FGS 2012 Conference at the RootsTech Conference this week

If you are at the RootsTech conference in Salt Lake City this week, please stop by the Federation of Genealogical Societies beautiful new booth in the Expo Hall. FGS board members will be available to answer your questions about FGS, its conferences, program, radio show, society membership, webinars and so many other things. While at the booth pick up the striking 16 page Program Brochure for the 2012 conference.

FGS is a major sponsor of RootsTech along with some impressive organizations and businesses. See the RootsTech website including a layout map of the Expo Hall by clicking here.

The FGS 2012 Exhibit Hall is calling us already!

Just looking at this picture makes me want to walk in and see what the 2012 FGS Exhibit Hall looks like. Alas, the businesses, organizations, societies and others that will fill the 2012 edition are not there yet. Do you want a preview of who has already signed up? That we can provide. Click here to see the list of those with booth space already reserved.

It's still 6 1/2 months till the conference Exhibit Hall opens and it is already half reserved. I hear that the vendor interest is high for this conference in Birmingham, Alabama, the "Magic City."

The conference website

Have you had a chance to look over all the 2012 conference details that are on the FGS website? While checking this out, be sure to register online. It's easy and don't forget to sign up for luncheons and for workshops before they sell out. The evening events are also sure to be a hit.

• Full conference program is listed there (sort by day, speaker, or track)
• Exhibit hall map plus how to sign up for booth space
• Details on Special Events
• Hotel and travel information
• Details on how to advertise in conference publications

The first FGS 2012 Birmingham registrant is . . .

It's Kay Haden from St. Johns, Florida. I asked her to tell us something about herself. This lady has energy and obviously believes in continuing genealogical education.

I found out FGS registration was open from Thomas MacEntee at GeneaBloggers on BlogTalk Radio and went straight to the FGS website when the program was over.  He joked about someone being first!  Who knew that would be me?  But, hey, I already had my hotel room....

This will be my second FGS Conference. I attended the Conference in Knoxville, in 2010, as my very first national Conference.  I had been on a RootsMagic Cruise and the Genealogy Guys, George Morgan & Drew Smith, had recommended the Conference to me so I could work on a brick wall ancestor who was probably born in Tennessee.  Sadly, I didn't break through the wall, but had a great time at the Conference!  Last year I chose the NGS Conference because of location - Charleston was within driving distance and between me and Williamsburg and at the time I was going to attend a grandson's graduation from William and Mary, so could schedule both.  I'm a relatively new conference attendee.  I will be at RootsTech - I'm going a few days early to get in some library time.  I won the Registration fee by answering a quiz on Amy Coffin's "We Tree" blog!

FGS 2012 Registration is open!

If you listened to the FGS My Society radio show on Saturday, you know this already!

January 16, 2012 – Austin, TX. Registration for the 2012 Federation of Genealogical Societies Conference, scheduled for August 29 - September 1, 2012, in beautiful Birmingham, Alabama, is now open. This year’s conference theme is “Indians, Squatters, Settlers and Soldiers in the ‘Old Southwest’,” and the local host is the Alabama Genealogical Society (AGS).

This year's FGS conference offers an exciting opportunity for anyone interested in researching their family history. Over 175 educational sessions and 13 luncheons are designed to balance the needs of genealogists at all levels, exploring a variety of records, strategies, and other tools available to those interested in researching their family history. Special sessions include a wide variety targeting members and leaders of genealogical and historical societies. In addition, special events, such as the Alabama Genealogical Society Opening Social at the Alabama Theater, the FGS Evening Social at the historic Sloss Furnaces, Spotlight on Societies, and daily sponsored lectures provide an excellent environment to meet and network with others interested in family history and genealogy.

Session sponsors include FamilySearch, Ancestry.com, findmypast.com, the National Archives and Records Administration, and others.

