Back From Charleston, SC

I spent most of most of last week in Charleston, SC at the National Genealogical Society Conference. I am now back home and trying to assimilate all that I learned and put my new knowledge is some type of order so that I can begin to use it.

During the opening session we heard from Buzzy Jackson who wrote Shaking the Family Tree: Blue Bloods, Black Sheep and Other Obsessions of an Accidental Genealogist. I had read Buzzy’s book when it first came out, so I found it interesting to hear her talk about how the idea for the book came about and her thoughts on writing it. She really caught my attention with her “take away” message: If you wait until your family tree is complete, you will never get it written down. We (I) need to write it down now, even if it is a family snapshot and not a formal portrait.

I attended a variety of lectures during the four days of the conference. Here is just a sampling:

• Finding Newspapers using Online Resources by Barbara Renick

• When Sources Don’t Agree, The What? By Thomas Jones

• Analyzing Deeds and Wills: I See What It Says, but What Does It Mean? By Elizabeth Shown Mills

• Reporting the Facts: Record as You Go by Pamela Boyer Sayre

• Back to the Future: Finding Your Past in the Present Through Descendancy Research by Tim Bingaman

This is only a small sampling of the many lectures I attended. I tried to choose a variety of lectures that would improve my research skills as well as my reporting skills. In between the lectures I happily browsed the exhibit/vendor hall exploring a multitude of books and products.

Each evening I returned to my hotel intent on reviewing my notes of the day and blogging my experiences at NGS. Alas, the best plans go awry sometimes. Blogger was down for several days preventing any posting, and well, as to reviewing my notes. I did do that, and then went to bed  a little cross-eyed.