Exciting news!

Hank Jones Jr.

    One of only 50 people worldwide to have been named a Fellow of the American Society of Genealogists, “Hank” Jones, Jr. has agreed to be our special guest speaker! On Saturday, April 14, 2007 Hank will present four presentations at the Medina High School Auditorium. Hank may be more familiar to you from his “other life” in the entertainment field. After his graduation from Stanford he began his career as co-star of the old daytime TENNESSEE ERNIE FORD television show on ABC, logging 400 network appearances on the program. He also recorded albums on RCA and Capitol Records. In 1963, Hank began a twenty year career as an actor in films and television. He was a featured player in many of the WALT DISNEY films of the 1960’s and 1970’s, which still come back to haunt him on TV today! These include BLACKBEARD’S GHOST with Peter Ustinov, HERBIE RIDES AGAIN with Helen Hayes, THE SHAGGY D.A. with Dean Jones and Tim Conway, THE CAT FROM OUTER SPACE with Sandy Duncan, and several others. He also appeared in many other films, including MGM’s GIRL HAPPY with Elvis Presley and 20th Century Fox’s TORA-TORA-TORA the Academy Award winning film about Pearl Harbor.

     On TV, Hank had recurring roles on MY THREE SONS with Fred MacMurry and William Farley, and also on the PATTY DUKE SHOW. He was on many of the comedy programs of the 1960’s and 1970’s, including LOVE BOAT, THE JEFFERSONS, MORK & MINDY, THE HENRY FONDA SHOW, LOVE-AMERICAN STYLE, PETTICOAT JUNCTION, and many others. Hank has been featured in countless TV commercials, (MacDonald’s, Hai Karate After Shave, Honda, and Dial Soap) several of which won awards. Hank’s song MIDNIGHT SWINGER recorded by MEL TORME was honored with a preliminary Granny nomination in 1970. In 1986, Hank made three appearances as “champion” on the popular quiz-show, JEOPARDY! These appearances gave him a chance to talk about genealogy on national television and brought forth thousands of letters from around the country from those interested in the Palatines! Hank retired from “on-camera acting” in 1981 to devote more time to his first love of genealogical research.

     Hank’s genealogical beginnings came from his finding an old trunk filled with fading tintypes, family letters, and old newspapers in the basement of his parent’s home when he was only eight years old. He wrote his first genealogical work A FEW MORE LEFT: The Story of Issac Hillman, his great grandfather, while still in high school. Hank continued to pursue his genealogical interests while attending Stanford University, from which he graduated in 1963.

     When Hank discovered he descended from Abraham Bergmann, a German from Iggelheim in the Pfalz, who immigrated in 1709 to County Limerick, Ireland, his interest in all matter Palatine was born. He exhaustively combed all archives in Germany, London, and Ireland to gather all extant data on this Irish-German group who arrived with his ancestor in 1709//10 and then published his results in 1965 in THE PALATINE FAMILES OF IRELAND (reprinted and expanded in 1990 by Picton Press.) Determined to continue his investigations into all the families who left Germany in the great exodus, Hank then turned his attention to those 847 families who settled in colonial New York in 1710. His New York Palatine project began in 1969…eventually filling 17,000 family group sheets! His award winning book, The Palatine Families of New Yor-1710, was finally published in 1985.

     Hank will share his top four favorite speeches with us as follows:

1)  “WHEN THE SOURCES ARE WRONG!” (a problem every genealogist has to deal with in research and    what to do to solve the problems that erroneous sources present; many problems presented by new technology are also discussed, as well as the strengths and dangerous flaws in the genealogical tools we all commonly use like the IGI and the Internet 9:30-10:30 a.m.

2)  “TRACING THE ORIGINS OF EARLY 18th CENTURY PALATINE & OTHER EMIGRANTS” (one of Hank’s special areas of expertise, a subject of many of his books including his three volume, 2600 page set “even More Palatine Families,” the methodology in tracing an emigrant is often the same, so other ethnic groups and time-frames, and how to document them overseas are also discussed in this talk- A step by step plan for a successful emigrant search. 11:00-12:00

3)  “FAMILY TRADITION: HOW TO SEPARATE FACT FROM FICTON IN GENEALOGICAL RESEARCH” (again, something we all have to sort out in every family: the case history of Jost Hite- so-called BARRON of the Shenandoah Valley” is examined, dissected, and made relevant to all attendees; that Hite was eventually discovered to be the son of a local butcher in his ancestral European village- not a Baron at all- should be no surprise to the experienced genealogist; 1:30-2:30 Either

4)  “HOW PSYCIC ROOTS BECAME AN UNSOLVED MYSTERY” or “GENEALGY IN THE NEW MILLENNIUM” WHERE WE’VE BEEN & WHERE WE’RE GOING” (both talks incorporate many experiences from his best-selling books on serendipity and intuition in genealogy, now in the 8th printings from Genealogical Publishing Co. and dramatized on NBC’s Unsolved Mysteries. 3:00-4:00

9:00 a.m. is registration with breaks for book signings, sales, refreshments: 10:30-11, then 2:30-3:00 and lunch from 12:00-1:30.

    This is a chance-of-a-lifetime event that we encourage you to attend. We seriously anticipate a sell out and suggest you purchase your tickets ASAP! Tickets are $35 per person for all four speeches. You may purchase them from via our website or: via snail mail: OCGS, PO Box 103, Albion, NY 14411

     We hope you will be able to join us for this exciting event!

Happy Hunting from Holly!

P.S. Hank invites you to enjoy his interview at rootstelevision.com