The County LineBay County Genealogical Society Newsletter

Bay County, Florida

Volume 28, Number 1 January 2009

Bay County Librarian Wins State AwardBecky Brown Saunders Awarded Prestigious Scholarship

A small contingent from Bay County at the Flor-ida State Genealogical Society’s annual conference in Maitland, Suzanne Shay and Bill Zehner, was very proud when Becky Saunders was pronounced the winner of the coveted Charlotte Freels Duvall/FSGS Librarian Scholarship for 2008. A portion of her cita-tion follows.

Saunders was promoted to the position of Gene-alogy Specialist of the Bay County Library in De-cember, 2006, but her library career began more than 40 years ago, and she has worked in almost every department in the Library. She has served as the Local History Specialist since 1985.

Becky supports the local community and the state in a number of roles relating to the preservation and promotion of genealogy and history. She is presently serving a fifth term as president of the Bay County Historical Society and is on the board of the Florida Historical Society.

She has served as Awards and Scholarships chair for FSGS and as a reviewer for their Florida Pio-neer Descendants Certification Committee. Becky is also a Florida Pioneer Researcher and chairs the library committee of BCGS and their First Families of Bay County Certification committee. On her own

initiative, she started a “Genealogy After Hours” program that allows genealogists access to the ge-nealogical facilities of the Library after closing time and provides them with guidance and suggestions for using the library's extensive collection.

BCGS proudly nominates Becky for this award and believes that Northwest Florida genealogists will definitely benefit from the additional training it will provide her.

Bay County’s own Becky Saunders receives a well-deserved scholarship from FSGS Awards Chair Patty Martin. Photo courtesy of Ted Williams

In This Issue...........................................................President’s Message 2

...............................................Extractions Continue Apace 3....................................................Welcome New Members 4

..................................................................Annual Seminar 5.....................Coming Events at BCGS Monthly Meetings 5

.....................................................................Fall Programs 6..................................................................Annual Meeting 6

..............................................................Librarian’s Corner 7.........................................................................New Books 7

President’s MessageTwo years ago, I made some pretty bold asser-

tions in this column about the future of our Society and the direction I thought it should be heading. One year ago I stated at our annual meeting in December that we had made so much progress that I was pretty sure that we would be unable to improve on that achievement. Today it is time to step back and evalu-ate the progress of our Society over the past year.

Accomplishments for 2008

I am pleased to report that we have accomplished much in the second 365 days of this administration. We instituted a new First Families of Bay County program to stimulate interest in the heritage and ge-nealogy of the area. We added several new sections to our extractions program and took over manage-ment of the Bay GenWeb project.

Budget. Following three straight years of net deficits, we produced profits in 2006 and 2007. We will not know the results for FY 2008 until next Feb-ruary, but we are cautiously optimistic about having a bottom line in the black. Similarly, our seminars made small profits in 2006 and 2007 following sev-eral losing years, and we are cautiously optimistic about the results from our October seminar.

“Genealogy After Hours,” a quarterly event ini-tiated by Becky Saunders in 2007 and hosted by her and the Bay County Public Library, continues to draw good attendance.

Programs Chair Judy Bennett organized ten great monthly programs this year featuring nine different speakers.

Extraction projects. Several new extraction pro-jects were initiated this year. Cindy and Joseph D’Aurora, Bobbie Tate, Lanell Matsumura, Judy Bennett, and Sally Rinehart extracted a total of about 6,673 records from birth, marriage, and obituary, re-cords, and miscellaneous tidbits. A 1,900-entry index to a local history book was created, and a 1,500-entry index to the St. Andrew’s Messenger was ex-tracted. Most of these results have been added to our Web site, and two projects resulted in paper publica-tions that were donated to the Library’s collection.

Our Annual Seminar in November, “On the Trail of Our Ancestors,” was highly acclaimed and drew 35 attendees.

Our Web site continues to grow. More than 15,979 records were added this year, bringing the total to 609 births, 25,104 marriages, 22,398 burials, 26,781 obituaries, and 710 voters.

