Going to FGS/Fort Wayne?

There's nothing more exhausting — or more exhilarating — than a national conference. 
Hit the ground running before 8 a.m., walk the equivalent of a few miles going between lecture halls, and don't relax in your hotel room until 9 at night (provided you're not a social butterfly that stays out even later). Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Tell me that you're still bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, and I'd doubt your veracity.

Attend sessions by some of the field's most knowledgeable speakers. Meet people from all over the country, and beyond. Walk the equivalent of a few miles visiting the booths inside the exhibit hall, and don't relax until you've seen all the latest genealogical tools and services. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Tell me that you're not pumped to put to use what you've learned (or bought!) and I'd wonder if you were ill.

The Federation of Genealogical Societies 2013 Conference takes place next week in Fort Wayne (Indiana, for those who haven't a clue), and it's jam-packed with lectures and special events. For more info, visit the conference website or the conference blog, which has helpful information about what to bring, what to see, and how to make the most of your conference experience. (Oh, it's on Facebook and Twitter, too.) 

I often take my time driving to genealogical events, stopping to browse the antique stores. When I'm in Indianapolis, I try to hit the town of Kirklin, on US Route 421 north of the city. On the way to Fort Wayne I always try to hit the town of Pierceton, about eight miles east of Warsaw, in Kosciusko County. The shops are just a few blocks south of US 30. If I was traveling on a weekday or Saturday, I'd stop at The Village at Winona, in Winona Lake, right next to Warsaw. Craftsman bungalows house a lot of really cute shops, which are closed Sundays. But wait! There's more! The Indiana Antique Company is in Warsaw; it's open Sunday afternoons; and I've never been there yet. (Uh-oh. Once I stop there, I may never make it to Fort Wayne.)

I don't usually buy large, expensive things at these stores. In Pierceton I bought some vintage advertisements from old copies of the Saturday Evening Post.They're framed as wall art in the laundry room, as are three washboards. A trio of canning jars atop a cabinet hold wooden clothespins, thread spools, and colorful buttons.

So many items found in antique stores have a provenance: a monogrammed dresser set of hairbrush, mirror, and hair collector. A silver-knobbed walking stick. The old time photos (which many stores tout as "instant ancestors." OUCH! We genies know better, and would keel over in a dead faint if anyone in the photos actually WAS our ancestor!) Someone's old high school yearbook. (Some years ago, our Friends of the Library president downsized and donated her high school yearbooks to the Friends' Book Sale Room. Since the school was in Chicago and the library is in Indiana, the books weren't destined for the Local History Room. As soon as I saw them, I knew I wanted to buy them. Sure enough, they contained photos of an aunt and uncle. Finding my uncle's signature in the book was an unexpected bonus.) 

You'll feel very old in the blink of an eye when you run across a collectable that is identical to  one you had as a child. How about those metal banks that looked like a globe of the world? It threw me a few weeks ago when I saw a plastic toy Coca Cola fountain dispenser. I'd forgotten we even had that toy as kids. You'd insert an actual bottle of Coke into the toy, pull the handle, and the "fountain" would dispense the Coke into a little Coke-shaped plastic glass. 

Antique stores or malls aren't really the place to take young children. Besides the breakables, there are heavy pieces of furniture that could fall on or injure a child (not to mention that your young one may run short on patience as you stroll from item to item). But once a child is a bit older, sharing remembrances about the playthings of your youth could prove a very worthwhile bonding experience. Who knows, it just might spark a family history flame in your descendants.

That's AMBASSADOR Linda, to you!

I've signed up to be a 1940 Blog Ambassador, to help promote the US Census Community Project. It's being sponsored by Archives.com, FamilySearch and findmypast.com in conjunction with society sponsors, the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG); the Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS); and the National Genealogical Society (NGS).

To you non-genealogists reading this, let me explain what will happen on April 2, 2012: The National Archives will release the 1940 US Census. Each census is kept private for 72 years, so the release of a census is a Very Big Deal to those of us interested in family history. The release of THIS census in particular is an even bigger deal, because most of us know someone who was listed on it. The US Census is a snapshot of our nation at a critical time in history. We were pulling out of the Great Depression even as we were becoming embroiled in world events. Soon the nation would go to war. 


The 1940 census has more than historic significance. Today's genealogists are versed in technology. We're used to visiting websites, searching indices, and downloading tons of information. So the pairing of family historians and electronic wizardry has created a great opportunity, because the 1940 US Census will be available as free digital images. But it does not yet have an index, which means searching page by page (you can narrow it down if you know your ancestor's address in 1940). And that's where genealogists and genealogical societies come in. We have an opportunity to create that index, working together. You can help index from your own computer, tablet, etc. Talk about a grass-roots effort, this is it!

Individual genealogists, as well as genealogical societies, are mobilizing and preparing for the task at hand. It requires a simple program download — and watching a few tutorials will help — but essentially, anyone can do it, and everyone is needed. The more willing hands, the quicker the index is created and posted for everyone to use.


