Amelia Island Genealogical Society

06/05/2026

05/25/2026

A Revolutionary Soldier’s Story: The Life and Times of Lt. William Pullen

Lt. William Pullen, Sr. was a Revolutionary War soldier who served for seven years with the Continental Army. But once he left the military at age 26, what did his future hold? Johanna Cleary explores Pullen’s life after the Revolutionary War and considers how his story tracked those of many early Americans.

Dr. Johanna Cleary is a University of Florida associate professor emeritus in broadcast journalism. She earned a doctorate from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

04/26/2026

Among scholars of history, the Cold War is emerging as the defining period of the Twentieth Century.

Consider:

It started with a bang and ended with the political implosion of a major world power.

It is the period in which the thinking human minds of governing authority - human minds whose analytical capacities are essentially unchanged since the time of the Greek philosophers - are forced to comprehend an unprecedented leap in the technology of warfare, a leap that potentially threatens the continued existence of civilized life. With whatever skills and limitations we might possess as humans, how do we formulate and implement policies to deal with the potential of nuclear warfare? And, how are those policies implemented, what works, and what doesn't?

It is the period in which governmental funding of defense-related research directly or indirectly accounts for the greatest widespread advances in technology, in absolute scale and scope, of any period of human history to date and we were part of it.

As genealogists we place our ancestors into their historical context to understand them and their lives. For our heirs who will someday try to understand us within the historical context of our lives, we should leave a legacy explaining what it was like living through the Cold War period. What was it like, what did it mean for us, for our friends and family, for our country, for the human beings who inhabit this planet. Where were we during the Cold War period, what did we witness, how did we feel, what did we do? Our successors ought to know and try to understand this pivotal time because they will live in the aftermath. It's genealogy and history on a forward-looking level. It's the story that we tell, and the story we will leave behind.

The program will recount the Cold War period and suggest a timeline-based framework upon which personal memories can be added. Whatever we did, we were part of the Cold War as it defined our time on this planet, so use it as the contextual outline upon which you can add and explain your own history.

04/24/2026

Amelia Island Genealogical Society Awards Jim Miller President’s Award

Jim Miller, of Yulee, was presented the Amelia Island Genealogical Society President’s Award by former AIGS President, James Shroads, at the April Monthly Meeting. The President’s Award recognized Jim Miller’s two significant contributions which promote genealogy and preserve the history of the former residents of Amelia Island and Nassau County.

Miller was recognized for all of his efforts in mapping and documenting the local cemeteries including the Bosque Bello Cemetery in Fernandina Beach. Bosque Bello Cemetery, Fernandina Beach, Florida’s historic municipal cemetery, was established by the Spanish around 1798 on Amelia Island.

The Nassau County Cemetery project is available through the AIGS website and is a searchable database of the 69 Nassau County Cemeteries. It includes not only church cemeteries but also private family cemeteries.

Jim Miller is now actively involved with the Missing in America Project. Missing in America Project is a registered 501(c)3 non-profit corporation. Volunteers locate and identify and inter the unclaimed cremains of American Veterans. Miller, using his experience in researching genealogy and working with local funeral homes, has been able to identify 22 veterans. These formerly unidentified American Veterans have been given the recognition they deserve and have been laid to rest at one of our National Cemeteries.

Additionally, the Fernandina Beach Library will receive a donation of a genealogy book to add to their extensive collection in honor of Jim Miller’s contribution to the community.

The next meeting of the Amelia Island Genealogical Society will be held Tuesday, May 19 at 7 p.m. at the Fernandina Beach Library. The topic for May’s meeting is Genealogy during the Cold War. The public is invited to attend.