Thursday / Friday Program

Please note there is no evening meal provided at St. Lawrence this evening. However, once you’ve checked in with both the Residence and the Conference desks, you are invited to “Meet and Greet” members of the OGS Board and other registrants, between 7:00 and 9:00 pm in the Residence common room. For a guide to restaurants in the Kingston area, see Tourism Kingston’s Dining Guide, http://www.kingstoncanada.com/en/dine/SF_index.asp.

FRIDAY, JUNE 1

Breakfast – 7:30 cafeteria opens. Registrants may purchase breakfast as desired.

Registration desk opens in the College building, 8:00 am. until 8:00 pm

Workshops 9:30 – 12:00.

(Please note:  there is an extra charge for these pre-conference workshops.  You may choose one of four Morning workshops.   There are also four different afternoon workshops, listed below.)

W1: Ruth Burkholder – Starting Out in Genealogy

This workshop, with time for questions throughout, will focus on acquainting new, and not so new, genealogists with the records that are used to further their ancestral search. Discussion will include the need for using original records that have been indexed, extracted or published, pointing out that there can be human error in creating the index or extraction. Sources of digitized records on the internet, or through CD or microfilm will also be passed on and talked about. The examples will be mainly from Ontario records, but using the internet to access records around the world will also be touched on and some of the more prominent sites will be demonstrated.

W2: Colleen Fitzpatrick – You Will Never Look at Your Old Photos the Same Way Again!

This workshop will start with analysis techniques based on physical characteristics of photographs, such as the shape, the paper, the mat, plus anything that can be found stamped or written on the back. We will cover the characteristics of the different types of photographs: Daguerreo­types, ambrotypes, and tintypes and how to tell the difference. Then we will cover what can be obtained from the contents of a photo, including objects, landmarks, and writing that reference events, dates, and places. The final stage concludes with an example or two (whatever time allows) of a photograph that we will take apart piece by piece, to deduce as much as possible about the “big picture” behind it. Once you have attended this photo workshop, you will never look at your old photos the same way again!

W3: Lois Sparling – An Overview of Land Records in North America

Land records may be the most reliable and important single category of records available for researching families in North America, especially before 1850. This workshop will review the most common land survey systems and transactions between private individuals in English Canada and the United States.

The major draw for immigrants to North America until very recently was the opportunity to own land. Land records are very reliable and exist from the earliest days of European settlement to the present. The purchase and sale of land generally indicates the arrival and subsequent departure of the individual or family in a specific locality. Petitions for land grants from the government often refer to family members, including wives. Wives are recorded when they bar or release their dower rights. Widows, married daughters and other children are recorded when they file quit claims. Land transactions are often with relatives. The language used in deeds and other legal documents can be confusing to the novice but can be interpreted with the use of a legal dictionary and a few basic concepts. As the centuries passed and thinking on how best to describe and distribute land to individual owners evolved, land surveying changed from the metes and bounds system found in the Maritime Provinces and Eastern Seaboard States to the rectangular lots within townships found in Ontario and finally to the Torrens system used in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta, which itself is a refinement of the survey system used in the central and western American states.

W4: Lesley Anderson – Maximizing Your Results at Ancestry.ca
Sorry, this workshop is now filled.
Learn how to get more accurate search results the first time when searching Ancestry.ca databases, in this hands-on workshop. Limited to 44 registrants.

Marketplace open 11:00 am – 7:00 pm

Lunch 12:00-1:30: Bag lunches for ticket-holders (marketplace vendors setting up, volunteers, etc.) Cafeteria is also open until 2:30 pm.

Hall of Ancestors – 1:00 pm – registrants can begin posting query cards in corridor approaching dining room.

Friday Afternoon Workshops 1:30 – 4:00  PLEASE NOTE:  If you sign up for an afternoon workshop, you cannot sign up for a tour at the same time!

W5: Colleen Fitzpatrick – The ABCs of DNA

This DNA workshop will be an expanded version of what I normally present during a DNA talk, and will be based on our book DNA & Genealogy. The first hour will cover the basics of DNA, including what DNA is, types of DNA, and the types of DNA markers sued for genetic genealogy. Then I will go into the practicalities of getting involved with a DNA study, which company you should test with, the types of tests available, and which test is right for you. Finally, I will cover what to do once you have received your results: what the results mean, how to match them to others, and the various public DNA databases available on the internet. It will also touch on cladograms that present a “picture” of how people in a DNA study are interrelated. All through the workshop, I will present interesting vignettes about DNA. These will include weird DNA stories and stories about DNA in the news.

