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Santa Barbara County Genealogical Society

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Santa Barbara County Genealogical Society

We help people discover, document, preserve, and share their family histories in Santa Barbara, California, the United States, and around the world.

All events are free and open to the public unless otherwise stated- all are welcome. SBCGS is supported by member dues and donations, many hours of volunteer work keep the society and its library operating. There are no paid employees. The society is a nonprofit corporation and enjoys tax exempt status. Donations of cash or library materials made to the society qualify as a charitable contribution.

06/03/2026

Happy June! After a busy May full of Salt Lake City research and travel we are excited to get back on track for our Volunteer of the Month! This month, we are proud to feature Karen Ramsdell! 🤩

Karen is the utility player of our Society- she has served us in so many roles including President, governance, programs, and now as the co-director of programs. Karen says that she has truly enjoyed every single role over the years, but “what stands out most is the privilege of working alongside so many talented and dedicated people.” Through her work as President, Karen prepared for the role by reading through decades of board minutes and taking counsel from longtime volunteers. Many of our current policies represent the fruits of her leadership planted long ago.

Like many others, Karen’s journey into genealogy was fueled by her passion and curiosity for her own family. Despite always having a passion for history- she majored in it at UCSB and preserved airport history through her work as the head of SBA- her spark was unexpected and came through sifting through family photos and seeing her grandmother’s handwritten name on the 1900 census. Karen says, “I was hooked. Before long I was burning the midnight oil chasing family roots — and that search eventually led me to the Society. I joined the Society in 2000, just two years after the Society received the gift of the property that is now home to the Sahyun Library. Even without Santa Barbara roots, I quickly found the research support and community I was looking for.”

Karen’s genealogy experience is also truly a family affair- she and her daughter Holly have been research partners almost from the beginning (about 20 years!). They’ve researched different family lines together, travelled to ancestral homelands, and made many trips to the FamilySearch library in Utah. Speaking on this, Karen says, “I feel genuinely lucky that she shares this passion with me — not many adult children want to spend their vacations in archives with their mother! She joined the Society in 2017 and is now our Outreach Chair, so we get to volunteer together as well. It's one of the unexpected gifts this hobby has given me.”

Thank you Karen for all of your contributions and for your passion- we look forward to many more years of service and research together! ❤️

Our website: https://sbgen.org

05/11/2026

The Santa Barbara County Genealogical Society invites the public to its free monthly meeting on Saturday, May 16, featuring professional genealogist Nathan Dylan Goodwin, who will present “The Science Behind the Stories: Using Genetic Genealogy in Crime Fiction”. 🔎

Join us at the Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, 909 N La Cumbre Rd, Santa Barbara, where attendees will gather for the live Zoom presentation. Doors open at 9:30 a.m. for refreshments and informal discussions with the Society’s Special Interest Groups, covering a variety of topics from getting started in genealogy to writing family histories. A short business meeting begins at 10:30 a.m., followed by Nathan’s live presentation via Zoom at 11:00 a.m. The program will also be available via Zoom with advance registration at SBGen.org.

The presentation will cover the investigative genetic genealogy process: what it is, where it is used and the basics of how it is undertaken. Nathan briefly discusses some real-life key cases that have used IGG and then moves on to his own fictional writing, focusing on the Venator Cold Case series, which uses this methodology to catch serial killers. He explains his meticulous research process, the experts that he consults and his process of writing.

We hope to see you all there! 🏡

Registration link: https://sbgen.org/meetings-classes/calendar/ #!event/2026/5/16/monthly-meeting-8212-using-genetic-genealogy-in-crime-fiction

Our website: https://sbgen.org

Final days to submit! We’d love to hear your stories- all are welcome! Submit to AW editor Charmien Carrier at charmien2...

04/29/2026

Final days to submit! We’d love to hear your stories- all are welcome!

