FGS Conference Online Registration Deadline

My poor blog has been a victim of my current schedule. Between client deadlines and co-chairing the FGS Conference that begins in less than two weeks in Fort Wayne, I have no extra time to write. It's going to be a great conference. The registration numbers are fantastic and don't forget that conference registrants can avail themselves of extended research hours at the Genealogy Center of the Allen County Public Library.

I do want to let my readers know that online registration for the FGS Conference ends on Wednesday, August 14. Click here to register and learn more about the conference.

Today, August 9, is the last day to register by regular mail.

You may still register at the door beginning Tuesday, August 20, at the Grand Wayne Convention Center in Fort Wayne. It will be a great educational and fun time.

Press Release on PERSI and periodicals digitization

Five days ago I blogged about a newspaper article discussing a project that would revolutionize our access to the Periodical Source Index (PERSI) and the articles that the index covered. Today I received the official press release about the project. I am excited about this. For many years I have promoted PERSI and all those wonderful periodicals from the past that hold valuable family history information, queries, indexes, bible abstracts, cemetery abstracts, and more. I will definitely be renewing my findmypast subscription! The Allen County Public Library is one of the local hosts for next month's Federation of Genealogical Societies genealogy conference in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Findmypast.com is a Platinum sponsor of that conference of which I am one of the co-chairs.

         

        

LOS ANGELES (July 19, 2013) – Findmypast.com, an international leader in online family history, today announced a partnership with the Allen County Public Library (ACPL) Genealogy Center to revolutionize the PERiodical Source Index (PERSI), the world’s largest and most widely used subject index for genealogy and local history literature. As part of the partnership, findmypast.com is enhancing PERSI, most notably by linking thousands of individual genealogical periodicals and resources to the index, allowing the original content to be accessed and connected digitally for the first time in the history of PERSI.

During the past 30 years, the ACPL Genealogy Center has created more than 2.5 million searchable records in PERSI, indexing every article from more than 8,000 different periodicals, including magazines, newsletters and journals, according to location, topic, surname, ethnicity and methodology. In the coming months, findmypast.com will launch the most complete version of PERSI online. Once launched, findmypast.com will work in tandem with the Genealogy Center to provide frequent updates to the collection as new entries are added.

PERSI has become an essential tool in helping genealogists and family historians locate valuable information, and this new partnership with findmypast.com will transform PERSI into an even more powerful resource.  Findmypast.com subscribers will be able to search and view digitized images of the articles, allowing unprecedented access to the information contained in these periodicals.

“We are proud to partner with The Genealogy Center of the Allen County Public Library to continue indexing and offering PERSI – an essential tool for genealogical research,” said D. Joshua Taylor, lead genealogist for findmypast.com. “This is an ideal partnership given findmypast.com’s expertise in digitizing records and Allen County Public Library’s continual dedication to adding new records to the index. We look forward to working together to once again revolutionize the way genealogy and local history literature is accessed.”

“Partnering with findmypast.com represents an exciting opportunity to grow PERSI into an extremely relevant twenty-first century discovery tool for genealogists worldwide,” said Curt Witcher, ACPL Genealogy Center manager. “Having the ability to provide much more frequent updates and link index entries to serial issues is a real game-changer, not only for genealogists and local historians but also for the librarians and archivists who serve them.”

The future of online search through this partnership aligns with findmypast.com’s Society Data Initiative, a joint project between the Federation of Genealogical Societies and findmypast.com to preserve, digitize and provide access to the rich resources created by family history, genealogical and historical societies over many decades.

PERSI, and each periodical to be linked over time, will be available across all international findmypast sites, to personal subscribers and library users.

Findmypast.com’s expertise at digitizing historical records and uniting communities provides the tools to help people connect with their past.

To learn more about findmypast.com or to get started on your own family history:

Findmypast.com’s expertise at digitizing historical records and uniting communities provides the tools to help people connect with their past.

To learn more about findmypast.com or to get started on your own family history:

·         Like findmypast on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/findmypastus

·         Follow findmypast on Twitter at https://twitter.com/findmypastus

·         Follow findmypast on Pinterest at http://pinterest.com/findmypastus/

 

Genealogy articles indexed in PERSI to be digitized?

