Alberta Family Histories Society

01/12/2026

In December, Alberta Family Histories Society volunteers uploaded 3 new cemeteries to our cemetery database, Alberta Ancestors. This was a total of 701 names. More names are being added all the time, so check it out: Alberta Ancestors – https://albertaancestors.ca

December City cemeteries burials: 92, plus many edits, updates & photos for Alberta Ancestors related to these & earlier burials
December - 2025
Diamond Valley Cemetery - https://albertaancestors.ca/cemeteries/foothills-cemetery/ 287 names, 229 photos
Kevisville Cemetery (Red Deer County) - https://albertaancestors.ca/cemeteries/kevisville-cemetery-red-deer-county/ 280 names, 232 photos
Trinity Lutheran Cemetery (MD of Pincher Creek) - https://albertaancestors.ca/cemeteries/trinity-lutheran-cemetery-md-of-pincher-creek/ 134 names, 106 photos

Current Alberta Ancestors status (Dec 31st, 2025)
373 cemeteries (increase of 3)
264,730 persons (increase of 824)
191,942 photos (increase of 626)

01/11/2026

Alberta Family Histories Society is once again offering Genealogy 101! It will be held on one day - March 28 from 9:30 to about 4 pm at our Resource Centre in Calgary. This program is free for AFHS members and $30 for non-members. For more information, please see our website https://afhs.ab.ca/event/genealogy-101/

01/10/2026

Start, Search, Discover: Genealogy Essentials a presentation is the topic for the AFHS monthly meeting. Christine Hayes, experienced and engaging speaker will chart a path for curious beginners and seasoned sleuths. She will share the twists, turns, and surprising discoveries that make genealogical research feel more like time travel than homework.

Weather permitting, this meeting will be a hybrid Zoom meeting held at our Resource Centre (Suite 251S, 8500 Macleod Trail SE in the Heritage Square building). If you are in Calgary and area, we’d love to have you join us in person.

Registration is required for zoom attendees. Visit https://afhs.ab.ca/event/afhs-society-meeting-9/ to receive the zoom link for the meeting.

01/02/2026

Come join the Campbell River Genealogy Society as we celebrate 40 years !!
We have 4 well known BC speakers and authors who will be giving their presentations. A luncheon , door prizes and raffle.
This is a In-Person seminar with only a 100 seats available - sign up now!!

Campbell River Genealogy Society Celebrates Its 40th Anniversary Saturday 18th of April, 2026 Welcome! Come and meet these well-known speakers who will share their insights and knowledge of "MIGRATION TRAILS" Speakers 9:00 - 11:45 AM Speakers 1:00 - 3:45 PM Chief Wedlidi Speck: "Where DNA Meets Gene...

01/01/2026

January 3 - Family Tree Maker Special Interest Group (SIG) 10 am - Zoom
January 3 - Resource Centre Open - noon to 4 pm (edited)
January 5 - Board Meeting - 7 pm - Zoom
January 9 - Writing SIG - 9:30 am - Zoom
January 10 - Digital Genealogy SIG 10 am - Zoom
January 11 - DNA Sig - 12:30 - Zoom
January 12 - Society Meeting - Start, Search, Discover: Genealogy Essentials presented by Christine Hayes - 7 pm - Hybrid
January 17 - English/Welsh SIG - 10 am - Zoom
January 19 - Chit Chat - 7pm - Zoom
January 24 - Celtic SIG - 10 am - Hybrid
January 26 - Ontario SIG - Early Ontario Newspapers - 1:30 pm - Zoom
January 27 - Legacy SIG - 7 pm - Zoom
January 31 - Basics SIG -10 am - Zoom
January 31 - Calgary Public Library Genealogy Coaching - 1 pm - Calgary Public Library (downtown) - AFHS members help with your research

Please note: the Resource Centre will be closed from December 20 - January 2 for the holidays.

Our Resource Centre reopens January 3 at noon. It is available to the public Thursdays and Fridays from 10 am to 2 pm, and Saturdays from noon to 4 pm. Our volunteers look forward to helping you at our new library, meeting and office space (Suite 251S in the south tower, 8500 Macleod Trail SE in the Heritage Square building).
For all the latest information, or to register for a SIG please see our website: https://afhs.ab.ca/events/

12/24/2025

We look forward to helping you discover your family roots in January! Our Resource Centre will reopen on Saturday, January 3 at noon.

