ICAPGen 2012 Conference: Becoming an Excellent Genealogist

I received the following announcement from my friends at the International Commission for the Accreditation of Professional Genealogists.


Registration is now open for the 2012 ICAPGen Conference: Becoming an Excellent Genealogist, presented by the International Commission for the Accreditation of Professional Genealogists and the BYU Center for Family History and Genealogy. This conference is gearing up to be one of ICAPGen's best conferences ever! You won't want to miss this event. 

The conference will be held October 19-20, 2012 at the Ernest L. Wilkinson Center, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah. The schedule features 60 different classes in six tracks:


•Preparing for Accreditation
•Resources for Professionals
•Skills and Methodology
•International
•U.S. Regional
•Technology and the Internet

Full conference registration includes a very nice luncheon on Friday and Saturday. We also invite you to attend ICAPGen's Gala Banquet on Friday evening at 6:00 p.m.

For more information about the conference and/or to register, please visit 
http://www.icapgen.org/icapgen/events.

Back to School, Back to Blogging

I had a great summer traveling with my family. We went West to California and Utah for family reunions and fun with cousins. Now that we have returned from four weeks away from home my kids are back in school and I am back to working on the ProGen Study Program, my BCG portfolio, preparing presentations to give at genealogy conferences this fall, and updating my education blog.

While I was in Utah I hosted a gathering of descendants from my third great grandmother, Mary Lawson Kirkman Hulet Cook. This meeting was specifically for those interested in family history and it was lots of fun to meet new cousins and honor this great lady. We shared stories, photographs and contact information so we can continue to share our research findings with each other. 

I have lots of plans and topics I would like to cover on this blog, but I also have a five month old baby so I will write articles as I am able (perhaps during nap time). I will continue to post information on genealogy conferences, institutes, courses, webinars, and other online educational resources. 

Angela

Advanced Library Research Course at IGHR

As part of my continuing series of guest authors reviewing courses at different genealogical institutes, Laurel Baty, CG writes about the Advanced Library Research course at Samford University's Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research. This course is scheduled every other year, so will be available again in 2014.

 Advanced Library Research:

 Law Libraries & Government Documents

You’ve found your family in the census, searched for probate and deed records, read the neighborhood newspapers, and located any applicable military records. Are you ready to write your family history, sure that you have mined all available sources? Well you might first explore the records that exist in government documents and law libraries! The class Advanced Library Research: Law Libraries & Government Documents will provide you with the skills you need to explore these under-utilized records.

This class challenges you to determine who in your family interacted with the federal, state, and local government. If you have not yet explored government documents and published court cases you will be surprised to find how many of your ancestors left records hidden among the vast published records of the courts and government. During the one week course I located:

·         The appointment of my husband’s grandparents as postmaster of a small South Dakota town 
·         A case appealed to the Georgia State Supreme Court by my  paternal 2^nd great grandmother 
·         A private act of the State of Georgia created to settle the estate of my paternal 3^rd great   
             grandfather 
·         A case appealed to the Alabama Supreme Court by my maternal 2^nd great grandmother 
·         A case appealed to the United States Supreme Court by my maternal 2^nd great granduncle 
·         A case appealed to the Mississippi Supreme Court by my maternal 3^rd great grandfather

Thanks to access to an expensive online database normally available only at law schools, but provided to the students of the Advanced Law Library class through June 30, I am still searching! I highly recommend this class, offered in alternate years at IGHR. One of the course coordinators, Ann Carter Fleming, announced her retirement at the Thursday night banquet but I am sure the course will continue under the able leadership of Benjamin B. Spratling and the talented team of lecturers for the course: Claire Mire Bettag, Kay Haviland Freilich, Ruth Ann Abels Hager, Brenda Jones, and Patricia Walls Stamm. 

Laurel Baty, CG^SM

laurelbaty@comcast.net

New Course on Genetic Genealogy

I am excited about this new course from NGS. Here is the press release with all the details:

NGS Announces New Course by Dr. Thomas H. Shawker:

Genetic Genealogy, The Basics.

The National Genealogical Society proudly announces the release of its newest American Genealogy Studies course, Genetic Genealogy, The Basics, developed by Dr. Thomas H. Shawker.