I love visiting the Genealogy Center at the main Allen County Public Library in Fort Wayne, Indiana. My first visit there was in the early 1980s and I have been back there many times. One of the joys of researching there is accessing all those current, older and out-of-print genealogy and historical periodicals that are indexed in the Periodical Source Index (PERSI). This is not an every name index to all articles but a subject index.

For about a year I have known something was afoot about the future of this wonderful resource and now we know something about that. Today's Journal Gazette (Fort Wayne) has a story about the history of PERSI and that all those periodicals may be coming to a computer screen near us! Even better, the plan is to link the index to the actual article.

As the online article states, the index covers about 12,000 periodicals, some of which are no longer published. All hold genealogy gold. "The library’s collection is so big, the index now contains about 2.5 million citations, and ACPL adds about 100,000 more a year."

U.K. based brightsolid is behind this great project.

Read the full story here.

In the meantime, why not do some personal searching in all those periodicals while you attend this year's fantastic genealogy conference in Fort Wayne. I am co-chair of this Federation of Genealogical Societies August 21-24 event. Learn more and register at https://www.fgsconference.org/

FGS 2013 Genealogy Conference Registration Opens

A great way to start Monday! The FGS 2013 conference website is now ready for conference registrations.

It is easy to use. The FGS webmaster has designed a secure step-by-step system for us. This is the place to register now and save $50.00 off the full registration price. You may also purchase tickets for luncheons, special events, a paper syllabus (every registrant receives an electronic version), subscription to FGS

FGS 2013 Genealogy Conference Week

As one of the Co-Chairs of the Federation of Genealogical Societies August 2013 Conference, I am delighted to share an overview of the week with you. Please join your fellow family historians as we "Journey through Generations."

Monday, August 19

• Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center open 9 a.m.-9 p.m.

Tuesday, August 20

•  Librarian’s Day (all day)
• Q&A panel and genealogy consultations in the afternoon, 2-5 p.m.
• Onsite registration begins, 3-7 p.m. (additional hours each day – see conference website) 

FGS 2013 Conference Week Overview

Are you planning on attending the 2013 Federation of Genealogical Societies 2013 Conference this coming August? As one of the conference co-chairs, I am excited to share this 2013 FGS Conference Week Overview. The actual conference website debut is just days away. Be sure to check www.fgsconferenceblog,org for big announcements! The conference hotels are filling fast and details on those are on the blog.

Monday, August 19
∙    Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center open 9 a.m.-9 p.m.

Tuesday, August 20
∙    Librarian’s Day (all day)
∙    Q&A panel and genealogy consultations in the afternoon, 2-5 p.m.
∙    Onsite registration begins, 3-7 p.m. (additional hours each day – see conference website)
∙    Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center open 9 a.m.-9 p.m.

Wednesday, August 21 (Focus on Societies Day)
∙    Plenary session
∙    Lecture sessions all day (27 sessions + 1 workshop)
∙    FGS Opening Social Evening sponsored by findmypast.com
∙    Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center open 9 a.m.-Midnight (extended hours!)

Thursday, August 22
∙    Keynote session
∙    Grand opening of Exhibit Hall
∙    Lecture sessions all day (31 sessions + 2 workshops)
∙    Vendor Demonstrations
∙    GenSpiration Sessions
∙    3 luncheons
∙    Extended Exhibit Hall hours until 7:30 p.m. (with door prizes!)
∙    Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center open 7 a.m.-Midnight (extended hours!)

Friday, August 23
∙    Lecture sessions all day (47 sessions + 2 workshops)
∙    Vendor Demonstrations
∙    GenSpiration Sessions
∙    3 luncheons
∙    “Journey Through the Generations with Our Veterans” local host societies evening event at the Allen County Public Library sponsored by FamilySearch
∙    Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center open 7 a.m.-Midnight (extended hours!)

Saturday, August 24
∙    Lecture sessions all day (47 sessions + 2 workshops)
∙    Vendor Demonstrations
∙    GenSpiration Sessions
∙    3 luncheons
∙    Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center open 7 a.m.-6 p.m. (extended a.m. hours!)

Sunday, August 25
∙    Farewell Brunch 9-11 a.m. (with door prizes!)

