Meetings

Meeting and Events

Monthly meetings are held in the Meeting Hall of the York County History Center at 250 East Market Street, York, Pennsylvania, unless otherwise noted. The business portion of the meeting begins at 2:30 PM, followed by the program.

To register for in-person attendance or Zoom registration, visit
https://www.yorkhistorycenter.org/event/south-central-pennsylvania-genealogical-society
To attend via Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/YorkCountyHistoryCenter/

Our upcoming meetings are scheduled as follows ...

October 1, 2023
Striking for Pennsylvania - The 1863 Pennsylvania Campaign
Presented by Scott Mingus

In the summer of 1863, 160 years ago this year, one out of every seven Confederate soldiers that fought at Gettysburg arrived there after marching or riding through York County. Nearly 10% of the Union Army of the Potomac also came through the county before engaging the Confederates at Gettysburg. Author Scott Mingus will discuss the three different Confederate commands that invaded York County (Jubal Early's division from June 28-30, Jeb Stuart's cavalry on June 30-July 2, and the lesser-known James Nounnan raid from Dillsburg to Dover on June 28-29). He will also relate the feverish efforts of the local farmers to protect their horses, livestock, and private property, as well as the desperate attempts of a motely collection of local home guard troops and state emergency militiamen to slow the Rebels. He will also briefly discuss the battle of Hanover and the defense of the world's longest covered bridge at Wrightsville.

Multiple award-winning author Scott Mingus is a retired scientist and executive in the global specialty paper industry. The Ohio native graduated from Miami University. He was part of the research team that developed the first commercially successful self-adhesive U.S. postage stamps, and he was a pioneer in the early development of bar code labels. He has written more than 30 Civil War and Underground Railroad books and numerous articles for Gettysburg Magazine and other historical journals. He has appeared on C-SPAN, C-SPAN3, PBS, PCN, and several other TV networks. Mingus writes a blog on the Civil War history of York County, PA, where he and his wife Debi live. He also has written six scenario books for miniature wargaming. He received lifetime achievement awards from the York County History Center and the Camp Curtin Historical Society for his many contributions to local Civil War history. His books and wargaming scenario books have received or been nominated for numerous national awards.

November 5, 2023
The 1829 Answer and Defense of Catharina Ziegler of Codorus Township to Accusations of Witchcraft.
Presented by Richard Konkel

The June 5, 1829 German language edition of the York Gazette features a lengthy article written by or for Catharina, wife of Johannes Ziegler of Codorus Township in answer to accusations made against her by "Doctor" Sebastian Keller and members of the Michael Lau family about participating in a Hexentanz (Witches' Dance) along the road to York lead by a musician clad in red (the devil); being able to read people's minds and other traits historically attributed to witches. The presentation will explore the parties involved, the accusations and the popular beliefs they were based on and how some of these beliefs have persisted into modern times. These events were almost exactly 100 years prior to the murder of Nelson Rehmeyer in 1928 and the 1929 Hex trials of the three murder suspects.

Richard K. Konkel is Vice President of the South Central Pennsylvania Genealogical Society.

January 7, 2024
Show and Tell and Ask

This meeting will provide an opportunity for “education and enlightenment” with a program of sharing research findings and seeking assistance with research roadblocks. Come ready to talk about your latest genealogical discoveries or about some new, exciting source of information upon which you stumbled. Bring your research questions and problems to see if anyone in the group can offer helpful suggestions. Possibly you have an old family photograph or treasured heirloom that has an unusual story associated with it. Share that story with us! We hope that you will join us for an interesting and entertaining afternoon!.

February 4, 2024
Detail pending.

March 3, 2024
Detail pending.

April 7, 2024
Detail pending.

May 5, 2024
Detail pending.

June 9, 2024
Detail pending.

PAST PROGRAMS ARCHIVE

August 2023 - Pennsylvania German Language Heritage

June 2023 - Unearthing Camp Security

May 2023 - Tour of Saint Luke's Union Church Cemetery

April 2023 - Researching PA Civil War Draft Records

March 2023 - Pennsylvania Prison Records

February 2023 - African American Genealogy

January 2023 - Show & Tell & Ask

November 2022 - Revisiting Online Research of German Ancestors

October 2022 - Indian Languages Influence in the Susquehanna Region

August 2022 - Using Online Deeds in Family History Research

June 2022 - Henry James Young Awards

May 2022 - Researching the History of Institutionalized People in Pennsylvania

Apr 2022 - The Challenges Facing the Continental Congress in York

Mar 2022 - 18th Century Gunsmithing in Eastern PA

Feb 2022 - PA’s Celtic Language Heritage

Jan 2022 - The Architecture of the Dempwolfs

Nov 2021 - The Churches and Chaplains of York County During the Civil War

Oct 2021 - Genealogical Resources of the York County History Center’s Library and Archives

Aug 2021 - Pennsylvania State Archives’ Online Resources

Jun 2021 -History of the Henry James Young Award

May 2021 - MA & PA Railroad Heritage Village visit

Apr 2021 - Cumberland County Records

Mar 2021 - PA State Archives Moves Into the Future

Feb 2021 - York County Coroner's Office

Aug 2020 - Using Online Newspaper Collections in Research

Oct 2020 - Genealogical Adventures During the Pandemic

Nov 2020 - Using Oral History in Genealogical Research