Hello this is Tom Hilberg, one of the volunteers in the
research room at the Medina County District Library. I recently attended the National Genealogical
Society(NGS) 2016 Conference in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and Kathy suggested
that I report on it.
The conference was
held at the Fort Lauderdale Convention Center, and in an area with several
hotels for attendees to stay. I picked
the Hilton which was just across the street and a short five-minute walk. I’m not sure how many of the 1,915
participates were at my hotel, but judging from the traffic in the morning and
after the end each afternoon, there were many.
The hotel also served as the site of the NGS Banquet on Friday evening. Of course the conference was hosted by the
NGS, but also by local host society, Florida State Genealogical Society, who
hosted a very loud get together around the pool one evening. Many other groups held gatherings during the
four-day conference.
Sessions started at 8 a.m. each morning and ended at 5 p.m.,
so one could keep up a very busy schedule.
The first morning started with an opening session of announcements,
presentation of awards by the NGS, and a keynote address by Connie Lester.
Associate Professor in History, University of Central Florida. Her expertise is the rural south 1870 to 1940,
and see gave a very insightful look at the early settlement of southern
Florida. The end of her remarks marked the
opening of the Exhibit Hall and I think all 1,900 people were there. There were many national and regional vendors
present with the hall being dominated by Ancestry, Family Search, Find My Past,
My Heritage and Pro Quest. Other vendors,
big and small, were busy each day with mini presentations, book signings and
helping researchers. I visited the booth
for the New York (state) Genealogical and Biographical Society, as this is one
of my main interests at present, trying to get more information on my wife’s
“Daniels” line going back so far to 1780.
I also attended on Thursday, four of the five presentations in the New
York Research track put on by the society.
Presentations are the
main reason for attending a national conference. I have enjoyed going to the OGS conference
since the late 1980’s. There is always
something to be learned, old friends and great speakers. A national conference gives one the same
experience only larger. One is given the
opportunity to hear more speakers from across the country who are knowledgeable
and experienced in their fields. One
drawback, not all sessions live up to what is written in the conference
program.
After the first day, each morning was divided into three
sessions, a two and a half hour break for lunch, and two sessions in the
afternoon. The lunch break each day had
at least two to three organizations holding luncheons. Of course these were by reservation and at a
cost. I took advantage of the New York
Societies luncheon and was seated next to two friends on my right and a very
interesting gentleman from Canada on my left.
He had one parent English and one American and was attempting to learn
more on researching in the US.
Most days I purchased
lunch from a vendor at the conference center and ate and read in the park
across from the center. This was nice
and except for one day of heavy rain, it was sunny and warm. Which brings we to the worst part of the
conference, the rooms were COLD. I know
the reason, to keep us from being too warm and falling asleep during the
presentations. But when I say cold, I
mean COLD!
Each day the time slots were divided into tracks, that
changed daily. One could attend sessions
on Wednesday for: Land Records, Starting Off, Coast and Caribbean, Cemeteries,
Court House Research, Contest, Tips and Techniques, Florida Military, Research
and Repositories.
Other days one would find tracks on Land Records, Organizing
and Planning, Sharing Your Research Stories, DNA, Jewish Research, Internet and
Technology, Women African-American Research, Across the Pond, Methods for
Success and British Isles.
For myself, besides the New York sessions, where I learned
about “New York Research Repositories, Part 1 and 2,” the “Essential (NY) Home
Reference Shelf,” and the “New York State Archives and Library.” Other sessions attended were on “Resolving
Conflicts in Genealogical Records,” by Judy Russell, the Legal
Genealogist. Judy is one of my favorite
speakers, along with Dick Eastman. I
attended a session on using “Social History and Historical Fiction to further
my research” and another on the use of Probate records. The session on “Your Immigrants’ Germany:
Microstates and Microbreweries,” was a disappointment – No Beer, but helpful
otherwise as was the session on “Death and Dying: Changes in Medical Care in
the 19th Century.”
Interesting how as horrible the Civil War was for the country, how
beneficial it was to the advancement of medical science.
Session and luncheon photos are by Scott Stewart Photography
LLC and are from the NGS website.
Thanks Tom for a glimpse of the National Genealogical Society Conference!
1 comment:
I enjoyed Tom's Blog.
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