The Charleston Chapter of the South Carolina Genealogical Society

Jan 2024 Chapter Meeting
2024-01-21 14:30 - 16:00 (America/New_York) | The Masonic Center, 1285 Orange Grove Rd, Charleston, SC, 29407, United States
Chapter member Mary Lucas will give a presentation on her Barnwell County family home, with several artifacts and written history from the home built before the Civil War.
Mary was born and raised in North Charleston. She is a licensed clinical psychiatric social worker in South Carolina and was named DHEC social worker of the year.
We will meet in-person, but we also plan to make the meeting available via Zoom. Guests are always welcome – either in person or via Zoom. Please CONTACT US if you are not yet a chapter member and want to participate via Zoom.

Feb 2024 Chapter Meeting
2024-02-18 14:30 - 16:00 | The Masonic Center, 1285 Orange Grove Rd, Charleston, SC, 29407, United States
Chapter member Susan Dobbs’ presentation “Using Newspapers in Genealogy Research” will cover the kinds of information you can find in newspapers, several websites where you can find newspaper links as well as Genealogy Bank and Newspapers.com.
Susan has been researching her family history for over fourteen years and has uncovered some interesting stories on her ancestors. She is a member of the Emily Geiger Chapter NSDAR and Co-Chair for the Sun City Hilton Head Genealogy Group where she resides as well as being the Secretary for our Chapter. She worked as a High School Guidance Counselor, Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor and Manager and Realtor. She has lived in northern Virginia, in the Charleston/Summerville area from 1978-1982, and in the northern suburbs of Atlanta for over 25 years.
We will meet in-person, but we also plan to make the meeting available via Zoom. Guests are always welcome – either in person or via Zoom. Please CONTACT US if you are not yet a chapter member and want to participate via Zoom.

Mar 2024 Chapter Meeting
2024-03-17 14:30 - 16:00 | The Masonic Center, 1285 Orange Grove Rd, Charleston, SC, 29407, United States
Chapter member Lynn Baker will give a presentation on Family Tree Maker and it’s companion plugin Family Tree Creator. Lynn will cover some of the basics of Family Tree Maker and synchronizing with Ancestry.com; how to use some of the built in features for finding mistakes or issues with your data; how to create reports for your research and sharing with others; and how the Family Book Creator plug-in can help you build a customized Family Book with ALL or PART of your information from Family Tree Maker.
Lynn has been doing genealogical research since 1980 and is passionate about learning new ways to do genealogical research and then sharing that with others. He runs an active Genealogy Club on Seabrook Island / Kiawah Island. He’s a frequent speaker at the NSDAR, Summerville Genealogy Club, Charleston Chapter of the South Carolina Genealogical Society and the Charleston Family Search Center. He continues to learn new ways of doing genealogy. He is retired from International Business Machine and the U.S. Navy. He has a lovely wife and four grown children.
We will meet in-person, but we also plan to make the meeting available via Zoom. Guests are always welcome – either in person or via Zoom. Please CONTACT US if you are not yet a chapter member and want to participate via Zoom.

Apr 2024 Chapter Meeting
2024-04-21 14:30 - 16:00 | The Masonic Center, 1285 Orange Grove Rd, Charleston, SC, 29407, United States
Our April meeting will be a 50th Anniversary Celebration for the Charleston Chapter (this will be for Chapter members only).
Due to logistical issue, we will not have a Zoom link available for this meeting.

May 2024 Chapter Meeting
2024-05-19 14:30 - 16:00 | The Masonic Center, 1285 Orange Grove Rd, Charleston, SC, 29407, United States
Elizabeth (Libby) Steadman, our speaker for the May meeting, will discuss “Migration of the Scots-Irish Immigrants in 1770’s in South Carolina”. Libby is a retired Colonel with the Army Reserves and a veteran of Desert Storm and the Afghanistan War. She is a member of Daughters of the American Revolution, Daughters of American Colonists, National Society Colonial Dames XVII Century, Continental Society Daughters of Indian Wars, National Society of US Daughters of 1812, and is in the process of applying for membership is Jamestowne Society. She has an extensive educational background including her Masters in Strategic Studies at the US Army War College.
We will meet in-person, but we also plan to make the meeting available via Zoom. Guests are always welcome – either in person or via Zoom. Please CONTACT US if you are not yet a chapter member and want to participate via Zoom.

Sep 2024 Chapter Meeting
2024-09-15 14:30 - 16:00 | The Masonic Center, 1285 Orange Grove Rd, Charleston, SC, 29407, United States
Our speaker for the September meeting, Carter Jones will present “Legacies That Live On — Stories of South Carolina’s Fire Service.” Carter is the Historian & Heritage Coordinator for the South Carolina State Firefighters’ Association and his presentation is a chance to step back in time to learn some history of our State’s fire service, including the legacy left by the late Charleston Fire Chief, Louis Behrens, the contributions of African-American firemen and the little known history of Castle Pinckney as it relates to Civil War prisoners of the New York volunteer firemen. He’s researched and authored a fire service history, and is a recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from the S. C. Firefighters’ Association.
We will meet in-person, but we also plan to make the meeting available via Zoom. Guests are always welcome – either in person or via Zoom. Please CONTACT US if you are not yet a chapter member and want to participate via Zoom.

