East Texas Genealogical Society

Uncovering East Texas Roots: The East Texas Genealogical Society Since 1977, the East Texas Genealogical Society (ETGS) has been a non-profit organization dedicated to helping people discover their ancestors through educational programs. ETGS serves the Texas counties of Anderson, Gregg, Henderson, Panola, Rusk, and Smith. By partnering with "The 1870 Census Project - East Texas," our society is working to ensure every person listed in the 1870 Census is represented in FamilySearch. This effort is a game-changer for African American genealogy, as 1870 was the first census to list formerly enslaved people by name. By linking these families now, we are opening doors for research to locate burial sites, identify plantation connections, and discover where these ancestors came from. ETGS has the following special interest groups: DNA (DNA-SIG), African American Research (AAR-SIG), Technology (TECH-SIG), and Artificial Intelligence and Genealogy (AI-SIG).