Thomas H. Shawker, MD, is a physician with the National Institutes of Health, a nationally recognized lecturer on genetics, and chairman of the NGS Genetic Genealogy Committee. In 2004 he authored the NGS book, Unlocking Your Genetic History.

Now, Dr. Shawker shares his medical expertise in the six-lesson self-paced course Genetic Genealogy, the Basics. Topics covered in the course include:

• the structure of the DNA molecule, how it is organized, how it replicates, and how it functions;
• human chromosomes and how the Y chromosome is inherited;
• the two types of DNA markers used in genetic genealogy;
• haplotypes and haplogroups;
• evaluation of a Y chromosome surname project and a discussion on how to evaluate the test results of the participants; and
• the structure of the mitochondrial DNA molecule, how it is inherited, and how it can be used in genealogy. 

The course is designed for independent study. Students check their work with an answer key that immediately follows each self-test. Genetic Genealogy, The Basics is available on a PC- or MAC-compatible CD in a PDF format. The tuition is $45.00 for members and $70.00 for non-members. For further information, or to purchase the course, visit the NGS website at http://www.ngsgenealogy.org and click on the Educational Courses tab.

Please visit the course web page at http://www.ngsgenealogy.org/cs/genetic_genealogy for more information.

NGS American Genealogy Studies courses are designed for both beginners and established genealogists who want the convenience of completing their genealogical studies at their own pace in their own home.

Other available courses include:

•          American Genealogy: Home Study Course

•          Using Federal Population Census Schedules in Genealogical Research

•          Introduction to Civil War Research

•          Introduction to Religious Records

•          Social Security Sleuthing

•          Special Federal Census Schedules

•          Transcribing, Extracting, and Abstracting Genealogical Records

•          Working with Deeds

Founded in 1903, the National Genealogical Society is dedicated to genealogy education, high research standards, and the preservation of genealogical records. The Arlington, Virginia-based nonprofit is the premier national society for everyone, from the beginner to the most advanced family historian, seeking excellence in publications, educational offerings, research guidance, and opportunities to interact with other genealogists. 

Research in the Midwestern Course at SLIG

Continuing the series of posts by guest authors reviewing courses at genealogy institutes, LeRoy Atkins shares his perspective on the Research in the Midwestern United States at the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy.

If you have never taken a course coordinated by Kory Meyerink, don't miss "Research in the Midwestern United States." The 2012 guest instructors included Jill Crandall, Luana Darby, Russ Lynch, Debra Mieszala, Gordon Remmington, Paula Stuart-Warren, Kelly Summers, and Linda Turner. All of them are well qualified, interesting people. 

The course is content rich. You will be exposed to many new sources specific to the eight Midwestern states. Millions of people passed through, created records, and/or lived in the Midwest. (The strategy for the area is also useful in the Great Plains states.) In addition classes include methodology applicable to the Midwest and to genealogy in general. 

Subjects include:

•        Migration
•        Religious and Ethnic Groups
•       Immigrant Origins
•        Finding Aids
•        Local Histories
•        Biographies
•        State Census Records
•        Cemetery Searching in the Midwest
•        19th Century Passenger Lists
•        Public Domain and Local Land Records
•        State and Local Vital Records
•        Church Records
•         Manuscript Collections in the Midwest
•         Midwestern Archives
•         Internet Sources for the Midwest
•        Newspaper Research
•        Big City Research

Maximize the value of the course. Come prepared with a research plan to answer a specific genealogical question about a Midwest ancestor. The course has no specific homework assignment. Use your evenings to implement the practical knowledge taught in "Research in the Midwest..." You should be able to supplement your research plan, and find answers to your questions. If you elect to do so you may submit your problem for recommendations from your classmates during one of the sessions. Kory is a very sharing and helpful coach and teacher.

One of the final sessions included an interactive case study. It started with a pedigree chart, limited known information, and a goal to learn details to extend the pedigree. That class demonstrated a practical application of the methodology covered during the week. 

If you have ancestors that lived in the Midwest, or will assist others who do, I recommend this course.

