 2 Upcoming WNYGS & Community Events p. 3 President’s Message p. 4 The Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Library System (CCLS): The CCLS Road Trip: June 1 to August 31, 2025 by Megan Disbro, Digital Services Librarian p. 12 Dressmakers, Seamstresses, and Tailors by Marie-Cecile O. Tidwell, PhD p. 14 The Story of the Fenton Historical Society and The Fenton History Center Museum and Hall House Research Center by Janet Wahlberg (3848), Vice-President of the Board of Trustees of the Fenton History Center p. 17 Maple Grove Cemetery: Town of Carroll, Chautauqua County, NY by Barbara Cessna, Town of Carroll Historian p. 19 In Memoriam: Robert Rheinheder & Richard Eaton p. 20 New Additions to the June Partridge Zintz Memorial Library of the Western New York Genealogical Society: April 2024 to May 2025 by Rhonda Hoffman (3495L), Genealogy Specialist, B&ECPL p. 24 Digitize New York is Coming to Western New York Volume 51 No. 4 March 2025 p. 74 Upcoming Events p. 75 President’s Message p. 76 Spring 2025 Library Programs p. 77 Upcoming New Special Interest Groups (SIGS) p. 77 In Memoriam: “Jolene” Hawkins (2800L) p. 78 In Memoriam: Lynda Zaky Wood (3560L) p. 80 Bennet Family Cemetery: Every Family Has a Story by Tanya Kenevich p. 83 In Memoriam: Maureen E. Gleason (3587) p. 84 Classified: “Hidden” Grosvenor Room Collections by Rhonda Hoffman (3495L), Genealogy Specialist, B&ECPL p. 88 New Grosvenor Room Acquisitions p. 89 The Glenn R. P. Atwell Collection p. 89 Spring Into Action: Join Us as a WNYGS Volunteer p. 90 Have You Visited The New York Heritage Digital Collection? p. 91 Saving History One Page at a Time by Peter Ames (3375), Town of Niagara Historian p. 92 Helpful Free Online Resources by Gabrielle Kandefer (4082), Chair: NextGen/FTM SIGS p. 93 Check Out WNYGS New Special Interest Groups (SIGs) p. 94 Statement on Behalf of WNYGS to NYS Legislators by Marie-Cecile O. Tidwell, PhD, President, WNYGS p. 96 New Members No. 3 Dec 2024 p. 50 Upcoming Events p. 51 President’s Message p. 52 Photo Pages of the 50th Anniversary Events p. 55 "Classified: Do You Have Accused Witch Ancestors in Your Family Tree?" by Rhonda Hoffman, MLS (3495L), Genealogy Specialist, BECPL p. 57 Upcoming Grosvenor Room Virtual Genealogy Series: “Choose Your Genealogy Adventure” p. 58 "Western New York Genealogical Society: The Fifth Decade: 2014-2023" by Fred Kester, Society Historian (364) p. 60 Looking Back: Photos from the Fifth Decade p. 63 Witmer Memorial Cemetery: Its History and Restoration by Peter Ames, Town of Niagara Historian (3375) p. 65 WNYGS NextGen Special Interest Group p. 66 "Using Maps in Genealogical Research" by Kaitlyn Pauley (4089L) No. 2 Sept 2024 p. 25 What’s Your Memory? p. 26 50th Anniversary Founders Celebration p. 27 WNYGS Annual Meeting – November 16, and Presentation by Elissa Scalise-Powell p. 28 President’s Message p. 29 Classified: Cool Tools for Genealogy—Transcribe Records with Artificial Intelligence by Rhonda Hoffman, MLS (3495L), Genealogy Specialist, BECPL p. 34 Western New York Genealogical Society The Fourth Decade: 2004-2013 by Fred Kester, Society Historian (364) p. 36 Looking Back p. 38 Historic Batavia Cemetery by Sharon Burkel p. 42 Immigration, Land, and Citizenship: Antebellum New York by Michael Nuwer (3981)

Proudly Celebrating 50 Years Our Anniversary (1974-2024) With a proud history dating back to 1974, the Western New York Genealogical Society is excited to celebrate our work, our impact, and the dedication and passion of our members and volunteers. 50th Anniversary Memories As we look back over the past fifty years of the Western New York Genealogical Society, we all have our own memories of how we became interested in genealogy and of our time in the Society. Please share with us any special or unforgettable memories you have. Submissions: Send them to 50Memories@wnygs.org . We will share them throughout the coming year. Shared Memories January-March Memories Memory 1: Carolyn Dawley (#18) of Chandler, AZ [1/3/2024] Memory 2: Glenn Atwell (#13) of Buffalo, NY [1/10/2024] Memory 3: Lynda Zaky Wood ( #3560L) of Buffalo, NY [1/17/2024] Memory 4: Barbara Keil ( #3684) [1/23/2024] Memory 5: Beth Benson (#4034) [1/31 /2024] Memory 6: Nancy Cluff Siders (#2954) [2/7 /2024] Memory 7: Lois Lane (#3782L) [2/13 /2024] Memory 8: Rhonda Hoffman (#3495 L) [2/21 /2024] Mem ory 9: Marie-Cecile Tidwell (#3625L) [2/28/2024] Mem ory 10: Doug Batt (#3098) [3/6/2024] Mem ory 11 : Doug Batt (#3098) [3/13/2024] Mem ory 12: Marsha A. Smith (#3978) [3/20/2024] Memory 13: Nancy Gavin Koester (#3650L) [3/27/2024] Back to Main 50th Anniversary Page ------------------------------ Memory 13: Nancy Gavin Koester (#3650L) Although I didn't become a member of WNYGS until about 15 years ago, my personal experience with them goes back to 1996. I was a lifelong genealogist, beginning at the age of 13, way back in 1978. My grandmother, Bernice Windsor Rich, had been determined to find her connection to Windsor Castle, and her mother (Lena Mather) connection to the Mathers of Boston and the Salem Witch trials. I inherited boxes of documentation from her. But my connection to WNYGS began with the internet. My husband's aunt, a wonderful woman named Dorothy Koester Rauch, was the family historian of Dan's extensive Hamburg, NY genealogy. Dorothy remembered her immigrant grandfather, John Koester, and had heard the stories that his mother died at sea on their journey in 1853. In 1996, I finally hooked to the internet, and used Rootsweb.com (remember Rootsweb?) On it there was a surname index, and a woman wrote a query, that her family story was that her Koester great great grandmother had died at sea. I responded, saying I had the same story, and then a third woman responded, saying the story was true, and filling in the details. This was also her husband's family story. That woman? June Partidge Zintz, founder of WNYGS. June invited me to her house, and she and I spent some time comparing notes, and confirming stories. That information then verified all of the plethora of records on the Koester family (in German with no e, and an umla on the o, and and s at the end) and I was in, hook, line and sinker. 15 years later, I gave a presentation at the Buffalo Irish Genealogical society, and I was asked to join the board of WNYGS, where I was a board member for 6 years, and also vice-president. And that is my WNYGS story! ------------------------------ Memory 12: Marsha A. Smith (#3978) I joined in 2021 and am attending via ZOOM as I now live in Walworth NY. During one program, we broke into small groups and I raised my challenges with locating the grave of my great-grandfather. I had his obituary; I had the Find-a-Grave entry for his wife's (my great-grandmother) grave. But could not locate his burial site. Jeannette Sheliga happened to pop into the session while I was speaking, and she noted my shock when some members suggested he may be in a unmarked grave. Jeannette left the small group, and spoke with Sandra Hawkinson, who was there in person at the meeting. Sandra sent me a note in the chat, offering to help as she is geographically closer. So many interchanges and wonderful guidance from Sandra! After several months we could verify-- with help from Sandra's actual visit to the cemetery-- that my great-grandfather was buried right next to my great-grandmother, in an unmarked grave. Our family followed up on this and have since placed a headstone for great-grandpa, and have added his listing to Find-a-Grave and connected him to his wife and other family members. I am so grateful to Jeannette for getting this started, and to Sandra for the many months and emails and research that she did to make this family moment possible. My WNYGS membership is a treasure! ------------------------------ Memory 11: Doug Batt (#3098) Another memory: I first heard of WNYGS from my father-in-law, Hugh N. Siegel (1919-1995, lived near Utica NY) who was researching his family in South Buffalo and Philadelphia. The story behind Our Lady Help of Christians Chapel in Cheektowaga (book also by Atwell and Batt!) was known in his family as well as mine, so he wondered if we were distantly related, which turned out not to be the case. I joined WNYGS in 2000 after my father, who was very interested in local history, passed away. I started working on my own families (Batt and Schultz in WNY, Heckmann and Stephey in Delaware and south-central PA), and of course the Atwell-Batt genealogy was a tremendous starting point. My current project is expanding and extending Hugh's work on his families (Siegel, Nebrich, Sifkovitz in WNY; Taylor, Croft in Philadelphia) which I hope to write up within the next couple years. ------------------------------ Memory 10: Doug Batt (#3098) Actually, this week's memory did trigger a memory of my own: During a 2009 research trip from my home in Delaware back to Western NY (I grew up in North Tonawanda), I spent a fascinating evening with Glenn Atwell, discussing my research in the Batt, Eckert and Stark families of Erie and Niagara County, as well as other aspects of local history, until the wee hours of the morning. Glenn kindly provided a TON of extremely useful information from his extensive personal archives, and later read sections of the family history