12/22/2025

Prairie Sky Cemetery in Calgary, Alberta, is a peaceful, thoughtfully designed burial ground located on the city’s south edge. It is the first new cemetery built by the City of Calgary since Queen’s Park Cemetery (which opened in 1940). Phase one of Prairie Sky opened in the summer of 2021. It offers many burial options and is a member of the Green Burial Society of Canada.
Prairie Sky Cemetery is just one of the many burial sites documented by Alberta Family Histories Society's Alberta Ancestors Project. Our volunteers photograph headstones, transcribe inscriptions and compile database records to make genealogical and historical information accessible to researchers, families and the public, while advocating for cemetery conservation and raising awareness of local heritage across rural and urban communities.
Our volunteers have documented 799 entries for this cemetery which can be viewed: https://albertaancestors.ca/cemeteries/prairie-sky-cemetery/

12/21/2025

Sunday Silly

12/15/2025

Early History of the Medicine Hat Country by J.W. Morrow - Copyright Canada 1923 - Revised 1974

Did you know that we have an extensive collection of local history books at the AFHS Resource Centre (Suite 251S, 8500 Macleod Tr SE in Calgary)? This month we are featuring Early History of the Medicine Hat Country by James William Morrow. The book has 99 pages and can be found in our collection at call number 971.23 MEDI MORR.

Quoting from the introduction as written - “As a great number of names and places, all the way from the Red Deer river to the International Boundary, are closely bound up with Indian Traditions, it would be well perhaps that I should touch on them even ever so lightly before going on to deal with events better known to the historians of this Province, such as the coming of the Mounted Police to the Cypress Hills in 1874, the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1882, the early days of Medicine Hat, or the coming of the ranchers and farmers in later times.” - Page 5

Our volunteers look forward to helping you research your family history! For information about our programs and open hours, please visit our website at https://afhs.ab.ca

12/11/2025

The AFHS Resource Centre is open today (Thursday), but it will be closed tomorrow (Friday) due the cold weather. It will likely be open on Saturday because the forecast is for this to be a short burst of winter weather.

12/08/2025

Alberta Family Histories Society volunteers have been working hard over the last little while, and 6 new cemeteries have been uploaded to our cemetery database, Alberta Ancestors. We added 587 names to the database in the month of November! More names are being added all the time, so check it out: Alberta Ancestors – https://albertaancestors.ca

November City cemeteries burials: 105, plus many edits, updates & photos for Alberta Ancestors related to earlier burials
November - 2025
Ewing Cemetery (Stettler County) - https://albertaancestors.ca/cemeteries/ewing-cemetery-stettler-county/ - 28 names, 19 photos
Our Lady of Peace Cemetery (Stettler County) - https://albertaancestors.ca/cemeteries/our-lady-of-peace-cemetery-big-valley-stettler-county/ - 45 names, 42 photos
Pincher Creek Mennonite Brethren Cemetery - https://albertaancestors.ca/cemeteries/pincher-creek-mennonite-brethren-cemetery-md-of-pincher-creek/ - 5 names, 10 photos
Springridge Mennonite Cemetery (MD of Pincher Creek) - https://albertaancestors.ca/cemeteries/springridge-mennonite-cemetery-md-of-pincher-creek/ - 81 names, 56 photos
St. Henry’s Cemetery (MD of Pincher Creek) - https://albertaancestors.ca/cemeteries/st-henrys-cemetery-twin-butte-md-of-pincher-creek/ - 161 names, 165 photos
Vauxhall Mennonite Cemetery (MD of Taber) - https://albertaancestors.ca/cemeteries/vauxhall-mennonite-cemetery-md-of-taber/ - 267 names, 253 photos

12/05/2025

We're looking forward to the meeting on Monday night! This will be a hybrid Zoom meeting held at our Resource Centre. Bring a small plate of treats to share. For more information, please see our website calendar (https://afhs.ab.ca/event/afhs-society-meeting-7/)