Events - Future Events View
The event calendar shows upcoming club events. Select a view then use the navigation buttons to move
between dates. Click on the event to view more information, including the event description, times,
location, fees and any rules regarding attendance; you can also register for events from this screen.
Click on the magnifying glass on the toolbar to see search and filter options.
Learn how artificial intelligence (AI) can assist genealogists and family history researchers, with a particular focus on discovering the advantages and limitations of AI, and how genealogists can apply this knowledge.
VGS Learning and Research Centre
Learn, share, and contribute your experiences with DNA testing and genealogy research. Learn more about your options if you haven‘t tested your DNA yet.
British Home Child Day in Canada
VGS Members Update scheduled to be emailed
National Day for Truth and Reconciliation
Federal Statutory Holiday in Canada
The Ireland SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in the Ireland.
SIG Leader: Kathie Ross
NO WORKSHOP - Thanksgiving Weekend
The ROBC will be celebrating their anniversary at their Oct 7 2023 Open House. VGS will have a table in the Chapel. Grave location lookup service available.
The England SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in England.
SIG Leader: Heather Shave
SIG Assist: Gerry Poulton
VGS Members Update scheduled to be emailed
The majority of genealogists/family historians have collected considerable data, information and stories related to their families or historical communities of interest. What happens to this data/information when the collector becomes an ancestor? John Azar will explore what often happens to this information and offers some suggestions on how to ensure the collector‘s legacy is safeguarded.
VGS Learning and Research Centre
Get your family history journey off to a great start! Join four experienced family historians on an engaging half-day journey through the most important topics and tools in family history. They will help you build good habits early that will set you up for success for years to come.
This seminar is designed specifically for people new to family history and for people returning to family history after a break from their research. No prior experience is required.
Water, Tea, Coffee, and Snacks are provided.
Lunch is not included with the seminar. There are several conveniently located food outlets, and a grocery store, within easy walking distance of the genealogy centre. You may bring your own food or beverage if you wish.
This is an in-person only event at our VGS Centre, with a limit of 15 attendees. It includes four 1-hour sessions. Our genealogy centre, located on the second floor, will be open at 8:30 am and the seminar will begin at 9:00 am.
VGS Learning and Research Centre
Learn, share, and contribute your experiences with DNA testing and genealogy research. Learn more about your options if you haven‘t tested your DNA yet.
The goals of this SIG are to introduce and share the fun of doing family history, and to encourage and show members how to do it themselves. Answer questions.
Geared to new members just starting out, and any active members who would like to brush up on their skills.
In-person only at the VGS Centre.
The focus will be on researching items that have been donated to the VGS. Learn to identify clues by careful observation and search for answers in the many sources we have available. The aim is to return found items to their families whenever possible.
The Ontario SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in Ontario, Canada.
SIG Coordinator: Gerry Poulton
Free to active VGS members. Members must join this and other Special Interest Groups to receive emails from SIG volunteers containing SIG meeting details.
Countries investigated by this SIG include Romania, Belarus, Czechoslovakia, Ukraine, Serbia, Russia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Austria, Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Croatia, and Herzegovina.
In-person only at the VGS Centre.
VGS Learning and Research Centre
Civil Registration, Census and Old Parish Registers are the three main sources of Scottish research. The Civil Registration of births, marriages and deaths started in 1855 and include much information. Using both the census from 1841 to 1921 and Civil Registration means most families can be traced back to the early 1800’s.
VGS Members Update scheduled to be emailed
Presented by Mark Thompson.
Genealogy platforms like Ancestry and MyHeritage offer billions of records and a bewildering variety of hint tools to enhance your research. But, not all hints are created equal. Join Mark Thompson for an eye-opening workshop that will demystify popular hint tools like Shaky Leaves, Thrulines, and the Theory of Family Relativity, as well as several other lesser-known gems. Learn how to differentiate between useful hints and misleading distractions that will help keep your research on the right track.
The Ireland SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in the Ireland.
SIG Leader: Kathie Ross
The England SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in England.
