John Philip Colletta is coming all the way from Washington DC to speak to genealogists in the Omaha area with ideas to hone their skills and give them the tools to find more ancestors. The big day is October 30 and it will be at the Paralyzed Veterans of America building--lots of space.    His topics are: AM Using Original and Derivative Sources: How to evaluate Evidence  This lecture defines and discusses original and derivative sources, and explores the assets and drawbacks of each. It demonstrates how to derive the full informational content from a source; the importance of knowing the origin and purpose of the source; how to resolve conflicting "facts;" how to weigh documentary evidence to arrive at the "most probable" truth; how to combine sources to see the "whole picture;" and how to test hypotheses to learn the true story of your own ancestors. Only a Few Bones: Case studies in pulling sources together to reconstruct real life events. The biographical facts we discover about our ancestors did not happen in a vacuum. Our ancestors were born, lived, & died under specific physical circumstances at specific times in history. Using seven specific19th-century case studies drawn from his book, Only a Few Bones: A True Account of the Rolling Fork Tragedy and Its Aftermath, this lecture demonstrates how to turn biographical facts into the real-life experiences they were by gathering together multiple documentary sources bearing on a particular ancestral event and individualizing it. The case studies include: locating the precise place in the backcountry where an ancestor was born; determining whether an ancestor built his house on his city land or his country land; learning the circumstances -- time, place, weather, society, etc. -- of a wedding ceremony; exploring an ancestor's appointment to public office during Reconstruction; examining a freedman's experience as Justice of the Peace; locating the grave of a Jewish clerk who died young; reconsructing an ancestor's legal dispute with the captain of the Robert E. Lee.   11:45  Lunch on your own & visit vendors. The box lunches will be either turkey or beef, and must be pre-ordered.  They will not be available for purchase the day of the conference.  (There are restaurants & fast food places not too far from the conference facility, however.) 1:30  Military Pension & Bounty Land Records 1776 - 1912  This lecture explains what federal military pension and bounty land records are. It discusses how they are arranged at the National Archives, what information they contain, and what you need to know to begin a search for an ancestor's record. Using two specific sample cases, it demonstrates how to use resources available locally on microfilm, in books and on the Internet, as well as those in the National Archives, to find and obtain the record of an ancestor's military pension or bounty land.   3:00  Breaking Through Brick Walls: Use your Head.  The path of genealogical investigation is strewn with many stumbling blocks, and every so often we even hit a brick wall. When that happens, it’s time to use your head! This lecture offers some guidelines, some points of methodology, for how to proceed when you hit a brick wall. The theory, however, is presented very briefly, giving way to five or six solid, practical examples.    I have read his fascinating book Only a Few Bones, and am looking forward to hearing more about the process he used in researching a murder mystery that was about 100 years old.   There are fliers are at Omaha Public Libraries (at W. Dale Clark Library where the genealogy collection is, they're on 3rd floor). We've tried to get them out at area genealogy societies and family history centers. If you would like, I can email the registration information to you, because time is getting short to qualify for the reduced rate allowed because of pre-registration.  (Must be postmarked by the 12th of Oct, UNLESS you are attending the Family History Fair on the 20th and turn it in there.)  There are discounts for those who are members of the genealogy society, or who join at the time of their registration.   Discounts on conferences are only one of the perks of membership in Greater Omaha Genealogical Society. For groups of 5 or more from another gen society, we offer a rebate to the society of $5.00 per person.    If you can't make it to a library or family history center to pick up a flier, let me know and I'll try to email the registration information out to you. Sandy O'Neil, GOGS, HCGS