Criminals, Convicts, and Outlaws: How to Find Your Black Sheep Ancestors

July 13 at 5:30PM at Defiance Public Library. Geared to adults. No registration needed.

Have you started climbing your family tree and found some unsavory characters or outright criminals? Do you have questions about that odd relative that no one ever wants to talk about? Do you want to know more about these mystery relatives with a dark past?
Rhonda Casler of the Defiance County Chapter of the Ohio Genealogical Society will be presenting a program on “Criminals, Convicts, and Outlaws: How to Find Your Black Sheep Ancestors.” Using information she gathered while researching a bootlegger family member, Rhonda will explain where to find local, state, and federal records. She will also discuss how to find newspaper accounts and some helpful online sources to track down the scandalous members of your family tree.

More about Rhonda

Rhonda is a native of Defiance, Ohio. Her interest in Genealogy and History was stirred as a teenager listening to stories from her grandfather and father. Rhonda’s father also collected historic photos and created original artwork of historically significant places and people of Northwest Ohio.

At the age of 14, she convinced her parents to take her to the National Archives in Washington, D.C. to look up her Confederate great-great grandfather in the 1850 Census. While searching, Rhonda met a professional genealogist who gave her a tour of the Library of Congress and then mailed her a beginner’s guide to genealogy. This chance interaction sparked a lifelong interest in genealogy, history, and libraries.

Rhonda was an exchange student in Scotland and loves all things Scottish, Irish, and English. She graduated from The Ohio State University with a Bachelor of Arts in History and a Minor in Anthropology/Archaeology. Rhonda took a position with the Defiance Public Library, eventually managing the Local History and Genealogy Department. After marrying and having children, Rhonda took a position as the Archivist and Records Manager for the County of Defiance, and later became the Defiance County Law Librarian.

Rhonda is the current President of the Defiance County Chapter of the Ohio Genealogical Society. She is the creator of the chapter’s Facebook page and their weekly Time Travel Tuesday article. Rhonda regularly speaks on various genealogy topics, has written booklets on local history and genealogy, and takes private clients for genealogy research through her business, Buckeyeroots Genealogy Services.