Schedule and Session Descriptions
Annette Burke Lyttle
Annette Burke Lyttle owns Heritage Detective, LLC, providing professional genealogical services in research, education, and writing. She speaks on a variety of genealogical topics at the national, state, and local levels and loves helping people uncover and share their family stories. She is coordinator of the Fall Virtual Intermediate Foundations course for the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy. Annette leads Best Practices Study Groups for a number of organizations, providing in-depth education on the genealogical research process in an interactive setting. She is president of the Association of Professional Genealogists and editor of The Florida Genealogist.
Saturday, 25 March 2023
All times in the Central time zone.
9:00 am
Opening remarks and introduction of the speaker.
9:15 am – 10:30 am
Colonial American Migration Routes and Modes of Travel
When our Colonial ancestors arrived on the shores of North America in the 1600s and 1700s, many of them very quickly began migrating west. They followed rivers and created roads into the wilder- ness to found new settlements on the frontier. Learn about where they traveled and how they got there, as well as how to uncover the stories of their lives.
10:30 am – 10:45 am Break
10:45 am – 12 (noon)
The Influence of Free and Cheap Land on Migration
From the beginnings of North American settlement, free and inexpensive land has been a spur to migration. Land grants, military bounty land, affordable public domain land, homesteads, and railroad lands have all lured our ancestors to new areas. Learn how our ancestors obtained land and how to find records that will help you track their movements.
Noon – 1:00 pm Lunch. For those attending at the OGS library, you may leave to eat out or bring a bag lunch to eat in the library.
1:00 pm – 2:15 pm
Border—What Border? Our Ancestors Who called Both Canada and the USA Home
Movement from the United States to Canada was unrestricted and unrecorded until April 1908. The U.S. began recording the entry of Canadians along its northern border in 1894. Before that, many thousands of people lived cross-border lives, without visas, work permits, passports, or immigration records. Learn how to find these elusive ancestors. .
2:15 pm – 2:30 pm Break
2:30 pm – 3:45 pm
Following Ancestral Migrations: Three Case Studies
Following migrating American families in three case studies covering a Colonial migration, a move from Massachusetts to Illinois by way of Vermont and New York after the American Revolution, and a move from Illinois to Nebraska to homestead. We’ll look at what kinds of records we can use to follow ancestral migrations and fill in their stories.
3:45 pm
Conference wrap up
