Guest Speaker: Robert Givens

Finding Your Pennsylvania Roots

This program will examine the unique geography of Pennsylvania and how the different areas and physical landscape affected who settled there and when. The program will look at some key eras of Pennsylvania history, and will review immigration, migration, settlement patterns, and changing county boundaries. The presentation includes an overview of records and record categories that are useful for Pennsylvania researchers.

Robert Givens is a fifth-generation Arizonian who now resides in Fresno, California. He graduated from Fresno State College with a B.A. in Social Sciences with a history and geography emphasis. He earned a Masters degree in School Administration from California State University at Fresno. Bob served as a teacher and administrator in Fresno public schools for 39 years.

Genealogy is Bob’s passion. He filled out his first family group record at age ten and has never stopped researching his family history. His areas of expertise are Pennsylvania, New England, and U.S. Midwest research. Bob helps other genealogists as a long-time volunteer at Central Valley FamilySearch Centers, and as a prolific genealogical speaker.  

Please note new attendance options: THIS WILL BE A LIVE PRESENTATION in the downtown library’s upstairs meeting room (with no registration required) -OR- view at home via Zoom (with registration required).