Conference Highlights

• Librarian’s Day: On Wednesday, August 29, 2012, ProQuest is sponsoring a full day of sessions designed for librarians, archivists, and other information professionals serving family history researchers.
• Conference Sessions: A wide variety of genealogy-related lectures and workshops for all experience levels.  Topics include Southern research, Settlers and Indians, soldiers, strategies and techniques, technology, and writing.
• Special Events: Include the AGS Opening Social at the Alabama Theater and the FGS Evening Social at the Sloss Furnaces National Historic Landmark—all providing an excellent environment to meet and network with others interested in family history and genealogy. This exciting week of genealogy closes with a Farewell Brunch on Sunday.
• Exhibit Hall: Filled with a wide array of vendors and organizations, Cyber Cafe and lounge area sponsored by RootsMagic, and a special Spotlight on Societies area will showcase local and regional genealogical and historical societies.

There are more activities and research opportunities too numerous to list. However, you can learn all about the 2012 FGS Conference and register for this exciting four-day event at http://www.fgs.org/2012conference. Be sure to also visit or subscribe to the FGS Conference Blog at http://www.fgsconferenceblog.org for more information and travel advice.  We look forward to seeing you in Birmingham in August!

Learn More and Stay Connected

• Visit the Conference News Blog: http://www.fgsconferenceblog.org
• Follow the Conference on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/fgs2012 and on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/fgs2012
• Greater Birmingham Convention & Visitors Bureau at http://www.birminghamal.org

FGS Radio Show Jan. 14

Be sure to tune in to FGS Radio tomorrow, Saturday, January 14, for some big news about the FGS Birmingham Conference. 2:00 EST, 1:00 p.m. CST, Noon MST, and 11:00 a.m, PST.

For more details on this episode of FGS My Society Radio:
http://voice.fgs.org/2012/01/fgs-radio-familysearch-research-wiki.html

You can listen on a variety of electronic devices and don't forget to sign in so you can join us in the chat room.

More reasons to visit The Magic City and Sweet Home Alabama

Here are some more of Liz Wells' 101 Reasons to Visit Birmingham (and Alabama)! Learn more about many of these via www.birminghamal.org/index.aspx

• Barber Vintage Sports Museum, the largest motorcycle museum in North America 
• The Birmingham Barons, an AA baseball farm team for the Chicago White Sox. 
• Birmingham Botanical Gardens, don’t miss the Japanese Gardens and Teahouse.
• Rickwood Field, completed in 1910 the oldest surviving baseball park in the US.
• Birmingham Civil Rights Institute - a museum and center for education and discussion about civil and human rights issues.
• Birmingham Museum of Art, the largest municipal art museum in the Southeast. 
• 5 Points South, a trendy district in Birmingham.    
• Oak Mountain State Park, outdoor recreation in 10,000 acres 30 minutes from downtown.
• The original Temptations and several of the Commodores hail from Alabama.
• The birthplace of Sara Mayfield, Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald, and Tallulah Bankhead -- all were childhood friends!
• Miss America 1995, Birmingham's Heather Whitestone, was the first Miss America with a disability.
• Fort Condé in Mobile was built (1724-1735), by the French and was the headquarters for the colonial governments of the French, British and Spanish, taken by Americans in 1813.

FGS 2012 Exhibit Hall Registration is open!

The Federation of Genealogical Societies is pleased to announce that 2012 Conference Exhibit Hall registrations are now open. If you would like to receive the Exhibit Hall registration information packet via email please contact the FGS Exhibit Hall Co-Chair, Pat Oxley, at: pat@theoxleys.com

Booth space is first come, first served and fills quickly. Cost is $219 per booth – or $199 for nonprofit groups and societies. Online signup will be available soon, but it’s being done by fax and snail mail at the moment. FGS Member Organizations will be receiving details on special space. But to sell publications or other items you need to have a regular Exhibit Hall booth.

FGS and the Alabama Genealogical Society look forward to seeing you in Birmingham from August 29 to September 1, 2012.

p.s. 1: The Exhibit Hall has free wireless

p.s. 2: The sessions and special events are all set and you will be hearing a lot about them in the next few weeks.

p.s. 3: rumor has it that the 16 page program brochure will be available at the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy later this month and at RootTech the first weekend in February. (Ok, so it's true, not just a rumor!)

A Birmingham Author: A True Southern Lady

Local Host Co-Chair Liz Wells wanted to share some details about a Birmingham author. I think one or more of this author's books would be a good Christmas gift idea!

