The In-Depth Genealogist a digital community for all genealogists

Of the many sessions offered during the course of the week at the NGS 2013 Family History Conference; several focused on the western states and resources available to those of us on “this side” of the Mississippi. One such presentation was given today, entitled “The Civil War in the American West,” with Rick Sayre, CG, CGL. (Find more information on the presenter: APG Profile) (For those of you with access to the conference syllabus, you can find this session on page 141.) During the war, the Trans-Mississippi West theatre’s primary operations were in Missouri, Indian Territory, and New Mexico. Although the duration of the lecture was very interesting, one effort made by Mr. Sayre caught my attention; and that was providing numerous references to attendees for further reading. His bibliography included twenty-two sources. Some of those included: (Brown, Dee Alexander. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1963.) . (Josephy, Alvin M. New York; A.A. Knopf, 1991.) . (McPhersoon, James M. New York: Oxford University Press, 1988.) . (Wagner, Margaret E., Gary W. Gallagher, and Paul Finkelman. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2002.) Other interesting titles that were mentioned, but not provided in the bibliography included: . (Pittman, Dr. Walter Earl. The History Press, 2011.) . (Cottrell, Steve. Pelican Publishing, 1995.) One of the many tools provided for research of this nature was the concept of how to approach your search. Mr. Sayre suggested understanding, in this order: The war. Utilizing general resources for understanding the war, the political and social climate of the time. The organization. Look to The Library of Congress Civil War Desk Reference (see above) for a broad overview of how the two sides of the conflict were internally organized and managed their forces. The records. As the vast majority of records are held within the National Archives ... Read More »

There is incredible value in traditional conference sessions. The person chosen to speak on a topic stands in the front of the room, gives the audience a pre-planned, rehearsed presentation. The audience in turn listens attentively, takes notes, makes a valiant attempt to suck in as much as possible of the information that speaker is providing. But there is another, just as valuable option. There are many conferences around the world – not necessarily genealogy conferences – do it very well. It’s called un-conferencing, and it can take many forms. Sitting here in the airport waiting for my flight, I do not believe that the NGS 2013 Family History Conference in Las Vegas has any un-conference events on the official schedule. However…. There are several events that are taking place in the exhibit hall, the internet café, and other sites around the conference center that have been able to partner with the team at NGS to utilize this event to showcase their products, collaborative projects and educational opportunities, and much more. The team at The In-Depth Genealogist is incredibly excited to be leading one such event: #genchat LIVE! from NGS 2013! We are grateful to the Conference Committee and to the incredible generosity of sponsors Findmypast and FamilySearch for the complimentary internet service; allowing us to make all of this possible. In the exhibit hall, there is one group of people we know of specifically that are bringing this un-conferencing experience to their booth. Pentandra is providing what appear to be extremely comfy red chairs for many of us to take advantage of. They are planning a series of scheduled conversations, on a variety of topics, and are hoping to create an engaging and dynamic space for people to share, collaborate and generally come together during the conference. Instead of ... Read More »

There has been some chatter in the last day or two on various social media platforms about the benefits of not being an “Official Blogger” for a genealogy conference.  I have seen it more than once, and my mind splits in two directions. The first is simply that bloggers – official or not – can contribute a great deal to the conference experience, and the second is about change. I’ll get to that in a minute. Why? Why did the IDG team want to be Official Bloggers at NGS 2013 in Las Vegas? Well, it’s pretty simple. Look at our mission statement: “The In-Depth Genealogist is a digital community that contributes to the advancement of all genealogists.” That should really say it all. I’ll go ahead and spell it out anyway. We are here for all genealogists. We just feel that everybody interested in this field, no matter the reason behind that desire, should have the opportunity to learn about something they are passionate about. That’s it. The best way for us to make sure that happens during an event like this is to talk about it. Sure, we could have done that without being “official,” but to be honest, the support of the National Genealogical Society was important to us. Having the NGS recognize our site, our blog, our contributing authors as valid and significant; that means something to us. It’s a pat on the back, a little shout out. Yes, that’s important to us. We absolutely want the genealogical community to embrace our little part of it. Of course we do. The other valuable piece that has come out of this process is one that was developed well after our being chosen as official bloggers. We posted it last week: we want you, our readers, to tell us ... Read More »

It’s nearly time! The team at The In-Depth Genealogist has been working hard to make sure we gain as much as we can from the NGS 2013 Family History Conference in Las Vegas. One of our goals is to provide you – our readers – with the best possible stay at home experience. Read More »

Pretty soon we’ll be heading out to Las Vegas for the NGS 2013 Family History Conference. I gotta’ be honest, this is my first national genealogy conference. The excitement level for me is quite high. Add to that, I’m a planner. I like lists. In fact, my husband calls me “The Lister.” I should have a cape to go with that; it’s a title I carry proudly. So, my tendencies toward a Type-A personality get the best of me, and I’ve already started working on my “what to pack” list. Read More »