Jewish Genealogical Society of Sacramento

10/10/2026

The California State Library will be offering special 30-minute guided “Tiny Tours” during the Sacramento Archives Crawl. Guests can explore highlights such as Frank Van Sloan’s 1929 mural “The War Through the Ages,” a display of photographs from Johnny Cash’s San Quentin and Folsom Prison concerts, Maynard Dixon’s mural “Pageant of Traditions,” sculptures by Edward Field Sanford Jr., the library lobby, Gillis Hall, and circulation room.

10/10/2026

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.

10/10/2026

October is officially recognized as Family History Month in the United States!

Next Wednesday, October 14 is Day and we want to hear from you! Ever wonder something about the California State Archives or about archives in general?
 
Leave your question in the comments, or DM us, and the answer might be featured in our post on October 14!

10/10/2026

An annual event for the public at the Archives Center in Sacramento.

10/10/2026

SAVE THE DATE for the JGSS workshop with STEVE MORSE on
Sunday, January 24, 2027, 10 a.m. to Noon
KOH Library and Cultural Center, 2300 Sierra Blvd., Sacramento or on Zoom
“One-Step Webpages: A Potpourri of Genealogical Search Tools,”

If you’ve been wanting to delve into your family history or research it in greater depth, here’s a chance to hear from a world-renowned genealogist on helpful tools to explore explore your ancestry.

The One-Step website -- www.stevemorse.org -- started out as an aid for finding passengers in the Ellis Island database. Shortly afterwards it was expanded to help with searching in the 1930 census. Over the years it has continued to evolve and today includes about 300 web-based tools divided into 16 separate categories ranging from genealogical searches to astronomical calculations to last-minute bidding on eBay. This presentation will describe the range of tools available and give the highlights of each one.

Stephen Morse is the creator of the One-Step Website for which he has received both the Lifetime Achievement Award and the Outstanding Contribution Award from the International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies, Award of Merit from the National Genealogical Society, first-ever Excellence Award from the Association of Professional Genealogists, and two awards that he cannot pronounce from Polish genealogical societies.

In his other life Morse is a computer professional with a doctorate degree in electrical engineering. He has held various research, development, and teaching positions, authored numerous technical papers, written four textbooks, and holds four patents. He is best known as the architect of the Intel 8086 (the granddaddy of today's Pentium processor), which sparked the PC revolution 45 years ago.

All are welcome to attend the January 24 presentation. Registration required for either the in-person program or on Zoom:

08/13/2026

05/06/2026

DATE TBA for “How to Write a Family Narrative,” with Victoria Fisch.

This is the second part of professional genealogist’s Victoria Fisch’s presentation: “I’ve done the research, now what?”

If you think you’ve come to a possible stopping point in your research (and let’s be honest, is there ever really a stopping point?)
and you don’t know what to do next, our next Zoom presentation by Victoria Fisch will give you direction.

If you've realized it’s time to do something with all those records, she will also discuss how to prepare for and create final products that will preserve your efforts and ensure that your hard-earned discoveries can be passed on to your children, grandchildren, and other members of your family.

Society members will receive a comprehensive handout.

FREE REGISTRATION REQUIRED: Use this link to register: https://tinyurl.com/JGSS-24May2026-Register

Watch for PART 2 on JUNE 14th: HOW TO WRITE A FAMILY HISTORY
Victoria Fisch is past president of the Jewish Genealogical Society of Sacramento, past northern California Editor of Western States Jewish History journal. She is a full-time professional genealogist, in partnership with her husband, Jeremy Frankel. See less
Sacramento, California

04/25/2026

“I’ve Done My Research, Now What?” with Victoria Fisch

Sunday, May 24, 2026, 10 a.m. to Noon on Zoom

If you think you’ve come to a possible stopping point in your research (and let’s be honest, is there ever really a stopping point?) and you don’t know what to do next, or realized it’s time to do something with all those records, Victoria Fisch’s presentation will give direction.

Victoria will discuss how to prepare for and create final products to preserve your efforts and ensure that your hard-earned discoveries can be passed to your children, grandchildren and other family members. Better yet, your documentation will be easily available, understandable and in a format that will provoke interest. Instead of your work being stored away and never accessed, it will enjoy a prominent place among your family’s treasures.

FREE REGISTRATION LINK HERE:
https://tinyurl.com/JGSS-24May2026-Register

This program will be presented in two parts, on May 24 and June 14.

Victoria Fisch is past president of the Jewish Genealogical Society of Sacramento, past Northern California editor of Western States Jewish History Journal and was a board member of the Commission for the Preservation of Pioneer Jewish Cemeteries in the California Gold Country. She is a full-time professional genealogist in partnership with her husband, Jeremy Frankel (past president of the San Francisco Bay Area Jewish Genealogical Society).



https://www.jewishgen.org/jgs-sacramento/

Sunday, June 14, 2026, 10 a.m. to Noon on Zoom

“How to Write a Family Narrative,” Victoria Fisch
This is the second part of professional genealogist’s Victoria Fisch’s presentation.

FREE REGISTRATION LINK HERE: https://tinyurl.com/JGSS-14Jun2026-Register

Welcome! You are invited to join a meeting: JGSS Meeting - "I've done the research. Now what?". After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the meeting.

04/21/2026

Don't miss this important lecture from THE CENTER FOR JEWISH HISTORY on April 28 at 10am on Zoom.

In the 1780s, thousands of Jews in Habsburg Galicia adopted new family names, many of which are still in use today. This lecture presents a historical reassessment of the topic based on recently discovered archival materials and a detailed analysis of thousands of surnames.

Register here and pay what you wish. https://programs.cjh.org/event/family-history-today-2026-04-28

Presenter: Johannes Czakai, PhD, historian, is a postdoctoral fellow at the Martin Buber Society of Fellows at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Center for Jewish History: Calendar of Events