Space is still available for participation in the CCGS-ETHA FAMILY HISTORY FAIR scheduled for Saturday, March 29, 2014, at the First United Methodist Church, 1031 SE Loop 456, Jacksonville, Texas, organizers said earlier this week. “We still have seats available in all of the dozen breakout lecture sessions and there is still room for exhibits and vendors in Waller Hall, the church’s fellowship hall,” organizers said. The event is being organized by the Cherokee County Genealogical Society and sponsored by a grant to CCGS by the East Texas Historical Association, SFASU, Nacogdoches. The hours of the one day event are 9AM to 3 PM. The church will open at 8:00 AM for vendors and exhibitors to begin setting up and for checking in at the registration table. Because of the ETHA grant the fee to attend the CCGS-ETHA Family History Fair is very reasonable CCGS committee members said. The fee includes a hot lunch provided by the church’s adult mission group. The fee will be discounted for CCGS and ETHA members and will include the hot lunch. The Family History Fair is a fund raising project for both CCGS and the adult missions group of First United Methodist, Jacksonville. The adult mission group supports the church food pantry for local missions. “CCGS is very fortunate to partner with ETHA and the Jacksonville First United Methodist Church.” “The church has a very fine facility with a floor plan and space to support events of this type. CCGS has not held an event of this type for over a dozen years. We have no plans to make this an annual event. We do hope to have more special programs in the future combining history and genealogy. Just not annually on this scale!” Members of the CCGS committee planning the Family History Fair are CCGS President Gordon Bennett of Jacksonville, CCGS 1st Vice President Vivian Cates of Alto, CCGS member and Assoc. 1st UMC Barbara Hugghins of Jacksonville. The committee is being assisted by CCGS member Deborah Burkett of Troup and other CCGS members working on publicity and setting up the event. The one day Family History Fair program sessions are set up like the Angelina College Genealogy Conference still continuing to be held on that campus every summer. “This is a one day event. The AC Conference has grown to three days.” Mrs. Cates first organized the AC Conference beginning in 1997. “Another speaker on Cherokee County Cemeteries has been added in the last session on Tract III at 2:00 PM since our original fair brochure and publicity was sent out,” Mr. Bennett said. Long time CCGS member Kaye Slover of Nacogdoches will present her power point program on Cherokee County Cemeteries. Both Mrs. Slover and her husband have deep roots in Cherokee County with many family members buried in Cherokee County cemeteries. Mrs. Slover is the web master for the CCGS web site. Much of her cemetery research is posted on the award winning CCGS web site. Some of the book sellers scheduled for the event are ETHA, Ericson Books, David Schochler of Diboll, Winnie Graham of Huntington, and Deborah Burkett of Troup. There is no charge for table/booth space. Sellers are being asked to donate a percentage back to the CCGS. Some of the other exhibits and information tables are expected to include the Cherokee County Historical Commission, Reynolds Family Association, SFASU East Texas Research Center, ETHA, National Society Daughters of the American Revolution and United Daughters of the Confederacy. The 1st UMC has free WiFi. Attendees are welcome to bring laptop computers to compare notes and visit with other participants in an informal “Genealogy Café,” committee members said. While walk-ins will be accepted, advance reservations for the Family History Fair are strongly advised by society members especially for the lunch count. To obtain further information and to register for the event contact the society by regular mail at P. O. Box 1332, Jacksonville, Texas 75766, via e-mail to ccgs@suddenlink.net, or by calling 1-903-586-0135. For prices and more details on the programs and the speakers visit the CCGS web site at http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~txcherok. There will be three tracts of speakers with four sessions each. Dr. Scott Sosebee, director of ETHA and an associate professor of history at SFASU will be the key-note speaker at 9AM. Speaking sessions will begin at 10:00 AM and 11:00 AM with 12:00-1:00 lunch break and then 1:00 PM and 2:00 2PM. Carol Taylor of Greenville, Texas, is the speaker in Tract I entitled CIVIL WAR PAPER TRAILS. Mrs. Taylor presented a similar program series at the Angelina College Genealogical Conference last July and will be presenting speaking sessions on similar topics in Houston early this month. Her four session titles are "During the War: Records Created 1861 – 1865," "When the War Was Over" "Women, Children and Other Civilians," and "Southern Claims Commission Papers." Mrs. Taylor, a retired teacher and an avid genealogist for years, earned her master’s degree in history from Texas A&M in Commerce. Christi Watkins R.N. Chief Clinical Officer at Palestine Regional Medical Center, will present two sessions in Tract II, “Are You Related to Royalty??, “ and “Skeletons in the Closet.” Ms. Watkins has extensive expertise in the field of DNA testing for identification purposes and worked in New York City after 9/11. Still in Tract II, Carolyn Reeves Ericson of Nacogdoches will present one session on “Early Virginia Research” including information on the early Germanna Colony and Ancient Planters. Mrs. Ericson is a genealogist, historian, author and publisher, operator of Ericson Books and writes a weekly genealogy column for two East Texas newspapers. The fourth session in Tract II will be present by Linda Reynolds, Director of the East Texas Research Center. The ETRC is located on the second floor of Steen Library at SFASU in Nacogdoches. Reynolds’ topic will be “Records Preservation.” In Tract III John Garbutt of Rusk, Special Projects Administrator will present the first session, “History of the Texas State Railroad.” David Schochler of Diboll, Texas, will present two sessions entitled “Genealogical Research in Western Europe” and “So, your GGGrandfather was born in the Sundgav! Now what?” In 2013 Mr. Schochler published a book based on his research of his Schochler family who settled in Cherokee County, Texas. His previous programs for two area genealogy societies have been present in period costume. Vivian Toole Cates, Alto 1-936-858-3801 CCGS 1st Vice-president Program Chairman, Publicity, Special Projects-Cherokee County Genealogical Society, Committee Chairman Family History Fair