Change in Speakers

The 2013 Palatines to America National conference had been planning to have as its two main speakers, Ernest Thode, and Mel Wolfgang.  On Monday, we received word from Mel’s wife, that Mel would not be able to attend the June conference, because he is undergoing treatment for a serious health condition.  I know this has not just affected the Palatine conference scheduled for June, but others such as the one sponsored by the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society and the Central New York Genealogical Society scheduled for September.

Fortunately, when contacted about the situation, Hank Z. Jones agreed to take Mel’s place at our conference, which is to be held at the Desmond Hotel in Albany, NY from the 20 to the 22 of June.  Hank is a well liked speaker and will undoubtedly attract some to attend who might otherwise have been absent.  Hank’s topics will include: “When the Sources Are Wrong”, “Tracing the Origins of Early 18^th Century Palatine & Other Emigrants”, and “Family Traditions: How to Separate Fact From Fiction in Genealogical Research.”

We are also planning to offer a bus trip to Mohawk Valley historic sites on the Wednesday before the conference formally begins.  Barbara de Mare of the NY Chapter has been planning it and hopes to have the details worked out before our conference registration material is sent out.

Check on our website, www.palam.org, for information as it becomes available.

Kocherthal Circle

Last July, I wrote about the lineage society that Palatines to America had established for those who are descendants of those early Palatines who came to this country under the leadership of Lutheran minister Joshua Kocherthal.  They arrived in New York during the period of 1708 to 1711 and settled initially along the Hudson River.  They then relocated to the Schoharie and then the Mohawk Valley.  This lineage society, a part of the Palatines to America is meant as a means for the descendants of those early Palatines to establish their claim to that lineage.

We are hoping that some members of the Palatines to America will have completed the application and be inducted into the Kocherthal Circle at our June 2013, National Conference in Albany, NY.  

I would encourage anyone who claims those early Palatines as their ancestors to download an application from our website at www.palam.org and complete the process.  If you have already documented your family history back to those Palatines, the process should be relatively easy.  However there is a March 15 deadline for submitting the application and documents needed to become a member.

You could become one of the charter members of the Kocherthal Circle.  Getting started now, and join us in Albany in June.