Urban Research: Using Correlation of Data to Solve Family Mysteries Instructor: Jessica Fontana
Date:November 21, 2026 Time: 1:30 pm - 3:00 pm
In-person class at MGC
Cost:
$30.00 for members
$40.00 for non-members
Class size limited to 35
About the class:
This class will use case studies to focus on organizing your research, and combining analysis of data gathered to move the research forward and avoid the pitfalls of same-named people or people that disappear in the city. It will include use FAN club to follow the family group using different record types, including maps.
About the Instructor:
Jessica has a Master of Science degree in Extension Education from The Ohio State University, with specialized study in Adult Education Methods. She presented at the Minnesota Genealogical Society (MNGS) 2025 North Star Conference and the Upper Midwest Genealogical Institute hosted by MNGS, as well as the Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center and the Arkansas Genealogical Society. She is a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG), the APG Forensic Genealogists Special Interest Group, the National Genealogical Society, and the Minnesota Genealogical Society. She is also a member of the Minnesota based Early Midwest Black Heritage Group; this collective is researching the state and region’s early Black pioneers (1840s-1900s).
Timelines can be a valuable tool in genealogical research. This presentation will explore ways to create timelines and use them to organize an ancestor’s information, analyze this information for gaps or conflicts, help break through genealogical brick walls, and more.
Audience level: All
Biography:
Karen has given hundreds of genealogical presentations since 2016, both in-person and online for societies such as Southern California, Massachusetts, Western New York, Oklahoma, and Wisconsin. She presented webinars for Minnesota Genealogical Society in 2020, 2022, and 2024, and recently was chosen for one of the on-demand video presentations for the 2025 New York State Family History Conference, a live video presentation for the Utah Genealogical Society’s 2025 Virtual Conference, and as an in-person speaker at the 2025 New England Regional Genealogical Conference.
Date: 2 December 2026
Time: 7:00 p.m. -8:15p.m. (CST)
Via ZOOM - Webinar
Description:
Learn to use religious records to find genealogical clues and stories about your relatives in Minnesota and the Midwest, whether they were Lutheran, Catholic, Methodist, or another of the many possible denominations. Get tips for identifying a family’s congregation; clues about ethnicity and affiliation; what kinds of migration clues may be found in church records and histories; and how to locate extant records. From the co-author of the award-winning book, How to Find Your Family History in U.S. Church Records and the author of the new volume, Searching for Sisters: Researching Catholic Nuns in the United States.
Audience level: All
Biography:
Sunny is an experienced instructor, in-person and online. She has taught at GRIP Genealogy Institute; SLIG; NGS; the Library of Congress; RootsTech and RootsTech London; and other events throughout the United States and beyond. She is an experienced online instructor with Family Tree University, Your DNA Guide—the Academy, and Legacy Family Tree Webinars and has given hundreds of webinars to societies and libraries.