SIG Leader: Heather Shave
SIG Assist: Gerry Poulton
VGS Members Update scheduled to be emailed
Join Kate Humble for a walk through the streets of Saanich when it was a largely rural community, and hear the stories of individual women during the First World War who contributed to the war effort in myriad ways while their husbands, brothers, fathers and sons fought in the trenches.
REMEMBRANCE DAY - NO VGS WORKSHOP
Today we focus instead on those who lost their lives protecting our country and our freedom.
The Ontario SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in Ontario, Canada.
SIG Coordinator: Gerry Poulton
Free to active VGS members. Members must join this and other Special Interest Groups to receive emails from SIG volunteers containing SIG meeting details.
Countries investigated by this SIG include Romania, Belarus, Czechoslovakia, Ukraine, Serbia, Russia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Austria, Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Croatia, and Herzegovina.
In-person only at the VGS Centre.
VGS Learning and Research Centre
Sharon Oddie Brown will be sharing her extensive expertise and experiences gained when researching her Northern Ireland family history, and telling the world about it in her blog. Her particular focus in this workshop will be:
The risks and benefits of sharing research - based on 20 years of The Silver Bowl web site.
What to do, what not to do, plus the thrill of unexpected successes.
VGS Learning and Research Centre
Learn, share, and contribute your experiences with DNA testing and genealogy research. Learn more about your options if you haven‘t tested your DNA yet.
The goals of this SIG are to introduce and share the fun of doing family history, and to encourage and show members how to do it themselves. Answer questions.
Geared to new members just starting out, and any active members who would like to brush up on their skills.
In-person only at the VGS Centre.
The focus will be on researching items that have been donated to the VGS. Learn to identify clues by careful observation and search for answers in the many sources we have available. The aim is to return found items to their families whenever possible.
VGS Members Update scheduled to be emailed
Rev. Steve Little will focus on how to visualize and understand complex relationships in mildly endogamous communities. Rev. Little will discuss the challenges of conducting DNA analysis in such communities and how to overcome them. He will explain the concepts of pedigree collapse, multiple relationships, and endogamy and provide examples from his personal experience to demonstrate their complexity.
The Ireland SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in the Ireland.
SIG Leader: Kathie Ross
VGS Members Update scheduled to be emailed
The England SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in England.
SIG Leader: Heather Shave
SIG Assist: Gerry Poulton
The focus will be on researching items that have been donated to the VGS. Learn to identify clues by careful observation and search for answers in the many sources we have available. The aim is to return found items to their families whenever possible.
The Ontario SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in Ontario, Canada.
SIG Coordinator: Gerry Poulton
Free to active VGS members. Members must join this and other Special Interest Groups to receive emails from SIG volunteers containing SIG meeting details.
VGS Members Update scheduled to be emailed
The Ireland SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in the Ireland.
SIG Leader: Kathie Ross
VGS Members Update scheduled to be emailed
VGS Learning and Research Centre
Old family photographs connect you with your family history, offering invaluable insights into your ancestors‘ lives. However, identifying and deciphering the clues hidden within them can be frustratingly difficult at times. This session will guide you through a methodical approach to unraveling the mysteries hidden within your vintage family photos.
The England SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in England.
SIG Leader: Heather Shave
SIG Assist: Gerry Poulton
Visiting an old cemetery when looking for an ancestor’s grave can be a fascinating exploration of the past. Besides finding the grave, you might wonder why your family member is in this particular cemetery. Why are they in that part of this cemetery? And why does the cemetery look the way it does — layout, plantings, groupings of markers? Using Victoria’s Ross Bay Cemetery as an example, Yvonne Van Ruskenveld will reveal aspects of old cemeteries that can enrich your family research.
VGS Learning and Research Centre
Learn, share, and contribute your experiences with DNA testing and genealogy research. Learn more about your options if you haven‘t tested your DNA yet.
The goals of this SIG are to introduce and share the fun of doing family history, and to encourage and show members how to do it themselves. Answer questions.
Geared to new members just starting out, and any active members who would like to brush up on their skills.
In-person only at the VGS Centre.
The focus will be on researching items that have been donated to the VGS. Learn to identify clues by careful observation and search for answers in the many sources we have available. The aim is to return found items to their families whenever possible.
