South Suburban Genealogical
and Historical Society
Hazel Crest, Illinois

Serving south Cook and east Will counties, Illinois
    including Chicago's Roseland/Pullman neighborhoods

Established 1968

About Our Society

SSGHS is based in its research library at 3000 W. 170th Pl., Hazel Crest, IL.  60429 - 1174
The telephone number is (708) 335-3340.
SSGHS is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization.



The 
History
 
of SSGHS:
South Suburban Genealogical and Historical Society was organized in February of 1968 under the 
name of South Cook and North Will Counties Historical and Genealogical Society.

By 1973 there was a library of some type with Thelma Kohlberg in charge of the books, which were 
kept at her house.

In 1975 the Society moved from one of the modular buildings at Thornton Community College to 
quarters in the Roosevelt School building in South Holland.  Custom built library shelves and tables 
were donated by Edith Degenhart.

In 1979 the library benefited from two large donations of books and periodicals.

In 1983 books were inventoried and a value of $43,000 placed on them.

We began a serious quest for a new home early in 2003.  Preliminary inquiries about sites had begun 
years earlier.  By May we had found a new home in Hazel Crest and after renovations it was open  
for business on June 2, 2003.

Librarians who have served the Society include:

            Thelma Kohlberg

            Margaret (Peggy) Poe Laird

            Joan Alguire

            Alice DeBoer

Our library currently houses over 11,000 books, periodicals and microforms.  In addition to those 
items, we have CDs, maps, directories and special collections manuscripts.

The current librarian is Paula Malak.

The
Purposes

of SSGHS
:
  • To collect, preserve and publish historical and genealogical materials and records
    of south Cook County and east Will County
  • To encourage and foster the research and study of genealogy and local history
  • To develop and maintain a genealogical and historical research library
The
Services
of SSGHS:
The
Projects
of  SSGHS
:
  • Obituary and Cemetery Indexes
  • Local census readings for SSGHS quarterly, Where the Trails Cross
  • Reading, recording and publishing tombstone data from area cemeteries
  • Special publications featuring SSGHS research
  • Collecting local church and town records

THE  FOLLOWING OFFICERS WILL SERVE for 2009-2010:
President: Kathy Wellington Nassios
First vice president: Shirley Koelling
Second vice president: Judy Baouab
Corresponding Secretary: Nadine Blocker
Recording secretary: Laurie Coolidge
Treasurer:
Liz Collins

 

More about SSGHS

SSGHS: A “home” for those interested in genealogy, family history, and the history of our area. 


The Society’s prime area of interest
is the 20 townships of southern Cook County and eastern Will County with 
its total population of 1,000,000 and the adjoining Chicago communities of Roseland, Pullman, and Kensington. 
Within this geographic area, we continue to provide a center where genealogists, beginning and advanced, can share 
their enthusiasm, growing knowledge, and family search problems and solutions. 


Our library facilities
with meeting rooms close at hand—all in the Hazel Crest Municipal Center—provide bright 
and functional quarters where we may engage in these activities. We are just completing our fifth year in Hazel Crest.


Our core programs:
library, Pullman, programs, publications, and outreach/education. 


Our library
now includes more than 11,000 books and related materials—CD’s, microforms, pamphlets, 
and other research materials. While the emphasis of the library collection is on our prime area of interest, 
we have considerable materials on northwestern Indiana, downstate Illinois, and the rest of the United States 
as well as general how-to-do-it genealogical books. The library is open from 21 to 26 hours a week. 


The Pullman collection
is located immediately adjacent to the library is the  This contains 200,000 
employee files covering 50 years of the operations of the Pullman Corporation. 


Our monthly schedule of programs
operates from February to November. There are no General meetings in December and January.  During the year our mix of programs of genealogical and historical subjects included programs on Research into African-American Genetic Genealogy; The Alpha Wreck Odyssey (an Indiana Dunes shipwreck with possible ties to the Underground Railroad); Do-It-Yourself Photo Restoration Basics; Jane Reed – How does the genealogist/historian prove a story of murder, deception, and revenge in frontier Ohio of 1820?; and Favorite Genealogy Websites. 


Our schedule of publications
includes 11 monthly newsletters (February through November with a combined 
December-January issue), our quarterly publication Where The Trail Cross, and special publications such as 
First Evangelical Lutheran Cemetery
(Blue Island-Alsip), the result of reading of tombstones conducted 
by SSGHS volunteers. 


Outreach/Education:
Activities for the 2007-2008 program year included the taping of two TV programs on 
SSGHS for the Hazel Crest Public Service Channel; the display of our information boards at the Homewood, Dolton, 
and New Lenox public libraries with upcoming displays at the Crete, Riverdale, and other libraries; an information 
and research afternoon at the library for Illliana Jewish Genealogical Society members; and speaking engagements to outside groups.

  Copyright 2010, South Suburban Genealogical and Historical Society
 3000 West 170th Place, Hazel Crest, IL.  60429 - 1174
Telephone: (708) 335-3340
E-mail to: ssghs@usa.net

   Last update 8 January 2010