The NGS Conference in Sacramento is now just days away. An exciting new feature at this year's conference is the demonstration area in the exhibit hall. Admission to the exhibit hall is free and so are these demonstrations. To help you plan your conference experience, the demonstration schedule is given below. Join us for "A Golden Prospect" National Genealogical Society Conference in the States Sacramento Convention Center 19-22 May 2004 www.ngsgenealogy.org WEDNESDAY, MAY 19 10:00 a.m. Sacramento Archives and Museum Collection Center Presentation on doing research in the archives - using a case study to show many types of records held there. Visit the Sacramento Archives and Museum Collection Center's booth #437. 11:00 a.m. Family Time Capsules Presentation about the company's product, videotaped personal interviews combined with footage of family photographs to produce a true visual Family History Documentary on DVD or video stream. Visit the Family Time Capsules booth #706. 12:00 Noon Family Tree DNA Demonstration of the setting up of a DNA surname project and using the tools for a DNA surname project. Visit the Family Tree DNA booth #318. 1:00 p.m. Ancestry A presentation on Ancestry's products and services. 2:00 p.m. Cemetery Research and Tombstone Rubbings Presentation by Pamela Bell Dallas, vice president of the Genealogical and Historical Council of Sacramento Valley, who will use a molded plaster tombstone and go through all the steps. 3:00 p.m. Luzena Stanley Wilson: Music and Memories Luzena and her family caught gold fever in 1849 and left Missouri in a covered wagon. They survived the arduous overland trek only to face floods in Sacramento, fire in Nevada City, and squatter troubles in Vacaville. Luzena, as portrayed by Fern Henry, will reminisce on her pioneer life and perform authentic songs of early California. Ms. Henry is the author of My Checkered Life, a meticulously researched new book about Luzena; visit booth #231 to meet the author. 4:00 p.m. GenSmarts Demonstration of GenSmarts software that uses artificial intelligence to analyze your existing genealogy file and produce research recommendations. It helps you generate and track to do lists, print worksheets to record your research results, and plan trips to libraries, court houses, etc. For online research, GenSmarts produces links that already have your ancestors name and specifics embedded - making it much easier to perform online record lookups. Visit GenSmarts booth #316. THURSDAY 20th MAY 10:00 a.m. The Orton Opus Blane Lamb of the State Archives office, and Bill Davies of California State Archives will demonstrate the Orton Opus, a list of nearly 20,000 California Civil War volunteers. Military terminology will be explained. Mr. Lamb will cover the resources of the California State Archives available that supplement and augment this information. Visit the California State Archives and Golden State Museum at 1020 O Street. 11:00 a.m. Those Wild and Lusty Gold Camps Author Alton Pryor of Stagecoach Publishing will present a talk and answer questions on how life was in the Gold Camps of the Gold Rush days. Visit Stagecoach Publishing's booth #231 and meet the author. 12:30 p.m. Civil War Era Women's Clothing Katrina Worley will demonstrate clothing women wore in the 1860s period and why, and how it worked. Ms. Worley regularly participates in the civilian camp at Civil War re-enactments and is an avid collector of antique sewing machines. 1:30 p.m. Gold Panning Nevada County's Bert Hall will demonstrate how to pan for those gold nuggets. Mr. Hall regular demonstrates gold panning in summer months at the historic Bridgeport Covered Bridge State Park in Nevada County, the longest single span wood arch bridge in the U.S., Built in 1862. 4:00 p.m. RootsMagic Demonstration of the company's genealogy program. Visit the RootsMagic booth #401. FRIDAY 21st MAY 9:00 a.m. DeadFred.com Presentation about DeadFred and what they offer. DeadFred.com aims to reunite you with your ancestors for FREE. Trace your roots with their searchable database containing thousands of identified and mystery photos for genealogy enthusiasts looking for long-lost relatives. Anyone who finds a photo of a direct descendant that is owned by the Archive will receive the photo for free. Visit the Dead Fred's Genealogy Photo Archive booth #711. 10:00 a.m. Straightening Out the Erroneous History of the Donner Party Children Author Naida West of Bridgehouse Publishing will discuss persistent errors in books about the Donner disaster which are numerous, even regarding basics such as the correct names of the survivors. Survivor Elitha's identity had all but disappeared because early record-keepers thought Elitha and Eliza (they rhyme)? must be the same girl. Actually Eliza was a step-sister 10 years younger, with a life story less riddled with hardship and amazing facts. Elitha's husband was accidentally buried alive. Sacramento is our host city, and Elitha is a Sacramento Donner Party survivor. Visit Bridgehouse Publishing's booth #231 and meet the author. 11:00 a.m. Googling for Grandma: Tips and Tricks for Making Google Work for You A presentation by cyndislist.com's own Cyndi Howells, NGS Director-at-Large. Everyone loves Google, the most popular search engine online. Now learn all the secrets and tricks, hidden within this tool and find out how to optimize them for genealogical research. 12:00 Noon Sacramento Old City Cemetery A presentation by "old-time undertaker" Lou Demas, including pictures of the history Sacramento Old City Cemetery. 1:00 p.m. My Ancestors A presentation on the company's products and research services. 3:00 p.m. Heritage Quest/Proquest Will present HeritageQuest Online, and especially the new PERSI Index. 4:00 p.m. National Archives and Records Administration, Pacific Region Presentation of some of the exciting original regional records holdings of interest to genealogists, such as original shipping articles and crew lists for the Port of San Francisco, General Land Office Township Survey Plats, Federal Court naturalization records, and case files on (ancestral) businesses, Asian immigration case files, etc. SATURDAY 22nd MAY 10:00 a.m. Scottish Cultural Heritage Presentations Come listen to the bagpipe and enjoy two different styles of Scottish dance, a presentation coordinated by Dr. Donald Cavanaugh MacCrae, noted etymologist whose expertise includes heraldry, the origins of surnames, and the history of Scottish Clans and Tartans. 11:00 a.m. The NGS Britain and Ireland Forum John Konvalinka, CGRS, and Sheila Benedict, CGRS, will present on behalf of the National Genealogical Society's Britain and Ireland Forum, a new special interest group forum where custom-tailored information is provided, centered on genealogical interests and family history offerings for England, Wales, Ireland, and Scotland. 12:00 Noon Quilting Demonstration Carol Gebel will show some of her antique vintage quilts and tops. She will demonstrate hand quilting using a large quilting hoop on a stand. 1:00 p.m. Finding Juanita Bojorques - The Search for One Grandmother that Led to Seven Generations of Californio Ancestors Sheila Ruiz Harrell of Los Californianos will present a case study of research in California's Hispanic heritage, a very interesting description.