of my great-great grandfather John Batt (son of Franz Joseph Batt) which I wrote up the following year, providing many useful comments. During that same research trip, I also spent some time with Ron Batt (my 4th cousin), who had in his possession an 1876 ledger of a grist mill in Tonawanda owned by John Batt. This fascinating document had pages with entries for several other relatives of mine (Xavier Batt, John Baptist Batt, and Michael Stark, a relative of my paternal great-grandmother) as well as other well-known Tonawandans (James Ryan, Alexander G. Kent). ------------------------------ Memory 9: Marie-Cecile (Okoniewski) Tidwell (#3625L) Marie-Cecile (Okoniewski) Tidwell (3625L) of Amherst, NY, member since 2014 When the Western New York Genealogical Society was in its formative stage in the 1970s, I was living in Northern Virginia, outside of Washington, DC. There I attended a class on helping you discover your family history. As a new wife and mother, I was excited to learn more about how to search the history of our new family. Taking my newfound skills to the National Archives in Washington, I learned how to work with a microfilmed copy of the 1900 census, the most recent census available at that time. Scrolling through the film, I found my Polish grandmother’s name, Agnes Ciesielska, in the census. She was living with her father, John, and her younger brother, Wladyslaw (Walter). I was exhilarated by my find. What a moment! My grandmother had died when I was nine, but I still felt very close to her. It was years later that I learned that her mother Anastasia Michalska had died earlier in the year of the census. My grandmother in 1900 was living on Townsend Street in Buffalo’s East Side. On the same street, lived her future husband, Frank Okoniewski, who unfortunately, died before I was born. Frank and Agnes had six children, my father, Matthew, being the youngest. In 2000, I traveled to Salt Lake City to do more research on my family. There I visited the Mormon Church Research Library and Archives. When I asked for the microfilm that could help in my search for my French grandmother’s family in Brittany, I was told that the film was “in the mountain.” The next day the film arrived and after I used it, it was added to the library shelves. I was amazed that I was the first person to view this microfilm, from the mountain, that contained information about my grandmother and her family and neighbors from this small village in France. My grandmother, Maria LeBrigant, was born in the province of Brittany, but later came to Paris to work. My grandfather, Léger Ardelier, was from the central part of France, and served in the French army as a dragoon. When World War I began, his conscription in the army was extended, and at some point, he was in Paris. Maria and Léger soon met, and later were married in a suburb of Paris. Similarly, as history would have it, almost thirty years later my French mother, Denise Ardelier, met my father, Matthew Okoniewski, a U.S. Army Staff Sargent, and they, too, were later married in a suburb of Paris, at the end of yet another World War. The ability to search for your family’s roots is much easier now than it was 50 years ago, when this society was formed. We no longer have to start our search by traveling to archives and handling rolls of microfilm. Instead, we can start our search from the comfort of our homes. Nevertheless, the feeling of exhilaration one experiences when an ancestor is found listed on a historic record for the first time is still there. It’s what keeps us going! ------------------------------ Memory 8: Rhonda Hoffman, B&ECPL Genealogy Librarian (#3495L) I first started attending WNYGS meetings in 2010. The meetings were at the Hamburg High School library or cafeteria. The first presentation I attended was on HeritageQuest Onli ne, a B&ECPL subscription database. The presenter was Pat Hililker Forsberg and she was very kind to put up with my ‘librariany’ interjections about the database. Other meeting topics that I remember from that time were an antiques roadshow, gravestone symbolism, and medical genealogy (things have changed so much!). About a year later I was asked to join the WNYGS board. Glenn Atwell hosted my first board meeting. He often hosted meetings at Christmastime and his home was always so beautifully decorated. Everyone was very welcoming and I enjoyed being snuggled by Glenn’s orange tabby cat (or was that the visiting neighborhood feline?). The other board members that I remember attending were Penn Watson, Pat Forsberg, Sister Claire, Karen Kolb, Ken Nash, Nancy Archdekin (via telephone speaker from