Los Californianos-Early California Population Project & Alta California

CGS & Los Californianos have two programs: Discovering Gems in the early California Population Project and Alta California’s Genealogy Tips CGS & Los Californianos present: Discovering Gems in the early California Population Project and Alta California’s Genealogy Tips Saturday, October 24, 2026 Discovering Gems in the early California Population Project 10 - 11:30 PDT Presented by Steve Hackell Alta California’s Genealogy Tips 1 - 2:30 PDT Presented by Susan Skilton Register here for both or either. IN PERSON and ONLINE ** NOW IN OUR BERKELEY LIBRARY ** and Live online via Zoom CGS members who log into the CGS Website can find Zoom, handout and survey links directly on the website (no registration required). Find out more here. Non-members should register from this page for $5. Discovering Gems in the early California Population Project Professor Steve Hackell, editor of the Early California Population Project Database Guide for Users, revised 2022, will share tips on navigating and searching the Early California Population Project Database when researching one’s Spanish & Mexican Era California Ancestors. The Early California Population Project (ECPP) database contains detailed records of baptisms, marriages, and burials from the 21 California missions and related sites (Los Angeles Plaza Church and Santa Barbara Presidio) between 1769 and 1850. These sacramental records document the lives of tens of thousands of Spanish, and later Mexican, soldados (soldiers), settlers, and Native Americans, offering unique insights into Alta California’s colonial and early settler history. This searchable, yet extremely complex, database contains information of birthplace, parents, godparents, occupations, and residence, in addition to birth, marriage, and death dates. Alta California’s Genealogy Tips Who was in California before the Gold Rush? Professional genealogist Susan Skilton will share historical insights and strategies for early California genealogy research, including land grants and other resources to assist you in your genealogy research. Learn about the earliest California censuses in the 1700s (1775, 1777, 1781, 1782, 1790, and 1842) under Spanish and Mexican rule and 1800s Federal and State censuses (1850, 1852, and more). Ways your 49er ancestor might be found in early California records and newspapers, including Pioneer Immigrant Files 1790-1950, funeral home records, and more. For those attending online: The event will take place via Zoom. If you join, please sign in early to make sure you are able to see the program. We will send you instructions the night before, and a reminder shortly before the event, which will give you access. Our remote events now have live closed captioning. When registering, use an email address you will be checking. Please note all times are Pacific Time. For those attending in person: We have RELOCATED to 1841 Berkeley Way Berkeley behind the Trader Joes on University Ave. We are a 10 minute walk from the Downtown Berkeley BART Station. Directions and Parking Information is here: Directions and Parking You do not have to have a Zoom account to attend a Zoom meeting. You will be prompted to download the software, once you have clicked on the link that you have been provided. You may also wish to create an account, but that is not required to participate in a Zoom meeting. This event is presented live. Some events may be recorded for CGS use only. See you in person or online! Steven W. Hackel was born and raised in California; he earned his B.A. at Stanford University and his Ph.D. in American History from Cornell University with specializations in early America and the American West. From 1994 to 1996 he was a post-doctoral fellow at the Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture in Williamsburg, Virginia. He taught at Oregon State University from 1996 to 2007. He joined the faculty at UC Riverside in 2007. Within the larger field of American history, Hackel’s research specializes on the Spanish Borderlands, the American West, colonial California, and California Indians. He served as General Editor of the Early California Population Project Database Guide for Users, revised 2022. Hackel was recently awarded a $350,000 National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) grant to expand the ECPP into ECPP 2.0. Susan Skilton is a professional genealogist who is accredited by ICAPGen for research in Pacific States, and in Canada, Western Provinces. Her research has taken her from German immigration to the land grants of Alta California. She has presented webinars for RootsTech and for Southern California Genealogical Society, Los Californianos, and California Genealogical Society, and has published articles in the New York Genealogical and Biographical Record, California Nugget, and Forum, as well as a book on her hometown of Moraga. REGISTRATION INFORMATION: CGS Members enjoy free access. Non-Members pay a nominal $5 fee. You can purchase a $45 one-year CGS Basic membership when you check out. To sign up for other membership options go to our web page: CGS Membership application PAYMENT OPTIONS: Credit card payments will be processed by Eventbrite. *Event fee is non-refundable.