The Ontario SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in Ontario, Canada.
SIG Coordinator: Gerry Poulton
Free to active VGS members. Members must join this and other Special Interest Groups to receive emails from SIG volunteers containing SIG meeting details.
VGS Members Update scheduled to be emailed
Countries investigated by this SIG include Romania, Belarus, Czechoslovakia, Ukraine, Serbia, Russia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Austria, Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Croatia, and Herzegovina.
In-person only at the VGS Centre.
VGS Learning and Research Centre
Presented by Mark Thompson -
Are you tirelessly collecting information from websites, census records, and archives to enrich your family history? Wondering how to efficiently manage and track all that information? Enter Excel: a tool every genealogist can use to improve their research, but often find overwhelming.
In this session led by Mark Thompson and hosted by the Victoria Genealogical Society, you‘ll receive straightforward, actionable guidance on harnessing Excel to elevate your genealogy research. Illustrated with real-world examples, learn how to use this powerful tool to organize, track, and analyze your family history findings with ease.
VGS Members Update scheduled to be emailed
Join us for our upcoming webinar on "How to Use Notion to Plan and Organize Your Research"! In this webinar, you‘ll learn how to leverage the power of Notion to streamline your research process and stay organized. We‘ll cover everything from the basics of Notion to customizing a research log template to fit your specific needs. Attendees will receive a Notion Genealogy Research Log template.
The Ireland SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in the Ireland.
SIG Leader: Kathie Ross
Presented by Mark Thompson.
In the middle of a family Zoom call, someone asked if anyone had seen the “trunk of letters” that Eleanor Thompson had saved throughout her long life. The people on the call had no idea how far down the rabbit hole this innocent question was about to take them.
This session chronicles how a dedicated team of family researchers is collaborating to preserve, understand, and share 7000 pages of family and cultural history found in an attic in southern Ontario in 2020.
The England SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in England.
SIG Leader: Heather Shave
SIG Assist: Gerry Poulton
VGS Members Update scheduled to be emailed
Countries investigated by this SIG include Romania, Belarus, Czechoslovakia, Ukraine, Serbia, Russia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Austria, Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Croatia, and Herzegovina.
In-person only at the VGS Centre.
NO WORKSHOP - Family Day Weekend
VGS Learning and Research Centre
Learn, share, and contribute your experiences with DNA testing and genealogy research. Learn more about your options if you haven‘t tested your DNA yet.
The goals of this SIG are to introduce and share the fun of doing family history, and to encourage and show members how to do it themselves. Answer questions.
Geared to new members just starting out, and any active members who would like to brush up on their skills.
In-person only at the VGS Centre.
The focus will be on researching items that have been donated to the VGS. Learn to identify clues by careful observation and search for answers in the many sources we have available. The aim is to return found items to their families whenever possible.
The Ontario SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in Ontario, Canada.
SIG Coordinator: Gerry Poulton
Free to active VGS members. Members must join this and other Special Interest Groups to receive emails from SIG volunteers containing SIG meeting details.
VGS Learning and Research Centre
What records are available for Scotland besides the census, civil registration and parish records?
VGS Members Update scheduled to be emailed
The Ireland SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in the Ireland.
SIG Leader: Kathie Ross
The England SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in England.
SIG Leader: Heather Shave
SIG Assist: Gerry Poulton
VGS Members Update scheduled to be emailed
VGS Learning and Research Centre
Old family letters are a blessing. You will glean family history and in-depth stories from them that you can’t get any other way. Family letters can also be a curse! They can be difficult to read, let alone understand and document.
VGS Learning and Research Centre
Learn, share, and contribute your experiences with DNA testing and genealogy research. Learn more about your options if you haven‘t tested your DNA yet.
The goals of this SIG are to introduce and share the fun of doing family history, and to encourage and show members how to do it themselves. Answer questions.
Geared to new members just starting out, and any active members who would like to brush up on their skills.
In-person only at the VGS Centre.
The focus will be on researching items that have been donated to the VGS. Learn to identify clues by careful observation and search for answers in the many sources we have available. The aim is to return found items to their families whenever possible.
The Ontario SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in Ontario, Canada.