Nebraska), and Dr. Jane Clarke. Since then I have had various WNYGS roles including president, JOURNAL editor and production editor, and I am currently the librarian. I will always cherish the society, the experiences it has given me, and the many genealogy friends that I have made along the way. ------------------------------ Memory 7: Loi s Lane (#3782L) Glenn R. Atwell is listed as Editor on the Batt Genealogy (A Record of the descendants of Franz Joseph Batt, Sr. and Barbara Weber AND of the Anthony Batt and Beatrice Gath of Alsace and America, Published by the Batt Family Association of Alsace and America, Inc., Buffalo, N.Y., 1976. This book was researched by Ronald Elmer Batt, who is my 1st Cousin 1X Removed. (Lois J. Lane Page 38; Ronald E. Batt, Page 39) ------------------------------ Memory 6: Nancy Cluff Siders (#2954) "I have been a member of WNYGS for approximately 20 years. My maternal grandparents were born and raised around Colden and Aurora with surnames of McKAY and OLDEN. Their families had lived in the area for many generations. A Letson cousin told me about this group, and I joined. Living thousands of miles away and working full-time, I sadly have not been much help to society. When I noticed the WNYGS editor's maiden name was PARTRIDGE, I corresponded with her on our common surname. I was delighted to discover June was my 3rd Cousin! She was born on or near the original Partridge homestead adjoining the Partridge Cemetery, where my 3rd great-grandfather, Asa Partridge, was buried. Note: I have yet to find the original emails where we corresponded and am relying on this 82-year-old mind of mine, which can be in error." ------------------------------ Memory 5: Beth Benson (#4034) “My Dad and I didn’t have a particularly close relationship when I was growing up and I rarely initiated a conversation with him if I could help it, so he was quite surprised when I came home from college one weekend and asked him if he knew a “woman dressed all in green who said her name was Catherine.” He and my mother, who was standing at the stove, turned and gave each other one of those looks that parents do when they’re having a conversation the kids aren’t supposed to hear. Then he turned to me and said “Yes, she was your great-grandmother, Catherine Green, and she came here from Ireland. How do you know about her?” I had gone to Lily Dale with a couple of friends that week for a reading with a Medium. We had never done it before and thought it would be fun. When she got to me she described my father almost perfectly, even where he always sat in the kitchen doing his crossword puzzles. Then the medium spoke of the women in green who had her hand on my father’s shoulder, saying her name was C atherine. My father had always been a good story teller – had a bit of the “blarney stone” in him. Catherine suggested he had stories to tell about his family that I might like to hear. Since my father never spoke about his family I was sure he had stories about them, but wasn’t sure they were fit to tell! But when I got home, he had plenty of stories – Catherine had left Ireland and married my Spanish great-grandfather here in Buffalo and had five children. My grandfather, one of the five, had married a German girl whose family owned a business in the First Ward where they lived. He and his wife had 11 children. Who knew my father had 10 brothers and sisters! I learned enough that day to spark my curiosity, and although I didn’t begin working on genealogy for many years, it opened a dialogue between my father and I. Maybe that’s what Catherine really wanted after all. Who knows? But it all started with a trip to Lily Dale.” ------------------------------ Memory 4 : Barbara Keil (#3684) “Hi…. Whenever it was when WNYGS posted the two upcoming ZOOM programs, I had an OMG moment. I saw the name Margaret M. McMahon, Ph.D and remembered my very first DNA match after I had submitted my sample to AncestryDNA. I had a match with MM whose tree she managed. Because we both had well developed trees I was able to quickly identify that her husband is my 3C1R.” ------------------------------ Memory 3: Lynda Zaky Wood (#3560L) Lynda's first event with WNYGS was March 2013 at St. Louis Roman Catholic Church, with lunch at Ulrich's after the meeting. She stated "little did I know, it was a beginning." Since then, she has served on the board of directors, the programming committee, hospitality, transcribing/indexing, on the committee hosting the Western New York Genealogical Conference. Lynda has also visited the Society of Genealogists in London, England to research family history. She is currently on the preservation