2008
The West Virginia Archives and History Library of the West Virginia Division of Culture and History will continue its series of genealogy- and history-related workshops on selected Thursday evenings in August and September. These workshops focus on specialized resources available in the Archives and History Library and how to use them. The sessions will take place in the library at the Cultural Center, State Capitol Complex in Charleston, from 6-7 p.m. and are free and open to the public. The first workshop will be held on Thursday, August 21, with librarian Susan Scouras presenting “Using Newspaper Archive Online.” This workshop will focus on use of NewspaperARCHIVE.com, a subscription database recently made available to patrons visiting the Archives and History Library.
On Thursday, August 28, archivist Debra Basham will present “Family Photographs.” In addition to the variety of photographic formats, Basham will discuss basic storage of photographs and the pitfalls of relying solely on digital storage. Participants are welcome to bring photos on which they need advice.
In September, staff historian Greg Carroll will offer two workshops. On Thursday, September 18, Carroll will present “Native American Resources in the West Virginia Archives and History Library.” In this workshop, he will discuss new titles available in the library and explore some new angles that will help in studying local Native American history. The following Thursday, September 25, Carroll will discuss “Applying for a West Virginia Civil War Medal.” The Civil War medals were authorized by the state legislature in 1866 as “tokens of respect” for Union veterans of West Virginia military units, but many were unclaimed and eventually were turned over to Archives and History, which began a program to distribute remaining medals to descendants who file a properly documented line of descent from the veteran to themselves.
Advance registration for the workshops is not required, but is encouraged to help plan seating arrangements and handouts for the sessions. Genealogical and historical societies are invited to hold their regular meeting or to plan a field trip in conjunction with any workshop. For more information about a group visit or to register in advance, contact Robert Taylor, library manager, at (304) 558-0230, ext. 163, or by e-mail to Bobby Taylor. Participants interested in registering by e-mail should send their name, telephone number and the name and date of the session they will attend. For additional information about the workshops, contact the Archives and History Library at (304) 558-0230.