Genealogy library electronic news

These are three examples of helpful electronic publications from libraries that have extensive genealogical research collections. I have researched in all three libraries and highly recommend them and their publications.

• Mid-Continent Public Library, Independence, Missouri:   http://www.mymcpl.org/genealogy/news-bytes-newsletter
   
• Newberry Library, Chicago, Illinois: http://www.newberry.org/genealogy/news/
   
• Allen County Public Library, Genealogy Center:  http://www.genealogycenter.org/Community/E-zine.aspx

Preserving the records related to military service.

State archives and historical societies as well as the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration house many older records of military service, bounty land awards, and pension records. These often hold a wealth of family details including birthplaces, marriage date and place, places of residence, and many other important pieces of information. In a future posting I will cover some of the wonderful military materials found at the Minnesota Historical Society.

In today's Genealogy Gems (No. 75, May 31, 2010, Allen County Public Library, Fort Wayne, Indiana) Curt Witcher talks about preserving such records.

Libraries Hit YouTube

I can't wait to go upstairs and tell my 14 year old granddaughter that genealogy has hit YouTube. I am sure she will be impressed.

The Allen County Public Library in Fort Wayne, Indiana has a YouTube video tour of the new library and its resources. I saw many familiar faces on that video. The ACPL was the host for the Federation of Genealogical Societies' Conference in 2007.Click here to watch the video.

In the same vein of genealogy conferences and new libraries, the Mid-Continent Public Library in Independence, Missouri will be hosting a reception during the National Genealogical Society Conference in May, 2008. The Mid-Continent Public Library Genealogy Center is building a new home that is scheduled to open in May. The video talks about that expansion and the resources of the library.

Back from Fort Wayne plus future conference dates

I arrived back in Minnesota on Wednesday evening. I stayed after the FGS conference ended to research at the Allen County Public Library's "new" Genealogy Center. What a great place. At the conference, I ran into a lot of genealogy friends from all over -- including some fellow Minnesotans. I talked with 3 women who were from Illinois and Indiana -- had not seen them in years and years.

This is an update on the 2008 and 2009 national level conferences so that you can add the dates to your future planning calendar.

Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS) http://www.fgs.org/
2008: September 3-6, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2009: September 2-5, Little Rock, Arkansas

National Genealogical Society (NGS) http://www.ngsgenealogy.org/
2008: May 14-17, Kansas City, Missouri
2009: May 13-16, Raleigh, North Carolina

PERSI and Fort Wayne

Have you used PERSI? That is the Periodical Source Index compiled by the staff at the Allen County Public Library's Genealogy Center. It is a subject index (almost 2 million entries) to more than 10,000 genealogical and historical periodicals published in English and French.

While in Fort Wayne, Indiana in two weeks I plan to spend considerable time in the periodicals section of the Allen County Public Library’s Genealogy Center.

All. ALL. Every one. All issues. Yep, every item indexed in PERSI is from a periodical housed at the ACPL. When I was there in April, I walked past bookshelf after bookshelf of these periodicals. I didn’t have time to concentrate on the actual articles then – but I do when I return there in two weeks. I am bringing along my digital camera to capture images that I need to save.

Ancestry.com and the August FGS/ACPL Conference

Thinking about attending the August 15-18, 2007 Genealogy Conference sponsored by the Federation of Genealogical Societies and the Allen County Public Library? Four full days of genealogical education, luncheons with interesting speakers, extended hours access to the renowned Genealogy Center at the ACPL, a large exhibit area of genealogical and historical vendors, and non-stop opportunities for networking with fellow genealogists and asking questions of the speakers and vendors, and now one more big reason to attend.

The exhibit area will be open to everyone (registrant or not) on Thursday through Saturday. Ancestry.com is sponsoring a live computer lab at its huge space in the exhibit hall. This will be the place to see live class type demos that will help you use Ancestry.com, Family Tree Maker, and Ancestry publications. Each session is repeated several times so that you won't have to miss those lectures that are musts on your schedule. For a full Ancestry line-up see:

http://blogs.ancestry.com/circle/index.php?paged=2


To register for the conference, check out the lectures and speakers, see the lineup of meal events (complete with menus,) and learn about lodging visit http://www.fgsconference.org/