Membership Our membership is actually down slightly from 2007, and this is a serious concern be-cause we have been actively working on increasing membership. This trend will need to be watched carefully to keep the Society healthy.

First Families of Bay County is a new initiative this year. In the program’s first year, we certified four pioneers, three descendants, and two research-ers.

BCGS became the county coordinator for the Florida GenWeb Project this year. The brand new Web site is a comprehensive gateway to all known digital information of genealogical interest to re-searchers of Bay County. Well organized, easy to navigate, and attractive, the site hosts visitors from all across the United States.

2 The County Line Volume 28, Number 1, January 2009

Donations to the Library. In addition to our cus-tomary contributions to the genealogy collection of the Bay County Public Library, we raised over $1,040 for special equipment needed for the geneal-ogy section of the new Library.

State of the Society. So what is the state of our Society? Quite frankly, we accomplished more in the first two years of this administration than I had imag-ined possible. Therefore, I doubt whether we can re-peat this success again in the year ahead. However, it is definitely not time to rest. We must continue to grow and reinvent our Society.

Outlook for 2009 Our priorities for the coming year remain un-

changed: Education, preservation, and access. We want to see more extracts, indexes, transcriptions, and possibly even graphic images going on line. We have four projects underway in 2009. Suzanne Shay, Bonnie Shipp, Sally Rinehart, Rebecca Miller, and Sherry Miller are extracting birth, marriage, and death notices, and indexing local history books. We are looking for even more volunteers because there remain very many important genealogical records that have not yet been indexed. How would you feel about making an important and visible contribution to your community?

Bill Zehner ✣

Extractions Continue Apace

During the past year seven volunteers extracted more than 6,673 records from Bay County records of genealogical interest. Judy Bennett, Cindy and Jo-seph D’Aurora, Lanell Matsumura, Sally Rinehart, Bobbie Tate, and Bill Zehner contributed to six dif-ferent databases.

Ms. Cindy D'Aurora and Master Joseph D'Aurora completed indexes to the the birth, marriage, and

death announcements from the Panama City Pilot for the period 1907-1916 this year. Their indexes contain 400 birth announcements, 576 marriage announce-ments, and 544 obituaries. A paper version of this collection was provided to the Bay County Library, and an electronic version has been uploaded to our Web site.

Sally Rinehart indexed 852 marriage records of 1941 and is currently working on 1942-1945. She has noted a huge increase in marriages in this period, possibly due to the events following Pearl Harbor. This brings the Bay County marriage index to 34 years. There is a five-year period 1931-1935 still looking for someone to index it.

Judy Bennett has just completed creating an every-name index to 1500 birth, marriage, and death announcements and other tidbits of genealogical in-terest from scattered early editions of the St. Andrews Messenger from 1889 to 1891.

The rich heritage of Bay County that is docu-mented at the Bay County Library includes several local history books of genealogical value that were published without indexes. Recognizing that the util-ity of these books would be greatly increased by the addition of an index, our extractions committee de-cided to launch a new initiative to index several of those local histories. The first of those, Ira Hutchi-son's Some Who Passed This Way, containing about 1,900 people, places, events, and things, has already been completed, and a paper copy was presented to the Bay County Library as a gift of appreciation for its maintenance and support of Bay County's genea-logical collection.

Our online database currently contains indexes to 400 birth announcements, 25,104 marriages, 26,199 obituaries, 22,398 burials, 710 early St. Andrews voters, and 1,500 miscellaneous reports from 1889-1891.

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Volume 28, Number 1, January 2009 The County Line 3

BCGS Executive Board for 2009-2010

This year’s nominating committee, consisting of Chairman Cindy D’Aurora, Mary K. McGraw, and Jo Hanson, presented a slate of candidates to the members assembled at our annual meeting on De-cember 20. The following nominees were elected for the coming year. Please bring your suggestions for improving your Society to their attention, and please support their efforts to improve our contributions to the community.

Committee chairs will be appointed at the busi-ness meeting in January. Your board is looking for a few good men and women to serve in various capaci-ties.

