Section 1 – Contact Information:

Key Personnel Available for Personal Interviews:  

Conference Location:  Holiday Inn By the Bay, Portland Maine: www.innbythebay.com

New York Times article on Portland, Maine:  www.nytimes.com/2004/08/08/travel/08wdportland.html

A conference email newsletter, or "e-zine," is available to provide up-to-the-minute information about Conference happenings and planned activities, as well as more details about the lectures, special programs, exhibits and other news. 

To subscribe to the e-zine: Visit the Conference Website:  www.nergc.org/z-zine.htm.

Section 2 – Press Release:

NEWS FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contacts: 

Conference Co-Chairs:

Program Chair:  Laura Prescott lgprescott@charter.net  617-226-1252

Publicity Chair:  John Konvalinka  john@konvalinka.com   609-924-9742

Genealogists Heading “Down East” for Direction in Their Research 

As every New Englander knows, you go “down” to get to Maine.  Genealogists looking for new directions in their research will be going “down to Maine” to attend the 8^th New England Regional Genealogical Conference which will be held from March 31-April 3, 2005 at the Holiday Inn By The Bay in Portland Maine.

The theme of the Conference is “New England Crossroads 2005”.  Four of the country’s best known genealogists will be the lead speakers for this program:

·        Tony Burroughs will speak on “The Six Phases of African American Genealogy” and  “The Digital Office”

·        Cyndi Howells will discuss “Evaluating Web Sites” and  “Planting Family: Your Family Tree Online”

·        Elizabeth Shown Mills’ topics are “The Identity Crisis: “Right Name, Wrong Man?  Wrong Name, Right Man?” and “Finding Females:  Wives, Mothers, Daughters, Sisters & Paramours”

·        Craig Scott will discuss “Settled Accounts:  The New England Experience in Federal Records”  and “Putting Ink on Paper:  Getting Your Genealogical Material Published”

In addition Burroughs and Mills will be the speakers at the two Conference banquets:  Burroughs  on “Becoming A Better Genealogist” and Mills on “Discovering “Forgotten People: The story behind Isle of Canes” 

More than 40 additional speakers at this three day Conference a will discuss a wide range of topics in tracks devoted to New England Research, Ethnic Genealogy, Federal Records, Libraries and Records, Writing and Publishing, Skills and Methodology, DNA Research and Computers the Internet and other technical topics.   Complete program details can be found at:  www.NERGC.org. 

 Other features of the Conference:

·        Special interest groups will hold mini-gatherings for anyone interested in similar topics.

·        There will be a special session for First time Conference attendees.

·        At the “Ancestors’ Road Show” participants will have the opportunity for complimentary one-on-one consultations with experienced professional genealogists.

·        They will also have the opportunity for small group “power lunches” with the lead speakers and other nationally known genealogists.

·        Genealogical Societies from all over New England will be in attendance, offering information about their resources and specialties. 

·        Exhibitors from all over the U.S. and Canada will offer genealogical products and services. 

Conference Co-Chair Melinde Lutz Sanborn says, “NERGC brings exceptional quality at minimal price to new and established genealogists throughout New England.  Among our more than 40 speakers is the author of the best-selling Isle of Canes,  Elizabeth Shown Mills, F.A.S.G. Her interviews on radio and CNN have helped to propel this compelling multi-generational historical novel to #9 on the Amazon.com list.  A resident of Alabama, her appearance here is a real treat for New Englanders.”

"The 2005 Conference will prove to be even more successful than the 2003 Falmouth, MA Conference, which was the most successful conference NERGC has run, based on attendance, finances, and participant evaluations" according to Tom Howard, who incidentally will also chair the 2007 NERGC Conference, which will be held in Connecticut. 

The New England Regional Genealogical Conference was formed twenty years ago to bring cutting edge genealogical education within the reach of New England genealogists.   Since its founding, NERGC has produced seven conferences in every state in New England. The most recent conference, held in Falmouth MA in November 2003, was attended by over 500 genealogists from more than twenty states.  

The 2005 Conference will be held at the award winning Holiday Inn By the Bay in Portland Maine which offers views of Casco Bay and convenient access to the Old Port’s shops, galleries and restaurants where great lobster dinners are never out of season.  Its website is www.innbythebay.com.  See the positive New York Times article on Portland, Maine:  www.nytimes.com/2004/08/08/travel/08wdportland.html

For more information visit the NERGC site: www.NERGC.org  or call 609-924-9742.

