Date: April 13, 2026
Title: Paper Trails Across Borders: Exploring Alien Registration and Border Crossing Records
Speaker: Denee Rodriguez
Description: The presentation focuses on immigration records for our ancestors who entered the United States during the late 19th century and the early to mid-20th century. Border Crossing records from Canada or Mexico can be a rich genealogical source, and Alien registration files, or A-files, can reveal things about our ancestors that cannot be found in the usual records available online. In this presentation, you will learn:
• A brief history of Immigration Laws
• The Alien Registration Act of 1940
• How to identify when and where your ancestors entered the US
• How to locate and request an A-File
• What kind of evidence and clues are in A-files
Biography: Denee began her genealogy journey at the age of eight when she was introduced to the Hathaway Family Association publication, Hathaway’s of America. This newfound fascination with historic figures in her family tree led her to earn a bachelor’s degree in American History and Latin American Studies, with a concurrent Writing Certificate in American Studies. Denee holds certificates in Advanced Genealogical Methodology from Boston University and the International Institute for Genealogical Studies. She also holds Professional Learning Certificates in American Records and Canadian Records. She is currently pursuing other certifications in the genealogy community. She spends 90% of her research hours chasing her family’s ancestors through the Mexican States of Coahuila de Zaragoza, Durango, Hidalgo, Nuevo Leon, Sinaloa, Sonora, and Zacatecas. She is the facilitator of the WVGS Hispanic Genealogy SIG and, just last month, presented a course on Beginning Hispanic Genealogy. She recently began studying her grandchildren’s line in Puerto Rico. If she doesn’t know where to find what you are looking for, she will help you find someone who can.
Handout: Click Here to Download the Handout
In-person meetings are held at the First Presbyterian Church located at 12225 N. 103rd Ave., Sun City, AZ. (click here for map) – will open in new tab in your web browser)
Please arrive after 12:30 pm to sign up for classes, SIGs, or the 2025 Seminar, ask questions of a Board Member or Committee Chairperson, etc. Note: We will not be offering coffee at this time.
The short business meeting will start at 1:00 pm sharp followed by our featured speaker.
FROM DUPLICATE BOOKS TEAM
Books will be available for purchase at the meeting.
Jill Mitchell, Elaine Wright, and Della Jones
WVGS Duplicate Book Sales team
Please bring Aluminum Cans & Plastic Bottles to the
Membership Meeting
We appreciate your efforts to collect these items and dropping them off at our Membership Meetings. We especially thank you for collecting from your neighbors and friends. Please be sure to let these helpers know the best way to help us collect and recycle.
Remember, bring them to the church, NOT the Library!
| Not These | Only Clear Plastic |
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| These are NOT accepted and need to be hand picked out of the collection or the whole bag will be rejected. Please, only CLEAR plastic bottles. |
ALUMINUM CANS & CLEAR PLASTIC BOTTLES ONLY Drop-off |
Guidelines for dropping off Aluminum Cans/Clear Plastic Bottles:
- Place aluminum cans and clear plastic-water/soda bottles in separate bags.
- Cans do not have to be crushed, but should be rinsed and empty.
- Water bottles can take up less room if they are smashed before putting the cap back onto the bottle.
Please, NO glass, prescription bottles, milk bottles, or food cans as these items need to be hand picked out. Also, NO bags with holes, as any item not rinsed may leak.