The list below summarizes past programs offered by GRIVA. If the program was recorded, you may access links to the recording below. Additionally, GRIVA members may access any available handouts, or links to selected past program material, via the Member’s Only section on the website. Programs with available handouts in Member’s Only link are noted below with “(MO)” at the end of the program entry. This is just the last decade of GRIVA programming! GRIVA has provided educational opportunities to its members since the 1980’s.
Obtaining Land in Colonial Virginia: Nonna Daleen Good, November 2025. View the recording here: https://youtu.be/a6PFjtGPdRU
Patrick Henry’s Red Hill: Cody Youngblood, September 2025. View the recording here: https://youtu.be/h1D0ZspxsUk
Discover More with FamilySearch’s Full-Text Search: Kari Kjontvedt Weis, May 2025. This program was not recorded.
The Photo Angel Project: Katie Kelley, April 2025. View the recording here: https://youtu.be/NI_mt1eNFIA
Restoring Resting Places – Genealogy Meets Preservation: Katie DeRaddo, March 2025. View the recording here: https://youtu.be/4XcF6EL2inY
More Than Just a Pretty Map – Using Maps in Genealogical Research: Cassandra Farrell, November 2024. View the recording here: https://youtu.be/ig8bBW1WvxA
Mattie’s Middle Name and Other Delights Found In Newspapers: Paula Williams, October 2024.
Researching Your Civil War Ancestors: Craig R. Scott, September 2024. View the recording here: https://youtu.be/4t4zE-t18iU. The handout for the program is here.
Resources & Records for Researching Your Revolutionary War Ancestors: Brendon Burns, August 2024.
Researching Colonial Period & Early National Period County Records in Virginia: Barbara Vines Little, July 2024.
Interpreting Colonial Handwriting: Dr. Ray Thompson, June 2024
Revolutionary War Records in Virginia & Lineage Societies: Brendon S. Burns
View the recording here: https://youtu.be/o3seHKyxaf4. Download the handout here.
American Visions: The United States, 1800 – 1860: Dr. Edward L. Ayers, April 2024. A GRIVA member appreciation program. The recording and presentation deck for this program is available under the Members Only portion of this website.
Celtic Connections — What’s New in Researching Irish, Scottish and British Ancestors: Trish Little Taylor, April 2024. View the recording here: https://youtu.be/y4TDf0SkDhw.
Connecting Faces Through Time – How ‘Related Faces’ Can Help You Identify Unknown People in Old Photos: Tina LaFreniere, March 2024. View the recording here: https://youtu.be/nB8NEbF0ZFk. Ms LaFreniere’s handout can be accessed here.
Grandma Nellie’s Scrapbook: Identifying & Interpreting Historic Photographs: Tina Beaird, November, 2023. View the recording here: https://youtu.be/ANBAKVwxWvo. Ms. Beaird provided a handout, click here to access.
Witchcraft in Colonial Virginia: Carson Hudson, October, 2023.
Using WikiTree – Making the Most of Your Time!: Marty Acks, September, 2023.
View the recording here: https://youtu.be/LPzcYFRPRq4. Mr Acks also provided a handout for his program: https://griva.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/an-introduction-to-wikitree.pdf
Discover Richmond Faces & Places: Keary Liu, May 2023.
18th & 19th Century Medicine – What Medicine Was Like for Our Ancestors:
Dr. Donald Marsh, April, 2023. View the program recording here: https://youtu.be/2DlPfdJo4Yw. Dr. Marsh provided a reference document for this program: History of Medicine.
The Seedbed of America: Eastern Shore History and Records: Dr. G. Ray Thompson, March, 2023. View the program recording here: https://youtu.be/nWcuviGHb4k.
Dr. Thompson provided 7 reference documents during his program that can be accessed below in PDF form:
#1 – Program Outline
# 2 – General Resource List
#3 – Nabb Center Resources
# 4 – Accomack Users Guide
# 5 – Somerset Users Guide
# 6 – Worcester County Records
# 7 – Sussex County Records
Colonial Virginia Huguenots: Janice Lorenz & Nancy Brennan, December 2022. View the program recording here: https://youtu.be/qxo3B2e3Qt0.
The speakers provided a resource document related to researching Huguenot ancestors and the The National Huguenot Society, Inc. Access this resource document here in PDF form.
A History of Thanksgiving: Hailey Fenner, November 2022.
The First Thanksgiving – Lecture
Backstory with The History Guys: Thanksgiving
VPM Documentary: The First Official Thanksgiving
Discovering the Story of Immigration: Jennifer Anielski, October 2022. View the Anielski recording at https://youtu.be/FaSoPtx3qAU. Ms. Anielski’s slides from the presentation can be accessed here: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1ew3S5Rs2V9iPx9qf6R8-DpqhZxBVLqoGYAQg5bfKUKE/edit?usp=sharing
One-Step Webpages: A Potpourri of Genealogical Research Tools: Stephen Morse, May 2022.
Native American Discoveries at Jamestown: David M. Givens, April 2022. View the Givens recording at https://youtu.be/TEbp6t4hDNo
Black & White Southern Families in Southern Plantation Records: Ari Wilkins, March 2022.
