WINNEBAGO & BOONE COUNTIES GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY

The Winnebago & Boone Counties Genealogical Society (of Illinois) exists to:

• Encourage and support genealogical researchers.
• Promote the discovering and preserving of valued genealogical resources of Winnebago and Boone County, Illinois.
• Through our website, provide resources to help genealogists with an interest in Winnebago or Boone County, Illinois.
• Offer networking opportunities with others who have similar research interests.

All in-person meetings are at the Rockford Public Library - East Branch  6685 East State St, Rockford IL

UPCOMING MEETINGS

WBCGS holds monthly meetings that are open to the public.  We do not have meetings in December and July.
At each meeting, our speaker makes a presentation about a specific topic related to genealogy or a topic of local interest.

Based on the success we've had in using Zoom for our monthly meetings, we plan to continue offering Zoom meetings.  Meeting invitations will be sent to all WBCGS members with an email address. 
​If you’re not a member and are interested in attending a Zoom meeting, please send us an email at [email protected].
You can also contact us at: WBCGS, 1710 Van Stone Dr., Machesney Park IL 61115-2166.

OCTOBER MEETING

Saturday, October 5, 2024 at 1:30 p.m. CDT
"Italian-American Immigrants and Chicago Mafia Connections in Northern Illinois and Southern Wisconsin"
Speaker: Vicki Hahn
Meeting Location: RPL East Branch (in-person speaker, but also available via Zoom)
​Zoom registration for this meeting
​​
Learn more about Italian-Americans immigration to the United States, the organization of the Mafia, overcoming the difficult search for genealogy of its members, the influences it had on local history, and its connections to people in area communities.  

Vicki Ruthe Hahn, owner of Stateline Genealogy Club, LLC, is a Retired Librarian with a BA and MLIS from University of Illinois. An experienced, regional Genealogy Presenter and Consultant, she founded the “Stateline Genealogy Club” at Beloit Public Library in 2012, & created the “StatelineGenealogyClub.Wordpress.com" BLOG in 2014.
She has a background in history, anthropology, research, writing, teaching, and clothing history. Vicki sorts out mysteries, rediscovers histories, weaves stories, & helps people with local history and their family genealogy; specializing from Central Illinois to Central Wisconsin.
​

NOVEMBER MEETING

Saturday, November 2, 2024 at 1:30 p.m. CDT
"Newspapers Research"
Speaker: Jean Lythgoe
Meeting Location: RPL East Branch (in-person speaker, but also available via Zoom)
​Zoom registration for this meeting
​​
Learn the ins and outs of researching with Newspapers.com and GenealogyBank.  ​

​Jean Lythgoe graduated from Rock Valley College, and then Northern Illinois University, with a BGS. She has worked at the Rockford Public Library since 1965, and in the Local History Room since 2006. Jean considers herself a generalist in genealogy and local history, because one never knows what the next question will be in the Local History Room. She has a lifelong interest in history, especially family history. She enjoys knowing that some ancestors came in colonial times, others during the Irish potato famine and others as recently as 1920.  Jean enjoys helping people in the Local History & Genealogy Room, because she gets to learn something new every day!

JANUARY MEETING

Saturday, January 4, 2025 at 1:30 p.m. CST
"11 Tips to Help You Transcribe German Church Records"
Speaker: Theresa Berns
Meeting Location: Zoom only - No meeting in-person)
​Zoom registration for this meeting

Some of the tips you will learn are: - Take advantage of the same formatting of church records. - Be aware that spelling was not standardized until the late 19th century. - Know what the word “des” means. - Know how to figure out the names of towns and villages 

ISGS Associate Member​

The Illinois State Genealogical Society (ISGS) was formed in 1968 through the cooperative effort and forward thinking of Illinois genealogical society representatives, who envisioned a statewide genealogical organization. ISGS is a not-for-profit, nonsectarian, educational organization.

Visit their website for more info
www.ilgensoc.org