Germanic Genealogy Society
A branch of the Minnesota Genealogical Society

GGS holds four programs each year: a general meeting in March, a major conference later in the spring, an all-day meeting in the fall and an annual meeting in November. The spring conference features a full day of presentations by a nationally recognized expert in Germanic family history research. In addition, we hold four research workshops specifically targeted to various Germanic regions. Two of these are held in spring and two in fall, usually at Concordia University Library Technology Center in St. Paul. They are made up of small groups that consist of individuals interested in a specific Kreis (German county) or province. These workshops are a great place to learn more details and share information with other researchers.

LIBRARY

Our German Genealogy resources collection is housed at Concordia University in the Library Technology Center. The GGS reference collection contains over 2200 books and periodicals relating to Germanic genealogy.
The campus is located in Saint Paul, Minnesota at the corner of Hamline and Marshall Avenues.  The Concordia University Library Technology Center is located on the north side of campus, east of Hamline Ave and south of Concordia Avenue.  It is directly east of the Pearson Theater.  Concordia Avenue intersects Hamline Avenue one block north of Marshall Avenue and runs next to Interstate 94. 
The Library Technology Center's physical address is 1282 Concordia Avenue, St. Paul, MN 55104. Please check with the Library for their hours since they are reduced during semester breaks.

GGS Conference Speakers
Nationally-known experts in German genealogy have presented our annual day-and-a half conferences, including recently:
1999 Marion Wolfert-German Archives and Records for Advanced Research
2000 La Vern Rippley-German and German-American History
2001 Ken Smith - Church Books and German Names and Place of Origin
2001 Shirley Reimer, author of German Research Companion
2002 Annette Burgert-18th Century German Immigration
2003 George Schweitzer-Tracing Your German Ancestors
2004 Larry O. Jensen-German Sources in Genealogical Research
2006 Zella Mirick – Preparing to Cross the Ocean
2007 Baerbel Johnson
2008 Marion Wolfert
2009 John Humphrey
2010 Stephen Barthel
2011 Larry O. Jensen  Manager of the International Reference Unit Family History Library

Today, about half of our 600 members live within a short drive of the Twin Cities and the other half live in states as far away as California, Arizona, and Florida. GGS is a national organization.

GGS Presidents
1980 Kermit Frye
1981 Mary Bellingham
1982 Marcia Paulson
1983 Kent Cutkomp
1984-5 Deloris Mellon
1986 Geri Dodge
1987 Joan Rupp
1988 Robin Bloom
1989 Zella Mirick
1990 Ron Zweber
1991 Richard Gehlsen
1992 Betty Dols
1993 Carol Mahre
1994-5 Pat Lowe
1996 Mike Haase
1997 Gary Carlson
1998 Zella Mirick
1999 Kent Cutkomp
2000 Lois Edwards
2001 Executive Committee
2002 Paul Sternberg
2003 Myke Rachu
2004 Joy Curtin
2005 Eileen Lund-Johnson
2006-8 Kent Cutkomp
2009 Fred Sauer
2010-11 Warren MItchell
  Several presidents served two terms. Many past-presidents continue to be active GGS members. Many officers and committee chairpersons have contributed so much over the years to make GGS a successful, highly valued genealogical organization. Throughout the years, large numbers of dedicated members have volunteered their time and efforts to work behind the scenes to develop our educational programs and conferences. The success of GGS depends on the support, participation, and efforts of our members.

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