The Williams County Genealogical Society met Monday, October 10, 2016 in the Harmon Room of the West Annex, Bryan Public Library. A presentation was made to the group by Heritage Monuments from Pioneer, OH. Kris Kerr gave a history of monuments. In the beginning wood-en markers were used; these quickly deteriorated. Sandstone and marble replaced the wood; however, because these are soft stones, they also deteriorated quickly. The favored stone today is granite which only deteriorates one fifteen thousandth of an inch every thousand years. Granite can be “shape carved” which is chiseling three dimensional objects onto the stone. Rex Bentley, senior craftsman does this for Heritage Monuments.
Genealogy and monuments are intertwined. Grave stones can contain the name of the deceased, the birth and death dates, place of death, name of spouses and children. All this infor-mation is vital to a genealogist. Grave markers can show personality with sentiments such as “He loved bacon.” In addition to creating or replacing monuments, Dana Weible is available to clean the stone of your loved one.
The Williams County Genealogical Society will be offering the last Saturday class for those who are beginners in the realm of family research (genealogy 101) in the Harmon Room of the Local History and Genealogy Center (West Annex of the Williams County Public Library) from 10 AM to 2 PM on October 15. Pam Lash, WCPL library assistant, and area genealogist, will be instructing this session. The cost per session is $5, which will cover the participant’s lunch. Call the WCPL, (419) 636-6734 ext. 275 or email Pam at pam@mywcpl.org to reserve a seat in the-se classes geared for those who wish to start a family history project.
On November 7, 2016, 6:30 pm in the Harmon Room of the West Annex to the Bryan Public Library in Bryan, OH, Roena Bayers will give a talk about her Honor Flight to Washington D.C. Please come and join us. The purpose of the WCGS is the preservation of county records and family research. Monthly meetings are held the second Monday of each month, excluding July and August, in the Harmon Room of the West Annex of the Bryan Public Library. For further in-formation concerning WCGS, email Pat Goebel wcgspg01@gmail.com, visit the Website at www.wcgs-orgs.com, or write to WCGS, PO Box 293, Bryan, OH 43506.
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