Office OfficerPresident William J. Zehner, CG

Vice President-Programs Mary K. McGrawVice President-Membership Judy BennettRecording Secretary Marlene WomackCorresponding Secretary Suzanne ShayTreasurer Walter ShermanDirector Berniece LoperDirector Sally RinehartDirector Becky SaundersDirector Linda Sowell

Welcome New MembersBy Bonnie Shipp

Members returning after a short absence are Ray and Jane Atchison, and Ron and Gail Sarvis. New members are: Tim Buckley Laurie Combs Bernidene DeWitt Linda K. Dillenschneider Vivian Gutting

Joseph M. Herring Jane Hinman Doris B. Leistner Nancy Penddleton Gwynelle M. Spell

Doris joins us all the way from Albany, Indiana. Many of these members came to our fall seminar, and we look forward to seeing them again soon. We are gratified that so many have chosen to join us in our quest to preserve family genealogy.

Vivian mentioned that she needs lots of help. If any one can volunteer some extra time to help her and others, please email me at: blshipp@aol.com. I'll be glad to exchange email addresses. The Family History Center might be a good place to meet. It is open Tuesdays and Fridays from 9 a.m. to 12 noon. Welcome to all the new members.

Surnames Being Searched

Veronica Davidson is searching for ancestors in Georgia and Illinois from 1850 to the present:

• Davis: Ringgold, Catoosa County, Georgia• Kioebge: Chicago, Polk County, Illinois• Ross: Ringgold, Catoosa County, Georgia

If you are researching these surnames and places, Veronica's email is: snowwhitesunflower@msn.com.

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4 The County Line Volume 28, Number 1, January 2009

2009 Dues Due!If a dollar sign ($) appears on your address label of this issue, your dues are delinquent. Please tender payment immediately so you don’t miss any issues of The County Line.

Please mail your check or money order, pay-able to the Bay County Genealogical Society, to The Bay County Genealogical Society, P.O. Box 662, Panama City, FL 32402-0662, or see Bonnie Shipp or Walter Sherman at any regular meeting.

Annual Seminar Our annual seminar, held this year at the new Bay

County Library on October 25, drew a record crowd of 35 area family historians.

Coming Events at BCGS Monthly Meetings

January 17, 2009: Mary K. McGraw will present “Religious Persecution in Germany and the Flight of the Dunkards to Pennsylvania.”

January 22, 2009: Re-becca Saunders, Bay County Library's Geneal-ogy Specialist, will con-duct a “Genealogy After Hours” session from 5 to 8 p.m Thursday evening in the genealogy room of the Bay County Public Li-brary. Reservations are required and the event is lim-

Volume 28, Number 1, January 2009 The County Line 5

Above left: Attendees await the opening session of our October seminar. Below right: It’s always a good sign when our treasurer, Walter Sherman, is smiling. Here he is assisted at the registration desk by Bonnie Shipp, right, and Linda Sowell, center. Photos courtesy of Ron Young

Speakers Judy Bennett, above, and Suzanne Shay, below.

ited to 20 participants. Please call (850) 522-2130 for reservations.

This session will focus especially on those need-ing help with their First Families of Bay County Cer-tificate applications, which are due 31 March 2009.

Come join us for an introduction to the Genealogy Collection and an opportunity to do YOUR family research without interruption during closed hours.

February 21, 2009: Cyber Search! At our regu-lar January meeting, Suzanne Shay will show us how to quickly map out a family lineage without leaving the house.

March 21, 2009: Early Virginia Immigrants. will be presented by Sally Rinehart

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Fall ProgramsGenealogy After HoursConducted by Rebecca Saunders

A special event for local genealogists was held at the new Public Library in Panama City on Thursday evening, October 16. Rebecca Saunders conducted the seventh “Genealogy After Hours” session. Spe-cial emphasis for this session was on those research-ing Bay County records for their First Families of Bay County certificates.

How to Build a Family Scrapbook: Making Genealogy Fun for Those

Not Really Interested in It!Presented by Mary Bennett

Our November 15 meeting was a highly ac-claimed success. Mary Bennett lugged several of her scrapbooks all the way from Atlanta to show us How to Build a Family Scrapbook.

