Special Conference Events, Part 4

Thursday, 10 May 2012: Research at the Public Library of Cincinnati & Hamilton County

On Thursday night, the Public Library of Cincinnati & Hamilton County extends its hours exclusively for NGS Conference attendees. This free event provides an opportunity to research in one of the nation’s leading genealogy libraries, featuring holdings from all fifty states and more than twenty foreign countries as well as unique resources from Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana. Additional library staff will be available to guide researchers to their areas of interest.

Join fellow genealogists for this special evening at the Public Library. There is no limitation on the number of participants or need to register but you must show your conference badge for entry. Doors open to the NGS event at 6:30 pm and remain open until 11:30 pm. For more information about the Public Library of Cincinnati & Hamilton County, visit http://www.cincinnatilibrary.org/.

The library is located two blocks east and two blocks north of the Duke Energy Convention Center, even closer from some of the downtown conference hotels. Researchers may walk, take a taxi or drive. Street parking is free after 5 pm. Maps will be available at the Conference information booth near Registration in the Duke Energy Convention Center.

Special Conference Events, Part 4

Special Conference Events, Part 3

Thursday, 10 May 2012: National Underground Railroad Freedom Center

FamilySearch and the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center invite you to spend a memorable evening on Thursday from 6 to 9 pm at this museum located in downtown Cincinnati on the banks of the Ohio River. The Freedom Center will be open exclusively for NGS Conference attendees to view the exhibits without charge.

A Smithsonian Institution affiliate, the Freedom Center tells the story of the enslaved crossing over the Ohio River on the journey to freedom. They were assisted by men and women of all backgrounds who had created a secret network of escape routes that came to be called the Underground Railroad. The mission of the Freedom Center is to reveal stories about freedom's heroes, from the era of the Underground Railroad to contemporary times, challenging and inspiring people to take courageous steps for freedom today.

The Freedom Center has five major permanent exhibitions, including the world's first museum-quality, permanent exhibition on the subjects of modern-day slavery and human trafficking, as well as a full calendar of changing exhibits, programs and activities. A FamilySearch Center is onsite, in the John Parker Library, to assist people searching for their ancestors. For more information about the Freedom Center, visit http://www.freedomcenter.org.

Conference attendees may walk, take a taxi or drive to the Freedom Center. Walking from the Duke Energy Convention Center or the conference hotels takes less than 15 minutes.

Special Conference Events, Part 3

Special Conference Events, Part 2

Wednesday, 9 May 2012: Cincinnati History Museum Tour, Dinner and Union Terminal Program

An exclusive tour of the Cincinnati History Museum, one of the largest and most significant urban history museums in the country, has been reserved especially for NGS Conference attendees. Experience the tremendous Art Deco rotunda of the Union Terminal train station, and see a model of the City of Cincinnati from 1900 to the 1940s with working trains and inclines. Sit in an antique Cincinnati streetcar, and explore a large homefront exhibit on World War II. Immerse yourself in a re-creation of the Cincinnati waterfront in the 1850s, including a steamboat ninety-four feet long. Learn about the “Brown Water” navy and how the western rivers were of strategic and logistical importance to the Union during the Civil War. The Cincinnati History Museum features exhibits on transportation, industry and many facets of the American experience that go beyond local interest.

The tour will last about one hour with easy walking including some up and down ramps. Following the tour, enjoy a private reception complete with cash bar and a delectable buffet dinner. The evening will end with a short program by a museum docent on the building of the magnificent Art Deco Union Terminal rotunda and train station.

Buses will leave from the Duke Energy Convention Center at 4:45 pm (subsequent buses will leave when loaded) for the short ride to the Cincinnati Museum Center. This tour will accommodate most individuals who can enter a bus with limited assistance. Following the program, buses will begin loading (about 8 pm) to return to the Convention Center. The price of $65.00 includes bus transportation, a ticket to the Cincinnati History Museum, a buffet dinner and the program. Seating is limited to 220 participants. For more information about the Cincinnati Museum Center, visit http://www.cincymuseum.org/. To make reservations for this event, use the online registration system.

Special Conference Events, Part 2

Special Conference Events

Four unique events have been planned to enhance your participation in the NGS 2012 Family History Conference in Cincinnati. Each event will be described over the next few days.

Tuesday, 8 May 2012: Tour of Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky

See why Cincinnati is called the “Queen City” on a special tour created just for NGS Conference attendees and hosted by trained Cincinnati Historical Society docents. Learn some of the interesting history of Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky on a three-and-a-half-hour tour aboard comfortable motor coaches.

The tour begins with a short ride to the Cincinnati Museum Center, one of Cincinnati’s iconic National Historic Landmarks. Originally built in 1933 as the Union Terminal train station, the Museum Center was recently named one of the top 50 architecturally significant buildings in America by the American Institute of Architects. Disembark from the coach to briefly view the interior of the breathtaking, ten-story grand rotunda that will take you back in time to an earlier day of rail transportation. (This will also be the site of a Thursday night museum visit, dinner and program.)

Board the coach and continue to the Kentucky side of the Ohio River along historic Riverside Drive in Covington, featuring wonderful 19th century mansions and the perfect view of the Cincinnati skyline. See the Notre Dame-inspired St. Mary’s Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption, with the world’s largest church stained glass window, before heading back to Ohio. Tour the highlights of downtown Cincinnati including Over-the-Rhine, an area containing the largest collection of Italianate architecture in the United States. Continue through the narrow hillside streets of Mount Adams, into Mount Auburn and on to Clifton, home of the University of Cincinnati. By the end of your tour through Avondale and other Cincinnati suburbs, you’ll understand why Cincinnati is truly one of the great unknown cities of America.

This special tour has been arranged for 12:30 to 4 pm on Tuesday, 8 May 2012, embarking in front of the Duke Energy Convention Center which is within easy walking distance from all conference hotels. The tour features limited walking and will accommodate most individuals who can enter a motor coach with limited assistance. The price is $21.00 per person. Three coaches have been reserved for a limit of 168 people. To make reservations, use the online registration system.

Special Conference Events