Saturday in the Park

There was a Houston Genealogical Forum meeting today and I went to it. The meetings are held in a park community center, thus the name of the blog entry.

This was my first HGF meeting. I joined in January. The room was pretty full. The business part went fast. The speaker was Marjorie Lowe, who talked about het expertise with Native American research. Since I'm researching Chickasaw ancestors, the subject was timely.

Lowe discussed the resources at Clayton Library. It's been hard for me to do Chickasaw research there because I don't know what I don't know. I now have a better idea of what they have. Next time I go to the Clayton, I know what questions to ask.

There was mention of the Dawes Rolls, enrollment packets/land allotment packets and where to write to request copies. I obtained packets for my Jones and Bourland ancestors via Footnote. Lowe did mention this resource, but only in passing.

The best tidbit I learned before the presentation even began. There's a Phillips Petroleum Museum in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. That's where my grandfather grew up. His father was a lawyer for an "oil company" according to a census. I'll have to contact the museum and see if they have any records.

All in all, it was a good gathering. I will attend future meetings when I can. Saturdays are a challenge on the home front.