Mary showed how us to start, what materials to use, where to find them, and how to arrange and dis-play them in an attractive, enticing family collection that will be treasured for generations.

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Annual MeetingOur December meeting this year featured our bi-

ennial election of officers and state-of-the-Society presentation. The President’s Citation was awarded

to Cindy D’Aurora for service beyond the call of duty. She and her son, Joseph, produced an extraor-dinarily carefully-researched index to the birth, mar-

6 The County Line Volume 28, Number 1, January 2009

Suzanne Shay, who organized our best-ever semi-nar in October, receives a well-deserved special-recognition award from the President and a gift cer-tificate donated by Marlene Womack (left) and other appreciative Society members.

The President’s Citation this year was awarded to Cindy D’Aurora, our FSGS Liaison Officer and chairman of the nominating committee.

riage, and death announcements in the Panama City Pilot for the period 1907-1916.

Following the short business session, the fun started. Judy Bennett presented a potpourri of se-lected historical photographs from the Bay County Library's local history collection covering the period 1902-1917. Tree ornament exchange followed.

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Librarian’s CornerBy Becky Saunders

The new Bay County Library continues to im-prove its services and equipment. Patrons will be glad to learn that the photocopiers in the adult serv-ices section will now take nickels, dimes, quarters, or dollar coins and provide change.

The Historical Society of Bay County has created a new ornament—a Panama City Centennial Logo. Ornaments are $20.00 each and are available in the Local History Room. Also available through the Li-brary and other locations is the beautiful “Panama City Centennial Calendar” (see at right), featuring 18 stunning paintings and photographs created by local artists specifically for the centennial.

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New BooksIn the Genealogical Collection Of

The Bay County PublicLibrary

By Rebecca Brown SaundersGenealogy Specialist

Bay County Public Library

4 December— 2008

AlabamaRecollections reminiscences...and more legacies 

from the crossroads : a history of the develop­ment of northeast Jefferson County in Alabama, Hearn, Mildred.—AL Gen R 976.1 HEA

The heritage of Choctaw County, Alabama, Choc‐taw County Heritage Book Committee (Choc‐taw County, Ala.)—AL Gen R 976.1 HER

ArkansasBiographical and historical memoirs of northeast 

Arkansa, —AR Gen R 976.7 BIOBiographical and historical memoirs of Western 

Arkansas : comprising a condensed history of the state, a number of biographies of distin­guished citizens of the same, a brief descriptive 

Volume 28, Number 1, January 2009 The County Line 7

Take a close look at the delightful treats you missed if you didn’t attend our 2008 Christmas program. Will we see you here next year?

history of each of the counties mentioned ..., —AR Gen R 976.7 BIO

Cemeteries of Pope County Arkansas: vol. II, H thru O, Lemley, J.B.—AR Gen R 929.3767 LEM

Cemeteries of Pope County, Arkansas, Lemley, J.B.—AR Gen R 929.3767 LEM

Marriage book A : Pope County, Arkansas, Lemley, J.B.—AR Gen R 929.3767 LEM

Pope County historical articles, book number 2, Lemley, J.B.—AR Gen R 929.3767 LEM

Pope County, Arkansas: United States census of 1870., United States. Census OfOice. 9th census, 1870.—AR Gen R 929.3767 POP

Pope County, Arkansas: United States census of 1880., Pope County Genealogical Group (Ark.)—AR Gen R 929.3767 POP

FloridaHolmes County cemetery survey,Vol. 1 Eastern 

Holmes County, Florida, Everett, Lon L.—FL Gen R 929.3759 EVE

Madison County, Florida, family history book, Spear, Elmer C.—FL Gen R 929.3759 MAD

Pinewood Cemetery, Coral Gables, Florida : a his­tory with pioneer biographies, Liles, Harriet Stiger.—FL Gen R 929.1 LIL

GeorgiaBrief history of the Thirtieth Georgia Regiment, 

Adamson, A. P. (Augustus Pitt), b. 1844—GA Gen R 973.7 ADA

Rome & Floyd County : an illustrated history, 1834­1984., Sesquicentennial Committee of the City of Rome—GA Gen R 975.835 ROM