Oct 2024 Chapter Meeting
2024-10-20 14:30 - 16:00 | virtual via Zoom
Chapter member Charlie Black will explain how to use the experimental Artificial Intelligence (AI) tool Full-Text Search offered on FamilySearch. Full-Text Search will be a paradigm shift in researching techniques once it’s fully deployed, as it lets users search for words or phrases in AI generated transcripts of hand-written documents.
Charlie is a retired engineer who has been volunteering at the FamilySearch Center in Charleston for over 15 years and has been a presenter at the Center’s workshops for several years past – he’s also serving as our Chapter’s Archivist.
PLEASE NOTE: This will be a ZOOM ONLY meeting. Guests are always welcome, so please CONTACT US if you are not yet a chapter member and want to participate via Zoom.

Nov 2024 Chapter Meeting
2024-11-17 14:30 - 16:00 | The Masonic Center, 1285 Orange Grove Rd, Charleston, SC, 29407, United States
Chapter member Pat Kruger’s program “Discovering YOUR ‘Greatest Generation'” will focus on research for WWII era veterans and ways to find more about their experiences and to access information surrounding their personal stories. Even with some military archival record challenges, you can still find location and military descriptions, sort through conflicting personal stories and even find relevant images. You may be the closest family link to this part of your ancestral story, so expand it and document it now.
This will be an in-person meeting at the Masonic Center. Guests are always welcome, so please CONTACT US if you are not yet a chapter member and want to participate via Zoom.

Dec 2024 Chapter Meeting
2024-12-15 14:30 - 16:00 | The Masonic Center, 1285 Orange Grove Rd, Charleston, SC, 29407, United States
December is our annual “Show and Tell” holidays get-together. We invite chapter members to talk about genealogy-related “news” from the year. Come join us and learn a bit more about what’s been happening with our members.
If you would like to present at this meeting, please contact Melanie Zimmerman (melanieszimmerman “at” gmail.com).

Jan 2025 Chapter Meeting
2025-01-19 14:30 - 16:00 | The Masonic Center, 1285 Orange Grove Rd, Charleston, SC, 29407, United States
Presentation is to be announced.
We expect this will be an in-person meeting at the Masonic Center. Guests are always welcome, so please CONTACT US if you are not yet a chapter member and want to participate via Zoom.

Feb 2025 Chapter Meeting
2025-02-16 14:30 - 16:00 | virtual via Zoom
Johnny Andrews from the Old Darlington Chapter of the SCGS will talk with us about “Using State Records to Bypass Burned Counties.” Numerous counties in South Carolina have lost records because of fires or other catastrophes, and Johnny will highlight the availability of other records that can help researchers work around these losses.
This will be a ZOOM-ONLY meeting and not in-person at the Masonic Center. Guests are always welcome, so please CONTACT US if you are not yet a chapter member and want to participate via Zoom.

Mar 2025 Chapter Meeting
2025-03-16 14:30 - 16:00 | The Masonic Center, 1285 Orange Grove Rd, Charleston, SC, 29407, United States

Apr 2025 Chapter Meeting
2025-04-27 14:30 - 16:00 | The Masonic Center, 1285 Orange Grove Rd, Charleston, SC, 29407, United States
Chapter member Pat Kruger will be speaking at this month’s meeting. Her program ‘Too Crazy to be True? Separating Fact from Fiction’ will discuss ways to consider and research ‘crazy’ family stories; The legends passed through the family that might be true, or not. Did your immigrant jump ship? Did an uncle really invent the cotton gin? Did Sherman burn your grandfather’s farm? With historical research, archival research, and analysis, we’ll discuss approaches to help separate fact from fiction. With enough program time, we’ll explore some member examples so get your crazy stories together. If we do not have enough time at this month’s meeting, we will try to continue this discussion later in the year.
This will be an in-person meeting at the Masonic Center and available via Zoom. Guests are always welcome, so please CONTACT US if you are not yet a chapter member and want to participate via Zoom.

May 2025 Chapter Meeting
2025-05-18 14:30 - 16:00 | The Masonic Center, 1285 Orange Grove Rd, Charleston, SC, 29407, United States
Our speaker this month, Leigh Jones Handal, will present “Lost Charleston.” Leah is a native South Carolinian and an avid student of Lowcountry history. Leah is a graduate of the College of Charleston with an MA degree in journalism from USC. She’s a licensed city tour guide (25+ years) and owns her own tour company, Charleston Raconteurs (charlestonraconteurs.com). As a past Director of Communications and Public Programs at Historic Charleston Foundation (1998-2010), she’s directed the foundation’s annual spring house and garden tours and Charleston International Antiques Show. She was also tapped by the Mayor’s Office to serve as co-editor of the city’s official history and tour guide training manual, released in 2011. She’s currently engaged, along with others, to produce the second edition of the tour guide manual over the next two years.
Her first book, Lost Charleston was released 2019 and her second, Storied & Scandalous Charleston, in 2022. Her most recent book, Charleston Then & Now, was released in May 2024. In addition, Leigh writes the bimonthly “Do You Know Your Lowcountry” column for the Charleston Post & Courier. She created and appears on the Lowcountry Live show’s “I Love the Lowcountry” series (WCIV-TV4) and has lectured extensively for a wide range of groups on Charleston history.
This will be an in-person meeting at the Masonic Center with access via Zoom. Guests are always welcome, so please CONTACT US if you are not yet a chapter member and want to participate via Zoom.