The Power of Personal Stories: Nancy Wright Beasley, November, 2021
View the Beasley recording at https://youtu.be/dTaBv7f7VQE
The Archives at the Virginia War Memorial: Kyndall Drumheller, October, 2021
View the Drumheller recording at https://youtu.be/cIju-D3libs
GRIVA Fall Conference, 2021: J. Mark Lowe. We hope you will join us for a future GRIVA conference.
The Southern Migration – 1790 -1914: Dr. Edward Ayers, September, 2021
View the Ayers recording at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FzBXqxcYq0
Jamestown Rediscovery – the 1617 James Fort: David Givens, May 2021
View the Given recording at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrD7NYdft34
Researching the Digital Collections at the Library of Virginia: Ashley Ramey, April 2021 (MO). View the Ramey recording at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=paldad2tQyc
Gilmer Maps: Their History and Their Uses: Cassandra Farrell, March 2021 (MO)
View the Farrell recording at https://youtu.be/tH4cqyD4WbU
GRIVA Luncheon Book List, January 2021 (MO)
The Central Rappahannock Center: Beth Daly, November 2020 (MO)
Quaker Records and Migration: Craig R Scott, October 2020 (MO)
Ancestors on the Move and How to Find Them: Annette Burke Lyttle, Fall Conference 2020
Using Maps in Your Genealogical Research: Dory Klein, September 2020
Off The Beaten Track: Betty Owensby, May 2020
Winter Luncheon, January 2020
Tour of Library of Virginia, December 2019
The Civil War Experiences and Civilian History of Colonel Edmund Winchester Rucker: Mike Rucker, November 2019
17th Century Medicine OR I Fix What Ails You: Terry Marr, October 2019
Oral History: Greg McQuade, September 2019
Researching in Chesterfield County Virginia: Angela Wilderman and Lori Purcell, May 2019
Professional Living Historian: Rachel Stanton, March 2019
Richard Young, Richmond’s First Official Surveyor: Cassandra Farrell and Leslie Courtois, April 2019
Woman’s History: Frances Wright: Carolyn Eastman, Ph.D., March 2019
Winter Luncheon, January 2019
On location at the Virginia Museum of History and Culture, December 2018
Decode Your Past Using DNA: Blaine Bettinger, Ph.D, J.D. Fall Conference 2018
Understanding Your Ancestry – Genographic Project Results to Date:
Miguel Vilar, Ph.D., October 2018
Crowdsoucing at the Library of Virginia: Sonya Coleman, September 2018
Summer Luncheon, June 2018
Care and Interpretation of Heirloom Textiles: Colleen Callahan, May 2018
Exploring Virginia’s Weather History: John Boyer, April 2018
The Great War: Researching Your WWI Ancestor: Michael Strauss, March 2018
Quaker Records and Migration: Craig Scott, October 2017 (MO)
The Virginia Court System Prior to 1902: Minor Weisinger, MA, September 2017 (MO)
Virginia Militia Records, Colonial Period to WWI: Tom Crew, May 2017
The Littlepage Journals: An Unanticipated Adventure in Genealogy: Bibb C. Edwards, April 2017
History, Heritage and Healing – Nat Turner’s Bible: A Family Story: Mark Person, March 2017
The Germanna Colonies in Virginia: Dale Sayers, November 2016
No Man (or Woman) is an Island: Putting Your Ancestors in Context: Michael D. Lacopo, Fall Conference, October 2016
Genealogy Research at the State Archives of NC: Douglas Brown, October 2016
Photo Forensics in Richmond, 1861-1865: Michael Gorman, September 2016
Summer Luncheon, June 2016
Kentucky Genealogy Research at the Archives and Beyond: Barbara Teague, May 2016 (MO)
A Case Study in Descendancy Research: Michael Strauss, April 2016 (MO)
Plan for Success, Looking for Family in All the Right Places: Mark Lowe, Spring Conference, April 2016
Looking Beyond the Census: Places Your Ancestors May Be Hiding: Betty German, March 2016
Winter Luncheon, January 2016
Using the Library of Virginia’s Website: Kathy Jordan, November 2015
Writing and Telling the Story of Those in Our Family Tree: Connie Lapallo, October 2015 (MO)
Revolutionary War Records: Bevin Creel, September 2015 (MO)
Summer Luncheon, June 2015
Navigating Family Search: May 2015 (MO)
Justifiable Family History: Judy G. Russell, J.D., November 2014
Feeling the Power: Using Original Documents as Discovery Tools:
Thomas E. Camden, November 2014
Bluegrass: Roots and Rhythm: Sig Williams and Company, October 2014
Preservation Puzzles: Paulette Schwarting, September 2014
Computer Programs – Workshop: May 2014
Fishing for Genealogy on Pinterest: May 2014 (MO)
Creating Family History Books on the Computer: Greg Waehner, April 2014
History of Bruton Parish Church with Genealogy Resources: Tony Williams, March 2014
Genetic Genealogy (DNA): December 2013 (MO)
Crossing the Pond: Searching for England and Ireland: Paul Milner, October 2013
John Smith’s Maps, November 2012
Secrets of the Mysterious Photographs: Maureen Taylor, October 2012
North Carolina Research: May 2013 (MO)
Chancery Records of Augusta County, September 2012 (MO)
Strategies for Finding Hidden Ancestors: Thomas W. Jones, Ph.D., October 2011