Welcome to Central Texas Genealogical Society!
Connecting Faces Through Time
Monday, May 19
(Monthly CTGS Meetings)
Learn how a new site, Related Faces, can help you
identify unknown people in old photos. Tina
LaFreniere, founder of Related Faces, will walk
you step-by-step through the process. Discuss the
basics of how facial recognition works, the
importance of properly digitizing your photos, and
how to do it with just a cell phone. Explore
techniques for making positive identifications
with real-world examples.
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TIGR 2025 Registration is Open!
Texas Institute of Genealogical Research
Monday, June 16 through Friday, June 20
Join us Virtually – June 16-20, 2025
Mark Your Calendar for TIGR 2025
Genealogical institutes are designed to provide in-depth and extensive instruction on a particular topic or timeframe. The Texas Institute of Genealogical Research is just that – an educational event that focuses on records, records, and research that are important to genealogists who want to advance their research skills.
Held biannually, TIGR is a unique five-day learning experience offered to address a critical need for genealogists encountering complex challenges.
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Free Monthly Events at the West Waco Library
Programs begin at noon and last about one hour. Bring a lunch and learn skills, tips, and techniques to help your family history research.
West Waco Library & Genealogy Center 5301 Bosque Blvd.
For questions call 254-750-5945
Rich House Poor House Casting
Have Ancestor Information To Share?
Heart of Texas Records is a great genealogy journal, but do you know what would make it even better?
Your submissions!
In addition to your Family Stories, we are also interested in your experiences with:
• Research Tips: Guidance on how to conduct genealogical research, including how to use various records and resources.
• Case Studies: In-depth articles about specific family histories, showing methodologies and sources used.
• Historical Articles: Pieces that provide context on historical events and eras, helping genealogists understand the lives of their ancestors.
Do you have something to share discovered during your research? Please share by submitting it to the Heart of Texas Records Quarterly Editor at editor@ctgs.org. Next thing you know, you may be a published author!
Submission deadline is June 1, 2025, for the Summer Issue.
Helpful tips and policy and guidelines for submission for publication in Heart of Texas Records are on this website under Publications/Quarterlies. Please contact the Quarterly Editor with any questions.
What's Behind the "Members Only" Curtain?
The Members Only portion of this website is home to lots of interesting and helpful data. Join CTGS at a single membership of $25 to access these extensive online resources:
- CTGS Quarterlies - 1958 to current. Both the issues and a searchable topical index are available online.
- Cemetery Records - 26 volumes
- Funeral Home Records -
Boykins Funeral Home – Abstract from 30 volumes from 1920-1991
Fall & Puckett Funeral Home – 34 books from 1892-1912
Fall Funeral Home – 7 books from 1912-1917
Puckett Funeral Home – 25 books from 1912-1931
JC Stephenson Funeral Home – 2 books from 1895-1896
McLennan County Marriage Book 1 - 1850-1870
McLennan County Marriage Book 2 - 1871-1892
(Also includes short bios of many judges and ministers, history of the churches as they were being founded and names of founding members and leaders in those churches)
- Early Waco Obituaries - 1874-1908
- Katy Railroad Cards- This fascinating reference contains the personnel cards of the warden shop of the Missouri-Kansas-Texas (M-K-T or Katy) Railroad in Bellmead, Texas from the 1920's through the 1940's.
- Index to 1870 & 1910 Census for McLennan County – 4 volumes
- Index to Early McLennan County Deaths
- Program handouts from CTGS-hosted programs (with permission) [coming soon]
Members, can you help with new queries?
Members - If you haven't checked lately we have NEW QUERIES! You could be someone's genealogical angel.
Visitors- We invite you to email your queries and requests for genealogical help to the CTGS Webmaster.
CTGS Needs You!!!!
Volunteers are the heart of CTGS! Would you consider several of the following ways you can help make CTGS a more effective, vibrant organization? Please contact our volunteer coordinator, for more information.
- Enter data records into the website
- Write an article for quarterly publication Heart of Texas Records
- Volunteer at the annual Genealogy Lock-in
- Submit articles for the website
- Volunteer at the Genealogy Center
- Lead or start a NEW Special Interest Group
- Do research for others from home or the library
- Monetary donations
- Present a program on a topic you are interested in
Learning to "Read" a Cemetery
Would you like to learn to “read” a cemetery? It’s a genealogical adventure! On many older gravestones, there are pictures and symbols that tell stories about your loved ones and ancestors. If you can’t read “gravestone-language” you are missing part of the story. CTGS has posted this interesting trio of blog entries from the Billion Graves web site that will provide invaluable tools to unlock these symbols. You'll find it on our "Helpful Facts" Research Aids page.
Search Engine Tips
Have you tried the CTGS Search Engine? It's a great tool to get the most out of your visit to CTGS.ORG, even if you are not a member! The whole web site is searchable by any user. However if you are not a member, the search engine may point to areas that require membership for full access.
Members- If you will log in BEFORE doing your search, then the search will take you straight to the document or resource you need. Once in the document, press Ctrl-F to search for occurences of your information within the document.
The CTGS Search Engine is powered by Google, so all the search techniques (like wild cards) you normally use in Google Searches will work the same way here.
