Detroit Society for Genealogical Research

10/20/2026

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1MP2gG2y1q/

Please join us in welcoming David Votta as the next ! Read the full press release and learn more about David by visiting www.Michigan.gov/LibraryofMichigan.

10/06/2026

Next DSGR meeting/webinar is Saturday, October 10, 2026 at 12:30 EDT. Female Ancestors: Finding Women in Family and Local History Resources with Mindy Babarskis.
Detroit Public Library, Main - Explorer's Room & Virtual with Zoom.
Additional details and Zoom registration are on our home page. https://dsgr.org

09/28/2026

Thank you to all who celebrated 90 years of DSGR with us at Madonna University and online. Pictured are presenters Kris Rzepczynski, Katherine R. Willson, and Mark Bowden.

09/19/2026

Celebrate 90 years of Family History with us on Saturday, September 26. DSGR 90th Anniversary Family History Fair. This full-day event will be held at Madonna University in Livonia and will also be available virtually. All presenters will be in person. The fourth session will be Michigan Roots: Genealogy in the Wolverine State with Kris Rzepcyzynski.

Drawn by high-paying manufacturing jobs and inexpensive land, thousands of people from all over Europe and the United States, including the Deep South, New England, New York, and Pennsylvania, migrated to Michigan during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. This session, aimed at researchers whose ancestral trails extend to and from Michigan, will explore these migration patterns and provide an overview of the rich and abundant genealogical resources available in print and online.

For complete information and to register, visit https://dsgr.org/detail/eventDetail.php?er=285

09/14/2026

Coming up on Saturday, September 26. DSGR 90th Anniversary Family History Fair. This full-day event will be held at Madonna University in Livonia and virtually. All presenters will be in person. The first session will be Big City Blues: Researching Urban Ancestors with Kris Rzepczynski

Using case studies from Chicago, Detroit, and other cities, this program explores successful strategies for researching ancestors in large urban centers across the U.S.

For complete information and to register visit https://dsgr.org/detail/eventDetail.php?er=285

09/14/2026

Celebrate 90 years of Family History with us on Saturday, September 26. DSGR 90th Anniversary Family History Fair. This full-day event will be held at Madonna University in Livonia and will also be available virtually. All presenters will be in person. The third session will be Preserving Detroit’s History: The Burton Historical Collection with Mark Bowden.

Since 1915, the Burton Historical Collection has served as a renowned repository of genealogical and regional history materials. Come to hear about the collection’s origins and the treasures it houses.

For complete information and to register visit https://dsgr.org/detail/eventDetail.php?er=285

09/11/2026

Coming up on Saturday, September 26. DSGR 90th Anniversary Family History Fair. This full-day event will be held at Madonna University in Livonia and will also be available virtually. All presenters will be in person. The second session will be America's Westward Expansion: 25 Events in 60 Minutes with Katherine R. Willson

As the young United States pushed westward, the nation wrestled with questions about land, power, and who had the right to shape its future. Follow the major events that drove this expansion from 1787 to 1890 — reshaping federal law, transforming settlement patterns, and bringing both opportunity and injustice.
For complete information and to register visit https://dsgr.org/detail/eventDetail.php?er=285

06/19/2026

We are pleased to announce that naturalization records are now available online on Michiganology! The counties currently available online are Alcona, Allegan, and Alpena.

Search by name, date, birth place, and more: https://michigan.access.preservica.com/naturalization-records/

Naturalization records will be released alphabetically by county each month. Look forward to the release of Antrim County next month!

06/15/2026

Detroit Public Library - The Struggle for Freedom
In celebration of the United States’ 250th Anniversary (4 July 1776), the Burton Historical Collection (BHC) of the Detroit Public Library presents this exhibit with items from the BHC. White Americans (males) achieved freedom in the American Revolution, and Black Americans gained freedom in the Civil War. Of course, in neither case was freedom attained entirely. Every generation of Americans since the end of the Revolution in 1781 has had to fight to maintain the freedoms already won and, also, to continue to fight for the freedoms not yet realized, always striving toward perfect freedom as immortalized in the Declaration of Independence with the axiom “that all men [persons] are created equal . .

Items featured in "The Struggle for Freedom" display. These collection items are in the Cass hallway display cases at the Detroit Public Library's Main branch.