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Webinars—Upcoming Webinars

The 2026 WSGS Live Stream Webinars are FREE to the public! Share it with your genealogy friends, groups & societies! Use the links below to sign up today! Did you miss a great WSGS webinar? Members can watch & rewatch past webinars as much as they like. Join WSGS today! 

He Died In Green Bay? Why There?!

  • Presenter: Judy Nimer Muhn
  • Date: Tuesday March 17, 2026
  • Time: 7:00 PM Central
  • Webinar Description: Jean-Baptiste Amiot was one of the blacksmiths for Fort Michilimackinac, and traveled extensively in the fur trade and in the expedition of Le Verendrye into the Dakotas.  Utilizing little known resources, archives in South Dakota, Michigan and Wisconsin, the adult life of Amiot emerged.  His violent death in Green Bay left questions about why he was murdered in Green Bay and how he came to live there. Learn about little-known resources about the fur trade and movements around the upper Great Lakes states
  • Registration: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/799261841961339223

A Last Name for Mary Ann-Findings Women’s Maiden Names

  • Presenter: Allyson Maughan
  • Date: Tuesday April 21, 2026
  • Time: 7:00 PM Central
  • Webinar Description: Most married women in the US appear on records with their husband’s last name. What records can we turn to in our pursuit of maiden names? Follow the case of Mary Ann Wolf to learn how to find and confirm a maiden name.
    Key Learning Objectives:    
    1 Naming systems in the United States after marriage
    2 Records that contain maiden names: vital records self and children, church, cemetery, military, children’s vital records, obituaries, life sketches, and etc.   
    3 Repositories holding the records online and in person 
    4 Last names and their meanings and spellings.
    5 Case Study of Mary Ann showing resources used
  • Registration: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/4143756311332956766

Getting Into The Habit: Researching Female Religious In Your Family Tree

  • Presenter: David Ryan
  • Date: Tuesday May 19, 2026
  • Time: 7:00 PM Central
  • Webinar Description: Those of us who grew up in Roman Catholic families or were educated in Catholic schools likely have some connection to women religious. They were often influential figures in their communities, not only because of their association with religion and education, but also as employers. Despite this, uncovering more information on their lives can often be difficult. The goal of this talk is to provide an overview of the types of records available for nuns and religious sisters and where to find them. It will look at using everyday sources such as death registers and obituaries, along with where to find other records kept by the religious orders themselves, such as convent annals, registers of admittance and burial records. Although the primary focus will be on Irish records, examples of settlements by Irish female religious orders in Wisconsin will be included.
  • Registration: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/4421568814811606364

Cousins, Clusters, and Chromosomes: Making Sense of Your DNA Matches

  • Presenter: Paula Williams
  • Date: Tuesday June 16, 2026
  • Time: 7:00 PM Central
  • Webinar Description: Among our many DNA matches are puzzles, gems, and a lot of confusion. We'll talk about ways to work through our matches and learn more about them and how they can help our family history.
  • Registration: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/2965472372008470361

Under the Big Top: The Barnum Circus in the Late 1800s

  • Presenter: Marie Mattson, CG®
  • Date: Tuesday July 21, 2026
  • Time: 7:00 PM Central
  • Webinar Description: What did the Barnum Circus mean to the people of the Upper Midwest in the late 1800s? This session will study the history of the Barnum Circus, the life of P.T. Barnum, the animals, popular acts, and the cities of the 1889 tour. The presentation will conclude with the case study of Andrew J. Morrow, who was born in Pennsylvania, served in a Minnesota regiment during the Civil War, and in 1880 left with the Barnum Circus. Andrew Morrow was buried in Rochester, Minnesota, but was he the same man who died in Pennsylvania? The question will be answered using a variety of sources including a Civil War pension application.
  • Registration: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/5900900137333268309

From New England: Migrations to the Midwest    

  • Presenter: Bryna O’Sullivan
  • Date: Tuesday August 18, 2026
  • Time: 7:00 PM Central
  • Webinar Description: Over the course of the late 18th and early 19th century, some farming families made their way from New England to the Midwest. This presentation will introduce migration history and common routes and suggest a methodology for successfully tracing families back to their New England origins.
  • Registration: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/7864408002215681631

Creating Your Own Genealogy Assistant - Building Custom Reusable GPTs for Family History Research

  • Presenter: Natalie Webb – Family Tree Technology
  • Date: Tuesday September 15, 2026
  • Time: 7:00 PM Central
  • Webinar Description: Discover how to harness the power of AI by creating reusable GPTs for genealogy. This webinar will guide participants through building personalized AI assistants that will streamline their research. Learn how to set up GPTs to translate foreign records, format citations in Evidence Explained style, manage spreadsheets, and even craft family stories. With step-by-step demonstrations and real genealogical examples, participants will leave with the skills to design GPTs that save time, reduce repetitive tasks, and enhance accuracy in their work. No coding knowledge required, just curiosity and a love of genealogy!  Note that this webinar is system agnostic, i.e.: the audience will not need a specific computer program to understand the content.  This webinar will include examples from several AI programs
  • Registration: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/7308580685119149147

Beer may have Made Milwaukee Famous, but Prohibition nearly Took it off the Map!

  • Presenter: Jean Wilcox Hibben    
  • Date: Tuesday October 20, 2026
  • Time: 7:00 PM Central
  • Webinar Description: Prohibition hit Wisconsin harder than most states, but the unique (not always legal) methods of not closing down the distilleries and merchants survived the law that caused so many businesses to shut down or operate using crafty, but illegal, methods. The Great Lakes kept Wisconsin drinking and businesses thriving. Was your ancestor part of the “experiment”?
  • Registration: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/3585073562539507808

NotebookLM for Genealogists

  • Presenter: Robert Cameron Weir
  • Date: Tuesday November 17, 2026
  • Time: 7:00 PM Central
  • Webinar Description: Dive into the world of NotebookLM, Google’s “personal AI-based research assistant,” and discover how it can supercharge your genealogical research. Imagine having an assistant that not only organizes your notes, books, journal articles, and original records but also helps you make connections and draw insights from them. In this session, we’ll explore how to maximize the productivity boost from NotebookLM, turning complex data into clear stories and actionable discoveries. Whether you’re managing stacks of family records or sifting through historical documents, NotebookLM could be the tool that transforms your research journey.
  • Registration: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/7049541243173359451

Why Uproot an Established New York Family and Migrate to Wisconsin in 1847-8?

  • Presenter: William E. “Bill” Cole, M.A.
  • Date: Tuesday December 15, 2026
  • Time: 7:00 PM Central
  • Webinar Description: Ebenezer Cole uproots his family from South Central New York to migrate to Wisconsin in 1847-8. Joined by his older brother’s family a decade later, a detailed case study reveals the methodology, collaborative strategies, sources, and historical context required to piece together their family stories. Examples drawn from migration patterns and maps from NY>WI, Wisconsin land records, federal and state census records, church histories, county histories in both New York and Wisconsin, cemetery records, city directories, a legal affidavit, a petition for letters of administration, a court case, and family archives material. 
    One highlight includes how this researcher solved a grave mistake in a Wisconsin State Library indexed record resulting in the correction of a Dane county cemetery record. Participants gain new insights into leaping over brick walls and overcoming obstacles in their research. In addition, they experience how to piece together seemingly unconnected details collected over years of research into an engaging story.
  • Registration: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/7341564935068076890

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