Anne Carroll George was a Birmingham author who received the Agatha Award for her mystery series about two Southern sisters, and she was a former Alabama State Poet Laureate. She was nominated for a Pulitzer for her non-fiction writing. Anne George was a featured author at the Birmingham Public Library’s “Alabama Bound” forum featuring Alabama authors. I had the pleasure of being her escort when she came to the Library for the event. Anne George was intelligent, funny, articulate, and a kind individual. The world is a poorer place without her. She died in 2001. She is best known for her Southern Sisters Mysteries about two sisters in their sixties who manage to get themselves involved in one murder after another. The books are light reading, with humorous sketches of Patricia Anne, know to family as “Mouse”, and her sister, Mary Alice, know as Sister. Mouse, the retired school teacher, is a petite reserved person while Mary Alice, aka Sister, is tall, rich, impulsive and many times married.

The first book in the series was, Murder On A Girl’s Night Out, 1996.  Mary Alice buys a local dance bar and takes Mouse out to see it. Patricia Ann finds the country-western bar not as bad as she had thought it would be but that was before the previous owner was found murdered there the next day. The character development is well done and the dialogue entertaining. You do not have to be a native Alabamian to enjoy the book as the descriptive narrative is excellent.

The next book is, Murder on A Bad Hair Day, was also published in 1996. Anne George writes about Vulcan, the largest cast iron statue made, who stands “mooning” the city of Homewood as he stands atop Red Mountain. Many local landmarks are mentioned or described in her books. This time out the two sisters find themselves involved in two murders. The first murder is of a young owner of an art gallery where the sisters had been to an art show. Patricia Ann and Mary Alice pair up with Detective Bo Peep (yes, what a name for a detective) to solve the crimes.

The third book in the Southern Sisters series is titled Murder Runs in the Family. In this book Patricia Ann’s daughter gets married and one of the guests is a genealogist who quickly becomes a “new” friend of the sisters. The genealogist supposedly jumps out a window of the local courthouse committing suicide only it is really a murder. Once again the dialogue and the characters are just too funny. It is thoroughly entertaining.

Anne George’s fourth book was Murder Makes Waves, 1997 is set in Destin, Florida where the sisters have gone to the beach. Mary Alice is seeking her fourth husband while Patricia Ann just wants to relax. While at the beach the ladies meet an old friend, Millicent, who manages condominiums and then Millicent gets murdered. As usual you get a great description of the area and a lot of eccentric characters. The plot is not bad although it has a weak ending, but still the humor abounds.

The fifth book was titled, Murder Gets A Life, 1998. This time out it is the son of Mary Alice, Ray, who has met and married Sunshine Dabbs of Locust Fork, Alabama. Mary Alice thinks that she and her sister, Mouse, need to meet the family of the bride and that is when they find their first corpse. The characters, as usual, are quirky, and entertaining. George’s books are guaranteed to make you laugh.

Murder Shoots the Bull published in 199 is the sixth book in the series and it is just as funny and amusing as the previous books. In this book the next-door neighbor is suspected of killing his “girlfriend”, then of poising his first wife, and to add insult to injury his house burns down. Mitzi, Arthur’s wife, does not believe he is a murderer, nor do the sisters. Mary Alice hits the president of the bank on the head with her umbrella, which lands the sisters in jail. A must read.

Murder Carries a Torch, 2000 is the seventh book written about the sisters’ exploits. Patricia Anne and Mary Alice have just returned from Poland when their cousin, Luke comes to them seeking help. Virginia Luke’s wife, of forty years has run off with another man and he wants them to help him find her. They trace the runaways to Mount Chandler where they find two dead people but not Virginia or Monk. The local Sheriff and Sister are attracted to one another, which adds to the zany story plot. The sisters get involved with snake-handling holy rollers this time which adds to the cast of characters and the plot. This is another fun filled “murder” book.