committee, the 50th anniversary program committee and serving on the board of directors for a second time. She enjoys volunteering and helping those on the Facebook page. Lynda also hopes to see more young people in the society. ------------------------------ Memory 2 : Glenn Atw ell (#13) Glenn Atwell (#13) of Buffalo, NY, has been part of the society since its beginning. He notes that he is currently "the oldest member of the society in terms of membership." He was there "when June was planning the society." Because "she belonged to several other genealogical societies...she knew how to go about it." In the first issue of the WNYGS Journal, Issue I, Number 1 (June 1974), Glenn is listed as the Organizing Vice-President. He also was one of the JOURNAL's first editors. In Issue XXXIV. Number 1 (December 2007), he wrote the memorial article on the life of the society's founder, June Partridge Zintz (1927-2007), which described their years of working together for the good of the society and of their friendship over the years. ------------------------------ Memory 1: Carolyn Dawley (#18) Carolyn Dawley (#18) of Chandler, AZ, a suburb of Phoenix, was an original member of the WNYGS Board and was the society's first secretary. Her memory of the early years of the society is that the founder, June Zintz, was a "powerhouse." Because June was a member of the DAR, the society board meetings were held at the downtown Buffalo DAR facilities. Carolyn noted that June worked tirelessly at all she did. She worked hard to get guest speakers and a genealogy library section for the society at a local library. As for her own research, Carolyn noted that you will never know "where genealogy will lead you." When researching her husband's family, a man named Matteson, in the late 1600s, had two sons. One moved to Vermont and he was the direct ancestor to her husband. The other moved westward and his descendents eventually settled in New Mexico. When Carolyn decided to add her new son-in-law to the family tree, she found that her son-in-law was a direct descendant of the original Matteson's son who went west. She had to laugh when she informed her daughter that she had married her cousin, albeit, her cousin many generations removed. And that's why Carolyn says that when you do genealogy, you never know where it will lead you.

Waterfront - Buffalo, New York Source: Library of Congress Digital Collections 1865 New York Census WNYGS Index for Erie County As one of its many service projects, WNYGS organized the preparation of an amended index of the 1865 New York State Census for Erie County. Many dedicated volunteers worked on this project over a number of years. While originally collected and documented on index cards, the society later created a digital version that now resides here for genealogical researchers. Index Overview Each town or city was indexed by town/city, ward, district, family number in order of visitation, and includes surname, given name, age, relationship to the head of household, place of birth and notes (if applicable). Notes may include alternate spellings of the surname, institutional residence, military affiliation, or other items noted by indexer. Simply select your town of interest and click the link to download a copy of the [read-only] Excel file. Abbreviation Key: w - wife hus - husband mo - mother fa - father ch - child son - son dau - daughter step or stp ch - step child step or stp dau - step dau step or stp son - step son a. or adpt - adopted bro or brother - brother sis - sister svt/servt - servant bodr - boarder Index Availability by Location Note: For partially completed cities and towns, the "D" indicates the Enumeration District number. Completed & Partial Aurora [Partial] D2 Amherst Complete Boston Complete Brant Complete Buffalo Ward 1 Complete Buffalo Ward 2 Complete Buffalo Ward 3 Complete Buffalo Ward 4 Complete Buffalo Ward 5 Complete Buffalo Ward 6 Complete Buffalo Ward 7 [Partial] D1,D3 Buffalo Ward 8 [Partial] D2 Buffalo Ward 10 [Partial] D1 Buffalo Ward 11 [Partial] D1 Clarence Complete Colden Complete Collins Complete Concord [Partial] D2 -D3 East Hamburgh (Now Orchard Park) Complete Elma Complete Evans Complete Grand Island Complete Hamburgh Complete Holland Complete Marilla Complete Newstead Complete North Collins Complete Tonawanda Complete Wales Complete West Seneca Complete Not Available Alden Buffalo Ward 9 Buffalo Ward 12 Buffalo Ward 13 Cheektowaga Eden Lancaster Sardinia Source: Library of Congress Digital Collections Need help visualizing Ward locations? Visit Bu ffaloResearch.com to view "Ward Map of Buffalo for Census Years 1855-1890".