The atlas of Georgia, Hodler, T. W.—GA Gen R 975.8 HOD

North CarolinaDivided allegiances : Bertie County during the Civil 

War, Thomas, Gerald W. (Gerald Worth), 1952‐—NC Gen R 975.6 THO

TennesseeA history of Hickman County, Tennessee, Spence, 

W. Jerome D.—TN Gen R 976.8 SPEEarly times in Middle Tennessee, Carr, John—TN 

Gen R 976.8 CARRutherford County, Tennessee marriage records 

1804­1850, —TN Gen R 929.3768 RUT

Tax lists of Wilson County, Tennessee, 1803­1807 : with names in court records, 1802­1822, Part‐low, Thomas E.—TN Gen R 929.3768 PAR

The history of Wilson County : its land and its life, Merritt, Dixon.—TN Gen R 976.8 MER

United States500 brickwall solutions to genealogy problems., —

Gen R 929 FIVAncestral roots of certain American colonists who 

came to America before 1700 : lineages from Alfred the Great, Charlemagne, Malcolm of Scotland, Robert the Strong, and other histori­cal individuals, Weis, Frederick Lewis, 1895‐1966—Gen R 929.7 WEI

Black studies : a select catalog of National Archives micro\ilm publications., United States. National Archives and Records Administration—Gen R 016.973 UNI

Courthouse research for family historians : your guide to genealogical treasures, Rose, Chris‐tine, 1935‐—Gen R 929.1 ROS

Genealogical proof standard : building a solid case, Rose, Christine, 1935‐—Gen R 929.1 ROS

Generations and change : genealogical perspectives in social history, Taylor, Robert M., 1941‐—Gen R 907.2 GEN

National Society Colonial Dames Seventeenth Cen­tury roll of arms, volume II., —Gen R 929.2 NAT

Pedigrees of some of the Emperor Charlemagne's descendants, Order of the Crown of Charlemagne.—Gen R 929.1 PED

Producing a quality family history, Hatcher, Patri‐cia Law—Gen R 808 HAT

Recollections of a Confederate staff of\icer, Sorrel, G. Moxley (Gilbert Moxley), 1838‐1901—Gen R 973.742 SOR

Royalty for commoners : the complete known line­age of John of Gaunt, son of Edward III, King of England, and Queen Philippa, Stuart, Roderick W.—Gen R 929.7 STU

The investment of Fort Pulaski, Williams, Alonzo, 1842‐1901—Gen R 973.7 WIL

The Magna Charta sureties, 1215 : the barons name in the Magna Charta, 1215, and some of their descendants who settled in America dur­ing the early Colonial years, Weis, Frederick Lewis, 1895‐1966—Gen R 929.2 WEI

8 The County Line Volume 28, Number 1, January 2009

The organized family historian : how to \ile, man­age, and protect your genealogical research and heirlooms, Fleming, Ann, 1947‐—Gen R 929 FLE

The origins of some Anglo­Norman families, Loyd, Lewis Christopher, 1875‐1947.—Gen R 929 LOY

The pioneers of Maine and New Hampshire, 1623 to 1660; a descriptive list, drawn from records of the colonies, towns, churches, courts and other contemporary sources, Pope, Charles Henry, 1841‐1918.—Gen R 929.3741 POP

The Plantagenet roll of the , Ruvigny et Raineval, Melville Henry Massue, marquis de, 1868‐1921—Gen R 929.72 RUV

The researcher's guide to American genealogy, Greenwood, Val D.—Gen R 929.1 GRE

The West family register : important lines traced 1326­1928, Stone, Letta Brock.—Gen R 929.42 STO

Trace your roots with DNA : using genetic tests to explore your family tree, Smolenyak, Me‐gan—Gen R 929.1 SMO

Unlocking your genetic history : a step­by­step guide to discovering your family's medical and genetic heritage, Shawker, Thomas H.—Gen R 616.042 SHA