SIG Coordinator: Gerry Poulton
Free to active VGS members. Members must join this and other Special Interest Groups to receive emails from SIG volunteers containing SIG meeting details.
Countries investigated by this SIG include Romania, Belarus, Czechoslovakia, Ukraine, Serbia, Russia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Austria, Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Croatia, and Herzegovina.
In-person only at the VGS Centre.
VGS Members Update scheduled to be emailed
NO WORKSHOP - Easter Weekend
The Ireland SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in the Ireland.
SIG Leader: Kathie Ross
The England SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in England.
SIG Leader: Heather Shave
SIG Assist: Gerry Poulton
VGS Members Update scheduled to be emailed
VGS Learning and Research Centre
Learn, share, and contribute your experiences with DNA testing and genealogy research. Learn more about your options if you haven‘t tested your DNA yet.
The goals of this SIG are to introduce and share the fun of doing family history, and to encourage and show members how to do it themselves. Answer questions.
Geared to new members just starting out, and any active members who would like to brush up on their skills.
In-person only at the VGS Centre.
The focus will be on researching items that have been donated to the VGS. Learn to identify clues by careful observation and search for answers in the many sources we have available. The aim is to return found items to their families whenever possible.
The Ontario SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in Ontario, Canada.
SIG Coordinator: Gerry Poulton
Free to active VGS members. Members must join this and other Special Interest Groups to receive emails from SIG volunteers containing SIG meeting details.
Countries investigated by this SIG include Romania, Belarus, Czechoslovakia, Ukraine, Serbia, Russia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Austria, Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Croatia, and Herzegovina.
In-person only at the VGS Centre.
VGS Members Update scheduled to be emailed
The Ireland SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in the Ireland.
SIG Leader: Kathie Ross
The England SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in England.
SIG Leader: Heather Shave
SIG Assist: Gerry Poulton
VGS Members Update scheduled to be emailed
The Ontario SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in Ontario, Canada.
SIG Coordinator: Gerry Poulton
Free to active VGS members. Members must join this and other Special Interest Groups to receive emails from SIG volunteers containing SIG meeting details.
Countries investigated by this SIG include Romania, Belarus, Czechoslovakia, Ukraine, Serbia, Russia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Austria, Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Croatia, and Herzegovina.
In-person only at the VGS Centre.
NO WORKSHOP - Victoria Day Weekend
VGS Learning and Research Centre
Learn, share, and contribute your experiences with DNA testing and genealogy research. Learn more about your options if you haven‘t tested your DNA yet.
The goals of this SIG are to introduce and share the fun of doing family history, and to encourage and show members how to do it themselves. Answer questions.
Geared to new members just starting out, and any active members who would like to brush up on their skills.
In-person only at the VGS Centre.
The focus will be on researching items that have been donated to the VGS. Learn to identify clues by careful observation and search for answers in the many sources we have available. The aim is to return found items to their families whenever possible.
VGS Members Update scheduled to be emailed
The Ireland SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in the Ireland.
SIG Leader: Kathie Ross
VGS Members Update scheduled to be emailed
The England SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in England.
SIG Leader: Heather Shave
SIG Assist: Gerry Poulton
The goals of this SIG are to introduce and share the fun of doing family history, and to encourage and show members how to do it themselves. Answer questions.
Geared to new members just starting out, and any active members who would like to brush up on their skills.
In-person only at the VGS Centre.
The focus will be on researching items that have been donated to the VGS. Learn to identify clues by careful observation and search for answers in the many sources we have available. The aim is to return found items to their families whenever possible.
The Ontario SIG welcomes all members who are researching their family history in Ontario, Canada.
SIG Coordinator: Gerry Poulton
Free to active VGS members. Members must join this and other Special Interest Groups to receive emails from SIG volunteers containing SIG meeting details.
VGS Members Update scheduled to be emailed
Countries investigated by this SIG include Romania, Belarus, Czechoslovakia, Ukraine, Serbia, Russia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Austria, Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Croatia, and Herzegovina.
In-person only at the VGS Centre.
This is a test event only. Do not register.
National Day for Truth and Reconciliation
Federal Statutory Holiday in Canada