For nomination information, questions, specific judging, and book submission criteria for the following Fellows and Awards, please contact the OGS Fellows & Awards Committee Chair via email at [email protected]. All Fellow and Chapter Awards nominations as well as Book Award entries must be received by 30 November. The Writing Contests have different deadlines listed below. Not all awards are given every year.
Fellow Award
The Fellow of The Ohio Genealogical Society Award is given to an individual who has provided valuable service to the Society and to the field of genealogy over and above the job to which they were elected or appointed, through volunteer work, special projects, or their expertise or skill in accomplishing a goal for the Society. No member of the Executive Committee or of the Board of Trustees may be elected as a Fellow of the Society until after the completion of his/her term of office. The person making the nomination must be a member of OGS. Nominations shall cite qualifying services to OGS and shall contain biographical and other pertinent information regarding the nominee.
Outstanding OGS Chapter Award
This will be presented to a Chapter that meets the following criteria. Chapters may enter the competition by submitting five copies of a three-page maximum essay. This essay should address the chapter’s involvement during the program year in three or more of the following areas:
- Variety of membership activities throughout the year (e.g., chapter meetings, field trips, lineage societies, OGS conference participation)
- Contribution or service to genealogical records preservation (e.g., cemetery preservation, publishing, newsletters)
- Providing assistance/resources to local libraries/repositories
- Genealogical education of members or the general public (through newsletters, meetings, workshops, website, etc.)
- Inter/Intra Chapter-OGS-local historical society activities, relationships, and communications
Outstanding OGS Chapter Newsletter Award – Frances Dana Gage Award
The newsletter will be judged on the following criteria: material interest, variety and originality, genealogical interest, writing and editing quality, readability and attractiveness, and overall publication makeup. Two consecutive issues from the current calendar year of the newsletter must be submitted by the Chapter, not by an individual. Please provide the number of members in your chapter when submitting.
Outstanding OGS Chapter Officer
This award will be presented to a person who has been a Chapter officer during the current Chapter program year and has performed exemplary service to the Chapter. Entries will be judged from a one-page essay submitted by one or more members of the Chapter. Essay should include name, office held, duties expected, other duties performed, and the reason the chapter member nominating feels the officer is deserving of the award.
Outstanding OGS Chapter Volunteer
This award will be presented to a Chapter member in good standing who has contributed service above and beyond the normal level of Chapter activity during the current Chapter program year. This award will be judged on a one-page essay submitted by one or more members of the Chapter. Essay should include: name, volunteer position(s) held, duties expected, other duties performed, and reason the chapter member nominating feels the member is deserving of the award.
Outstanding Chapter Web Site Award – Thomas A. Edison Award
The Thomas A. Edison Award is given for Best OGS Chapter Web Site. No site will be considered without a link from the OGS website. The OGS Chapter link must be direct to the Chapter site, not through a GenWeb or RootsWeb page, in order for the website to be eligible for this award. The sites will be judged based on the inclusion of the following required criteria, plus other outstanding features:
- OGS activities
- Chapter activities
- Other genealogy activities (NGS, FGS, other societies)
- Chapter information – meetings, history, current contact information
- Local genealogical information/resources
OGS Book Awards
The following awards may be presented:
- The Simon Kenton Award for transcriptions of Ohio records
- The Salmon P. Chase Award for abstracts of Ohio records
- The U.S. Grant Award for finding/research aids (indices, bibliographies)
- The Tecumseh Award for Ohio-related genealogical instruction books
- The Henry Howe Award for an Ohio state, county, or local history
- The William H. & Benjamin Harrison Award for an Ohio-related family history
- The Lida Flint Harshman Award for a book produced by a Chapter or special interest group of the Society
- The Governor Thomas Worthington Award for Ohio biography or collective biography
- The Oliver Hazard Perry Award for Ohio-related military historical record
OGS Writing Contest
OGS sponsors a genealogical writing contest to reward amateur and professional genealogical authorship and to help fill the pages of its renowned journals with articles. Prizes range from $25 – $100. There are two separate deadlines:
Ohio Genealogical News Contest 1 July – 30 September
Ohio Genealogical Society Quarterly Contest 1 September – 31 December