The 3rd Genealogy Resource Fair was held at The Russell Student Union at Georgia Southern University on Saturday, March 22, 2025.
Lillian Wingate, former Statesboro-Bulloch County Library Genealogy Coordinator and current Executive Director of the Thomasville Genealogical Library, co-hosted the event along with Georgia Southern University Special Collections Librarian, Autumn Johnson.
Wingate said, “Autumn and her amazing team made the fair possible this year, and many said it was the best location yet!”
The event began with a presentation by keynote speaker, Tami Osmer Mize. Mize is the manager of The Conference Keeper, an online website dedicated to genealogy news, events and education.
According to Wingate, more than half of the participants had not heard of The Conference Keeper before the presentation.
She stresses, “This was the entire goal of the Genealogy Resource Fair, to share new genealogical resources in order to help with research and networking. That was certainly accomplished this year!”
Attendees then browsed the various genealogical booths around the center including the Bulloch County Genealogical Society, Georgia Salzburger Society, Cobb County Genealogical Society and Daughters of the American Revolution, which were just a few of the many organizations in attendance.
Presentations were held throughout the day by various societies including the Willow Hill Museum, Afro-American Historical & Genealogy Society, the Digital Library of Georgia and more.
Wingate shared that “although the participation was a bit smaller this year, it actually worked out well and participants were able to talk more with representatives one-on-one, and many representatives were also able to participate and attend presentations.”
She says a total of 14 prizes were given out at the end of the day. “All door prizes were donated and totaled more than $1,300 worth of prizes!”
Wingate says that if anyone missed the Genealogy Resource Fair, directory bags are available at from the Statesboro-Bulloch County Library, while supplies last. Extra directories from the fair are also available at the library.
For upcoming events, and to access a full list of Genealogy Departments in Georgia, visit the Statesboro-Bulloch County Library website here.