A. LeRoy Atkins

A. LeRoy Atkins earned a B.S. in Accounting at Brigham Young University. He is a retired local government auditor and print executive. He began doing genealogy work in 1957. Currently he volunteers at the Mesa (Arizona) Family Search Library. He may be contacted at Lmatkins@cox.net.

My "Genea-bucket List"

I think for the first time ever I will participate in Randy Seaver's Saturday Night Genealogy Fun. I am usually busy with family on Saturday's but I saw his blog posting on Facebook and decided I liked the topic. Randy posted his "genea-bucket list" and I decided to do my own.

Randy's instructions are on his blog, but the main idea is to answer:

What is on your Genealogy Bucket List?  What research locations do you want to visit? What do you want to accomplish with your genealogy research?  List a minimum of three items - more if you want!

Here is my list:

1. Become a certified genealogist through the Board for Certification of Genealogy.

2. Visit the towns and parishes of my ancestors' homelands in England, Denmark and Sweden.

3. Write up the history of my ancestors in a fully documented format, one line at a time. This I will share with my family, including distant cousins I have found who share my interest, and the libraries and historical societies in the locations my ancestors lived.

These would be on my "genea-bucket list" if I had not already completed them:

1. Complete the Advanced Methodology and Evidence Analysis course at the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research taught by Elizabeth Shown Mills. (completed June 2010)

2. Give a genealogy lecture at a national conference. (completed May 2012 at NGS in Cincinnati)

British Institute: Advanced Methodology for Irish Research

This post is part of my continuing series of guest authors sharing their perspective on different courses at genealogy institutes. This one features Laurel Baty, CG writing about a course at the British Institute held each October in Salt Lake City, Utah.

A Unique Course: Advanced Methodology for Irish Research Taught by David E. Rencher

My first experience with Genealogy Institutes was in October 2007 when I attended David Rencher’s class, Irish Research: Sources and Methods for Research in Ireland, at the annual British Institute in Salt Lake City. I was a novice to Irish genealogy and learned so much during that first class and had a wonderful experience. I have attended the British Institute annually since 2007 and enjoyed every class I have taken. The British Institute, sponsored by the International Society for British Genealogy and Family History [ISBGFH], offers a unique format: lectures in the morning with instructor consultations and guided research in the afternoon at the Family History Library. Where else can you learn about records in the morning and have hands on research in the same records in the afternoon? The instructor consultations are a wonderful addition to the classes.

At the British Institute in 2011 I attended Advanced Methodology for Irish Research taught by David E. Rencher which will also be offered in October of 2012. I highly recommend this unique class. The other Irish classes I have taken from David Rencher were about the records of Ireland and how to locate them [Governmental Records of Ireland in 2009 and Making the Transition from Irish Church Records to Irish Land Records in 2010]. The Advanced Methodology class taught us what to do with the records once we found them and how to utilize Irish records to solve genealogical problems.

Each day was organized around a broad topic, with multiple lectures each day:

·         Monday: Strategies for a Sound Beginning

·         Tuesday: Strategy and Methods to Sharpen Your Skills

·         Wednesday: Research Methodologies for Catholic Research

·         Thursday: Strategies for Scots-Irish Research

·         Friday: Strategies for Church of Ireland Research

After a morning packed with lectures we headed off to the Family History Library in the afternoon to test our new found knowledge and consult individually with David Rencher, a world renowned expert in Irish genealogy who also happens to be the Chief Genealogical Officer of Family Search! The consultation is worth the cost of the class! Make sure to bring your Irish research problem—you may topple a few brick walls.

David’s classes at the British Institute inspired me to take three research trips to Northern Ireland and plunge into Irish research. His classes also started me on the road to certification by the Board for Certification of Genealogists. David will offer the class in 2012 with some changes. Visit the ISBGFH webpage to read the course description: http://www.isbgfh.org/cpage.php?pt=7

 

I will be attending Tom Jones’ class, From Simple to Complex: Applying Genealogy’s Standard of Proof to Your Work, offered for the first time at the British Institute in 2012:. There is currently space available in both classes as well as the two other classes being taught this year:

·         British Military, Its Regiments and Records taught by John Kitzmiller, II

·         Records and Strategies for Beginning English Research taught by Judy Jones.

Laurel Baty, CG^SM

laurelbaty@comcast.net