Erie County Vital Records Dates of First Vital Statistics Records (as published in the Western New York Genealogical Society Journal ) Click the county below to view individual town and village record information: Allegany County Cattaraugus County Chautauqua County Erie County Genesee County Niagara County Orleans County Wyoming County This map shows each Western New York county's founding date and the name of its parent county. Town and Date Births Marriages Deaths Notes ALDEN - Incorporated 27 Mar 1823 21 Nov 1882 17 Jan 1883 12 Nov 1882 ALDEN VILLAGE - Incorporated 7 May 1864 6 Aug 1885 26 Aug 1886 23 Jun 1886 Records kept by Town Clerk. AMHERST - Incorporated 10 Apr 1818 3 May 1884 2 Apr 1884 1 Jun 1884 WILLIAMSVILLE - Incorporated 4 Nov 1850 5 Aug 1897 12 Oct 1897 * 7 Nov 1897 AURORA - Incorporated 11 Apr 1804 6 Feb 1882 18 Feb 1882 17 Feb 1882 EAST AURORA - Incorporated 1874 1 Mar 1907 3 Apr 1907 - 26 Dec 1907 (with Town records) 18 Apr 1907 Earlier records destroyed by fire in 1907. BOSTON - Incorporated 5 Apr 1817 12 Sep 1882 19 Oct 1882 26 July 1882 BRANT - Incorporated 25 Mar 1839 10 Apr 1883 31 act 1883 10 Apr 1883 FARNHAM - Incorporated 11 Jan 1892 26 Jan 1924 22 June 1905-5 July 1908 16 Jan 1924 BUFFALO - Incorporated Town 8 Feb 1810, Village 2 Apr 1813, City 20 Apr 1832 1 Jan 1878 1 Jan 1877 2 Jan 1852 CHEEKTOWAGA - Incorporated 22 Mar 1839 22 June 1883 6 Jan 1884 7 Feb 1883 DEPEW - see Lancaster SLOAN - Incorporated 1896 18 Jul 1896 8 Oct 1896 11 Jul 1896 CLARENCE - Incorporated 11 Mar 1808 7 Jan 1882 25 Aug 1881 18 Jan 1882 COLDEN - Incorporated 2 Apr 1827 11 Jun 1884 23 May 1884 27 Jun 1884 COLLINS - Incorporated 16 Mar 1821 16 Jan 1886 13 Jan 1883 30 June 1886 GOWANDA - Incorporated 7 Dec 1847 24 Apr 1885 see Town 12 May 1885 CONCORD - Incorporated 20 Mar 1812 21 Mar 1887/17 Aug 1879 31 Jul 1884 Jul 1887 SPRINGVILLE - Incorporated 11 Apr 1834 1 Jun 1885 6 May 1885 12 Jun 1885 EDEN - Incorporated 20 Mar 1812 28 Jan 1883 20 June 1883 21 Jan 1883 ELMA - Incorporated 4 Dec 1857 18 Mar 1882 15 Mar 1883 29 Mar 1883 EVANS - Incorporated 23 Mar 1821 21 Apr 1882 3 May 1882 28 Apr 1882 ANGOLA - Incorporated 30 Aug 1873 10 Jun 1941 (Records kept by Town Clerk) 5 Mar 1942 GRAND ISLAND - Incorporated 19 Oct 1852 15 Sep 1883 23 Oct 1883 30 Aug 1883 HAMBURG - Incorporated 20 Mar 1812 15 Jan 1882 10 May 1882 11 Jul 1882 HAMBURG VILLAGE - Incorporated 9 May 1874 26 Nov 1890 24 Dec 1891 9 Nov 1890 Records at Town Hall. BLASDELL See Town of Hamburg Records. HOLLAND - Incorporated 15 Apr 1818 28 Dec 1884 3 May 1885 31 Dec 1854 LACKAWANNA - Incorporated June 1909 12 Jun 1909 14 Aug 1909 9 Jul 1909 LANCASTER - Incorporated 20 Mar 1833 9 Jan 1884 27 May 1883 9 Jan 1884 LANCASTER VILLAGE - Incorporated 14 Jul 1849 20 Mar 1889 23 Nov 1889 24 Mar 1889 DEPEW - Incorporated 23 Jul 1894 3 Oct 1894 26 Mar 1896 23 Oct 1894 MARILLA - Incorporated 2 Dec 1853 23 Oct 1894 7 Feb 1895 22 Apr 1893 NEWSTEAD - Incorporated 27 Mar 1823 6 Apr 1887 3 Apr 1887 14 Apr 1887 AKRON - Incorporated 1847 9 Jul 1893 28 June 1893 8 Jul 1893 Records with Town Clerk until 1930. NORTH COLLINS - Incorporated 24 Nov 1852 10 Oct 1885 28 Sep 1883 25 Apr 1885 NORTH COLLINS VILLAGE - Incorporated 1913 3 Jul 1913 see Town Records 3 Jul 1913 ORCHARD PARK - (formerly E. Hamburgh ) Incorporated 15 Oct 1850 2 Sep 1883 12 Sep 1883 21 May 1883 ORCHARD PARK VILLAGE - Incorporated 1921 Records kept by Town Clerk. SARDINIA - Incorporated 16 Mar 1821 1 Nov 1882 28 Mar 1886 1 Jul 1885 TONAWANDA - Incorporated 16 Apr 1836 18 Aug 1883 31 Jul 1883 8 Aug 1883 KENMORE - Incorporated 1899 8 Jul 1911 see Tonawanda Town Records 26 Feb 1912 TONAWANDA CITY - Incorporated Village 7 Jan 1854, City 23 Mar 1903 29 Dec 1863 30 Mar 1894 29 Mar 1894 WALES - Incorporated 15 Apr 1818 23 Mar 1882 1 Jan 1883 7 Aug 1882 WEST SENECA - Incorporated 16 Oct 1851 11 Oct 1882 25 Oct 1882 6 Oct 1882 Source: WNYGS JOURNAL , Vol. 1, No.1, June 1974 In cases where data is not available, it can be assumed that the dates of records are similar to the other towns in the county.

