The Your Pennsylvania Ancestors podcast for Season 1 focused on the archives of PA. In the episodes below you can learn what archives we have and how to access them direct from the archivists themselves. A couple episodes feature local genealogical repositories so you can understand what is held at the local level. To learn about your ancestors’ county, contact the local groups in that county. A list of the 67 county historical and genealogical repositories is here.
Episode 1: Pennsylvania State Archives
Conversation with Pennsylvania State Archive Reference Archivist, Aaron McWilliams. Aaron has experience in PA land records, militia records, and is a professional genealogist. Learn how to research in an archives successfully, what kinds of records you can find, and how to handle surprises!
Episode 2: Historical Society of Pennsylvania
Conversation with Historical Society of Pennsylvania’s, Lee Arnold, Chief Operating Officer. Many genealogy researchers consider The Historical Society of Pennsylvania a “must do archive” and you’ll find out why in this episode.
Episode 3: State Library of Pennsylvania
Conversation with State Library of Pennsylvania’s, Kathy Hale, Supervisor of Public Services. Kathy fondly calls the State Library “The Packrat’s Paradise” and when you listen, you’ll find out why!
Episode 4: Northeast Pennsylvania Genealogical Society
Conversation with Sara Klinges, President and Sandra Panzitta, Treasurer of the Northeast Pennsylvania Genealogical Society. NEPGS has a vast collection of genealogical records for any ancestor from Lackawanna and Luzerne Counties
Episode 5: Western Pennsylvania Genealogical Society
The Western Pennsylvania Genealogical Society (WPGS) in Pittsburgh, PA focuses on the 26 counties of western PA. Amy Welch, President of WPGS and Marilyn Holt, Manager of the Pennsylvania Department of the Carnegie Library share the highlights of the collection and what you can expect when you visit.
Episode 6: City of Philadelphia Archives
One of the most historic cities in the country is the City of Philadelphia, and this episode covers the treasure trove of documentation our ancestors left here. Joshua Blay, Registrar and Collections Manager for the Philadelphia City Archives, gives you a thorough look at all they have for genealogists.
Episode 7: 5 Tips on Researching in Archives
Denys Allen shares 5 Tips on preparing for your first trip to the archives. You can do these through out 2020 to develop your researching abilities.
Episode 8: Ross Library of Clinton County
Clinton County, PA has one of the more unique founding stories in Pennsylvania and this week’s guest Lou Bernard, Ross Library Adult Services Director and County Historian, will tell you all about it.
Episode 9: Centre County Library & Historical Museum
Centre County, PA is the focus of this week’s episode. Robbin Degeratu, Administrative Director of the Centre County Library and Historical Museum shares what is in their extensive collection for genealogists.
Episode 10: Where to Learn About PA Records
Denys Allen shares some classroom learning opportunities on Pennsylvania records coming up in 2020. If those don’t work for you, Denys explains how to learn about these records in the comfort of your own home.
Episode 11: Erie Society for Genealogical Research
Erie County, PA is the focus of this week’s episode. Jodi Schersten, President of the Erie Society for Genealogical Research shares what is in their extensive collection for genealogists.
Episode 12: Philadelphia Area Consortium of Special Collection Libraries
We are back in Philadelphia, PA to learn about the archival collections in the Philadelphia Area Consortium of Special Collection Libraries, PACSCL. Holly is representing PACSCL and will teach us how to use finding aids and the PACSCL online finding aid website, PAARP.
Episode 13: Season 1 Wrap-Up
Denys Allen wraps up Season 1 answering a listener question on under-utilized resources in genealogy research in Pennsylvania. She then gives a preview of Season 2 of the podcast.
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