Section 3 – Program Highlights:

In addition to the Program Information in the “Press Release” section of this press kit:

·        Nine separate lecture tracks will be available during the Conference:

o       Genealogy 101 (for beginners)

o       Photography Workshop

o       New England Research

o       Ethnic Genealogy

o       DNA and Other Technical Issues

o       Beyond Basic Federal Records

o       Libraries and Records

o       Writing and Publishing

o       Skills and Methodology

·        There will be dinner banquets on Friday and Saturday evenings:

o       Friday:  Best selling author Elizabeth Shown Mills will share some of her wonderful experiences in writing and promoting this exceptional historical novel, Isle of Canes, the true story of a multi-racial family you’ve never read about in high school history books.

o       Saturday:  Tony Burroughs will discuss the cases of some genealogists who are not having much luck and think they have hit a brick wall. But with a little bit of guidance, each one can become a better genealogist.

·         SPECIAL EVENTS:

ANCESTORS ROAD SHOW:  Got a thorny problem that just refuses to be solved? Ask an expert!  Bring a concise statement of your toughest problem and spend 15 minutes with a skilled genealogist and explore ways to find the answer. Free to attendees on Friday and Saturday.

·         LUNCHES WITH THE SPEAKERS:  There will be four premium luncheons each day, each hosted by one of the popular Conference speakers:  Tony Burroughs, Dick Eastman, Walter Hickey, Cyndi Howells, Marcia Melnyk, Elizabeth Shown Mills, Craig Scott and Maureen Taylor.  These won’t be “lecture lunches” --  just a pleasant setting and relaxed atmosphere for conversation and a great meal.

·         SOCIETY FAIRS AND EXHIBITORS:  Societies from all over New England will be in attendance, offering information about their specialties. Exhibitors from across the U.S. and Canada will offer genealogical products and services.

·         ETHNIC/INTEREST GROUPS:  Special interest groups will hold mini-gatherings for anyone interested in a wide range of topics.

·   On SUNDAY 3 APRIL 2005 Henry Cooke will presents “In the Spirit of 1776: A Divine Service with Reverend William Emerson of Concord.” This lively recreation of a Revolutionary War era Congregational sermon will be conducted in costume and depicts the grandfather of Ralph Waldo Emerson preaching to the militia muster of Middlesex County.

Section 4 – More on Featured  Speakers:

Tony Burroughs is an internationally known genealogist and a Fellow of the Utah Genealogical Association.  He teaches genealogy at Chicago State University and is the best selling author of Black Roots: A Beginners Guide to Tracing the African American Family Tree (Simon & Schuster).

 He lectures throughout the United States and Canada on all aspects of genealogy and has been quoted in the New York Times, Christian Science Monitor, Jet, People, & Time Magazines. He has been interviewed on CBS Sunday Morning, CBS News, ABC World News Tonight, BET Nightly News, and was a featured genealogy expert in seven episodes of the PBS television series, Ancestors.  He hosts a documentary on the family of Jesus produced by the BBC to air on the Discovery Channel in December 2004.

Tony has served on the Board of Directors of the Association of Professional Genealogists, the New England Historic Genealogical Society and other national organizations. He was awarded the Distinguished Service award by the National Genealogical Society and Fellow of the Utah Genealogical Association. His research enabled the Kimsey Crossing home in Tamarora, Illinois to be recognized by the National Park Service's Underground Railroad Network to Freedom.  In his own family he has traced two family lines back seven generations.   

Cyndi Howells is the owner and webmaster of Cyndi’s List of Genealogy Sites on the Internet, www.CyndisList.com, a categorized index to over 240,000 online resources. It has three times been voted the best genealogy site on the Web and receives more than 3.2 million visits each month.

It has been featured by the History Channel web site and in the media and several publications, including ABC News, NBC News, USA Today, Time, Newsweek, Parade Magazine, Wired, Yahoo! Internet Life, Family Chronicle, and Home PC magazines.

A genealogist for more than 24 years, Cyndi is a member of the Board of Directors of the National Genealogical Society and a nationally known guest lecturer at genealogical society meetings and seminars. She is the author of a best-selling book for genealogical research on the Internet, Netting Your Ancestors and of another book, a printed version of her web site, Cyndi's List. Her latest book is Planting Your Family Tree Online: How To Create Your Own Family History Web Site.  