Sep 2025 Chapter Meeting
2025-09-21 14:30 - 16:00 | The Masonic Center, 1285 Orange Grove Rd, Charleston, SC, 29407, United States
Our presenter this month will be Chapter member Charlie Black who will provide an update of several recent enhancements made to the FamilySearch Full-Text Search tool. If you aren’t familiar with Full Text, FamilySearch is utilizing A.I. technology to create transcripts of documents which can then be searched by keywords, names, places and other parameters.
This will be an in-person meeting at the Masonic Center with access via Zoom. Guests are always welcome, so please CONTACT US if you are not yet a chapter member and want to participate via Zoom.

Oct 2025 Chapter Meeting
2025-10-19 14:30 - 16:00 | The Masonic Center, 1285 Orange Grove Rd, Charleston, SC, 29407, United States
Our presentation for the October meeting — “Working with DNA – a Case Study” — will be given by Charity Rouse, Director of Local History for the Spartanburg County Public Libraries. She has worked at the Spartanburg Library since 2014 and is a member of the Delegate Council of the National Genealogy Society and the Pinckney District Chapter of the SC Genealogical Society as well as numerous other genealogical and historical organizations.
This will be an IN-PERSON meeting at the Masonic Center but will also be accessible via Zoom. Guests are always welcome, so please CONTACT US if you are not yet a chapter member and want to participate via Zoom.

Nov 2025 Chapter Meeting
2025-11-16 14:30 - 16:00 | The Masonic Center, 1285 Orange Grove Rd, Charleston, SC, 29407, United States
Our November presentation, “Unknown Keys to Help Unlock Genealogy Mystery” by Karen Prewitt will give some lessons learned for dealing with of those inevitable brick walls in genealogy research, and will share some little-known facts that could make a difference in your research. Karen moved to Charleston in 1981 after four years spent in Europe, both teaching and studying design and architecture. She and her husband have restored an 1838 house in Ansonborough (an ongoing lifetime project!) and she has been an active volunteer for many civic groups in her 44 years in Charleston. For the last 35 years she’s also found time to research her Padgett family genealogy.
The meeting will be accessible via Zoom. Guests are always welcome, so please CONTACT US if you are not yet a chapter member and want to participate via Zoom.

Dec 2025 Chapter Meeting
2025-12-14 14:30 - 16:00 | The Masonic Center, 1285 Orange Grove Rd, Charleston, SC, 29407, United States

Jan 2026 Chapter Meeting
2026-01-18 14:30 - 16:00 | The Masonic Center, 1285 Orange Grove Rd, Charleston, SC, 29407, United States
OurJanuary presentation by Paul Porwoll will be about the old St Andrews Parish church in the West Ashley area of Charleston which dates from the early 1700s.
The meeting will be accessible via Zoom. Guests are always welcome in person or via Zoom, so please CONTACT US if you are not yet a chapter member and want to participate via Zoom.

Mar 2026 Chapter Meeting
2026-03-15 14:30 - 16:00 | The Masonic Center, 1285 Orange Grove Rd, Charleston, SC, 29407, United States
Our March meeting will be a round table of research problems rather than a specific topic presentation. Members who have a genealogical brick wall or research problem are submitting well-defined genealogical background information before the meeting and we will choose three or four to discuss during the meeting to try to help the researcher break through their difficulty.
The meeting will be held at the Masonic Center but will also be viewable via Zoom. Guests are always welcome, so please CONTACT US if you are not yet a chapter member and want to participate via Zoom.

Apr 2026 Chapter Meeting
2026-04-19 14:30 - 16:00 | The Masonic Center, 1285 Orange Grove Rd, Charleston, SC, 29407, United States
Chapter member Pamela Brown is speaking at our April 19th meeting about her genealogist work for the U.S. Army Past Conflicts Repatriation Branch (PCRB), where she researches and identifies primary next of kin and DNA-eligible relatives for missing Soldiers from wars and conflicts as far back as WWI.
Pamela became interested in family history as a child and began her own serious research in 1999 to uncover the origins of her maternal grandmother, who was an orphan. After taking a DNA test, she discovered that her beloved father was not her biological parent, which led her deeper into DNA research. She volunteers as a “search angel” helping others identify biological parents, and started working as a genealogist for PCRB in 2023. She’s a member of several genealogical and lineage organizations, including The Jamestowne Society, General Society of Mayflower Descendants, Daughters of the American Revolution, and Associated Daughters of Early American Witches.
The meeting will be held at the Masonic Center but will also be viewable via Zoom. Guests are always welcome, so please CONTACT US if you are not yet a chapter member and want to participate via Zoom.