Past meetings and programs. Focusing on continuing education. Member only online viewing access. Regional and national speakers. Past Programs 2021-2023 2021 2023 2022 2021 [ VMA ] i ndic ates th e content will be available for viewing in the Members Area. Nov 18 2023: Annual Society Business Meeting & Election Oct 28 2023: "Spotlight on Wyoming County" - Panel Discussion Sept 16 2023: "Death Records By A Different Name" presented by Diane L. Richard May 20 2023: "How to Write Ancestral Stories Your Relatives Will Want to Read" with Pam Vestal Apr 15 2023: "Technology to the Rescue: Free Tools Every Genealogist Needs in their Toolbox" with Linda Debe Mar 18 2023: "Using Historical Literature to Explore Your Ancestors Lives" with Karen A. Fortin Feb 18 2023: "Maps Galore: Finding & Using Online Maps from the Library of Congress" with Annette Burke Lyttle Jan 21 2023: "Mysterious Codes: Passenger Manifests Letters and Numbers” with Christine Cohen 2023 Programs 2022 Programs Nov 19 2022: Annual Society Business Meeting & Elections and "Finding Your 19th Century Ancestors on Fold3: Is There a Better Way?”with Brian Rhinehart Oct 8 2022: "Intro to U.S. Church Records: Why We Care Where Grandma Went to Church" with Sunny Morton Sept 17 2022: "Courthouse Records of Western New York" with Jeanette Sheliga [ WMA ] Jul 12 2022: WNYGS Sponsored GRIP Webinar: “Reconstructing the Lives of Our Farming Ancestors” with Annette Burke Lyttle May 18 2022: "Jewish Genealogy 101" with Lara Diamond Apr 16 2022: "From Birth to Death: New York State Vital Records" with Rhonda Hoffman, Genealogy Specialist, B&ECPL [ VMA ] Mar 19 2022: "Ready for Release Day: Prepping for 1950 Census Research" with Amanda Perrine [ VMA ] Feb 19 2022: "Mysterious Relatives & How the Weather Affected Your Ancestors" with Ari Wilkins Jan 19 2022: "Spotlight on Niagara County: A Panel Discussion" with the Niagara County Genealogical Society [ VMA ] 2021 Programs Nov 20, 2021: Annual Meeting & Elections and "Migration Across America"presented by Peggy Lauritzen Oct 23, 2021:"Faster than the March of Man: Canal Connections in the Nineteenth-Century"presented by Pamela Vittorio Sept 18, 2021:"The Third Coast - How the Great Lakes Shaped America"presented by Cari Taplin Aug 26, 2021: GRIP 2021 - WNYGS Sponsored Webinar: "Ship Manifests: An In-Depth Look" presented by Rich Venezia May 22, 2021: "Getting Acquainted with the Genealogical Proof Standard (GPS)"presented by Jeanette Sheliga [ VMA ] Apr 24, 2021: "Trace Your Revolutionary Roots"presented by Bryna O'Sullivan March 20, 2021: "DNA Testing for Genealogy" 2022 2023

Society Store Prefer to submit your membership or renewal using a paper form? ​ Visit the Memb ership page to download the appropriate PDF version of membership form. Complete and mail the form and your check to the address provided. ​ Publication Back Issues Digital Download Journal Back Issue Collection: Vol. 1-48 (1974 - 2022) Price $60.00 Donations Your charitable contribution makes our work possible! ​ Click below to select your preferred donation amount. You can tailor the amount by adding multiple quantities of each item. Online donations may be paid using PayPal or check (mailed to address provided). Support Our Mission $5 Charitable