I've downloaded the indexing program; watched a tutorial or two; and listened to a FamilySearch staffer explain the indexing process at the 2011 FGS Conference in Springfield. But I haven't actually done any indexing yet. I'm newsletter editor for the Indiana Genealogical Society, which plans to mobilize its members to attack - er, INDEX, the state of Indiana. How about helping coordinate efforts where you live?

Although we'll have to wait until April 2 to start indexing the 1940 US Census, we can become familiar with the process by assisting in other indexing projects being undertaken by FamilySearch. You can sign up to index by visiting http://the1940census.com/ There is a link at the top of the page where societies can get more information on how to participate.


In future posts, I'll describe my indexing experiences; give you a sense of the United States in 1940; talk about what one can find on the 1940, and much more. It's 39 days and counting... stay tuned, and join in. 
 

FGS 2011 is history

I love conferences, especially FGS because the society management seminars are so helpful. (Officers, if your society is not growing, or is withering on the vine, you should listen to those sessions. CDs or MP3s are available!) I was honored to be a member of the Local Publicity Committee. A ton of planning goes into this event!

A quick synopsis:

• Sunday: Went to the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library. It was very interesting! Thanks to ALPL for being part of the conference, and encouraging us to visit.

• Monday: Watched the Springfield Labor Day parade; shopped at the used book store; helped pack more than a thousand goodie bags. 
• Tuesday: Librarians Day sessions; press conference run-through; FamilySearch bloggers' reception.
  
• Wednesday: Plenary and society management sessions; Old Fashioned Prairie Social with ice cream, music, games and prizes.
• Thursday: Breakfast program; keynote address by the Archivist of the United States; press conference and media interviews. As editor of the Indiana Genealogical Society newsletter, I had 2 reasons to be proud: IGS president, Michael Maben, presented a check for more than $24,000 as the IGS Matching Challenge supported FGS's "Preserve the Pensions" project to digitize the War of 1812  pensions. Also, FGS presented Curt Witcher with the first genealogical tourism award to recognize The Genealogy Center's impact on the city of Fort Wayne.
  
• Friday: Sessions; did a stint on the registration desk and as a room monitor; 35th anniversary gala.
  
• Saturday: More sessions; another room monitor stint; marveled at the large Ancestry Day crowd; saw youth from FamilySearch Kids Camp; went to the Dick Eastman dinner.
  
• Sunday: Farewell brunch, with laughs and tears as we listened to J. Mark Lowe recall 9-11 (many of us were at FGS in Davenport). Visited Lincoln's home; browsed an antique mall and meandered back home.
  
• Monday: unpacked; answered e-mails; attended a fundraiser. I was lucky enough to have Monday as a vacation day. Some volunteers went right back to work.

I haven't even mentioned the many other lunches and dinners with old friends and new. Bennigan's saw some of us so often, we should get frequent flyer miles. I put on 5 lbs., and must have brought back another 30 lbs. in materials, books and merchandise. No wonder I'm tired.

Thanks to FGS president, Pat Oxley; national co-chairs, Josh Taylor and Paula Stuart-Warren; Illinois State Genealogical Society co-chairs Susie Pope and David Kent Coy; the intrepid publicity committee (Thomas MacEntee and Julie Cahill Tarr, thanks for letting me be a part); and everyone else who volunteered or assisted.

Longer than having a baby!

For the past year or so I've been a bit player in the Federation of Genealogical Societies' 2011 Conference, "Pathway to the Heartland." You know what? Giving birth to a national conference is a lot like having a baby, except the planning takes longer.*

Proud parents are national conference co-chairs, Josh Taylor and Paula Stuart-Warren. Proud godparents are Susie Pope and David Kent Coy, co-chairs for the local host society, the Illinois State Genealogical Society. I guess that makes FGS president, Pat Oxley, the doting grandmother, and all the FGS and local committee chairs are beaming aunts and uncles.

Everyone involved has worked hard to give the conference goers, Librarian Day attendees, Ancestry Day registrants, and FamilySearch Kids Camp participants the best life possible. The parents have planned and prepared as much as they can. Just as real parents discover, some things you just can't plan for; you deal with them as they happen. 

This child grows quickly: a week later, it's over until next year, when the whole process repeats itself in another city. Of course, planning for the next child has been underway for awhile. Conference parents examine what worked and didn't with the older children, and with this child, so they can do better next time.

Many "family" members are already in Springfield, soon to be joined by the rest of the clan, preparing for the delivery. If you're attending, perhaps we'll meet. Please say hi! If you've been involved at all in the birth of this baby, a big thanks for all your efforts. Virtual cigars all around!
 
(*Disclosure: I don't have kids. Also, to you who have had difficulty conceiving; who are adoptive and adopted; and who have lost children, I am sensitive to your situations, and ask that you take this post in the light-hearted way in which it was intended. )