The Villages Genealogical Society

Upcoming Monthly Program
 
August Monthly Meeting (Zoom only)
Wednesday, August. 26, 2026 / 10:00 a.m. (Zoom only)
Speaker:  Melissa Barker
 
Topic: That's in the Archives! Digging Deeper in the Archived Records
 
Melissa BarkerTopic Info:  Genealogists use archives every day to locate records about their ancestors. Are there records that you are not accessing because you don't know they exist? Not all records are online, indexed, or microfilmed. Digging deeper in the local and state archives to find unique and relatively unknown records might be the next step in your genealogy research.
 
 
 
Speaker's Bio:  Melissa Barker is a Certified Archives Manager and Public Historian currently working at the Houston County, Tennessee Archives & Museum where she has been the first and only archivist for the past 15 years. She is affectionately known as The Archive Lady in the genealogy community. She lectures, teaches, and writes about the genealogy research process, researching in archives and records preservation.
 
For more details about this event and the speaker, visit our Coming Events listing.
 

 
 
Admission to in-person meetings of The Villages Genealogy Society
is limited to VGS members and paid guests.
You must be a resident of The Villages, FL for membership.
 
 
 
Upcoming Events
August 10, 2026
10:00 am to 11:50 am
FTM SIG Meeting
  REGULAR MONTHLY MEETING -- IN-PERSON ONLY Bring your laptop!   Visit our website page for more details about this SIG. SIG Coordinator:  John DeAngelo     ...
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August 17, 2026
1:00 pm to 3:00 pm
Best Practices SIG Meeting
  Coordinators: Annette Burke-Lyttle & Pat Adams Topic: Evidence Analysis Show & Tell   The SIG accepts new members throughout the year, but those who ...
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August 18, 2026
10:00 am
Let's Talk Genealogy: Members Only Event
We are looking for all levels of VGS members. Come and share with us about your latest research successes or about a research challenge you're ...
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August 26, 2026
10:00 am
VGS General Monthly Meeting
Guest Speaker:  Melissa Barker   Topic Info:  That's in the Archives! Digging Deeper in the Archived Records Genealaogists use archives every day to locate records ...
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September 7, 2026
2:30 pm to 4:20 pm
RootsMagic Special Interest Group Meeting
  Topic:  TBA Reminder:  Bring your laptops Coordinator:  George Zitterell    
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Facts and Tips
When ordering a death, marriage or birth certificate, request the long form which will have more information than the short form.
[Vital Records]
There are 13 eastern public land states east of the Mississippi River: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Ohio and Wisconsin.
[Land Records]
Use a good genealogical software package to maintain your records and your digital files.
[Organization]
View More...