The Fédération québécoise des sociétés de généalogie (FQSG – Quebec Federation of Genealogy Societies) presented the provincial Cyprien Tanguay 2014 award to the Généalogie Abitibi-Témiscamingue society at the provincial conference held in Trois-Rivières at the beginning of October.
The award recognizes excellence in genealogical innovation at the provincial level. Cyprien Tanguay is recognized as the father of French-Canadian genealogy.
Généalogie Abitibi-Témiscamingue in Rouyn-Noranda received the award for a revitalization project that has taken the last two years to complete. The project focused on transforming the society’s website, revising its bylaws, creating a new visual identity, strengthening its financial situation, redesigning its journal, Le Lien, and offering online services to members.
The project has allowed the society to position itself to respond to the needs of its members and genealogy researchers for years to come. The work was done by all of the society’s volunteers, employees, partners, and board members who donated thousands of volunteer hours.
If you have ancestors from the Abiti-Témiscamingue region, the databases (Bases de donnés) are worth exploring — and easy to do even if your French is limited. The four new databases contain more than 403,000 records and are available to the public. They cover marriages, cemeteries, deaths, and mortuary cards. If you are looking for a last name to browse, try entering Houle in the Nom box. Doing so will provide you with an idea of the amount of information available and work that went into this project.
The Généalogie Abitibi-Témiscamingue society was founded in 1995 and is among the lucky few who have what appear to be financial partners. Annual membership is $30.
The society’s tag line is a good one: Un passé à découvrir, Un avenir à bâtir! (A past to discover, A future to build!)
Photos of their facilities here.
Bravo!
