For its first lecture and general meeting this year, the Historical Society of Ocean Grove will welcome genealogist Melissa A. Johnson of Middletown Township who will present Researching Twentieth-Century New Jersey Families.
The lecture and meeting will be held at the Jersey Shore Arts Center, 66 South Main St., Ocean Grove on April 29 at 7 p.m.
Admission is free and open to the public. Following the presentation in the Herbst Theater, a general meeting of the society will be held.
A recent poll conducted by USA Today showed the genealogy is the second most popular hobby in the US today, after gardening. Johnson will explore resources used for finding families who lived in New Jersey during the twentieth century. City directories, newspapers, maps, state census records, and numerous other sources will be covered, with a focus on researching both rural and urban, and landless and landowner ancestors.
Johnson, CG, is a New Jersey-based board-certified genealogist specializing in genealogical research from the colonial period to the present; family history writing, editing, and publishing; using DNA in genealogical research; and forensic genealogy. She focuses on researching families with roots in New Jersey, New York City, Pennsylvania, and the British Isles. Melissa is an instructor in the Boston University Genealogical Research Certificate program, and also teaches at the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy, Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh, and Institute for Genealogy and Historical Research. She also owns and operates the New Jersey Family History Institute, which runs virtual and in-person courses on a variety of genealogy topics.
This year commemorates two important anniversaries in Ocean Grove. It is the 150th anniversary year for Ocean Grove, and the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Historical Society. Since its founding in 1969, the Historical Society of Ocean Grove has pledged itself to preserve, document, and encourage community interest in the history of Ocean Grove. The purpose of this nonprofit Society is to sustain the heritage and honor of being designated a National Historic District. Ocean Grove was entered as a historic district in the National Register of Historic Places District (1976) and the New Jersey State Register of Historic Places District (1975).
For more information call 732-774-1869.