Sadly this is the last book written by Anne Carroll George. Murder Boogies with Elvis, published in 2001. Mary Alice decides to marry Sheriff Virgil Stuckey and they plan to announce this to his children after a benefit that is taking place at the Alabama Theatre. There are 29 Elvis impersonators at the Alabama and wouldn’t you know one of them falls down dead at Sister’s feet. The dead man is not an Elvis impersonator at all he is a Russian ballet dancer who was in America on a cultural exchange program, so what is he doing in Birmingham, Alabama. Then the murder weapon is found in Patricia Anne’s purse. This is a truly funny series and would make a great film series. The characters are all well developed and quirky, and the dialogue is just right.

Go to the web site and read about Anne Carroll George. She was a true Southern Lady.
http://www.annegeorge.com/index2.htm

Dropping hints in December

There's lots of gift giving this time of year and it's often preceded by the question "what do you want for . ." and that is followed by Christmas, Kwanzaa, or maybe Chanukah. I have several things you could put on that list. Now you will be ready when your aunt, niece, spouse, partner, son or other relative asks what you want.

• If they belong to the same airline frequent-flyer program, tell them a gift of miles toward a airline ticket to Birmingham would be helpful.
• How about a cash gift that would help with a purchase in the FGS Exhibit Hall next August?
• A promise of paying for your conference registration when that opens in 2012. 
• A new suitcase or carry-on bag for the trip to Birmingham.
• A new cosmetic or toiletries bag for the trip.
• Planning on driving to the conference? A gift card or two for restaurants that are on your route. Usually this means a chain restaurant that is also in the area where your gift-giver lives.
• A gift card for a major gas chain so you can fill the gas tank for your trip to Birmingham. 
• A gift card for a shoe store so you can purchase a comfy pair to pack for the trip. 
• Later this week this blog will have details on some books about Birmingham. Just print that info out and attach to your list.

Let us know if you have some ideas to add to this list!

101 Reasons to Visit Alabama and Birmingham

Liz Wells, one of the local host co-chairs for the 2012 conference sent 101 reasons for those outside of Alabama to visit the state and especially Birmingham next August. No, I won't list all 101 in this post but will begin the list. You'll learn more as time goes on. I think she has convinced me already. She ended her email to me with“Ya’ll come!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

FACTS ABOUT ALABAMA
HIGHLIGHTING BIRMINGHAM ATTRACTIONS!

• Birthplace of many great athletes including Mia Mound of Rebound and Charles Barkley
• Visit the Alabama Theatre and “Big Bertha”, the mighty Wurlizer!  And the Alabama Walk of Fame.
• Talladega Superspeedway is the world's fastest speedway, & home to the National Association for Stock Car Racing (NASCAR)
• Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame in the historic Carver Theatre
• Fried Green Tomatoes --The book, the movie, and ESPECIALLY the food – Whistlestop Cafe
• Birthplace of W.C. Handy, father of the Blues, and the W.C. Handy Festival in Florence
• Barbecue in Birmingham
• University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB)–a world-renowned medical center and medical school
• Temple Beth-El and Temple Emanu-El, two historic synagogues in Birmingham
• Sloss Furnaces National Historic Landmark -- It is the largest preserved industrial plant of its kind in the world, and serves as studio space to many noted sculptors, holds classes, and is a great space for concerts and special events. [And a big conference event will be held here.]
• Arlington Antebellum Home and Gardens, a 1840s house in Birmingham that is older than the city itself.
• Lots of southern hospitality!  It’s no joke!

History, Genealogy, and Tourism

These are links to help you learn more about Birmingham and Alabama tourism, history and genealogy. If you live in Alabama have you already investigated all of these? Between now and next summer a variety of people will share more about historic sites and places to do research. These informative pieces will appear on this blog.

• Alabama Department of Archives and History:  http://www.archives.state.al.us/

• Alabama Genealogical Society (This site has many helpful links to other organizations): http://algensoc.org/

• Alabama Historical Association:  http://www.archives.state.al.us/aha/aha.html

• Alabama Internet Resources by subject:  http://www.archives.alabama.gov/teacher/netres.html

• Birmingham Historical Society : http://www.bhistorical.org/

• Birmingham History Center:  http://birminghamhistorycenter.org/

• Birmingham Public Library, Department of Archives & Manuscripts: http://www.birminghamarchives.org/Main.htm

• Encyclopedia of Alabama:  http://www.encyclopediaofalabama.org/face/Home.jsp

• Greater Birmingham Convention & Visitors Bureau:  http://www.birminghamal.org/index.aspx

• Alabama Tourism Department: Sweet Home Alabama:  http://www.800alabama.com/

• Jefferson County Historical Association: http://www.jeffcohistory.com/

Birmingham is an easy drive

If you are thinking about driving to the FGS 2012 conference, Birmingham is a very accessible city. Choose  interstate highways I-20, I-22, I-59, or I-65 to enter the metropolitan area. The states of Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, and Tennessee share borders with Alabama. How close is Birmingham to places where many genealogists live? That's an easy answer as many other places are with in a one day (or less) drive. One of my favorite websites for mapping my route and determining distances and driving times is Rand McNally's Mileage Calculator: http://www.randmcnally.com/mileage-calculator.do

Some estimated driving times to Birmingham from:

·    Mobile, Alabama               4 hours

·    Hot Springs, Arkansas      7 hours

·    Panama City, Florida        4.75 hours

·    Atlanta, Georgia               2.5 hours

·    Springfield, Illinois           9 hours

·    Evansville, Indiana           5.5 hours

·    Louisville, Kentucky         5.75 hours

·    New Orleans, Louisiana    5.5 hours

·    Jackson, Mississippi          3.75 hours

·    St. Louis, Missouri            8 hours

·    Raleigh, North Carolina    9 hours

·    Cincinnati, Ohio                7.5 hours

·    Nashville, Tennessee         3 hours

Follow FGS 2012 Conference on Facebook and Twitter

You can now follow all the latest FGS 2012 conference news on Facebook and Twitter!  Here's how to add both sites to your news channels:

• If you are already on Facebook, visit https://www.facebook.com/fgs2012 and make sure you click the Like button. This way all the latest FGS 2012 news will appear in your News Feed.

• Visit the FGS 2012 Twitter page at http://twitter.com/fgs2012 for information posted by the official conference twitter account. If you have a Twitter account, click the Follow button so that the latest conference tweets appear in your Twitter stream.
  

And as we get closer to the conference dates, look for other ways in which you can follow FGS 2012 on social media! And don't forget to visit http://www.fgs.org/2012conference/ for the complete FGS 2012 Conference program or to register and join us as we explore "Indians, Squatters, Settlers and Soldiers in the 'Old Southwest'"!

FGS 2012 Conference Hotel

The host hotel for the Birmingham conference is the Sheraton Birmingham Hotel. The main conference committee has already stayed at the hotel and pronounce it ready for the throngs of genealogists!

What are the neat things about this hotel for the 2012 FGS/AGS conference? It’s difficult to narrow all of them down to a few, but here goes:
1.    Newly renovated ($21 million cost) hotel with many amenities.
2.    FGS has arranged for complimentary wireless high speed Internet access in guest rooms!
3.    Pool and fitness center for keeping in shape.
4.    Redecorated guest rooms with flat screen TVs and Sheraton Sweet Sleeper™ Bed, “featuring a decadent duvet and pillow top mattress.”
5.    It’s conveniently connected to the Birmingham/Jefferson Convention Complex by a covered skyway.
6.    Conference luncheons will take place in the hotel.
7.    We have really good rates of $138.00 for single or double occupancy, $148.00 for triple, and $158.00 for quad occupancy. As usual, these are the prices without taxes added.

• These prices are good as early as arrivals on Wednesday, August 22 and departures as late as Wednesday, September 5th. That gives you time for research and sightseeing.

• To reserve your Sheraton hotel room visit http://www.starwoodmeeting.com/Book/fgs2012. This is a page dedicated to the FGS Conference.
  
• If you prefer to call to make your reservation, use (205) 324-5000 and tell the operator you wish to make reservations for the Federation of Genealogical Societies Conference. Code: 15680.

FGS 2012 Conference 29 August - 1 September

It's time to mark your pocket, wall, phone, iPad, Google, and whatever other calendar types you use with the 2012 FGS Conference dates. It will be held from 29 August - 1 September 2012 in Birmingham, Alabama. Just as for the 2011 conference, the evolving details will appear on this blog.