There is a lot to learn at Swain Genealogy Society

Elise Bryson, president of the Swain County Genealogical and Historical Society, is working on an article for the next edition of the SCGHS newsletter, The Bone Rattler. On Monday, she provided Smoky Mountain Times a tour of the office and library located in a new building.

Swain County Genealogy and Historical Society is truly a one-stop shop for family research and local history. The society has unpacked its boxes and is settling into its new office and library located on Brendle Street.

With just a handful of volunteers, it took some time to unpack, shelve and organize all the books that make up the library. Now, there is plenty to research and space enough to comfortably settle in for a few hours to pour over the books.

Genealogy President Elise Bryson said the county commissioners have been great to the society, building the new building. It also is home to the Bryson City Women’s Club and the Swain County Senior Center has offices downstairs.

“It’s a wonderful research center,” Bryson said. “This is the history of Swain County.”

On the upgraded space, Bryson called it wonderful. “The other building had no A/C and the upstairs was so hot and it was hard on the books, they would absorb the moisture. Also, it was not handicap accessible and a lot of our members are seniors,” she said.

Now that the office is handicap accessible, she hopes to be able to apply for some grants for the organization.

The new facility should serve the organization for years to come. The only remaining facility need is additional storage. “I hope we are here forever,” Bryson said.

The society was formed in 1984 and is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization.

On one table is a display of the books for sale the society relies on for funding in addition to $25 annual membership fees. Among the books are publications by Duane Oliver including “Remembered Lives,” North Shore cookbook, and updated Bryson City and Swain County Centennials and the Swain County Heritage publication. Society members also receive the quarterly copy of the Bone Rattler newsletter.

The shelves are full of names, dates and details. One section holds marriage certificates from 1881-1914 made in the county. Another interesting section includes the recorded delayed births.

“A long time ago, when people were born the family would usually just record it in the family Bible,” Bryson explained. “When social security began they had to show proof of where and when they were born.”

That’s when delayed birth records began. For proof, people could provide the details of the family’s recording, witnesses (except for parents) and documents showing things like school attendance.

One section of the library has Cherokee books, such as the rolls, and the Cherokee By Blood book set that shows lineage.

A unique set of shelves are historic in themselves and inherited from the historic Swain County courthouse. They have rollers on the shelves that helped make removing the heavy publications stored on them easier.

There are also heritage books from other local counties and surrounding states. There is a set of Civil War Troops showing every soldier from 1861-1865, and the society has an index it created to help make researching easier.

There are high school yearbooks, census records and even two huge shelves of family histories that have been donated to the genealogical society.

“They include stuff not found anywhere else,” Bryson noted.

On display in once corner are unique replicas of Swain County historic buildings created by P.R. Bennett Jr. who served as Bryson City mayor and fire chief in the past. They are greatly detailed and even built to scale.

Another shelf holds material to help people with how to go about researching family history.

“You really get hooked on it,” Bryson said of the research.

The library also has microfilm machines where you can research copies of Smoky Mountain Times from 1983-forward, as well as historic censuses. Visitors can even research information on ancestry.com on a computer there.

Like so many organizations, the Swain County Genealogical and Historical Society has faced challenges this past year during the pandemic. They haven’t been able to hold their monthly meetings that can bring 60 people together. That also has impacted book sales and memberships.

The organization has about 160 members. Interest has grown somewhat through their Facebook page with monthly posts and a reach of about 17,000.

“It’s hard to get young people interested in the research part of it,” Bryson noted.

In addition to their monthly membership meetings, the genealogical society hopes to host workshops in the future on subjects like how to begin researching family history.

The library is open 8 a.m.-noon on Mondays-Fridays.