San Mateo County Genealogical Society upcoming events

Land of Opportunity: The Immigrant Experience in San Mateo County (17 Oct 2026)

Sat, 17 Oct 2026 17:30:00 GMT

Carmen Blair will speak on, "Land of Opportunity: The Immigrant Experience in San Mateo County".

In 1880 and 2020, about one third of the population of San Mateo County was born in another country. In Land of Opportunity, Carmen Blair will feature some of the largest immigrant groups that have made this county their home in the years since the Gold Rush. She will discuss some of the problems that pushed immigrants out of their home countries as well as the opportunities that pulled them to California. Once they arrived, the work immigrants found reflected skills learned at home or assistance provided by other immigrants. Finally, Blair will highlight the ways immigrants and their descendants have maintained their traditions and shared them with other local residents.

Carmen Blair joined the staff of the San Mateo County Historical Associationin 1998 and has been the Deputy Director since 2007. Among her responsibilities, she is involved with school programs, public programs for adults and children, exhibit design and publications. She received her B.A. in History from GustavusAdolphus College and her M.A. in Museum Studies from San Francisco State University.

Finding the Bump in the Boreen-Irish Names & Place Names (21 Nov 2026)

Sat, 21 Nov 2026 18:30:00 GMT

Finding the Bump in the Boreen-Irish Names & Place Names

November 21 10:30 via Zoom

Sean Conley is a renowned California-based genealogist and current Vice President of the Genealogical Society of Santa Cruz County. He was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, where his mother's family first immigrated from Ireland and Brittany during the Gold Rush, establishing 8 generations in the region.

Irish Roots: Sean specializes heavily in Irish genealogy, tracing his own ancestry and thousands of others to counties like Antrim, Cork, Derry, Donegal, and Galway. [1]
California History: Because of his family's deep California roots, he is an expert on utilizing early San Francisco newspapers, historical directories, and church records for regional ancestry. [1, 2, 3]
Lectures: He frequently presents on topics like Irish Names and Place Names and Northern California archival research through organizations like the San Mateo County Genealogical Society. [1, 2]

How to Write Ancestor Stories Your Relatives Will Want to Read (27 Feb 2027)

Sat, 27 Feb 2027 18:30:00 GMT

Part of the thrill of genealogy is sharing our discoveries with those we love, so it can be disappointing when family members and friends don't appreciate our passion. But who can blame them! After all, good genealogical research provides information about our ancestors, but most of it consists of dry, lifeless data that doesn't offer much of a sense of who these folks were, or what their lives were like. But our ancestors were real people, not just names, dates, and places, and their stories are worth fleshing out. This presentation focuses on how to turn the bare facts into tales worthy of being read, even by reluctant readers.

Pam Vestal is a professional genealogist and speaker who turned her focus to her longtime love of genealogy after a 20-year writing career. Her articles have appeared in the National Genealogical Society Magazine and The Association of Professional Genealogists Quarterly, andher lectures take her from coast to coast. Pam specializes in conducting genealogical research and then transforming that information into illustrated stories that even non-genealogists can enjoy.

THe Hoarder's Buide to Family History Preservation (26 Jun 2027)

Sat, 26 Jun 2027 17:30:00 GMT

This session addresses how to identify valuable documents and photographs, preserve them, and find appropriate permanent homes for the family collection. It also highlights the problem with keeping everything which can paradoxically result in losing the most important elements of family history, encouraging a shift from hoarding to thoughtful curation.

Cheri Daniels, MSLS: Author, speaker, librarian, archivist, genealogist, historian, educator, and host of the BloodRoot Podcast. Spanning a career of over 30 years, Daniels has worked in various types of repositories –

including local, state, and national libraries and archives. Among her previous roles she has served as Head of Library and Archives for the Kentucky Historical Society for over a decade, where she also served as the Editor of their genealogy publication, Kentucky Ancestors Online (2013-2022), and as a Producer/Research Coordinator for Kentucky Ancestors, the award-winning state-wide television program devoted to helping families break down their brick walls. Daniels is also an NGS GRIP Course Coordinator and Instructor (2026), Chair of the APG Southeastern Chapter’s Kentucky Committee, TIGR Instructor (2025) and a contributing author to the book Genealogy and the Librarian (2018, McFarland). You can learn more about her personal projects and upcoming speaking engagements at genealogyliteracy.com.