In the last year, I've had the opportunity and the pleasure of working with the Florida State Genealogical Society (FSGS) as a reviewer of applications for this year's Florida Pioneer Descendants Certification Program. It has been a real learning experience on many levels. Most of all, the enthusiasm of the applicants and their commitment to clearly documenting their lineage from people who settled the state of Florida and its counties has been impressive. By working on documenting their ancestry and proving the facts with copies of documents AND providing excellent source citations, they are creating a body of clear evidence that other researchers can follow and a research path that can be duplicated. The application and documentation materials these descendants produce become the property od FSGS and go into the Florida State Archives and into the Tebeau- Field Library of Florida History in Cocoa, Florida.
FSGS has seen a substantial growth in interest in our own Florida Pioneer Descendants Certification Program, proved by the increase in the number of applications we received this year and the enthusiasm of our applicants. There are many similar certification programs sponsored by state and local genealogical societies, and interest is likewise growing in their own programs. Ancestry.com's new Pioneer Certification Message Board has been created to encourage the exchange of information, ideas, and experiences in applying for certification in state and local pioneer descendants programs which are offered by state and local societies. In addition, the message board will serve as a forum for FSGS and other societies who wish to share information about their respective programs.
This new message board is an excellent venue for those of you who are already Florida Pioneer Descendants to share your experience, ideas, and suggestions with other people considering applying for certification in our program. It also provides a place for people considering applying to our certification program or those of other societies' to learn more about the programs and to be encouraged to get started.
In addition to the message board function, a hyperlink can be found there labeled 'Links & Announcements' which is being built to include links to other societies' certification program Web sites.
The Florida Pioneer Descendants Certification Program is a prestigious and ambitious project, and the awards banquet is a centerpiece of our annual conference. This Friday, 9 November 2001, FSGS will hold its annual gala conference banquet. At that time, certificates will be awarded to a group of dedicated applicants. Since the beginning of the program in 1979, and including the ones to be awarded this year, there have been 1,104 distinct Florida Pioneers documented and proved, and 4,005 certificates awarded. This year, there are 40 new pioneers being documented for the first time. This year's recipients consist of 82 documented descendants and 4 researchers, receiving a total of 170 certificates (133 State Certificates, 28 County Certificates, and 9 Researcher Certificates).
Congratulations to all of this year's Florida Pioneer Descendants Certificate recipients. FSGS hopes that you, too, will consider applying for certification of your own Florida Pioneer certificate(s) and joining the more than 1,100 previous recipients in 2002! In addition, please click on the "Links and Announcements" link here at the Ancestry.com Pioneer Certification message board to find information on other state and local societies' programs in which you may be interested. You really CAN document your ancestors and prove your descent from those proud people too.
Finally, let me extend thanks to Juliana Smith, the editor of the "Ancestry Daily News" e-mail newsletter for taking the initiative to get this message board set up. In response to my weekly column at Ancestry.com for 9 November 2001 about the FSGS Florida Pioneer Certification Program, Juliana immediately took the initiative to build this message board to support the efforts of the genealogical societies in sponsoring these certification programs AND to provide a forum for everyone to learn more and discuss their experiences. THANK YOU, Juliana!
George G. Morgan