Donation Price $5.00 Support Our Mission $25 Charitable Donation Price $25.00 Support Our Mission $100 Charitable Donation Price $100.00 Memberships Publications Donations Memberships Join or Renew Online ​ Click below to select your desired membership type. Make your selections and submit your contact and billing information online. At checkout, s elect whether you will be paying by PayPal or check (to be mailed to address provided). ​ Age 18 & Under Junior Membership: Annual (May 1 - April 30) Price $10.00 Individual Membership: Annual (May 1 - April 30) Price $30.00 Family Membership: Annual (May 1 - April 30) Price $35.00 For Organizations Societies & Libraries Membership: Annual (May 1 - April 30) Price $30.00 Be A Supporting Member Life Membership: Individual Price $350.00 Be A Supporting Member Life Membership: Family Price $500.00 Memberships Donations Publications

Sat, Jul 13 | Calvin K. Richards Community Center "Save Our Cemeteries" Workshop Join us as we travel to Niagara County to learn more about cemeteries. This full-day event will take place at two locations - Calvin K. Richards Community Center & Witmer Cemetery (both in Town of Niagara, NY). Registration is closed. See other events Time & Location Jul 13, 2024, 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM EDT Calvin K. Richards Community Center, 7000 Lockport Rd, Niagara Falls, NY 14305, USA About the event Morning Program: 9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Location #1: Calvin K. Richards Community Center, 7000 Lockport Road, Town of Niagara, New York 9am - 10am Registration with coffee/snacks-displays 10am - 10:45am Presentation “Uncovering the Past: Using Cemetery Records for Genealogy Research ” by Lewiston Librarian/Genealogist, Michelle Kratts Michelle Kratts is the local history librarian and genealogist at the Lewiston Public Library.She has written, edited or contributed to several books of local interest including: Niagara Falls in World War II, the Italians of Niagara Falls series and more. 10:45 - 11:00 a.m. Break 11:00am - 11:30am Presentation: “Importance of Volunteerism ” by Hugh Golden, Business Manager of Lake View Cemetery Association, Jamestown, NY 11:30am - 12:00am Presentation: “Cemeteries in New York State ” by Michael Catena and Cynthia Craig, NYS Department of State, Division of Cemeteries 12:00pm-1pm Lunch provided (Wegmans subs with chips and water) Afternoon Program : 1:30 - 4:00 p.m. Location #2: Witmer Cemetery, corner of Witmer Road and Pennsylvania Avenue, Town of Niagara, New York Special Note: Attendees wanting or needing seating during the cemetery portion of the program are encouraged to bring a lawn chair or blanket. 1:00 p.m. - 1:30 p.m. Gather at Witmer Cemetery and divide into four groups for workshop sessions 1:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. Four Rotating Sessions Session #1: Pete Ames/Jeff Manning will lead a tour of the cemetery to share results of restoration process there. Session #2: Maureen Gleason shows the proper way to clean headstones. Session #3: Nick Cornett from Cornell Cooperative talks about landscaping and combatting invasive species. Session #4: Gary Strenkoski local masonry expert demonstrates headstone repair and resetting techniques. Directions: >> Click here for directions to both locations with annotated map. Have questions? Call the event coordinator, Peter Ames, at 716-297-4429. Show More Tickets Ticket type "Save Our Cemeteries" Ticket More info Full-day workshop ticket Price From $20.00 to $50.00 Sale ended WNYGS Members $20.00 Non-Members $25.00 New Ind. Membership & Ticket $50.00 Total $0.00 Checkout Share this event