Imperial Polk Genealogical Society

04/30/2026

The Manatee Genealogical Society (mgsfl.org) has listed a dozen Central Florida genealogical societies, in addition to IPGS, on its web site. Their combined resources offer a stockpile of treasures that can keep you busy for eons! These groups welcome each other as visitors. So many programs, so little time!

The Manatee Genealogical Society of Manatee County, Florida is proud to offer this website as a gateway to our services, resources, programs, and information on our society.

04/28/2026

Daily genealogy programs are listed at ConferenceKeeper.com. Plan travel to your ideal conference, or click on the calendar with all virtual presentations. IPGS meetings are listed there, and we have drop-in participants from across the country! ConferenceKeeper.org shows how to find genealogy webinars, seminars, conferences, workshops, podcasts and more, from genealogy societies, libraries, and other organizations all around the world.

ConferenceKeeper.org is a free online genealogy calendar of events with thousands of webinars, in-person & virtual programs, workshops, conferences & much more.

04/25/2026

Did your ancestors cross the Atlantic in the 1800s?
Early steam ships couldn’t carry enough coal for the whole trip, so they took advantage of free wind by raising sails as well. Plus, early boilers were prone to breakdowns or even explosions. It took most of the 19th century to develop the efficiency and fueling stations for steamers to cross without sails.
Photo Wikimedia: Édouard Adam - The auxiliary steamer County of Sutherland at sea under steam and sail (1878)

04/23/2026

Artsy, tech-adventurous or eager to learn? Join our IPGS Tech Committee and find your niche! We have guidance for newbies, challenges for experts, and cheerleaders for all. Join this team that meets via Zoom. Click the "message" button above and let us know.

04/21/2026

Please follow us, and share or posts so more people can find IPGS! Also, see our web page at ipgs.org . There you can find upcoming programs, newsletters, and more.

Welcome to IPGS! This is Polk County, Florida's fun group for researching our personal family histories, learning from professional genealogists and sharing with each other.  Our members are from throughout a large, diverse county----and beyond.  We keep good company for our research, and invite y...

04/21/2026

Don't miss our online discussion session, Ancestry Forum, May 9, 1 p.m. We have more AI resources to share, many at no cost. Doors are opening to find previously out-of-reach resources! AI does not meet research standards, but is growing rapidly as a discovery tool as well as huge time saver. Forum discussion is open and may wander to other topics of interest as well. Members will get a Zoom link by email. Others may request a link from [email protected].
Art credit Igor Omilaev.

04/15/2026

Saturday afternoon, May 9, we are Zooming together--always a lively discussion!--on genealogical uses of AI. While it can't think for you, this tool can eliminate a lot of grunt work and really speed up discoveries, uncovering sources more obscure than you're used to.

04/07/2026

Join us for upcoming programs (hybrid) at the Lakeland Public Library, in the history center.
Saturday, April 11, at 1:00 p.m. we will learn about researching Civil War military records.
If you can't be there, request a Zoom link at [email protected].
Future programs appear at ipgs.org.

03/06/2026

March 14: Don’t miss our next Ancestry Forum
Did you pick up ideas from RootsTech? Do you want to hear what was gleaned by your genealogy colleagues? Or is there some puzzle you need help to solve?
Discussion prompts for the March 14 Ancestry Forum are:
• Takeaways from RootsTerch2026. What sessions did we watch, and what did we learn to share with the group?
• Shared discoveries or brick walls you need help with.
• Ideas for organizing our research.
These open-discussion group chats will be the afternoons of March 14, and May 9. All up-to-date IPGS members will receive an email link to the Zoom version. Others may request a link from [email protected].
Those who prefer more social opportunity will meet at the Lakeland History and Culture Center at the Lakeland Public Library.
Ancestry Forums are at our regular meeting times of 1 p.m. on the second Saturday of the month.

05/31/2025

A reminder that our free workshop is tomorrow, Saturday, May 31st, at Studio 37 in Mulberry. Drop by.