Elizabeth Shown Mills has been dubbed by genealogical audiences on three continents as the , "The Pied Piper of Family History" and "The Mother of Modern Genealogy." New England Historical and Genealogical Register has hailed her as “the genealogist who has had the greatest impact on American genealogy in the post-Roots era.”

For a quarter century, Elizabeth has pushed the cutting edge of research methodology, standards, and quality, filling the presidency of both the Board for Certification of Genealogists and the American Society of Genealogists, and numerous posts for other major organizations.

As long-term editor of the National Genealogical Society Quarterly, Elizabeth made that journal into the flagship for teaching research methods and principles. For even longer, her Advanced Methodology Track at the Samford University IGHR has been a rite of passage for serious genealogists.

Two of her publications, Evidence! Citation & Analysis for the Family Historian and Professional Genealogy: A Manual for Researchers, Writers, Editors, Lecturers, and Librarians are considered absolute essentials for both professional and personal genealogists.

Elizabeth’s latest book, Isle of Canes, again breaks new ground, converting 30 years of genealogical study into an epic account of a Creole family that reviewers have called a cross between Roots and Gone with the Wind.

Craig Roberts Scott, MA, was the co-editor of Northern Virginia Genealogy(1996-97) and the editor of the Scott Genealogical Quarterly (1987-1995). He is the author of The 'Lost Pensions': Settled Accounts of the Act of 6 April 1838 and Records of the Accounting Officers of the Department of the Treasury, Inventory 14 (Revised). He has co-authored several books relating to records in Northern Virginia. He has authored articles in the National Genealogical Society Quarterly and Family Chronicle and many other genealogical publications.

He is the CEO and President of Heritage Books, Inc., a genealogical publishing firm with over 2,600 titles in print located in Westminster, Maryland. The bookstore division, Willow Bend Books, is the largest genealogy bookstore in the world. A professional genealogical and historical researcher for more than nineteen years, he specializes in the records of the National Archives, especially those that relate to the military.

He is the current president of the Association of One-Name Studies and was the Clan Scott Genealogist (1985 - 2000). He is a member of the Company of Military Historians, a citizen member of the Library Board of Virginia, a Governor-at- Large of the Virginia Genealogical Society, a Board Member of the Maryland Genealogical Society, on the editorial board of the National Genealogical Society Quarterly, and a Director of the Association of Professional Genealogists. A faculty member of the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research, Samford University he is the coordinator of the 2005 Advanced Military Records Course. 

 Section 5 – More on New England Regional Genealogical Conference:

The New England Regional Genealogical Conference was organized twenty years ago to bring cutting edge genealogical education within the reach of New England genealogists.  Twenty-nine genealogical societies, representing tens of thousands of genealogists worldwide,  joined together to produce world class genealogical conferences, featuring nationally and internationally known speakers, in the six New England states. 

NERGC’s stated mission is:

·         To promote an interest in Genealogy

·         To promote skills and a level of expertise of genealogists through sponsorship of educational conferences

·         To promote harmony and cooperation among Genealogical Societies

·         To promote adherence to accepted standards for the use and care of genealogical records.

NERGC’s current  Board of Directors consists of:

·        David Mishkin, President

·        Kathryn Smith Black,  Vice President

·        Joseph Hoefflinger, Treasurer

·        Victoria Ryan, Secretary

·        Ernest Cardoza, Director

·        Thomas F. Howard, Director

·        Richard Roberts, Director

Since its founding, NERGC has produced seven conferences in every state in New England:

·        1992 Sturbridge, MA

·        1994 Manchester, NH

·        1995 Burlington, VT

·        1997 Cromwell, CT

·        1998 Portland, ME

·        2000 Providence, RI (In conjunction with the National Genealogical Society)

 

The most recent conference, held in Falmouth, MA in November 2003, was attended by over 500 genealogists from over twenty states in the Union.  In addition to the 2005 Conference in Portland, ME, plans are already underway to hold a Conference in 2007 in Connecticut.

NERGC continues to broaden its base of guaranteed support by admitting new societies to membership.  Its experience in running conferences, continuing to attract outstanding national and quality local speakers, and offering stimulating and timely topics, all at reasonable cost to the participants, has proven to be a very successful formula. And, by holding each conference in a different area, NERGC continues to  tap new markets and populations.

Section 6 – More on Participating Societies:

 The 22 Societies and Organizations who are Participating in the 2005 New England Regional Genealogical Conference: