The Sutro Library, a branch of the California State Library, remains one of the largest genealogy libraries west of Salt Lake City. While there is a good amount of genealogy research available online, this presentation will focus on some of the more unique (and still analog!) holdings of the Sutro Library. Mattie Taormina has been the Director of the Sutro Library in San Francisco since 2016. Before that, Mattie worked at Stanford University Special Collections for 10 years as the Head of Public Services and Processing Manuscripts Librarian. She holds an M.A. in Public History from Sacramento State University and an MLIS from San Jose State University. She is the co-editor of the book Using Primary Sources: Hands-On Instructional Exercises and is the Past President of the Society of California Archivists.

Census records are among the most rich and rewarding family history records available. Depending on which census your ancestor is in, you can learn where he or she lived at a particular place or time, learn his or her place of birth, what he or she did for a living, how many times they were married and other bits of valuable information. Each census is a little different than the previous census. In this class you will learn what information is available on each census record. Using this knowledge you can find census information to advance your search for your ancestors. Taught by Dave McCready.

What is documentation? This class will explain what a “source” is and how to document it. We will also explore the organization of your genealogy materials. View how seasoned genealogists organize their materials. We will also review some of the different genealogy reports to help you analyze your findings. Looking for a Genealogy Program for your computer? You will learn what to look for when choosing a computer program.