Friday, February 19, 2010

Mark Your Calendars - FxGS Annual Conference & Genealogy Expo


The Fairfax Genealogical Society in Fairfax, VA, is holding its Annual Conference this March.
It is always an exceptional event & well worth attending.

Fairfax Genealogical Society

Reserve 26 and 27 March 2010 for our annual conference, 
Where Did I Come From, Where Am I Going?
at the Marriott Fairfax Hotel at Fair Oaks Mall.

Friday begins with individual 20 minute consultations with our speakers from 4:30-8:30 pm. Sign up early for these as there are a limited number of them, especially those with the Friday evening speakers. Note there an additional fee for this one-to-one consultation.
Friday evening has an advance workshop on ‘Developing an Evidence Orientation’ with renowned Certified Genealogist Tom Jones from 5:00 to 6:30pm. Following this is a session with Audrey Collins, celebrated researcher and lecturer from England. She will discuss ‘What is Britain’ from 7:30-8:30pm.

Saturday begins at 8:00 am when both the registration tables and the exhibit hall open. The first lecture begins at 9:00 am and the last ends at 4:30 pm. Lunch will be available in the hotel restaurant or in Fair Oaks Mall.

As usual, you will have a difficult time choosing which of the four concurrent tracks to attend. Of course, you can mix and match lectures from any of the tracks.

Track 1, Basic Research Techniques, by local expert Sharon Hodges, is designed for new (and not so new) genealogists. Sharon will present the sometimes involved concepts of genealogy in everyday terms so you can feel confident about starting or continuing your search.

If your research has you ready to jump the pond to Liverpool, either physically or figuratively, Track 2, Research in England, will teach you how to conduct research your English roots whether it is from home in the United States or on site in England. Learn about English research from a native as British National Archives expert Audrey Collins makes a special trip to visit us from her home in London. Be sure to attend her Friday evening session on ‘What is Britain’ even if you are attending other sessions on Saturday.

Track 3, Mid Atlantic Colonial Research is for you if you have done some research and need to learn the differences (and there are many significant ones) between colonial and later US records from one of our favorite speakers. You will definitely feel ready to tackle your colonial research after attending Certified Genealogist Chuck Mason’s sessions.

Advanced researchers will benefit from acclaimed lecturer and Certified Genealogist Tom Jones’ Advanced Workshops in Track 4. Register early for these workshops as we may have to limit attendance due to an expected high demand. Note that there is a slight additional charge for each one ($10 each or all three for $25) for additional material that will not be in the syllabus. Don’t forget one of them is on Friday evening.

Lunch Time Mini-Lectures on Ancestry.com’s World Archives Project and Family Search’s Indexing Project with professional genealogist Jennifer Dondero. Take a break at lunch and learn how these important indexing projects by two of the leading genealogical information providers will benefit your research and how you can participate in them from the comfort of your home.

The Exhibit Hall will open at the same time as registration, 8:00am on Saturday, so between the lectures and during an extended lunch period you’ll have plenty of time to visit our vendors. We are just beginning to sign them up but expect several returnees, including major book dealers.
Door Prizes will be available from several vendors at their tables and also at a separate display for prizes donated by supporters unable to attend. There will be plenty of prizes and opportunities to win. As in the past, you’ll have plenty of tickets to drop into the ticket bag for various prizes. Stuff the ballot box for that item or two that you really want or spread your tickets around to try to win often.

The Marriot Fairfax at Fair Oaks Mall is located across the parking lot from the mall proper along US Route 50 at 11787 Lee Jackson Memorial Highway, Fairfax, Virginia, 22033.

2 comments:

Greta Koehl said...

I am so going to be there. Hope to see you there.

TCasteel said...

I'll be there too!