Submit to AW editor Charmien Carrier at [email protected] ✔️

Our website: https://sbgen.org

04/24/2026

The SBCGS would like to extend a huge congratulations to our very own Jim Campos for being honored as the 2025 Carpinterian of the Year! We are so excited for you and proud to have you as a member of our society! 🎉

You can read more about Jim and his community contributions here: https://www.coastalview.com/news/historian-dr-jim-campos-is-2025-carpinterian-of-the-year/article_f16c186b-c63a-464d-bfd7-600e07e465d5.html

04/17/2026

Join us this Saturday April 18th for our monthly meeting! 🎉 The meeting is free and open to the public!

This month our featured speaker is Lisa Vogele, a professional genealogist, certified travel associate, and Chief Tree Climber at “Travel Your Tree: Where Ancestry Meets Adventure.”

Doors open at 9:30am at the Sahyun Library for refreshments and informal discussions with Special Interest Groups. A short business meeting will follow at 10:30am, and close with Lisa’s presentation at 11am.

We can’t wait to see you all there! 🏡❤️

Our website: https://sbgen.org

04/07/2026

Presenting our April Volunteer of the Month, Cheryl Jensen!

Cheryl has been a key part of our society since her joining us in 1985! Her journey into genealogy has been lifelong- for as long as she can remember she has been fascinated by pictures found in her grandmother Alice Lewis’s cabinet. These experiences of her grandmother immortalized in photographs inspired her to research their family history, and thus her genealogical adventure began. Luckily for us, this led her to our society and she has since served as President, board member, and on various committees. Currently Cheryl uses her experience as a landscape architect to assist in overseeing our beautiful gardens and natural plant areas of the Sahyun Library! 🏡

Cheryl has had several amazing discoveries while researching her family history- particularly concerning a story her grandma Alice used to tell her about her uncle, who died when he fell from the rigging of a ship in the port of Portsmouth, England. Cheryl was able to locate his death certificate and a newspaper account of the incident.

Cheryl and her husband Gary are world travelers and have taken many trips to visit where her and her husband’s families lived, including areas of Somerset and Worcester in England, parts of Denmark, and upstate New York.

Cheryl’s advice to new genealogists is to not just stick to online research- she says, “Don’t just grab trees off the internet. Use the internet sites where sources are given, and use books and take classes at SBCGS to further your knowledge. Many of our members have a wealth of experience in researching and can help lead a new researcher to find exciting and accurate information.”

03/26/2026

Our work is powered by people like you! 🌳

Every person and every hour contributed helps preserve history for future generations.

Interested in getting involved? All are welcome and we would love to have you! 🤗

Our website: sbgen.org

03/25/2026

The SBCGS wants to extend a huge THANK YOU to our March speaker Jamie Lee McManus Mayhew ❤️ We so enjoyed your thoughtful and informative presentation and can’t wait to use the tools and resources you provided in our genealogical journeys!

Events calendar: https://sbgen.org/meetings-classes/

Our website: https://sbgen.org

03/18/2026

Join us this Saturday March 21st for our Monthly Meeting featuring speaker Jamie Lee McManus Mayhew who will be educating us on the ins and outs of FamilySearch and AI use in genealogical research 🔎 This meeting is free and open to the public!

-Refreshments at 9:30am
-Special interest groups meet in person only at 9:30am
-Membership meeting begin at 10:30am
-Speaker starts at 11am

Registration link: https://sbgen.org/meetings-classes/calendar/ #!event/2026/3/21/monthly-meeting

Our website: sbgen.org

Hope to see you all there! 😄

03/07/2026

Following her January presentation, “Utilizing Ancestry.com with Tips, Tricks & Tree Tactics”, Chris Klukkert will offer a one-hour Zoom follow-up session for those who would like to go deeper. This class will provide time to revisit key strategies, explore additional features, and answer your questions as you apply these methods to your own research.
Bring your curiosity—and your tree! 🌳

When: Tuesday March 10th from 5:30pm-6:30pm
Where: Zoom only

Registration link: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/WLHSF8DrQ2iSWJaMf4Z95g #/registration

Our website: sbgen.org

Address

316 Castillo Street
Santa Barbara, CA
93101

Opening Hours

Tuesday	10am - 4pm
Thursday	10am - 4pm
Sunday	1pm - 4pm

Telephone

+18058849909

Website

https://sbgen.org/

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