W6: Stephen Young – PowerPoint 2007: Technology for Presenting Your Family History

PowerPoint can be a very persuasive and entertaining tool in presenting your family history. This workshop will demonstrate the dramatic effects this tool can provide using text, graphics and animation, whether to share a presentation with relatives on your own desktop or laptop computers, or shared on the Internet.

Although genealogical research is one of the most popular of pastimes or hobbies to millions of people around the world, to at least as many the production of charts and facts about people in the past holds little or no interest. In sharing family group sheets and pedigree charts with immediate and extended family and others, appreciation for this research ranges from excited approval to mild appreciation and even to total disinterest. To some the presentation of pages and pages of stale names, dates and places evokes memories of that dreaded history class back in school where the dry subjects of the past seemed to relate little to our present. However, few people are immune to the visual stimulation of looking at a dynamic presentation about their own family. Looking at the half-forgotten or unpredictably familiar features in old family photographs can captivate the interest of relatives otherwise indifferent. Even the appearance of supporting documentation in the form of church, census, vital, military, as well as many other records, lend authenticity and context to a family’s place in history. Whether presented on a television or computer screen, or projected on a living room wall, visual presentations of family history usually generate greater interest than the printed page. With the greater accessibility of today’s technology, almost any genealogist can easily create a presentation of their research results for the entertainment or instruction of others.

W7: Rick Roberts – Using Family Tree Maker Software to Record and Share Your Family History

Benefit from dozens of hints and tips that will help you improve your results using Family Tree Maker. Discover the best techniques for entering information, dealing with conflicting dates and events, how to make professional quality genealogy charts and reports at the click of a mouse, and even how to create a family history book that your family will treasure for generations. Most people use less than 20% of Family Tree Maker’s capabilities. Once you know about the other 80%, you can decide which features and options will help you to best record and share your family history using Family Tree Maker.

W8: Lisa Louise Cooke – Google: A Goldmine for Genealogists

You’re a dedicated researcher, but chances are you’re working too hard! Discover innovative ways to work smarter and find more research golden nuggets than you ever thought possible with the power of Google. Frustrated by thousands of irrelevant search results in your recent Google searches for your family history? Do you want to achieve better results in a shorter amount of time? Learn the art of online search with Genealogy Podcaster and Google Expert Lisa Louise Cooke. In this class you will expand your Google search repertoire and learn techniques, tricks and tips to achieve better genealogical search results.

Friday Afternoon Tours: 1:00-5:00 pm 

(Please note, there is a charge for each of these pre-conference tours.  NOTE:  you cannot take a tour and an afternoon workshop since they occur at the same time! The sole exception is the 4:15 run of Tour #1, which starts after the afternoon workshops end.)

T1: Journey through 300 years of history!

Explore Kingston’s waterfront, charming limestone heritage and modern attractions during a one-hour tour on the Confederation Tour Trolley. The trolley is accessible and enclosed. Board the trolley in front of the college.  (Fee: $16)

T2: Visit historic Fort Henry, Kingston’s foremost historic site.

Built 1832–1837 to protect the naval dockyard at Point Frederick, the entrance of the Rideau Canal and the town of Kingston, the major trans-shipment point along the supply route serving Montreal and Ottawa and all points west. Board the bus in front of the college at 1:00 p.m. for a group tour of the fort, returning to the college about 5:00 p.m.  (Fee:  $25)

Please note: This tour is not fully accessible: The short ride is by school bus, terrain is rough and the fort has two stories with no elevator.

T3: Visit the renowned Massey Library, Royal Military College.

This home of the Spurr Military Collection boasts an extensive collection of books covering all aspects of military studies. Board the bus in front of the college at 1:00 p.m. The librarian will give an introductory talk about the library, after which there will be time for personal research before bus leaves at 4:45 p.m.  (Fee:  $12)

4:00-5:30 pm NIGS Graduation Ceremony

The National Institute for Genealogical Studies, a partner with the Ontario Genealogical Society, invites you to applaud as their latest graduates receive their certificates for completing a course of genealogical studies. Through the use of LiveMeeting, graduates from around the world will join with those present in the St. Lawrence College Lecture Theatre.

Dinner 5:30-7:00 pm for those holding tickets. Dinner will be a BBQ buffet in the dining room and, if weather permits, on the connected terrace.

7:30 pm Opening Ceremonies

8:00 S1: Houston Lecture: Ian Wilson, Librarian and Archivist of Canada Emeritus – “Reflections on Archivists and Genealogists”

9:00 Wine and Cheese reception. Nibbles provided by Conference, cash bar for wine and drinks.