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BCG FREE WEBINAR - "Using DNA Results to Confirm a Pedigree," by Angela Packer McGhie, CG®

BCG offers free webinar on Tuesday, October 20, 2020, 8:00 p.m. (EDT) This webinar will feature a demonstration of using DNA test results to confirm a documented ancestral line. The speaker will walk step-by-step through the process, showing the use of...

BCG FREE WEBINAR, “Death and Burial Practices in WWI and WWII,” by Rick Sayre, CG®, CGL℠, FUGA

BCG offers free webinar on Tuesday, January 19, 2021, 8:00 p.m. EST Much of this webinar focuses on the process of collecting, identifying, and burying the dead, and the resulting records, including their genealogical significance. In World War I...

BCG FREE WEBINAR, “Uncovering Immigrant Origins Through Cluster Research” by Dana Ann Palmer, CG®, CGL℠

BCG offers free webinar on Tuesday, December 21, 2021, 8:00 p.m. EST Descendants of an early Ohio immigrant family had no idea of its origin. Cluster research brought success, using United States records as well as foreign-language records. This...

BCG FREE WEBINAR, “Reporting on Research: Standards Encourage Better Communication” by Nancy A. Peters, CG®, CGL℠

BCG offers free webinar on Tuesday, March 16, 2021, 8:00 p.m. EDT Documenting and sharing are fundamental to a genealogist’s work. Learn guidelines for preparing more informative, accurate, and useful research reports for yourself and others. The...

BCG FREE WEBINAR, “The Paternal Ten: Searching for Missing Heirs” by Claire Ammon, CG®

BCG offers free webinar on Tuesday, May 18, 2021, 8:00 p.m. EDT After 12 years in the missing heir field, Claire’s seen it all, experiencing both the high highs and the very low lows. This webinar will introduce you to the roller-coaster world of...

BCG FREE WEBINAR, “From the 18th to the 21st: The Records of Prohibition,” by Judy G. Russell, JD, CG®, CGL℠

BCG offers free webinar on Tuesday, December 15, 2020, 8:00 p.m. (EST) The 18th amendment took effect in January 1920 and ushered in more than a decade of Prohibition until repealed by the 21st Amendment in December 1933. In those few years, so many...

BCG FREE WEBINAR, “The Time of Cholera: A Case Study about Historical Context” by Alison Hare, CG®

BCG offers free webinar on Tuesday, July 20, 2021, 8:00 p.m. EDT London’s cholera epidemic of 1854 is best known as the story of Dr. John Snow, the Broad Street water pump, and a map. But who were the people who died? This session describes the...

BCG FREE WEBINAR, “Federal Records Related to Rivers & Canals” by Pamela Boyer Sayre, CG®

BCG offers free webinar on Tuesday, September 21, 2021, 8:00 p.m. EDT Many federal records pertain to the development and use of waterways in the United States. This lecture shows examples and explains the relevance of some of the applicable records...

BCG FREE WEBINAR, “Planning Research” by , LaBrenda Garrett-Nelson, JD, LLM, CG®, CGL℠, FASG

BCG offers free webinar on Tuesday, November 16, 2021, 8:00 p.m. EST Genealogical proof requires the conduct of reasonably exhaustive research. The thorough research required by the Genealogical Proof Standard should not be undertaken in a haphazard...

BCG FREE WEBINAR, “Using Historical Fiction and Social History to Support Your Narrative” by Beth A. Stahr, CG®

BCG offers free webinar on Tuesday, January 18, 2022, 8:00 p.m. EST You’ve researched facts, you’re ready to write. How do you imagine ancestors’ lives? Family histories are dull and boring if they reflect only the factual information found in...

BCG FREE WEBINAR, “Identifying Unnamed Free-born African Americans – A DNA Case Study” by David Rencher, CG®

BCG offers free webinar on Tuesday, March 15, 2022, 8:00 p.m. EST Identifying unnamed individuals using a research plan incorporating genetic evidence takes creativity and patience. This session deconstructs a case study using Genealogy Standards to...

BCG FREE WEBINAR: “Five Wives & A Feather Bed: Using Indirect and Negative Evidence to Resolve Conflicting Claims” by Mark A. Wentling, CG®

BCG offers free webinar on Tuesday, May 17, 2022, 8:00 p.m. EDT Genealogical scholars make conflicting claims about the number of wives, and the number and mothers of the children of Joseph Brownell, a Mayflower descendant of Dartmouth, Massachusetts....

BCG FREE WEBINAR: “Ancestors' Religions in the U.S.” by Carol Whitton, CG®

BCG offers free webinar on Tuesday, July 19, 2022, 8:00 p.m. EDT Religious records are essential in genealogy research. Do you know your ancestors’ religions? Review the Protestant Reformation and religions in the U.S. that may help you locate records...

BCG FREE WEBINAR: “Abstracting Documents: An Essential Skill for All Genealogists” by Julie Miller, CG®

BCG offers free webinar on Tuesday, September 20, 2022, 8:00 p.m. EDT Every document that is used during genealogical research must be thoroughly and accurately analyzed. Abstracting is a fundamental part of this research and analyzing process. Yet...

BCG Announces New Webinar Series!

The Board for Certification of Genealogists believes in education and would like to share with the public some of the expertise represented in BCG through a series of webinars. Open to everyone who wants to improve their skills, these live webinars are...

BCG FREE WEBINAR: “Negative Evidence: Making Something Out of Nothing” by Denise E. Cross, CG®

BCG offers free webinar on Tuesday, June 21, 2022, 8:00 p.m. EDT When is not finding a record nothing, and when does it signify something? Information that is not where you expect it to be may yield important evidence for your research question....

BCG FREE WEBINAR “Finding Your One Among Millions: Methods and Tips for Urban Research” by Amy Larner Giroux, PhD, CG®, CGL℠

BCG offers free webinar on Tuesday, June 20, 2023, 8:00 p.m. EDT Family history research in a large city can be richly rewarding as urban centers typically kept better records. However, when it is your ancestor who does not appear in the vital records,...

BCG FREE WEBINAR “Steamer Kate Explosion: Correlating Indirect Evidence to Identify and Correct an Error” by C. Ann Staley, CG®, CGL℠

BCG offers free webinar on Tuesday, October 17, 2023, 8:00 p.m. EDT What happens when the indirect evidence of a death occurring and a probate record do not agree? The research begins in earnest! That is what happened in the case of the death of...

Free BCG-Sponsored Webinar - October 20, 2026

FREE BCG-SPONSORED WEBINAR A Joy Reisinger Memorial Lecture "¡Eureka! Confirmación del Lineaje Ancestral: DNA and Documents Prove a Mexican Ancestral Line" by Karen Stanbary, CG®, CGG® Tuesday, October 20, 2026, 8:00 p.m. (EDT) Karen will illustrate...

BCG Free Webinar: Little on Context in Record Analysis

Tuesday, 16 February 2016, at 8:00 p.m. EST, Barbara Vines Little, CG, FNGS, FVGS, will present “The Importance of Context in Record Analysis.” A recording of this webinar is available for a small fee from Vimeo. UPDATE: See the BCG Library at Legacy...

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Genealogical Proof Standard (GPS)

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Become a Board-Certified Genealogist

Preparing for Certification

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Application Guide

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)