The World Series

Twenty years ago this week I sat in the stands at the Metrodome in Minneapolis and watched the Minnesota Twins win the World Series. The Twins beat the St. Louis Cardinals 4 games to 3. In that twenty years, I have met some wonderful friends in St. Louis, but that win was so exciting that I just can't apologize to all of you! In 1987, my daughter worked security for the Twins and had the opportunity to purchase tickets. We jumped at the chance, even thought the seats were wayyyyyy up there in the stands. Katie had a better view for part of the Series -- from her job vantage point at the edge of the bullpen. I may have to dig out my Twins sweatshirt from 1987!

I have been a baseball fan since the early 1960s when the Washington Senators moved to Minnesota and became the Minnesota Twins. With no brothers, my sisters and I learned to love the games our father loved.

Tonight I watched the Boston Red Sox win over the Colorado Rockies, 13-1. A genealogy colleague in Boston, Josh Taylor, sent me a message that as he sat in his Boston apartment, he could hear the fans cheering when the Sox scored runs.

California Libraries and the Fires

I have heard from some friends and relatives in Southern California that they are safe from the devasting fires at this point. I still worry about others and their families. The images of burned homes and businesses are sobering. In the past few days, The California State Library Blog postings have included updates on library closings for safety in regard to the fires.

Save $25.00 on the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy

If you register by October 30th, you will save $25.00 on the fees for the January 7-11, 2008 Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy. You may still register after October 30th, but that will be at the regular price. Check the Utah Genealogical Society's website for more details and for on-line registration. Thanks to Judi Hansen, Registrar of the SLIG for this reminder.

A great week in Arkansas

I am writing this from Little Rock, Arkansas while attending the Arkansas Genealogical Society’s Seminar. Yes, attending and not speaking. Last night, Carolyn Earle Billingsley, PhD. presented two thought provoking lectures and today Sharon Tate Moody, CG, presented a full day of lectures related to legal research. Tonight my mind is whirling from all the wonderful and clearly presented information from these two women. My other purpose for being in Little Rock was to attend meetings related to a genealogical conference.

In 2009 (September 2-5), the Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS) annual conference will be hosted by the Arkansas Genealogical Society (AGS) in Little Rock. This past week several of the national level committee chairs from FGS for that conference had a joint meeting with AGS representatives as well as Arkansas, Little Rock, and North Little Rock representatives with historical connections. It was a comfortable meeting (of course, very businesslike ) but we had some fun too. I felt that we all were "on the same page" and I felt very welcome. We also were privileged to tour the great host hotel and the convention center.

Of course I explained to the local group why a Minnesotan made sense as a National Publicity Co-Chair for the 2009 conference – my late father-in-law was born in Arkansas and once that genealogy bug hit, our family made multiple trips to beautiful Arkansas. Tomorrow I will visit Johnson County where he was born. The next trip to Arkansas will be less sightseeing and more family research for my children and grandchildren.

Do put the Arkansas dates on your calendar BUT before that be sure to plan for the 2008 FGS Conference in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, September 3-6. Keep watching the website for that conference and the conference blog for the evolving details of the 2008 event. As I said in a previous post on this blog, some unique aspects are being planned for the Philadelphia conference.

New Blog for the 2008 Federation of Genealogical Societies' Philadelphia Conference

The next FGS Conference will take place from September 3-6, 2008 in historic Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This four day "Footprints of Family History" educational conference honors the host city as the place where the ancestors of millions of Americans first set foot on the continent. Family historians like to keep up with additional news and details about the annual FGS Conferences. The 2008 conference committee has a blog as one way of providing that information.

It is easy to join in on the knowledge – just go to http://www.fgs.org/ and click on Blog or go directly to the Blog at www.fgsconference.org/blog. Check back often to see the frequent news, updates, program announcements, vendor details, and more that will be provided by the dedicated volunteers of the conference committee and others in the genealogical, archival, and historical communities. Why not add the site to your Favorites or Bookmark it for easy access!

Please feel free to share this notice with fellow genealogists, editors, bloggers, librarians, historians, archivists, and anyone you think might be interested in this educational and fun conference in such an historic city.

Where is she now?

I think I need a featured spot on the Today show similar to the Where in the World is Matt Lauer? Somehow, I doubt that the show's producers and the viewing audience would care where I am!

This past Saturday I presented an all-day seminar for the Tennessee Genealogical Society in Germantown, Tennessee, a suburb of Memphis. TnGen has a wonderful separate library in conjunction with the supportive community officials of Germantown. What a nice example for other places! I had a tour of this large and nicely lit space which also has space for classes. The genealogy library has books and other materials for many states other than Tennessee. Dick Eastman talked about this genealogy library opening a year ago. The TnGen website has a neat virtual tour of the library.

On Friday evening the society had a banquet and I was privileged to meet Germantown Mayor Sharon Goldsworthy and her husband, Jim. We had a wonderful time talking to each other. Jim is a Duluth, Minnesota native and Sharon lived in Duluth for a while.

Columbus Day? Warning: Soapbox Ahead

What day did you celebrate yesterday? More than likely it was Columbus Day. I celebrated Native American Day, too. I am thrilled that my ancestors immigrated to the United States, but we must not forget that the ancestors of many other people were already here! Indian tribes spanned the country and kept being forced further westward by the later arrivals to this land. I have always groaned when reading histories that expound on how the Indians were given land for their reservation two or even eight states away. Much of this land was theirs to begin with and more importantly the land "given" to them by the U.S. government was often not farmable. I read one bit of official correspondence that discussed how some land was being eroded by the river and basically the Indian family was told "tough."

South Dakota has declared a specific Native American Day the last week in September. Other areas celebrate Native American Day on various dates, but some do observe it on what others call Columbus Day. Let's not forget the original settlers of what was to become the United States, Canada, and other areas.

Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy 2008

I hope you already know about the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy. The 2008 edition takes place from January 7-11 in Salt Lake City, of course. The unique aspect of this institute is the immediate access to the Family History Library. Student can immediately apply what they have learned. Classes are five days long and ample time is provided for research at the FHL.

Students choose from ten courses and remain in that same course for the week. The 2008 courses include courses on Western U.S. research, problem solving, writing family histories, Welsh and Scandinavian research. I have been teaching and coordinating at SLIG since the mid 1990s. This year I am once again coordinating Course I American Records and Research: Focusing on Families.

This intermediate level course assists researchers in learning about and using sources and methods. The 2008 classes focus on topics related to researching families and individuals. Sixteen informative classroom hours on significant U.S. records and strategies take you beyond basic research tools. In addition, for this course, six hours of in-person help in the Family History Library during the Institute week provides hands-on assistance. Three of the instructors provide this valuable guidance. This course alternates every other year with another Institute course with resources related more directly to localities.

For more info on the institute, other courses, special evening classes, and to register, visit the Utah Genealogical Association's website.

October 4th is a special day in my family

Sixty years ago today my parents were married. That's right -- 60 years ago. Both of them are still alive. Dad is 88 and Mom is 81. Their celebration was quiet today since my Mom is afflicted with Alzheimer's. I looked for weeks to find just the right 60th Anniversary card. In the end I bought a blank card and wrote my own message from the heart. I was born 9 months and 4 days after their wedding. My middle sister often reminds the entire family that she was the planned one -- not me.