Interesting new collection added to the Tsakopoulos Hellenic Collection at the University Library at California State University, Sacramento - Below is the email received from George I. Paganelis, Curator, Tsakopoulos Hellenic Collection. ----- Dear Friends of the Tsakopoulos Hellenic Collection,   I am pleased to announce that the Tsakopoulos Hellenic Collection has acquired the papers of  Charles Maxton Schermerhorn . The American Charles Maxton Schermerhorn (1901-1985) attended Princeton Theological Seminary in the early 1920s and became a social worker during the 1930s. In 1946 the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA) sent him to Greece, but he was shortly thereafter employed by the Near East Foundation in Thessaloniki and by UNICEF, where he was the only civilian (native Greek or foreigner) running humanitarian food distribution campaigns throughout 170 war-torn northern Greek towns and villages between 1946-1951 during and after the Greek...

  The Greek Business Guide and Directory of the Western States, 1925 features a story on a Greek immigrant family the ALEXANDER BROTHERS - read below. You can find a link to the digitized copy of the entire directory and indexed list of all people mentioned on the Hellenic Genealogy Geek Research Links website   "ALEXANDER BROTHERS are undoubtedly among the most enterprising and prosperous representatives of the agricultural industry of San Joaquin County [California].  On their vast farm every modern method is applied and progress and efficient system characterises the whole enterprise.  The story of their success is short. All three brothers graduated from the high school of their native country, and they left Greece in order to travel and widen their knowledge and experience.  After 2 years they landed in New York.  Since then they tried different trades in various towns of the U.S.  In 1916 they abandoned the barber trade, which they had carried on...

FamilySearch.org has a FREE database titled California, Honor Roll of Californians who served in WWI 1914-1918 which includes 20 people born in Greece and 3 born in Turkey. The first image is of the card that is filled out by the person being honored.  The title reads:  Return to California War History Committee, State Council of Defense, State Capitol, Sacramento, Cal. Information included: Service No. Name in Full County Home Address Town Birth Date and Place Color Years in California Father's name and Place of Birth Mother's maiden name and Place of Birth Occupation of Registrant Wife's maiden name, Date of Marriage, Children Nearest relative and address, relationship Local board where registered Branch of service entered Date registered Serial No. Order No. Place or camp assigned to The second image is an atached biographical sketch written by the person being honored.  The form states "In the space below write in any interesting facts pertaining to history of ...

  FamilySearch.org has a new database titled " United States, California Certificates Surrendered at San Francisco from Aliens Previously at Honolulu, Hawaii, 1912-1946 ".  This database includes 41 people born in Greece and 26 people born in Turkey. This collection contains copies of INS Form 546,(22,000) Alien Certificate - Insular Territory. Before Hawaii's admission to statehood in 1959 any immigrants departing Hawaii for the mainland (whether citizens of Hawaii or those temporarily porting there) were required to be inspected and then given this certificate. Upon arriving at the mainland the alien had to surrender the certificate in order to be admitted. The forms are arranged chronologically. Images are originally housed at The National Archives and Records Administration. National Archives Microfilm Publication A3975. These records cover the years 1912-1946. The following information may be found in these records: Name Age Country of Origin Name of ship Port of ar...

FamilySearch.org has a new FREE database titled "California Cemetery Transcriptions 1850-1960" that includes 107 people born in Greece. The collection consists of cemetery transciptions, for the years 1850 to 1960 from the following counties: Amador Fresno Los Angeles Mariposa Merced Napa Riverside Sacramento San Joaquin San Mateo Santa Cruz Siskiyou Solano Stanislaus Sutter Tulare Yolo Yuba The following information can be found in these cemetery abstracts: Name of Cemetery Location (Town, County, State) Full name of deceased Date of Death Names of Parents, Husband or Wife Other Important Facts Place of Birth Date of Birth

FamilySearch.org has a new FREE database titled "California, Oakland, Alameda County, Newspaper Record Collection 1985-2011" that includes 130 people born in Greece.  (Note if you search for people born in Turkey there are also several "Greek" names) Description of this collection: The collection consists of a card file index created from local newspapers and includes obituaries, wedding announcements, anniversaries, and birth announcements. The obituaries are mixed with biographical news stories. Some obituaries are included from the Los Angeles Times and Orange County Register of persons who were natives of Oakland or the Bay Area and died in southern California. The card files for 1985-2002, 2003-2006 and 1986-2011 are located at the Oakland Family History Center. The following information may be found in these records: Name of deceased Birth date and place Death date and place Names of parents Name of spouse Names of children Name of cemetery...

FamilySearch.org  has a database named " California, Sacramento Cemetery Records - 1900-1959 " which includes 186 people born in Greece.  You will be able to view the original records online for  FREE .  These records have a wealth of information in them, in many cases much more than is described below. What is in This Collection? This collection contains cemetery records from various Sacramento, California cemeteries. The years covered include 1900 to 1959. The original records can be found at the Center for Sacramento History located in Sacramento, California. What Can These Records Tell Me? Cemetery records may contain: The name of the deceased The date of death The date of birth The names of parents or other relatives The cemetery name Name of clergy involved in burial Plot number The amount paid for the plot Some of these, like the one pictured above, has the obituary attached to the file.   ------------------...

FamilySearch.org  has a database named " California, County Birth and Death Records - 1800-1994 " which includes 2,290 people born in Greece.  There are also some Greek names in the records showing people born in Turkey. You will be able to view the original records online for FREE . Description Registers, records and certificates of county birth and death records acquired from county courthouses. This collection contains some delayed birth records, as well. Some city and towns records are also included. Records have not been acquired for Contra Costa, Imperial, Kern, Kings, Modoc, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Siskiyou, Solano, Tulare and Ventura counties. The name index for death records covers Stockton, Lodi and Manteca cities and San Benito and San Joaquin counties. ----------------------- Other postings you might be interested in: Greeks in the California Digital Newspaper Collection - FREE search Book - Greeks in San Francisco - includes 320 Greek names ...

FamilySearch.org  has a database named "California, Death Index, 1940-1997" which includes 6,861 people born in Greece. You will be able to view the Index entries online for  FREE .  This is an index and there are no original document images available. This index includes the following information.  As an example I have included the data for Christos N. Actipis. Name:  Christos . Actipis Event Type:  Death Event Date:  29 Oct 1962 Event Place:  Los Angeles, California, United States Birth Date:  23 Dec 1898 Birth Place:  Greece Gender:  Male Mother's Name:  Cardaris ----------------------- Other postings you might be interested in: Greeks in the California Digital Newspaper Collection - FREE search Book - Greeks in San Francisco - includes 320 Greek names & 225 photos Greek-American Communists and the San Francisco General Strike of 1934 The Legend of a Fiend:  John "Blackjack" Jerome and Violent St...

Published in the Orthdox Observer, September-October 2018 - page 25 St. George Greek Orthodox Church Bakersfield, California Founded:  1924 ----- Not all immigrants from Greece in the late 19th and early 20th centuries chose to settle in the major metropolitan areas of the East and Midwest.  A small number traveled to more remote areas; among these was the high desert region of California’s interior where Bakersfield (pop. about 380,000) is centrally located, 112 miles north of glamorous, star-studded L.A.   According to a parish history, the “pioneer” Greek Orthodox came to build the railroads – the Southern Pacific and Union Pacific – as did many Chinese and Irish men before them. Others soon established businesses that supported the railroads.  Still others engaged in farming (Bakersfield is at the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley, part of California’s Central Valley that produces nearly 13 percent of the country’s agricultural output...