VirginiaAlbemarle County in Virginia, Woods, Edgar—VA 

Gen R 975.5 WOOAlbemarle, Jefferson's county, 1727­1976, Moore, 

John Hammond—VA Gen R 975.5 MOOHistory of Louisa County, Virginia, Harris, Malcolm 

H.—VA Gen R 975.5 HARMarriages of Louisa County, Virginia, 1815­1861, 

Kiblinger, William H.—VA Gen R 929.3755 KIBParish lines, Diocese of Southern Virginia / by 

Charles Francis Cocke., Cocke, Charles Francis.—VA Gen R 283.7557 COC

Parish lines, Diocese of Southwestern Virginia, Cocke, Charles Francis.—VA Gen R 283.7557 COC

Richmond : the story of a city, Dabney, Virginius, 1901‐—VA Gen R 975.5 DAB

Some prominent Virginia families, Pecquet du Bel‐let, Louise, 1853‐—VA Gen R 929.42 PEC

The Beverley family of Virginia, a genealogy: de­scendants of Major Robert Beverley (1641­

1687) and allied families, McGill, J. F. (John F.)—VA Gen R 929.42 MAC

The history and present state of Virginia, Beverley, Robert, ca. 1673‐1722—VA Gen R 975.5 BEV

The Randolphs of Virginia : a compilation of the descendants of William Randolph of Turkey Is­land and his wife Mary Isham of Bermuda Hun­dred, Randolph, Robert Isham.—VA Gen R 929.42 RAN

The Virginia dynasties; the emergence of "King" Carter and the golden age, Dowdey, Clifford, 1904‐—VA Gen R 975.5 DOW

Thomas James (Clerk of Kingston Parish, 1783­1796) ancestry and descendants 1653­1961, Ironmonger, Elizabeth (Hogg) 1891‐—VA Gen R 929.42 IRO

Tidewater Virginia families : generations beyond, Davis, Virginia Lee Hutcheson, 1925‐—VA Gen R 929.2 DAV

Tidewater Virginia families : the families of Bell, Binford, Bonner ..., Davis, Virginia Lee Hutche‐son, 1925‐—VA Gen R 929.2 DAV

Virginia County Court records deed book : Albe­marle County, Virginia 1768­1772, Sparacio, Ruth—VA Gen R 929.3755 SPA

Virginia County Court records deed book : Albe­marle County, Virginia 1772­1776, Sparacio, Ruth—VA Gen R 929.3755 SPA

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Volume 28, Number 1, January 2009 The County Line 9

Becky Saunders (right) rifles through a large selec-tion of beautiful Christmas tree ornaments to find just the right one. The raffle was organized for our December meeting by Vice-President Judy Ben-nett.

The County Line is a newsletter of the Bay County Genealogical Society (BCGS)The County Line is published quarterly (January, April, July, and October) by the BCGS. Subscription to The County Line is included in the dues of the members of the BCGS. Subscription for nonmembers is $10 annually. Editor: William J. Zehner, CG. E-mail: lyzehner@knology.netPostmaster: Send address changes to the Bay County Genealogical Society at the address shown above.

Bay County Genealogy SocietyP. O. Box 662Panama City, FL 32402-0662

THE BAY COUNTY GENEALOGICAL SOCIETYP.O. BOX 662 PANAMA CITY, FL 32402-0662

The Bay County Genealogical Society is a non-profit organization dedicated to the advancement, education and promotion of personal and general genealogical research and the preservation of historical records relative thereto, for the cultural enrichment of the people of Bay County, Florida, and surround-ing areas.

Membership in this organization, with voting rights and the right to hold office, is open to anyone, without restriction of race, color, creed, or sex, who has a continuing interest in genealogy and whose membership dues are current.

Meetings are held the third Saturday of each month at 1:00 p.m. in the Panama City Library. The Executive Board meets in the Library’s Local History Room at 10:00 a.m. also on the third Saturday of the month. Membership dues are $20 per year for individuals, $20 for single-address families, and $10 for full-time students, payable in December for the following year. Our Web address is http://www.rootsweb.com/~flbcgs