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About the MGS Website

Darien, CT

Middlesex Genealogical Society

Next Presentation

• 1:00 pm - Pre-meeting Social
• 2:00 pm - "Immigrants and Quarantine in New York City and Boston." Presented by Loretto Leary

Loretto Leary

In the wake of the Great Irish Famine, thousands of men, women, and children crossed the Atlantic in search of survival and opportunity. For many, the Port of New York represented the promise of a new beginning. Yet for countless others, it marked the tragic end of their journey. At the Staten Island Marine Hospital and Quarantine Station now the site of the Staten Island Ferry Terminal thousands of famine immigrants perished shortly after arrival. Their suffering and resilience are commemorated in two nearby burial grounds that remain vital to understanding this chapter of Irish and American history.

Loretto Horrigan Leary, originally from Portumna, County Galway, has made her home in Connecticut for over three decades. A seasoned educator, she has taught Language Arts at the elementary and middle school levels in Darien, New Canaan, Norwalk, and Stamford. As a freelance journalist, her writing has appeared in publications such as The Irish Echo, Irish Central, Irish Examiner USA, and Australia s Irish Scene. Currently, Loretto serves as Educational and Cultural Director of Ireland s Great Hunger Museum of Fairfield and is also Co-Chair of the Connecticut Ireland Trade Commission. Loretto is pursuing her PhD at Trinity College Dublin, where her research focuses on Irish American Famine memory and the memorial landscapes of New York, with particular attention to Staten Island s role in this transatlantic story of loss, survival, and remembrance.

Recording of Past Presentation Available to Members

Marian B. Wood

Tips and tricks for using the free Find a Grave site to research ancestors, memorialize their burial places, and connect with cousins. Beyond the basic search techniques that can uncover new genealogical clues, see how to catch the eye of cousins and researchers by linking family-tree members, posting ancestor bios, submitting edits and flowers, and personalizing your member profile. Also learn why and how to create a virtual cemetery for your ancestors--so relatives and descendants will know exactly where the bodies are buried!

Born in the Bronx and transplanted to Connecticut, Marian Burk Wood is the author of the popular genealogy book Planning a Future for Your Family's Past and a long-time blogger about family history methodology, issues, and discoveries at Climbing My Family Tree. She earned an MBA from Long Island University and a BA from the City University of New York. Marian has been researching her family tree for 28 years, with a special interest in documenting, sharing, and safeguarding family history for future generations.

The Middlesex Genealogical Society is located in the town of Darien, which is in Fairfield County, Connecticut, not far from New York City. Membership is open to all interested in family research, regardless of where they live. MGS draws members from various towns in Fairfield County, Connecticut, including Darien, New Canaan, Stamford, Greenwich, Norwalk, Wilton, Ridgefield, Westport, Weston, Redding, Fairfield.

The Middlesex Genealogical Society was established in 1982 for the purpose of encouraging those interested in researching their family history and to provide guidance to that end. The Society does not limit its focus to Darien or Fairfield County. It provides assistance for all researchers, wherever their ancestry leads.

A Newsletter is published quarterly.

MGS holds program Presentation Meetings on five Saturdays during the year, presenting speakers on various topics of interest to all genealogists.

If you are new to genealogy, see our Getting Started page.

Volunteers are available at the Darien Library to help you with research problems, or just to get you started.

Member Pages display the genealogical interests of members and help them connect with distant relatives.

The MGS project at Family Tree DNA helps you understand your Y-DNA results and what to do next.

MGS is registered with the State of Connecticut, thereby giving members access to vital records at town and city record offices in Connecticut.

About Our Name

The MGS name is derived from Middlesex Parish, the original name by which Darien, Connecticut, was known before becoming incorporated in 1820. The MGS founders were from Darien and chose "Middlesex" to honor the town. The name "Middlesex" is shown below on part of a 1789 map of Darien by Christopher Colles.

The main road is part of the 1,300-mile road from Boston to Charleston, South Carolina, ordered by King Charles II (now Old Kings Highway North) N in the upper left corner is north + is the 1744 Darien Congregational Church Z is Brookside Road 47 is miles from Federal Hall Scofield is the 1736 Bates-Scofield house (now the Museum of Darien) The squiggly arrow is the Goodwives River Y to Oxridge is Sedgwick Avenue